Santa Cruz Triathlon

Ahhh the good old Sentinel Triathlon, I volunteered at this race in college and that experience was my original inspiration to get into the sport. Every year I look forward to racing it, the whole town comes out and I know so many volunteers, participants and spectators that the feeling of community is almost surreal. We ended up with beautiful weather this year and many of my friends and teammates were getting excited for it all week.

If you don't already know, this race and I have a little history. This was my seventh year racing it and I had finished second overall the past four years, the Sentinel even ran an article leading up to the race about this fact because it has kind of become a running joke around town. In 2009 I was runner up to Sami Inkanen, one of the best 'amateurs' on the planet, the next year it was James Duff who is a long time fixture in the NorCal triathlon world, 2011 I was runner-up to Brian Lavelle who is a seasoned professional and last year Jack Calhoun, a collegiate swimmer, had a stellar day and ran away with the race. I have been racing well all year and even tough I am a little worn out from the long season, I felt good about this year and hoped to do well. 

Race morning went well with lots of handshakes and hugs from friends and family, it looked like it would be a beautiful day. There were some fast faces I recognized and some jazzed up collegiate athletes in transition so I knew it would be fast but I was feeling good. It is so nice to be able to race in your own town, sleep in your own bed and warm up on roads you know. I went for a jog up on West Cliff to stretch and get warmed up...the view overlooking the bay and the sun rising over the mountains was spectacular. There could not be a better way to start the day. 

Down on the beach the excitement and energy in the air was so much fun and I was excited to get out there on my favorite course. I lined up next to my good friend Yuta who is a stellar swimmer hoping to follow him for a fast trip around the wharf. At the gun everybody took off and it was a chaotic entry. A few waves were coming in and people were sprinting into the water so we were all crashing into and over each other. After a couple of hundred yards it calmed down and there was already one guy pulling away. I was swimming just behind Yuta which was a great position for me and we started setting a good tempo out to the turn-around. By the time we got to the end of the wharf Yuta had gained about twenty seconds on me but for me that is great as he is incredibly strong. On the way back in I could not see anyone else but I just picked a line I liked and tried to keep my pace up. 

Photo Credit: Martin Spierings

I felt good coming out of the water and I quickly run up to T1 in hopes of closing down any gaps from the swim as soon as possible. I got into transition and Yuta was getting ready to head out, we exchanged encouragement and as we were heading out someone yelled that the gap was a minute and twenty seconds to the leader. I could not believe it...that would be an incredibly fast swim and I jumped on my bike, making quick work of getting up to speed. There is a short out and back about three miles into the bike course and I got to get a look at the leader. I did not recognize him but he was tall and built like a swimmer so the gap was less of a surprise. I hoped to catch him before the bike was over and I felt good so I set to work. The long section of the course up Highway 1 is beautiful and lends itself to fast sustained riding. This is my favorite way to time trial because there is something about the rhythm of the wheels churning at high speed and the feeling of pumping out a quick tempo that is so satisfying. The air was fairly calm and I was moving along at a good pace so when I got to the turn around and saw that the gap had actually extended I couldn't believe it. I swooped through Davenport and got back on the highway for the fast trip back to town, keeping my head down the whole way and pushing over the hardest gear I could without my legs falling apart. 

I made a quick trip through the second transition and got a lot of conflicting information. Someone said the gap was forty seconds and then someone said it was a minute and twenty. I tried to see if anyone yelling numbers actually had a watch and one guy was actually looking at one as I was coming by, 'A minute and twenty!' he yelled. After the race I checked and the gap was actually about one minute and forty seconds. There is a short hill at the beginning of the run with a big crowd of people at the top and as I came to the top I pushed my legs and brought them up to speed amongst the encouragement of family and friends. 

Once I got out onto West Cliff I could see the leader off in the distance and I hoped that the run was his weakness and/or he had worn himself out with such a strong swim and bike. I felt like I was running really well and many people I knew were out along the run cheering and giving me encouragement. I must have been running well because I started to cut into the gap pretty quickly and at a mile and a half in the gap was down to forty five seconds. I was feeling hot and tired though and the first aid station didn't come until almost two miles in so the speed started to take a toll on me. As we neared the turn around the gap had shrunk to less than twenty seconds. I was really starting to hurt but I figured that at the rate I was gaining and still having three miles to go, I could get him. 

Seeing so close behind gave him some motivation and he picked up the pace just as I was fading a little...the gap came to a standstill around at around ten seconds. He was just ahead of me, close enough that I could hear his footsteps but not quite close enough to hear his breathing. I was baffled that I was no longer gaining on him and somehow that short distance seemed like a brick wall. I would push hard up the little hills but I just was not able to gain any ground. The effort of chasing for such a long way was taking it's toll and I couldn't get that extra speed that I needed. With a mile to go my mind started to get heavy with the realization that another year was going to pass without a win and I just could not believe it. Inside the last half mile I put every last ounce of effort into trying to catch up but it was just too much. The final straight away was a torturous slow drudge, with my head sagging further and further, my body felt like quick dry cement and I walked in the last bit. 

