Iron Pol

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Everything Must Go!

2007-09-21T06:41:00.000-05:00

It's sort of like a store closing, everything must go, fire sale. Except it's much easier to pack.

While I'll still be keeping the details up to date, you'll find the day to day excitement has moved.

You can now find me...

HERE!

The Call of the Wild

2007-09-17T11:14:00.001-05:00

When I was in elementary school, I read "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London. It's a wonderful novel for young readers, and it led me to many other works by the same author. But what I remember most from the book is the London's biographical information. Jack London held a lot of jobs prior to becoming an author.

Among a variety of hard labor jobs, London's resume included oyster pirate, seaman on a sealing ship, hobo (though I doubt this made his resume), and "law enforcement" on a patrol boat to capture poachers. He pursued writing as a means to escape a life of hard labor in the factories. In his autobiographical writings, he treats his work history like any other topic, adding his literary flourish. In other words, he makes it sound even worse than it may have been.

At the time, I couldn't believe that one man held so many different jobs. When you consider that London was only 40 years old when he passed away, it was even more remarkable. My point of reference was my father, who spent 21 years in the Navy and then worked for a civilian company until he retired.

And now, I look back at my own life. Using myself as the "standard," London doesn't look so odd. Not yet 40, I've held a similarly long list of jobs. Before college, I was a camp counselor for two summers. When I first went to college, I worked as a mover with a furniture company. When college funds ran out, I moved home and gained employment as a nursing assistant in a nursing home. After a year or so of that, I enlisted in the Navy for ten years, traveling around the country as orders dictated. Upon leaving the Navy, I completed the circle and gained employment with a "big box" furniture sales store, where I also put my prior experience to use by helping out as the delivery driver. Then, with a degree in Finance, I moved into an accounting position, where I have been for the past several years.

I have the same kind of history when it comes to extracurricular activities. Early in my life, I played baseball. When we moved to Wisconsin, soccer somehow became the main summer sport. I also played junior-high and high school football, and dabbled in archery and riflery. I spent four years on the debate team, did a year of forensics, and acted in at least two plays every year. Though I only excelled at a few things, I gained experience in many things.

Fast forward 20 years, and I find myself right in the middle of a sport that is perfect for just such a person. In addition to welcoming people of varying abilities, it is well suited for the disciplined person with "middle of the road" skills in the different disciplines. Swim specialists tend to get passed on the bike. Bike specialists often have too much ground to make up on the swim, or find themselves unable to hold onto a lead once they start running. And though run specialists can make up a lot of time, it is often insufficient to garner victory.

Individuals with the ability to improve in all three areas and the discipline to pursue those improvements have the potential to excel in triathlon. At the extreme is Chris Sweet, who qualified for the Ironman World Championships through amazing dedication to improving both the physical and mental aspects of his race. At the other extreme is the first time Ironman who sees opportunity for improving their overall time.

My journey through careers is likely incomplete. I enjoy my job, and work for an amazing company. But, like Jack London, there is probably at least one more job out there, for me. If I ever find the "perfect job," I'll let you know.

On the other hand, I believe my wanderings through various active lifestyles (or not-so-active lifestyles) have ended. Triathlon offers the variety and opportunity that nothing else does. From the vast number of race options to the ability to interact with top-level triathletes to the opportunity to continually improve in all three disciplines, triathlon is the "perfect" sport. While I will continue to explore other endurance type events, triathlon is the one that will remain a fixture in my race season. Whether sprint, intermediate, or Ironman distance, swim/bike/run has rapidly become a way of life.

Geeking Out!

2007-09-15T22:06:00.000-05:00

With the limited exception of running with Iron Wil on part of the IMWI marathon course, I've been taking the "off season" following my own Ironman pretty seriously. My wetsuit and The Pol-R Express have remained at the house, and my running shoes are sitting under the bed. I've been enjoying some of the foods that I passed on during the height of training. And I've been trying to tackle a few tasks that have been sitting and waiting for "the right time."

Today, I resolved a couple of big hitters, and they fall squarely into the "geek" category. And that got me thinking. And I figured it was high time I had a post that was unrelated to triathlon. It's good for the soul (and the sole). So, here are a few sure signs you are an uber-computer geek.

1. You happen to know exactly what a Dell PowerEdge Server does. Bonus points if you are sitting anywhere within 10 feet of one or more.

2. The term RAID array means something besides an arsenal of bug spray.

3. Scuzzy (SCSI) isn't used to refer to a person.

4. Your friends call you to fix their computer after three years of not updating it. Bonus points if you consider that a "boring" day.

5. You can rattle off the IP addresses of computers and/or servers in your home, as well as your friends' homes.

6. You actually have a server in your home (see item 1).

7. Any piece of computer equipment in your possession has a "hot-swappable" anything.

8. You have more than one computer sitting in your garage because it's "obsolete" but you figure it might come in handy, some day.

9. Challenging new software (say Adobe Photoshop and ImageReady) is a weekend learning opportunity.

10. You have more than two office suites on your computer. Bonus points if you have the trifecta (all three major suites, Corel, Microsoft Office, and Lotus).

11. You have more servers/storage capacity at home than at work.

12. You consider it a reasonable swap to give up phone service (or small children) to pay for ultra high speed Internet service.

13. Your storage devices come in terabytes.

I spent most the day getting one of my servers back on-line. Yes, I said ONE of my servers. The other is at my feet just begging for the same attention. I have to get it straightened out quickly, as Mrs. Pol has a paper to write, and she will be less accomodating than I to the rather large computer sitting in front of our desk.

I also need to get them all running as it is almost time for training to come back on line. I figure October will be dedicated to fairly light training to get back into the swing of things. November, like last year, will be a swim focused month, and I will once again focus my efforts on daily swims. That turned out so well for this season that it is worth another shot.

I also have some major blog related irons in the fire, and there will be some huge announcements coming in the near future. In the hopes of major traffic numbers in the next few weeks, I'll leave it at that.

Congratulations!

2007-09-10T11:28:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was an amazing day for raceAthlete and other bloggers at Ironman Wisconsin. Throughout the day, we tracked more than 25 different athletes. There were even several people is raceAthlete gear with whom I was completely unfamiliar. Regardless, they all received the same cheering and we got pictures of everyone we could. I'll post those, later.

In no particular order, CONGRATULATIONS to the following:

TriBoomer - 14:40 - He looked awesome in his raceAthlete tri-suit.

George Schweitzer - 10:36 - Amazing job, 126th overall.

Andy Sweet - 11:34 - Proving that Chris isn't the only fast one in the family.

Brent Buckner - 14:18 - I saw a lot of Orca outfits, one of them was probably him.

Walchka - 14:56 - I didn't get to meet him, but look at that awesome time.

Tri Dummy - 14:38 - I saw Jay on the swim, and he proved he's no dummy on this course.

Taconite Boy - 13:59 - Our blog hero rocked the course, and always had a smile on his face.

Rural Girl - 12:33 - Our paths crossed several times as she rocked the course, and beat my IMKY time by nearly 45 minutes.

Jetpack - 13:08 - Jetpack proved his strength on the run with a 4 1/2 hour marathon after the tough hills on the bike.

Roland - 15:04 - Try as I did, I never found the USCG outfit, and failed to get any pictures of Roland as he ran what I believe was an IM PR.

Micampers - 13:16 - Another one I missed all day long. He did an awesome job on that bike course.

Gavnunns - 10:22 - I don't know if this made the Kona qualifier time, but it was good enough for 88th overall, and he looked great doing it.

Iron Dave - Another I was unable to locate in person, Dave crossed the finish in 14:47.

Running2Far - 13:18 - I believe I saw Running2Far and didn't even know it. Looking back at the day, I kept seeing Hayes, which I figured was a last name. I'm betting it was him.

Chris Sweet - I spent the whole day going, "Hey, I think that was... Too late, he's gone," whenever Chris was anywhere near me. Chris lit the course on fire, finishing in 9:55. I truly hope that qualifies him for Kona, because he was awesome out there.

Simply Stu - 12:47 - Stu did an awesome job, and looked to be taking the day in and enjoying it as HIS day.

Roman - 13:47 - Roman balanced racing with time with friends with ensuring everyone had what they needed (including your's truly and everyone in blogland, as he made sure raceAthlete would get updated). In the process, he ran an awesome race, and every time I saw him he was thanking volunteers on the course.

Bold - 12:56 - I saw Bold on his way to T1, and a couple of times on the run. On his way to a great finish, it was confirmed that Wisconsin hills can, in fact, be a challenge. He never let them stand in his way.

Texafornia - 12:59 - Using all his zen tricks, Texafornia squeaked out a victory in his competition with Jetpack (it should be noted that Jetpack carved Texafornia's one hour lead off the bike to 9 minutes by the finish). There were signs all over the run course taunting Jetpack (in good fun).

TriGreyhound - 14:42 - Grey proved his triathlon/blogger fame as people on the run course called out to him. By his blog name! He made a plan and stuck to it. And he looked very stylish with his blinky lights.

Iron Wil - 16:20 - Title earned. Dragons slain. Wil came out of the water after a tough swim day with a smile on her face. She came off the bike after a long ride with a smile on her face. And she ran a marathon. She wasn't ALWAYS smiling there, but she kept plugging along. She took joy in little things, like crossing timing mats, walk breaks, and passing the final cut-off way ahead of the time limits.

And it would be remiss to leave out the people I didn't even know were on the course (mostly because I didn't even know them).

Chris - 12:54 - I kept seeing a raceAthlete jersey attaced to bib 954. Each time, I would take a picture and check my list. Though Chris wasn't on that list, we got some good photos and it was great to see him supporting the team.

John - 14:47 - Somewhere around mile 15 of the run, I saw a raceAthlete jersey and bib 1922. Another I hadn't seen prior to that. I snapped a picture, cheered him on, and later checked on John.

Finally, IM-Able ran into some issues on the swim. I'm unsure if she was injured or faced other challenges. She has a swim time of 1:44, and nothing for T1. She toed the line and put in a good effort on the swim. As more information becomes available, we'll see what she chooses as her next steps.

*Update - IM-Able DID finish the swim (another great job, Athlete Tracker). She made it through transition in about 13 minutes. Stomach issues forced her off the bike somewhere during the second half of the bike. And anyone who might want to question her "iron" level, she apparently got physically sick DURING the swim, and still finished. Me, I'd have drowned on the spot.

There you have it. Twenty-four team mates all pursuing their Ironman dreams. And I'm sure I've missed a few others. If you know of a blogger missing from the list, please let me know. They deserve all the recognition they can get.

IM MOO Tracking

2007-09-06T21:53:00.001-05:00

Alright, as we head into IM Wisconsin weekend, here are a few details that might assist in tracking everyone.

First, we will have not one, but two websites dedicated to tracking everyone out on the course. One will be fairly rough, and is open to quite a few individuals for posting. That site is IMMOO07. Keep an eye out here for race updates, pictures, etc.

The second site to watch is raceAthlete itself. We will have plenty of editorial staff on site keeping the raceAthlete blog up to date with appropriate posts. We hope to have at least one editor stationed at the finish with the ability to upload times and pictures in near real time as team members cross the finish line.

So, between IronmanLive, raceAthlete, and IMMOO07, there should be plenty to keep everyone busy and up to date on the status of the dozens of bloggers on the course.

A Little Help

2007-09-05T22:21:00.000-05:00

Okay, I'm looking for one or more Widget gurus who can help me sort out the XML on this page. Namely, I'm trying to figure out how to add links to my "Training Partners" graphics. The Blogger Widgets are fine for adding a link list OR a picture. So far, I've been unable to figure out how to add a link TO the picture.

So, anyone who has a bit more knowledge and skill than I, your help would be appreciated. Oddly enough, I have the custom Widget for the raceAthlete sponsors, which happen to be linked graphics, but the HTML page on blogger doesn't show the details of how it is structured.

I will greatly appreciate any help that can be provided.

IMKY Swim

2007-09-04T21:45:00.000-05:00

August 25th, the night prior to IM Louisville was interesting. In order for my family to attend church, dinner was scheduled a bit later than I might have preferred. To compensate for that, they took the kids with them, allowing me to catch a short nap.

Other than noticing every blue band in the building, dinner was fairly normal. By "normal" I mean that one of my kids blew a fuse and I had to spend a good deal of time outside the restaurant trying to calm Monster Girl down. Luckily, she calmed down when food entered the picture, and we were able to eat without too many challenges.

When we got back to the hotel, the kids went right to the grandparent's room, where they would spend the night. My father-in-law would stay in our room, and my wife would stay with the kids. We figured this set-up would provide the best opportunity for me to catch some sleep before the race. As I went to bed around nine, I was only slightly anxious, mostly about how well I would sleep. Other things were outside my control, so I was unconcerned.

Oddly enough, sleep wasn't an issue. Whatever it is that keeps others awake ignored me. I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow, and I slept straight through until my alarm went off at 3:30 a.m. When I got up, I experienced none of the nerves I've heard people discuss. I went through my normal routine of a bagel with peanut butter and a bottle of Gatorade. I had a bit of time until my father-in-law wanted his wake up, so I read my book.

After waking him, I got dressed and ready to go. Business as usual. This was just another race day. In fact, I started wondering when the nerves would hit causing me to freak out. It wasn't during the ride over, and it wasn't when I got to transition.

As we walked toward transition, we discussed where I might be at given times in the day, and when I might be at the finish line. It was pretty relaxed, and remained "just another day." Once we arrived at transition, I headed straight to my bike to set up my nutrition for the day and inflate my tires. A couple other racers were there, and we discussed the empty spots on the rack as my pump made the rounds, saving several people the trip to the bike support tent. We spread our bikes out, and after ensuring my bike was set, I took the excess gear to my wife.

After kissing her and telling her I'd see her after the swim, I hit body marking and ran into a few members from the team of a bike shop in my home area. That helped support my feeling this was "just another race." Nothing more than a bunch of local triathletes hanging out before a race. And don't worry about all those professional camera crews. Their probably just doing some "feel good" news story.

After dropping off my special needs bags, it was time to head to the swim start. The walk took about 15 minutes, and I hit the porta-johns after dropping off my morning gear bag. Then, it was the long walk to the end of the swim start line. That definitely didn't do anything to raise my anxiety level, because Ironman races don't start with a big line of people waiting to jump into the water. It was surreal sitting there when the cannon sounded just before 7 a.m. We all joked about how anti-climactic the whole thing was.

About 10 minutes later, we heard the cannon sound, again. Shortly after that, everyone stood up. And then stood around. It took several minutes before we actually started moving, and a few minutes after that we were really moving along. Soon enough, about 25 minutes after the race start, we found ourselves on the docks leading to the actual swim start point.

As I made the turn onto the pier from which we would jump into the water, I actually felt a bit of anxiety. I think it was mostly from the fact that we were doing a jumping start, and I was concerned about losing either my goggles or ear plugs.

I crossed the timing mat and had little time to worry about either. And it would have been wasted worry, as neither my goggles nor my ear plugs were lost. I jumped into the channel and started swimming to get out of the next person's way. It was just after that when I remembered I was wearing a watch designed to track my time. I hit the start button and started swimming in earnest. Chalk one time trial start up for my triathlon career.

The first part of the swim was in a channel between an island and the mainland. About 50 yards wide, this was quite similar to swimming in a pool, sans the lane lines. They were exchanged for the distinct smell and flavor of gasoline. With the trees overhead, sighting was a breeze, and I was able to concentrate on swimming.

The huge benefit of the time trial start was the notable lack of physical contact. I didn't receive a single punch or kick to the head. Nobody attempted to make headway by grabbing my feet. My goggles were safe from flailing arms. We swam. We avoided the need to wrestle. I simply went from bouy to bouy, and felt I was making reasonable time. At least the shoreline was changing.

Soon enough, we left the protection of the channel, and hit the one section where the current was distinct and noticeable. Though we only had perhaps 500 yards, the current made this the toughest part of the race. It took quite a bit of work to get to the police boat that marked the turn around. As I swam by this section, I wondered where the Ford bouys were located. I had looked forward to swimming by them. At least the police boat was cool.

As we made the turn, we headed downriver toward the finish. This was the longest stretch of the swim, but it was either out of the current, or slightly with it. A couple of stops for sighting confirmed that it was primarily calm. While we weren't fighting the current, we weren't being carried downriver by it, either. Which meant we actually had to swim.

Still, I think the first portion of the swim, roughly 0.8 miles, took about 35 minutes. If I saw my watch right, that means the other 1.6 miles took about 55 minutes. So I was getting something back from the river.

More quickly than I might have expected, I passed by the bottom of the island and started heading toward the bouys leading to the swim finish. It was really cool swimming under the various bridges, and sighting was very easy despite having the bouys on the wrong side for my breathing pattern.

As I approached finish, a quick time check confirmed I was coming in right around 90 minutes. When I hit the ladder out of the water, a volunteer grabbed my hand and helped me up the steps. They were awesome given the lack of a need to strip wetsuits. I hit my lap counter as I crossed the timing mat, and grabbed a cup of water as I headed toward transition.

I saw my wife and father-in-law snapping away with the cameras. I stopped to give my wife a kiss, told her everything was going great, and reminded her to call Tri-Daddy with an update.

I did take a few things away from the swim. First, just because the swim course gets changed, don't rely on an "easy" swim. It's still 2.4 miles. And the race directors obviously put a lot of thought into just HOW to change the course so it would still be challenging. It was far easier than the original course would have been. Of course, the original route would have left at least half the field unable to finish the swim.

Second, swimming in the Ohio River is nasty, though for different reasons than I normally experience. Were I to ever do this race again, I would leave my wetsuit at home. My goggles are trash. My swim cap, garbage. My tri shorts barely survived the ordeal. Everything came out of the water smelling like gasoline. After a great deal of rinsing, my goggles still smell that way. There is no way I would put my wetsuit in that water, now.

Finally, dedicating a great deal of training to improving the swim CAN achieve the desired result of getting out of the water feeling strong. When I completed the swim, I didn't feel as though I had just gone 4224 yards. I felt more like I'd done 1000 yards in the pool. Coach Mike later told me that was his goal all along. He had told me before that speed was not his primary concern, he just wanted me fresh after the swim. All I can say is that his plans worked like a charm. If you struggle with energy on the bike and run, evaluate how you feel coming out of the water. A little extra attention to the swim might pay huge dividends later in the day.

Are People Still Finishing?

2007-09-04T11:49:00.001-05:00

On Sunday, August 26th, I crossed the finish line of Ironman Louisville in 754th place, according to a neighbor. He was monitoring my progress that Sunday, and checked on Monday morning to see how I finished.

When I checked after the official results were posted, I was listed as 756th. That didn't seem too out of whack, as I know that people might have questioned results or provided some kind of evidence one way or the other.

At the end of the day, my exact finishing place is fairly irrelevant. I didn't win the race. Even within my division I was pretty far down the finisher's list. I do, however, have to question what I'm seeing.

This morning, I stopped by the Ironman site to see if they have finish line videos posted. They don't. But I noted that I have somehow slid all the way to 760th place.

I'm just wondering how this is happening. Are there people still running the race that are somehow finishing ahead of me? Was their tracking so out of whack that it's taken a week and a half and the "official" results are still unofficial?

I'm just wondering, because I'm losing ground quickly. If I'm going to slide to DFL, I'd like to know why...

Thanksgiving

2007-09-02T22:17:00.000-05:00

It's fairly common knowledge that nobody completes an Ironman race on their own. Though designed to be completed by the individual, a great many others are affected by training, racing, and recovery. Those people deserve as much recognition as the person who covers the 140.6 mile race.

For me, I must first and foremost thank my family. My wife assumed more than her fair share of the parenting responsibility during my 10 months of training. And she assumed an even greater share during the final eight weeks. While I did everything possible to ease the burden, anyone with kids knows that an hour here and a week-end there only go so far when there are 15+ training hours each week. This journey would have been absolutely impossible without the approval, acceptance, and support of my wife.

Along with my wife, my kids put up with long hours with their dad away from home. Though they are younger and have less say, they were definitely affected. And the greatest joy I get is seeing my kids excited about races. And having my son want to run "the whole race" with me tugged at my heart strings. I'm truly blessed to have a family as supportive as I have.

Goofy as it might sound, there is one thank you that spans the course of several years. Kewl Nitrox was an avid reader of my original blog. When the idea of me completing my first triathlon came up, he was right there with helpful advice, always offered with a true servant attitude. His constant encouragement helped keep me thinking about what was possible.

I'm unsure if the next comment falls into the "thanks" category, or the blame category. In September of 2006, my plan was to complete a second year of triathlon in 2007, including one half-IM race. Then, Roman Mica wrote a post about the opportunity to "Train Like a Professional." The first step was to register for IM Wisconsin 2007. At that exact moment, I decided that it would be awesome to race with everyone from raceAthlete, regardless of whether I became a sponsored member of the team. So, I took my shot. And found myself extremely disappointed when the race closed out before I was registered. Never had I been more disappointed at being unable to do something I didn't intend on doing in the first place.

Even so, taking a shot at registering for the Madison race provided the impetus to try again when Louisville was announced. And to do more than try again. I would dedicate more resources to the attempt and ensure I succeeded.

Shortly after registering for IM Louisville, Coach Mike Ricci agreed to be my coach. I had already benefitted from Mike's input as he provided guidance aimed at improving my swim skills. Though demanding, his suggestions paid off immediately, and given the opportunity to have him provide the training program for my first Ironman, I jumped at the chance. Mike deserves a lot of credit for his abilities as a coach, and I would strongly suggest anyone looking for a personal coach consider talking with him. His style was an excellent fit for my needs, and he was a huge factor in the success I had in my first Ironman.

Another group of people that must be mentioned falls into the category of training partners. These are the bloggers with whom I trained and raced during this season. One of these is George Schweitzer. I originally found The George's (inside joke) website and appreciated his detailed race reports. Over time, I learned quite a bit from visiting his site. And when he stayed with us during the High Cliff Ironman, I was absolutely amazed. He shared as much as he could from his experiences, and I learned an awful lot in those few short days. And as we've gotten to know each other, George has been a major source of moral support. His presence, both on-line and at races, has been a huge benefit.

Two others who raced High Cliff and became important pieces of the Ironman journey are Rural Girl and Iron Wil. Rural Girl is one of raceAthlete's greatest cheerleaders. I believe that one trait that she and I share is that watching others succeed is just as, if not more important than our own accomplishments. It will be an absolute thrill to watch her achieve her Ironman goals, and I'll be cheering extra loud for her in Madison.

Iron Wil, in the midst of her own training, went so far above and beyond the call of "team" when she put together the 2007 Wisconsin Ironman Brick Adventure. She deserves an immense amount of credit and thanks for her efforts, as do all those who worked with her on the project. Many of us will or already have experienced greater success because of the opportunities that training event presented.

Finally, I have to thank everyone who came along on this journey. I have tried to respond to comments when I have an e-mail address. Please know two things. First, just because a name isn't mentioned specifically in this post doesn't mean a lack of gratitude. It is mostly an attempt to keep this post somewhere less than twice as long as a typical and ridiculously long Academy Award acceptance speech. Second, I appreciate each and every visitor and value all of the comments you have left. Every comment ever received via e-mail is in a folder because each has a value of its own. In time, I will get back to each and every one of you, whether it's through e-mail or blog comments.

