Shawn's Aquabike Adventure

Recent Races

2010-08-16T04:54:00.000-07:00

I have done 2 tri relays in the past few weeks:

Newport Naval station sprint Tri: total time 1:15:10

Wild Dog Sprint Tri: total time: 1:00:10 (first place overall relay!!!)

Race reports to come!

Here we go!

2010-07-31T12:54:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is my first race of the season. Nice little sprint tri, the Naval Station Newport/Sprint Triathlon.
I will be doing the swim and bike portion of the tri and a friend of mine, Justin, will be doing the run. We are looking to have a good time and not set any course records. I will post a race report as soon as I can.

later

Bike rides!

2010-05-23T04:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday and Friday I hit the bike path for my first ride of the season. WOW I am way out of shape. 7 miles on Thursday and 9 on Friday. I was dead by the end of each one, but felt great that I got out there and did it. For me its all about my frame of mind. I am so excited right now to get out there and train for whatever TRi I sign up for. This coming week is going to be awesome! Sun is expected all week so I will get in a few nice rides. I am aiming for the full bike path ride within 2 weeks. I don't want to over extend myself. I could probably do it now, but not in the amount of time I have for my lunch break.

Its About Time

2010-05-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

Well folks its been over 5 months since my last post. I have been doing absolutely nothing in the way of training or anything. Its freakin May!!!! I should at least have a good 2 months of base training in by now!!!! Well I kicked my self in the ass and got it into full gear today. I hit the Y for my first swim. I did 600m which felt like I just swam the English Channel. Tomorrow looks to be my first bike ride of the year, can you believe that? I am wicked excited to get back out there.

To tell you the truth, I have also started Weight Watchers again. I slacked off big time since December and now, today, was a start of something new. I am super excited and can't wait to tackle all the obstacles that are thrown at me.

I have no races planned so far. I have a few on my mind. As with any summer, I need to coordinate with the family to see what weekends are available.

Until next time....lets do this!

Year in Review

2009-12-31T18:59:00.000-08:00

I started 2009 with many goals and high expectations. I knew I wanted to do at least one Olympic distance Triathlon, a few sprints, a couple 5ks, a 10k and a half marathon. I had all my training laid out for each month and I was fully committed to making 2009 the best year ever! In January I was training for my first 10k, the Hyannis 10K. On Superbowl Sunday I ran the Super 5k in Narragansett. I was going for a PR, but I went out to fast and was totally dead by the 3rd mile. On February 22, Mark, Drew, Justin and I met up with Mark's sister Laura in Hyannis for the 10k, Half marathon, marathon race. It was my first 10k and I was ready to kill it. The race was great! My Garmin time for the 10k was 59mins 50 sec! Under an hour. Official time was 1:01:20 which was good enought to place 2nd in my Clydesdale group! That race was a great stepping off point for the beginning of my tri training. I was so ready to get into the pool and on the bike.

March I was in the pool, I was on the bike trainer and I was doing some speed work for running. Things were running smoothly. My next race was the Cox 5k on May 3rd. I wanted to PR so bad for that race. I was hitting the hill, I was on the track, tempo runs, you name it I was doing it. On Easter I ran the longest I have ever gone, 10 miles! I did it to see if I could and possibly sign up for the Cox Half Marathon instead of the 5k. Well those thoughts were short lived. I developed some sort of Shin Splints and was sidelined from running for 2 weeks. I only got 3 runs in before the Cox 5k.

The Cox Road Races 5k was held with a half marathon and a marathon. Justin and Mark completed their first marathon with Mark going under 4 hours!!! Congrats guys! Drew and Laura did the Half marathon. This was Drew's first and Laura's...I don't know...100th or something. It was pretty cool. I drove out to the course and ran with them for a bit. Then back to Providence for my race. The 5k was awesome! I just felt so good during the whole run. My Previous 5K PR was 27:35. I killed that with a 5k time of 26:47!! I was so happy with my time. It just goes to show you, if you put the effort into something, all the hard work will pay off.

May was starting off on a good note and end on a bad. During my last brick workout before the Mystic Sprint Tri in June, I hurt something in my left knee. I have no idea how, but it was alittle sore. I went to the Doctor after waiting a few days to see if the pain would go away. He told me I had an ACL strain and I should take a break for a week or so.

I was a little worried about completing the Mystic Sprint Tri. This was only my 2nd Sprint Tri and longest swim, .50 miles. My knee was sore but I wanted to do the best I could. The swim took forever and the bike was slow at first, but was much faster towards the end. I did help this one girl out during the bike portion. The run was ok at best. I did not run for 2 weeks before and my run time showed it. I completed the race in 1 hour 50 mins. I would say about 10 mins of the race was helping that lady on the bike. Still it was awesome and I couldn't wait for my knee to heal and jump back into the next one.

I had an MRI scheduled for the day after the Mystic Tri. I had to wait a week for the results. I didn't do much of anything those 2 weeks. Then I met with the doctor who told me the worst news I could possibly hear. I had Articular Cartilage Injury involving the Medial Femoral Condyle in my left knee. To simply put it, The cartilage in my left knee had been worn away to the bone. He told me I should not run anymore. I just could not believe it. This was suppose to be my best year racing ever! Now this? Really? The drive home from the doctors was just bad. I was in shock. I really didn't know what to do. It took all I had just to keep it together. I got home, told Kim and broke down. I couldn't hold it in. Till this day, if I think back to that day I get a little choked up. It was really a hard pill to swallow. What was I going to do now? I had so many things, races, goals laid out before me. Half marathons, marathons, Half and full Ironmans, all gone. Well I had one more race scheduled in July, the First Crabman Sprint Tri. I was going to complete that one at what ever cost.The Crabman Sprint Tri was great. The race was held only 15 minutes away from my house. My swim time was a little slow, but my bike was awesome! The run, well run/walk took forever. I walked until no one in my family could see me, then I started to run. I ran the first mile and mostly walked the rest. The worst thing was everyone telling me to "keep going"..."don't stop running you can do it"...I just wanted to yell..." I can't!!!! I have a busted knee". Anyways I finished the race in 1hour 33 mins. From that race on, I told myself I would never walk a tri again.

I tried to keep up with my training program with the swimming and the biking. The Doctor said I could do anything except run. In August I decided to do the Wild Dog Sprint Tri as a relay with Drew doing the run leg. That was great. I was all out on the swim and bike, posted PRs for those to events and Drew did awesome for the run leg. Our time was 1 hours 7 mins 34 secs, which was good enough for 3rd place in the all male relay event!!! I was super excited to recieve a medal and prize. I was thinking this was my last race of the season.

But in September the company I work for was paying for anyone who wanted to run the CVS 5k in Providence. I thought I could just run alittle, but mostly walk the race. Race day came and I was lined up with my sister in law Beth and I just couldn't help myself. I ran most of the race. I hadn't run in months and I was just cruising along at a 9:30 pace. It just felt so good being out there with all the runners. I soaked in every second I was on the course. I did walk a little, probably 3 mins worth. My total time was 32:03. I didn't care about time. I just enjoyed the race itself.

Then in November I decided to walk/run the Mews 5k. I told myself this was going to be my last 5K ever. Alot of people from work were running the race so I wanted to join in the fun. It was a tough one. My time was 34 mins. I walked most of the race and ran when I could. My knee bothered me a little, but nothing to bad.

Now it is December 31, 2009 and I am still trying to come up with some sort of plan for 2010. There are a few races I want to do as a relay and some other side events I would like to complete. I will definately do the Crabman as a relay and the Wild Dog as a relay. I plan on doing the Save the Bay Swim and probably walk the Blessing of the Fleet. I really need to work on my bike and swim speed. I will sort these things out in the next few weeks.

As for 2009, I had some great moments that I will never forget. I need to think about what was good about 2009 and i hope it will motivate me for 2010. I know my knee will never heal, but there are plenty of other races and activities I can do that do not involve running. Don't get me wrong I will miss running. I would do anything to get the chance to do it again, but I need to think about the future.

Thanks to all those who read this blog (which isn't many). Thanks for the encouragement and thoughts throughout the year.

I wish everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year

Shawn

What is Next

2009-12-05T09:40:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks I have been trying to figure out what is next for me. I know that weight loss is and should be my #1 priority right now. So far I have lost 14lbs and have a ways to go. I am losing weight to relieve pressure off of my knees. I figure it would only help if I was 30lbs lighter. My knee is not healing so the thought of running again is gone. So that leads me to my current situation. I have been tossing around a few ideas for next season. The race I really want to do is the Firmman Aquabike in September and do a relay for the Crabman Sprint Tri in July. I also want to do the Save the Bay Swim, but that remains up in the air. So I have a few things to figure out before I start really training for these races.

Take care and its almost Christmas!!!!!

Mews 5K

2009-11-22T06:31:00.000-08:00

I will be running/walking the mews 5k today. It should be a lot of fun. I will run as much as I can and if I feel anything in my knee I will stop. Plus I haven't really trained at all for this so I predicted my finish time to be around 37mins. We'll see.
Not bad for a run/walk. My left knee is a little sore, but should be fine.

SHAWN MURDOCK
35 M
34:55.55 11:32....Not yet!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T18:48:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T18:48:00.000-07:00

Its been a while

2009-10-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't updated my blog lately. Busy with life. I plan on jumping back into blogging shortly. Tomorrow I am going for a 2nd opinion on my left knee. I just really want to know if I can run again or not without surgery. I want to keep surgery as a last resort. I have run a 5k and walked tons of miles with no ill effects with my left knee. No extra swelling or pain. I do still have swelling in the knee, but the doctor said that its not doing anything for it and I should drain it or take a cortisone shot to get rid of the swelling. So we'll see about that.

