Hey BTC,
In order to accommodate a busy weekend of race results and some incredible content, this month’s news is being posted a little later than usual, but it’s packed with exciting material and motivation for training and racing, so take your time to digest it all! In addition to important club news and notes, we’ve got a vivid account of fitting in training in the far east from Burke Fishburn; Ann Remmers’ bike rolls with the punches at the National Duathlon Championships; Neil Smith lends hope to suffering allergic athletes; Amanda McCracken sets herself free from high school hang-ups while setting a PR in Carlsbad; BTC President Andy Graziano turns the heat up in a character-building race at White Lake, and more. Make sure to scroll all the way through for other interesting club tidbits and profiles, and keep sending your ideas, photos, race plans, and updates my way (mcmillan.w@gmail.com)!
Letter from the Prez
May is going to be a very busy month for the BTC. The cycling time trial series continues with heat #3 coming this Thursday. Thank you to our many volunteers who are making the TT series possible every Thu at 6pm in May. Also, on May 6th Full Cycle will be holding an “On the Road” repair clinic at the Full Cycle shop on Pearl Street. If you would like to learn more about taking care of your bike during the race, including repairing a flat, this would be a great clinic to attend. On May 10th we will be having our big fund raiser of the year at The Elks Club in Boulder. The auction will feature a Blue Triad frame that will be auctioned off, as well as many other killer prizes, compliments of our sponsors and supporters. This is an event no BTC member will want to miss, and we will also have an open bar and live band at the event! Let’s get everyone out for this – start time 6:30pm. Then, on May 16th we will be holding our first duathlon of the year out of Tom Watson park in Boulder. This is a great opportunity for members of all levels, so look for more details on this from our VP and Race Director Warren Schuckies. May is quite a busy month for racing, with races popping up all across the country, so good luck to all who are racing this month. Hope to see you out at all our many events and Keep up the Beat, BTCers!
~Graz
TRAVEL LOG: Training in Hanoi, Vietnam by Burke Fishburn
5:15am, Hoan Kiem Lake, Hanoi Vietnam.
He wears an ugly version of Keds, 1960s cheerleaders’ shoes that slap against the pavement, baggy cotton gym shorts and singlet two sizes too big for his narrow shoulders. With a sneaked look I see that the single hair growing out of the mole on his neck is much longer. Tradition says it should not be plucked or cut. He is lucky or wise or both. He’s lean, limber, his running style is fluid but he is breathing hard. He passes me a few times, sprints several steps ahead, then falls behind, can’t keep my steady pace. He may be 59. He may be 95. Impossible to tell.
We must run on the street, dodging walkers, honking taxis, farmers on bikes with their enormous baskets of fruit or vegetable or flowers, beeping motorbikes, tan-uniformed cops with batons yanking unhelmeted scofflaws from their Honda Dreams. The light rain turns the streets into oily grimy soup. Stains that take a week to fade from your calves, and that never come out of socks or shoes. The sky is low and gray. Ochre and turquoise buildings, centuries and centuries old, crumble gracefully in the mist, but many have already yielded to the developers’ hammer.
This is my Hanoi training ground. I’ve run this 1-mile loop just about every day of my 2-3 yearly trips to Hanoi for the past 7 years. And before that Hanoi was home.
When I don’t see him I wonder if he’s sick, visiting family, nursing an injury or dead. He is not friendly. He does not smile. This is business. Our relationship is based on running around this lake, and his obvious pleasure in beating me. He is confused and frustrated when I run intervals or have an easy day. For him it is all-out all the time. What’s this stopping crap, weak American? I hear him thinking. In eight years we have exchanged maybe eight different words. My greeting, Chao Ong, his urging to go faster, Di!!Di! or Chay nahn!, my explanation—training plan—that is met with a disgusted look. And my farewell, Tam biet, as I head towards my hotel in the Old Quarter near St Joseph’s cathedral for a bowl of noodle soup, a baguette and Vietnamese coffee that tastes like muddy caffeinated wine.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism tells me there are no professional Vietnamese triathletes. There is an Olympic distance triathlon in the ancient town of Hoi An, but only the expats, most from Hong and Singapore, compete. Running and cycling are the sports of old men. Cyclists won two gold medals at the 2009 South East Asian games, and a dilapidated but enthusiastic national cycling team gamely takes on Southeast Asian tours. Long distance runners emerge and fade as quickly. Monofin swimmers make a showing in regional events, but most Vietnamese grow up afraid of the water and never venture into the lakes or China Sea except to earn a living. Two runners and a breast-stroker were sent to the Beijing Olympics. Soccer, table tennis, Wu Shu, badminton, these are the national obsessions.