Finishing this Ironman is not the end of a journey. It is simply the start of another journey. A layover between different portions of this adventure called life. I thank you for your support and look forward to continuing the journey with all of you.

Voice from the Past

2007-09-01T21:38:00.000-05:00

I received the following in an E-mail, today:

As you journey towards accomplishing an Ironman triathlon, there have been a great many steps along the way. Some good, some disappointing.

The start of the journey has been full of excitement and fun. Learning the ropes, meeting members of the TBC, and trying to register for IM MOO 2007 (missed it by THAT much). The idea of registering for a race a year away seemed odd, but you took the shot, anyway.

As the 2007 IM race in Madison approaches, you should be in full swing to participate as crew for Team raceAthlete. You will have the opportunity to join in the excitement. Make sure you are ready to sign up for 2008, and remember to write a new note for that race.

It takes a lot of work to forge iron. Don't lose track of where you started, where you are going, and how far you've already come.

I wrote this note last year after I was unable to register for IM Wisconsin, BEFORE learning about IM Louisville. I had it delivered by FutureMe as a reminder of what I was thinking that day and had already forgotten about it by the time I signed up for what became my first Ironman.

It's amazing how a few short days can change the perspective with which we view both the past and future.

IM Louisville Race Report

2007-08-28T23:01:00.000-05:00

Pre-race

As most already know, the days prior to Ironman Louisville were full of change and uncertainty. Before we even arrived in the area, it was already determined that both the swim course and the swim start would be changed. In addition, it was questionable whether wetsuits would be allowed. With fast currents in the river and water temps ranging from 83F to 87F, we faced uncertain swim conditions.

I took the days prior to the race to do all those things participants must do, rest, meet with other bloggers, and get in some practice swims. Those practice swims have been pretty well covered, and it’s sufficient to say they were challenging. On Saturday’s swim, I covered the out portion of the swim, about 750 yards, in about 20 minutes. The return took about 3 minutes. That was a common story as people completed their swims.

Between Gatorade swims and Friday’s dinner, I met up with Duane, Dying Water Buffalo, Go Mom Go, Mary Sunshine, Geek Girl and her Sweet Baboo, and Waddler 26.2. Everyone was truly awesome and it was great to see the support that everyone gave each other.
By Saturday night, we knew that wetsuits would be prohibited. We also knew we would have to hike about three-quarters of a mile upriver to reach the new swim start. After a slightly later than planned dinner, we got the kids into Grandma and Grandpa’s hotel room, and I went to bed around 9 p.m. I slept well and was up at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday ready to face the day.

After a quick breakfast, I made sure my wife and father-in-law were awake and ready, and we headed for transition around 4:45. Once there, I checked tires, taped gels onto the bike, loaded bottles, and got body marked. I dropped a few items off with my wife, turned in special needed, and chatted with Waddler and Go Mom Go. Soon enough, it was 6:30 and time to head for the swim start.

The Swim

I arrived at swim start to find there was already a long line for the time trial start. Event staff figured they would average one swimmer in the water every second, meaning it would still be roughly 30 minutes before the final swimmer hit the water. It was fairly calm in line as we waited for the race to begin. Just before 7 a.m. we heard the cannon sound for the pro start (the 30 or so professionals had a mass start). A short while later we heard the cannon sound for the age group start. Soon enough, the line began moving, and we quickly found ourselves on the pier where we would start the race.

A few minutes before hitting that point, the full realization of what was coming hit me, and I felt the first twinge of real nerves. I focused on my goggles, swim cap, and earplugs, and simply entered the water the way I entered the race in the first place. Feet first.

I quickly found a rhythm and drew upon the benefits from past races. Sighting was easy enough, and I was unconcerned with water clarity. I focused my attention on long smooth strokes, the bubbles from exhaling, and the trees I could see when breathing. I took the swim buoy by buoy and soon found myself moving past the head of the island. After that, it was a bit more challenging until I saw the police (or fire) boat that was at the turn-around point. After the turn, I focused on exaggerated strokes until I realized the current was less pronounced as close as we were to the island. Shifting back to a standard stroke, I turned my attention to swimming as straight a line as possible toward the swim finish.

Just over 90 minutes later, I exited the water and headed toward transition. I found my wife and father-in-law on the 150 yard run, reminded her to call Tri Daddy, and let her know the swim went as well as I could have hoped. After a quick change to cycling gear, I grabbed my back and headed out for the ride.

The Bike

I hit the bike with the initial goal of getting my heart rate under control. It was at this point that the true effectiveness of Coach Mike’s swim focus became apparent. After 2.4 miles in the river, much of it upstream, it took only a couple minutes to get into zone two. After 15 minutes, I started my nutrition and hydration plan, and settled in for the long ride.

Soon enough, it became apparent that “slightly rolling hills” and “easier than IM Wisconsin’s course” might have been slight understatements. We experienced some significant hills as we headed toward the out and back spur that came before the LaGrange loop. On that out and back stretch, we rode down and then out of two valleys. On the first, I hit 44 miles per hour and kept thinking, “I have to bike back up that hill.” After reaching the bottom, we headed back up, only to see riders coming the other way who were easily doing 35 mph. We would do that a second time, as we descended into and climbed out of another valley. At the top of the second big climb, we hit an aid station and then the turn-around point.

After going through those valleys a second time, it was time to make the two circuits of the LaGrange Loop. This part of the course was indeed beautiful, and we passed through a couple areas that were packed with spectators. The city of LaGrange turned out a wonderful group that lined the streets cheering on the riders. And the aid stations were staffed by wonderful volunteers who obviously paid attention in the briefings as they went above and beyond to assist the racers.

The biggest challenge of the two loop course was the relentless nature of the hills. While thousand-yard, 12% grades were absent, the hills were non-stop. We spent the entire 112 miles of the course going up one hill and down another. There were few chances to take on nutrition on a flat section. And even the downhill stretches quickly turned back into uphill sections. Finding a rhythm was nearly impossible.

Still, I made it through the entire course with few issues. I didn’t flat out at all, I made it through most of my nutrition plan, and the four pit stops to relieve my bladder proved I was staying hydrated. A short 6 hours and 20 minutes later, I hopped off the bike and headed into T2. After another quick change, I loaded up my Amphipod bottles with Gatorade and water and headed out for a few loops up and down Louisville’s Third Street.

The Run

The biggest guidance Coach Mike had for the run was to really focus on going out slow. After spending hours on the bike, it is too easy to take off on the run and click off a bunch of fast miles, only to blow up a short way into the marathon. After a 9 minute first mile, I reigned in the pace even more, and fell into a fairly steady rhythm of 10 minute miles. That kept my heart rate in the 140 range, right where I wanted it.

At every aid station I grabbed cups of water for cooling. Most of my hydration came from the bottles I carried. When they were empty, I would fill them up at the next aid station. I noticed, however, that my stomach was a bit bloated, and I knew that the hills on the bike had seriously limited my body’s ability to process the calories I was taking in. Around mile 5, I ate what would be my only Gu of the marathon.

I kept putting the miles behind me, and was feeling good until mile 14. That was where things unraveled for a bit. Unable to really take in more food or drink, I was running low of energy, and I wanted to avoid a serious bonk. I eased off the pace and started walking for what would end up being five miles. That was also where I saw my wife, kids, and in-laws. Getting to see my kids provided a good boost, and I managed to run a bit with B-Boy. He wanted to run the rest of the race with me, and it took some time to convince him that 12 miles might be a bit much for him.

Just into that stretch of walking, participant number 1641, Rebecca Roan of Effingham, Illinois caught up with me. She started talking to me, and we walked and talked, motivating each other to continue toward the end. That time allowed my body to clear some of the food stuck in my gut, as well as a bit more I managed to eat. The conversation also took my mind off the condition of my body and focused it on more important issues such as my family, how well I was doing, and what strength I did have left.

At mile 19, I thanked Rebecca for pushing me along and headed out on my own. I figured that if I could find a way to get back somewhere near those 10-minute miles, I could finish with a pretty good marathon time and get pretty close to 13 hours for the race.

I continued to take on what fluids I could, balancing Gatorade with water. As the sun went down, I found myself heading back into town with only a few miles left. I started thinking about all the people who had given their support and everyone who was watching my progress, both on the course and on the computer.

Shortly (though nowhere near soon enough), I made the turn that signaled the end was very near. Up one block and a right turn onto Fourth Street and I would be an Ironman. As I made the final turn, I saw the split that had been so hard to take the first time around. This time, I knew I would get to take the “Finish” path and enter the finisher’s chute. I barely heard anything. If music was playing, I couldn’t hear it. I know they announced my name, but only because others told me they did. All my attention was focused on the finish arch, looking for my family, and somehow staying upright. I didn’t see the family I knew was there, and crossed the finish line with my arms in the air, just the way I teach my kids to triumph in personal victories. That was five hours and two minutes after I started running.

Two catchers grabbed my arms, congratulated me, and started guiding me through the finish line process. They kept asking if I was alright, and I kept assuring them I was fine. After seeing a picture my father-in-law took, I realized why they kept asking. My understanding of their question was “Do you need medical attention?” I saw no need for an IV or other medical assistance, so told them I was okay. I think their question was more on the lines of “If we were to let go of you, right now, would you fall on your face?” And the answer to that would have been a resounding “Yes.” That much is obvious from the pictures we have. And after 13 hours and 12 minutes, I guess exhausted is a reasonable state in which to be.

Soon enough, though, I regained a bit of balance and was able to move along on my own. After rejoining my wife and father-in-law, I remembered to stop my watch. I grabbed a phone to make a few important phone calls, though most of it was a fog. I let Tri Daddy know I was finished so he could make the final post. I called my mom who let me know that she watched me finish on Ironman Live. And I called Coach Mike to tell him how well things went.

Believe it or not, this is the short version of the race report. There is so much to cover that there will be other posts coming. I’ll try to cover some of the more detailed points of each leg of the race, including a few humorous post-race details. Those posts will also give me a chance to reflect on a few of the more philosophical moments of the race. Or maybe they’ll just give me a chance to be even more long-winded about the course.

Honey Do List

2007-08-27T23:06:00.000-05:00

I want to thank everyone for the positive thoughts while I was on the IMKY course, and for all the awesome comments throughout the day. It really helped, and there must have been some prayers to help a tired runner, because shortly after I started walking at mile 14, Rebecca Roan (#1641) of Effingham, Illinois came up alongside me. She was on her first lap, and started walking at mile 3. We walked to mile 16 (four for her), and she said she was "walking one, running one," and I joined her. That "run one" was bit short, and we kept on going. At mile 19, our conversation had taken my mind off the condition of my body, and I decided to see what I could manage by way of a run. She really salvaged my marathon, so all of you who were throwing up prayers, know they were answered.

It's late after a long day getting home, and I have work in the morning. So, here's my "to do" list for the next few days.

First is an "Executive Summary" of the race. That will be the short version of how the day went with some of the "need to know" details. After that, expect a rather lengthy "thanks to" post. That will be something like the Academy Awards speeches where you wonder why rotten vegetables aren't more plentiful. After that will come the full blown race reports in all their glory. There is a lot to get straight in my head before I can get it all on paper.

In the video of the 2006 Ironman World Championships, Faris al Sultan comments that he doesn't really remember crossing the finish line in 2005 when he won the race. Hearing that in the week prior to Louisville, I didn't understand. Now, I do (and have the pictures to prove it's probably true). Sure, I remember the lights and general setting. But there's no song running through my head. I only vaguely recall them saying my name. I just remember the finish line, and really wanting to be on the other side of it. I remember the long tunnel of darkness with a bright light at the end. Fitting that the end of a race that leaves you filling dead looks like that.

So, give me a couple days of less detailed posts, and then I'll give you more details of the Iron Pol perspective of Ironman Louisville than you ever wanted to know.

It's Official!!!

2007-08-26T19:48:00.000-05:00

I just spoke with IronPol who was feeling great!!

He forgot to stop his watch (don't we all!) at the finish but ran somewhere close to a 5:02 marathon for a rocking unofficial time of 13 hours and 12 minutes!!!

It was a great race as IronPol held his pace right up until mile 15, when he ran out steam a bit. He found someone to walk with for a few miles before pulling it together for the final 6 miles with an awesome pace to the finish.

Congratulations IronPol! You are truly "Iron" Pol tonight. Now, IronPol is off for some food and well-deserved recovery time with the Pol family.

Ironman!

2007-08-26T19:42:00.000-05:00

I heard a quick call out to IronPol about 13:46 but couldn't make him out on the live feed.

Unofficially IronPol. IS. AN. IRONMAN!!!!

Update from Mrs. Pol!

2007-08-26T19:08:00.001-05:00

Mrs. Pol. saw IronPol with about 6 miles to go and he was looking strong. If he keeps his pace he should be crossing the line in about 30 minutes. Mrs. Pol is making her way to the finish with B-Boy and Monster Girl as we speak. It's only a matter of time!

A 10K to Go!

2007-08-26T18:57:00.000-05:00

Only a 10K separates IronPol from his first Ironman finish! Time to turn on the live video and wait for his finish. Go IronPol go!

16 Miles Down!

2007-08-26T17:52:00.000-05:00

IronPol is a the 16 mile mark and is maintaining a strong pace. 16 miles down... keep it up IronPol!!

Rockin' the Course!

2007-08-26T14:43:00.000-05:00

IronPol just finished the bike with a 6:20 split! About ten minutes faster than his best prediction! The temperature has been in the mid 80's but hopefully it will start to cool down a bit as he tackles the run... the strongest part of his game. Go IronPol!

Stay tuned for an update from Mrs. Pol!

Update from Mrs. IronPol!

2007-08-26T10:15:00.000-05:00

Mrs. Pol says IronPol was looking great coming out of the water. Given his swim background he should be happy to be on the bike and start that nutrition plan to help him make it through the course with today's expected high temperatures.

The grandparents are in town to help watch B-Boy and Monster Girl so Iron Pol and Mrs. Pol have some great support to help them with their long day.

Stay tuned for more updates!

Speedy Transition

2007-08-26T08:30:00.000-05:00

IronPol is out on the bike course with a speedy sub 7 minute transition!

Out of the Water!!

2007-08-26T08:04:00.000-05:00

All those hours and yards in the pool really paid off for IronPol!! He is out of the water with a solid swim time of 1:31:01. Keep it up Buddy!

Ready, Set, Go!

2007-08-26T05:53:00.000-05:00

Good morning everyone! Tarheeltri here...

The race is slated to start in a few minutes. For those not following along on the official Ironman site, there's a big change to announce. Because of high rainfall upstream, resulting in faster currents, the swim course has been modified. IronPol will now start the swim in a time trial start, swimming upstream for a short distance in a channel protected from the major current, then turn back downstream where he'll swim with the current for the remainder of the swim. It looks like it will work to his advantage and allow for a faster swim time.

Our thoughts are with you IronPol and family! Good luck!

Stay tuned for more updates as the race progresses!

Twas the Night Before Ironman...

2007-08-25T22:26:00.000-05:00

The last I spoke with IronPol he was parking his car somewhere in Louisville. As a father of two small children myself, I knew it was time to wrap things up so he could attend to his kids. It reminded me of my last conversation with the Kahuna after I became an Ironman in Panama City Beach. I wanted to talk more with the Kahuna, but as big as becoming an Ironman is, there were two more important things needing my attention in the back seats of our minivan: my children Claudia and Carson.

Tomorrow, IronPol will take on one of the, if not the biggest athletic challenges of his life. Accompanying this accountant and former Navy man on his journey will be his wife and two small children, strikingly familar to a former accountant and Marine who set out in the Gulf of Mexico last November seeking the same prize: an Ironman Title.

During the course of his training, the posts that resonated loudest with me were not about his yards, miles, or minutes, but about his trying to get a child to sleep at 3 am the morning of a big workout, or dealing with his children's colds while trying not to catch one himself. I don't know IronPol well enough to say we are similar, but the circumstances in which we trained certainly are, and based on the support of his wife and love of his children and his dedication to them as well as his training, I know that sometime tomorrow evening, IronPol and I will share another similarity...

So, tune in tomorrow or later this morning to follow my updates on the last leg of IronPol's journey to Ironman!

Timing

2007-08-25T05:33:00.000-05:00

Have you ever experienced something where the only thing you can say is, "Wow! That's REALLY bad timing."

A classic example is discovering a pimple right in the middle of your forehead the morning of prom (or any other major life event).

The good news is I don't have a pimple. And somehow, at nearly 39 years old, it is bizarre that there is even a need to address pimples. That, however, is another post.

The "something" that I'm dealing with is a ruptured ear drum. Either I've encountered a fluke of reality, or the rumored hazards associated with water in the Ohio River are true. Yesterday's Gatorade Swim resulted in a bit more than increased comfort with the swim course.

Luckily, ruptured ear drums are nothing new, to me. Because of a cleft palate as a child, ear infections are just a fact of life. The constant use of drainage tubes as a child and young adult left my ear drums perforated and weak. Between water skiing, scuba diving (which I'm now medically disqualified from doing), and diving at the pool, I've ruptured my ear drums numerous times. I'll just have to pay a visit to my ENT after the race. He can determine which part of my patchwork ears have been destroyed, now.

In the end, it will be a bit of an inconvenience and perhaps somewhat annoying. Nowhere near as devestating as a zit in the middle of your forehead the day of prom.

Endless Pool

2007-08-24T20:23:00.001-05:00

I don't have the ability to post the video, but trust me when I say that today's Gatorade Swim in the Ohio River was interesting. The comment heard most often when describing the swim was "Endless Pool." And for the upstream portions, that's exactly what it was.

It was incredible watching the swimmers trying to make headway and getting nowhere. And watching people going downstream at an incredible clip without taking a single stroke. At our blogger dinner, the concensus was that the swim change was the right choice.

After checking in, we hit the expo for a short bit, and I managed to walk about about $150 lighter, the proud owner of some sharp looking IM Louisville attire.

And now, since my daughter is taking her clothes and dancing, I have to sign off.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

2007-08-23T22:31:00.000-05:00

Amazingly, this race has already warranted a post detailing the situations that fall into the good, bad, and ugly categories.

In the good AND bad category, they have determined the current is likely to be too strong for the original swim course to be used. Heavy rainfall is predicted to increase water flow even further. So, there will be a few changes.

First, the "upstream" portion of the swim will be in a more protected portion of the stream. And the downstream portion will be a larger percentage of the total swim. It will, however, now be a counterclockwise swim. Bad news for those of us who breathe to the right.

Second, they have been measuring water temperatures, and current temps are about 87F. For those unfamiliar with USAT rules, wetsuits are prohibited in water temps over 84F. I've done 5000 yard swims without a wetsuit. It appears I may get to do my first Ironman the same way. The final determination will be made Sunday morning. Fun.

Finally, due to the nature of the area where the swim will start, we will be starting a bit differently than your normal Ironman. To minimize congestion, this race will be a time trial start. Each racer will cross a timing mat at the beginning, and they will start us in "expected time" order, going every couple seconds. More fun.

So, the good is that I'm here. It appears my worries over the mass swim start have been alleviated. The bad is that I'll be swimming the wrong way. The ugly is that we may not be able to wear our wetsuits.

The race hasn't even started and the bizarre stories are presenting themselves.

Heading Out

2007-08-22T23:24:00.000-05:00

Well, it's WAY past my bedtime, but there were things to do. The Pol-R Express now looks presentable and race ready. Most of the stuff is packed and ready for the car. And the house is ready for us to be gone for a few days.

I'm off to bed, and up early for a short stint at work in the morning. We pick up the rental car at 8 a.m. and will head out as soon as it is packed.

The next post you read here will be from the road or from the guest blogger. I'm still not telling who it is.

Play By Play

2007-08-21T20:22:00.000-05:00

In a few days I'm going to be horribly busy. First, there will be the drive to Louisville. A 10-hour trip in the best of conditions, we'll be doing it with two toddlers. They're troopers, so it should be a good trip, but we're planning on the trip taking longer than it might otherwise take.

Once we get to Louisville, there is check-in, gear bag packing, bike check, tri-blogger dinners, practice swims, and a general mess of other things to handle. FYI, the tri-blogger group looks to be pretty major. There should be upwards of 20-30 people between participants, sherpas, family, volunteers, and other cheerleaders somehow associated with the Tri Blog Community. Getting to meet everyone without breaking the coach's designated curfew will prove interesting.

On Sunday, there's this little race thing I'll be tackling. Since that promises to take most of the day, and blogging probably won't be high on my "to do" list when I'm through, I've made other arrangements.

Starting as early as tomorrow, a guest blogger will have access to the controls here at Iron Pol central. Now, I won't ruin the surprise by telling you who he is, let's just suffice it to say he has the experience to know what might be happening throughout the day. I imagine he'll post soon enough so you can find out just who will be filling this post. Between his blogging skill and Mrs. Pol's phone updates, you'll have all the scary details on race day.

And now, there is a young lady that needs to find her way to bed, and daddy has the honors.

At No Point

2007-08-18T23:06:00.000-05:00

At no point in the first 37 years of my life did I ever plan on becoming an Ironman. In fact, it can be safely said that at no point in the first 35 years of my life did I ever plan on even becoming a marathoner. And, yet, here we are.

Seven days and a wake up away from Ironman Louisville, arguably one of the toughest days I will ever face in my life. Apparently, planning and doing aren't necessarily mutually inclusive.

It's been a long journey from there to here. After 10 years in the Navy and three years of college, I was overweight and out of shape. I was pushing 220 pounds, wearing size 38 pants that were starting to get tight, and suffering from an array of weight related issues. Another list of things I never planned.

The next twist of fate on the journey was being diagnosed with sarcoidosis. A benign enough condition, it did put me into the care of a pulmonary specialist that asked me to run a few miles a couple times each week to monitor pulmonary function. Despite a general hatred of running, I followed the doctors orders, and those occassional short runs turned into more frequent runs of longer distances. While I didn't gain a love of running, I did gain an appreciation of the challenges of being a runner.

Over a period of years, those distances started adding up, and I racked up several half-marathon finishes, and signed up for my first marathon. Oddly enough, it was the near ridicule of a co-worker that pushed me into that first full marathon race. His comments motivated me to sign up for a race, regardless of whether I finished it. The goal was to at least start it.

Even after completing numerous full marathons, the concept of doing a triathlon never entered my mind until I was challenged by a group of 8th graders to do one. And that was sort of like being double dog dared to eat worms. No matter how difficult the task might be, it must be done.

It wasn't until Roman Mica and the other founders of raceAthlete started talking about the opportunity to "Train Like a Professional" that I considered signing up for an Ironman. Wisconsin, that is. The irony is how upset I was after being unable to register for IM MOO. I was angry about being unable to sign up for an event I never planned on running. Go figure!

Enter IM Louisville. After missing Wisconsin, the opportunity presented by a brand new race seemed like an early Christmas present. And so, here we are.

