Starting the Off Season

Just wanted to check in since my last post.  After the LMT, I took three days off and relaxed.  But now I'm trying to ramp it back up.  Here is the LMT plague my partner and I earned for the 7th place (of 70) male/male division.



I was able to get out for some runs, which is my off season focus. 

Thursday the 10th AM run
3.19 miles, 32:22, 9:51mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/388350366

Thursday the 10th lunch run with co-workers Jay, Andy, & Kelly
3.35 miles, 29:35, 8:50mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/388626873

Friday the 11th lunch swim
50 laps 25yd indoor Ferris building pool, roughly 25 minutes
I haven't swam since the half Ironman.  It was great to get back in the pool.  My goggles were leaking a little, so I picked up a new pair after work.  I got some TYR Hydrovision goggles.  They're a little bigger than normal goggles.  I will let you know how they work.

Saturday the 12th BioWheels & Fleet Feet BRICK
bike - 34.74 miles, 1:57:35, 17.7mph (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/389241827
Another group ride BRICK with a run following.  We left Fleet Feet in Blue Ash on bikes and rode to BioWheels in Madeira to get the rest of the group.  I rode my old Fuji road bike, as my Cervelo was detail cleaned after the LMT and put in the basement on the bike trainer for winter use.  I haven't ridden the Fuji in a month or so, and it took a few miles to get used to it again.  My weight is more forward on the Cervelo, so the Fuji steering felt very light and responsive.  Almost scary light, as I would reach for a drink of water and have to be cautious so I didn't steer off the road.  The road bike also seems to climb hills better, though the 1st and 2nd fastest new Indian Hill road climbs were on the Cervelo.  The road bike also shifts "faster" as the brake/shifter are one and I don't have to reach to the end of the aero bars to shift. 
Those are the pluses.  The Cervelo carbon absorbs road vibrations like crazy.  After 85 miles on the Cervelo that one day, my back was fine.  I have three herniated discs, so occasionally my back goes out.  Cervelo I'm fine, but this 34 mile ride had me sleeping on a heating pad for days.  My lower back felt every bump in the road!  Also, the Cervelo is simply made for straight line speed.  The Fuji can't touch it. 
But the group ride was great.  We descended Kugler Mill at about 36-38 mph, which was fun.  After the ride, I went home to change for the BRICK run (Fleet Feet didn't have room for our bikes in the store).  By the time I returned, the group was gone.  I just did a normal 5K route and waited at Fleet Feet for them to return. 

Saturday the 12th BioWheels & Fleet Feet BRICK
3.25 miles, 27:51, 8:34mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/389241840

Monday the 14th lunch run solo
3.73 miles, 34:05mm, 9:08mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/390479094

Tuesday the 15th BAM morning ride
24.48 miles, 1:29:07, 16.5mph (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/390802499
On the road bike again, and I wore a jacket that acted like a parachute the entire ride.  Bikers wear tight clothes because the wind really does grab the baggy stuff and slow you down.  Not a great ride, but it's good to get out.

Tuesday the 15th lunch run solo
3.51 miles, 33:53, 9:39mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/390927052

Wednesday the 16th lunch run solo, light rain
3.52 miles, 35:17, 10:02mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/391443659

Thursday the 17th lunch run with co-workers Andy & Kelly, light rain
3.52 miles, 31:44, 9:00mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/391705948

Saturday the 19th morning long run, light rain last 30 min
12.08 miles, 1:56:18, 9:37mm (moving time)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/392460270
I left the house thinking to run 8 or 10 or 12 miles.  I figured I'd just see how I felt.  After a couple miles I remembered a quote I heard last week, "A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor."  With that attitude, I went for the 12 miler.  My confidence has been up after lunch runs with faster co-workers, where I've been able to keep up without issue.  I even took the lead on one and pulled them from 9:00 to 8:00mm for the last part.  My plan for today's run was to try to keep it under 10:00mm.  I was able to do this for each mile split but one. 
As I approached Weller Road off Montgomery Road, past B North, there is a short hill climb.  I've charged up it a couple times, only to burn out later in the run.  But again, "A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor."  I picked up the pace as I climbed and held about a 7:00mm pace.  At the top, waiting for the crosswalk, I remembered thinking, "What hill?"  Hah ha. 
I ran to Weller Park and turned back for home, popping a Gu and getting some water.  I normally wear my Fuel Belt for runs over 7 miles, but I didn't even think of wearing it today.  By the time I was only 2 miles from home, I couldn't believe how well this run was going.  I normally run this route in the high 10's or low/mid 11's.  This run was fantastic and it didn't beat me up too much.  Had I ran another mile, for a half marathon, I would have PR'ed by about 10 to 12 minutes. 

