Still Running

I ran for 2 hours on Sunday. I was only supposed to run for 1:30, but I ran into some of my teammates after an hour and got caught up with them. We ran a 5k somewhere in the middle which was kind of funny. It's weird to cross the finish line and keep right on going. I felt fine for the entire run, but definitely a little sore at the finish. I'm going to Denver this weekend and need to get in 2:00 - 2:30 on Friday. I'm hoping the altitude is nice to me.

80 Miles & Beav On The Loose!

I think my training is finally catching up with me, in a good way. I biked 80 miles today and it took nothing out of me. Literally. Nothing. What a great ride! Everything was just in synch -- my nutrition was right on, my head was in the game, and I pushed it at all the right times. My coaches are always telling us to spin up the hills and attack the downhills, and it totally worked for me today. And to top it all off, I saw a beaver! Just waddling along on the sidewalk, not a care in the world. (Obviously this was not in Manhattan -- I rode across the GWB and up to Bear Mountain.) And no, I was not hallucinating.

For (my own) future reference, the rolling buffet consisted of:
4 bottles gatorade endurance + carbopro (1150)
2 bottles water
12 clif blocks w/ caffeine (400)
27 combos (390)

Total: 1940 calories

Devilman 1/2 Ironman

Swim
Goal: 0:40:00
Actual: 0:41:11
I psyched myself out of the swim. Saturday night I dreamed that I got out of the water and transition was empty. Sunday morning I spent too much time looking behind me to make sure there were still other pink caps in the water. The first loop was somewhat of a disaster, but I finally settled in sometime during the second loop. I was pleasantly surprised by my time, but dissatisfied with the effort. Also, I think I need more open water swimming experience. I'm too comfortable in the pool. I may take my training to the Hudson.

T1: 2:24
I was pretty efficient here, but there was a bit of a bottleneck getting out of transition.

Bike
Goal: 3:00:00
Actual: 2:59:04
My plan was to bike as hard as I could and hope for the best on the run. I worked hard on the first loop, mostly in the aero bars, spinning into the wind. I concentrated on picking people ahead of me and slowly sucking them in. After about 15 miles my lower back was bothering me so I started alternating between aero bars and drops, occasionally sitting up to stretch. First loop was 1:25:xx. Shortly into the second loop, my back hurt so much I couldn't spend more than 5 minutes aero. I fought through it for awhile, then decided it was probably smarter to just sit up. I continued working hard until about mile 45, then the self-pity set in. Felicia passed me with a few miles to go and kindly asked why I was going so slowly (in so many words). I whined and watched her go. Then I decided I was not going to let her pass me on a bike nicknamed "Pokey", so I took off and finished strong.

Nutrition -- the plan was to work through 1 bottle of water and 2 bottles of cytomax + carbopro, eat something (clif blocks / gel / clif bar) every 30 minutes and take a salt pill every 30 minutes. I lost focus after my back started hurting and definitely did not eat enough in the end. I think I put down 500 calories when I should have had around 900. Also, I got my tongue stuck in the nozzle of my gel flask. That hurt.

T2: 2:06
With my limited race experience I try to avoid doing anything stupid. Next time I'll be sure to check out where the exit is so I don't start out running the wrong way.

Run
Goal: 2:00:00
Actual: 2:01:22
I felt great when I got off the bike -- legs were loose, feet had feeling, no pain in back. I trotted along for the first 6 or 7 miles, not paying much attention to splits, feeling good. I tried to pick it up shortly after I started the second out-and-back, and my body was so offended by the suggestion that it actually slowed down. The nerve! I concentrated on my form, staying out of the gutter, and moving my feet quickly. I appreciated seeing teammates if for no other reason than it kept me honest. I picked it up with just over 2 miles to go and clocked my last mile in 7:49. Clearly I had a little too much left.

Nutrition -- I alternated between water and gatorade at every station and had gels at (what I assumed were) miles 3, 6, and 9.

Overall
Goal: 5:45:00
Actual: 5:46:05
I have mixed feelings. I came close to my goal times but, considering the race I had, they were soft. I was a total head case for most of the race. I lost focus too easily on all three legs. In retrospect, I suspect my back didn't hurt as much as I thought it did on the bike. I think I was looking for excuses to let up. My transitions were respectable, so I've got that going for me.