In just over 7 days, I will toe the line in Louisville, Kentucky with about 2500 other triathletes. I will be wearing bib number 1675. And I will do all I can to set a good precedent for future athletes wearing that number in Louisville. Since we don't have historic information for this race, I went to some of the other races from this year.

CDA - M45-49, 14:01:07, Overall place, 1401
USA - M45-49, 11:27:04, Overall place, 324
Arizona - M45-49, 11:49:33, Overall place 466

That's some pretty good company. If I fall somewhere between the fastest and slowest times, I'll consider it an amazing day. If I continue the streak and finish the race, I'll call it a great day.

If Athlete Tracker is up for Louisville (far from a given, at this point), you'll be able to track my progress there. In addition, there will be a special guest blogger making periodic updates on this site via phone updates from Mrs. Pol.

Dress Rehearsal

2007-08-11T19:13:00.000-05:00

Long ago, far before there was any hint of Iron Pol, there was another entity. Let's just call him Drama Geek Pol. This was one of my many roles in high school. You know, debate geek, forensics geek, drama geek. Oh yeah, I played football, too.

Any good performer knows that every show has its big dress rehearsal. The final chance to practice the performance without having an audience to see the little mistakes that are bound to happen. And any good performer knows that dress rehearsals rarely go perfectly. In fact, it is rare for ANY performance to be flawless. The key is to make it LOOK flawless. That's why it's called acting.

Fast forward about 20 years, and I'm still doing dress rehearsals. Today was the final big test run prior to Ironman Louisville. Though short of last weeks fiasco training, today's workout was an opportunity to redeem myself, and get that final boost of confidence about putting all three disciplines together. In short, a 5000 yard swim, a 90 mile bike, and a 30-minute run off.

Today, there were no map issues. There were no nutrition and hydration issues (well, at least as far as actually having it). There were no missing gear issues. The entire workout was completed and I've proven that I can get off the bike and start running.

Still, it was a dress rehearsal. So it is a given that there were lessons learned. Like the dropped line or missed entry that is bound to plague any theatrical performance, I experienced things that remind me that there is always room for improvement.

The two most problematic issues that I see center on my toes when biking and dehydration. The toe issue has me perplexed. And anyone who has some suggestions, feel free to start giving them. Every time I get up over 60-70 miles on the bike, my feet start to burn. Until today, I thought it was a function of rubbing. Now, I know the real cause. My toes are having circulation cut off and going numb. Basically, they are falling asleep. After hours of this, they start to feel like they are on fire. If I stop, remove my shoes, and massage the toes to get blood flowing again, I'll be fine for another chunk of miles. Unfortunately, the number of miles is far less than that first 50, closer to 20. Part of me says to leave the straps looser, but I know that can't be the proper solution. Besides opening me up to rubbing and blistering, power transfer to the pedals will be affected. So, I'm at a loss. Other than stopping on the course every few hours, I don't know what to do.

The other issue is more problematic. I'm taking in the fluids, but know that I'm being affected by electrolyte levels, primarily sodium. However, all the sodium pills I've found are too large for me to swallow. And just in case anyone is considering it, don't bother taking a sodium capsule apart and dumping it into a bottle of sports drink. That just makes a salty, nasty sports drink. Gatorade apparently makes a solution called GatorLytes, but they're only available through sports nutritionists. Unless they're handing them out at Louisville, that option is out.

So, again, anyone have any bright ideas. I'm at a loss. The one positive I do have is that I've been training with Gatorade and now Accelerade. On the course, they'll have Gatorade Endurance, which has a much higher sodium concentration. I'll also put some high sodium snacks in my special needs bag. If anyone knows of a good alternative to pills, I'd appreciate the suggestions.

In the end, the big performance is little different than a dress rehearsal. There will be more people watching. And there will be more tech support for the performers. But there are bound to be some mistakes. When they occur, what matters most is the response. As an actor, I learned to adapt to whatever was happening on the stage. Cover others who make mistakes. Change stage directions if the rehearsed actions won't work. But above all, don't let the audience know that something just went wrong.

Training Partners

2007-08-07T06:23:00.000-05:00

Triathlon is designed to be an individual sport. By its very nature, it tends to be so. The training required to complete a triathlon, particularly longer races, lends itself to solo workouts. With the exception of specific races, drafting is prohibited on the bike, forcing us to ride our own race. And even when we run next to hundreds of others, we must go the distance alone.

Due to my schedule, I tend to do a lot of my training alone, as well. While there are others in the pool when I swim, it's difficult to be social with my face in the water. I can occassionally find others with whom I can ride bike, but those options become more limited as the distances increase. And I've always been a solitary runner. (Unless I'm helping someone through their first marathon, then I'm all about running together).

This doesn't mean that I don't have training partners. Much of my sidebar is filled with the raceAthlete sponsors. Some of them I actively use. Others are there for me to consider. My tri club is full of people I will meet up with during races. And I participated in WIBA 2007 with dozens of other tri bloggers.

Now, I'm adding a new group to my sidebar for actual training partners. It will be dedicated to those things outside of raceAthlete that have contributed to my training. They have provided some product, tool, or service (sometimes free of cost) that has greatly aided in my journey.

The first two companies that I am adding are Accelerade and SwimSmooth. I agreed to try Accelerade and provide some feedback. I've used it for several weeks, now, and it was the fuel source for my recent half-IM PR. I'll be posting more on it as time allows, and I have several articles on their Accelerade Edge web forum. I have been quite pleased with the benefits of the product, and suggest you check out their site.

Months ago, I posted a short clip from Paul Newsome's SwimSmooth video series. The specific clip focused on visualization and showed Olympic gold-medal swimmer Bill Kirby in the pool. Paul contacted me, provided a few articles he thought might also benefit my training. His short video clip was beneficial, and the video series is amazing. A couple minor adjustments made after watching the DVDs already improved my stroke. And I plan on spending a great deal of time in the off season (a few short weeks away) going through all the drills on the videos to see how much more improvement is possible. Whether you are a total novice or highly experienced swimmer, the SwimSmooth series is worth checking out. We spend so many dollars trying to eek a few seconds out of our bikes, and a few dollars will go a long way toward improving our swim times, often saving far more time than we gain by shaving a few ounces off our bikes.

So, keep an eye out for other Training Partners in the sidebar. While we might train and race on our own, we always have those training partners who help us along.

Bonus 20% and a Reserve Chute

2007-08-04T21:01:00.000-05:00

I woke up, this morning, ready to put my Ironman game plan to the test. With my swim workout scheduled to begin at six o'clock, I was up at 3 a.m. to have breakfast consisting of a bagel and sports drink. Then, I went back to bed to get a bit more sleep before my alarm went off at 5:15.

I loaded up my gear and headed to the pool for the first big test of the day. I had a 5000 yards straight swim on tap, a long awaited test of just how much my swimming has improved. Things went fairly well, though I felt sluggish in the water. I did complete all 5000 yards, despite my desire to call it a day after about 2500. I talked my way through the rest in 500 yard increments. After getting to 3000, "it's just two more 500 yard sets to get to 4000." After hitting 4000, it was "only 225 to complete a full Ironman swim," at which point "I may as well finish that 500." And then, "it's just one last set to complete the full workout."

It worked. I checked my watch when I touched the wall after 4225. One hour, 32 minutes, and that was with an extra yard. I'll take it, considering my "good day" estimate is an hour, 35 minutes. The full 5000 yards took about an hour, 51 minutes.

After a quick shower to wash off the chlorine, I threw on my cycling clothes for part two of the test. I met some tri club kids for a quick 15-mile loop, and then headed off for the rest of my 7 1/2 hour ride. I had downloaded a map someone local had entered onto MapMyRide, figuring his 103 miles with the 15 I did with the kids would make a reasonable workout. I would come to regret that decision. A lot. Numerous times. All the way to the bitter end.

The ride started out well enough. I had 16 gels taped to the top tube of The Pol-R Express, two bottles of sports drink, and one bottle of water. I planned on refueling along the way as needed. Given Coach Mike's suggestion that I significantly increase my fluid intake, I figured I'd need to stop several times.

It didn't take long to find out just out badly screwed up the maps Google provided for this ride are. Starting fairly early in the ride, and repeatedly throughout the ride, I found myself wondering from just what decade the maps had come. Some roads detailed on the map didn't exist at all. Others seemed to have different names. And sometimes, the maps were right. That was when I would find there were no street signs identifying the road. Luckily, I was always able to find roads that would get me back to where I needed to be, or find a road with which I was familiar.

That does not, however, mean that I didn't pay a price for the poor data.

I don't know exactly how many extra miles I put on due to the confusion, but do know it was considerable. I'm also unsure if there were refueling locations I missed, but through the entire ride, I only came across one gas station, and that was one I got to on my own. I had completely screwed up, as evidenced by the fact that I found a road I DID know. I also knew it was at least 15 miles away from where I wanted to be. I took some roads I knew, and made sure I hit the gas station.

After refueling, I headed out, only to run into one issue after another. I kept on spinning, and eventually got to a point I have biked, before. At that point, I was torn. Head off on my own and find my own route (which would take me off the route I gave my wife), or stay with the downloaded route. I opted to take the planned route.

Hey, I never said I was a genius.

After a few more missing signs and non-existent roads, I went with general directions. You know, "This road takes me in the general direction I'd like to go. I'll follow it, even though I have no idea where I am." That got me to a road I wanted, though I had to take a wild guess at which way to head. Hey, 50/50 chance to get it right.

Did I mention that I was a nuclear operator in the Navy? And nukes are subject to the 50/50/90 rule? That says that given a 50/50 choice, nukes get it wrong 90% of the time. Well, this wasn't a 10 percenter. I went through a little town and said, "Hmmm, which side of the street is that cheese factory on if I'm heading AWAY from home?" And kept on going. Another one in the 90% category. Soon enough, I saw a sign advertising a business in a city I didn't really want to visit for the second time, today.

That made the decision of which way to go much easier. Too bad I'd covered about five miles to get the information. Turn around, and head back. And realize I've run out of fuel for the second time of the day.

At that point, I made the decision to call my wife and find out a few things. No answer. Cell phone, same result. Alright, go to dad. Answering machine. Well, mom's in Florida, but the she's bailed me out, before. A quick call and I learned I was somewhere between 15 and 20 miles from my car.

Nice, since the cycling computer already showed 7:44 and 130 miles. With my hands shaking from the impending total bonk, I called my wife, again, and finally got through. "Hey, I need you to come get me." With her asking the questions, I managed to explain where I was and how she could get there. Then, I told her I'd keep biking toward her and try to get to a gas station I knew should be about five miles down the road.

I made the gas station with 136.9 miles total for the trip. I barely managed to get some milk and pretzels before my wife showed up. Not bad considering I went five miles and she went something like thirty.

Needless to say, I had to scrap my 30-minute run off. Which angered me more than having to call for a bail out. I really wanted that run as a confidence booster. Still, after swimming about 20% more than the IM swim, and biking an extra 20% , I had to think safety.

There is, however, a lot of good news. Despite all the difficulties and including the various stops, I completed the trip in 8 hours 5 minutes, for an average pace just under 17 miles per hour. I passed 112 miles somewhere between 6:15 and 6:30, and nearly all the stops were before that. My nutrition was going well, and one of the reasons I kept running out of fuel is that I was staying well ahead of my normal bottle every two hours pace. And bonking after a two hour swim and eight hour, nearly unsupported bike is not unheard of.

So, despite the brutal finish, it was a good day. I learned a lot, and have some ideas about what is doable in Louisville. And I know that after the swim and first 112 miles on the bike, I could have got off and started the marathon. Given the far superior support of the IM course, today's fiasco doesn't shake my confidence. It does, however, strengthen my resolve. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING is going to stop me from getting off my bike and starting to run in Louisville.

And we'll have to wait 22 days to know exactly how that turns out.

Into the Forge

2007-08-01T08:57:00.001-05:00

An alternative title for this post could be "Deja Vu, All Over Again!" I'm fairly certain this has been a recurring theme throughout the past 10 months.

I woke up this morning tired. It isn't so much the training that has me wore out. It's Vacation Bible School. Getting up at 4:30 a.m. is something to which I've grown accustom. Running out the door for training as soon as I get home is also familiar.

Running out the door to get to VBS, helping there until 8:15, fighting kids into cars, and battling with B-Boy and Monster Girl to get them into bed two hours late, not so much.

So, when I woke up this morning, no sooner had I made it to the bathroom then I decided that today was a good day to reset the alarm clock and go back to sleep. After two swim sessions, yesterday (my normal session and training with tri club kids), the last thing I wanted to do was get back into the pool. And the sleep would do me good.

Then, I put on my swimsuit, grabbed my gear, and headed out the door. Ironman is less than four weeks out, and I can sleep after I've crossed the finish line. There's very little forging of iron accomplished by sleeping through training sessions.

And at the end of the day, it was a VERY good swim session.

Running Down the Dream

2007-07-27T21:28:00.000-05:00

After a near miss at taking out another rider at the dismount line (challenging, being at the bottom of a hill), I blazed into T2 ready to run down the 10 minutes I lost on the bike course. While I knew that I could subtract the time from my overall total, part of me was thinking how cool it would be to beat my target time after helping change a tire. And while I stink at math in the pool, I can calculate some fairly complex figures on the run.

In this case, I knew that my 8:30/mile pace was insufficient. To get under the original time target of 5:30 for the race, I would have to run closer to eight flat. After grabbing my run gear, which included my trusty hat and my Amphipod, I took off for the run exit.

Almost immediately out of transition, the single hill of the course tried to stop runners right in their tracks. Primarily flat, the first section heads down to the beach then back up to road level. After a determined jog up the hill, I was off to the races.

At the first mile marker, my time was about 7m50s. I liked the pace, but knew I couldn't maintain it. I eased off and found a pace around 8m10s. I felt good, and my heart rate was under control. At every aid station, I downed a bit of water and threw at least on cup over my head. Climate control at its best.

Somewhere between miles three and four, near the turn-around point, I saw George Schweitzer. He quickly hit the turn (of his second loop) and passed me up. He was looking strong as can be, and we chatted briefly about the race before he took off up the road.

The miles were flying by, and I was staying fairly close to the 8 min/mile I would need to break 5:30. I knew it would be close, and it would depend on how things went on the second loop, but I had some hope. When I hit the end of the first loop, I knew just how close. That loop took 52 minutes, leaving me somewhere around 51 minutes to achieve my goal. A tall order.

Knowing that making 5:30 would require not just a negative split, but a half-marathon PR (at the end of a half-IM, no less), I eased off just a bit, and decided to make the final decision at the 10 mile mark. The last 5K would make or break me.

Twice during the run I saw Iron Wil. Late in my first loop, and again around the 11 mile mark. The first time, I told her how strong she looked. The second time, I managed a "Hey Tracy" after she yelled as I passed her. She was doing great, and urged me on.

With 5K left, I knew my goal was possible, though highly unlikely. I had something like 23 minutes left to cover 3.1 miles, requiring a near seven minute pace. Following the advice of Coach Mike, I put it all on the line. I was going for broke.

Aid stations were flying by. I grabbed what I could and most of the water was for cooling purposes only. I drank what I could, but at the pace I was keeping, that was little. Soon enough, I passed the 12 mile mark and started the run through the zoo. I knew that the other side would leave only the short sprint to the finish line.

As I hit the final stretch to the finish, I glanced at my watch and saw 5:30 come and go. I would miss that target, though by the slimmest of margins. As I crossed the finish line, I remembered to do what I always tell my son. I threw up my arms in victory. Victory because I had finished the race. Victory because regardless of my place, I had won. And victory because regardless of time, I had beat my previous best.

Once again, there at the finish line was George. He had finished nearly an hour earlier, and was still there to see his friends cross the finish line.

A post-script to the race is appropriate, here. Prior to the race, Coach Mike sent an e-mail I received after getting home from the race. He suggested I push a bit harder on the run than I originally planned. I did accomplish that task, though for the wrong reasons. I was duly chastised for radically altering my race plan for the sole purpose of gaining some time back. Adjusting a plan for changing conditions or odd situations is one thing, and every good race plan has contingencies for various circumstances. Attempting to "make up time" shouldn't be one of them. I was lucky, and have to remember not to push that luck.

Flat? No Thanks, I Already Have One!

2007-07-25T19:17:00.000-05:00

I headed up the beach toward T1, completely missing James, Iron Wil's husband. Though sad that I missed him, I'm glad he was there to capture the pictures he did. At least I found my family. I always keep an eye out for them on the course.

After a quick hug and kiss for all, I headed into transition. I was already removing the swim gear as I sat down, turning my attention to the wetsuit. All the while, I was talking to the kids letting them know what was happening. Soon enough, I was ready to head out onto the bike. I ran out of transition, ready for 56 miles of testing my limits. The plan was to push more aggressively than I had at High Cliff, and my goal was 2:50 with an average pace of 20 mph. This was also an opportunity to compare heart rate data against that from the High Cliff half-IM.

Straight out of transition, we headed up a short, steep hill. After that, it was a great deal of flat with some rolling hills. I quickly got my heart rate under 130, and started setting pace based on a 130-140 rate. I easily hit 20+ and locked in a cadence of about 95 rpm. The course was fairly well laid out, with a few bothersome turns. They had cones plainly identifying the course throughout the more urban areas, and even had road hazards painted orange. This was a huge help in seeing bad things coming.

After ten minutes, I began my nutrition plan which consisted of a Gu every 30 minutes, Accelerade, and water. In a fit of overzealous preparation, I had taped eight Gu packets to The Pol-R Express before I stopped myself, realizing this was "only" a 56 mile ride. It seems I was on auto pilot and preparing for the more standard 5-6 hour rides I've been doing lately. With that many gels, I was ready for anything.

Through mile 20 I was just ahead of my target pace. Between miles 20 and 30, knowing I was a few minutes ahead of pace, I made a pit stop for the porta potty and to refill my water bottle. I had gone through two bottles, and wanted to stay on pace for 1 1/2-2 bottles every hour. Around mile 30, I realized that was going to be rough. One of the bottles I picked for the race was a piece of junk. The top was hard to open, and even when it was open, more of the drink oozed out the cap than made it into my mouth. That will teach me to use anything other than my favorite bottles. To make up for the Accelerade I was missing, I grabbed a bottle of water at every aid station and downed it.

Through miles 40 and 45, I was right on target for my 20 mph goal. At mile 48, I passed another racer standing by the side of the road with a tire in her hand. I stopped to see if she needed a CO2 cartridge or spare tube. What she really needed was someone to change her tire. She had all the gear, but had never changed a tube, herself. She said her bike shop always fixed flats, and told her to just take the equipment and let SAG support change any flats. I hope she finds a new bike shop. One that will encourage her to learn as much about her bike as possible. SAG support was lacking on the course. In the time it took to change her tire, we saw exactly zero support vehicles.

About 7-8 minutes later, her flat was changed and we were both on the road. I quickly picked up the pace and started passing some of the hundreds of racers who had passed me while I worked. I was unable to make up all the time, and went into T2 with a bike time of 2:53 for an average pace of 19.4 mph. Not bad, considering my target time was 2:50.

I had gained a lot of bike karma, but I had lost a lot of time. I headed into T2 formulating a plan to get me time back.

Spirit of Racine Half-IM Part I

2007-07-23T17:33:00.000-05:00

On the 80's show "The A-Team," Colonel Hannibal Smith always made the comment, "I love it when a plan comes together." We never got to see how he might react when a plan DIDN'T come together. But this weekend, I got to experience how it feels.

The plan for Saturday was to drive to Racine early enough to get checked in for the race, do a short bike ride and swim, and check into the hotel plenty early to do anything that might come up in the evening. That was the plan. Of course, any parent can probably tell you that plans are meant to be destroyed.

By the time Mrs. Pol returned from a morning of errands, all my gear was ready to be packed into the car, B-Boy was dressed and mostly packed, and I was gathering items for Monster Girl. Shortly after my wife joined the effort, it got awfully quiet and she asked where our daughter had gone. I headed to the dining room, figuring she was up on the table causing trouble. I was wrong.

She was in our bedroom causing trouble. She had found and somehow opened a bottle of blue nail polish. That was promptly dumped out, primarily onto the leg of a handy stuffed bear (an anniversary gift my son had made a few years ago). Monster Girl then started using the brush to paint. Herself. Blue.

While my wife freaked out, and I grabbed our daughter to get her out of the way. It took nearly 30 minutes with cotton balls and nail polish remover to get her clean. She had polish on her feet, chest, arms, legs, stomach, and face. Thankfully, she didn't get any into her hair. By the time the mess was completely cleaned, we were all a little high from the fumes. And we were nearly two hours behind schedule.

By the time we got to Racine, I had enough time find the check in location, pick up my packet, drive to the bike check location, and drop the bike off. Due to the delays, a few minor changes to the "not so come together plans" had to be made. Things like actually riding the bike and actually getting into the lake for a swim. Not so much. I took the bike for a quick spin in my tennis shoes and made sure it shifted. And I looked at the lake and said, "Yep, those bouys must indicate the swim."

I did manage to run into Iron Wil and her husband. They were just getting checked in themselves, and we promised to find each other the next day. Then, it was off to find dinner and something for breakfast. In the fiasco of trying to leave home, I had left all my bagels on the counter. Along with a gallon of Gatorade for the run.

On Sunday, I got up and had some banana bread and a couple of Nutrigrain bars. I started packing things into the car, mystified by how much stuff could be dragged into a hotel for a few short hours. After getting the wife and kids awake, dressed, fed, and loaded into the car, we headed for the race site.
We had to park a good distance from the race site and catch a shuttle to the start. By the time we got there, it was just after 6 a.m. A far cry from the 90-120 minutes early I usually show up. I hit body marking right away, headed into transition and started setting up.

While my wife and kids vanished into one of the playgrounds, I picked up my timing chip and finished setting up transition. After making sure my tires were inflated and going over transition setup one last time, I realized it was nearly 6:30. That gave me enough time to hit the porta-potty and grab my wetsuit head toward the lake.

After the National Anthem, they announced (at 6:40) that it was time to head to the swim start. That had me a bit curious as we were only about 100 yards from the lake.

And that would have been a valid point were we starting from anywhere near transition. Unfortunately, the swim start was approximately a half-mile away, and we had to walk. The fortunate thing was that my wave started about 30 minutes after the first wave, so I had plenty of time to get a short warm up swim completed.

Soon enough, they called my wave (35-39 males) to the start, and we were off. I waded out into the water and started swimming as soon as I found a bit of open water. Amazingly, I was able to swim quite a ways without running into any issues, and didn't have to deal with stopping and standing up. The biggest issue for the first quarter-mile was sighting, as we were heading directly into the sun. On that first leg, I wound up a bit inside the turn bouy and had to make a sharp turn to ensure I went on the outside.

After that, sighting was very easy, and I maintained a nice straight line. I did have to deal with a few breast strokers and even started running into people from the wave ahead of me (big shock, to me). Soon enough, the less courteous members of the wave behind started running over me, and I spent some time fighting for swim space. Even so, the swim went very well and I felt very comfortable. Other than the first bouy, hit within a few yards of every bouy, and never felt I was wondering back and forth.