Chat with everyone later!

CVS 5K

2009-09-21T03:49:00.002-07:00

Since The place I work at was paying for anyone who wanted to run the CVS 5K I decided to do it. Since I signed up I told myself I would run just in the beginning and the end and walk the rest. Well that was a good idea, but didn't happen. CVS 5K time - 32:03. Yeah I ran most of the race. It just felt so good running. I felt strong actually for the last 2 miles. My left knee was a little tight but was fine for the whole race. I am happy with my time and just was really awesome to be out there and running with the crowd! Congrats to all the rest of those who finished:

Jessica Sweeney - 45:26

Justin Finch - 24:36

Tim Coffey - 23:14

Carson Heinemann - 33:24

Congrats

2009-09-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

Congrats to Brandon....He is an IRONMAN!!!!!

Good Luck

2009-08-30T07:52:00.000-07:00

Good luck to all those racing this weekend! Joe doing the Cranberry International Tri in Mass and Erin going for her first Ironman at Ironman Canada! Have fun out there and can't wait to hear about the race!

Switching Gears

2009-08-24T19:18:00.000-07:00

Well I have given it a lot of thought lately and decided to end my Tri season for the year and concentrate on something else. After doing the Wild Dog Tri and Crabman, it really got to me that I could not run anymore. So for the past few weeks I have been thinking about what I could do to get back into running. When I last saw my Doctor I asked him if losing weight would help with the recovery of my knee. He said that losing even 10lbs would drastically help. So after that office visit I told myself I would lose 40lbs. I am not giving any time frames. I just want to lose 40lbs. I believe in my heart that losing 40lbs will allow me to at least run an average 3 miles. Thats all I am asking. I never again want to walk during a triathlon. Step one, I joined Weight Watchers. I know myself and the extra motivation I get from going to the meetings will help me. I am currently in week 5 and have lost 11.6lbs already. Step two, start a workout program. I picked P90X as my workout program. I tried starting it a couple of months ago, but found it very difficult to balance family life, triathlon training and the P90X program. Since I have basically ended my Tri season, I can focus on P90X. Tonight I completed the day 1 video, Chest and Back, and it killed me. You have to start somewhere!

I plan on creating a P90X blog to track my progress. Feel free to drop by.

My Time to Brint It

Until next time.......

Bike Ride and Race Weekend

2009-08-14T12:49:00.000-07:00

Went for an awesome bike ride today. I ventured down to the beach and back. It was so hot out, but it was a great ride. This Sunday Drew and I will be doing the Wild Dog Sprint Tri at Colt State Park in Bristol. The site of my first ever Triathlon. We will be doing the relay. I will swim and bike and Drew will do the run. Should be alot of fun and I am hoping for a top 3 finish in our category.
Good luck to Mark and his sister Laura and their team. They will be doing the 100 on 100 relay in Vermont. I know they will kick some butt!

Crabman Sprint Triathlon Race Report

2009-08-10T06:36:00.000-07:00

It was the inaugural Crabman Sprint Triathlon. I was really excited about this one. Finally a Sprint tri only 15 minutes away from my house! After my 10k race at the end of February, my focus switched from run training to Triathlon training. I really wanted to kill this race since it was in my home town. But as we all know, my left knee had other plans.

After Friday's MRI of my left knee I knew I was going to walk the run portion of the race, which I was fine with me (until the run). The morning started off early. I woke up at 4:00 and was at the race by 5:00. I told the race director that I would help out if she needed me until the volunteers showed up. So I helped out with body marking for a bit and then handed out timing chips. After that I set up transition, chatted with a few of my rack mates. With about 30 minutes to go before the race, the rain started. It poured for a good 10 minutes and then settled in as a sprinkle. I really didn’t expect rain that morning. I used my shirt and an extra towel to cover my running shoes to keep them dry. Joe and one of our rack buddies decided to put our wetsuits on for a quick warm-up in the ocean.

The ocean was a little choppy but not to bad. After doing a few open water swims and the race clinic earlier that week, I was not worried about this ocean swim. After our warm-up we had about 10 minutes before the start of the race. At 6:50 all the athletes gathered for a few announcements. The race director, Kathy, was going over a few rules and mentioned helmets. As soon as she said that, the lady in front of me gasped and said , “oh my god! I forgot my helmet!!!” Really, how does someone forget their helmet? I saw her call someone so I hope she got her helmet by the time she was done with the swim. After announcements we were off.

There were 5 waves and I was in the 4^th wave. The swim was a little crowded. I spent a lot of time swimming around the slower swimmers from the previous wave. I had to stop once and get some water out of my goggles. I didn’t see any fish or sharks out there. So my final swim time was a minute slower then I expected.

T1 was a little slow. I had no trouble taking off my wetsuit. But it was a chore to put on my socks since my feet were still wet. I got the socks on, sneakers on, grabbed my race belt, put on my helmet and I was out. It was a good ¼ mile to the bike start.

It was a 2 loop bike course that was flat and fast. It felt good to pass people on the bike even though most of them were on mountain bikes!!! There were a lot of newbies at this race which is really awesome! I am not very fast on the bike and to average around 18mph felt really good. The roads were wet but not slick. I felt very comfortable out there. Upon starting my second loop I did see a few riders going the other way. Apparently they didn’t know where to enter after the 2^nd loop. All I have to say is…”Know the Route!”

Felt really good coming into T2. IT was a quick transition since I already had my sneakers on. Helmet off, grabbed my Crabman hat and I was out in a flash to start my Run/walk. I felt so good and I wanted to run so bad.

I walked out of transition, around the corner. I found my mother and sister and waved hi. I told myself I would start running after I get passed the race photographer. Once passed him I started to run. It felt so good to run. I looked at my Garmin and it said I was doing a 9:30min mile. Nice! Around the mile 1 marker the back of my left knee started to tighten up. So I stopped and walked for a bit. I tried a few more times to run, but I just couldn’t. I wanted to so badly. Spectators were cheering “you can do it” , “Come on and run your almost there!” I just wanted to yell back, “I can’t! I have a busted knee!!!!” Even the other triathletes were encouraging me. I know they were just trying to motivate me and push me along, but it just frustrated me even more. I swore to myself I would never walk during a run again. (That’s if I could ever run again) There was one time I looked at my watch and it showed the time I would have been finishing the race if I ran the whole thing. I could here the announcer saying people’s names as there were coming into the finish. I was getting close to the finish. I saw my step father and then my mother and sister. After I saw them, I said started to run. How can you not run to the finish? I sprinted as fast as I could and crossed the finish line in 1 hour 33 minutes.

I was happy that I completed my 3^rd Triathlon. I took a moment after finishing to think about how this was probably my last one I would do myself. All other races will either be relays or Aqua bikes. I chatted with a few people I knew. Grabbed a bagel and some water. There were ice cold towels for us, but the rain had kept me cool for most of the run/walk so I didn’t need it. I packed up my transition, said thank you to the race director, and rode my bike back to the car. In all it was a great race! Congrats to Kathy and the rest of her crew for putting on a great race. I will be there next year as part of a relay!

Crabman Sprint Tri

2009-07-26T11:54:00.000-07:00

Crabman Sprint Triathlon

Shawn Murdock

Total: 1:33:28   AG 31/32   .25 mile swim:  10:15 T1:  4:13  12.5 mile bike:  36:22  T2:  1:27   3.2 mile run: 41:11

Great race!  Even with the rain!  Congrats to Kathy and her crew for putting on a great race!

Busy Weekend

2009-07-24T13:23:00.000-07:00

Good luck to all of those people running the Blessing of the Fleet 10 miler in Narragansett, RI tonight. Also, Good luck to all of those AWESOME Triathletes who will be doing Ironman Lake Placid on Sunday.

The Crabman Sprint Triathlon, Sunday July 26th, Matunuck, Rhode Island at the South Kingstown town Beach. I am really excited to be apart of this inagural event. Good luck to all of those participating and wish the best for Kathy and her crew who will be going over the top to hold a great event.

Its kinda hard to post my goals for this race. Since last year I was really looking forward to killing this race. But as we all know my knee had other plans. Today's MRI indicated that my knee is healing slowly so I have decided to just walk the run portion of the race. So here are my goals for the race:

Swim: 7mins 30 secs

T1: 4 mins (transition is pretty far from the beach)

Bike: 45 mins

T2: 1 min 30 secs

Run (Walk) 50 mins

I will post results on Sunday!

Later!

OWS at Narragansett Beach

2009-07-18T06:51:00.000-07:00

7:00 OWS at Narragansett beach was awesome! A bunch of us who will be doing the Crabman Sprint Triathlon next Sunday was there. When I arrived at the beach I was surprised to see Kathy who had my race packet for me! Thanks Kathy!!!!! I am wearing my hat right now! It was a little foggy so we kept the swim short. What a difference swimming with the waves and current. I had to sight every 5 or 6th stroke! Up next is the last Crabman clinic on Tuesday. We will be able to swim the course and get some transition tips from the coach. I plan on taking my bike with me so hopefully there will be time to get a quick bike ride around the course.
Enjoy the Weekend!

Great Bike Ride Today

2009-07-14T19:38:00.000-07:00

2 weeks to go before my final full triathlon. Recently I haven't really been motivated to train or pretty much do anything since I found out I couldn't run anymore. That really brought me down. It effected me more then I thought it did. Think about it, you train all winter and Spring, get really excited about the upcoming season and then your told you can't run anymore. It just sucks.

