Life of Riley

Lake George 2009

Yesterday I competed in my first Olympic distance triathlon, the Lake George Triathlon. An Olympic distance is composed of a 1.5k swim, a 40k bike ride, and a 10k run. The event was held at Lake George in Upstate New York. This was by far my biggest undertaking since starting doing triathlons a year ago.

I had my whole training regimen worked out and I did pretty good at following it...until I hit vacation time at the end of August. I was swimming and running pretty regularly and was even biking in my apartment when I could. My training schedule fell apart when I cam back home for Travers and labor day. The most I did was run 3 miles (once) and ride 30 miles (once). I did run last week once in preparation...but I certainly wouldn't say that I was in tip-top shape.

Well, race morning came and I was up and at 'em early as could be...about 5am or so. It was a lovely 40 degrees outside and still dark. I had a little bit to eat, got my stuff in the car and we were off...yep, Caroline made the trek with me bright and early.

By the time 8:30 rolled around, which was race time, it was up to probably 45 degrees or so and the lake temp was just shy of 70 degrees. I was in for a cold one and I knew it. It was so cold that I didn't want to get into the water until I absolutely had to...so I stood at the back of the pack while everyone else took off. The swim was...well, the swim. It was fairly easy for me, though my time wasn't as fast as I would have liked. The water was really choppy and they had us swimming against the current...both ways. Fun...but not really.

Then came the bike. I got out of the water, adrenaline pumping, and then I realized how incredibly cold it was. I started to shiver, which made it tough to get my socks, shoes, helmet & gloves on. I managed...finally...and was off on the bike. I felt pretty good...accept for the occasional shivers as I dried off. At about mile 9 or 10 it became extraordinarily hard to pedal my bike and I felt like I was lugging a million pounds behind me. I kept hearing a funny whirring sound, but I didn't want to stop to check it out, so I continued on. Well...come to find out, I rode the final 15 or so miles with a flat tire. Yep...completely flat. So that million pounds I felt like I was tugging along...it was just me and the back half of my bike. The course was tough...not gonna lie. There were plenty of fairly steep hills that made me want to get off and walk (I'm sure the flat didn't help here). It was pretty scenic as well...would be nice for a nature ride when the leaves change...in a car!

When I finally got in from the bike there were already folks finishing. It was a real-deal race, so I wasn't surprised. I was off on the run. Nothing too special here...some little hills here and there but a nice run course around the Village. The first loop was a little tough, but once the determination kicked in, I was able to kick it up a notch or three and finished strong. I was probably averaging about a 10 minute mile (or a little more) for the first loop and probably got that down to about 8 1/2 or so for the final 3 miles. I was happy with that performance...especially since I didn't stop to walk at all as so many others did.

All-in-all I had a blast. The race was so well organized and the folks at the Adirondack Tri Club put on an awesome time. The MC of the day did a great job keeping everyone in the loop...whether it was keeping us in check before the race started or anouncing everyone as we crossed the finish line, he was on point. The atmosphere was great after the race as well. It was nice to see that so many people stuck around after the race to hang out and enoy the food and music.

This race was probably the hardest thing that I have done to this point in my life. I am sore as sore can be today...my knees hurt, my hips are sore, my shoulders are sore...but I am totally looking forward to the next one! It was a great end to a great racing season. My goal for next year is quality over quantity. I finished 5 races this summer with respectable times at each. Next year I am going to tone that down by a few races and shoot for better times and better finishes.

Now it's off to football season...hopefully I can keep the activity level up there while I watch my 'Boys!

DQ Triathlon at King's Grant

This morning I competed in the DQ Triathlon at King's Grant. The course was comprised of a 1/4 mile swim, a 10 mile bike and a 3.1 mile run.

This was my second race organized by DQ Events and I was not all that impressed for a second straight week. The morning started with a lovely drive in a downpour to the race site, which was only about 20 minutes from the hotel I chose to stay at. Once I arrived at the race site, I realized that there was not designated race parking and, as such, was directed to park on the side of the road...about 1/2 mile out from the transition area. When I finally got to packet pick up, I was told that although I had registered (and paid) for a size medium t-shirt there were only large and XL left. I was not happy about this since I like wearing my race tees and a large is just too big for me.

