Timberman 70.3

Pops and my Timberman trailer digs.

Timberman Half Iron 2010

Well, it came quick.  I only decided to do this race back in late July, and suddenly I was on the start line --WHAT-- with the pros.  WOW, pretty cool!  The most exciting thing for me was that I was starting with just 20-30 people instead of  200-2000 in some cases, like Ironman Lake Placid where the swim start is a mass start.  Yes, that means all 2000+ amateurs begin at the same time -- scary, you get trashed. It's sort of like being in a washing machine -- not that I have ever experienced that, but it seems like it would feel pretty similar. This would be my debut in the professional ranks, my return following the accident, and it was my brother Mike's 33rd birthday -- it was a very emotional day.

I wasn't sure how the day would go.  I did know it would be slow for me, but it was a starting point. My life changed in the blink of an eye (see post 'Blink of an Eye') and would never be the same, but my new beginning had to start somewhere. And so it did, ouch -- 4am breakfast! Not that I forgot about the QT2 Sytems (http://www.qt2systems.com/) breakfast protocol -- large quanities of unsweetened apple sauce, 1 banana,1 scoop whey and 1 bottle of PowerBar Endurance sports drink (http://www.powerbar.com/), but man, 4 am bowls of apple sauce:  yummy!  But, this sysyem really works! Throughout the day, out on the bike, I use a combination of PowerBar Gels and PowerBar Performance Energy Bars; for the run, I go with just the gels -- it works great! Back in February, just several days following the accident, I was asked to be a part of PowerBar Team Elite for the 2010 and 2011 seasons, this is a great honor and I truly believe in the PowerBar Nutrition System.

BANG!  Like dolphins, 20-30 pro men go diving through the clear waters of Lake Winnipesaukee. Quickly, without surprise, I was dropped from the group, but was so stoked to be out there -- it was great!  I actually got a good laugh out of it.  I was dusted...no suprise given my swim volume leading up to Timberman was very low.  The swim is my weak spot.  If I'd had some volume, it would have helped, but I still would have been dropped.  BUT, maybe, just maybe I could have stayed in front of the 3 pro women who passed me at the first turn buoy -- they started 50 seconds after me -- HA, HA.  The swim was a rectangle -- 700 meters out (north), 400 across (east), and 700 in (south). The first 700 was smooth --slow, but smooth.

Man did things change shortly after the 700 meter point, as we turned east -- HOLY @#%% CHOP --where did this come from?  From shore, it appeared to be very calm.  My family really didn't beleive me when I told them it was very rough coming across the lake. It was this segement where I lost all form, at times, feeling like I didn't have a clue what the he.. I was doing -- survival mode! It's funny, but I sort of love when sh.. hits the fan like this.  Pure survival mode -- humbling!  It remained very challenging for about 400 meters -- gulps of water, missed strokes over the waves and prayers that it would change at the turn buoy.  It did, as I turned for the shore the chop was less severe, but -- oh man -- passed by a few more gals.  Oh well!
SWIM 32:20:  not great, but not terrible.  If my swim fitness was there, maybe this number could have been 28:30-29:30 -- in time, I hope!

As I made my through transition, I could see my parents and my brother Dan.  It was at that point where I felt like I never left the sport -- there was something about exiting the water, running through the cheers and bells and feeling the support of so many people I didn' even know. It felt right and, physically, I felt pretty good. As I approached my bike, I could see my brother Dan.  Mike was always with him at my races.  Suddenly it hurt, bad; but Dan was there and Mike was with us in spirit.  Dan asked "how you feelin? You okay?"  Dan asks these questions all day, at every race, every year, always making sure I'm okay, getting a read on how I'm feeling.  He always asks, but has said that he can pretty much always tell by the look on my face.  Oh man, where did everyone go?  I think my bike was the only one left on the pro rack -- I laughed!

I had done this race a few times in the past.  Actually, it was my second triathlon ever back in 2005. The bike course was a mix of long flats and some hills, a pretty good course for me in the past. Early on, my legs were slow to react, but after about 10-15 miles they began to come around. Exiting the water between 5-10 minutes behind the other male pros left me out on the road riding alone. Around 20-25 miles in, I had caught all but one of those fast female swimmers, but the men were long gone. I did catch one male pro at around 50 miles, but he ended up passing me within the first few miles of the run. Anyway, I felt pretty good on the bike, very strong in the hills, a little shy with power on the flats. Overall, about what I expected.
BIKE:  2hr 24min bike split, 23.3 mph.

The temperature was perfect and there was a light rain falling as I rolled down the hill into transition. I was feeling really good, no stomach issues, and my legs were okay. Over the last two seasons I have used Powerbar  (http://www.powerbar.com/)  products for all my training and racing nutritional needs with incredible results. In the past, nutrition was often a problem during ultra distance events. As I dismounted the bike and approached my spot on the rack, my teamate Tim Snow was lacing up his sneaks. Tim and I headed out together running about a 7 min pace. Tim is a great runner, but was using the race as a training day in preparation for Ironman Louisville on Aug 29.  Back in July, he ran a 2:54 marathon at Ironman Lake Placid, finishing 5th Overall, but missing a Hawaii (Ironman Championship) slot by the slimmest of margins.  In order to claim a Hawaii slot as a pro, you must finish within 5% of the overall winner's time -- Tim finished between 5-6 % behind Ben Hoffman the overall winner -- kind of screwed up, I think!  So, he will be going for it again next Sunday down in Louisville. We ran the first loop together, maintaining a 7 min pace and pretty much a full blown conversation, amusing many folks along the way. It was a great pace for me. I wasn't sure how the run would go, but my thought was I could probably run at least a 7 min pace for the 13 miles. So, Tim peeled off at the beginning of the second loop and I pushed onward, comfortably maintaining the 7 min pace out to the turnaround. It was around mile 10 that I decided to pick it up some as I was feeling pretty strong and thought I could push it hard to the finish line -- the last 3 miles I was running 6:00-6:30 pace.
RUN=  6:52 pace, 1:32:00 run split with the last 3 miles being my fastest. Usually, it's the other way around.

Finish Time: 4hr 32min. All and all, happy with it.  It was very smooth and enjoyable.  It was an emotional day, but a positive one, for a life that has been full of darkness for many months.

A special thanks to my friends in Vermont -- Patti and Scott, who over the course of the last 6 months have helped me in so many ways -- Thank You so much! And my friends in Albany -- Renee, Walter, Brendan, Craig and my brother Dan for all their support, my Mom and Dad, brother Shawn, sister Kelly, Aunt Con and my best buddy Rat (Bill) out in Flagstaff, AZ -- Thanks!  Keep on Shining!