So for the past month or so I probably did 2 bike rides and maybe 2 swims. I have actually gained 12 pounds since I have stopped running which is not good. This past weekend my family and I took a mini vacation to my wife's uncle's Lake house in New Jersey. On the way home while everyone was sleeping I had a lot of time to think about the past few months and how everything seemed to just go down hill. I thought about how I would never be able to complete another 5k or my dream in becoming an IRONMAN. Then it was like a ton of bricks hit me. I thought to myself...STOP!!! Stop complaining and whining about what I can't do anymore and focus on what I can do, which is Swim, Bike and compete in Relay events! I am not totally out of the game. I can still enjoy the atmosphere or the race, crossing the finish line of an aquabike event! So today I went for a 13.79 mile bike ride today and to control my weight I joined Weight Watchers. I think it was my weight that was the cause of my left knee injury, so my goal to lose 40lbs has started. I feel that I need to lose the weight so my injury can heal.

Wish me luck everyone!!!

Crabman OWS Clinic!

2009-07-10T03:05:00.000-07:00

Went down to Burlingame state park last night and did the Crabman OWS clinic. There were about 25 of us. Kieth started with swim safety and basic swimming techniques and then we put our wetsuits on and jumped in. We did 2 mock starts and just swam around for awhile. I would say total meters equaled around 500. It was a great event! Thanks to Coach Kieth and Kathy for the clinic.

Crabman Bike Clinic...Just What I Needed

2009-07-01T03:02:00.000-07:00

For the past few days I have had no energy or the drive to do anything. Not being able to run has really brought me down over the past few weeks. I was so looking forward to a great Tri season this year and to not be able to go all out and race, just kills me. So last nights Clinic for the Crabman was exactly what I needed to jump start myself.

I meet Kathy Robbins from TRIMOM Productions who is the race organizer. There was about 12 people there with different experiences. The range went from first timers to IRONMAN finishers. Kieth Ballard started the night off with some USAT rules on Triathlon, then went on to talk about nutrition and basic bike safety. Then we jumped on the bike and headed out for a loop around the bike course. Kieth went around and chatted with everyone, checking bike form and giving words of advice. I was up front and chatted with him briefly then he said I could go at my own pace. So 3 of us took off and stopped at the first turn. From then on we just cruised until mile 3 when Kieth just told us to go at our own pace and head back to the beach. At this point I hammered it. I wanted to feel the burn. I needed to feel the burn and once I got back to the beach I was smiling. That was awesome! Next week is the swim clinic. Can't wait for that one!

Crabman Training Clinic #3

2009-06-30T13:21:00.001-07:00

Tonight I will be heading to the Crabman Training Bike Clinic. I am really looking forward to it. I post more about the clinic later.

OWS

2009-06-29T05:16:00.000-07:00

Since I still need to train for at least 2 events in the Triathlon I hit the open water for a short swim with my buddy Joe. We did a quarter mile swim followed by a 300 meter swim. The water was wicked nice! We plan on going ever Sunday morning.

My knee is better. I can walk normally now. I plan on jumping on the bike this week. Can't wait to see how the knee will hold up.

Something I Don’t Want to do

2009-06-17T07:02:00.000-07:00

I am dreading writing this post. I never thought I would have to write this. I got the results back from my MRI that was done last Friday and it was not what I was expecting. Going into today’s visit I was thinking that I had a torn Meniscus. Well, now I wish that was the case, but its not. I have an Articular Cartilage Injury involving the Medial Femoral Condyle. Basically, the cartilage that surrounds the medial femor in the knee has worn away, thus exposing bone. Here is what I have found on the web about it:

What is articular cartilage?

Articular or hyaline cartilage is an extremely smooth, hard material, made up of the protein collagen, which lies on a bone's articulating surfaces (those surfaces that come into contact with other bones). Its function is to allow for the smooth interaction between two bones in a joint. Thus, if injured it can lead to impairment in the fluidity of joint movement. In addition articular cartilage is extravascular, meaning that it has no direct blood supply. This means that once injured it is extremely slow to heal.

Damage is graded from I-IV and can vary from obvious defects in the bone (grade IV) to very minor microscopic damage (grade I) which will appear normal when looked at with an arthroscopy (visualization of the inside to the knee joint). Injury to the articular cartilage will lead to inflammation and pain in the knee joint and in the long term it is known to accelerate the onset of osteoarthritis.

My condition is graded IV, figures. So the Dr. gave me a few options. The first being rest for the next 6 weeks and then have another MRI done to see if it is healing on its own, which is the option we went for. Second and beyond would be a number of different surgeries that would promote healing or cap the area with other cartilage from a donor area. Either way it spells doom for my running.

The Doc didn’t tell me I couldn’t run, but did tell me what would happen if I did. It was not a pretty picture considering I am only 34 years old and would have the possibility of having osteoarthritis by the time I was 40.

So I have decided not to run anymore, ever. At this point I just want my knee to heal so I can go run around with my kids. Yes it would heal and I could go back to running, but I am sure that the injury would occur again. I don’t want that to happen. I am sure that I will have some sort of arthritis in my knee anyways. I just don’t want to tell my kids no I can’t chase after you because my knee hurts or I can’t play baseball because I am a fool who decided to keep running after my knee healed and now I have a bigger problem. So no more running. I have at least another 50 years to go on my knees!

I haven’t decided if I want to continue swimming or biking. The doctor said I can do all activities that doesn’t involve running. I do have a sprint triathlon coming up in July that I still plan on swimming and biking, I will just walk the run. This really sucks. I trained my ass off all winter and spring and was so looking forward to this tri season. I really wanted to complete the Mayflower International Triathlon at Plymouth Rock in September and run my first half marathon in Hartford in October.

I am really going to miss running. I enjoyed every track workout, tempo run and hill repeats I have ever done. I will remember crossing the finish line of my first 5K and 10K with a huge smile on my face and thinking…I did it!

Running could have and probably is the direct cause of this injury, but I put the blame fully on my weight. For the past 10 or more years I have been battling weight issues. I went all the way up to 267 pounds and have managed to drop that down to 228 a few times, but have never keep the weight off. As of right now I am hovering around 236 – 237. I have gained a few pounds that I have lost in a recent challenge we had a work. It just doesn’t want to stay off. And the past few weeks with this injury hasn’t help any. So in the next 6 weeks my focus is on weight loss. If I want to help the healing process, I need to lose weight, and keep it off!

I give myself just today to sulk and be sad about not running anymore. But tomorrow, the sunrise brings a new day. An end of one thing brings a beginning of another. What that is, I don’t know. I still have 2 parts of a triathlon to train for.

Mystic River Sprint Tri Race Report

2009-06-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

Finally the day has come for my first Triathlon of the year. I have been waiting for this since the Wild Dog Tri last year!

Woke up at 4:30, took a shower and went downstairs and ate some toast and peanut butter. I packed the car with everything and went over the checklist one more time. When I was ready to go I woke up my Brady, put him in the car and we were off to my sister’s house. She was going to watch him while I was at the race. After dropping him off I drove down to the race site in Mystic which was only 20 minutes away. It was shaping up to be a wonderful day for my first Tri of the year. I was there by 6:20, so I had plenty of time before the start of the race to stretch, set up transition and check out the water.

For a warm-up I went into the YMCA and found a nice quiet room to stretch, focusing on my left knee. For the past 2 weeks I have been dealing with an ACL strain which turned into something else. For the past week my left knee has been swollen. I went to the Doc for my follow-up and he said it was ok to run the 3 miles on it. Just ice it and take ibuprofen right after. So after the stretch I headed out, put the wetsuit on and down to the swim start.

THE SWIM

The swim was a wave start. All pre-registered males went in the first wave. I would say around 125 men or more went out. I seeded myself toward the right middle of the pack. Yeah, not fun. From the shore until the first turn I was battling with other swimmers, getting kicked, hit and just could not get into any rhythm. After I made it past the first buoy, I swam out a little and found some open water to swim in. But that didn't last long. I guess a few others decided to do the same and I was still avoiding people's feet. The last buoy seemed to take forever to get to. Then it was a short swim to shore after the turn. It was kinda of funny. I found myself swimming next to this one guy and we were both taking breaths at the same time...lol. So every time I took a breath, he was doing the same. It was funny. I got to where I could stand and I went to pull the leash on my wetsuit, but this guy came up and said "Hey let me help you out" so he grabbed my leash and pulled it down. I said thanks and started to try and pull the wetsuit off. Well I couldn't. The zipper got caught in some of the wetsuit so I couldn't pull it down the rest of the way. So I struggled with that all the way to my bike. Swim time was 18:45. My goal was 15mins, but my zig zagging and avoiding other swimmers and I think the swim course was a bit long was factors for the extended time.

I struggled for a bit with my suit while at the bike. When I finally got it off I tried to get the little pebbles and sand off of my feet so I can put my socks on. Then shoes, helmet, race belt, sunglasses and I was off

BIKE

Right off the bat I forgot to tuck my right shoe lace into my shoe, so of course it got stuck in the chain. I stopped, tucked it in and was off. For the first mile or two I wanted to test my knee to see how it will hold up for the ride. After mile 2 everything felt ok so I just kept going at a nice pace. The hills killed my speed. I didn't want to put to much pressure on my left leg, so on the hills my right leg did most of the work. It was a very nice course. There were a few cows I said hi to. At the turn off of a main road at the point where we started to head back to the Y a lady had a flat and was asking for a pump. So I stopped and lent her my pump. Got her tire pumped up and I stayed with her to make sure everything was good. I figured I would help her out since I wasn't really racing for time. After a mile her tire was flat again, so we stopped and pumped it up again. This would happen one more time. Then when we spotted some race officials I handed her the pump and said those guys might be able to help you out. She thanked me and I took off. I felt bad for her, but at the same time, if you’re in a race, you should at least carry a pump and/or a spare tire, no matter what the distance. Going back to the Y was great. The course seemed really fast and I was back to transition in no time. As I was coming into transition I saw my sister with my son and her husband! They cheered for me and I gave a little wave. That was cool!

