Redman 2015 (A Tale of Two Runs)

This past weekend me and four others from the CTF team headed up to Oklahoma City for the USAT Long Course National Championship hosted by the Redman Triathlon. This was my third time to Redman and it remains my favorite 70.3 course. The guys there put on a great race for both the athletes and the spectators. It’s a top notch venue.

I had several goals going into this race. First and foremost was to stay healthy. I’m still six weeks out from Ironman Florida and I wanted to use the race as a tune up to validate that my racing abilities were where I thought they were. I didn’t have any particular goals on the swim; my swim goal is usually “just survive”. On the bike I had done several training rides at different efforts to figure out how my body would respond. A month ago I thought I would be looking to hold down 195 watts for the ride. In the past few weeks I’ve been able to put down some pretty good times at 175-180 and felt decent when finished. So that became my bike goal. My primary goals for this race came on the run. This race would be my 5th attempt at this distance. I had yet to complete the run without walking. I’ve probably learned more in the past six months about how to pace a race than in the past five years. Taking that knowledge into Redman the goal was not only to run the entire distance but to negative split (ie speed up on) the back half. Doing that would mean keeping my heart rate low the first lap so that there was some tiger left in the tank for the second. If I could do that I would know that I had paced the previous four hours correctly.

With this race being the national championship, the top 25 in each age group had the opportunity to qualify for the 2016 world championship. After doing the math (like 100 times) I had concluded that my best case finish would be a 5:30. My final goal for the day was to execute my race and if that was enough to go top 25 then great. If not, I still would have achieved my best race ever by 20 minutes. I knew that the competition would be tough. And man did that turn out to be the truth…

PRE RACE

I worked a half day Friday morning and then Sarah and the kids picked me up and we hit the road. I dropped them at the hotel and then headed to the race site to check in. Everything was well organized and I got in and out fairly quickly. I headed back to the car, grabbed the bike, and took it out for a final test ride. As I put the front wheel on I noticed a nick in the tire. I had rented wheels for the race and they had shipped directly to me from the previous renter rather than heading back to the shop for inspection. It wasn’t deep, but it also wasn’t what I wanted to see going into the second most important race day of the year.

I checked my bike in and decided to try and find a replacement tire. The vendors on site didn’t have one. I called the nearest bike shop and they had one in stock. And they closed in thirty minutes. And it was rush hour. So off I went on a mad dash. Luckily I made it in time. Nothing like a little drama to begin race weekend.

From there it was off to dinner with the team. We met up at BJ’s Brewhouse and had a great time over a great meal. Lots of laughs were exchanged, we talked a little shop, and from there it was off to make final preparations and wind down for the day. I decided to drop the family off at the hotel one last time and head up to switch out the tire. The bike mechanics were still on site and knocked it out in about five minutes. I could rest easy that night knowing that I was going into the day with no remaining issues.

RACE DAY

Race day for me began around 2:30. I got up and had a light breakfast to get some calories in the system. Breakfast for this race was some oatmeal and a recovery drink. I knocked it out and headed back to bed for one more nap.

Around 4:30 I got up to officially begin the day. I prepped my nutrition for the day, met up with Kody and David, and off we went.

Things were pretty uneventful on site. The weather was ideal – low winds (less than 5 mph) and temperatures in the low 60’s. Once everything was prepped we headed down for the swim start.

SWIM (44 minutes, PR by 3 minutes)

The entry into the water at Redman is kind of surreal. There’s a boat ramp you walk down into chest deep water between the start buoys. All the while there’s a bagpipe player off to the side going to town. We received the 10 second countdown, the gun sounded, and off we went. I managed to settle into a comfortable pace without getting too worked up which is rare for me. While I’m more comfortable swimming in open water than in years past it still can get in my head. Luckily I managed to keep my mind out of “I wonder if I can touch?” mode and in “shut up and swim” mode. About ten minutes in my goggles started to fog just a little. It was not so much that I couldn’t see the route, but I could tell that a few guys were walking (ie it was shallow enough to touch) so I decided to take a 30 second break to clean them out. I got them situated and got going again. From that point on there’s not much to tell. I checked my watch at the half way mark and was right where I wanted to be. I knocked out the back half and up the boat ramp I went.

BIKE (2:35, PR by 16 minutes)

I made it in and out of transition fairly quickly and got going on the bike. This is where I expected to have the most fun of the day. My bike training this year has been solid. I had several great rides recently so I came in feeling confident. I kept my watts just below 175 for the first 10 miles. Once I had settled in I stated taking in my nutrition to fuel for the run. The course wound out of town and into the country. I’m not a great technical rider so the long straightaways were definitely to my liking.

I wound up doing some cat and mouse chasing with a few guys. The one I remember distinctly was 20 years older than me. It blows my mind knowing I’m giving it my all and guys in their 50’s and 60’s are still outperforming me.

I expected my bike time to be between around 2:40. I made it to the half way point and decided to check my pace. I switched screens on my Garmin and the first number I saw caught me off guard. I was at the half way mark in 1:13. I had to do a double take. On some of my best training rides I averaged 21 mph on 178 watts. I was riding about the same watts here but averaging 21.7. I decided to try to hold down the same power on the back half. Doing that should leave me just enough energy to get through the run.
I had passed riders off and on throughout the day but between miles 40 and 50 I saw nine months of training pay off like never before. It was at this point that I started watching for others in my age group, knowing that it was possible that a top 25 finish could depend on whether I hung with them or let them go. I passed two of them in the final stretch. Finally it was time to run. Game on.

