Ironman Canada

Well I have now trained and raced in three Ironmans now. All three races I've had some sort of issue and/or learning experience on the bike that ruined my "race for a Kona slot" but helped me learn a lot about myself and what it takes to be successful at the Iron distance.

I'm not going to lie, it has been extremely tough for me to train for Ironmans, run a new business (we hit hour two year anniversary on 9/1/11), be a good future husband to Ashley, get enough sleep, and more all at the same time. Part of me is relieved to have Ironman Canada out of the way and  I am relieved that I am not racing Kona in five weeks. I will actually get to relax, and have a vacation with Ashley that is not focused on "race prep" and keeping me off my feet!

The other part of me though...the competitive side...the really driven side...the hungry side....is of course constantly replaying things in my head thinking about all the "what ifs?". I'm anxious to get out there again and use everything I have learned in training, race prep and race execution to finally be able to nail the distance and do what I am capable of. But for the next year, it is going to be best for my overall mental health to take a break from IM and probably any out of the area long distance races. 2013 will be the next Ironman year for me.

Lets just get down to the race:
Penticton BC- Awesome town. Everything that it is cracked up to be. This town supports the crap out of the race, its safe, friendly, and the scenery is absolutely gorgeous! The race organizers really put on a fantastic event and I can see why this specific Ironman has always had the reputation of a "must do in your lifetime" race.

SWIM- 1:07:35(33rd in Age group)- Ow, did not expect this from my training, but I have come to expect it from my recent races. I have just struggled with keeping myself together in the open water swim. I had all the things in my favor, due to my bad eye sight: Sable Water Optics Goggles- these things NEVER fog..very worth the $50 price tag & a very simple swim course with tons of huge orange buoys every couple hundred meters----- But I just could not keep myself pushing hard and swimming like I do in practice. Granted I did get elbowed hard in the nose and eyes (about 10minutes in), I had to flip on my back to make sure my nose wasn't bleeding and let the water out of my goggles. After that, I tried to play the drafting game and felt I did a pretty good job of it...it just doesn't show on the swim split. Whatever! out of the water-
T1- 2:38 (about a minute slower than the pros, but faster than 99% of the people)- I got a pair of good strong college guys as my wetsuit strippers and jetted off into the transition tent. First thing I noticed in the tent was there were WAY  MORE athletes in there than any Ironman transition tent I have ever been in. Probably a couple hundred at least.... I passed most of them in the tent. And ran out to my bike.
BIKE- 5:29:44 on the race clock ( My actual riding time per my Garmin is 5:19:20)- FLAT TIRES SUCK! After riding smoothly through the field up to the McLean Creek steep climb, and then flying at only 220 watts through 40km in 1:00:00 flat--- yes that's right. I rode the first 40km at Ironman Pace in 60 minutes. Only a few years ago, it was my goal to  beat 60minutes in a 40km bike during an Olympic Distance Tri. This course starts out fast and I was happy and ready for the challenging parts of the course to show up and test us. I had moved steadily through the field and my legs just felt phenomenal! Then around 30miles in I heard the noise. THE NOISE. Yes, its a noise that all of us triathletes and cyclists hate to hear. I had a flat. This was my first flat tire in a race (half iron or longer) in  the 6 seasons I have been racing. Only my second flat in a race ever (I flatted at age group nationals in 2008 half way through the ride) But this was the first time I had to change a flat in a race, knowing I was up against the clock and watching hundreds of riders pass me up while I was on the side of the road......10 minutes later I was back at it...but I was concerned. I knew I was likely giving up 7-10 minutes to some of the top guys in my age group in the swim already...and to lose another 10 minutes meant I would need to execute the rest of my bike and then have the run of my life to get close to a Kona Slot. I carried on and tried to execute the rest of my bike exactly to our original plan. Climbing the two mountain passes in the race- Richter and Yellow Lake- was soooo cool! At times it felt like the tour de france or giro di itaalia with fans lined up on both sides of the street cheering you on! 100 miles in when its time for some long steep windy descending, I was very happy with myself staying in the aero bars most of the time and just being really aggressively aero going down hill. The last two miles through Penticton I just tried to focus on staying in the moment and getting mind right for the marathon to come.

T2- 2:54- Took my time here and just wanted to gather myself to go out and still "race" my marathon.