Since I don't have bike shoes, this transition was fast, racked bike, grabbed my hat, took helmet off and I was gone.

RUN

This was the part I really thought my knee would act up. So the whole time I was running I was feeling my knee out, listening to it almost. Making sure it wasn't hurting. I told myself if I felt even the slightest pain I would walk. Turns out, it felt ok. Just a little tight, but no pain. At this point of the say it started to really warm up. I grabbed some water out of transition and once in the middle of the run. I was running slower then normal but I was ok with that. The run course was a flat out and back. Coming up the hill at the Y I saw Brady again. I gave him a little high five as I ran by. I wanted to sprint to the finish so bad, but I knew I shouldn't.

After I finished I stretched my legs out and saw the lady who I helped during the bike finish. She said thanks and gave my pump back to me. Then I went to my bike and grabbed my recovery drink, Gatorade and Hornet Juice and headed over to the food area. I relaxed for a bit, chit chatted with my sister and Tim, then went and cleaned up the transition area.

In all it was a great race. There were a few times on the bike I said to myself that I was very lucky to be able to do a race like this. Now I need to get my knee taken care of. As of today I have 47 days before the Crabman Tri. I really want to race that one.

Until the next race……

Race Complete!!

2009-06-07T09:24:00.000-07:00

Official Results:
Total 1:50:57
Swim 18:45
T1 4:22
Bike 57:57
T2 :58
Run 28:55

What a day for a race! It was so beautiful out. I felt good through the entire race. My knee didn't really bother me to much, but I still held back on the bike and run. I believe my total time was 1hr 50mins. I am waiting for the official results to come out. I'll write a full race report sometime this week and I will post the official results as soon as they are available!

Race tomorrow!!!!

2009-06-06T17:39:00.000-07:00

First Tri of the year is tomorrow. I kinda wish it was next weekend. My knee still is not 100%. So going into the race I have no specific time goals in mind. Well, I want to finish the .50 mile swim in under 15 mins, but the rest, I just want to go out and enjoy the race. My doctor said on Friday it was ok to run 3 miles, but I have it in my mind to walk most of the 3. We'll see how the knee is holding up. So the July Tri, The Crabman, will be an all out effort!!!
If I had to guess on my times for tomorrow it would be:

Swim - 14:49mins
T1 - 4mins (taking my time in Transitions)
Bike - 1 hr 5mins
T2 - 1min (not bike shoes to take off)
Run - 40mins (ouch, but probably correct)
total: 2hrs 4mins

Those times are ok with me. I am just glad to be out there.

Until tomorrow!!

Going ok

2009-06-03T03:49:00.000-07:00

Tested the knee out yesterday. I went for a slow 7 mile bike ride and the knee felt fine. I am thinking that on friday I might try to run about .25 miles just to see how the knee will react.

Open Water Swim

2009-06-01T02:56:00.000-07:00

Tried out the new wetsuit today. I did around a.25 mile swim in Pettaquamscutt Lakes. The water was probably around 65 degrees or so. But with the full wetsuit on it really didn't matter to much. The swim was good. Kinda weird not being able to see the bottom. I am just so used to seeing the bottom of the pool!
We took the boat to the lakes. The kids love driving the boat.

And the Doctor Says

2009-05-27T15:03:00.000-07:00

No more monkeys jumping on the bed!!!! Ok actually the Doc said that I have a ACL strain in my left knee. he gives me 7 days to recover from it. I'll take it! I am just glad its not a tear. So my Tri is still on for the 7th. I just won't go as hard as I wanted to...except for the swim...I will be all out for that one!

Brick Friday

2009-05-24T06:17:00.000-07:00

Oh man...my Brick Workout on Friday was great! 13.8 mile bike, 3 mile run - time: 1:20:54. The bike ride was the full bike path - time: 52:14. The run was a easy 3 miles out and back from work - time: 28:30. The last mile of the run I was hurting, but pushed through and finished my workout. I am ready for Mystic! Bring it!!!!

On other note, my left knee has been bothering me lately. It hurt a little during the run, but not enough for me to stop. Then I went bowling that night and must have did something to make it worse. Stupid!!@##!@$@. So I am going to take the next few days off from running or biking and just swim. Hopefully the pain will go away.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Less Then 3 Weeks

2009-05-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

Less then 3 weeks to go before the Mystic Valley Sprint Triathlon. I know I am ready for the race. It is all I am thinking about. I really want to use this race as a gauge to see where I need to improve before the Crabman tri in July. I really want to put it all out there for the Crabman. I just really need to get out there and get some mile in on my road bike. So far I have done just 5 miles on the road bike. That is not alot. I have 2 good training weeks to go, so I should be able to get some miles on it. I did a 4 mile run today at lunch time in 36 mins 52 secs. Not bad. Felt great the whole run. I was trying to hang around the 9:20's for the first 3 miles and then pick it up for the last 1 mile. Last mile came in at 8:56. My running has definately come around these past few months. I am really excited about that. Now I need to work on the bike.

Happy Monday everyone!

First Brick Workout!

2009-05-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

Wow...today I did my first brick workout of the season and it was great! The weather was perfect! I did a 10 mile bike and a 2 mile run. Everything felt great and I can't wait to do another one! It's Reese's birthday tomorrow. She will be turning 3. She is so excited about her Princess birthday!

Have a great weekend!

Cox Providence Road Races 2009

2009-05-03T17:39:00.000-07:00

EDIT:
I CRUSHED MY PR!!!!!!!
The race timing company email me my results:

Gun Time: 26:47.90
Net Time: 26:31.43
Place: 183
Place in Division: 90
Total finishers in your division: 190
Place in your gender: 125
Total finishers in your division: 302

26:31!!!! Thats a full minute and 3secs faster then my old PR!!!!! AWESOME!

Today was the day of the Cox Providence Road Races 2009. There was a Marathon, Half Marathon and a 5k. I really wanted to do the Half today but my injury a few weeks ago put a quick stop to that. So when the company I worked for said they would pay for anyone who wants to run the 5K, I said sure! Can't say no to a free race! Mark and Justin already signed up for the Marathon and Drew signed up for the Half.
I got there early so I could watch the guys start their run.That was at 8:00 and my 5K was at 11:00AM, so I had some time to kill. I jumped in the car and made my way down to around the mile 5 marker of the marathon and Half route. I figured I would go and cheer them on. I saw Michelle out there running. She was going for a PR in the Half and she did! Good Job Michelle! Anyways...I first saw Drew so I jumped in and started running with him. Just as I jumped in, Mark joined us. I was a little surprised to see Mark due to the fact that he was running the marathon and drew was running the half. So I stayed with them for about a half a mile, wished them luck and peeled off.
Next was Justin. He was looking strong after 5 miles. I jumped in and ran with him for a little also.

Then I saw Mark's sister Laura. She was running her 20th Half marathon!!! So I ran with her for a bit as well. I figured all these were good warm up runs.
After that I jumped back in the car and got back to the finish line to wait for Drew to finish. He finished strong! Good Job Drew!Alright, my 5k. Since I have only ran 3 times in the past 3 weeks, I was going to take this run nice and easy. BUT, the thing was...I have been preparing to PR my company's 5k race, but that got canceled. So at the starting line I said what the hell, I am going for it. My PR was 27:34. Gun sounded and I was off. I settled into a great pace, Mile 1 - 8:36. There were a few long not so steep hills in the first 2 miles of the course, Mile 2 - 8:43. Last 1.1 miles...mostly flat, lets go! I am on pace to break the PR...lets keep it moving! Mile 3 - 8:26! The last .1 miles was probably the toughest. I really had nothing left and I tried to give it one last kick, mile .1 - 1:06 for a PERSONAL BEST - 26:47!!!!!!!! I destroyed my PR!!!! I was so excited! All the training, tempo runs, track work, hill repeats and cross training paid off!!!!
So after my run I found drew and we waited for Mark and Justin to finish their Marathon. First we saw Mark. He finished strong and came in under 4 hours!!!! Great job Mark. Then Justin came in with a time of 4:19. Great job Man! Both of them just ran 26.2 miles....thats just incredible.

Here are the results:

5K
Shawn - 26:47 PR
Steve - 28:06

Half
Michelle - 1:50:09
Drew - 1:52:46
Laura - 2:14:10

Marathon
Mark - 3:59:29
Justin - 4:19:07

Great job to everyone!!!! What an awesome day and it was a great event! NEXT YEAR I WILL BE RUNNING THE HALF!!!!

Yesterday's Run

2009-04-30T03:27:00.000-07:00

Went out with Mark, Justin and Drew for a short 3 mile run yesterday on the bike path. Those 3 are tapering for their respective races coming up this weekend so I knew they would be running kinda slow. I was thinking of only going 2 miles, but I told myself if my right shin feels good I will do 3.

Total: 3.1 miles
28:44 min

The whole run felt great! And as of this morning it still feels great!

I signed up for the Cox Road Races 5K in Providence this weekend. I plan on just going out there and having fun and not going for a PR. The company I work for is paying for anyone who wants to run it...Which is awesome!

Bike ride today!

LAter!