I’ve learned to switch-up running clockwise/counterclockwise because the street cants towards the gutter, but I prefer running against the traffic as survival technique. Might makes right, which requires yielding to unsteady cyclists and motorbikes, and leaping away from taxis, cars and the crazy truckers. I’ve been clipped and bruised by rearview mirrors and truck bumpers. Taxis delight in playing chicken. The crowds make it impossible to run on the sidewalks.
My training always takes a dive on my trips to Hanoi. I get chubby and slow on the fatty and calorie-dense soup stocks, fried dishes, too many Bia Hanoi, and the enormous lunches required by my Vietnamese counterparts despite my diplomatic protests. Running is my only option unless I stay at the 5-star hotels. Pools are hard to access, ripe with bacteria, or lack lane markers or lane sensibilities.
Mornings at Hoan Kiem have changed a little. Around the Lake’s broad uneven snaggly sidewalks hundreds of people stroll, jog, and perform wild stretches and 1970s aerobics led by instructors in pink tights and striped tops, music shrieking from a CD player. The old people are as likely to wear tracksuits as their pajamas now. The young and middle-aged are noticeably heavier, some verging on obese. Economic progress. Bobby Chinn’s trendy restaurant has vacated its commanding corner for the West Lake area.
In the past eight years traffic has quadrupled. What were mostly bikes, motorbikes and an occasional taxi or truck is now a steady stream of motorbikes, taxis, private cars, buses, and trucks. With each trip I must start my run 15 minutes early to avoid traffic and exhaust. Pollution is worse. I almost always return from Hanoi with a respiratory infection. The ironic price of fitness. On weekends I now try to head to huge West Lake where the air is cleaner and the 6-mile out-and-back is mostly car-less. I only have to dodge young lovers sitting on blankets and expats with their baby strollers.
But the mythological giant turtle still lives in the Lake, Turtle Tower still stands, Ngoc Son Temple continues to decay and be overtaken by the Ginkgos. The old women still do Tai Chi or sword dances to tinny music over Tannoy loudspeakers. The flamboyant chap with the shiny boxing shorts still powerwalks with his fat Chihuahua skittering around him, unbelievably alive after all these years of dodging vehicles.
Today I’m running my prescribed 5 x 6:00 minute intervals. We meet up after I finish my warm-up, a quick nod and I indicate it’s time to go fast. He keeps pace for the first interval. Today when I stop to jog, he stops, too. Odd. I wonder what’s wrong. I tell him he can go on, this is a 2-minute rest, this is my plan. Today he waves his hands in a polite gesture. Today he smiles then sprints off into the mist.
Running against the hurtling traffic of progress, breathing hard, alive and evidently happy.
NUTRITION SPOTLIGHT
Q. Are there any special guidelines for athletes regarding sodium? Everyone knows endurance athletes need more sodium, but is this just during events, or also before/after? There is so much hidden salt in everyday foods, how aware should we be as athletes about trying cutting back on a daily basis?
A. Salt, or sodium, is required in our diet. It becomes incredibly important for sustained performance during endurance events. It helps regulate fluid balance and promotes proper muscle function. Unfortunately, our society has developed an appetite for somewhere around three times the sodium they need.
Sodium need varies slightly from person to person, but a range of 1,800 to 2,400 milligrams (this is about 1 teaspoon of salt) serves as a healthy dose to continue to perform at an optimal level.