RUN- 3:48:55 (8:44/mi pace)- I started the run really wanting to still run my best possible marathon. I knew I had a sub 3:12 in me on an ideal day, and even on a hot day like this a sub 3:20 in me. I looked at the race clock and I was 6:43:00 into the race...Geez I thought, now its gonna be a serious challenge just to break 10 hours today....but I needed to go for it anyways because who knows what might happen to the athletes in my age group ahead of me... But I thought I might have some dehydration issues because my chest was so tight I could not breathe in deep...I could only breathe in short shallow breaths and had little side aches underneath my rib cages. I decided to take it easy the first 3 miles and see if my chest area would release a litte allowing more breathing freedom. The thing is my legs felt INCREDIBLE! I could tell my coach and I just nailed the race prep and taper and rest before the race...it did not feel at all like I had just ridden 112 miles. If only I could breath, I thought to myself.

At mile 3 things were not all that much better on the breathing front, but my legs just felt so good....I thought of Ashley and my family back home watching and tracking the race, and all my friends, training partners, competitors doing the same back home, and my coach....I said the hell with it and decided to just turn my body loose and start nailing my Marathon Pace. I was running 7:15/mile from miles 4-10 and it was great! This is the first time I have been able get into my groove on the run in the three Ironman marathons I have done. I was passing people left and right, it felt easy on the legs (still hard to breath but who cares about breathing if you are gonna get a kona slot?), and I was getting all kinds of Props and Kudos from Athletes and spectators on the course. 6 miles in I saw Chris Bagg running the other way 4th overall in the Pro Race! I was soooo Pumped for him. It was the coolest moment of the day for me. (Chris is a local pro athlete I have always admired and spent enough time with him and his fiance Amy (the super spectator!) the days leading up to the race to call them both FRIENDS now...., definitely good people to have in your life)---see Bagg's 4th place pro race reports HERE. Anyways, I kept plugging along, dialing in the nutrition, hitting aid stations and keeping my body cool with ice...at mile 10 or 11 it gets a little hilly out on the course and because of my breathing I decided to take it real chill up the hill. Just short choppy steps. Nothing to elevate the heart rate too much. Down hill I would pick it up a little, but found that the jolting and bouncing that goes on when running fast steep downhill seemed to bother my sideaches. Not too long after about 10-12 minutes before I was going to hit the turnaround I started to see my age group competitors coming the other way. i did the math and saw how far I was still behind them....at least 20-30minutes I figured. This is when I sort of lost the "fight" i still had in me...and I went into "just get to the finish mode". It was extremely difficult to deal with the breathing issues and the side aches when I knew I was just out there to get to the finish.... this is the hard part about when you always set high goals and expectations for your self. When you hit the goals you are on cloud nine....but when you go through what I was going through in my head those last 13 miles on sunday...well, I'm just going to stop talking about it now because its depressing! Anyways, a fairly uneventful  last 13 miles that I averaged in a dismal 9:15/mile pace. I did however have one of the team TBB Female pros (Maki Nishiuchi) running directly behind me from miles 15-20. She said a couple times "you are so strong!", lol, which was a good tactical choice of words to keep me working for her. She seemed to be happy letting me do the work in a head wind at 8:45 pace and I actually felt pretty happy having some sort of "purpose" out there on the course. I felt important. Here was a pro athlete using me to help her do her job, and I was running well enough for her to just keep running behind me. After 20miles she took off, I had done my job and she was ready for the last 10km push. I remembered in training how much I would imaging the moment where I would be 10k from the finish and how I would up the pace and leave it all out there. Its funny what Ironman can do to your motivation and competitive desire after 7-9 hours of laboring, sweating out in the heat....I did not care about anything these last 10km. I just wanted to keep moving forward and get this event done with. I got passed by 5 or 6 guys in the last couple miles...I did not care. I could have sprinted and flew past a 40 year old in the last quarter mile of the run (much to the pleasure of the encouraging fans) but what would that really accomplish in the long run?? What I was happy to do, when I got to the finish shoot, was go and high five as many of the fans as possible. I realized for a brief moment that what I saw as a disappointing day, was being seen as a remarkable accomplishment by so freaking many people out there....Sometimes I just need to be happy that I can go out there and do what I love to do...winning or losing, hitting goals or falling short...I still get to do what I love to do. And that is what is most important.

Next up- I still have my plane ticket stamped for KONA!! Although, I won't be racing on the big Island, I will be out there to support all the local athletes and have a blast watching the World Championships of my favorite sport. I am excited! What's more exciting? Probably that I am getting married two days later on a Kona beach to my best friend, biggest fan, and love of my life, Ashley. There is still lots to look forward to for Joshua Monda!


As always thank you to my huge support network- Ashley Bird (soon to be Monda), Pops, Mom, all my family and friends. Coach Ciaverella. All my Pace Multisport Teammates. Athletes Lounge. GU Energy. Open Meadow Alternative Schools. GrindStone Collection Strategies, Inc.!

