August Overload
In order to get you up to speed on my August adventures, I really need to jump back into the final two weeks of July (yes it’s been that long since my last update…I apologize to my one reader). This is a fairly large re-cap, and I will do my best to keep each adventure informative but to the point.
Precursor to August
Race Spirit of Racine ½ iron? Or focus on the longer training sessions for IM WI that I neglected last year?
That was the question, and the answer was to stay focused on the goal, which is of course 140.6. So I gave up PERFECT race day conditions to engage in a ridiculous 2 hour swim (note that last year my longest swim was actually a half iron race, so this was a necessity for my mental game). The morning after the swim all was fine until my chest randomly started to hurt! Seriously…did I just get injured eating breakfast and brushing my teeth?!?! This pain got worse…and worse…and worse…and then down right debilitating! It moved from my right peck to my back. It felt like a knife was going in one side and out the other. I couldn’t walk down stairs without pain, so I don’t need to tell you what swimming, biking, and running felt like.
To sum it up… I was injured (best guess diagnosis from the medical professionals I know: pulled intercostal muscle).
Steelhead 70.3 (8/1/09)
Me? Drop out because of a little pain? …I guess you don’t follow this blog too closely! There was no way I was going to miss out on being part of “The Diesel’s” first ½ iron, so I HTFU, took some Advil, and made the best of a bad situation. The swim was average. We had a few swells out there that could be a bit challenging at times for breathing and sighting, but I was more focused on short strokes with shallow breathing to inhibit the pain as long as possible. Coming out of the water I asked if Vin was out…Nope.
The bike was very easy for 30-35 miles, as was expected with the winds helping in a BIG way! And just as “what goes up, must come down”…what goes out, must come back. Back meant headwinds. As I tried to push through the wind, my breathing got deep and the pain began to surface. Nothing sharp…but a dull, nagging discomfort was starting. About 40 miles in I asked the crew where Vin was…about 8 minutes back. The homestretch beat me (us) up pretty good, and the feeling of the pavement under my feet had never been more welcome.
I calculated my lead on Vin and when he would catch me due to my inability to breathe deep at this point. I figured he would come up around mile 8-9, and that’s when I would suffer through the pain for a few miles. At this level of fitness, I know my body and what it can do…I knew I could push through four miles of pain. At mile 4, I was placing some soaked sponges under the shoulders of my race top when I heard, “those things aren’t going too make you look any bigger.” Looks like I miscalculated! Understanding where we were in the race, I let him pass…but then my ego took over! I decided to stay with him (remember this is four miles before I wanted to start to feel the knife through the chest). I caught back up and said, “I’m not just going to let you go…I don’t care how bad it hurts.” We ran the next 4-5 miles side by side. And then, at mile 9, it happened. My pain became a cough. That one single cough shut me down. I stopped in my tracks as I felt my chest screaming at me! I think it’s funny that I was almost spot on with my guess of how far I could go before derailing. Is this a mental thing or really a physical limiter? Did my mind acknowledge my earlier assessment of 4 miles of pain and that’s it? I don’t know but the bottom line was I had four miles to go and wasn’t going to drop out. I started to jog again but realized that swinging my arm really hurt, so I tucked it into my race belt and pushed on. A mile later I saw J, and she asked if I could feel my arm (because I looked half paralyzed). I said yes, it just hurt, and that I would finish. For the first time ever, I was beaten by “The Diesel,” but it’s ok…we will battle again.J
Madison Bike Course (8/8/09)
Pouring rain, tornado sirens, slippery roads, and Heath…this was the first 40 miles. The first three speak for themselves. The last, Heath, was a rider from Chicago who wanted some company for his second loop because he was in a bad way! He tagged along with J and I…and if my memory serves me right he consumed four Big Gulp sodas in his final 50 miles & a few bags of Doritos. It was fun to listen to him and to hear about someone else’s IM tales and drive to succeed, but unless he fixes that nutrition issue he will have another tough go at it! Good luck Heath!