Like fluid requirements, daily sodium needs can also vary greatly among athletes. Some athletes have a greater sodium need because they lose more sodium in sweat. The sodium needs recommended during exercise is dependent on the amount of sweat produced.
Let’s say that you sweat about 1.5 liters per hour, and your sodium losses per liter may be about 750 milligrams. This means that in one hour, you lose 1125 milligrams of sodium. If you train for three hours, your total sodium sweat losses are 3,375 milligrams of sodium. Clearly, on days when you put in even more hours of training, you will increase your total sodium sweat losses further.
It’s ok to consume some salty foods or add a little salt to your food: this helps to replace sodium lost in sweat. Besides having enough sodium in your diet, you can also consume a sports drink that contains adequate sodium. Get familiar with the sodium content of your favorite carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage – this may save you on race day – Pay attention to how many ounces you consume per hour and estimate your sodium intake per hour. You do not need to replace all of your sodium losses. You only need to consume enough sodium to prevent sodium levels from dropping too low. If you’re eating out 4+ times a week, then you are likely getting plenty of sodium in your diet with out needing to “add extra.”
Preventing Low Sodium in Athletes
During ultra endurance events such as adventure racing and IM triathlons, inadequate repletion of sodium can lead to a dangerous condition known as hyponatremia. For most athletes engaged in prolonged exercise, however, the danger of this condition is relatively low if they remain well fuelled and hydrated. Here are a few tips on how to prevent this from happening to you:
- Consume saltier foods such as pretzels, broth, sauces, salt bagels, V-8 juice leading up to race day or AFTER a long training session.
- Hydrate during exercise with a sports drink that contains sodium – NUUN tabs are a great option and extremely convenient.
- If you are a salty sweater and you are involved in long distance events, marathons or triathlon, aim to consume 100-250 milligrams of sodium for every 8 ounces of water ingested during endurance training and racing.
Race season is upon us, don’t get caught mid season not knowing what you need or when you need it. Let us know what questions you have!
Many thanks to our sponsor Max Muscle for making time to address questions and concerns athletes have regarding nutrition! Please send queries for future issues directly to Craig at c. david@maxmuscleboulder.com, or to mcmillan.w@gmail.com.
RACING
Congratulations to everyone as always on great performances and sporting accomplishments! Here are a few results we know about. Please send me your PRs and achievements…or, boast on behalf of your modest and amazing friends!
Congrats to:
All the Haystack team and solo time trialists!
Carlsbad 5K: Amanda McCracken, 18:47
Las Palomas Triathlon: Diane DeRoia, 1:30:28, 3rd overall!
Cherry Blossom 10-miler (DC): Megan Phares, 1:27; Mary Nodine, 1:09:47
Mike Ricci’s CU Triathlon Team: Collegiate National Champions!
Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon (May 2): Charles Garabedian, 2:27:18, 9th AG; Mike Ellis, 2:48:18, 11th AG; Klaus Stadtler, 4:07
Wildflower Olympic Triathlon : Mary Nodine, 2:40:12, 8th AG!; Chuck McCash, 2:52:42; Derek Cicchitto, 2:42:41
White Lake Triathlon: BTC President Andy Graziano, 5:33:19; Tim Sells, 5:40:49; Brent Schoeb, 5:13:43
Ironman St. George: Laura Riviera, 14:42:44; Mike Guzek, 10:50:58; Jason Kaminski, 12:51:20
Ironman St. Croix 70.3: Barry Siff, 5:51:51 (Clearwater qualifier!)
Lookout Mountain hill climbers
Luck to:
Sunshine Hill Climbers
Bolder Boulder runners
Barking Dog Duathletes
Summer Open Triathletes
…and all other racers in this month’s events!
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
Upcoming Events
May
-4 Tuesday Night Track starts up for the summer with Mike Ricci and the D3 coaches, 6 pm at Centennial Middle School
-6 BTC TT #3 (Hill climb) and Full Cycle Repair Clinic at the Full Cycle, Pearl Street, 7:15 pm
-10 Monthly Club Meeting: Elks Lodge 6 pm, Silent Auction!