I slunk down in the finishing area in disbelief. Again? How? It was so close and I couldn't get it...no way.

Looking back at the numbers, I had a great race. The time was great and I raced really well for this late in the season. It is really hard to reconcile coming that close to a goal, especially one you care about so much, and having it slip away. This is especially so when I did well and still missed out, where the difference could have been a couple of sips of water or a better set of waves during the swim exit. I am glad that I put up such a strong performance but I am really disappointed to have once again missed out on winning my hometown event. 

Thanks to Martin Spierings for the Sentinel coverage and photo!

This marked the las race of the season for me and I will be taking some time off while I plan my schedule for next year and focus on lining up sponsorships. Thanks for reading!

Pacific Grove Triathlon 2013

If you were looking for a destination race in a sleepy beautiful costal town, Pacific Grove is that race. Even though it is close by, I don't make it down there very often and every year when I travel there for TriCalifornia's event I am always enchanted by the location. This year we had particularly nice weather which, coupled with the natural beauty of the bay and the cozy character of the town, made for a wonderful day. With the race being relatively local my family, friends, and teammates were all in attendance which always makes for a great day of catching up, laughs and great spirits.

This late in the year I always feel pretty tired so I have been doing my best to balance training and rest to make it to race day somewhat fresh without loosing too much fitness. It is always a challenge but I felt ok the day before and my pre-race routine went smoothly so I was feeling confident. I knew a lot of guys in the field and it looked like it was going to be fast and competitive.

I got down to the swim area early to get in and recon the course and sight lines. Being a draft-legal event, your position coming out of the swim makes a huge difference so I was going to need every advantage I could get. The kelp was not as bad as past years which was a relief and with the warm weather, the sometimes chilly water of Lovers Cove felt almost refreshing! I got out and gave a hug and kiss to my family before the start, then got into position early to guarantee a good entry at the start. When the gun went off I got a good jump on the beach and a good entry. The start is always chaotic and fast and I made it to the first buoy with the front of the group which may have been too fast and when we hit the first bit of kelp I felt pretty tired. The leaders pulled away just like I knew they would...Tommy, Dustin, John and another guy started to build a gap together but we all know we cant keep up with them in the water. Half way through the first lap a group of three guys came by me and I was glad to have a group to work with.

I think the exertion of the first few hundred meters caught up with me and as we were finishing the first lap I had let a little space open up between myself and the three guys I was with. I was hurting and swimming hard so on the second lap I just tried to avoid as much kelp as I could and get back up to them. I put a huge dig in for the last stretch and once I got into transition I was just behind them. I got out of transition less than twenty seconds behind them and hit the gas as hard as possible to try and close the gap quickly. Even with my best effort the gap had grown to thirty seconds by the first turn around. I was really frustrated because I knew my best chance of getting back to the leaders was to be in that group and there was no way I was going to pull them back alone. After the turn around I saw that Nicholas Thompson and another strong guy were less than half a minute behind me and I knew that they would eventually catch me so I sat up. The three of us got together before the end of the first lap and started working hard to make up some time. We set a strong tempo and kept it fairly steady, those two are strong on the bike and we made up a ton of time on the second group. Up the road John had lost touch with the leaders and by the end of the third lap our group had almost caught the group of four.

On the fourth lap our group of three caught the four chasers and at that point there were only three up the road. The leaders had a substantial gap so the rest of us were racing for fourth place so the pace on the last lap eased up substantially. I was relieved about that because my legs and lungs needed a break. We flew into the second transition with a strong tailwind and I had one of my fastest transitions ever! I left T2 in the lead from my group but my stomach felt a little heavy and it took me a little time to get going. Two guys passed me and slowly started pulling away in the first mile and one passed me in the second mile. By then I finally felt like I was getting into a rhythm and knowing how fast the guys up the road were I was just trying to hang on. I knew I was in seventh and I was happy with that so I just tried to keep my turnover up and my breathing under control. Everyone's positions held from there on out and I enjoyed the two loops back through the crowd with cheers from my family and high-fives from my teammates.

I finished as strong as I could although I was really worked by the finish and I know I slowed down pretty significantly in the last few miles. It was a tough race but it was fun to actually be racing with and against people instead of out on my own like most events. By the numbers it wasn't a great performance for me but it was a fun competition and I enjoyed the challenge. In the future I would love to get into one of the lead groups and actually be able to race for the podium but I am going to have to do some serious swimming to make that happen.

It was an unbelievably beautiful day and Pacific Grove is such a special place. The physical challenge definitely feels secondary on a day like that and that is why I love this event so much.

8/19 - 8/25/2013

It was a beautiful week on the coast. The awesome late summer weather we get in Santa Cruz is starting to roll in and it was so nice to be out and about. I took a moderate week this week...pushing hard when I felt good and taking it easy when I needed to. Nothing too crazy but some good efforts and some great views.