Its Official

2009-04-28T12:01:00.000-07:00

I finally signed up for one of the Triathlons I will be doing this year.... The Crabman Sprint Tri. I am really excited for this one. I am still up in the air about signing up for the Mystic Sprint Tri. It depends how fast I can recover from this right shin injury and get myself back to normal running by mid May. I did a 2 mile run yesterday with no pain...but I also only ran around a 10 min mile pace. I really wanted to go faster and longer! But I knew I needed to keep it slow and steady. I might go for another 2 mile run tomorrow. Also last night I did the Monday Spin and Swim! That spin class really kicks my butt and to jump in the pool and swim 1300 meters just makes for a good training session. Wish me luck on my run tomorrow!

Mile Run

2009-04-23T03:45:00.000-07:00

I went for a run at lunch time yesterday to test out my right shin. I felt a little tightness but no pain. I will have to say I didn't expect to feel pain since it never hurt that bad to begin with. It always just felt like a bruise or something. Anyways, I did a mile and was pretty happy on how it felt. I actually did the mile in 9:34, a little faster then I wanted to, but I didn't once look at my Garmin to check out my pace. I am going for another short run on Saturday.

Friday I hope to get a nice bike ride in. The weather is going to be beautiful!!!

Update and Stuff

2009-04-22T03:22:00.000-07:00

Well hopefully I will get a chance to test out my shin and do a short run at lunch time. It doesn't hurt at all while I am walking, only if I touch it and that isn't to bad either. So wish me luck!

On the brighter side, my swimming and biking is coming along great. This extra time I have had to focus on those 2 sports has really made a difference. I just can't wait to get some open water swims in soon. Laps in the pool is getting old. I have been riding my mountain bike for the past few weeks so beginning next week I will start using my road bike. I am waiting on a few things from the bike shop to come in.

Anyways....Happy Wednesday!

HORNET JUICE GIVEAWAY by THETRIRUNNER

2009-04-21T16:45:00.000-07:00

Hornet Juice: "A powdered sports drink containing 17 amino acids that you mix with water or your favorite electrolyte drink, which you take before, during and after exercise, to give you increased energy, endurance and improved recovery time."

I have tried this stuff and man it ROCKS!

thetrirunner is holding a giveaway for the Juice! Check it out!

Hornet Juice

Bike Path Ride

2009-04-16T18:35:00.001-07:00

Went for a nice ride on the bike path today. There were tons of people running, walking and riding! I took my camera along and snapped some pics:Saw some turtles enjoying the nice warm sun!

I also ran into Mark and Drew:

13.5 miles total for me. I really need to improve my the bike! This time off from running will give me a chance to get my butt in gear and jump on the bike some more! No word from the Doctor yet.

Good News or Bad News

2009-04-15T18:41:00.000-07:00

I am waiting for the Doctor to give me a call. Either he will tell me I have a stress fracture in my right Tibia or don't. I can actually say thinking about this injury for the past few days is keeping me up at night. I will be extremely upset with myself if it is a stress fracture. It would be totally my fault. I strayed away from my training plan and increased my running distance to fast (or at least I think I did). Reading online about other who have had a stress fracture talk about intense pain....well I don't have intense pain. I am just really hoping it is not a fracture. I can deal with shin splints or just anything but a fracture!!!!!
So I guess we will wait until tomorrow to find out. Actually, I hope they can see something because I have been reading that the initial xray normally does not show a fracture....ahhhhhh this is driving me crazy!!!!!

On a brighter note, I did 1500 meters in the pool tonight and I am looking forward to tomorrow's bike ride at lunch!

Later!

Easter Long Run and Monday Swim

2009-04-14T04:30:00.000-07:00

AFter Easter dinner I went for my weekend long run. First 10 miler ever!

1 hr 39min

M1 - 9:47
M2 - 10:00
M3 - 9:35
M4 - 9:53
M5 - 10:01
M6 - 9:53
M7 - 10:08
M8 - 10:14
M9 - 9:46
M10 - 9:37

I felt fine the whole run. I had to keep slowing myself down. After the run I thought to myself I could have gone another 5K but would probably walk run the rest of the way. I guess that would be fine with me. Just to finish a half marathon is a great accomplishment! I am still deciding if I want to do the Half or not.

Oh and last night I did 1300 meters in the pool.

Thursday = Track Day and Other Stuff

2009-04-09T17:56:00.000-07:00

The guys ran to the URI track today (except for Justin..pffft). It was my first time doing 800s. Here is the break down:

3 x 800 goal pace was @ 4:05 with a 400 recovery
800 - 4:02
400 - 2:26
800 - 4:07
400 - 2:28
800 - 4:05
400 - 2:28

After I was done with my 800s I had some time to kill waiting for the others to finish up so I added another mile to my mileage on the track. Then the run back to work was great. I felt really good.

Totals
7 miles
1 hr 5 mins 50 secs

Recently I have been really happy with my running. All my run training is really paying off. I am a little concerned that I might be extending my runs a little longer then they need to be since I am not really training for distance at the moment. Weekend long runs of 7 and 9 miles seems a bit much. But after last weekend's 9 miler, I feel I could train and get myself ready to at least finish a half marathon. The thought has crossed my mind a lot this week. The only thing I am concerned with is injuring myself going to far to fast. I am going to give it another week and also see how Saturday's 9 mile run goes. If I decide to run the half marathon in May, my goal will be to finish, nothing more. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Today's Bike Ride

2009-04-08T10:08:00.001-07:00

Ride on the Bike Path

12 miles

50:49

Average - 14.2 (slow!)

Some of the slower times are due to the strong winds...but I still need a lot of work on the bike!

M1 - 4:38

M2 - 3:57

M3 - 4:01

M4 - 4:05

M5 - 3:37

M6 - 5:40

M7 - 4:43

M8 - 3:47

M9 - 3:43

M10 - 3:50

M11 - 4:27

M12 - 4:11

Sunday Long run

2009-04-06T04:40:00.000-07:00

Finally went and did my run to the beach! using Mapmyrun it was 8.55 miles, but I found that to be a little off.

9.38 miles
1hr 31min 51sec
9:47 pace

M1 - 9:28
M2 - 9:48
M3 - 9:32
M4 - 9:41
M5 - 9:57
M6 - 9:31
M7 - 10:02 (started to feel the burn!)
M8 - 10:06
M9 - 10:07
M.38 - 3:36

I would be lying if I told you it didn't hurt after mile 7. My legs are a little sore today.
I will not do spin class tonight, probably just swim.

Happy Opening Day!
GO REDSOX!

Article: Triathlons can pose deadly heart risks

2009-03-30T07:16:00.000-07:00

Article found on Yahoo today:

Triathlons can pose deadly heart risks

Last week

2009-03-30T03:33:00.000-07:00

Last week was a little rough for some reason. I only got 1 run, 2 swims, 1 spin class and a slow bike ride on the bike path. I am sure for some that would be enough for the week, but not for me. I felt a little burnt out by Wednesday and just needed some time to recover. This week I will jump back into my normal schedule.

Over the weekend I took my son to Battleship Cove in Fall River Massachusetts. We had a great time! It brings back memories of when I was in the Navy.

Tempo Tuesdays and Other Stuff

2009-03-25T03:06:00.000-07:00

Went out for my tempo run today. After last weeks Tempo run I decided to step it up a little and make it at 3 mile tempo run with a mile warm up and a mile cool down for a total of 5 miles. Here is the break down:

M1 warmup - 10:01
M2 tempo - 9:10
M3 tempo - 8:58
M4 tempo - 8:54
M5 cooldown- 9:48

5 miles - 46:53
Average pace - 9:22

Great run! Felt really good throughout the tempo. I Will keep the 5 miles for a while and then push up to 6 miles.

Today I plan on jumping on the bike during lunch time and hit the pool tonight.

Oh I did a long run on Saturday - 7 miles - 67mins, average pace - 9:37. That was a great run and as always my last mile was the fastest at 9:17.

Monday I did a spin class with Joe...and it kicked my butt!!!! 19miles in 45 mins then at the end she had us do situps and pushups with the ball...crazy workout but it was great! I might have to take that class every week!! Thanks Joe!

Thursday = Track Day

2009-03-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

Went to the URI Track today with Justin, Mark, Drew and Anthony. Planned to do another 4 x 400. Here is the break down:

4 x 400 with 400 recovery pace

Mile 1 warmup - 9:35
1st - 1:58.59
recover - 2:17
2nd - 1:59.85
recover - 2:24
3rd - 1:57.96
recover - 2:21
4th - 1:50.81
recover - 2:37
Last mile - 9:04

The last mile was my cool down, but there was no cool down today...it started pouring I think during the 1st recovery run. Still stuck it out and got it done!

Depending on the weather I will either go to the Y and swim or jump on the bike during lunch!

Tempo Tuesdays

2009-03-18T04:11:00.000-07:00

Went out for a Tempo run on Tuesday. Still trying to get a steady pace down. I know when I am running a 10min mile pace...but anything below that is guess work as you will see.

4 mile tempo run:

Mile 1, Warmup - 9:56
Mile 2, Tempo - 9:26
Mile 3, Tempo - 9:13
Mile 4, Cool Down - 9:37

Total 4 miles - 38:14

A little fast for my cool down, but it was a comfortable pace. I think my tempo runs should be alittle faster, probably around 9:10 to 9:00. But McMillan Running has my tempo between 9:40 and 9:20.

Today I will be hitting the bike path again...but not running, on my bike! Tonight I will be at the Y for my swim workout.

Sunday Long run

2009-03-15T17:13:00.000-07:00

Went out for a 7 mile run today! The weather was great and the run was even better! Great way to start off the upcoming week!