As of this writing, 10/20/13, my weight is 211.8 pounds with 18.3% body fat.  I'm hoping to keep running to get ready for the Mini Heart Half Marathon in March, and then the Flying Pig Full Marathon in May.  I'm watching my diet to lose 1 pound per week, getting me to around 195 pounds by March.  Per a triathlon website and a bicycling website (two different formulas), this is roughly my ideal racing weight based on things like height, weight, body fat, build, etc.  So, if I'm running around a 2:06 half marathon now (estimate), I might be able to run the Mini under 2:00 - which would be sweet.  I'd like to run the Pig under 5 hours, beating my 26.2 mile PR of 5:47. We'll see.

Last night was the BAM Racing Fall Social at Hahana Beach on Wooster Pike.  At the award ceremony, I was awarded Rookie of the Year!  Pretty bad ass.  It came with a $25 gift card to BioWheels.  Also, I'm now on the BAM executive committee to help with running the club.  Things are looking up!

Mitch giving me the ROY award:


The award:

Morgan's Little Miami Triathlon - Fall 2013

Little Miami Triathlon (LMT) - Last 2013 Race

After a few workouts and a short taper, Morgan’s Little Miami Triathlon (LMT) Fall 2013 was a few days away.  The weather people were expecting “severe thunderstorms” for Sunday, Oct 6, so the race was nearly cancelled.  I set my alarm for 5:30am Sunday morning, checked the LMT website, and the race was on.  Giddyup!

I set up my bags and bike the night before, and was able to get on the road by 6:30am.  I brought my custom made, 4-bike ,PVC bike rack for my team (Type 2) and Team Tri-Agra (Andy and Shannon) to use in transition.  It was raining as I drove north on I-71 to exit 32.  I got to Fort Ancient at 7:00am, and was the 4^th car in the parking lot.  I felt like a nerd.  I considered taking a nap for 30 minutes, but wound up playing Sudoku on my phone instead, while listening to the radio. 

Once my partner, Lars, Andy, and Shannon arrived we staged our bikes and headed to the race start.  The rain was on and off, but no lightning – so we were good to race.  We grabbed a canoe without dents, oars, and life jackets and headed to the staging area.  We watched Team Tri-Agra push off in the canoes at 8:56am.  We were in the 9:04am wave, and took the outside lane (far right). 

With all of the rain, the river was higher than usual and pretty fast.  We were cruising along nicely, not zigzagging at all.  I sat up front and paddled at a steady pace, with Lars in the back steering us.  We were in 2^nd place for the 9:04am teams most of the canoe part.  We did catch them in the last mile or two and pull ahead.  We had a great canoe, not hitting any rocks or tree stumps. 

They advertise the race as 6 miles in the river, but my Garmin 310XT clocked it as 5.23 miles.  We passed 3 or 4 other heat canoes and finished in a time of 49:53 (moving time 49:44).  My previous best time for the river was 59:51, so I was extremely happy with this.  Having a good canoe partner is much better than kayaking solo. 

Here is the Garmin Connect data for the canoe (watch was set to run mode): http://connect.garmin.com/activity/386773760 

Our transition was pretty quick, but I didn’t time it.  The path from the river to the road (run start) was like the Tough Mudder!  Very muddy and slick.  We half jogged/walked while trying not to fall.

We started the run together, planning to keep about a 9:30mm pace for the 5 mile run section.  The first mile or two is a slow climb, and 4 or 5 people passed us.  I felt great the first 3 miles or so, and Lars had to pull me to keep the pace for the last two miles.  He is a stronger runner, so I am glad he helped me keep pace after I lost some steam. 

We covered the 4.98 miles (per Garmin) in 46:49 (46:41 moving time), with an average pace of 9:24mm.  This is a huge improvement for me, especially considering I’ve focused almost exclusively on biking the last month or two.  My previous best run on this course was 50:12, or just about 10:05mm’s.  I was very happy with our race so far!

Here is the Garmin Connect data for the run: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/386773795 

About 500 yards from the end of the run, we saw Shannon ahead of us walking.  He was puking all morning with the flu, so I was very impressed that he was out here racing in this weather in his condition.  Team Tri-Agra is tough! 

Killer Hill is a brutal climb from the bike path up to Fort Ancient without heavy rain.  With the heavy rain, it was a mud bath.  I just took it nice and easy and hiked up with a fast walk.  Lars pulled away here and jogged up a lot of it.  When I finished the hill, he was getting out of the restroom and we had a pretty quick transition time.  We were off to the bike course!

My recent biking success has gone to my head, as I wanted to average 20+ mph here.  The weather was crazy, with steady rain and strong wind for the 18 mile bike course.  My bike’s tires are 23C racing slicks and have no traction.  Literally no traction, they’re as smooth as an inner tube.  So, I was taking the turns very slow.  Plus, some leaves had started fallen with the seasons starting to change, which are very slick when wet.  One spill on my new bike and I could shatter my bike frame and/or break something on me.  But we pushed pretty well on the straights and just took the turns cautiously.  It's funny how my first thought is hurting my bike, then my second thought is hurting myself.  Priorities? 

We took turns pulling each other and after a couple miles my calves were cramping real bad.  I wanted to avoid restroom stops, so I didn’t drink much all day.  That caught up to me here, as both calves were cramping.  I had to pedal with my heel down, versus pushing with my toes like normal.  We still covered the first half of the bike section with an average speed of 19.9 mph. 

