Ironman Wisconsin first look

Today, I went with a couple of my coworkers up to the Madison bike course to take my first look at it.  Up to this point, I have only heard stories and seen a few video clips of the brutal bike course up there.  So this was my opportunity to get a look at the course myself and really establish what it will take to conquer it.  I walked away from the workout today with a new sense of understanding about what it will take to become a full ironman.

Starting out on the course was fairly smooth.  It had a couple rolling hills but they were no different from the ones I had faced in Racine.  As we continued the course the hills began to get significantly higher and steeper.  At a few points they seemed like walls of asphalt!  I kept at it and was shocked at the slow going of some of the climbs.  As I worked up the hills I kept one eye on my garmin which was reading speeds as low as 5mph.  I have never ridden a bike that slowly before....I have never ridden a course this mean before!  The bright spot of the course were the downhills.  When I descended the first major hill I was intimidated by the accelaration and speed I was achieving.  After the first one, I craved more downhills to feel the rush.  I was not dissapointed!  I was topping out at speeds of over 35mph.  So much fun and a huge rush!

The ride was great up until the 30 mile mark.  I had begun one of the major descent sections of the course that involved a winding road with some blind turns.  I came around a turn and all was great until I began crossing into a gravel patch on the road.  Up until this point I have been naive about gravel and rocks on the road and how it affects my bike.  Today I was given a stern warning.  When I crossed into the gravel area of the road I was going roughly 27-29mph.  It was at this point that I felt the wheels get very loose underneath me and the back tire began kicking out to the right fast.  I quickly did the only thing I could think of in that instant and tried to gently tilt toward the outside of the gravel patch.  I think it was the speed that saved me as it pushed me through the patch quick enough for the tires to re-grip the pavement and stabalized the bike.  After that near disastorous event I backed off a lot on the speed and became very paranoid about gravel I saw anywhere on the road.

After getting lost 3 times and nearly eating the pavement back I finally finished the workout all the bit wiser and prepared to plan workouts that will help me improve my strength to conquer Madison.

So today I got my first workout in since Racine.  It was a super easy workout and seemed like there was no effort applied at all.  Here is what I did with a TRX.....

      {12 x Pikes
      {12 x Squats
3x  {12 x Hip risers
      {12 x Hamstring curls
      {24 x Side crunches (for each side)
      {12 x Calf Raises (for each leg)

Like I said, not a big workout at all but it was just to start reintroducing my body to more weight/calisthenic workouts.  Overall it was a good workout but did start to feel uncomfortable.  Had a lot more to do with a big breakfast that had not settled yet then the work load.  I also started getting a lot of pain on the inside of my right knee (clubfoot) during the hip risers and hamstring curls.  Just something I will have to keep an eye on over the next few workouts.  That's it for today next up is a long bike ride tomorrow on the Ironman Wisconsin course in Madison, WI!!!!

I know I need to give a full race report from Racine 70.3 but I will hopefully do that later tonight.  As of now, there are a few things I learned after my first "half".  The first thing is I need to take my bike in to get a full fitting.  Judging from the photos taken of me (one of which is at the top of this blog) I'm not in as good of an aero position as I could be.  My thought, and hope, is that they will drop my handle bars down to allow for a more aero position.

The second thing I learned is that I will need to attack my training very differently in the coming weeks and winter.  I plan on introducing a lot more weight training to my workout regimen.  Specifically, I will need to build my legs up a lot more; calves, quads, hamstrings, all of it.  I want to make sure I will produce a significantly great amount of power on my bike and my run.  Secondly, I need to train a lot more on my run endurance.  This will be my #1 to do for my upcoming training.  Thirdly, I want to increase my overall core strength which will hopefully increase speed on my run and also protect my back from any issues during my long bike workouts.  Finally, I want to introduce a balanced mix of HIIT workouts and aerobic based workouts.

The final thing I learned from the race is that it is a TON OF FUN!!!  I'm completely addicted to racing now.  So, with that said, the plan for next year is to hopefully do two.....yes I said two, half ironmans.  I'm looking at hopefully doing Muncie 70.3 and Steelhead 70.3.  The gap between both should be enough for recovery and race prep.  It will be and adventure!

 

I am a Tri-athlete

This is my first post on my blog.  Not sure if anyone will ever follow me but it is a way for me to get thoughts down about this new pursuit I have undertaken.  I set out on this journey just over 8 months ago and have come such a long way but have an even longer way to go.  My reasons are many and dwell in the superficial but also in the spiritual.  I see myself as someone who is not special but am striving to complete extraordinary things.  Perhaps in the process, I may inspire other ordinary people to do the extraordinary.

I am a triathlete.  I never thought I would call myself that.  See, I despised running growing up to the point that I kept my distance from sports that involved the activity.  Sure I played soccer and baseball but it was clear that I struggled to keep up with others.  Did I mention I had a clubbed foot?  It has never been a crutch for me or an excuse in my life, nor will I ever let it be.  I was never a diehard cyclist either.  I viewed bikes in my young age as the most convenient, and quickest mode of transportation to see friends or get into the occasional sticky situations.  My true passion growing up was swimming.  It was in the water where I felt the most free and at home.  I spent the greater part of the last 24 years competitively swimming and/or playing water polo.  Once college was over I believed my sports life had come to a close.  I could not be more wrong

It started with a simple goal 2 years ago.  A photo was taken of me at a swim meet and I was shocked at the weight I had gained.  I knew the best way to begin losing weight was to run.  The dread of it still remains as a powerful memory of mine.  I had never had a good pair of running shoes so I started by going to the local running store.  Got my first pair of running shoes that fit my feet correctly and off I went.  Those shoes brought me to my first non-swimming race, a turkey trot 5k on thanksgiving day.  After that the rest was history.

Why did I become a triathlete?  For one, watching them compete at the Kona Ironman world championships on NBC was a big motivator seeing how fit they were.  So my first reason was a very superficial one....I wanted to look hot! Haha.  I also got to watch one of my coworkers successfully complete the Madison Ironman and saw the journey she went through and it was quite inspiring.  A third reason was to do something that only a small fraction of the populatio has ever dared to attempt.  The final reason (and biggest one) was to honor my father who passed away 6 years ago.  People have unique ways with how they honor loved ones who have passed on and this journey was mine.  My father loved watching me compete and what better way to honor his memory but to take on the most grueling competitions on the planet?

This is the first post of hopefully many 100s more.  This post comes on the heels of my first successful completion of the Racine 70.3 half ironman in 6 hours and 49 minutes.  God willing, I will continue to complete many more half distances and the infamous full 140.6.