Rev3 Coast Rica- Olympic Distance- Wish I was there! Yahoo for race season!

REV3CR 2011 - Pro Olympic Rev from REVOLUTION3 Triathlon on Vimeo.


Rev3 is a super exciting, well run race series. I'm really looking forward to the half iron distance REV3 Portland in July!!

My Running Tips

Here are a few things I try to remember to do when running. Keep in mind, I am not a running expert! I have however been a consistent dedicated runner since 2005, and have found some things that work well for me in training and racing  :-)

1. Move your arms faster to make your legs move faster! (This never fails. Our brains are wired so that when one arm swings forward, the opposite leg moves forward at the same time. Anytime I'm feeling sluggish in the legs, I just increase the tempo my arms are pumping away at, and it translates into a higher turnover in my legs!)

2. When running uphill, lean slightly forward into the hill and shorten your stride. (I do this in races all the time. All I know is it works for me. Using Tip #1 also works very well for this tip!)

3. Jam out! (Music helps everything. It makes the time go by quicker and helps keep you motivated---especially the last half of a 15-20mile run.  I probably run with an Ipod about 70% of the time. Pure runners may frown on this. And others think that getting too used to running with music will hurt you on race day when you dont have the tunes... But it has never hurt me on race day as far as I can tell. Come race day, I naturally replace my Ipod with adrenaline and pure competitiveness.

4. Acknowledge other runners, walkers, and dogs! (You dont have to say anything, just a simple smile and wave, thumbs up, or nod of the head. Some of my best runs are in areas where there are lots of other people, and I get to smile a lot)

5. Acknowledge Cars!! ( I always, always, always, wave to acknowledge a driver in a car that yields to me. We have enough stories as it is with Cyclists and/or runners getting hit and killed by drivers who "didn't notice them". The more we can acknowledge drivers and get them thinking about us and our appreciation for them, the more they will be alert of other endurance athletes out on the road in the future!)

6. Keep your eye on the prize! (Nothing helps more than being REALLY motivated. If you are training for a race, practice visualizing yourself on the big race day during your training run. If your are running to lose weight, visualize yourself on the beach or standing in the mirror with your shirt off or in your swim suit.)

7. Stay hydrated and fueled before, during and after long runs or before and after your short runs! (Enough said here!)

8. Dont be afraid to breathe! (Many races I find myself breathing harder than anyone else around me. In my opinion, if I am breathing harder, I am getting in more oxygen!  To get in some extra Oxygen, I breathe through my mouth AND nose at the same time. Try it!)

Have fun y'all!!
-Josh Monda

Oh, what? My blog! Crap, here's an update

Doin a crunch with Stella on me

Life has been goin good and busy and balanced these past few months. Ash and I have been able to save a little money, make good improvements to the house, and add a new member to the family. Its surprising how much money you can save by not eating out at all! Check out Ashley's updates here

GrindStone is starting to really turn a corner, and we are just a couple turns away from everyone who got in at the ground floor making big money...I can feel it coming! We still have a lot of work to do, but I am excited for the company and do not for a second regret starting it up 18 months ago :-)


In January we travelled down to Phoenix to spend time at my Corp office, hang with my dad and uncle, and race the PF Chang's Rock n Roll Half Marathon.  Thanks to GU for getting me signed up, it was a great to get in a good hard run down in the sun. I did not have a great race. My legs just weren't there that day and I hobbled through the last six miles, finishing over 4 minutes off my PR in 1:18 and change. It felt a little weird since I have raced a January half marathon every year since 2007 now and this was the first time I have not PR'd. What was AWESOME was that I got to run right next to Kara Goucher (US Olympian and US's #1 Womens Marathoner) for the first few miles before she took off on me. All I can say is its pretty cool running next to a celebrity runner that I have admired and watched on national TV for the past few years, and really fun running with the motorcycles with camera men on them!

Right now, in my spare time, I'm working hard to get my fitness back and shed off some of the winter weight I gained in the off-season. I think I gained more than previous off-seasons! Uh oh. The extra pounds are however helping to keep me motivated as I build up for IM Tx in May. I am also doing a few things different in my Bike training, and have made a big change in my swim stroke. I'm now (finally) starting to feel that itch to get out there this year and get 2011 race season under way!

Silverman Half Iron- The Final Race of the Season!