Just over 41 minutes later, I went to sight and realized everyone around me was standing up. I swam a few more seconds and stood up, started removing my wetsuit, and ran out of the surf. We had a run of about 100 yards to get to the transition area. There were fans lining the path and it was a huge boost hearing them cheer. My wife and kids were right near the entrance to transition, and I lost a few seconds saying hello and getting hugs and kisses.

Picture courtesy of James Korn

Iron Wil's husband James was right at the shore of the lake taking pictures and provided some wonderful shots as I finished my swim. She said I looked like a pro coming out of the water. I think it was a good photographer working with what he had. I really appreciate the pictures because they are far better than anything I've had from some of the outfits paid to take photos of the race.

Picture courtesy of James Korn
My wife added her own shots to the mix, and I have some wonderful pictures to remind me of the swim portion of this race. My official time was 43:22, a half-IM swim PR. And that included the 100 yard dash through the sand. By my watch, I came out of the water at about 41:30. Even so, I'll take the swim time, as prior to the race I estimated my time at 43 minutes.

More importantly, I felt very good coming out of the water. I am very confident I could have finished another 1.2 miles swimming with few challenges. Again, the biggest factor was the boredom. Despite the excitement of the race, I still find 45 minutes face down in the water to be quite dull. It's getting better, though, and it appears I will have plenty of time in the next few weeks to practice surviving boredom. Coach Mike has plenty of swim yardage in the schedule.

This final picture was taken by my wife right at the entrance to T1. She does an amazing job juggling kids, equipment, and photographer duties. We'll have a few pictures of the kids showing what they did while their daddy did the swim, bike, run thing in a later post.

Nail Polish, Blown Plans, Bike Karma, and a PR

2007-07-22T18:51:00.000-05:00

Yes, those things all relate. This isn't a "one of these things doesn't belong." I completed the Spirit of Racine Half-IM triathlon, and had a great day.

I'll provide more details in the full race report, but here are the ticklers.

On Saturday, as we prepared to head to Racine, my 20-month old daughter found a bottle of nail polish. Blue, to be exact.

The aforementioned discovery led to SIGNIFICANT delays in travel, which drastically changed all of the plans for the day in Racine.

I had to fix a flat in the race. And against all odds, it was a front flat. It was not, however, on my bike.

Despite the delays involved in playing SAG support, I managed a PR by nearly 16 minutes.

By the numbers:

Swim Goal - 43 minutes. Official swim time - 43:22 (unofficial swim time 41:30 with a 2-minute 100 yard dash through the sand).

Bike goal - 2:50. Official bike time - 2:53:06. Too bad karma can't be traded in for time credits.

Run goal - 1:55. Official run time - 1:45:51. I was trying to get my time back.

Overall goal - 5:30. Official total time - 5:31:08. Chivalry does, after all, have a price.

Twenty Yards

2007-07-19T10:09:00.001-05:00

So, my workout for today (okay, really for yesterday, but that's a whole other story) called for a 4000 yard swim. And unless you're that dude who swam the Amazon River, or maybe the people who swim the English Channel (you get the point), that's a long swim. And don't get me started about it being the middle of the week and this swim happening in the morning.

I made sure I was in the pool as quickly as possible after it opened at 5 a.m. For a turtle like me, 4000 yards can almost be timed on a calendar, and work starts at 7:30. I jumped right into the warmup and then got to do some interesting "open water mass start" practice.

Somewhere in the middle of the main set (lots of 300s), I realized I was probably going to be late for work. As I went into the final 300 yard sets, the "probably" was no longer important. I was definitely going to be late.

So, you're 3800 yards into a 4000 yard set and realize there's zero hope of making it to work on time. What do you do? Somehow, in my warped head, it made perfect sense to use that opportunity to add a few hundred extra yards onto the workout, with an extra 224 yards being the target. Sort of like a guy I knew in the Navy who realized he wasn't going to make it for morning muster. So, he went and had breakfast, did a bit of shopping at the Exchange, and stopped for gas. After all, if you're going to be late, you may as well get some mileage out of it. Me, I just decide to swim a few hundred yards more than the already insanely long swim I'm doing.

I added an extra 100 yards to the final main set interval of 300 yards, and 200 yards to the cool down. I figured that would put me at "4300" yards. That's in quotes because our pool is actually 24.44 yards long (72 lengths to a mile). So 172 lengths is something less than 4300 yards.

Apparently, it's 96 yards short of 4300 yards. If you do the math, you'll see that means I swam 4204 yards. Exactly 20 yards short of the IM swim. You won't believe the number of people who stopped by to ask why I was pounding my head on my desk. One length of the pool. ONE! After swimming 172 lengths, it is maddening to find I missed the goal by one length of the pool. Have I mentioned before that I'm pretty lousy at math when minor things like breathing take up most my concentration.

So, I have now completed 99.2% of the Ironman swim. I have previously completed just over 100% of the Ironman bike and just over 100% of the Ironman run. I feel confident I can get the other 20 yards done. Now, all I have to do is string the three of them together in under 17 hours and all will be well.

Somehow, when put that way, it seems daunting. I think I'll look at it in smaller chunks. It's easier that way.

Getting Close Too

2007-07-16T22:30:00.000-05:00

With things being as hectic as they have, posting has been challenging enough. Posting pictures has been even more challenging. I really should be in bed, but the camera was busting at the seams, and there were some good pictures to be downloaded.

Here are a few of the better ones, beginning with pictures from the High Cliff half-IM pre-race dinner.

Everyone having good food and good fellowship!

George Schweitzer (Article George) and Simply Stu.

Tri-bloggers at the end of a nice evening! (Only triathletes would say "end of the evening" when there's that much daylight left) (from left: Iron Pol, Simply Stu, Rural Girl, Iron Wil, George Schweitzer)

And a few pictures from the Wisconsin Ironman Brick Adventure on Saturday, July 7th.

A few of the daring swimmers. Note the speedboat in the background.

Yeah, this is just how raceAthlete rolls. We compete against water skiers. Swimmer wins!

WIBA T1 - A very relaxed transition area

I did get one more picture. That would be the picture of Iron Wil coming out of the water after the swim. She made veiled threats about pictures involving neoprene and messing with Italian girls. That may have explained the odd feelings of being followed all over the IMWI bike course later in the day. If you want to see that picture, you'll have to plead your case with her. I don't mind swimming with the fish. Sleeping with them, that's another story.

Railroad Grade Road

2007-07-15T19:48:00.000-05:00

It's become readily apparent that any day that begins with Coach Mike saying something like, "Bike, 5-6 hours, HR zone 1-2" is sure to hold many adventures. This weekend's long ride certainly lived up to the challenge. It can be added to the "Ooops, the road is gone" issue of my bike around Lake Winnebago and the "Hey, 90 degree right turns are hard to make at 45 mph" situation from WIBA 2007. Then again, all the challenges of last weekend resulted in my Vittoria tires being wrecked, and this ride was on brand new Continental Ultra Racers.

Any ride longer than a few hours takes some amount of planning. Since I am loathe to bike in circles, I spend a great deal of time plotting out 80-100 mile routes. This weekend, a section with youth from the tri club had to be added into the mix. After a lot of browsing through maps, I laid out an 85 mile route complete with a good number of slow rolling hills.

The ride started out at a very easy pace, as I was biking with one of the youth, and he was on a mountain bike. In addition, we were headed into a fairly stiff headwind. It took just under an hour to complete the first eight miles to get him to his house. And I knew that I would have to spend much of the next 30 miles heading into the same wind.

Once I was on my own, I kicked the pace up, and started the tough training. Some of the hills were more than I expected, and the wind kept the pace down in the 16 mph range. Of course, the adventures of the day were still to come.

That first fun situation happened around 20 miles into the ride. I started to make one of my turns and thought, "Yeah, new blacktop." Followed immediately by, "Why is that new blacktop so wavy?" I was already slowing as my wheels hit what appeared to be very fine black gravel. Apparently, in some places they are unable to afford actual blacktop, so they spread nice black gravel/sand on the road to make it LOOK new. It might look nice, but it's brutal for biking.

After getting through that, and dealing with one minor glitch in the route, I hit one of the larger cities on the ride. After riding by Jellystone Park (yes, THE Jellystone, complete with Yogi and BooBoo), I saw a sign indicating one of my turns was coming. Where I thought I should turn, I saw two important sings. One said the road was now the "Jellystone Recreational trail." The other said the road had no outlet. I figured the road I wanted must be somewhere up the road. Only it couldn't be, because of what I DID know of the course. I crossed a highway I shouldn't have crossed, yet, and went about a mile before turning around. Heading back, I saw a similar sign indicating Railroad Grade Road, and decided to take the "recreational trail."

What started out as a nice blacktop road soon turned to a gravel trail. However, I could see that about a half-mile up the road, it was blacktop, again. I walked the bike to the blacktop, only to find out it was just enough to turn around. Well, that and hold the reflector posts indicating the dead end.

I grabbed the phone and put in a call to my sister. "Help, operator, I need an exit!" Helpful as she was, my sister only found the same information I already knew. Googlemaps was missing some fairly important details about this route. Luckily, a guy at the cabin right at the dead end had a county plot map. Oddly, it also showed the road I was on as continuing through what was plainly NOT a road. He also indicated that I was actually the FIFTH biker that day on the same route.

After thanking my sister for her help, and determining that the road I needed was on the other side of a little used path along some high tension wires, I began the cyclocross portion of the ride. I grabbed the Pol-R Express and started the half-mile trip down the overgrown path. Luckily, there wasn't any actual swamp, though the last 20 feet had me nervous. I was also, apparently, the fifth biker to take this path.

The rest of the ride was comparatively mundane. It is notable that the first 45 miles of the ride took four hours. The next 44 miles took just under two hours. That's headwind, for you.

And now, since it has taken nearly two and a half hours to write this post, it's time to deal with the causes of delay. Ahhh, the life of pursuing Ironman while raising two toddlers...

Getting Close

2007-07-12T08:47:00.001-05:00

This morning it hit me that we must be getting close to Ironman Louisville. Was it because I looked at my countdown clock and saw a much lower number? No. Was it because I received some kind of vital "down to the wire" paperwork from the race director? No. Was it because someone sent me an e-mail and said, "Oh my God, look at how close it's getting!" No, it wasn't any of those.

It might have been:

1. Waking up and going to the pool for a 2300 yard swim despite there being no swim scheduled for this morning. Just because getting up and swimming is how things normally go.

2. Realizing that I see more of the lifeguard than my wife or kids.

3. When asked for directions to my house, I give them to the person, only to have them call me from either the YMCA or the state park where I start my bike rides.

4. I reviewed my training statistics since signing up for IMKY and realized just how much effort has been dedictated to getting to the starting line.

Swim - 283,356 yds
Bike - 907.2 miles plus 46 hours 10 minutes on the trainer
Run - 522.3 miles

Total time - 282 hours

The next time someone questions who is and isn't an Ironman based on finishing a race or, worse yet, which race was completed, simply remind them of numbers like that.

Long, Lonely Ride OR Hey, My Tires Are Melting

2007-07-09T11:07:00.001-05:00

It was a wonderful weekend. WIBA 2007 is in the bank, and I got a lot out of it. First and foremost was the opportunity to meet up with so many members of the Tri Blog Community. All day Saturday was a lesson in putting faces to blog identities and blog identities to real names. In all, we had nearly 75 people participate in various aspects of WIBA.

And there were many lessons learned during Saturday's training.

The day started early, as I had to drive to Madison. I was up at 3:30 and on the road by 4 a.m. The goal was to be at the swim start by about 6 a.m. getting ready for the day. My timing was pretty good, and by 6:15 I had all my swim gear at the lake, and I had already met Gavin Nunn and a few others. Prior to the swim, I also saw Taconite Boy, Coach Mike, Iron Wil, Bolder, Robby B, Rural Girl, and Stu.

As we got into wetsuits, a local ski team showed up for a bit of practice on the ski jump. This was a bit problematic as our swim course went right through that ski area. Iron Wil had spent many hours on the phone ensuring we would have clear swim lanes, and speedboats barreling through the water didn't really match her vision of "clear." With the boat crews express promise to avoid running over any swimmers, we started swimming. Our plan was 30 minutes out, and 30 minutes back. (This was shortened by 30 minutes in order to get on the bikes a bit early due to projected temps in the 90s).

The swim was fairly uneventful, though there was one lesson learned. That lesson is that regardless of the size of the lake, someone WILL punch you in the face during the swim. After spending 45 minutes being concerned that I would run into another swimmer, I saw an arm heading right at me. Someone caught me right in the head, knocking my goggles off my eyes. Call it good practice for Louisville. Still, there couldn't have been more than one other swimmer within 100 yards, and that swimmer hits me!?

Another lesson? Consider Body Glide on the neck. The red ring from wetsuit love isn't all that appealing.

After the swim, everyone started getting bikes out for the ride. We had three options ranging from 70 to 112 miles. Well, 112.6 miles if you make a couple wrong turns. Two groups left from Monona Terrace. One group would make the leg from the bike start to the loop start and complete one loop. The other would complete the full IMWI bike course. (A third group completed two loops without the out and back legs from the bike start/finish).

We started out as a large group, mostly a function of being unfamiliar with the course. Many thanks to Stu who did everything he could to clue people in on various details of the route. Many miles down the road, I would find myself wishing he had been with me at that specific moment. More on that, later.

Early in the bike, I learned yet another of the day's lessons. If high temps are expected and your bike will be somewhere particularly warm, say the back of a vehicle, electrical tape might not be the best bet for keeping gels on a bike's top tube. Taconite Boy found it quite humorous that I had to keep pulling gels off the bike and throw them in my back pocket. As warm as it was, the glue turned to mush and the gels were just sliding around.

Once we hit Mount Horeb, the group split up. Many in the group stopped at the BMC sag wagon, and others stopped at one of several gas stations on the route. Some of us didn't realize where these stops were located and continued down the road. It took only a short time for me to realize I was completely alone. That baffled me as I hardly considered myself the workhorse of the group. Still, triathlon is an individual sport, so I kept on biking.

Things went smoothly until a little country road called Garfoot. Don't ask me about the name, as I have no clue. But if you plan on racing IM MOO and haven't seen the course, ask me about why Garfoot is a good street name to remember. On that I have a clue. No, a warning. No, a bit of potentially lifesaving trivia.

Garfoot is truly a minor country road. And after a long period of climbing, Garfoot offers the first really nice drop, and I easily reached 35 mph without pedaling. Of course, it immediately heads back up, but it was a great stretch. Now, for the PAY ATTENTION part. Garfoot makes a left onto some road. Its name isn't really important, because about 100 feet down that road, the course makes a right turn back onto Garfoot.

Which then goes into another downhill stretch. A much steeper downhill where I hit about 45 mph. And then saw the "à" sign. And then realized that "à" meant, "This road turns 90 degrees to the right. It would be a corner, except it's just a turn. Prepare to die."

I was already on the brakes, and realized that SLOWING was neither an option nor sufficient. Stopping? That seemed like a better idea, but was also not going to be happening.

Wheels melting? Yeah, that was happening. Bike starting to twist and shake underneath me as the wheels started to skip on the pavement? Yep. Me trying to figure out how long it might take for someone to find and scrape my carcass off the road. Definitely.

Somehow (and for anyone who questions the existence of God, this is good proof), I managed to keep the bike upright, though I left the road. Fortunately, I got off the grass and onto a driveway that just happened to be where I needed it. I was doing about 30 mph when I hit that. I'm sure the horses in the barn didn't mind my sudden appearance. They probably just thought, "Look, another triathletes missed the turn."

Once I cleaned my shorts out, I got back on the road.

The rest of the bike was long, hilly, and, at times, painful. Taconite Boy commented that someone's bike computer indicated the temperature on the road was 98F. The hills on the back half of the loops are challenging, and completing them helps me believe I can face whatever Louisville throws my way. With four stops for water/fuel, it took 7 hours 30 minutes to complete the ride.

Notable is that it has been nearly two decades since my last century ride. And this trip was more than 30 miles over more recent long rides. Challenging as it was, it was a great training day that will pay huge dividends on August 26^th.

After the bike and an opportunity to wash up, we all met for dinner. We had about 40 people there, got lots of swag from various sponsors, and shared our day's experiences. Shortly after dinner, I headed out for the drive home.

And, there is one final lesson for those who made it this far. Swim goggles work best when worn right side up. When upside down, they are prone to leaking and falling off. I didn't learn that at WIBA. That was this morning, but it seems fitting for this post.

Stop by later for information about some contest opportunities. A certain WIBA participant informed me he has lots of swag he'd love to give away in contests, but he has too little traffic through his blog.

Small Changes

2007-07-06T10:28:00.001-05:00

In the movie "Contact," the lead character, played as an adult by Jodi Foster, is shown in her childhood learning to use a ham radio. Her father is teaching her that small changes are needed when searching the airwaves for signals. As an adult, she applies that knowledge as a researcher working for SETI (Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence).

It is advice we can all take to heart in our pursuit of triathlon.

As we hone our skills in the various disciplines of our sport, we must remember that small changes are best. Rather than attempt to become perfect swimmers overnight, we seek gradual improvement through drills that reinforce one small change. Then we move onto a another small change.

As we strive to make our bikes as comfortable as possible, we make minute adjustments. Millimeters, clicks, or portions of a degree are all that are needed when altering heights, lengths, or angles. Major changes are likely to create more problems than they solve.

On the run, we do everything we can to stay in the same shoe, as even minor differences between pairs can cause discomfort. As we tweak our outfits, nutrition, and stride, we seek that perfect mix that we will use, without change, as long as possible.

And the day to day changes we see are also small. Weight loss fluctuates so wildly that it is difficult to tell if that half-pound loss is water, actual loss, or an erratic scale. Changes in physical appearance and clothes size are also hard to judge. From our perspective, improvements in performance may be negligible or non-existent.

Over time, though, those changes quickly accumulate. Physical changes that seem non-existent on a daily basis become readily apparent when viewed over a six month time frame. Clothes that barely fit in December are three sizes too big in August. And workouts that would have killed us a year ago are now standard weekday sessions.

Diligence in training pays huge dividends. If you struggle to see these changes, find aco-worker or friend who exercises less consistently and have them train with you. If they complete a workout with you once or twice a month, they'll be able to tell you how quickly you are improving.

Small changes. They're difficult to see, but they make all the difference. Whether trying to find signs of alien life, run that first 5K, or complete an Ironman triathlon, those small changes the key to success.

WIBA Gobing Tuba Madison-ba

2007-07-05T21:37:00.000-05:00

There are few things I recall about the cartoon Fat Albert. I do, however, recall one of the characters speaking in a very memorable, if difficult to follow manner. He was prone to throwing b's into various portions of words. I guess if something sticks this long, it was either truly remarkable or truly horrific. And Fat Albert was certainly not horrific.

The above comments do little except offer a unique lead in to...

Iron Pol hasn't gone fishing!

Iron Pol hasn't gone crazy! (Not legally, at least)

Iron Pol is at

Freak-Out Countdown

2007-07-03T22:36:00.000-05:00

I was looking at the countdown to IMKY and felt an oh-so-slight twinge of anxiety. Nothing major, mind you. I didn't have to run to the bathroom to fight down the nausea. There were no worries of peeing my pants in fright. (Well, boxers, it IS late at night).

Just a small, short lived sense of, "Wow, it's nearly down to seven weeks. Given taper, that's only about a month of training left." And a bit of goosebumps as I realized how short things are getting.

All too soon we'll be running the final preparatory races. Not long after that, taper begins for real. Build weeks, recovery weeks, breakthrough workouts, they'll all go by the wayside. Packets will start going out letting us know our race numbers. And months will turn to weeks, which will turn to days.

At some point, the small, short lived hint of anxiety will be replaced with the real thing. The physical battle will be replaced with a mental battle. And some friends I haven't discussed in some time will be back.

Gremlins!

They'll start trying to tear down the foundation that has been laid over the past 10 months. They'll pose questions about the effectiveness of swim training. They'll bring up problems from the past. And they'll definitely question preparedness. Was the training enough? Are you ready? Is success really a possibility?

That's when the mental game begins. Defeating gremlins is as vital to race day success as 8-week aerobic base sessions, century bike rides, and nutrition plans. If gremlins find a chink in the armor, a year's worth of training can be rendered pointless by our own minds.

Get ready! Because the gremlins will come. Are you ready to smoosh them?

Night Rider

2007-07-02T11:00:00.001-05:00

It was a long three days. Long, and tiring. And in the manner of long, tiring weekends, huge deposits have been made into my IM Louisville account.

Saturday, after getting out of the pool and heading to the locker room, a lifeguard commented, "Wow, you were swimming a long time!" I guess she was right, though in terms of Ironman, it wasn't really long enough. The workout was about 80 minutes, during which I completed 3600 yards. It was, however, a great way to start the day.

Following the swim, I moved the base of operations a few blocks over, rotated the tires on my bike, and waited for youth tri club members. We headed out for a 15 mile loop, after which I headed out alone to meet up with some co-workers for another leg of my training. My trip odometer rolled 86 miles as I rolled into the driveway at home just about 7 hours after I had left for the start of training. The five hours of biking gave me an average pace of something over 17 mph.

This morning, it was another 4009 yards in the pool. Yes, it was four thousand and NINE. I firmly believe that anything over 4000 yards warrants an exact yardage. That means the most important 215 yards have yet to be completed.

But yesterday was the real bonus of the training weekend. The events of the day limited my training opportunities, and it was nearly 9 p.m. when I headed out the door for my run. Given the 4:30 a.m. wake-up calls, it's been quite some time since a night time run like this. It's something I miss, and it's one of my secret weapons in Louisville.

I love running at night. There's no sun to bother my eyes. The world becomes much smaller as sighting distances decrease. It cools down. And I run faster (this may or may not be all in my head). In Louisville, if things go horribly awry and I'm on the course much longer than I expect (well, hope), the setting of the sun will signal a change in fortunes. Just as many are revitalized by the rising of the morning sun, I find solace in the solitude of running after dark.

If not for the knowledge of a 4000 yard swim looming a few short hours away, the 10-mile run would have quickly turned into a much longer run.

T2 and the Run

2007-06-28T20:45:00.000-05:00

I came off the bike and headed toward transition ready for a run. If for no other reason than it would be different than the bike. I took a bit of extra time and grabbed my fuel belt, got bottles off ice from the small cooler, threw my hat on, and headed out of transition.

On the way toward the main run course, I stopped at a restroom, and noticed I still had my cycling gloves on. Rather than head back, I just stuffed them into the pockets of my tri top and headed out.

The run starts with a climb of about 300 feet, and most people were just walking up it. While my pace wasn't much faster, I jogged up the hill to help shake out the legs. At the top of the hill, George Schweitzer came running from the left and started his second loop. That put him about 6 miles ahead of me. We exchange a few congratulatory comments, and continued on our own races.

