So I was able to go to USA Triathlon National's in Portland Or this year. Turned out it was the worst experience of my life. Delta managed to lose my bike in the process of getting to portland. At about 2am, before the race, I receved my bike. I was up all night either waiting for it or putting it together. After all that I had to talk to the race officials to see if they would allow me to check my bike in. The story just gets worse though. I made it to the race site with 15min to go before transition closed since I was exhaused and thought I could take an hour nap. My bike was not near set up right, I was exhausted and the whole experience was a nightmare. But I did learn something. Delta is a very bad airline.



So that was also my last tri of the year. It's kind of sad, but it is a good thing. I am tired, and I could use a little down time before I need to start looking to the 2009 season. I have already began to figure out races that I will be at. Right now, I think that it is safe to say you will see me at Philly on June 29, and the Sprint National Championship on July 26. I hope to get back to Black Bear and make my return to the Pittsburgh Tri. In the next few months I plan on having the whole schedule set in stone. The biggest race of the year right now looks like it may be the Lousiville Ironman. I am giving much consideration to that race and would love to finally become an Ironman. Time will tell if I decide to do it. I will get everyone updated here and at www.matthewappleton.com to my 2009 race schedule.

So I finished the NYC Tri over the weekend. What an amazing course! The swim is a point to point. The bike course has a few hills but still mananges to be very fast. The run presents a few challanges but is also a very good route. The transition zone was HUGE!!!. My area was inside of two baseball fields with about 1500 other bikes. It was kind of intimidating at first, but once I took a look at the race route in and out of the transition it was not so bad. I took a jellyfish to the face on the swim (which also was a PR swim at 24min). That stung a little, but I got over it. T1 was really really long (like 4 min) but I had to run about 400 yards just to get to my bike. It was also about 80 degrees at the start of my heat. Very hot day in NYC. In the end, I finished 9/61 in the age group qualifing me to the Lifetime Fitness Amateur Championship in Dallas TX. This is the second national event of the year I have qualified for. Pictures from the event will be posted here and my website. This profile has limited space, so I recomend checking out www.matthewappleton.com later this week for more pictures.

Not sure when my next race is going to be at this point. I have started hard training to get ready for nationals and am working on figuring out how I can get to Dallas Tx. Updates will be posted here and my website.

Sorry for the delay in writting this...I have been very busy with training and work lately.

So i finished the half in 5:56 the other weekend. That was slightly off the time of 5:30 that I wanted. I had to stop cycling for a little durring the race because of very hard rain that lasted about 15minutes. I think that without this delay, I would have had no problem making the 5:30 goal. The morgantown course was awsome, especially the bike portion. I did not find it as hilly as the race directors had said. I auctually had my fastest bike split of the year there even with stopping for a period of time. I feel I am becoming better at the cycling portion of the race. The run sucked. The hill that was on that course was easily the worst I had ever ran up in my many year of competitive running. It was bad enough that myself and everyone around me had to walk up it. That said, the directors should seriously consider making a new run course.

 

In other news, I  QUALIFIED TO NATIONALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am planning on attending in Portland Ore in september. Look for more info to come.

So I was in my hometown race over the weekend. The weather was alot better than I thought it was going to be at the start. Even with the good weather though, the lake was very rough. The swim took me about 3 minutes longer than anticapted which forced me to alter my goals and pace through the remainder of the race. My bike split was somewhere between 19 and 20mph (based on the time it took me recorded by my parents). I was happy with that for the bike course. The run is where I had problems. Little did I know that morning I ate a food that does not agree with me, and within a half mile of the run I was experiencing muscle and stomach cramps. This forced me to slow my pace on the final mile of the run. The overall result was a minute faster than last year and a final postion of 14 out of 200. Not bad, but I was not happy with the overall finish. I could have had top 10 if I would have had a better race.

Now it's time to make the final prep for my first half Ironman. I will be in Morgantown WV on the 28th and 29th of June finishing my first race at the half-iron distance. I'll post a full report within a few days after the race.

Matt

So this weekend I competed in the Black Bear Spring tri in the Pocono Mountains. First off, if you can ever do an event that is hosted by CGI racing, do it. Their set up was by far the most professional looking thing I have ever seen. These people really know how to put a race on (and it shows...the race doubled in size). The lake out in Beltzville State Park has to be the best I have ever swam in so far. It was a little choppy, but the water was 68 and very very clear. The bike course was a harder one, but what can you expect when your in the mountains. I still mananged to average around 19mph. The run was great. It was all on trails around the lake and damn. It got hot in the sun and had its challanges, but was worth the effort. In the end, I finished first in my age group and 42 out of 500 triathlete. This was by far the hardest course I have done to date, but it was truly worth all the effort.

Pictures will be uploaded to my website when they are avaliable. Results are also being posted to my website and my sponsorhouse page.

www.matthewappleton.com

Matt

So my first race of the '08 tri season was over the weekend in Harrisburg PA. The weather sucked. The lake was a little nasty (even for an open water swim) and was only 62 degrees. Somehow though I dropped 2 minutes off my half mile swim time. I was a little excited over that. T1 posed some trouble for me as I felt disoriented coming out of the water. Hopefully that was just due to the cold temperature and the rain. My bike was not as strong as it should have been, but I am working on that for the next race. It was not helping that my computer didn't work at all. The run wasn't  too bad for being cross county style in the rain and mud. I did a 5k in 22min. That was very slow for me, but this was my first race. I have spent the beginning of this week addressing weak spots in my race to get ready for Black Bear. I am also working on getting some pictures of the event uploaded to my website at www.matthewappleton.com.

Today I have confirmed my first race for 2008. I will be at the 2008 Nautica NYC Triathlon on July 20th! Keep checking this blog for more race updates or visit www.matthewappleton.com

Today I added Dedicated Athlete as a sponsor. Dedicated Athlete's goal is to provide athletes with the nutritional products they need to perform at their peak potential. I am excited to work with Dedicated Athlete for the upcoming season.





I have also launched a personal website. Visit www.matthewappleton.com to check it out.

So I signed a new sponsor today, Motor Tabs! I am very excited to have them as my official fluid replacement system and look forward to a great race season and the help they have given me! Take a look at their website, www.motortabs.com to learn more about the company and what they make.

Here is a preview of my 2008 schedule 

§  March-April 08

    ECCC Road Season, all events TBA see www.eccc-info.com for the schedule

**Possibly USAT Collegiate Nationals**

§  May 2008

    Got the Nerve? Triathlon, Mt. Gretna PA

     Ironman 70.3 Florida (first 70.3)

§  June 2008

    Yellow Creek Sprint Triathlon

    Deuces Wild Triathlon Festival

    Philadelphia Olympic Triathlon

§  July 2008

Morgantown Half Ironman

Pittsburgh Olympic Triathlon

Butler YMCA Sprint Tri

Johnstown YMCA Triathlon

§  August 2008

West Point Triathlon

North Park Sprint Tri

§  Columbus, OH hosts multiple events throughout the summer months. I will be adding them to this list as dates become available.

§  I will be attending USAT Ambassador Training one weekend in late spring/early summer.