In this sport it is easy to work hard. Its easy to work too hard in many cases. The difficult part is accepting the fact that most everyone else you race with has probably worked just as hard as you. Sometimes I find myself cursing other athletes inside my head during a race. I get mad that the really fast swimmers have a 5 to 9 minute lead on me out of the water. I feel like swimming is just the "easy" part of the race for them, and I am left in their wake, getting kicked, punched and swallowing water with my heart rate at 190 beats per minute...hurting, exhausted! These "swimmers" then can go on to maybe bike just as fast as me, but can run 4-8 minutes slower than me in a half ironman and still finish in front of me. But when I stop (not a complete stop) to think about it, these guys have worked just as hard. Actually, most of these guys were swimming countless hours staring at the bottom of a swimming pool, day after day, week after week, year after year in middle school, high school and even college! I really respect the "swimmers" when I look at it this way. They put in their "hard work" years ago, and they deserve to reap the benefits. The same goes for those that ran and even cycled when they were younger. However, I can no longer call myself a "newcomer" to this sport. Silverman 2010 capped off my final race of my fifth season racing Triathlons......time flies when you are having fun!

Me and Big Aaron pre race

Silverman is a tough ass race! I was pumped to be able to race the course this year and get a preview for what the Ironman 70.3 World Championships course is going to be like starting in 2011 (and hopefully for many years to come). The hills on the bike and run are relentless. They never, never NEVER stop. This race  really puts your body and mind to the test, and I was ready for it on Nov. 7th

Before I go any further, I want to really thank everyone who supported me this year. My girlfriend, Ashley, has been so supportive and enthusiastic about my goals and drive to succeed it really makes everthing just seem so easy at times.
Pops, Mom, Uncle Terry, Grandparents, ALL my family and friends- THANK YOU for cheering me on.
Athletes Lounge- You guys have done so much for me this year, thank you!
GU Energy- You've stuck with me for 3 years now and I'll always be spreading the GU love.
Coach Ciaverella- I got all my faith in you man. Thanks for teaching me so much and helping me realize my potential.

SWIM- 33:54 (66th place out of the water): Yeah swim was rough and it hurt and I kept swimming of course. The start of the race was really cool, as we started under the pedestrian bridge in a fresh 65 degree Lake Las Vegas. Hundreds of spectators were up above our heads cheering us on before the horn sounded and then I began the usual routine of swimming over and getting swam over by people. I started out really REALLY hard like I usually do, and when I felt the oxygen debt kick in I fought the normal regrets and doubts that go through my mind as I tried to muscle through the water. But, as always, 5-10 minutes goes by, the field thins out and I'm able to get into a rhythm. I had a little trouble sighting and never really found anyone that I could trust drafting off of. I knew my swim fitness was not exactly where it would normally be in a big race like this, but I worked with what I had and was ready to get down to business as I pulled myself up onto the dock and out of Lake Las Vegas, 1.2 miles later.

T1- 2:28 (3rd fastest and only 7 seconds off of IM World Champ- MACCA, yes!)- Wetsuit strippers at this race. Sweet! Pointed at strippers, laid on my back and let them rip away. Passed maybe 10 or 15 guys in the transition tent and headed out and grabbed my bike. This transition area had a little 150meter hill you had to run up with your bike before mounting which made it interesting.

Going up one of the "3 Sisters"

BIKE-2:39:58 (21.0 mph) 9th fastest split- I passed maybe 25 athletes in the first 5 miles as I settled into the long hilly ride. I remember my shoulders and neck being really sore and stiff and I was not comfortable in the aero position for the first 20 minutes of the ride. But that went away, and I started getting my nutrition in and sticking to my goal watts. At about 12 miles in I got caught and passed on the bike by a sharp looking athlete. He didnt pass me very fast however and we ended up playing the pass and repass game every 15 minutes for the next 30 miles. This occupied my mind and made time go by much quicker. I was patient on all the uphills, riding up them in low Z5 watts at 65 rpms, and I would fly down the hills but also make sure to coast a little towards the end of each downhill. This is NOT a technical course. There are no trees and the downhills are pretty straight, so that helped me since I suck at downhills. I saw big Aaron on the two out and backs and timed myself about 4-5 minutes behind him both times. Still in striking distance, I thought to myself. At mile 38 we hit the "3 Sisters" (3 consecutive climbs, about 1minute in length and averaging a 15% grade) and I pulled ahead of the guy I had been riding with, for good. On the 3rd Sister there were about 25 rowdy fans yelling and cheering me up the top of the hill. It was sooo exciting having them there! I looked at my power meter and it read 550 watts....Ooops, just burned a match there, but it was worth it :-)  The hardest part of the whole day was the 5mile false flat immediately following the 3 Sisters, directly into the wind, on a lonely bike path with NOBODY in sight. The last 16 miles of a half ironman bike course is where I really start to lay the hammer down on the bike. While my power meter was showing the effort, the MPH reading was like 14mph! This is where one can really benefit from a power meter. If I had not been able to get that feedback,  I might have killed my legs trying to go 16 or 18mph on that section. Regardless, that 5 miles took forever. Towards the end of the bike there was a nice section of about 2miles downhill at 40+mph (the wind made it a little sketchy at times with the disk and deep dish front rim at that speed) but I went for it anyways. The last half mile I saw big Aaron on the run already. Crap, I thought, he must have put some big time on me at the end of the bike. I caught and passed one more guy, Michael Ingardia (last years overall winner), right before the end of the 56mile ride.