Immediately, I knew this run would be unlike any I'd ever done. After the big hill, we got to run up some very treacherous terrain including a nice little hill with a lot of gravel. The one good thing was the forest protecting us from the heat. As my legs loosened up from the bike, I fell into a steady rhythm and found my pace.

I carried my fuel belt on the run, which allowed me to use aid stations primarily as air conditioning units. At every station, I grabbed a cup or two of water and dumped them over my head. That helped fight the heat.

As the miles passed, it became apparent I was clocking pretty consistent 9+ miles. The "plus" was tough to gauge, because the mile markers were irregular, and some seemed to be a bit inaccurate. On some sections, I was apparently running 8'30" miles, while others were closer to 10' miles. More likely, the miles were marked wrong.

After the first loop, I knew that every person I passed would be one click up in the standings. Knowing exactly what the course looked like helped with planning, and I knew where the tough spots would be. Soon enough, I passed the 12 mile mark and knew that it was just a few more turns until the descent of the big hill. And that promised to be one of the more challenging parts of the race. Dropping 300 feet in under 1/2 mile was going to be tough on the quads.

As I came into the finishing chute, I saw the clock at 6:01. I was a bit depressed because breaking 6 hours gun time would have been cool. However, the 1 minute was more than covered by my wave time, and I knew I had broke six hours.

Total run time, 1:59:58. Not bad considering my best marathon time is 3:55. And that's without the other events in front of it.

At the end of the day, I felt great. I knew I could have done a second loop of the swim. I could have headed out for a second loop on the bike. I would NOT have wanted to do a second half-marathon, but that's what the next 9 weeks are for. Preparing for that second 13 miles. This was a great confidence booster, and I'm glad Coach Mike had me run the half.

And now, a few pictures.

Thought Process

2007-06-27T08:31:00.001-05:00

This morning's swim workout was a brutal set of 600s. The warmup and cooldown called for 200 yards of non-free. The main set was 4x100 descends on 15", 50 yards non-free, and 150 yards pull with the middle fifty being a hard effort. Do this four times with 1' rest intervals between each set.

Here's how my thoughts progressed through the workout.

After the warm up and first set - "That wasn't too bad. I'm feeling the past week, a bit, but doing alright."

After the second set - "I think I want to stop, now."

After the third set - "Perhaps I'll hurt whoever it was that designed this set. Badly."

After the fourth set - "I'm too tired to hurt anyone. Perhaps I'll just lay here on the pool deck and take a nap."

In the hot tub skipping the cool down - "At least I'll have something funny to blog about."

T1 and a Bike Ride

2007-06-26T19:17:00.000-05:00

I ran into transition looking for the balloon on the bike next to mine. I stripped off the wetsuit, and realized I hadn’t really thought about what to do with it. Luckily, being a copycat doesn’t carry the same penalties as drafting. So I hung it on the bike rack with the rest. After drying my feet, I threw on socks and shoes, strapped on my helmet, and grabbed my gloves and glasses. I jogged down to the bike out with my fastest T1 ever, despite it being the first time with a wetsuit. Again, many thanks go out to George, as his guidance on taping gels to the bike led right to wearing my tri-top under the wetsuit. T1 time, 4:06.

The bike mount area is a bit tricky as it is grass. I took it easy for the 50 feet until the road, then picked up speed and prepared for the hill that was only a couple hundred feet away. It was a short time later and I was out of the saddle and working it to keep forward momentum. I benefited greatly from having climbed this hill several times during training and knowing what to expect.

After getting up the hill, I settled in for what I knew was 55 miles of gently rolling hills. While none of the hills climb to dizzying heights, the constant rollers keep you from getting into a true rhythm. Luckily, the winds hadn’t picked up and it was easy to stay in aero position.

Around mile three, I decided that a longer T1 might have been beneficial when my bladder started to let me know how effective my hydration plan for the past 24 hours had been. It wasn’t too urgent until around mile seven or eight. That’s when I started looking for a convenient grove of trees near the side of the road. And yes, I realize there are alternatives to stopping. Until I’m competitive enough that a minute or two matters, I’ll keep The Pol-R Express free from that solution.

Around mile nine, the race director had the solution to my problem. An aid station (actually the mile 33 aid station that is passed at mile 9) with a porta-let was just what was needed. I may have lost a minute, but I’m sure I gained it all back in improved pace.

After that, it was simply a matter of spinning away. The race plan called for 10 miles in low zone 1. Then, 10 miles of high zone 1 heading toward zone 2. Miles 20-40 would be mid-to-high zone 2. After that, pacing would be dependent upon time. If sub-3 hours were possible, I would push into zone 3. If not, I would stay in zone 2.

Well, from the first miles, my heart rate was WAY high. I’m talking well into zone 4. Only I didn’t feel zone 4. I felt zone 2. I figured it might be the hills, so I gave myself some time to settle down. I eased up a bit, and felt my effort go down. But the heart rate really wanted to stay high. Biking along, I waited for my legs to seize up at any moment. Spending hours in zone 4 isn’t a great recipe for success.

But the legs never seized. I continued on, throwing the heart rate plans out the door. I went on perceived effort. My nutrition was good, and I was staying hydrated. It was only my heart rate that was at odds with everything else. Well, one of these things doesn’t belong…

Another hint from George was to tape my gels to the top tube of the bike. Let me tell you, if you don’t do that, start. That method is genius on many levels. First, you don’t have to use the clubs that your hands become after hours on the bike to retrieve nutrition from a pocket. Second, with the top taped down, the packet opens if you pull it off correctly. It is much easier than trying to open the gel with your hands and/or teeth. For the race, I had five Gu gels (Tri Berry and Orange Burst), two bottles of Gatorade, and one bottle of water. I had one Gu left at the end of the bike.

After 2 hours 56 minutes, I headed back into transition. My average pace was right around 19.5 mph, and I felt great coming off the bike. Given an expected time of 3 hours and 7 minutes at about 18 mph, I was very satisfied with the bike leg. As with the swim, I felt strong enough to do a second loop and complete the full 112 miles. After coming out of the water in 224, I was 168th on the bike.

Check back for T2 and the run in the next day or so.

High Cliff Half Ironman

2007-06-25T21:16:00.001-05:00

High Cliff, on the northern shores of Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin, is a beautiful state park with a marina, swim beach, playground, campground, and many other features. And once a year, it plays host to 1100 triathletes for both a sprint and half-IM triathlons. This year, we were blessed with clear skies, calm water, and great conditions.

For me, the festivities started on Saturday when I volunteered at registration. It was there that I first met George and Michelle in person. Iron Wil and Stu arrived later in the day, and everyone invaded my house for dinner. It was a great time, and there was plenty of pasta and fellowship for all. Having George as a guest was a huge benefit. He shared plenty of tips and suggestions, all of which helped ensure I had a successful first half-IM.

On Sunday, I woke up at 3:30 a.m. and started getting ready. My traditional pre-race breakfast of bagel and eggs with 20 ounces of Gatorade got me going. Because I was up a bit early, I departed from the norm and took a warm shower and got dressed. Following George's lead, I had my gels taped to the top tube of The Pol-R Express, so I went with my tri-tank. Due to a casualty with my tri shorts, I had to go with a worn pair of shorts with a Speedo underneath. And order new tri shorts.

We loaded up our gear, made sure we had everything, and headed out the door just after 5 a.m. Once at the park, we got body marked, picked up our chips, and headed out for a short ride to make sure the bikes were good to go. I set up transition and got in a quick run to loosen up the legs. After a tri club picture, I got into my wetsuit and headed to the lake for warm-up. In a lucky move, I opted to head backwards on the course and loop around to see what the finish would look like. I learned it would look like a big ball of fire, as the sun was shining directly in our faces on that leg.

Shortly before the race started, I ran back up to the transition area when Stu mentioned someone had stolen his swim cap. They were mandatory, and I had spares. So, I got to see what the run out of the water was going to feel like. And Stu got to race legal.

Soon enough, the swim started, and I gained valuable knowledge watching the first five waves go out. Too many people were walking for deeper water. But in a lake that is 19 feet at the absolute deepest point, you could walk the whole first leg and never loose contact with the bottom. So, when my wave lined up, I went to the back and outside. When the horn sounded, I simply worked my way out and avoided all the idiots walking the swim. I didn't pass them. But I did get to swim until they decided to give up the hike. As we approached the first turn, I headed back into the main swim lane. After the turn, I started running into a couple of breast strokers. It's amazing how much force can be generated by the kick of a breast stroking swimmer.

After the second turn, things got more interesting. The sun was now in my eyes when breathing, and the bouy was so far away that it was nearly impossible to see. So, I swam using lines of swimmers as a guide. That is fraught with potential for disaster, but I figured everyone else had to be doing the same thing. After the third turn, sighting was impossible because we were looking directly into the sun. A friendly lifeguard kept me from going too far off course, and I managed to make it to the finish without too many issues.

Overall, the swim went very well. I did freestyle the entire distance and sighted much more effectively than I have in the past, thanks to the suggestions of a coach who spoke to our tri club and gave some hints on that. At no time did I become "claustrophobic" due to the murky water, and I maintained a very steady effort. At the end of the swim, if someone had told me I had to complete a second loop, I could have done it. I would have been bored the entire time, and I would have been very tired at the end, but I could have completed the second lap.

After standing up, I started stripping my arms out of the wetsuit as I headed for shore. I "ran" up the steep hill to get into transition. At the entrance to T1 was the timing mat.

My expected time for the swim was 45:00. My actual time was 44:22. That was "good" enough for 224 out of the 264 males in the half-IM and 33 out of 46 in my age group. The rest of the day would be spent running down many of those who came out of the water ahead of me.

Check back tomorrow for T1 and the bike.

One Big Deposit

2007-06-24T17:43:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, a storied group of bloggers descended upon the Fox Valley in Wisconsin to tackle the High Cliff Half Ironman triathlon. There are sure to be much more detailed reports, but here is a breakdown of the major topics.

A pasta dinner was held at the Pol homestead, and the entire tri-blog/raceAthlete contingent attended. This included George Schweitzer (Article George, story to come), Simply Stu, Iron Will, and Rural Girl and her family. We had a great time, and have some funny stories and pictures for later.

On Sunday, each of us completed the half-IM race on our own terms. We raced our own races and faced our own demons. At the end of the day, we overcame and put one in the "Finish" column. A generic recap of the race:

George threw down the gauntlet. The official results need to be posted, but he was only about 20 minutes behind the overall winner, and that's after a flat in the first mile of the bike.

Simply Stu posted a stellar time, despite believing the run took a lot out of him. He came in well under 6 hours and placed in the top 20 in his age group.

Rural Girl showed that she will give Stu a run for his money in Madison. Her overall time was only 6 minutes slower than Stu's. She also placed very well in her division.

Iron Pol set a half-IM PR (since it was his first one), finished in 5:47, and beat his expectations in every discpline. This was good enough for 20th in his division, and something like 120 overall.

Iron Wil finished in about 7:45 and looked as if she had gone through a battlefield between the swim exit and the finish line. After catching some gravel and facing bike issues, she continued to bike and made it to the run. On the difficult trail run, two areas of gravel played havoc with her footing. I'm sure she'll post the pictures we took at the finish line. She overcame huge mechanical, physical, and mental challenges to finish, and she should take them to heart. She proved she is ready to beat the mindgame that is Ironman.

More detailed reports to follow, and I'm sure each of the others will have their reports. This was a truly exciting weekend, and if you have the opportunity to meet and/or race with any of these bloggers, take it. Each is inspirational, gracious, and humorous in their own way.

R.E.S.P.E.C.T

2007-06-21T22:54:00.000-05:00

One of the first things I learned when taking up endurance events was respect. First, and most obvious in this category was "Respect the distance." One of the biggest mistake any endurance athlete can make is failing to show proper respect for an upcoming race. Whether it's a 5K charity run, a full marathon, or an Ironman triathlon, the distance must be respected. Many an athlete has crashed and burned after shorting the training needed to achieve a goal.

Then, there is "Respect the successes of others." In the same manner, everyone deserves respect for their accomplishments. An "elitist" attitude won't serve anyone well, and it might just turn someone off from the sport. If someone is a confirmed couch potato, we should celebrate with them when the complete a walk around the block. And we should continue to affirm their accomplishments as they occur. Walk around two blocks. Walk a mile. Jog a quarter-mile. Complete a 5K walking. Run a 5K. Swim 200 yards. The definition of "long" varies from person to person. And everyone deserves respect if they are pushing to improve themselves.

This weekend, I will attempt my first half-Ironman. While I haven't yet hit the full court press of nervous energy, I have maintained respect.

I certainly respect the distance. The bike and the run are little concern, except they come after a 1.2 mile swim. And that is something I truly respect. I still have difficult time getting my head around 1.2 miles in open water. If it doesn't hit me before, I KNOW that getting into the water in my wetsuit on Sunday will bring it home. That and being unable to see the final marker bouy.

I will also get to meet several people whom I already respect. And we haven't even met. Each of the bloggers and Team raceAthlete members heading into town has accomplished a great deal to get to the starting line. In addition, there are dozens of new Tri Foxes competing in their first triathlon. For that, they all have my respect.

Finally, I respect my wife for allowing me to take this journey, and for being there every step of the way. I could probably be a marathoner and triathlete without her support, but it would be much more difficult and much less fun.

This weekend, I continue on a journey down a new path. And I will venture further down that path than ever before. Tonight, it is too early to truly have a healthy fear of the race. But I will always have respect for everything surrounding it.

Oh yeah, just for the record, here are my goals/predictions for the race:

Swim - 45 minutes
Bike - 3 hours 7 minutes
Run - 2 hours 15 minutes
Transitions - 8 minutes
Total time - 6 hours 15 minutes

And my "Wow, that exceeded my wildest expectations" goals:

Swim - 40 minutes
Bike - 2 hours 40 minutes
Run - 1 hour 55 minutes
Transitions - 6 minutes
Total time - 5 hours 21 minutes

While You Were Out

2007-06-16T22:25:00.000-05:00

Time has a way of rolling by while we are occupied with our lives. And things of note have a way of just continuing to happen whether or not we are paying attention.

At some point in the very near past my site clock climbed over 10,000. I am grateful to everyone who visited and made that happen. For those who return often, thank you for taking part in this journey. I might be able to do this without you, but it would be so much less enjoyable, and so much more difficult. I appreciate your words of advice, wisdom, motivation, and encouragement. For those just passing through, thanks for visiting and leave a comment so I know you were here.

Just as the site clock continues to count up, the race clock continues to count down. And it seems to be a bit more predictable. It seems to go down by one every single day. If this continues, 10 weeks from tonight I will be in Louisville, Kentucky trying to sleep despite pre-race nerves.

Another constant in any Ironman's life is training. Today was no different, and the training did much to improve my confidence. Instead of being a 5000 yard swim, or a 6-hour bike, a simple 30-minute swim gave me a boost. It was 30 minutes in the lake, with a wetsuit, essentially alone. There were a few other tri-club members around, but for the most part, I had the swim area to myself. While 30 minutes is far from sufficient to complete an Ironman swim (or my upcoming 70.3 race, for that matter), it was enough to make a small, but very important, deposit into my IM Louisville account. Thirty minutes with my face in the water, with nothing to see but algae and nothing to focus on but form. Thirty minutes of allowing the wetsuit to provide added comfort in the water. Thirty minutes to prepare for much longer swims that are on the horizon.

Time will continue to pass. Other notable things will happen. Each is simply a stop along the way to something else. 10,000 hits is a milestone on the journey to 100,000. Thirty minutes in the water is a part of the process to reach two hours (or whatever it takes to complete 2.4 miles). High Cliff is one race on the road to Louisville. And this is only one journey in one season. We all have our own lives to lead. Others are pursuing different races at different distances. Each is just as important as the next. And every journey completed is simply the start of the next.

And while we're focused on our lives, time just keeps rolling by. And things of note have a way of just continuing to happen whether or not we are paying attention.

Why, Oh Why?

2007-06-12T22:26:00.000-05:00

Does it always have to be the REAR tire?

And as far as that goes, why does it ALWAYS seem I flat out at convenient times like near the end of a 90 minute ride just before work?

So far, for my bike, I've put four new tubes on the rear tire. The front is the tube that was on the bike when I bought it (1100 miles ago). Of those four flats, three have occurred in the morning prior to work.

Seeing Green - Bellin 10K

2007-06-09T11:34:00.000-05:00

First, allow me to give B-Boy all his due. He took part in his second Dick Lytie Kid's Run on Friday night. As part of the Bellin Run 10K, the kid's run has become so popular, they moved it to its own time and hold it in conjunction with the spaghetti supper. There were so many kids and parents, it was a major mess. Still, my son had fun, and we have some pictures to prove it. He ran the 0.3 mile race in about 5 minutes, a great time considering it was so overcrowded he had to walk half of it.

B-Boy running for the finish!

A happy boy with an awesome prize (football and backpack)!

And then it was time for the grown ups. And what a perfect day for a race. The temperature was about 60f at race start, and there was virtually no wind. The sun was out without beating down on the racers.

With an estimated run time of 41:30, I received the blue bib for the second preferred start corral. While a sub-42 run warrants a green bib for the first preferred start corral, that is something that must be earned. My previous best of 44:54 fell short of that mark. I positioned myself near the front of the corral and planned on 5 minutes of easier running to get out of the mess at the start of the race. After that, the plan was 5 minutes at lactate threshhold followed by 3 minutes of active recovery. That would be repeated until the end of the race. Done properly, I would be on a final LT run on the final 5 minutes before the 42 minute cutoff. If I fell apart, I would be able to ease up.

I hit the first mile and was a bit concerned. Seven minutes was well over my target pace of 6:50 maximum. Trusting my plan, I fell into a rhythm of 5 minutes hard, 3 minutes active recovery. I missed the second marker, and was pleased when I hit mile three at 19:51. The preliminary results show I crossed the 5K mark at 20:36.

The next two miles were increasingly more challenging as the LT intervals became tougher to maintain and the recovery intervals seemed to do little by way of "recovery."

I hit mile five in 33:24 and knew it was going to be close. Mile six seemed elusive, and I felt it would never arrive, though in all reality, it was a very good mile at 6:46 pace. I crossed that marker at 40:10 and started trying to do math in my head. I had a minute and 45 seconds to cover 0.2 miles. I was sprinting at this point, and never finished the calculations. I stopped looking at my heart rate, and just put out everything my legs had left. Crossing the finish line at 42:01 would be a heart breaker. Note the little kid in the next picture. He dogged me the entire race. I didn't know whether to shake his hand for a great race, or trip him.

Sprinting the final few hundred yards, looking at the clock counting up, doing math in my head was fun. I knew I had a bit of extra time for the difference between clock and chip time, but no idea how much. My goal, get across the finish line before CLOCK time showed 42 minutes. That's the cause of the blur in the pictures. I was moving so fast Mrs. Pol couldn't get me in focus (or, she was in a bad position and barely got the pictures taken).

In the end, the plan paid was a huge success. My final time was 41:22. Eight seconds off my target. Fast enough to qualify for a green bib and the first corral, next year. A PR by more than 3:30 over a 10K course. And a huge boost to the confidence in race plans. I owe a great deal of thanks to Coach Mike, as it was one of his training runs that was used for the race plan. I have had several workouts comprised of the 5' LT/3' AR sets, and doing those showed me that a sub-42 10K was possible. Now, it's on to the High Cliff 70.3 race!

Finally, a "before" shot, just to show off the race jersey I was wearing. Note the cool logo and disregard the bulging belly.

Weathermen and Yardage

2007-06-08T07:42:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, the plan was to ride to and from work. Wednesday night, a quick check of the weather indicated the "from" portion of that plan might pose a few problems. You know, minor things like hail. And tornadoes.

While little things like wind and rain won't deter me from a ride, solid rain and 80 mile an hour winds are another story. And the two co-workers in on the ride were more concerned than myself. After a final check of the forecast, we call off the ride.

On the way to work, it was beautiful. High 50s, little wind, no rain. That was expected as the forecast called for the conditions to deteriorate throughout the day. Around lunch, people started talking about how windy it was getting and that the storms were coming.

I checked the satellite maps and disagreed. Still, all the weather services were calling for severe weather going into the afternoon and evening.

On the ride home, I noted how nice it was. A bit windy, but actually quite nice. Even then, I held out hope for the forecasters. After all, were I on my bike, the ride would take much longer than in the car. By the time I got home, no rain. No hail. No tornadoes. But the forecasters were showing all the tracking maps and continued to issue severe weather alerts for our area.

Showtime for the kids. No bad weather. Snacktime. All clear. Bedtime. No flashes of lightning. No funnel clouds. Nothing. Clear skies. And a neighbor mowing his lawn. An odd thing to do were we in the middle of a tornado.

Darn weathermen. I knew I should have risked the ride.

On a lighter note, today was a swim workout. And a major milestone in swimming. While last year was far from a "massive" swim year, I completed about 169,200 yards. Today, I completed 169,600 yards for 2007. It seems Coach Mike's plan for increasing yardage has worked. In two weeks, we'll see how well beneficial the swim focus has been when I compete in my first race of the year, the High Cliff half-IM.

Now, get out there and train. The weatherman is probably wrong.

Censored

2007-06-03T21:37:00.000-05:00

While considering a post detailing my more recent bike workout, a perfect title came to mind. And was immediately censored by my internal content control board. After all, I have kids.

The concept for the title was directly related to the ride itself. I was on my bike for nearly 5 1/2 hours. That's a LONG bike ride, no matter how you look at it.

There were lots of rolling hills, and that always makes for a HARD ride.

AND it was pouring down rain for about 9o minutes of the bike. Needless to say, I got very WET.

Since I won't be using the title, you'll just have to wonder. There's just no way I could possibly post it. Just trust me that it was very suggestive.

The training schedule called for a four hour ride. And when my training partner suggested meeting him at a nearby airport where he would be attending an airshow, I was game. Sure, we knew the airport was around 45 miles from my house. Sure, we knew it was to be an easy ride. But hey, what's an extra hour or so of training among friends.

It was already raining as I sat in the garage putting on my shoes. Hey, sometimes it rains on race day (a phrase whose lesson I never seem to learn). I headed out, and was promptly soaked. The rain lasted for the first 45 minutes of the ride.

Riding past the street where my training partner lives, about 17 miles into the ride, I hit roads on which I had never ridden, before. Apparently, a bit more attention to elevation maps would have been prudent. Most of the next 25 miles was one long set of rolling hills. Finding a groove was difficult, and a graph of my speed would closely resemble a sine wave. But at least the rain had stopped.

After just under 2 1/2 hours, I hit the airfield where I was to meet my training partner. It seems the rain that hampered the first hour of my ride had also hampered the planes at the show, and the performances were running 30-45 minutes behind schedule. Rather than wait too long, I headed back on my own.

Sadly, the hills hadn't changed one bit in the interim.

About 20 miles out from home, the rain started, again. Though it only lasted about 20 minutes this time around, it was more than enough to thoroughly soak me a second time.

All together, I spent 4:57 in the saddle, covering just over 88 miles. If I had really thought it through, I would have just added the extra 12 miles and completed the century. Then again, I was wet. Who can think with that kind of rain?