-16 BTC Duathlon, Coot Lake
-18 BTC discount night #2 at Dash and Dine
-19 BTC Hash, North Boulder 6 pm, featuring hares Megan Phares and Doug Wendel
-21 Adopt-a-road Clean up followed by BBQ at the rez: meet at Dave and Wendy McMillan’s house at 4:30; more details forthcoming
-Heads Up: We will be looking for volunteers willing to host pasta rides on Wednesday evenings throughout the summer. Please e-mail Jayme at jayme_brooke@hotmail.com if you are interested.
-Ongoing through Jul 3rd: 150 Years of Gears bicycles exhibit at Longmont Museum, $5 admission, $2 kids’ fee.
The bikes, dating back to the 1860s, include the boneshaker, one of Joe Breeze’s original mountain bikes, several bikes raced in the Tour de France (including the winner of one race), and much more.
To keep posted on the hordes of great multisport events taking place locally, check out these incredible calendars:
Colorado Triathlete Multisport Calendar
Leaving the Boulder Bubble: An Account of the National Duathlon Championships
by Bikey Remmers (as told to Ann Remmers, Bikey’s bicycle companion/guardian)
I was adopted last week from the Boulder Trek Store by my bicycle companion/guardian, Ann Remmers. I am a small Trek Equinox TTX 9.9 with Aeolus 9.0 wheels and a pearl/red coat. The nice bike fitter named Matt at the Boulder Trek Store groomed me and Ann so we were a perfect fit for each other, and we set off for riding and racing adventures.
Unfortunately for me, my first stop on our adventure was a bike kennel in preparation for air travel to Duathlon Nationals (5K run/38K bike/5K run) being held in Richmond VA on Sunday April 25th, 2010. My plane ticket ($200) was more expensive than my bike companion’s ($49 charge for a “free” ticket), and in exchange I got a bigger space on the airplane than did she.
Once we arrived in Richmond on the Friday before the race, I was let out of the kennel for a tour of the course….technical and a bit hilly, but a three-loop 24 mile challenge I was ready for. On Saturday all the other bikes and I were sent to the bike kennel to spend the night (in the pouring rain). Luckily for me, Ann showed up on race morning to dry me off and add air to my tires. After the first 5K run, Ann was 17/42 in her age group (45-49), and now it was my turn to make up some ground following her mediocre 5K run. Four miles into the ride we were cruising and had passed three of her age-group competition. Then, the unthinkable (for a bike) happened: I was hit hard in the rear Aeolus by the steel bridge expansion joint, not once but twice. I tried to stay intact but to no avail, Colorado air was gushing all over the wet and dirty Virginia asphalt.
The race was over for us. We stood on the sidelines for a while watching the other racers with fellow wounded bikes: Scott from Ohio, Cervelo from North Carolina, and Pinarello from Chicago. Eventually, our respective bike companions hoisted us on their shoulders and gently carried us back to the race finish.
We weren’t the only wounded; based on the race results, out of ~1100 race starters, 78 other bikes and their companions never finished the bike course. More bike injuries occurred on the streets of Richmond than on the 2010 Boulder Roubaix bike course!
We are now safely back in the Boulder bubble, where the athletes are friendly, and the roads are much more bicycle friendly. I can’t wait for my true race debut at the next Boulder Tri Club Time Trial!
Race Report: White Lake Half , May 1st 2010 by Andy Graziano
White Lake is in central North Carolina, south of Raleigh about two hours. The race site is rural, a shallow lake surrounded by forest, with air temps and water temps typically in the 70’s. The course is flat, flat, flat, and as we found out, sometimes Hot, Hot, HOT!!! This 70.3 event is one of the first USAT sanctioned half-iron distance events of the year in the U.S, and has become so popular that they run the same event (Saturday Half, Sunday Sprint) two consecutive weekends in a row!