Wakefield 7 miler:
http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/us/ri/wakefield/640123716235727296

Thursday = Track Day

2009-03-12T17:48:00.000-07:00

Hit the URI track today with Mark, Drew, Justin and Anthony. Here is the break down:

Track Work
4X400 @ 2:00min per 400

1.25 mile warmup - 10:03mins

Lap1 - 2:02.96min
recovery - 2:34min

Lap2 - 2:02min
recovery - 2:48min

Lap3 - 2:00.10min
recovery - 2:38min

Lap4 - 2:00.04min

1 mile cool down - 9:52mins

Great workout!

Tonight's Swim

2009-03-09T18:31:00.001-07:00

Went to the Y for my swim with Joe and it was great! I hit an unofficial best with a 46sec 50m swim! My previous best was 55secs for 50m. I also did 100m in 1min 50 secs, another best! Tonight's swim definitely has given me confidence for a great swim training season and adds another brick to what could be a great triathlon season.

Tuesday - Tempo run

Week 2

2009-03-09T04:16:00.000-07:00

Alright week 2 of training begins! This whole changing hour thing really stinks...but I'll get use to it. This week I have 3 runs, 2 swims and 3 bike rides (probably on the trainer). Last week was great...except for being sick on Monday and Tuesday, but it felt really good getting back in the pool!

Happy Monday!

Now Starts the real Training

2009-03-05T04:45:00.000-08:00

So this week starts my Tri training for the 09 season. Jumped on the bike the other night and got in 30 mins while watching the Biggest Loser (very good show to watch while on the trainer!) 850 meters in the pool last night and a 4.5 mile run yesterday afternoon! I had a swim and run scheduled for Monday but the snow and sickness kept me from completing that days activities. Today I am heading over to the hill for some repeats. Its 1.87 miles to the hill, 4 repeats on the hill, and then 1.87 miles back. makes for a nice training run.
I am going to try and post more often since I am in full training mode now. My entries will be short and sweet.

100 Acre Pond Hill Repeats

Happy Thursday!

Hyannis 10K

2009-02-22T17:23:00.000-08:00

Had an awesome time at the race.

10K
Mile 1 - 10:00
Mile 2 - 9:38
Mile 3 - 9:42
Mile 4 - 9:38
Mile 5 - 9:25
Mile 6 - 9:27
Mile .2 - 1:57

6.2 miles = 59mins 50 sec!!!!!

Official race results have me at 1:01:20, but the garmin says 6.39 miles at 1:01.57. go figure.
Oh yeah...they had a Clydesdale division and I came in 2nd!!!! I hope I didn't miss out in getting an award!!!!
WEll I didn't miss out!!!! They sent me an email and told me they will mail me the award!! I am wicked excited!!
Probably the only running award I will ever get!

Race report will be up shortly!!!!!!
Congrats to Mark for a Half marathon PR, Drew for a well run 10K, Justin for his first Half Marathon and Laura for a great run (and thanks for letting us use your Hotel room!)!!!!

Forecast for tomorrow's race

2009-02-21T06:11:00.001-08:00

Hyannis Forecast: A few showers in the morning becoming steady in the afternoon. High 44F. Winds SE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80%.

Should be alot of fun!!!!!!!

Friday!

2009-02-20T03:28:00.000-08:00

I will be going for a slow 4 mile run today to stay loose. The weather keeps changing for Sunday, but either way it will be good time. I am just really excited to run a race that is over 5k distance. I feel that running a 10k puts me in a different group of runners. I know that 10k doesn't seem that far to most runners, but for me this is a milestone.

Happy Friday!

Oh Man!

2009-02-18T05:06:00.000-08:00

(Edit Post)
Ok now the Forecast calls for cloudy skies...no rain and 40 degrees!!!! New England weather...figures.

Forecast for this Sunday...snow in the morning! Good thing I am only doing the 10k!!!!

Last long run

2009-02-16T07:48:00.000-08:00

Went for a 6.5 mile run through Wakefield yesterday. It was my last long run before Hyannis 10K this weekend. I felt really good. my only concern was my left calf muscle felt tight and I felt a little pain. But I didn't feel it all the time and when I got home I iced it for 30 mins and then again at night. So I have 2 shorter runs scheduled for this week.
Stay tuned...I have an announcement about a give-a-way!!!!!!

Run around Wakefield

2009-02-08T08:14:00.000-08:00

Went out yesterday for a 60 min run. The temp was around 45! This was going to be my first run of 60 mins ever! I felt great the whole run. I went kinda slow, 10:30 average pace. When I hit the 60 min mark, I had only gone 5.65 miles...I really wanted to go 6 miles. So I extended the run and ended up doing 6.2 miles in 65 mins. Great run! I am pleased with the time and how I felt. During the run I was thinking about a banana that I had saved for the end of my run. When I got home, I went straight for the banana, but it wasn't there!!!!!! I asked "who ate my banana?" Brady laughs and says me. Oh man......I was bummed!
Anyways I have another long week of training for the Hyanis 10K.

Super 5K

2009-02-01T19:14:00.000-08:00

First race of the year didn't end up the way I wanted it too. I decided last night that I was going to run the Super 5K today. Its a flat course and I was certain I could set a PR. But that didn't happen. First of all I went out way to fast...then at mile marker 2 I has some serious pain under my right rib cage which slowed me down. I was pissed. So i limped into the finish line at 28:59. I really thought I could have finished it with a PR today, but it just wasn't my day. The weather was awesome and really enjoyed the run (until mile 2). Oh well, there will be more races! Back to training for the 10k.
This weeks runs:

Monday - 45 mins
Tuesday - 48 mins
Wednesday - Rest/swim
Thursday - 50 mins
Friday - Rest/swim
Saturday - 50 mins

Have a great Monday!!!!

New Wetsuit

2009-01-26T18:31:00.000-08:00

My new Wetsuit came in the mail while I was away in Florida. I picked up the Quintana Roo Ultrafull Triathlon Wetsuit from Trisports.com. I went with the full wetsuit instead of the jon style. Just figured it wouldn't hurt to have it up here in the Northeast. I can't wait to try it out.

Training for the Hyannis 10k is going slow but steady. After a week in Florida I jumped back into training and ran 35 mins today, which reminds me, I need to pack my Garmin for tomorrow's run. Tomorrow I have a 45 min run scheduled.

I want to give a shout out to Mark who survived the 14th ANNUAL BOSTON PREP 16 MILER in NH yesterday. Good job Mark!

Warmer weather

2009-01-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

The family and I will be heading to Florida soon. I can't wait for the warmer weather!!! I hope to get at least 2 runs in while there, but you know how it is with 3 kids!!!
Have a good week!

Great Year

2008-12-30T11:23:00.000-08:00

2008 turned out to be a great year! It didn't start off so hot with my left ankle injury that kept me from running for over 3 months. But I came back and completed four 5k races and my big accomplishment of 2008, the Wild Dog Sprint Tri!!!! The Triathlon was a highlight for 2008. But the birth of Nicholas was definitely THE highlight of 2008. That little guy is so awesome. I was also fortunate enough to find a new job closer to home and it was great to find out that some of the people I work with run!

2009 will be another great year. I will be focusing more on my sprint triathlons then 5Ks and will be attempting to complete my first Olympic distance tri in August and my first Half Marathon in October.

Can't wait for the new year!!

Happy New Year

2008-12-29T05:38:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!!!!!

Merry Christmas!!

2008-12-23T06:27:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Running

2008-12-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

I went out for a 35 min run today. I wanted to go easy since I did 42 minutes the other day with some hill repeats. So my splits were normal...first mile 10:07, second mile 10:17 and third mile 10:09. I felt really good during the 3rd mile so I decide to add another mile...and kicked it up a notch... 4th mile 9:11. After the last mile I started thinking that I am holding myself back alittle. The running mentle games have started. I have been so used to running 3 miles...that I don't think I can handle 4 miles or if I do I will injure myself or something crazy. I think today's 4 mile run, and last weeks 3.96 mile run with my last .96 mile came in 9:07...I am going to increase my runs to 40 mins from now on. These past 2 weeks have really given me the extra encouragement I need to continue with my 10k training. Oh yeah...I got caught in the rain again today. When I left work the radar did not show rain, and half way through the run it started to rain. I could have really used some Drymax socks. I might just have to find me a pair of those.

Swim

2008-12-11T11:18:00.000-08:00

Hit the pool last night. Did 850 meters in about 20 mins. This is part of my new training program I have been putting together for weeks now. The first few months is run focused since I have my first 10k race coming up in February. After that the focus will switch to bike and swim. I am really excited about this program. I looked online for all the sprint and Oly training programs and just took what I thought would help me to my goal. Then I set it up so it really does not interfere with home and the family to much. Today I have a 30 min bike and tomorrow will be a 40 min run. I have started training by time and not distance. I figured...if I run 30 mins...I kinda know I would have ran 3 miles. I need to set my Garmin up for time and pace and get rid of distance.

later

2008-12-10T04:21:00.000-08:00

I am having the same ankle problem that I had back in May, it takes about 2 miles for my left ankle to loosens up. Its really annoying. It took about a month for it to go away. but, I guess I will just live with it.

Thanksgiving run

2008-11-27T18:21:00.000-08:00

Went for a 4 mile run today. It was just so nice out and I had a few minutes so I went for a run. I was going for 3 miles... but decided to do 4.

Then I came home and stuffed my face with turkey, mashed potatoes and Gravy!!!!! Yummmy!

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T12:52:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone has a wonderful and happy Thanksgiving!!

Good luck to Mark as he goes for a 5K time under 23mins!