The race finally started in the pouring rain (almost on time this week) with a standing start in the lake. The water was shallow enough that we were able to stand in the water while the horn blew. The lake was so murky that you couldn't see an inch and a half in front of your own face. This made it very difficult as many folks ended up zig-zagging across the pack they were with. After the swim came the 10 mile bike, which was flat and as fast as it could be washed over with the rain. The bike course was set up as three loops of one designated course. I don't like this at all! Finally came the run...which started out well, but quickly became tricky as they never altered the route to take into account the torrential rain. The run route made a very brief pass through a neighborhood en route to an off-road trail. With all of the rain the off road trail became flooded and we ended up having to navigate huge puddles, when possible, or just simply running through them. I ended up finishing the race in a time of 1:10:20...which ranked me 96th. MY FIRST TOP 100 FINISH!!

I am looking forward to having the next two weekends off with no races, but am eagerly looking forward to Crystal Lake on the 29th and Lake George on September 19th.

Triathlon/Duathlon for Autism - presented by Belmar, Lake Como & Spring Lake

 So I am just back from triathlon #3 Triathlon for Autism that took place in Belmar, NJ. The race was my first with an ocean swim and I have to say that it wasn't as difficult as I thought it may be. In fact, I think that it was a bit (just a bit) easier than a flat/calm/lake water swim. In any event, it was a 1/4 mile swim, an 11.5 mile bike ride, and then a 3.1 mile (5k) run. My goal was to finish within an hour twenty minutes...and I did...by 4 seconds! At least I didn't blow it by 4 seconds!! The race would have been a complete success if it wasn't for the two blisters that I developed on the insole of my right foot. I am hoping that they go away as quick as possible!!

Now I look forward to race #4...next weekend back down in Jersey...I think it's called the King's Grant and each leg is the same as this weekend's race. As long as the blisters go away I think it should be fun.

Pine Bush 2009

This past weekend I once again competed in the Pine Bush Triathlon. The Pine Bush is quite a bit shorter than the other races that I have completed since the last one, so I was pretty excited that I would be able to do really well and improve significantly over last year's time (about 1 hour 27 minutes). The course included a 325 yard swim, an 11.5 mile bike ride, and finished with a 3.25 mile run.

I randomly chose a goal of one hour and fifteen minutes in which to complete the race. But once I set the goal I started to think realistically about what I would need to do in order to meet this...I would have to work my ass off throughout in order to have any shot. Long story short...one hour, fifteen minutes, and 26 seconds. Yep...I missed the mark by 26 measly seconds.

I am pretty stoked that I was able to take 12 minutes off of my time from last year, but I am also bummed that I came so close to what I thought was an unrealistic goal without reaching it. Oh well, there's always next year...and I will be there again next year...shooting for an hour ten (small steps this time)!!

Big congrats to Caroline too for not only giving this a go, but finishing strong (and only walking once)! I am very impressed at the time she was able to post.

Next up...King's Grant in Northern Jersey somewhere on the 9th of August then the Crystal Lake on Travers' Day up near Albany. If those two go well I am thinking that the Lake George Triathlon may come into the picture. Only time will tell...

July 4th Raleigh Road Race

I totally forgot to post about this earlier...so if you don't remember seeing this post...you probably didn't. I am posting and then back-dating.

I competed in my first road race on July 4th. I was going to be down in Raleigh and I was looking for something to do, so I chose a 4 mile run race. I don't know what else to say other than I finished the thing...got a nice shirt...finished with probably about a 9 min/mile pace. I was happy at the time and was glad that I was able to stay active while down there.

In terms of road races...they are pretty boring. You just do the same activity for a certain period of time...no switching...nothing...just pretty boring. I'd do one again to get a tshirt or if there was nothing else to do...but certainly not my first choice!

birthday challenge...done and done!

While surfing some fitness websites back in July I came across the B-Fit B-Day Challenge. At that time I decided that if I could find a place to swim, I would go for it and complete the challenge for my birthday. Well, a few weeks back, I made a plan to come back to Saratoga for the weekend, get a day pass to the new YMCA and get this done...2000 yard swim, 8 mile run, & 28 mile bike.

The last week has been hell! I came down with a nasty head cold on Tuesday, felt like death by Thursday and thought that I was just about over this thing last night. But I woke up again this morning just as congested as any other morning this week and feeling like crap. I was, however, too stubborn to give up my plans to get this challenge complete.

Once I got my butt out of bed shortly after 8 I stepped outside really quickly to assess the possibility of actually doing the run & bike outside. I actually considered it...although it was 7 degrees outside. After about an hour of humming and hawing, I decided that it'd probably be best to just get everything done at the Y.

I got things going at just about 11am on the treadmill. After 6 miles I decided that I needed to switch things up a bit, so I got on the bike. I knocked out the first 14 miles and decided that I needed a little rest, so I headed back to the locker room for a little snack and some rest. After a 15 minute hiatus I was back on the bike to complete the last 14 miles and then came the final 2 miles of the run.