Wind, blue skies, scorching heat…this was the second 40 miles. It was almost as if I needed to be tested with every possible condition to prepare me for my upcoming battle, and Mother Nature did not disappoint! J and I met up at the car after the first loop where she called it a day on the bike (and rightfully so as she would be racing the following weekend), and I headed out for round two. Literally within the first mile the storm cleared and for a split second I was excited. By the second mile I was dripping with sweat and thinking how ridiculous this change in weather was and how I wanted the cool rain back! I finished up the ride and headed out for a solid run. And considering that last year the run was never there, I felt pretty good.
After the adventure J took me to a nice Japanese restaurant because somewhere in the past week I had managed to turn 28 years old (I actually forgot about it until someone reminded me). As I do with most tasks, I set a couple goals for the dinner. First, eat all the food served because I needed to refuel. This would be a Herculean task on its own because the amount of food you get was overwhelming (so I approached it the same way I do for an IM distance of course…full steam ahead). Second, was to eat everything with chopsticks. I failed at both goals, just barely, but do have to say I did much better than any other guest at our table! Also, J and I totally won the “catch the flying shrimp in your mouth game” vs. our table…scoreboard!
Pleasant Prairie Olympic Tri (8/16/09)
I had originally scheduled to race, but since I was still nursing a dull pain in my chest and back…decided to save it for the big show. However, I did go and support J and saw a few other athletes and friends. J & J (not to be confused with the other J) were there and I am glad that they don’t use the all too common excuse of having kids to get out of being active. Healthy parents make healthy children, so even if you can’t do 10 or 15 races a year like me, at least keep active and set a good example. Congrats to the husband and wife team of J & J as well as to J for her fast finish. As always, I get very frustrated watching and can’t stop thinking about how I would do… Luckily, I’ll find out in a little over a week!
Madison Bike Course (8/22/09)
Last chance to test my fitness, and it was a doozy! For the first 20 miles I hooked up with a pack being led by a local female pro. I out-biked her by 1 second in an earlier race this season, so figured I would gauge what my pace should be from what she was riding. To be honest, it felt very slow. After those first 20 miles, I decided to take off with one of the top cyclist in the area (J.D.) and unfortunately couldn’t hang on. So I found myself in no-mans land and fell back to my normal riding style, which is probably one gear too hard…always. After my first loop, I posted a time 30 minutes faster than any ride to date out there and felt pretty solid. Then around 60 miles or so, the legs started to feel heavy. At about 70 miles, wouldn’t you know it, that female pro I had left 50 miles ago passed me! I think it has finally set in thanks to that moment right there. The lesson has been learned. I will do everything I can to not chase on race day. I need to be conservative. If I’m passed, I will either see them later in the day (when they bonk on the run)….or I will never see them because they are a better athlete than I am. I think I am finally ok with that, but as always I will have to see what my ego says on race day!J Again I followed the ride with a solid run. Top it all off with a large chocolate milk, and I’ll call that one a successful day.
Chicago Triathlon (8/30/09)
It was another day of support. This time for “The Diesel” in his final race of 2009. I usually praise Vin for his efforts because he does exceptionally well and this was no different. There was some nasty wind out on the bike course along with crowded streets for both the bike and run (the bike is hearsay, but the run I witnessed first hand and am glad I don’t participate in this event). Anyway, I have to give Vin some constructive criticism for once…first, slow down that swim and focus on arm direction. Second, when the bike is done, it’s done! If you comment to me about the bike then, I would have to say your first mile of the run could be AT LEAST one second faster-haha. I know I’m the last to give advice on letting it go, but I know first hand what it does to your race. Take it from me…let it go…I will try to take my own advice next weekend.J Overall, I would call the race a success and expect a stronger and more motivated “Diesel” next September when it really counts.
In a nut shell
Well you just got a little taste of my very hectic August…one injury, one ½ ironman, two trips to Madison, one birthday, and two weekends supporting the crew. I don’t know if I will be posting a short, anxiety ridden, ramble before IM WI, so if I don’t I just have to say that I hope to cap off the multisport season with no regrets. Rain, wind, sun, clouds, and dare I say snow, whether it’s 55°F or 95°F, I will have a smile more often than a frown and will never forget why I go so hard. Oh and I will be drinking from that damn boot this time!
Cheers,
-=Berserker Poke