For me, preps for a race usually start about 10 days beforehand. Eight days before the race the bike had to go out by Fedex. In order to be ready for that inevitability, gear, equipment and clothing began to be staged on my closet floor. Frequently I checked out the temps and weather at the race location and adjusted accordingly, weighing which gear I wanted to bring. The weather forecast had the temp rising nearly 15 degrees over the course of the week preceding race day. All during this time, I had the short sleeve and long sleeve wetsuits lying there, and was hemming and hawing over which was going to make the trip. I always struggle with comfort in a long sleeve suit and somewhat dread having to swim with it on. With anticipated water temps in the 70’s a couple days before the race, the short sleeve finally got packed.
For the first time I tried bikeflights.com. For under $120, I was able to ship my bike round trip to the motel and back. An awesome deal, provided you are able to be without your bike for about two weeks. As a point of reference, shipping manually wound up costing my travel partner over $250! I had scoped out a Fedex Office near the airport, open on Sunday, and Brent and I were able to drop off our bikes on our way to the airport for their return trip. Easy as pie.
With the bike en route, I spent the days leading up to the race thinking about workouts and diet with care. I make every attempt to go into a race without any aches or pains, but also having representative workouts to draw confidence from in completing the event. The pre-race routine included a Saturday 50 mile ride, a Sunday moderate run, an easy swim on Monday, and a Tuesday easy bike-run-bike brick preceded by a massage. Wednesday included a long walk while my son’s baseball practice was going o, and Thursday was a travel day. Stepping on the plane Thursday I was feeling ready to go.
I traveled out and back with Brent Schoeb, a new BTC member and friend of mine, and it was great having company along the way. We rented a car in Raleigh, and after a sumptuous dinner at the Golden Corral somewhere in the middle of Nowhere, NC, made it down to White Lake at about 9:15pm on Thursday. Bikes were waiting for us in the motel office, and we set to work getting settled in the room and unpacking gear. It was readily apparent that we were the only residents in the motel and would have at least one quiet night to get some sleep. With the bikes assembled, the next task was to locate some liquid refreshment. Not so easy at 10:15 on a Thursday in White Lake! Mr. Corona was found at the only local establishment still open at that time of night, the “Tree House” in next door “E” Town! This was a good way to wind down after an all day trip.
Getting to the race site a day early is always a big bonus for me. Friday morning gave Brent and I the chance to get in the water for a 20 minute swim. This was key for both of us as White Lake would be our first open water swim of the season. It also gave us the chance to discover that the water temp was just in the high 60’s. A bit chilly but a perfect temp for a sleeveless wetsuit. We both had added confidence coming out of the clear, calm and refreshing water. That day we were also able to stock up on some food, get in a 45 minute bike ride on the course, and scope out the transition area. The day become warmer as it progressed, giving hints of the type of day we were going to see tomorrow.
While checking in for the race that afternoon we were joined by a couple more friends who came down from Raleigh (one of whom actually lives in Golden, CO). With check-in logistics taken care of and the expo fully perused we headed back to the motel to get everyone else settled in. We were joined there by our “fifth wheel”, the famous Tim Sells, former BTC president, and now Raleigh resident. Pasta was the mantra of the nigh,t and on the advice of our motel staff, we found ourselves in a long line, with all our fellow triathletes, at Gorgio’s. Apparently this was the only eating gig in town, so much so that the post-race dinner also happened there (with Sweet Tea being replaced by Sweet Beer!).
Friday evening was spent giving the bikes one last tune up, loading up the transition bags, and filling up bottles with nutrition. There is always a bit of nervous tension the night before, littered with snide remarks and not-so-subtle challenges that left us all with strained cheeks from laughing so much. The phrase of the trip was chanted by Brent, “let’s get ready to rumble”. By this point the formerly empty motel was now filled to capacity with all the residents sporting fast looking road bikes and friendly chatter about where they were in from and what they were hoping for tomorrow.
Race morning went like clockwork. My motel compadres started stirring about 4:45am – after seemingly a sleepless night waiting for the alarm clock to go off. I can never quite figure out what I can do to get a better night of sleep before a race! With the alarm going off at 5am, I finally gave up on getting any kind of sleep and joined the rest in getting some food and hydrating up for this long course test. It was apparent that the day was starting off warm, nearly 10 degrees warmer than the previous morning, and Brent was still chanting “let’s get ready to rumble!” Sometimes I hate people who wake-up early and are happy about it!