Daddy's Little Triathlete

2007-05-31T21:29:00.001-05:00

What dad wouldn't be proud of his baby girl when she is so excited about triathlons that she wants to learn to ride daddy's bike?

Of course, it may have more to do with the desire to be on anything with wheels, be it farm vehicles...

Or yard equipment...

Limbo

2007-05-30T21:39:00.001-05:00

The Green Bay Marathon is behind me and the Bellin Run 10K is on the horizon. Still, it seems like weeks until the "real" race season starts. Despite my running background, we must remember that this is The Year of the Ironman. I think that's why everything seems to be in "limbo." Marathons and 10Ks are just training for what lies ahead.

Right now, just about everything in my life is focused on August 26th. When people want to get together, I check my training schedule THEN my calendar. When co-workers want to plan a bike-to-work day, it has to be when it fits in with my workouts for the week. Mrs. Pol is now in a routine of checking my training schedule when she plans things. (Of course, let's not get carried away, she still has her schedule, and my kids DO come first. Just ask Monster Girl.)

As that first key race approaches, training is ramping up. Weekend rides are quickly ramping up from the simple 90-120 minute sessions to the 4-hour trips that require more planning. Soon enough, I'll be able to schedule trips around Lake Winnebago as part of my standard training. And I'm still in limbo. That race can't get here soon enough. Lesson learned. Schedule an early season sprint, next year.

Not for training. Not for confidence. Just for sanity. June is too long to wait for a race.

Celebrity Tri at High Cliff

2007-05-23T08:28:00.001-05:00

While it might fall short of the spectacular blogger convention held recently at Wildflower, we have another celebrity tri event coming up in June. The High Cliff Triathlon held in the Fox Cities at the High Cliff state park promises to be an awesome event. Bloggers and raceAthletes alike will converge on the Fox Valley the weekend of June 23-24 for good times and good friends. Oh yeah, some of us will be racing, too.

A member of the sponsoring tri club, I will be doing all I can to host anyone from the Tri Blog Community in town, that weekend. In addition to the various official events, we will have some kind of food and fun at the Pol homestead. Transportation, course tours, and local information will all be available race weekend. Anyone needing hotel or other information prior to then, just let me know and I'll do whatever I can to help out.

I am very excited about the group that is coming for the race. In "information received" order, here are some of the names I know.

Coming in from St. Louis to race with a college friend, George Schweitzer is an amazing triathlete with several Ironman finishes under his belt. He always provides very informative and educational race reports, and I truly look forward to meeting him. And while I have little hope of competing against him, the opportunity to race with and learn from him is exciting.

Another "local" personality, Tri Mom (not to be confused with Tri Mama), will be racing. The opportunity to meet bloggers with whom I am less familiar is always awesome. And finding triathletes who live closer than several states away is also cool.

With perhaps the longest trip, gymgator will be up from Florida for the race. He will have the opportunity to race with sheepshead instead of sharks, algae instead of alligators. Luckily, it is summer, so he shouldn't freeze too badly.

We will also have a trio of sponsored raceAthlete members, two of whom are blogger royalty. Simply Stu of podcasting fame will make the trip from Madison for the race. It will be great to meet one of the top sports podcasters in the country. I can only hope to live up to the example he sets every time tri-bloggers descend upon Madison.

Rural Girl will also be making an appearance. After tearing up Wildflower, she is more than ready for the killer hill that starts the bike and run portions of the race. Of course, after Wildflower, she'll probably look at the course and say, "What hill?"

Finally, schedule changes for Iron Wil came out in our favor. In addition to the Spirit of Racine Triathlon in July, Iron Wil is headed to Wisconsin for the High Cliff triathlon. After meeting her the day before IM Wisconsin, last year, I look forward to the opportunity to spend a little more time with her.

Every chance to meet with tri-bloggers is one to be taken. I am really looking forward to having everyone in town for this race. If you are reading this, are racing at High Cliff, and don't see your name, please let me know. I'll add you to the list and keep you in the loop as things develop.

Long Training Runs

2007-05-21T22:08:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, three co-workers completed their first major endurance races. Bellin Chick and KC completed their first half-marathons, and my training partner completed his first full marathon. They all did great, keeping to race plans that were adjusted as needed.

Bellin Chick, who found out five days prior to the race that she is pregnant, completed the race in about 2:20. Based on estimates, she became pregnant within a week of beginning her training program, and this race was an awesome way to transition from run training to mommy training. Bellin Chick’s friend and training partner also completed her first (and supposedly last) half-marathon. Time will tell on that.

K.C. stayed with the group for about a half-mile. He then took off at his own pace, completing the run in 1:47. More importantly, he did an amazing job of negative splitting the race, getting faster with each 5K segment. He is now considering a September marathon, so long as I can run it with him.

And my training partner completed the marathon in 4:56, nearly 15 minutes faster than my first marathon time. Our plan was to run with Bellin Chick and set pace for her during the first 11 miles (where the half split off). After that, the plan was to use the half marathon and 20 mile points as gauges for the rest of the race. Our goal was to get him to the finish line, under five hours, if possible. His stretch goal was a 4:30 marathon. He learned a lot about the 26.2-mile distance, and is considering the same September race as K.C. (likewise dependent upon my running it with them).

My training partner learned the importance of a solid training program, and admitted that the last eight miles were very tough. What he lacked in discipline during the training program he made up with determination on race day. He heeded the advice provided from others, and learned a lot for future races.

Most remarkable was the success of these individuals given the conditions. With the weather forecast calling for slightly overcast skies and a high temperature of 60F, it looked to be a perfect day for running. Of course, had the meteorologists been anywhere near accurate, it WOULD have been a perfect day. When they miss the high by 10 degrees, and temperatures during the race never break 50F, it’s another story. It was cloudy and about 40F when the race began. We had winds at about 10-15 mph with gusts over 20 mph. Looking for the 60F prediction, I wore light clothing, ditching my sweatshirt at the start. That was a BIG mistake.

Arms and hands bore the brunt of the cold, and anything requiring manual dexterity became a challenge. Opening gel packs, tying shorts after pit stops, and opening or closing bottles were a few of the issues we faced during the day. Luckily, it never rained. I’m fairly certain rain would have ended the day for my training partner, for me, and for hundreds of other runners.

Even so, marathon number five is in the bag. It was primarily a support run, and I count it as a long, slow run in my books. Once again, if Louisville in August happens to run in the 50s, my training is supporting that. Hopefully, it will warm up in the near future. I rather expect these “Frozen Tundra” runs will do little to prepare me for race day conditions come Ironman.

Perception

2007-05-18T09:37:00.000-05:00

A local elementary school held a "Bike Rodeo" aimed at promoting biking and bicycle safety. The kids moved through a series of stations aimed at teaching them how to fit and put on a helmet, ride safely in the road, avoid hazards, and use hand signals. They also completed an "obstacle" course designed to reinforce the lessons learned.

In addition to these stations, various local organizations were present to lend assistance and provide information. Local police showed up with MacGruff the Crime Dog and a well received magician. A local bike shop provided a mechanic who tuned up bikes the kids were riding. Brandon's Champions, a group dedicated to promoting bicycle and helmet safety in conjunction with medical information carriers, provided packets for the kids and had helmets available for those in need of them.

I was able to attend as a representative of the Fox Cities Triathlon Club and shared information about both biking and triathlons. Though the bike mechanic was perhaps the most popular person there, the kids were very enthused about the opportunity to learn about triathlons and the equipment used in races. It made their day to learn that they aren't the only ones told they MUST wear their helmets. I'm sure the other gear helped keep their attention, as well. After all, the police had a magician, but I had a wetsuit.

While there, I also had the opportunity to speak with some adults about triathlon opportunities. The most common reaction was, "Oh, I couldn't do that." When asked why, their response was nearly uniform. "I could never (swim/bike/run) that far." In every case, they were completely unaware that triathlon could mean something other than "Ironman."

Several of them, after learning that their are local events with 220 yard swims, 8 mile bikes, and 1.8 mile runs indicated they might enjoy trying such a race. While most people are aware that there are dozens of different distances for running races, all too many people believe triathlon is synonomous with Ironman. Responsibility for this lies, in large part, on our shoulders. We must take every opportunity available to share our passion for endurance sports with others. And we must make sure we let people know that "endurance" doesn't have to mean 140.6 miles. No more than "run" means 26.2 miles.

Likewise, we should work to promote unity across the spectrum of endurance athletics. My local tri club does a lot in that effort. They participate in marathons, duathlons, and triathlons. They host both a triathlon and a major bike ride. They welcome endurance athletes of any type into the club, and membership is free.

Another free organization with a like mind is raceAthlete. While many of its members are triathlons, it is a group focused on all types of endurance events. Cycling, running, triathlon, ultramarathoning, whatever. And a great deal of effort is put into promoting events of all distances. The 5K runner is right next to the marathoner. The sprint triathlon is as much a triathlon as Ironman. A 30K time trial holds the same merit as a century ride.

We are all endurance athletes. And we are all ambassadors for the various sports we love. While much of our time is dedicated to training, some part of our day should be set aside for sharing our passion with others. As more people come to understand how many options they have, participation in all endurance events will increase. And that can only have a positive impact on the world.

Make Mine a Double

2007-05-18T09:33:00.000-05:00

Just in case anyone is paying attention, you might note that the countdown timer has moved into double digits.

For most of us, countdown clocks start right at 364 when we register for an event the day after the most recent race. Even though registration for IM Louisville was well after the "year-early" date, the timer was well into the 200s when first set up. Seeing it move into double digits is certainly a wake-up call.

Ninety-nine. That's a pretty small number. We're rapidly approaching the "less than a summer vacation" area.

Things Change

2007-05-16T11:03:00.000-05:00

Months ago, I posted about some co-workers, Belling Chick and K.C., trying to decide about signing up for the Green Bay Half-Marathon, which occurs just a few days from today. With four of us running either the full or half marathon, we made plans for a pre-race pasta party and all of our sherpas have planned their days. Their tapers are in full swing, and we are into the final restful days before the race.

If you had told me in December or January that the tables would be fully reversed and I would be cautioning any of the three against running the race, I'd have laughed. While injuries are always a possibility, the odds are certainly in our favor that we could all finish the race. And after years of encouraging my co-workers to try a half or full marathon, there is little that would lead me to encourage someone to have a DNS (did not start). And yet, things change.

Bellin Chick missed work on Monday, and a few well placed rumors suggested she might have had an attack of appendicitis. They were, of course, nothing more than well placed rumors. After all, Bellin Chick is back at work and there is nothing to indicate she had major surgery on Monday. No, she went to the hospital for an appendicitis. She left pregnant (and I believe she may have a legal case here). The hospital is sure to deny any culpability as she IS 14-weeks pregnant.

And this pregnancy is one they consider nothing short of a miracle. Having given up on children years ago, this situation is a pleasant and welcome shock. It also leads to an all too common dilemma. Run? Or not run?

I've provided what limited input I can. For many reasons, I'm very poorly qualified to give any real guidance here. But isn't it amazing how a few short months and a single piece of information can completely change perspective. On Monday, I was the biggest cheerleader, sending out taper information, planning the weekend, and ensuring everyone was on track for the race. On Wednesday, I find myself saying that it's just a race and there will be more, next year.

Graphic Post

2007-05-16T08:30:00.000-05:00

A great many triathletes love their data. They love statistics like heart rates, times, distances, elevation, power, etc ad nauseum. Like them, I also love to document my training. Let's face it, I'm a triathlete, an accountant, and a geek. Anyone who wants to compare data, I'm game.

But other than the occassional "I swam this many yards" or "I did this breakthrough workout," there aren't too many graphs, charts, profiles, or other training statistics on this site. In fact, most of what I do is by feeling, and the data I keep is for long term use. Basically, I like to track what I'm doing. In the short term, I really don't care all that much.

I do, however, have many of the toys and gadgets others use. I have a heart rate monitor and cycling computer. I time runs, including various lap points so I can gauge pace and average heart rates. I don't have a power meter, but will gladly succumb to peer pressure if anyone wants to make a donation to the cause. And I put all those little data points into a large variety of training documents.

This year, I returned to tracking run statistics, graphing pace to heart rate over known distances. Combined with a professional training program, an interesting result can now be seen. In February, I completed a 10-mile run at an average pace of 7:42/mile. My average heart rate for the run was 149 bpm. This morning, I completed a 9.1 mile run with a near identical average heart rate of 148 bpm. Average pace? 7:09/mile.

While the runs were different in nature, the data points are telling. Shaving 30 seconds per mile and having a slightly lower average heart rate is the kind of long term trend that motivates further training. And I believe that applies to most of what we track.

Whether it's weight, power on the bike, run/swim pace, or any of a wide variety of other factors, a good approach is to document daily and review infrequently. Today, three months after starting, was the first time I compared data. And the results were drastic and really made my day. If I had compared results every time I ran, the changes would have been less dramatic and actually quite boring.

If you are prone to collecting, reviewing, comparing, and obsessing over data on a regular basis, consider adjusting your focus. Let the graphs take care of themselves, and give yourself a three month reprieve. After that three month period, compare the start and end points and see what improvements have been made. You just might find yourself pleasantly surprised.

Why I Have a Coach

2007-05-14T15:34:00.000-05:00

The conversation via e-mail went something like this:

Coach Mike: Let me know what races you plan on running, so they can be fit into your schedule.

Iron Pol: Sure, though I haven't signed up yet, my first triathlon is the High Cliff sprint triathlon. (Where Rural Girl, George Schweitzer, trimom, and gymgator will all be racing)

Coach Mike: You know, if you haven't signed up yet, you really should consider the half.

Iron Pol: Okay, I'll do that.

And here is how the conversation played itself out, in my head:

Coach Mike: Let me know what races you plan on running, so they can be fit into your schedule.

Iron Pol: Sure, though I haven't signed up yet, my first triathlon is the High Cliff sprint triathlon.
Coach Mike: You know, if you haven't signed up yet, you really should consider the half.

Iron Pol: Well, I my thinking was sprint, half IM, full IM, in a nice, controlled build.

Coach Mike: But a sprint distance race? You've had lots of training days longer than that, and we haven't even started IM training. It might be a bit short.

Iron Pol: Sure, but think of the great open water practice.

Coach Mike: If 440 yards is great open water practice, think how much better 2100 yards will be. If this were an Olympic distance, it might make sense. But a sprint? The half will tell us a lot more.

Iron Pol: Okay, I'll do that.

The nice thing is that the "in my head" part never really entered the picture. Mike gave his suggestion and I did what any apt pupil does. I listed to what was said, and barring a reasonable argument, I remained teachable. As I went through the discussion "in my head," I realized that the suggestion to do the half-IM distance just makes sense. That's why I have a coach. To make sense of the training, racing, training, racing mix. Left to my own devices, I've been known to do some fairly goofy things.

Something Stinks, Too!

2007-05-12T22:09:00.000-05:00

In December, I violated another one of those unwritten rules of triathlon. I purchased a wetsuit, sight unseen and without trying it on, from an online store. I was, however, fairly confident about the purchase as I fell right in the middle of every size criteria listed on the sizing table. And given the sale price, it was tough to pass up.

When I received the new Orca Sonar wetsuit, I tried it on immediately. It fit just as I expected based on the comments provided by others. In other words, it took an incredible effort just to squeeze into the suit, and once zipped up, it felt like I was in a fairly solid bear hug. Once confident the fit was reasonable, the wetsuit went into the closet to wait for warmer days. Swimming in the lakes here in December require a chainsaw before anything else.

Today, the wetsuit came out of the closet. (For those of you thinking, "Wow, his wetsuit admitted it was gay," I already thought of that, and just couldn't think of a good way to add it to the post, so skipped it.) A beautiful day, I decided it was time to get the wetsuit into the water. I grabbed my gear and headed to High Cliff State Park, site of the High Cliff Triathlon in July. The first thing I noted when I got to the beach was the plague of lake flies. I had to keep a good grip on my gear, as the bugs kept trying to fly off with everything.

The second thing I noticed was the absolute lack of anyone in the water. It took little investigative work to figure out why. There seems to have been a horrible fish kill in the lake, this year. The shore is littered with dead fish. I wandered to several areas, hoping to find a clear spot, and had zero success. Both the sight and smell was enough to discourage anyone from entering the water.

I headed back to the car dejected. From frozen lake to disgusting lake. How's a guy supposed to get open water swimming in when the conditions are so brutal? Determined to try out the wetsuit, I left the state park considering other options. And luck was on my side when I discovered a park I hadn't known about while looking for somewhere with a beach. A park with a beach NOT plugged up with dead fish.

With only minor struggles, I got the wetsuit on and zipped up, relying on the belief that getting OUT would be easier. I waded into the swim area, and found that the only spot deep enough to actually swim was just OUTSIDE the swim area bouys. I figure they were about 70 yards apart and did 7 laps between bouys. I found the range of motion in the arms to be sufficient, and was't overly claustrophobic because of the suit. I like the added bouyancy, though the extra comfort doesn't completely balance the stress of open water swimming. The murky water, THAT does cause some claustrophobia. To put it in perspective, several times today I found myself hitting the bottom of the lake with my hands. Yet I never actually SAW the bottom. It's that murky.

Even if it doesn't completely counter open water concerns, I felt much better in the wetsuit than in just a swimsuit. I believe it will be a great benefit. It will also help me get more open water swimming done, and that will probably do a great deal to eliminate concerns about swimming in the lake.

Getting out of the wetsuit was easier than I thought it would. While it took some effort, I believe it will probably be worth it to wear it in any race with a swim greater than a quarter mile. I'll be closely looking at times for swims under 440 yards.

So, in the end, it's mixed reviews. Wetsuit, well worth the investment. Orca Sonar, a great wetsuit for the money. Wetsuits making open water swimming a "breeze," not so much. Swimming in Lake Winnebago, disgusting.

Something Stinks

2007-05-11T08:23:00.000-05:00

Shortly after the Tour de France, news of Floyd Landis testing positive for performance enhancing drugs was leaked to the public. Landis has consistently maintained his innocence and continues to contest the results. Many, both cyclists and outsiders, have serious questions about both the validity of the tests and the objectivity of the testing groups.

Now, another frightening twist has developed. Landis is now reporting that the United States Anti-doping Agency offered him a deal if he would provide information about a certain 7-time winner of the Tour de France. If true, the offer is both despicable and in violation of USADA policy. While athletes may be told that cooperation in identifying others who violate doping rules, the mention of specific athletes by the USADA is prohibited.

The circumstances surrounding Landis' positive test are highly suspect. The damage the allegation has done to his reputation and career are obvious. If this latest accusation from Landis prove true, it will indicate the need for a house cleaning at the USADA.

Free Training

2007-05-10T22:16:00.000-05:00

Training time is a limited and precious resource for triathletes. We all work hard to establish schedules, ensure they are sustainable, and then follow them with reasonable consistency. Discipline is one big key to success.

Flexibility and adaptation are also helpful when it comes to meeting the training demands we place upon ourselves. The ability to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together, and then start moving those pieces around while keeping the picture the same becomes a very useful skill. One way to efficiently complete training is to combine it with other tasks.

My training partner and I have one very effective means of doing just that. We bike to work when we can. For me, that ride is about 30 miles each way. With a bit of planning, I can fit 60 miles of training into my schedule, and save a lot of time in the process. It is something to consider if you find yourself trying to make too much training fit into too few hours.

The biggest benefit I gain from biking too and from work is time. On a normal day, it takes me roughly 45 minutes to drive to work. If I have a morning training, I have to complete the session, shower, get dressed, and make that drive. If I ride my bike to work, it takes about 90 minutes. However, 45 of that is pure savings, because I would have been driving that long, regardless. The same applies to the ride home. A total of three hours of biking is accomplished in essentially 90 minutes, because the other 90 minutes would have otherwise been wasted behind the wheel of a car.

Now, for those of you who feel there is also a financial savings because I saved some gas, let me slow you down, a bit. Let's say I get roughly 30 miles to the gallon. I would use two gallons of gas, round trip, or about $6.20 at current prices. While that money is definitely saved, we must then consider other fuel that WAS used. First, I went through four bottles of Gatorade. While I use powder mix, Gatorade costs about $1.25 a bottle if bought ready made. However, we look at it, I'm about $3.00 in for drinks. Two Gu gels at about $1 each. Extra snacks to the tune of about $1.50, which only begins to cover the calorie deficit from three hours of biking. All totaled, the cost of fueling my body easily exceeds the cost of gas for my vehicle.

In the end, two things motivate me to make these round trips on my bike. First, I can accomplish training in what is essentially "free" time. Second, I can complete some solid training with my co-worker/training partner. Those two things together make it worth the effort.

So, the next time you're struggling with how to fit all the training hours into the day, consider how you can make workouts part of your daily routine. It mixes things up, and might just save you some time, too.

The Nut Hut

2007-05-09T07:42:00.000-05:00

My wife occassionally talks about wanting to open a bar and grill type establishment to balance places like Hooters and Coyote Ugly. The target market would be female, and it would be called The Nut Hut. It takes little imagination to get a visual of the wait staff, and I questioned the feasibility of such a restaurant. It is, however, her dream, so I leave well enough alone.

Early in my triathlon journey, I was encouraged to use Total Immersion Swimming as a starting point for learning to actually swim. In the first few pages of that book, the author tells the reader to go out and purchase a Speedo type swimsuit. When I read that, my first thoughts were of The Nut Hut, and my immediate response was, "Not gonna happen. Ever." True to my statement, my swim attire has always been tri shorts. Specifically, four pair of tri shorts.

I buy them two at a time, and alternate suits with each swim. Regardless, chlorine is brutal on the fabric. And the areas most susceptible to wear are the areas that will lead to the most embarrassment if failure does occur. Rather than walk around with a hut that reveals more nut than is socially acceptable, I replace my tri shorts more frequently than I might like. At $30-40 a pop, it gets expensive.

Yesterday, I gave in to the (financial) pressure and went to the dark side. I am now proud (?) owner of a bikini style swimsuit. I will, however, conserve some small shred of my dignity by using a pair of nylon drag shorts. It's frightening how I jumped through so many hoops (too long a story) to get the swim trunks I swore I'd never wear just 12 short months ago.

But I was able to stick to my guns in one regard. I didn't buy a Speedo. I bought a Tyr. Either way, it's a nut hut.

Sweet 16, Baby!

2007-05-07T07:44:00.000-05:00

A quick check of the countdown clock shows just under 112 days. Sixteen weeks. In college basketball, that would be called The Sweet 16. And if Dick Vitale is saying it, it's "Sweet 16, baayyybeeeeeee!"

In this prospective Ironman, 16 is significant for a couple reasons. First and foremost, the official Ironman training program commences, today. Oddly, this first week is a bit of a step back. Last week, the final week of an 8-week bridge between a swim focus schedule and the IM schedule, was moderately tough. This week is much lighter, and actually includes two rest days.

Normally, I would automatically insert some type of workouts on my own. This week, I might just honor that second rest day and get some yard work completed and take a nap. After all, we have to honor the program, right?

