Race 23: Catfish Crawl

Date: July 23, 2011
Distance: 2.4 Mile Swim

With the longest ever open water swim ahead, I wanted to make the distance in something other than a pool before the big day. Although this was not a triathlon, it was still a necessary race and experience for me going forward into longer distance races.

I chose to wear my sleeveless wetsuit again, but this time with the lake swim it was much warmer, and getting adjusted to the water took almost no time at all. There was a small shock when the water reached my bare arms, but I settled in and did some warm up strokes before starting my two lap swim in open water.

I attempted to stay in the middle of my age group, and pushed though the kicks and the swinging arms to try to replicate what an Ironman swim would feel like to start as much as possible. It was fairly hectic, but would calm down pretty quickly with only 30 or 40 swimmers starting with me. I was able to keep a slow and steady pace though out the swim, and didn't really ever feel to tired. When I exited the water I felt a little dizzy from being horizontal for an hour and 24 minutes, but would quickly regain my balance and feel fairly ready to tackle a long bike ride later in the day.

Links:

Website: http://www.usaproductions.org/events/swim-series/catfish-crawl-southbay2
Official Results:  http://usa-productions.racemine.com/USA-Productions/events/2011/Catfish-Crawl-Open-Water-Swim/results

Race 21: Silicon Valley International Triathlon

Date: June 12, 2011
Distance: 1.5k Swim, 40k Bike, 10k Run

If you have been reading the last 20 blogs about my races to Ironman, you may have noticed a pattern. I like to do the same races year after year. Some people may get bored by this, but not me. I like the calendar I have chosen. It spaces my races apart well, and also with the different challenges each race gives me, it allows me to properly see if, and by how much, I am improving. This particular race is important for me, as it holds my personal best for the olympic distance, and I intended to improve upon that in 2011.

Me and Gary trying to look "Gangster" before the race

My swim this year was definitely not where I wanted it to be. At  almost 33 minutes, I really wish I could have shaved it down to below 30 minutes with all of my off season training. But then again, more of my training at this point was going into distance, not speed. Still, not a terrible time.

My bike on the other hand was the opposite story. I pedaled hard and constant though the entire thing. I was really working on getting a really fast 40k time on this course for a few months now, and it defiantly paid off. Even the one small climb that usually brought me down to my easiest gear in previous races seemed easy, and I posted my first 20+ MPH bike split ever with a 1:12:04. I felt great, and wanted to keep it going into the run. I could feel last years time shattering already.

The run could have been better. My legs were defiantly feeling it from such a hard effort on the bike. I wasn't pulling 7:15 splits like I did the year before, but was still able to keep it around 8 minute miles. I wish I could have gone faster, but that is the learning process. Don't leave it all out on the bike when you know your strength is the run! Either way, the 50 minute run would leave me with a time of 2:35:08, and a penalty for dropping my GU packet on the beginning of the bike would add another 2 minutes to my official time. Looking back, I know I pushed to hard on the bike, but I was still happy to have a great race, and a new PR!

Links:

Website: http://www.usaproductions.org/events/triathlon-series/tri-svot
Official Results: http://usa-productions.racemine.com/USA-Productions/events/2011/20th-Annual-Silicon-Valley-International-Triathlon/results

Race 15: Silicon Valley Olympic Distance Triathlon

Date: June 13, 2010
Distance: 1.25k Swim, 40k Bike, 10k Run

After my recent success at Wildflower (even if I did get sick) I was really psyched to keep a strong season going with the flat and fast course of the Silicon Valley Olympic Distance Triathlon. I woke up early that morning anxious to improve on last year and set a new personal best for the Olympic distance.

The swim started and ended almost exactly like the year before. It was a deep water start, only I took a chance and tried to swim in the pack of racers. I was worried about getting kicked in the face, and the thrashing of a hundred other pairs of arms and legs didn't exactly excite me, but I knew that if I wanted to improve, I was going to have to learn to deal with it. After about 250 yards of swimming, the pack started to spread out and I was able to get into more of a rhythm with my swim stroke. I must have gotten caught up with just trying to keep a steady stroke, because I stopped checking ahead of me for the guide buoys and once again got caught off course. This added to me time, and in the end my swim time was almost the same as the year before, but I felt a little stronger going into the bike.


The bike went extremely smoothly. I found my rhythm quickly and kept it strong. The course takes place within 30 minutes of my house, so my training for the last few months included this exact bike course, and it seemed the training was really paying off. The bike seemed like the easiest ride I've ever had in my races so far. Looking back I probably could have pushed myself a little harder to gain some time, but then again, if I did I might push myself to hard and run out of gas to soon, so it may have been for the best. Unfortunately, the official results have been lost, but from what I remember I came in from the bike in less than an hour and a half, or just under two hours including the swim. After a quick transition, I began on my run.

I started running feeling fresh, and kept myself at a sustainable pace. One thing that always happens to me when I'm training with the run, is that I start at a pace that I want to run at, and if I'm feeling good, I turn up the pace involuntary. My legs just like to take me faster when I can go faster. Today, my legs were going faster than I was asking them too. I kept my mile splits with my Timex watch though the whole run. The first mile I ran around 7 minutes, 30 seconds.  The 3rd was around 7 minutes, 15 seconds. The fastest of the run was just over 7 minutes. Much faster than I usually run even in training. I was so excited to see my final time, 2 hours and 44 minutes. The run itself was about 45 minutes, giving me an average speed of 7 minutes, 15 seconds per mile! I was so excited about finishing time I forgot to look at the clock as I crossed the finish line! I finished in just under 2 hours and 44 minutes, making for my fastest race at this distance.

Unfortunately, the official results for this race have seemed to be lost. But I wasn't done with making personal bests.

Links:

Website: http://www.usaproductions.org/events/triathlon-series/tri-svot

Race 9: Silicon Valley Olympic Triathlon

Date: June 21 2009
Distance: 1.25k Swim, 40k Bike Ride, 10k Run

Last year I was at Almaden lake for the Silicon Valley Mountain Bike Triathlon, but this year I decided to up the stakes a little bit and go for my second Olympic distance race. The swim was a little shorter than the traditional race distance at 1.25 kilometers due to the size of the Almaden lake. The race started deep water just like last year, and not feeling like I was able to keep in the pack for this distance I allowed the more adventitious and competitive athletes go first, and followed steadily behind.

The swim was difficult for me. I was having a tough time keeping straight between each turn buoy, or even sighting them. I think at least once a lifeguard had to paddle out to me and set me back on course. Eventually I found my way to the water exit, and transitioned to the bike.

The 40k bike ride is one of the flattest, fastest courses I have ever raced on. There is only 1 hill that takes about 2 minutes to climb half way though the course, and then a downhill ride back to the race start. The ride was fairly uneventful as I kept a steady pace though the whole thing. After finishing my ride, I was well on my way to a sub 3 hour time which was my goal of the race.

The run was yet another flat and fast course though the park, and once again I kept a strong steady pace though what I thought was supposed to be a 10k run, but somewhere along the line someone messed up a measurement or two, which forced everyone to run an extra 2 kilometers. This was a interesting surprise, but I persevered though and finished in 2 hours, 59 minutes and 57 seconds. 3 seconds under my goal time! It's easy to say that I was very pleased with the result, and looked forward to doing more Olympic distance races later in the year.

Links:

Website: http://www.usaproductions.org/events/triathlon-series/tri-svot
Official Results: http://www.usaproductions.org/media/SVODT2009.pdf