Fifteen minutes ahead of schedule we hopped on our bikes for the short ride to transition. This was a nicely organized event with little to no lines to deal with. This made quick work of staging our gear, picking up our timing chip, and getting body marked. The transition area was set up in the outfield of a baseball field, and on a day that was quickly heating up, the grass transition surface was going to help to hold down the heat.
After shooting a few photos and a porta-john break, we each straggled out of transition to gather our thoughts for the race. The lake setting made for an awesome location. White Lake has a sandy bottom with sandy beaches and clear water. The race start was nestled between two piers about 200 meters apart. With the race starting at the head of the piers, there was a large area behind the starting line, no more than chest deep, that gave us the chance to get acclimated to the water temperature and to loosen up. With 8 or so waves designated, and nearly 8 minutes between waves, this was one of the most pleasant race starts I have ever experienced. Out of habit I always choose an outside line to the first turn buoy, and so I started out on the far left side of the wave in anticipation of the first right-hand turn that outlined this triangular shaped swim. With my wave underway it was awesome to get out in front without bumping elbows with a single person, and eventually get into a comfortable draft position with a fellow “old guy”! Sighting on this swim was one of the most difficult I have experienced. Buoys were spaced far apart and were difficult to distinguish from the water craft and tree-lined shore. And with the waves 8 minutes apart there was little hope of tracking the wave in front. This required at each of the two turns some brief breast-stroking to find the needed directional for the next leg. Other than that the swim was excellent. I was happy to climb up the ladder to the pier with only 2 forest green caps ahead of me – a good start to the race.
Getting out on the bike course was uneventful and I settled into a comfortable pace and to be perceptive on how I was feeling. I noticed that my right hamstring was rather tight, which was odd because I had no telltale signs about that in the days leading up to the race. At about mile 12 on the bike, and pulling up a (very) slight incline, my hammy went into cramp and I had to stand up in the pedals in an attempt to stretch it out. I made a mental note to up the salt tabs when I got back to transition and redoubled my effort to consume all the Infinit I had brought with me on the bike. Exactly to this end I had to double back to pick up a water bottle that had jumped out of my cage, not being able to afford to lose the electrolytes. It was just at this point that Mr Tim “Spidey” Sells went by me on his bike. On the one hand I was happy that I had held off the better cyclist to mile 15, but worried that he would build a gap that would be insurmountable to close on the run. A little bit of competition is usually a good motivator for me! I picked up the pace a bit to keep him in site for a while and to keep the gap from becoming to wide. The flat course featured a dead leg as most events do in order to nail the bike course at 56 miles. This leg was about 3 miles out and back and I passed Spidey going in as he was coming out – he had built about a 5 minute lead as we hit the 40 mile mark. And it was getting warm. The rest of the bike leg was uneventful (other than the black lab that was harassing cyclists at about mile 45!) and I cruised into transition having nursed the cramping hammy.
With a quick transition and downing a couple of salt tabs I headed out on the run figuring that Spidey had an eight minute lead on me. I was thinking I could catch him by mile 10 with a good run. After just a mile into the run it became readily apparent that the challenge for the day was going to be the heat. Not only had the light wind that had faced us on much of the bike calmed, but the slight cloud cover had also evaporated. It was damn hot and perhaps was feeling even more so having come out of (literally) the Colorado snow on Thursday. At rest stop number one I was grabbing wet towels and then using my visor to hold it in place on my head! Runners coming back on the out and back run course were doing the same, and so I knew I was in for a long run. As the miles, rest stops, and wet towels went by I felt like I was settling in and was able to pick it up to my target pace. Typically in Colorado when I am running at this pace my heart rate is between 142 and 145. For this run my heart rate had settled in at 155 and it would not drop below that for the rest of the day. Brent and I passed at about mile 5/9 and it looked like he was holding up well under the heat. At mile 6 I got a beat on Spidey and nestled up alongside him at the aid station just before mile 8. After exchanging some updates on aches and pains and how we were dealing with the heat (which was not well), we got the wheels turning again for the 5 mile trip home. Five miles seemed like a very long way at that point! Perhaps the most difficult part of the course was mile 9 through 11 where the heat from the sun just seemed to sap all the strength from me. When the clouds gave us a brief cooling effect I was able to get back to target pace, but when the sun popped back out I could feel myself melting. It seems that during almost every race there is the brief moment when I hear myself say “why do I do this damn sport!” This was that moment in this race.