29mins 26 secs

2008-11-23T15:30:00.000-08:00

Thats my Garmin time...Don't know my official time. They did not record my time in the shoot. I was worried about my ankle the whole morning...but it held up with not pain or discomfort. I could tell that I haven't been running alot recently...I hit a mini wall after the 2nd mile. But pushed through and finished strong. This is an awesome race and Can't wait for next year. Drew from work had an awesome race coming in at 23.03 and Michelle coming in under 25 mins. Can't wait for me to be that fast!!!! The Mews puts on a great race for Special Olympics. Right after the run, I grabbed a bannana and water, then headed straight for my free beer and BBQ!!!! Can't beat a race that has free beer and food after.

The Mews 5K

2008-11-21T03:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went out for a test run. 1.5 miles with no pain or discomfort. So I have decided to run the Mews 5k. I won't be going out for PR, I just want to have fun and enjoy the race and atmosphere. I will be listening to my ankle the entire run and if I get any hint of discomfort, I am walking. I am hoping everything is good and will continue with the stretching and strengthening of my ankle. Wish me luck!

Set Up

2008-11-16T16:11:00.000-08:00

I cleaned out my basement and kicked the cats out and set up the bike trainer for the winter. Now I need to set up the DVD player and get some good videos to watch. Does anyone know if they have triathlon videos out there (beside the training ones)?

Still waiting for my ankle to heal. If nothing changes by the end of the week I will go back to my doctor and have an MRI done. I want to tackle this now before the begining of the year. Last years injury occured in January and lasted until around March. That was a good chunk of training time missed. Not this time!!!!

So I am probably out for the Mews 5K race. I have been waiting for this race since last year. oh well, ha...there is always next year!!!!

Bum Ankle

2008-11-13T19:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I tried to go for a 2 mile run. I wanted to test out my left ankle. It has been feeling good for the past few days, so I figured I would try to run on it. Well it didn't go well. I went about 1/10 of a mile before my ankle started to hurt. Its one of those injuries that I can't explain. I only hurts while I am running, not walking, not on the Elliptical, only running. So I might change up my training plan for the next few weeks and just use the Elliptical and bike. I will incorporate some ankle strengthening exercises also. It really sucks, but what can you do. Just take it one day at a time and let it heal.

A New Beginning

2008-11-11T03:55:00.000-08:00

Today starts a new beginning for me. I am starting a training plan that will prepare me for the Hyannis 10K in February and at the same time I will also use the plan for base building before I start my Olympic Triathlon training plan in March. I really want to do well in my Triathlons next year. So I figured the sooner I start my training the better. As of right now I have a full race schedule next summer, 2 Sprints, 1 Olympic and 1 Half Marathon. The Cranberry Country Olympic Triathlon will be my A race. The Mystic Valley Sprint will be my B race. Then I have a problem with my other sprint tri. The Crabman Sprint Tri in July is on a Sunday and the Blessing of the Fleet 10 mile road race is the Friday before. I have always wanted to run the Blessing, but the Crabman is just so close to home. I am leaning toward the Crabman, but I could change my mind tomorrow. And for the end of the season I will enter the Hartford Half Marathon in October. So as you can see I really have my work cut out for me this year. I really need to stay focused. So today I am starting things out slow and going for a 2 mile run. I am basically checking out my left ankle to make sure its good to go.

I also need to pass down to a Tri Newbie some Aero Bars. So be on the look out for that contest.

I will also be posting more on this blog. I have been slacking on my posts.

Today is Veterans Day. Please say thank you to a Veteran if you see one.

Election Day

2008-11-04T07:48:00.001-08:00

VOTE!!!!

Nicholas Brennen

2008-10-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

Cole was born Saturday night at 7:59 PM. He is 7 lbs 7.5 ounces and is 21 inches long.
Mom was Great and was in labor for 2 hours!!!!!

Running

2008-10-09T04:03:00.000-07:00

I have one more run this season, the Mews Gear and Beer 5K. I set a PR at this race last year and look to set another one this year. I kinda figured out my race schedule for next year. I will post it shortly. I am going to extend my distance in running and triathlons. My A race will be the Cranberry Country Oly Triathlon which I missed this year and the Hartford Half Marathon. I am definately setting the bar high for myself and have a long road of training ahead of me. But I am confident that I can accomplish the goals that I am going to set for myself.
I think my first goal is to lose a little more weight. I have lost around 11 pounds in the past month, but I need to lose at least another 20 - 25 before the end of the year. My ankles have been hurting lately after my runs and I think my weight is a big factor to that. So first goal...Lose 20 lbs by Christmas!!!!!

Happy Thursday

St. Francis 5K....NEW PR!!!

2008-10-04T07:27:00.000-07:00

I came into this race really wanting to set a PR. Mission Accomplished! NEW PR 27:35!!!10 seconds faster then my previous PR. I am really excited right now. I have one more race on the schedule for this season, the Mews Gear and Beer 5K in November. I will beat my new PR at that race!!!!

CVS 5K

2008-09-22T04:31:00.000-07:00

CVS Caremark 5K road race in Providence:
mile 1: 8:45
mile 2: 9:12
mile 3: 9:21
mile.10: 1:25
Total: 28:44
Average Pace: 9:04

Those are my readings from my Garmin.
Great Race! It was really hot. I will post more later!

Great Week

2008-09-19T04:03:00.000-07:00

I haven't been updating my blog lately. But I can say I have had a great week of running! I ran a total of 10.90 miles this week! Each run felt great! Even yesterday's run. On Wednesday I ran 4.7 miles. So the next day I packed my running stuff and brought it to work just in case I wanted to ran again. I normally do not run on consecutive days...especially after a long run, but I went out with Mark for a 3 mile run. I ran 3.1 miles with a time of 29:34 and negative split each mile! It was such a great surprise since I was thinking that I was really going to struggle with the run. This weekend is the CVS 5K race in Providence. The company I work for paid for any employee who wanted to run this event so I am on the companies team! It should be alot of fun with over 3000 people running this race. My goal for this race is to finish with a time of 28:30. Thats pretty fast considering I have not ran that fast since last year's Salve Regina 5K. I know I can do it. Good luck to all those runners!

On another note. 2 weeks ago I made it a goal to lose 10lbs before this weekends race. Well as of this morning I am 1.5lbs away from my goal with 2 days to go. I am really excited to have lost 8.5lbs in 2 weeks. I know its mostly that water weight that everyone talks about, but its still 8.5lbs less then I had 2 weeks ago! AFter I lose my first 10 I will scale back my weight and shoot for another 10lbs before the baby is born on October 13!!!!!

Have a great weekend!

2008 Wild Dog Sprint Triathlon Race Report

2008-09-11T03:40:00.000-07:00

For over a year I have been waiting to complete a triathlon. Ever since I spoke to my friend Mark back in April of 2007, I had a new goal to achieve. I had no swimming background, no cycling background and the only running I ever did was in the Navy 11 years ago. I was already working out at my local YMCA trying to get fit and lose some weight so I thought this would be another great way to get in shape and have fun doing it.

Forward to 2008. After a long winter learning how to swim and nursing a bum ankle. I finally was able to get my butt in gear and train for my races this year. Then the company I was working for decides to pack up operations and move to Michigan. So training was put on hold so I can focus on finding a job. Timing was horrible since my wife and I are expecting our 3rd child in October. So finding a job was top priority over everything. After only a few months of searching I found a job as a temp to hire that was only 5 minutes away from my house. My wife and I decided that I would work both jobs for 7 weeks so I can receive the severance and bonus packages from the job that was moving. So for 7 weeks I worked 80 hours a week. No time for training. But after a few weeks I did start to find time to run during my lunch break at my day job. I was determined to fit one triathlon into my 2008 season. So if I wasn’t running at my day job, I would run at my night job. That worked out well and I got back into my running rhythm. I started swimming after I left my night job and started biking to work.

I set the alarm for 3:45AM. Registration opened at 5:00AM and I wanted to get there early so I would have plenty of time to set up transition and just mingle around. Of course I only slept for 4 hours since it took forever to fall asleep and I woke up at 3:30. It was going to take around 45 minutes to get to the race so I ate a banana and a Chocolate chip cliff bar on the way.

It was still dark out when I arrived. They were handling registrations by car lights. I went down, registered, got my goody bag and went back to the car. Grabbed my stuff and bike and headed to the transition area. The transition area was in a nice grass field. Before I knew it the place was packed with people. I was getting very excited and nervous. I took a walk down to the water and was surprised to see that the water was very choppy. Not the ideal conditions for my first real open water swim. I was very glad that I rented a wetsuit for this race.