At the bike course halfway, point you turn onto Clarksville Road, which was repaved over the summer with “chip seal”.  This is a less expensive way to pave a road, and it is like riding on gravel.  Very rough and slow, vibrating everything on your bike.  This killed our momentum for the next 2-3 miles.  We dropped to about 16 mph here, with one Garmin mile showing 14.7 mph I think.  After this section though, there was a nice downhill on smooth pavement that helped me catch up to Lars again.  He is a strong biker and a great partner. 

About half a mile from the end, I knew we were going to PR the bike section, even with the crazy storm going on, but we both floored it and gave the bike everything we had in us.  I got up to about 33 mph here before breaking for the last turn into Fort Ancient.  I was pedaling so hard, I was bouncing on the nose of my seat.  I hopped off the bike and ran across the finish line, which was pretty muddy.  I finished the 17.58 mile (per Garmin, they advertise 18 miles) bike course in 55:24 (moving time 55:19) for an average speed of 19.0 to 19.1 mph.  I wanted more (20+), but this is still a personal best with my previous best at 1:02:05 (16.99 mph). 

Here is the Garmin Connect data for the bike part: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/386773820 

My watch didn’t have a cumulative timer going, only the 3 main parts separately.  So I had no idea what my overall time was, but I was happy with each section.  At the time table, I punched in my bib number (4510) and saw 2:41:34!  I almost fell over.  It was surreal.  I was hoping to break 3:00:00 and thought it would be nice to beat the Bistor Family LMT Record my youngest brother has of 2:54:21.  2:41 is amazing!  I still can’t believe it as I write this. 

Lars and I, Team Type-2 (named after a CrossFit Facebook Group we’re both in) joined Team Tri-Agra for some post race food and exchanged war stories of the day.  Andy finished in 2:36:30 with a 7:24mm average run pace!  Awesome time.  He beat his previous PR of 2:52:31.  We all agreed the river was a big help today.  Shannon finished in 3:16:20, which is also a PR for him and even more amazing that he finished, considering he puked several times along the race today.  Lars also beat his old PR of roughly 2:46 with a 2:41:43. 

Here are the times and rankings:

Brandon              2:41:34                  Overall 50 of 593 (8.4%)
Lars                     2:41:43                  Overall 51 of 593 (8.6%)
Andy                   2:36:30                  Overall 31 of 593 (5.2%)
Shannon              3:16:20                  Overall 257 of 593 (43.3%)
Team Type 2       5:23:17                  Placed 7^th of 70 male/male teams (10%)
Team Tri-Agra    5:52:50                  Placed 21^st of 70 male/male teams (30%)

*3 of the 70 male/male teams did not finish (DNF)

Here are all race results: http://www.finishspot.com/2013/MorgansFall/RaceDMC.cfm 

That is the end of my 2013 season.  I had 10 races and a lot of fun! 

1.       JCC Indoor Triathlon (52:25)
2.       Mini Heart Half Marathon (2:20:32)
3.       Tough Mudder – Ohio (~5 hours)
4.       Capital City Half Marathon (2:53:24)
5.       Tri for Joe (1:27:11)
6.       Little Miami Tri – Spring (3:02:12)
7.       Amazing Race (2:03:39)
8.       Warrior Dash Ohio 2 (37:28)
9.       Great Buckeye Challenge 70.3 (7:21:10)
10.     Little Miami Tri – Fall (2:41:34)

With the 2013 season behind me, I will be hitting winter training next.  I want to run the Mini Heart Half Marathon in March 2014 and run the full Flying Pig Marathon in May 2014, before getting into the triathlon season with the 2014 Tri for Joe (late May).  Of the three disciplines, my run is still the weakest so the marathon training will allow me to work on that specifically.  I will set up my triathlon bike in the basement on the trainer, next to the treadmill, so I can still bike through the winter.  I also ordered bike shoe covers and I have lots of warm winter gear, so I hope I can get out once in a while for a mid-winter hill repeat day (just going up and down the same hill over and over - very tough and great exercise).

I’ll try to swim 100 laps in the pool at least once or twice a week at the Blue Ash YMCA.  It's sad, to me, that after swimming for 11 months it is still better than my bike and much better than my run.  I guess I really am a whale!  Can I pick to be an orca? 

I would also like to lose 20 pounds between now (October) and March, by using MyFitnessPal.com and counting calories (which is just 1 pound per week, or 500 calorie deficit each day).  With my running and biking calories burned, this should be easy.  I really just need to cut out the junk food, and things will take care of themselves.  But entering the 2014 season at 195 pounds (vs. 215) will help with all areas of racing, and make my clothes fit a little better.

I'll keep posting blogs periodically, as I enjoy rehashing things and hopefully helping others seek a healthy lifestyle. 

"Seacrest Out!"

Here are pictures of the PVC bike rack:

I also made one single bike rack.