Sixteen weeks from Iroman puts me two weeks out of the first race of the year. Thirteen days from today, I will be a running aid station for a co-worker in his first full marathon. It's taking the idea of being a sherpa to extremes. I'll be running with a full load of supplies on my Amphipod ready to address any issues my training partner might face.

After that, it's a 5-4-5 schedule between races. Five weeks after the marathon is my sprint triathlon. Four weeks later is the half-IM race. And five weeks after that is IM Louisville.

Viewed in days, my first attempt at IM seems ages away. Viewed in weeks, it's frighteningly closer. Viewed in terms of races and weeks, I may as well start packing, now! The sense of urgency raises the training bar just a notch higher.

Sweet 16. Sixteen weeks to prepare physically. Sixteen weeks to prepare mentally. Sixteen weeks of returning to the fire in the hopes of forging iron.

Detour

2007-05-04T07:56:00.000-05:00

We spend a lot of time on our blogs discussing training, fears and concerns, and races. Sometimes, we offer glimpses of who we are to those who read.

And sometimes, people open a window directly into their lives.

Go here and read Comm's post. There's nothing I can post that will compare.

Zone 4

2007-05-03T11:41:00.000-05:00

The optimum way to train on the bike is using a power meter. The fully sponsored members of Team raceAthlete ride the BMC TT02 equipped with the top-of-the-line Power Tap SL 2.4 from CycleOps. While the bike will certainly lead to improvements for many, the ability to train with a power meter is sure to have bigger benefits. Particularly for those previously training without that tool.

For those of us with budgets lacking a line for "Power Tap," other information must be used. In most cases, the alternative to power is heart rate. Early in my training program, coach Mike Ricci of D3 Multisports scheduled a time trial on the bike. This allows heart rate zones to be set for future training sessions.

It is amazing how quickly improvements can be made when paying attention to power, or at least proper heart rate zones. Using the results of that early time trial, I have worked hard to hit the zones scheduled in given workouts. After several months, the benefits are beginning to show.

Yesterday's bike workout called for 2 minute intervals in zone 4 (155-164 for me). In the past, zone 4 could easily be hit by maintaining 80-90 RPM using the big ring and 4th or 5th gear. That would have been high zone 4. Yesterday, I was nearly unable to hit zone 4. Using the big ring in 8th gear at 95-100 RPM, I could get there, only to fall below the 155 bpm point if I eased off at all.

Mike's response when I voiced my concern was, "Sounds like you need another time trial. Welcome to improved fitness."

That a new time trial would eventually become necessary was understood. That gains would be seen so quickly was a bit of a shock. I plan on performing that time trial as quickly as possible, and seeing if the progress can be sustained for another couple months.

If you are currently "winging it" with training, consider using at least heart rate zones for determining intensity. I spent a lot of time training on perceived effort. While useful in its own way, perceived effort pales in comparison to being able to see how your body is reacting.

And, sadly, this also leads me to wonder if perhaps there are even great gains to be made if I invest in a power meter.

Triathlon, she is a demanding mistress.

One Third

2007-05-01T13:13:00.000-05:00

With Ironman Louisville taking place on August 26th, it will be interesting to look at this year in thirds. January through April and May through August. Admittedly, August may be a bit of a wash between taper and post-IM downtime, but the periods work out well.

So, while I don't generally post specifics about training, here are the numbers from the first four months of 2007. One note, the roads have only recently become clear enough for biking (using Iron Pol standards). The bike mileage is deceptively low. There have been hours spent on the trainer, where mileage isn't documented.

The Swim

In mid-January, I began my 8-week swim focus aimed at improving my comfort in the water, as well as my ability to come out of the water fresh. Between January 1 and April 30, I completed 134,453 total yards swimming. Here are two bits of information to put that in perspective. First, that comes out to just over 76 miles. Second, it is only slightly longer than some of the longest single day swims completed by Martin Strel as he attempted to swim the length of the Amazon. In 2006, it was December before I had accumalated that much swim yardage. And true to Coach Mike's approach, my capabilities in the water are greatly improved.

The Bike

As mentioned above, using mileage alone is misleading when reviewing bike workouts. Through April, I have a grand total of 108 miles on the road. Brutal, especially if you consider most of it came in two rides. Put into proper perspective, my TIME in the saddle for the past four months totals 42 hours, 38 minutes. Using an average 17 mph, that's well over 700 miles. This will ramp up VERY quickly now that biking outside is a reality.

The Run

Admittedly my strong suit, running has taken a back seat to swimming and biking. Even so, I have logged about 40 miles more this year than the same period last year. With a total of 265.6, I am well on the way to a 1000 mile year. Like the swim, I have also seen significant gains in my run as I seek to break the 42 minute mark in the 10K. That is for purely self-gratifying reasons, as a sub-42 minute 10K will result in elite status for a local race. Just once, I'd like to start with the jack rabbits.

Now, it will be interesting to compare these statistics with the same information for the second four months of the year.

Being "That Guy"

2007-04-30T16:05:00.000-05:00

In a previous post, I made it abundantly clear that I have never been "That Guy." However, when it comes to endurance events at work, more and more people have come to view me as "That Guy." Experienced marathoner, you want "That Guy." Insane dude training for an Ironman? That Guy. Answers to training questions, or even a whole training program? That Guy. A training partner for those long sessions? That Guy.

It is wonderful that so many co-workers, family, and friends acknowledge the journey I have undertaken. The support, encouragement, and interest others have shown helps make the hard work that much more worthwhile. And it is awesome to see so many others express interest in different events after seeing the accomplishments of those of us who push ourselves to achieve our goals, whether it's walking a 5K or running a marathon.

Of course, being "That Guy" demands a lot of personal improvement, as well. Sometimes, supporting others in their efforts requires more flexibility than most Ironman training programs are designed to withstand. Completing a training run might mean flipping your bike and run days. Long runs interfere with swim sessions. And 90-minute runs turn into 4-hour LSD runs. And races that might never have been entered become mandatory training so you can run next to the first timer.

And painful as it is, this is one aspect of endurance athletics I will always cherish. Helping another achieve a goal they considered impossible is far more rewarding than any finish I've ever experienced. Bear in mind I haven't completed Ironman, yet. That might change.

The runs I completed this past weekend were longer and took more time than my training plan dictated. And they were somewhat slower than I would have run on my own. But they had benefits all their own. It helped my co-worker complete his longest run ever, and gave him the confidence to know he CAN finish a marathon three weeks from now. It helped a young man know that he CAN complete a 5K run two weeks from now.

And it helped an aspiring Ironman understand that 8-hour training weekends can be survived. That's an important bit of information I might not have without the help of others.

It Better Not Rain

2007-04-27T09:07:00.000-05:00

The folks coordinating Ironman Louisville seem to have finished celebrating New Year. This is obvious from the release of the IM The Ville course maps which were promised early in the new year. Perhaps they meant the Chinese New Year!

There ARE a few issues with the course. Most notably, the swim. Late in 2006, e-mails from the race director suggested a point-to-point swim with the current. My impression of that, given a "right to left" flow of current would be:

Finish <--------------------------------------------------------------Start

If you check out the swim map, you'll note it looks a lot more like this:

Start >------------------->------------------->--------------------------->

Finish<------------------<--------------------<--------------------------<

Even though my degree is in finance, it seems pretty apparent to me that approximately 1.2 miles of this course will be upriver. Luckily, it is the first half. The IM The Ville site indicates it will be against a "slight current."

Well, I did some digging and came up with generally ambiguous information. If I'm reading everything correctly, we will be swimming ABOVE the McAlpine Locks (in the upper pool). This is good, as current there rarely exceeds 2 mph.

If, however, there is a good rain prior to race day, we could be in trouble. Then, it is quite possible for current to exceed 2 mph. Given that is about the pace I swim any given day, it could make for a LONG swim. Regardless, swimming upriver for 1.2 miles will significantly impact the estimate I will be using for swim time.

If anyone happens to be familiar with swimming this section of the river, any information you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggh!

2007-04-27T08:51:00.000-05:00

Let me repeat that!

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggh!

Sorry, I had a nice post nearly completed. Then, my computer decided that was an appropriate time to just randomly restart itself. Thanks, Microsoft, for writing such stable code. You continue to just NAIL these things and produce solid operating systems.

Near Disaster

2007-04-25T12:59:00.000-05:00

Triathlon, by its very nature, is an individual sport. Though in the presence of hundreds, or even thousands of others, we race alone. In the water, we swim with little but our own thoughts. Well, that and the risk of the occassional slap upside the head. On the bike, drafting rules ensure we do the work ourselves. And on the run, we have to get inside ourselves to hide from the pain and fatigue of a long race.

So the opportunity to train with others is an often welcome change. Most Saturdays I run with a training partner who will be attempting his first marathon in less than four weeks. Today, we decided to add a bike to that training. That required a bit of planning and a deviation from the normal process. All of the gear for the day's training was packed and put in the car, last night. The bike was pulled back off the trainer and put in the garage, ready for the car. Bottles of Gatorade and water were prepped and put with my feedbag in the refrigerator.

Since I wanted to get some strength training in, I decided to do my morning run at the YMCA, a nearly tragic decision. Training at the gym AND taking The Pol-R Express poses a bit of a security issue. Since I'm loathe to leave the bike on the rack for the 90 minutes I'm in the building, I decided to throw it in the back seat of the Camry.

That requires the front tire be removed.

So, I pulled the front tire, leaned it against the car so I wouldn't forget it, and threw the rest of the bike into the car. I made sure I had my pump, bags, breakfast, and ran into the garage to grab a few drinks. I tossed the drinks into the bag with my breakfast and backed out of the driveway.

This is the point where you might say something clever like, "Gee, Iron Pol, you didn't mention anything about putting that front tire in the car."

To which I would reply, "Golly, Timmy, you're right. And now would be a good time to start running faster than I can, strictly for safety reasons."

As I cleared the end of the driveway, I felt a lurch of the car and heard a loud crunchy kind of sound. I quickly stopped, wondering what I had just run over, as it isn't trash day. The answer to that question sort of wobbled into view, just to the front passenger side of the car. Oddly, it looked a bit like my wheel. Or, an awful LOT like my wheel.

I believe words to the nature of, "You DID NOT just run over your WHEEL" may have passed my lips. It may, in fact, have been something more colorful, including some clever references to the probable current location of my head, along with the desperate need for a plate glass stomach to facilitate seeing.

I jumped out and grabbed my wheel, hoping against hope there was no damage. I gave it a spin to see if it was obviously bent, and it seemed true. I checked for bent spokes, and saw none. I ran my hands around the entire wheel and felt no bents, dings, or protrusions. Though I have yet to throw it on the bike, it appears the wheel took the abuse well. (Whew!)

I put the wheel in the car. As I closed the door, I noticed something dangling from the front bumper. A quick investigation revealed that in the process of nearly running over my tire, I had ripped the entire side indicator/turn signal light fixture out of the car. The three brackets that held it there were completely broken.

I took the fixture off, threw it in the car, and headed to the gym, thankful that it was only the car that had been damaged. The ride is still on, and the bike is fine.

Symptoms

2007-04-24T10:05:00.000-05:00

My sister has occassionally called into question my sanity. It began when the prospect of running a marathon first entered my mind. When I asked her to consider running the Chicago Marathon with me, she voiced her feelings on the matter.

In her mind, running is the most expedient way to stay in shape. She runs a 5K race every now and then. Anything above and beyond that is a sign of possible mental instability.

My registration for Ironman Louisville was, in her mind, the final piece of evidence in the verification process. Tacking 114.4 miles onto the day BEFORE completing a marathon and the training required to achieve that task make this an open and shut case. Obsessive. In a big way.

Well, I have bad news. There are even more symptoms. For example, consider the energy levels of people during training.

Night before last, I got a fairly good night's sleep. I got to bed in time to get about seven and a half hours sleep (though it was broken up by Monster Girl). I didn't have to train in the morning. Everything was on track for a great day. Yet I could barely keep my eyes open driving to work, and I felt sluggish, all day. When I got home, what I really wanted was a nap instead of the "dad time" and training I got.

Last night, after watching kids until after 9 p.m. (yes, at least one was awake until then), I hopped on the bike for a 75 minute spin on the trainer. Life then got in the way, and I didn't get into bed until after 11:30 p.m. That may as well be 3 a.m. for me, which, by the way, is when Monster Girl woke up screaming. After roughly four and a half hours sleep, I got up for my swim session and headed to work. Oddly, I am alert and feel better than when I go more sleep.

The difference? The training. Somewhere along the path to the insanity we call endurance sports, my body has become used to the training. Is it the endorphins so many talk about? I don't think so, as those are supposed to kick in DURING training. And I can definitely refute the presence of any such kick DURING long training or racing. Whatever it is, I do better after training, regardless of the quality of sleep.

If attempting an Ironman puts one into the "questionable sanity" category, where does "needs training to function" land them?

Smoky and the Bandit

2007-04-23T11:51:00.000-05:00

Recent posts about Jacob Seilheimer running the Boston Marathon have resulted in some interesting discussion, though much of it happened via e-mail rather than blog comments. Much of that discussion focused on his completing the race without having qualifying and registering for the race. For many, the idea that others bandit races is disturbing.

It is a topic worth discussing, because there are a great many views on the subject. Never one to shy away from a controversial issue, I'll take a crack at addressing it.

For some, the concern is that bandits "steal" resources from the race. As bandits don't pay entry fees, anything they use on race day is paid for by someone else. This can include drinks, gels, paid and volunteer workers on the course, etc. Those who make this argument believe that everyone should pay their fare share.

The counter argument is that those resources are already there, and unless a bandit uses items that eventually result in a paid entrant NOT getting the support they need, the supposed harm is minimal. If a bandit drinks even 12-15 cups of Gatorade, the cost is minimal, given it would have been thrown out, anyway.

Another concern offered is that bandits somehow diminish the value of the race. The event is set up for serious athletes who are willing to at least put their name on the dotted line. Bandits have little invested in the race and distract from its nature.

The response to this argument tends to be that bandits have many reasons for opting out of signing up. Sometimes there is the cost. Other times there are other motives for running the race and paying to enter is counterproductive. Sometimes, runners just like supported training runs. While some bandits might somehow diminish the value of the race, others contribute to the event in their own way.

A third objection is that bandits, being unregistered, represent a risk to the race director and sponsor. If they were to be injured while running the race, the event would be at risk of a lawsuit. As the runner never signed a consent and release form, they can hold the race officials liable for any injury incurred. Many events are non-profit, and the risk of litigation poses a real and significant threat.

Others would counter that anyone running on the course without a registration would have no right to hold the race responsible for any injuries incurred on the course. They have no consent and liability form because they have no hold against the event. They are private individuals using public property for their exercise. If this argument is allowed in order to limit bandits from running the entire race, it would also have to be applied to any and all public traffic on the course. Just as spectators wouldn't have a valid claim if they twist their ankle running across the race course, bandits wouldn't have a valid claim if they are injured while running. Most would argue that any successful lawsuit of this nature is sign of a flawed judicial system.

One of the comments on Jacob's site indicated that Jacob hadn't, in fact, run the Boston Marathon. What he had done was completed a 26.2 mile run along the same route on the same day. In fact, it should be noted that many of the pictures on his site show him running on the sidewalk. If he had completed the journey in a more timely manner, would it make any difference? As an unregistered runner, he would have basically been doing a supported, well attended, widely broadcast training run.

On the other hand, do athletes have the right to expect that the person running next to them is a registered participant. What responsibility to we have to self-police ourselves? Is running as a bandit akin to cheating? After all, it is unacceptable to transfer bib numbers (unless allowed by the event directors). How would we respond if someone earned a slot at Kona in the 40-49 age group when they were 38?

Or is banditing something completely different?

Please share your thoughts. Keep in mind that while we may feel passionately about the subject, this is a friendly discussion and the opinions of others should be honored, regardless of agreement. Let the debate begin.

Coffee, Tea, or... Gatorade?

2007-04-19T13:12:00.000-05:00

Swim. Bike. Run. Nutrition? It is said that nutrition is the fourth discipline of triathlon, and in few races is that so visible as it is in Ironman. The time spent completing an IM distance race makes proper nutrition a necessity.

For many, it is also the most difficult discipline. And for first timers, it is admittedly a crapshoot. While we use long training sessions and other races as test cases for what to do on IM race day, it is impossible to simulate the magnitude of completing an Ironman. It must be done.

Reading some of the race reports, I'm getting a better feel for the challenges that may develop on August 26th in Louisville. Those under Coach Mike's tutelage got an advance copy of his race report from Ironman Arizona. It is quite obvious from his report that nutrition can quickly overshadow just about any other challenge.

Mike commented about difficulties staying on course in the swim for two major issues. First, his goggles were leaking and kept filling up with water. Second, he apparently lost a contact somewhere along the way. Those two issues combined to cause Mike to miss his swim goal (of 57:30), by a WHOLE three minutes. (Just for the record, leaky goggles would slow me down a WHOLE lot more).

The wind in Arizona was another huge factor. Particularly on the bike. Mike has set a bike goal of 5:20, an aggressive 10 minutes faster than his previous best bike. Despite the conditions, Mike finished in 5:35, his third best bike time in an IM race.

But Mike's own comments touch on the fourth discipline of triathlon. The balance between caloric intake, hydration, and power output is very fine, indeed. The simple difference of a bit of water can have a huge impact on a race. In this case, Mike indicated that his solid food intake called for more fluids than he was able to get his hands on. As food became less palatable, his caloric intake fell, and power went with it. By the end of the bike, he knew that the run would be a struggle. To his credit, Mike ponied up and completed the race. Again, for the record, while short of his target marathon time, Mike's sub-4:30 marathon is very impressive.

Nutrition has always been more of an afterthought, for me. Throw a few gels into the running pack. Water, Gatorade? Whatever's handy. Going for a bike? Grab a Clif Bar or a banana. Get a couple bottles of whatever's available and get out the door. Forget everything? No biggie, even a marathon can be completed on just water or Gatorade.

That mentality? Well, it's just got to go. That kind of thinking will earn me a bed right next to Commodore. Only I'll have nothing to blame except myself. So, it's time for some research, and you can all add your two cents worth.

As a marathoner, I'm used to gels (I use Gu) and Gatorade. On long rides, I've been carrying Clif Bars, Gatorade, and water. Mike's comments hinted that purely liquid calories may be a better option. The question will come down to what will meet my needs on race day. If I can handle solid food, am I better off with that? Or am I better off going all liquid for ease?

One thing is certain. I have less than 100 days to sort it out, because after that, I won't have time to test things out. And after my first triathlon, I learned not to use ANYTHING new on race day.

*Side note* While looking for the post on my first triathlon, I came across the post about my first mile swim. Two things caught my eye. First, my feelings about a 1760 yard swim at that time. I called it a miracle mile. Second, the pace I mentioned, 2:45/100 yards. Less than 12 months later, a 2000 yard swim is an easy session. And if I see 2:45, I know I forgot to hit my lap counter.

Breaking 130

2007-04-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin', into the future...

That clock is merciless. It just keeps counting down, oblivious to the feelings of those who look at it every day. Time is like that. It slows for nobody. Well, unless you have the resources to push yourself to something much closer to the speed of light than any of us will achieve on our bikes.

And training continues. This morning, there was an aligning of the stars as my workout and the plans of the Wednesday morning group were frighteningly similar. Swim 200s at race pace. As we were all in the same lane, anyway, it worked out well. The first discussions were about doing the sets on 3:45. Another guy saved me from having to humble myself by questioning that pace. So, they decided on 4:00. Which was a PERFECT pace.

If that was the pace they actually swam.

On the first interval, I came in at 3:20. And I was the caboose. Now, unless they were INCLUDING the rest interval in their calculations, having the slowest swimmer achieve an unheard of pace of 3:20/200 yards is a far cry from 4:00. Luckily, the pace slowed on the second set. Of course, 3:30 isn't that much slower.

I figured I'd get a break on the third set, since the guy who originally questioned 3:45 would be leading. It was only then that I realized he was wearing SWIM FINS. My head nearly exploded. That HAS to violate some kind of swim group ethics. Isn't there a rule that says it's impolite to KILL another swimmer by setting pace while wearing fins? On the fourth set, I realized the guy who led the first set was using a pull bouy.

I skipped the fifth set out of protest.

I led the last two sets. It seems the onset of cranial pyrotechnics is beneficial to my swim. I managed to maintain the 1:45 pace, and on the final set swam 1:34 for the first 100. That was, of course, followed by a 2:03 on the next 100. Still, I almost fell out of the pool when I saw the 1:34. And falling out of a pool is a real trick.

Next time I think about swimming intervals with this crew, I plan on throwing the match by pulling up with a hamstring injury. And no, I don't care that hamstring injuries aren't all that common in the pool. That's what I'm going with.

On a side note, remember to use caution as you get your bikes out onto the road. My brother-in-law got to spend most of the last two days in the hospital thanks to an inattentive driver. He was on his motorcycle when a driver nearly t-boned him. He managed to avoid that accident, but slammed into a second car at 40 mph. That two separate drivers failed to acknowledge another vehicle with the right of way is frightening. A fractured wrist and some severe soft tissue damage later, he'll be okay.

Just keep in mind that many drivers are unable to see anything smaller than an SUV when driving. Be safe on the roads so we can all make it to our races.

Worthy

2007-04-18T09:45:00.000-05:00

Several others have posted on Jacob who bandited the Boston Marathon. To quote him, "I, Jacob Seilheimer, completed the Boston Marathon...DEAD LAST.And I'm damn proud of it."

This story is definitely worth reading, and Jacob is definitely worthy of being called by the title he earned. Marathoner.

Outneeding

2007-04-17T08:49:00.000-05:00

Just about anyone ever completing training for an Ironman knows that sleep quickly becomes a limited resource. The "just about" is for those people who attempt IM distance races without really training. For the rest of us, most mornings start in the dark hours of the morning as we complete our first training sessions of the day.

So sleep time is something I've come to value. I do everything I can to get to bed early and get some quality rest. Of course, any parent with toddlers can confirm that best intentions are fairly meaningless when little ones determine that sleep time is over.

My day started out in just that manner. B-Boy and Monster Girl joined forces. Kind of like the Wonder Twins from the 1980s. "Wonder Toddler powers activate."

"Shape of... a three year old with the head of a bull." "Form of an 18-month old coughing like an 80-year old smoker." B-Boy started things out when he started squawking for my wife. She got up to see what he needed, and was promptly TOLD to get daddy, but not before the baby was woke up. Mrs. Pol was more than happy to let me deal with the issue, and headed back to bed, taking her daughter with her.

Me? I got to deal with a son who took off his wet pull-up, then refused to put on a new one. That took the better part of 30 minutes to resolve. I didn't have the heart to let him sit in the bathroom all night, regardless of what I might have told him. Thirty minutes later, Monster Girl took over as her cough was keeping her awake. Apparently, she figured somebody (pronounced Dad, in our house) should be awake with her. In her normal fashion, she fell asleep right about the time I headed out the door for training.

Ahhhh, the life of Ironman training.