RUN (1:56, PR by 11 minutes)

Again I got in and out of the transition area quickly and the run began. To be quite honest the first mile was a little disheartening. My game plan for the day was to keep my heart rate relatively low (under 140) for the first three miles. That meant roughly a 9:30 pace. Most of the guys that were coming off the bike with me were solid runners and blew by me with paces in the 7 and 8 minute range. I had to keep reminding myself that one of my chief goals for the day was to simply execute my race and if it was not enough then so be it.

Over the first six miles I deviated slightly from the plan. One of my favorite quotes as of late comes from the great Iron Mike Tyson: “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth”. I opted to let my heart rate come up into the 150’s earlier than expected. It was not a huge deviation and one I was comfortable with.  Ultimately I didn’t want my heart rate into the 160’s util the back half of the run so I was still ok there.  I hit the midpoint of the run at mile 6.5 averaging a 9:12 pace, roughly 10 seconds faster than anticipated.

–brief interlude–

If you’re lost in numbers at this point let me make a quick side note about why this matters. My previous best run in any 70.3 race came on this course two years prior. On that day I came out hoping to run an 8:45 pace for the entire run. Not once did I consider or even look at my heart rate. I managed to hold that pace for the first 7.5 miles not realizing that my heart rate had crossed into the 160’s at mile one and had continued to climb steadily since. It was around mile 7.5 that something happened that had not happened before and has not happened since. I got light headed. Like really woozy. I stopped at the first aid station I came to and started drinking water immediately. Over the next five miles I continued to do a run / walk combination as my body recovered. Looking back on it now it’s plain to see what was going on. After five hours of activity my heart rate was approaching 180, the maximum recommended for my age. And I was still an hour from the finish line. My body let me know it was done.
I’ve since learned the importance of keeping a lower heart rate for endurance events. In order to be fast on race day you have to train to a point where you can maintain fast at a low, comfortable heart rate. I’ve only recently been training with this philosophy but it’s already paying dividends.

–resuming race report—

As I started the back half of the run I knew it was test time. I read a quote not long ago that said “a 70.3 is simply a 10k with a 63 mile warm up”. I let my heart rate head into 160 territory as my pace dropped to around 8:30. I lasted a few miles and started to feel it. It was getting hot now as the clouds were gone for the day. I continued doing what I had done since mile one – taking cold water from every aid station and dumping it on my head. My stomach did not like the increased pace or heart rate and started tightening up so I backed off the pace slightly. When I hit mile 10 I knew that I could last for a final 5k. My heart rate leveled off around 163 as the final miles came and went. I saw Sarah and the kids cheering as I came down the chute and crossed the finish line.

I had been so caught up monitoring my heart rate that I really had not paid any attention to my overall time. There was no question I had beaten my previous best of 5:51. I flipped through a few screens on my Garmin and my jaw hit the floor when I saw 5:21. I honestly could not believe it. I had high expectations coming into the day but not once did I think they would begin with a five and a two. To say that I was elated does not begin to describe it.

POST RACE

After cooling down for a bit I decided to make a trip to the massage tent. When my turn finally came I lay down and some of the worst pain of the day began. Seriously. There was not a muscle from my neck to my lower back to my calves that didn’t hurt when poked on.

We got a few team pictures, packed up the bike and gear, and called it a day. One thing that stinks (literally) about days like this is that you have to be out of your hotel before the race is over. That means no freshening up for the drive home. Luckily Redman had partnered with the YMCA for the weekend. I was able to stop in and grab a shower before hitting the road. We stopped through and grabbed a burger and made the trip home back down 35.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Despite my stellar finish I wound up finishing 40th in my age group. Am I disappointed? Not in the slightest. Two of the top five overall finishers were in my age group. A top 25 finish for me would have required a 4:56 overall. That’s insanely fast. My hat’s off to the 39 guys that came in ahead of me.

I’ve said I before and I’ll say it again – days like this are not possible without the efforts of so many folks. There was a sign on the run course that said “if you’re still married you’re not training hard enough”. I owe a huge thanks to Sarah and the kids for tolerating the training this season. I plan on taking next year off from the 140.6 distance. The time demands are huge for a family.

I’ll say thanks again to Coach Bob for the plan he put together for this year. I continue to do things I did not think were possible and I largely owe it to the training he’s provided. I also have to say thanks to the guys and gals over on TexAgs.  Thanks for sharing both your victories and defeats (all the while killing my work productivity).  I’ve learned a ton from you all.  And congratulations to PUTU for qualifying for 2016 worlds even with losing 16 minutes due to a flat.  Chuck Norris sleeps in PUTU pajamas.

To the entire CTF team (Jason, Katie, David, Kody, and Jason) you guys continue to be an inspiration to keep getting better. Couer d’ Alane in 106 degree weather? Yeah, done that. Boulder for a first 140.6? Yeah, done that. Running a 13.1 mile training run at an 8:30 pace? You guys (and gal) continue to remind me that hard work pays off. We are all going to rock Ironman Florida, there’s no doubt in my mind.

Lastly, it would be foolish of me to think that this life and good health are not a gifts from my Creator.  The older I get the more I cherish and am thankful to be able to do the things I do.

So what’s next? Monday. Rest day. Tuesday it’s back to work with a two hour ride. It’s a not-to-subtle reminder that the journey is not over yet. Six more weeks and it will be. The next three weeks will be without question the most difficult three training weeks I have experienced in my 41 years of existence. I have no doubt in my mind. But as Coach Bob has said before, “thank me in November”.