After plodding for another couple miles and subjecting myself to “internal talking” about “getting my act together idiot” (or other self-deprecating comments!), I turned the corner at mile 11 and brought it home with a modest amount of gusto. No doubt the heat had turned what would normally be a fairly easy course into the course from hell – no joke.
The most emotionally moving part of triathlon is indeed the finish, whether it is at the finish line or anywhere else on the course. As we gathered together we laughed and commiserated about the heat, the black lab attacking cyclists, the fact that the Clydesdales (two of which happened to be in our group of then six) was the last wave to go off, the muscle cramping (something just about all of us experienced), and our personal trials and tribulations. No matter how many races I do there is always a story to hear, or a story to tell, and it reminds me of the great community of which we are a part. And as the people who have been out on that course for 7 and 8 hours came pumping their fists across the finish line, it is a reminder about how lucky we all are to live well, feel well, and finish well.
Needless to say the rest of our trip was pure celebration. Despite nursing the sunburn and the chaffing, the sore muscles and the blisters, the post-race dinner was a blast. Stories were re-told with more vigor, untold secrets were revealed, and past races recounted as the beer washed away memories of the day’s heat.
My thanks to Brent, Heath, Spidey, Sean and Jason for putting another great race weekend into the memory banks and adding a little more character to a great life! Thanks gents.
BTC Race Results
Brent Schoeb – 5:13:43 – 17th in AG
Andy Graziano – 5:33:19 – 14th in AG
Tim Sells – 5:40:49 – 18th in AG
Cracken Carlsbad race report (but not the poor pun title!) by Amanda McCracken
It was only the first quarter of the Carlsbad 5000 and I already felt as if my legs had a mind of their own. My immediate thought was, “Danger!” The last time I clearly remembered the feeling of a runner’s high was at the end of a high school cross country race at Turpin High School. The image of me cresting the Turpin hill before finishing the race surfaced during the first ¼ mile today.
Don’t go out too fast was the motto, it seemed, for that particular 5k. Something seemed wrong; I wasn’t supposed to be triggering memories of a runner’s high this early in the game. Even my friend, who had come to cheer, yelled when she saw me pass, “Don’t go out too fast!” I was balancing this well known advice with that of my coach, Steve Jones, who had just told me on the phone that it would be better to blow up at the half way mark than to hold back conservatively and wonder if I could’ve poured it on earlier. This was a strategy that I had not tried in years (or ever). I came through mile one in 5:55. Perfect, I thought. I pushed away the high school runner’s high image and eventually the pain and the fear of blowing up crept into my blood stream (somewhat welcomed as it made me feel back on track). Attack, engage lats, lean with the heart, land with foot right under you, connect, focus, stay on top of it all, attack: damn I felt strong! Trusting Jonesy and myself I decided to keep the foot on the pedal through the 2 mile mark (where typically I let up for fear I’d blow up). I came across the mile two mark in 12:05…again, right on the money.
Before I knew it, I was turning the curve for the downhill .1 straight away. I was past being focused on beating 19 minutes and was instead concentrating on outkicking the girl next to me. I crossed the finish line in 18:47. A 17 second PR, breaking a personal record I had set 7 years ago on the same course. “NO WAY,” is what I thought to myself. Never in a million years did I think I’d run that fast without first becoming emaciated and solely focused on running. Yet, it was still my body that ran that time with a little soft tummy.