From Tempe to Boston

2007-04-16T11:21:00.000-05:00

With the excitement of Ironman Arizona barely in the bag, we turn to the Boston Marathon. While I'm sure there are others out there, I know of one tri-blogger who is running the race, today. And one thing is certain. The winds that plagued participants at IM Arizona continued their journey and now harass those in Boston.

None other than TriBoomer was invited to run the Boston Marathon in recognition of his efforts at raising money to fight bloodborne cancers. He is wearing bib number 24923, and you can track his progress here. As of this writing, Boomer has been tracked through 10K in a time of 1:08.

I'm hoping their tracking is delayed, as the race has been in progress for nearly two and a half hours, at this point. Given his pace, Boomer should have been beyond the 15K point, if not past 20K. Of course, the conditions are far from conducive to marathoning, with temps in the low 50s, winds gusting to 50 mph, and sideways rain.

*Already an update: Boomer has passed the 15K point in 1:42:10, maintaining 10-11 minute miles.

*Update two: While far from real time, Boomer has been sighted passing the 30K checkpoint in 3:50. He is on pace for about 5:25, and we can only hope the weather has broke so he can at least dry out while he's running.

*Boomer is nearing the end. Given the lag in time, he may be done. The last checkpoint he passed was the 40K point, in 5:24. Given that pace, he should be getting awfully close to the finish line.

Here is a late addition, and a horrible oversight. George Schweitzer, endurance athlete extraordinaire, also raced in Boston, today. In addition to finishing the race, he tore it up. He finished in 2:50:17 with an average pace of 6:30/mile. Not bad given the wind and the rain. I don't know if that's a marathon PR for George, but I believe it is his first time running Boston. That was good enough for 366 overall, 280 in his division. Congratulations to him on a fine race!

Boomer accomplished a lot simply being invited to run this race. Keep checking back to see how he is doing.

One is Done

2007-04-15T20:49:00.000-05:00

Congratulations to Coach Mike who has completed another Ironman race. He tore up the bike, averaging 20 mph over the 112 mile course. He went out hard on the run, and seems to have run into some issues over the last 8 miles or so. Having never completed an IM distance race, myself, I'm inclined to say "Who doesn't." In all, he completed the race in what I consider blazing fast speed, with a total time of 11:15:59.

Commodore is on the run course, and I will be sending positive vibes toward Tempe. He completed the bike in just over 8 hours, and the athlete tracker has yet to show a time for the first split at the 8.8 mile point of the run. With his bike and swim times, he is left with about 7 hours to complete the run. Send Commodore all the positive energy you can. With the health issues he's been battling, he can use anything we send his way.

Early Results

2007-04-15T12:10:00.000-05:00

For those who aren't following the links, Commodore and Mike are both on the bike. Mike proved what time in the pool is worth, completing the 2.4 mile swim in just under 1 hour and 2 minutes. Commodore made a HUGE gain from Ironman Florida, completing the swim in 1 hour 44 minutes. For the record, that is an improvement of 21 minutes.

As of this post, Mike had gotten through the 37 mile checkpoint of the bike in 1:44 for a pace of just over 21 mph. That's moving. Commodore's tracker hasn't updated with that time, as yet.

Good Luck!

2007-04-14T19:37:00.000-05:00

At least two important people from my life will be toeing the line at Ironman Arizona on Sunday. For tracking purposes, the links to their Athlete Tracker pages are shown here. Best of luck to Comms and Coach Mike.

Comm's Athlete Tracker page

Coach Mike's Athlete Tracker page

I will also try and update as I find out information. Most of it will be publicly available, so nothing will be breaking. I'll also be out for Mrs. Pol's birthday dinner, so there might be some gaps.

Good luck to both of you, and to anyone I may have missed!

Passing the Torch

2007-04-12T15:32:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how perspectives can change in a short period of time. Twelve months ago, I was ALMOST to the point of swimming freestyle after months of TI drills. Swim workouts were measured in time because it seemed pointless to record swimming 200 yards. My training logs show the first recorded yardage in May, and those were 500-700 yard swims.

In May of last year I broke out my bike and started training on the road. Of course, my steed at that time was a lower end Giant mountain bike, all 35 pounds of it. Still, I hit the roads with a vengeance and logged some rides as long as 15 miles by the time my first race in June rolled around.

By that time, I had purchased my beloved Pol-R Express, and quickly ramped up to 40-50 mile rides. Training through June and July gave me the confidence to complete an Olympic distance triathlon in August, though I still felt distant from much of the triathlon community. While I had certainly invested some time and money, I just didn't feel "triathletey." (I'm fairly certain I just coined that term, so if you take it and make millions of dollars, please remember the little people).

I knew triathletes. They were the ones with all the stories about big races, long races, and lots of races. They wore their club gear at all the meetings and rides. They had months and months of blog entries about their training and racing. They knew all the pros, and had even met many of them. Me, I was just hanging out in their space. I wasn't REALLY a triathlete. Normally a loud and talkative person, I clammed up around real triathletes.

Then, I completed two triathlons in three weeks. The second was at the invitation of a co-worker running his first triathlon. Suddenly, I was the one who "knew everything." I'd been there. I'd set up transition areas. I'd seen wave starts and knew how to avoid the worst of the beating in the water. I understood how frantic you can be going from swim to bike and bike to run. And while I didn't really know all that much, my friend listened to everything I said.

Then Ironman Louisville became a reality, and I jumped feet first into the fray. Though it took me nearly three years to make the jump from half to full marathon, the journey from novice to Ironman was given 18 short months. The change from "wannabe" to triathlete took much less time.

Now, I hope I can be as motivational for all the fledgling triathletes as others have been for me. I try to make sure struggling swimmers understand that 12 months ago, I could barely swim 500 yards. When others cringe at the idea of biking 20 miles, I point out that my first rides, less than a year ago, were only 5 to 10 miles. And running is something that I continue to improve at as I head into my fifth marathon.

Triathlon has something for everyone. If you're new to endurance sports, remember that sprint distance races can be as short as 15 miles, including the bike and run. Often, the swim is in water so shallow the entire distance can be walked, if the need arises. And regardless of the distance, completing any event makes every competitor a winner. As you complete races, the feeling of being an "outsider" will pass. People will start to recognize you.

And they'll know you're a triathlete. Then, you too, can pass the torch.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

2007-04-11T13:06:00.000-05:00

Well, after a long hiatus out of my office, I'm back at my desk. The past few weeks have been spent working closely with a few co-workers as we resolved some issues that were both caused and identified by our company's new business system. Talk about a double edged sword. Regardless, most of the challenges have been overcome, and we can get back to a more normal daily process.

Now, if I can convince Mother Nature to get back to normal, my training will be much more effective. In a simple twist of irony, the week after global warming alarmists released their apocalyptic report on the state of the planet, this part of the country has gone into yet another week of record cold temperatures. Add to that the snowstorms we've been experiencing, and training has been a hoot.

Saturday was an 18 miler as part of my co-worker's training for his first marathon. I awoke that morning to temps in the high teens, 15 mile an hour winds, and an inch of new snow. The decision was made to do the run, mostly because my co-worker liked that option better than the "swim for an hour then run 10 miles" alternative I offered.

Easter was clear and cold. At least most of the snow had melted off, though we kept the kids indoors for egg hunting. I also paid the price on my 3-hour training ride. Temps in the low 20s led me to complete the ride indoors, as well. Monday, we got more snow. More biking inside. And the outlook is more of the same. Record low temperatures. Additional snow. More television viewed while on the trainer.

The training hours are starting to rack up. Mileage and yardage are starting to accumulate. And if I can ever get my bike off the trainer, I'll start laying down some serious biking mileage, as well. And with the countdown timer well under 140 (when did THAT happen?), things will only start ramping up. Less than seven weeks until double digits.

One Long Swim

2007-04-07T18:52:00.000-05:00

Congratulations Martin Strel

While few could relate to even the desire to attempt such a feat, Martin Strel has successfully swam the entire length of the Amazon River. The endurance swimmer who previously completed swims of the Danube, Missippi, and Yangtze Rivers began his quest to conquer the Amazon on February 1.

And for those of us who marvel at our own "crazy" yardage by considering the mileage we have completed in the pool, Martin Strel is truly amazing. His daily yardage averaged nearly as much as I have completed this entire year, and I like to think I've logged a lot of hours in the pool. Averaging 50 miles per day, Strel faced a great many challenges in mind, body, and environment.

Though his accomplishments are perhaps a bit extreme for many of us, Strel is still an inspiration role model for endurance swimmers. He establishes a goal, trains to achieve that goal, and overcomes the challenges and gremlins that stand in his way.

Two and Under

2007-04-06T15:56:00.000-05:00

"Two and Under" is a phrase many parents like to hear. Especially when it is followed by the even better phrase "eat (stay/ride/play/etc) free." Any parent can tell you that paying anything for a toddler to eat is pretty much liking throwing money on the roullette table. A pure gamble. Perhaps you get your money's worth, perhaps you lose big.

Today, I experienced another wonderful "two and under." Only this time, it came in the pool during a time trial. Part of Coach Mike's program is regular time trials to gauge performance and improvement. This is the third or fourth time trial I've completed, and each has held big suprises.

Today's was huge, in Iron Pol terms. For the first time, I averaged under 2 minutes per 100 yards. I completed a total of 1075 yards in 21 minutes, 20 seconds. In addition to breaking 2 minutes average, I managed to keep every 4-lap set under 2 minutes (our pool is 24.4 yards). In the past, early lengths have been a bit under 2 minutes and later lengths fell well over that pace. Today, there was only 6 seconds between the fastest and slowest 100 yard sets.

Now some might look at that pace and know it is, by comparison, pokey. At the same time, they would acknowledge the HUGE improvements from just a few short months ago. While I am a long way from keeping up with many of them because of their dolphin like movement through the water, I am pleased with my progress. It turns out that "Under Two" is, in fact, possible in the pool.

For those of you out there struggling with the swim, I invite you to look at my prior posts about swimming. You will quickly learn that swimming is truly my weak discipline. You will also note that things like "2m 30s/100 yards" and "will never swim under 2m/100 yards" were common threads. As with every discipline, training and experience have paid huge dividends. The simple act of putting the yardage in has led to these improvements. No former US Olympic coach in the pool with me. No hours plodding through drills. Just swimming the sets assigned by my coach. Who, by the way, has posted his own comments about improving your swim.

Under Two. Who'd have thought it possible?

Humility

2007-04-03T12:33:00.000-05:00

So, today's training called for a 4000 yard swim with no rest intervals. I guess it could basically be called an Ironman swim. Okay, it's off by a couple hundred yards. Yes, those couple hundred yards are very important (and challenging). Still, in the grander scheme of things, 4000 yards may as well be an IM swim.

Completing this kind of swim calls for close planning on my part. With my pace averaging around 2:00/100 yards and the knowledge that it probably WON'T be 2:00/100 yards after about 3000 yards are completed, timing is everything. Forty 100-yard lengths. Two minutes per 100. That's 80 minutes in a perfect world. Start swimming at 5:10 a.m. Finish at 6:30 (in that same perfect world). That leaves less than an hour to shower, dress, and drive the 25 miles to the office. Like I said, planning is essential.

I was quick on the draw, this morning. I got to the pool a few minutes early and was in the pool by 5:05. I hit the water right away and started the 400 yard warmup. By the end of that warmup, I knew I was in trouble. Even with my lowly swimming skills, it usually takes way more than 400 yards to have me feeling fatigued. Not today. With more than 2 miles left to swim, I was already feeling it.

A quick review of the past 24 hours provides two likely culprits. One is unavoidable. Monster Girl didn't sleep very well, last night. The 5.5 hours of sleep I counted is being generous. That was all broken up. Even so, I've trained on far less, far worse sleep. Perhaps it was something else.

Like the strength session that was scheduled for AFTER the swim. The one that I moved to 12 hours BEFORE the swim, because timing would otherwise preclude getting the session completed. The one that had me feeling it as I headed home. The one that turned my arms and legs to mush. But still, it MIGHT have been the sleep. So I'm holding Monster Girl responsible. Since she's only 16 months old, she probably won't care. And it will give her something to hold against me when I'm old and forgetful and she's taking care of me.

Still, just to be safe, avoid putting a strength workout right before a breakthrough swim session. Well, unless you want something to keep you humble. Getting to 3700 yards and having to call it a day is frustrating. And yes, I DO question my sanity. A few months back, cutting a 750 yard session short by 300 yards wouldn't have bugged me, at all. Today, missing 300 yards on my long swim drives me batty. Especially when it's simply because it's because I swam slower than usual because of a moved workout. That will keep me humble for a while.

While You Were Out

2007-03-30T12:42:00.000-05:00

So, yeah. Every now and again, life interferes with blogging. Funny how that works. One second, you're a freewheeling blogger posting every day. You keep up with all the posts on every blog you follow. You even find time to wander around and seek out interesting new blogs.

Then, WHAM! You're knee deep in a mess and can't find time to read e-mail, let alone blogs. In my case, I haven't even made it into my office in a week. I'm working out of a training center, keeping two temps assigned to help clear a backlog of work. They've been super and all their work will make my boss look very good. The downside is that I've been working so much that any spare time has been dedicated to training and my kids.

And in the interim, time has somehow kept counting down the days, and I suddenly see myself looking at a 148 on the countdown timer. ZOOM! Right past 150. I planned on balloons and confetti when the timer hit 150. That's a major number in the countdown. But Noooooo! I missed 150 and went right to 148. Though important, 148 is nowhere near as cool as 150. So, I'll keep my eyes open for 99 days. That will be the next MAJOR milestone. Double digits. That will be big.

Training has been going well, though I took an extra rest day due to a cold and upper respiratory infection that opted to settle into my lungs. Anyone who has dealt with pneumonia, bronchitis, and/or sarcoidosis can relate. The extra day of rest will help me get more out of training, this weekend.

AND...

A sure sign of spring was visible at the Pol homestead, last night. Mrs. Pol wandered into the bathroom to investigate the odd noise she was hearing. She walked in on her beloved hubby being shorn of his locks. (For those who aren't aware, those would be the locks on my legs. I'm not sure I have enough hair left on my head to be "shorn.") She questioned the use of hair clippers for the task. I pointed out that using a razor to shave after six months of growth is a sure fire way to both clog the shower drain AND go through several razors for one shave.

So, the legs are shaved, and I'm ready to get The Pol-R Express back onto the road. The trainer has served its purpose, but the blacktop beckons. Spring is here, and none too early. With the timer under 150 days, it is time to start racking up the miles and getting ready for IM Louisville in earnest.

Feed Me, Seymour!

2007-03-26T12:42:00.000-05:00

In the Broadway classic Little Shop of Horrors, the main character, nerdy florist assistant Seymour, finds and nurtures an odd plant named Audrey II. The plant is named after the object of Seymour's infatuation, another flower shop worker. After learning that blood makes the plant thrive, Seymour begins feeding it drops of his own blood.

Over time, the plant grows and its needs increase. Single drops of Seymour's blood no longer suffice. In fact, the plant requires entire people, leading Seymour to kill in order to feed the insatiable Audrey II. It also leads to what is certainly the most memorable line from the entire show.

"Feed me, Seymour!"

Right now, I feel much like Audrey II. While I don't have an insatiable appettite for human blood, I am beginning to hit the "always hungry" phase of the season, again. Last year, I ignored Iron Audrey and maintained a "normal" diet. This year, Audrey is demanding more. If the demand for food is ignored, I will suffer greatly.

I've hit the bottom of the weight range I want going into a summer of heavy triathlon training. So, the bottomless pit otherwise known as my stomach will have to be satiated.

Luckily, I have less discriminating tastes than Audrey II. Where she demanded one and only one source of nourishment, I'm fine with a broad range of food. Seymour won't have to go to the same extremes. But he's still going to hear the same cries from the master...

Feed me, Seymour!

No Pain, No Gain

2007-03-22T21:06:00.000-05:00

I played football for four years in high school. Wait, let me rephrase that for accuracy. I was ON the football team for four years in high school. I think my total playing time would easily have fit within a single quarter. At the time, I was quite jealous of the kids who were "naturals" at the game.

I was right there with them suffering through practice. I memorized plays like they did. I hit the weight room to work out. They just got better results. Or had better genes.

Through the prism of age and experience, I've learned better. Yes, the better players on my team certainly got more out of practice, workouts, and playbooks than me. It was really just a function of effort. Namely, they put it in, and I tried to fake it.

Over time, that has changed. I've learned that improvement isn't easy and often requires some amount of pain. Perhaps it's the pain of getting up much earlier than is desired. It might be the pain of working the body to the point of exhaustion. Or it might be the good pain of a threshold workout. No pain, no gain. I didn't understand that in high school.

Nothing has taught me this as much as the past year of triathlon training. Learning to swim was challenging enough. Learning to swim well and to swim faster has called for intense and sometimes painful workouts. Taking my mile pace from 11 minutes down to 8 minutes took a year of challenging base and speed workouts. And getting back on the bike demanded I put out of shape muscles back into action.

Now, I am working hard to get into the game. I take the training seriously. I listen to the coach. I accept that some training is going to demand that I push myself to the limit. And I do push those limits.

This time, I'm going to play the whole game. Whether it takes 45 minutes or 17 hours. 10K to Ironman, I'm going to be a starter.

Getting Serious

2007-03-19T11:01:00.000-05:00

A co-worker and training partner is running his first marathon in May. With just under nine weeks to go, we were discussing his training and current condition. The fact that his first child was born just about two weeks ago has sort of wreaked havoc on his marathon training plan.

So, he wants to know what can be done to avoid having to scrap the race. I told him we'd run 12-14 miles, this weekend, and make a determination then. To date, the furthest he has ever run is a half-marathon. And that was last season. Going from 13 miles to 26.2 miles in less than eight weeks poses a real challenge.

Mostly, I told him he needs to get serious. That is an important factor in completing a marathon. I sincerely believe that a half-marathon can be completed without any real knowledge or serious training. Why do I believe that? Because that's how I ran my first half-marathon. And I've met lots of others who did the same thing.

There is a huge difference between 13.1 miles and 26.2 miles. And it takes a serious respect of the distance and dedication to completing the race to motivate proper training. Cutting corners and "faking it" doesn't work so well at the full marathon distance.

And that got me thinking about my own training for Louisville. I started looking at the training hours. I noticed that for nearly every week there was a noticeable difference between scheduled and actual hours. Granted, "scheduled" included optional swim and/or run sets each week, but still, falling short every week is hardly a sign of respect and dedication.

Just like the difference between a half and full marathon, it is highly unlikely that I will be able to "fake" the training the way I did for my sprint and Olympic distance races. Reaching the finish line in August will require that I get serious. Those training hours should be met closely every week. Perhaps a little short here, a little long there, equal on average.

I have trained far more, this year, than ever before. Even so, it is time to ratchet things up to the next level. I have an 8-week program until the 16-week Ironman program commences. My goal for this phase is to get back into full training mode and hit those goal times. Feel free to call me on it. Accountability is everything.

Flubbing, Flubbing, Flubbing

2007-03-15T07:29:00.000-05:00

On board Navy vessels, casualty situations are announced over a PA system. This isn't a Bose quality system, so sound quality sometimes leaves a lot to be desired. The people making the announcements are rarely professional voice artists, and they are often rushed and full of adrenaline.

That results in announcements sounding much different than the alarm you know is being sounded. My favorite was always flooding. This casualty is sounded when water is entering a space faster than available systems can evacuate that water. When called in, the announcement is always made by repeating it three times. Due to the quality of the overall system, "Flooding, flooding, flooding" often came across as "Flubbing, flubbing, flubbing."

That was the call I got from Mrs. Pol, yesterday. She had gone into the basement to get some things before leaving the house, only to find several areas with standing water. She called me, and we were able to isolate the cause of the problem. The dreaded sump pump failure. (For those unfamiliar with basements, a sump is an area designed to collect water that would otherwise leak into the basement. A sump pump clears water from the sump to somewhere outside the house.)

Sadly, this sump pump failure was more human in nature. Specifically, it was a human from the genus "Furnace Technicianis Forgetfullus." Simply put, a service rep unplugged our sump pump and forgot to plug it back in when he finished his work. Net result, lots of water in my basement.

We were actually lucky. First, Mrs. Pol found it early. The potential for serious damage was pretty high. Second, we don't have a lot of valuable items sitting directly on the floor. The worst damage was to some old magazines and some clothes that haven't seen the light of day in a decade.

Cleanup is another story. Training last night was wiped out by hours spent cleaning up water and damaged or wet items. Our server and computer had to be taken apart, dried, and reassembled. Items in wet boxes had to be transferred to new storage containers. And fans had to be set up to help everything dry out. We were up until well after midnight doing that.

And that pretty well wiped out training for this morning, as well. I threw my bag in the car and hope to get my swim in on the way home. We'll see how things go.

Spring is usually a boon for training. The snow is gone. Freezing temperatures give way to the cool days that are so perfect for training outside. Then again, all the water has to go somewhere. And sometimes, "somewhere" happens to be inconvenient.

House Cleaning

2007-03-13T08:05:00.000-05:00

Well, things have been hectic. No worries, though. Rumor has it that the lives of prospective Ironmen sometimes get that way. So, just to keep things up to date and let people know I'm alive, here are a few housecleaning items.

First, my 5000 yard swim went fairly well, this weekend. A bit short, but well. The gym where I was swimming had a pool open for laps at 5:45 a.m. Unfortunately, they didn't actually open their doors until just after that time. After rushing in the locker room, I was in the pool and swimming by about 5:55. That gave me roughly an hour and 50 minutes if I wanted to skip showering before my meeting at 8:00.

The first several thousand yards were great. I maintained my (New and Improved!) time trial pace and felt good. After 2500 yards, I hopped out to drink some Gatorade, and got back at it. Around 3500 yards, I experienced some foot cramping. That was an off and on thing for the next 1000 yards. My pace dropped quite a bit as I was winding down the day.

In the end, I completed 4600 yards. A bit short, but there were some definite silver linings. I hit the 2.5 mile point in 1:30, a great sign for IM Louisville. And I maintained a reasonable pace for about 3500 yards. If I can bring that pace back just a bit (stop going out so fast), I should be good for the whole IM swim.

In other news, we had eight young people at our first team meeting and they are excited about the opportunity to complete a triathlon. Since my original vision was to have perhaps 10 kids total, this is a great start. We may have others that didn't make the meeting, and some will sign up when we get more into it. Our first training day is March 31, and they are already bringing up additional events they think we should complete. It was awesome.

The Tri Blog Community IM Louisville team is growing. I just added Myles and his wife, who happens to run the ever popular Athena Diaries. That brings the TBC team to seven. IM The Ville participants in my links list are shown in red. Keep in mind that we want to know participants and supporters alike. If you will be in Louisville and want to be included in possible meet and greet opportunities, let me know.

Finally, work has kept me swamped, so don't fret if you see a few days go by without a post. I'm training hard, working hard, and taking care of the family. Occassionally, I'll let the blog slip a few days. No fears! I'll always be back in a day or two.