Having only my swim left I headed back to the locker room and suited up. My legs were pretty tired at this point, but I was determined to get this thing done. Less than half way through I started to get nasty charlie-horses in my legs each time I pushed off the wall. I managed to get through them and get through the swim in pretty good time.

I was at the gym for a total of 5 hours and 10 minutes, but that includes my breaks here and there. My times for each part were: run (8 mis) 1:25:36, bike (28 mis) 1:34:58, swim (2000 yds) 51:06. I'm happy that I managed to complete this and am even happier that I was able to do it at the "gold" level. I probably would have gone for the platinum if it wasn't for this GD head cold...there's always next year!

i'm lovin' it??

I am not a big junk food guy and I do my best to stay away from fast food as best I can. Every once in a while, however, I will find my way to a McDonald's...which is just what happened today. I got a Big Mac...which was pretty delicious...and some fries. How it happened I am not really sure, but I managed to find myself looking at the bottom of the Big Mac container. On the bottom of the little cardboard box that Big Macs are sold in was the nutrition information...29 grams of fat later I started thinking about the placement of these facts.

With 29 freaking grams of fat per sandwich it seems to be a double edged sword as to where to display this information. If the info was put on the top of the box, would anyone ever buy another sandwich knowing how bad they really are? With the info on the bottom, doesn't it seem as though the company is trying to hide it from the customer? I'm not sure of how much the info on the top, or side for that matter, would really deter people. I mean, I'll still eat the damn things even though I know how bad they are...but I don't make it a habit.

Another curious thought now crosses my mind...why is it that the company places the information on (probably) the worst item on the menu? My fries had no nutritional info on them and when I get other sandwiches I don't remember ever seeing the same info. I could be wrong, but what is this all about?

Well, trans-fat or no trans-fat I am no sitting here in a food coma feeling the zits forming under my skin...no more McDonald's for me for a while...

legal drugs

For awhile now I have been on a real health kick. I do my best to eat healthy, exercise when I can, and stay away from anything foreign to my body (beer excluded). This means that I do my best to stay away from fast food and processed food and I really don’t take any drugs (legal) if I don’t have to.
It has been many months since the last time I took any sort of medication…no Aleve, no Advil, nothing.

Well, today my allergies got the best of me and I was forced to take a Claritin to help with the sneezing, running nose, & itchy eyes. I now sit here floating on cloud 9…though with a clear head and only slight itches.

It is actually quite disturbing to me what a profound impact this medication has had on my body. Having kept most crap from my system for so long has made the impact of the medicine overwhelming. It just goes to show, at least me, that this stuff is not meant for the human being and really has nasty effects on us.

I know medications are beneficial, but with these effects I wonder at what point is it too much. At what point do we really look at what we are doing to our bodies and mind…

crystal lake tri

Yesterday I completed my second triathlon. I competed in the Crystal Lake Triathlon down in Averill Park, which is a little more than an hour south of Saratoga. Up before the birds...and before the bars closed...I was out the door and on my way by 5:30am. The event was very well planned and the volunteers were very helpful.

I was a bit overwhelmed looking out at what a half mile swim actually looked like...but I got over it pretty quickly. The water was actually very nice...not too cold, not too comfortable. The bike course was full of hills...I am not sure there was a flat stretch of more than a few hundred yards at any given point...killer! The run course was fairly flat...but it also had its fair share of hills.

I finished right in the middle of the pack overall and not last in my age group. I improved on my run time a bit as well as my bike average, so I was happy about that. I am seriously debating the Lake George tri...which is in another 3 weeks and is quite a bit longer...but only if I can put together a team.

b-fit b-day challenge

I came across the B-Fit B-Day Challenge the other day while browsing through some fitness websites. The idea is simple, challenging, and it looks like a lot of fun. It goes like this...you swim the first number of your age, you run the second number of your age, and you bike your actual age. So, for a 28th birthday you would swim 2 miles, run 8 miles, and bike 28 miles.

There are 3 different 'medals' you can achieve: gold, silver, or bronze. You get the bronze medal by completing all 3 within a week surrounding your birthday. A silver is gained by completing within 3 days of the big day. And Gold status is achieved by completing all 3 within 24 hours on or around the big day.

As I am a January baby I need to find somewhere to swim, but so long as I can, I'll be giving this a shot...and I'll be going for the gold. Let me know if you want to give it a shot too...