I realized that it doesn’t quite matter where you feel the runner’s high in a race. There’s no “right” place for it. What matters is that you recognize and appreciate those rare occasions when it does make an appearance. What’s more, Carlsbad confirmed for me, you don’t have to run a marathon for a destination race, or to take pride in your endeavors. You think anyone questions Usain Bolt when he journeys all the way to Beijing to run 100 meters? A goal is a goal, no matter the distance. Just go all the way.
Allergen Alert: Hope for the Hayfevered by Neil Smith
Pollen levels are at an all-time high this spring. For many triathletes, so are allergy symptoms. Triathletes with allergies are easy to spot. First off, they’re riding their bikes in the mountains this time of year to escape the pollen cloud hovering over the flat lands. Also, they’re often quite adept at the “farmer blow.” If not, they’re the ones with the glowing, red noses, rubbed raw with cycling gloves or shirt sleeves. As if that weren’t enough to make them conspicuous, some even resort to wearing a dust mask while running on bad pollen days.
When you see these allergic triathletes, gently reassure them that it doesn’t have to be this way. Help has arrived! Allergy Drops therapy, an allergy treatment that is very popular in Europe, has made its way to Boulder County. This therapy uses the same ingredients as allergy shots, but is given as a drop under the tongue instead. It is highly effective like shots, but without the pain risk and inconvenience. No needles! And beecause allergy drops therapy is so safe, it is self-administered at home. Visits are required only every three months. So, patients safe a bundle of money on insurance co-pays. The best part is that allergy drops therapy works great! In fact, the World Health Organization endorses allergy drops as an effective allergy treatment.
Most people begin to experience relief from symptoms in the first one to three months after starting their allergy drops. Once the three to five year course of treatment is finished, people can expect to experience long-term, even life-long relief from their allergies. So, no more sneezing, wheezing, crying or wiping while out on the roads and trails.
The BTC’s own Neil Smith offers allergy drops therapy at Allergy Solutions clinic in Lafayette, CO. Feel free to call or email him with any questions. Or just go up to him and wipe your nose on his shirt at the next club meeting.
ATHLETE PROFILE: Stephanie Murphy
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- Years competing in tris: 6
- Worst tri mishap: The zipper on my wetsuit breaking at the ITU World Championship in Australia (I’m sure everyone is sick of hearing that story!!!)
- Worst tri mistake: Picking an Olympic distance race to try running without socks for the first time-ouch!
- Top tri tip: Check ALL equipment the night before a race, especially zippers.
- Favorite sporting accomplishment: Qualifying and going to World’s in 2009.
- Goals for next season so far: Surviving Halfmax Nationals and qualifying for the Long Course World Championship for 2011.
- Favorite pre-race food: Lara Bar (peanut butter flavor)
- Favorite post-race replenishment: Whatever I can find at the post-race free food table without gluten (usually a piece of browning banana)
- Something people may not know about Stephanie: I used to be a bull rider
PARTING SHOT: Who was up to his eyeballs in triathlon this week?
Be first to send your best guess to Wendy at mcmillan.w@gmail.com.
TIDBITS
Dash and Dine Fine Moment(shared by Lance Panigutti)
“Right before the start of the dash & dine last night we announce that anyone who beats our lead biker (Charles Garabedian) will get their entry fee refunded. Ironically, Charles flats right after the first turn and rides the whole race with a flat just to beat the lead runner in! Leave it to him – he won our “grit and determination” award for the night!”
Grit and determination at work yet again!
Here’s Mud in Your Eye: hats/helmets off to the water-logged BTC team at the Haystack time trial event!
Richard, Charles, Dave and Artie post-race.
Sponsor Special: 5430 Series Massage Special: Get your body tuned up pre-race or realigned post-race. Purchase pre or post race massages in a package of 3 for $120. Book your appointments by June 1st to get this deal! www.ubnbalance.com or 720-985-6590
TRI-IT TRIVIA : Last month’s answer (no correct responders/cookie winners again!): Gail and Roger Matherly were both elite duathletes in the early 1990s. Stay tuned for a new trivia question next month.