Went back to transition and hung around a while. I spotted one of my old Professors from URI at the race. I chatted with him for a bit and then went back to my bike to put on the wetsuit. A very kind gentlemen helped my zip up my wetsuit and I did the same for him and we both made our way down to the water. I jumped in for a little warm up swim. I was so happy to see how much buoyancy I had with the combination of saltwater and a wetsuit. All my nerves about finishing the swim were gone. The water was very nice too, but the chop looked like it was getting worse. There were 4 waves and I was in the 2nd one. The first wave went out and everyone started cheering. What a rush! Three minutes after the first wave it was my turn. I set my self in the middle back I figured I would let the fast people go in front of me. The horn sounded and we were off. The waves from the chop were over my head and made it very difficult to take breaths from either side. What ever swim form I had was thrown out the window due to the chop and all of the swimmers I was around. (Note to self: don’t worry about the slow swimmers, go around them or swim over them) I made it to the first turn and there were 2 guys holding onto the buoy, oh great not a good sign. After the bottle neck of swimmers around the first buoy I managed to get into a rhythm. I started breathing from my left side since the waves were coming in from the right. Made it to the 2nd and final buoy and saw more guys holding onto the buoy. By this time I had a clear lane to the beach. Not to many guys in front of me. But as soon as I turned the corner the sun was glaring right towards me and I couldn’t see the swim exit. So I followed a guy in front of me until I could see the exit and swam has hard as I could for the last minute or so. I stood up, took my goggles and cap off and started running to transition. While running to transition I knew in my heart that I was about to complete a triathlon. I was worried most about the swim. And I knew once I finished that, it was smooth sailing from here on out. It was awesome listening to the cheering crowd as I ran past them! Swim - 9:22

The run up to transition was a good 100 yards or so. I told my self that I was in no hurry and to take my time. Got the wetsuit off with no problems, got my socks and sneakers on, took a gel, drank some water, put the helmet on, sunglasses and race belt and I was off. 1st Trans - 3:57

The bike was a 3 loop 10 mile total course around Colt State Park. It was really nice and couldn’t beat the view of Narragansett Bay. I tried to stay in aero for most of the bike, but around lap 3 my legs started to hurt a little so I would break out of aero a lot. I am still not that comfortable in the aero position, probably due to the lack of time I spent on the bike this year. I couldn’t tell what my place was with others since it is a small 3 loop course. My only concern was my tires. I really didn’t want to have a tire blow in the middle of the bike. I also slowed up a bit on the last portion of the 3rd lap. I wanted to give my legs a little rest before the run. Bike - 39:31

I came into transition, took my helmet off, racked my bike and I was off. 2nd Trans - 1:10

I had no strategy for the run. I was really going for negative splits but I just wanted to complete this triathlon. I went out to fast with my first mile coming in at 9:34. My legs were feeling good and I thought I could keep the pace up, I was wrong. After mile 1 I started to slow down. And to make matters worse there was a hill about ¼ mile into the 2nd mile. At least at the top of it was the only aid station on the entire course. I grabbed some water, drank a little and poured the rest over my head. That felt good. Mile 2 came in at 9:57. Slow but still happy it was under 10 mins. I could hear the crowd cheering as I came closer to the finish. I really wanted to sprint my last ¼ mile, but I had nothing left. As I came closer to the finish line I saw Kim and the kids cheering me on! That was awesome. The run came in a little under 3 miles, 2.78 miles or something like that. Run - 26:47

I crossed the finish line with a time of 1:20.49. I took off my chip and received my finisher’s medal. I was wicked excited to get a medal. I didn't think we were going to get medals. I walked around to cool off for a second and then went to see Kim and the kids. Brady was so excited and was asking if I won the race. I told him I didn’t win the race but I have a lot of fun. I took Brady over to the snack area and grabbed some fruit and cookies. I have to say there was a lot of snacks to choose from. After a few pictures I broke down my transition area, packed up the car and headed home.

Notes:
Swim: Next time start towards the front or side, not in the back. Most of the swimmer in my class are not very fast. I was constantly checking to see if anyone was in front of me. Next time, don’t worry about others, just swim! I lost a lot of time in the water because I was too concerned with other people. There is a time to be nice and there is a time to race! Oh yeah, anti fog stuff on my goggles will help also!

Bike: How about ride the bike more then 6 times before doing a triathlon. I left a lot of time out on the bike course because I did not get enough training on the bike. Most of that was due to my 80 hour work weeks that lead up to the race, but there should be no excuses. Practice in aero more and get a new helmet!

Run: For running, I think I just need to run more. The more I run the faster I will become. I had nothing left after the run. Normally I have a little left in the tank so I can sprint to the finish line. Not this time. I should start to incorporate track workouts and tempo runs into my training.

Transitions: Not much to improve on there unless I get those fancy clip on shoes for my bike. Coming out of the water I probably could have done things a little faster, but I didn’t want to forget anything.

This was an awesome race and I can’t wait to do another one. I am totally hooked on Triathlons now. I want to thank Mark (aka Moonpie) for getting my ass off the couch and showing me the cool sport of Triathlon. Thanks to John (aka Tri-John) for passing the Profile Airstryke aero bars to me. I will make sure to pass it onto another tri-newbie. Also to all of those awesome Tri bloggers out there! You guys are a wealth of information. And to my family, thanks for cheering me on from my first 5k to my first triathlon, you guys are awesome!

No firms plans for next year, but I am sure there will be a couple triathlons in there!

Hey Everyone!

2008-09-04T03:52:00.000-07:00

Its been awhile and I know you all are waiting for my race report. The race report is coming...I promise. Still trying to figure out my new schedule with work and being home at night. I have been running alot. I still have not got back to where I was last year with my running, but I know its just right around the corner. There are a few 5K races coming up, the CVS 5K and the St. Francis 5K where I really want to do well and hopefully set a new PR at the St. Francis 5K. Also I am voluteering for the FirmMan 1/2 ironman distance TRi this Sunday. It should be alot of fun. But it looks like the Triathletes will have to deal with a little rain and wind.

I have also signed up for the 2008 THROUGH TH3 WALL Challenge! Last year I came up short on my goals but this year I am totally committed on reaching my weight goal. Wish me luck!

I am a Triathlete!!!

2008-08-17T08:04:00.001-07:00

A longer report will be posted soon.
The race was awesome. My time was around 1:20. The official results have not been posted. The swim was a little rough, tthe bike windy and the run hot! I had such a good time.
Swim - 9:22
1st Trans - 3:57
Bike - 39:31
2nd Trans - 1:10
Run - 26:47
Total - 1:20.49

Heading to Wild Dog

2008-08-17T01:01:00.000-07:00

For my first race I do not have many goals..actually just one, finish. I really want to take this race and learn as much as I can and apply it to my races next year. Of course I would like to finish under 1.5 hours and have a strong bike, but I guess we will have to see. It is a beautiful morning for racing!!!!

Update

2008-08-13T16:36:00.000-07:00

This has been a great week of training! Monday after we got back from NJ I went out for a 3 mile run. After mile 2 I found my stride and was running at a 9 min mile pace. Today I rode my bike to work (4.2 miles) and at lunch time I did a small brick, 6 mile bike ride/2 mile run. The bike was ok, but the run...first mile 10:45, second mile 9:35. My running is coming around and I felt awesome after the brick. With the swimming last week and today's brick, I feel so good about this weekend!!

More good news, my Brooks Addiction 8's came in the mail today!!!!!!!

Busy Week

2008-08-07T04:01:00.001-07:00

Its been a busy week of running and swimming. I attempted to ride my bike, but the front tire blew so I need to fix that. My focus for the past week has mostly been swimming and running. With the Tri coming up next weekend I have 2 seperate brick workouts scheduled, swim/bike and a bike/run. Before this week I was a little nervous about the swim. But after a few swims at the Y pool, I feel I am ready for the .25 mile swim. I do not have expectations that I will be fast in either of the sports, so my goal for my first Tri is to finish. If it takes me 2 hours and I come in last...thats cool with me. I am just really excited to complete it.

Had a really cool run in the rain yesterday. A group of us from work went out for a slow 3 mile run in the rain. We ended up going 3.58 miles, which happens to be the furthest I have run without walking since last year. And my legs hurt for a couple hours after. Then last night I hit the Y for 1000meter swim. It was tough.

Until next time.

Weekend

2008-08-04T04:04:00.000-07:00

First off I would like to say congrats to Michelle who became a Triathlete on Sunday. She killed the course and completed her longest ocean swim ever. Congrats Michelle!!!!!!

Had a good weekend. First off on Friday I went out for a 3.5 mile run during lunch. A little slow, but it felt good. On Saturday I went to the Y and swam 1000 meters in the pool. Then spent the rest of the day getting ready for our pool party which was alot of fun. Sunday Kim and I went to the Ocean Mist with our friends for breakfast. Then spent the rest of the day doing nothing!!!!!

As for today I have a 3mile run at lunch and another 1000 meters at the Y tonight. I might go to the lake and swim with Kim following me in the boat instead of going to the Y. I think I would rather do more open water swims then swimming in the pool.

Happy Monday

Bike to Work Day

2008-07-29T16:05:00.000-07:00

I decided to ride my bike to work today. My wife has Tuesday's off so I didn't have to bring the kids to daycare. So I put on my new bike shorts, packed my bag, put some air in my tires and I was off. The morning was beautiful. The route I took is mostly shady and from my house to work is mostly uphill. I had my Garmin on so I could see how fast I was going. 15.5???? 14.8???? Super slow!!!!! Besides my really slow times this morning, I made it to work, 5.2 miles in 22 minutes. At lunch time I jumped back on the bike and headed home. I needed the car after work to drive up to Providence. The ride home was much better, probably because it was mostly downhill. I made it home in 19 minutes. Definitely have allot of room to improve, but not to bad for the first bike ride of the year....yes first of the year, freakin crazy. Tomorrow I plan on running 3.25 miles during lunch. I would really like to extend my running distance to 4 miles by August 8. I can care less on how long it takes me to get to 4 miles, I just want to do it.

Tomorrow is my last day at Ibis (Actually its called Pitney Bowes Legal Solutions but its still Ibis to me) I have worked there for over 2 years and have meet some awesome people. I will miss the people, but I will not miss working 2nd shift. Thursday has been a long time coming. A normal life is so close I can taste it. Every time I think about it makes me smile. I plan on picking up my kids from day care on Thursday. I can't wait!

See ya!

New Blog for my Triathlon Training

2008-07-28T19:08:00.001-07:00

Now its really time to get serious. I have my first sprint Tri coming up in 3 weeks and another in 7 weeks. My life is finally becoming normal, so it is time to get my butt in gear and become the triathlete I want to be. I will welcome all comments, suggestions and tips that will help me along the way.

Thanks and I hope everyone enjoys reading my new blog.