Pleasure Point looking east toward Rio Del Mar

The view from San Andreas with Monterey in the distance.

Swim 12,200 yds
Bike   8.75 hrs
Run    24 mi

Santa Cruz International

This was a tough week. I had to work more than usual and was tired from the previous weeks training so I felt pretty run down all week. I forced myself to stick to the plan though and I am glad I did because my body finally came around by race day on sunday. If I am not feeling well the week prior to a race I always try to tell myself that another nights sleep might be all I need and not to worry and if I am not feeling good during a race I always remind myself that things might come around later on and to not let up. This race was a good example of why that is a good piece of positive self talk to have in my repertoire.

I felt good race morning and with warm coffee in my belly I headed off in the fog to ride down to transition. I was the first one there which was nice because I know so man people at this event that it is nice to have time to chat with everyone and catch up. There were a lot of people coming into town for the race and a strong field had been assembled including two strong veterans of the sport, both with Ironman victories under their belts and I knew it would be a battle. Spirits were high in transition and I was glad to be enjoying the day after a couple of weeks of uncertainty.

I lined up for the start next to John Dahlz who is a long time figure on the NorCal triathlon circuit and a beast of a swimmer...if one thing was certain we would all be chasing him once the swim was over. My goal for the swim was to be aggressive and minimize the damage John could do and gain time on some of the other guys in the field that I knew were Monsters on the bike. I got a good start and great angle into the water, after a strong entry and aggressive first couple of minutes I actually reached the first turn buoy with John which was a huge boost in confidence. I knew it would not last and slowly but surely he started building a gap on me as we went through the first lap. I saw him exit to run up for the second lap and I figured the gap to be inside thirty seconds which I was really happy with. I was not feeling great but sometimes you can perform well anyway so I just told myself to keep it up. The second lap was tough but I didn't loose much more time and exiting the water it looked like the gap was inside of a minute. I ran up the beach and slowly accelerated as I caught my breath.

I transitioned smoothly and headed out with my bike. The mount line is on a slight slope and I didn't get a good foot hold on the first go so I jumped off and ran up the hill remounting at the top. I gave myself a couple of miles to get into my shoes, catch my breath and get up to speed. There is a 180 degree turn on each lap so after a couple of minutes I got a good look at the gaps. John was about a minute up and the guy chasing me was about a minute behind. I put my head down and kept on top of my gears pushing as much pain into my pedals as my lungs could manage. On the second lap I saw that I had made up time on John and put time into the guy chasing me which is always a big boost and kept me very motivated. On lap three I saw that Matt Russell had made up a lot of time and was within two minutes which I expected but I couldn't believe now that I was watching it happen. I kept the pace up and by the fourth lap I could see John disappearing around turns up the road which helped me stay focused and helped me push myself.

I came into the second transition just as John was leaving and I knew that if I had a good run that was a gap I could get back. I fumbled with my shoes some because my hands were cold and I knew those seconds counted so when I got my feet into them and they were not quite straight I just let it be and took off.

There is a short hill right at the start of the run and John was at the top as I hit the bottom. Up the hill and onto the flats I eased my way up to the lung searing maximum effort I knew it was going to take to reel him in and just held on for dear life. I could see the gap and for the first two miles I thought it might be shrinking but very slowly and at the turn around we exchanged encouragement to each other with a gap of close to 45 seconds. I made the turn and on the way back saw that I had a good gap on the two closest chasers, I thought that would hold so I pushed on in the hopes that John might fade in the closing miles. With around two miles to go I saw that the gap had come down significantly and was shrinking noticeably. With each stride I pushed harder and got back a little time and just held on to the hope that I would not run out of road. With a mile to go the gap was fifteen seconds and I could see John looking over his shoulder. I was so close but already running at my absolute maximum there was nothing I could do about closing the gap. It kept coming down slowly and with a half mile to go it was within ten seconds. In the home stretch it was so close and we both kicked hard, absolutely exhausted, and my best effort fell just a bit short as I came in just behind him.

I was so worked and John turned around at the finish line to welcome me in. It was a great battle and I am so thankful to have had him out there pushing me to do well. It was a good race and I am glad to have done well. The home town races are the best and every year this event reminds me why I love triathlon and all the things that are great about our sport's community.

Swim 14000 yds
Bike   6.75 hrs
Run    20 mi

7/29 - 8/4/2012

After some time off I got back into some training this week but kept it under control. I was just trying to get back into the swing of things. Some sessions came easy and some sessions were a struggle but the week was pretty good overall. I am trying to decide what to do with the rest of the season at this point. There are a couple of fun local events in the next two months, I don't have another big event planned but some friends are talking about Austin 70.3 or Rev3 SC so I may get on board with one of those to take the season out a little longer. I am feeling good and I would like to get one or two more good results in this year.

Swim 16,500 yds
Bike   8 hrs
Run    27 mi