T2- In and out, and ready to go hunting!

Out onto the Run, Pops, Ash, Uncle Terry and Aunt Marilyn cheered me on. Pops informed me that I was in the Top 10 overall (I was 9th overall and 6th amateur) and six minutes behind Aaron. Big Aaron is my training buddy, but we are fierce competitors. So, of course, Pops made sure to give me those splits heading out onto the run. I love to see my good friend do well, and there is nobody else that I would want to do kick everyone's butt when I am having an off day.....but I was running for him, HARD!
The first mile of the run is all downhill, ran it in 5:20 and my body just felt great. Second two miles are all gradually uphill, and I was holding a steady 6:40ish pace that did not hurt too much. Towards the end of mile 3 I got the (oh "so familiar") cramps in my inner thighs. I've had them in EVERY SINGLE Half Ironman that I have done and I always get them when going uphill or shortly after a hill. As always, I just slowed to an easy 9 minute pace for about 30 seconds and patiently allowed the knots to disappear. As soon as they did, I had caught my breath a little and was ready to turn the burners back on. However I was a little concerned is that I was running so well but had not caught anyone on the run yet.... Mile 4 was mostly down hill. Ash and the fam were waiting for me there, encouraging me while giving me a split of only 3 minutes to Aaron. Good, I thought, I've gained 3 minutes on him in 4 miles so I must be gaining on others too. At Mile 5 I passed a strong looking guy, who just looked like he was going through a bad patch. I was too focused to say anything to him, just ran on. A half mile later I saw a tall guy up the road as we started another long uphill stretch. As I got closer to him I realized it was my boy. It was obvious by the way he was running, he wasnt having his best run. He seemed to be cramping a little, so I pulled out my pouch with salt pills as I had planned to offer him one when I caught up to him. Right before I caught him Macca ran the other way by us (in first place of course), smiled and shouted  "Good job guys"! Man, that was so inspiring seeing him out there!! As I passed Aaron I ran with him for 15 seconds or so, offered him salt (which he kindly declined), asked him how many in front of us and he told me maybe six guys. I took off on the hunt. It turns out at this point, halfway through the run, I was in 7th place overall and was the 4th overall amateur. I could see 3rd place up the road in the distance and he seemed to be running really well. I just kept my eyes on him, up to the challenge of catching and stayed locked in the zone. It is such a great feeling when running really well in a race. It hurts, but its a good hurt because you are making progress. Mile 8 came and it was time to really pick it up as this guy still had 30 seconds on me. My body responded. Still, I did not catch 3rd place until Mile 10. Right before we crested a small hill, I surged passed him...fast....and then on the downhill I just let it rip and turned my legs over as fast as I could. The last 3 miles were pretty uneventful. I was gaining time on 2nd place but could not see him and still  would end up 3 minutes back at the end. The last mile hurt bad. It was all uphill, and it was feeling hot outside, but I knew the finish of my season was right up the road and that I was about to cap it off with a great result!!...

They held the tape up for EVERY finisher at this race, COOL!

Final run split- 1:25:44 (only 2minutes slower than Macca and the second place Pro). 

Finish time 4:43:44, 1minute under the old amateur course record, 3rd place overall amateur, 6th Overall, 1st place M25-29.

Full Results here

For anyone racing 70.3 worlds next year, expect a finish time at least 20minutes slower than your PR, OR about 30-40minutes slower than your Clearwater PR, hahaha!

The race director puts on a great race at Silverman. All the Iron distance and half Iron distance athletes were treated like stars all weekend!

A little tired

Three days in Vegas prior to race, had me ready to drink immediately after the finish! Free beers by the way,  LOL

To me, the hard part about this sport, is no matter how well you train, how dedicated you are to the sport, on any given day it could be the day you've trained for OR things may just not go the way you have visioned it--You just never quite know until you put yourself out there. But, the thing I love about racing Triathlons, is when you have that day where everything clicks and you hold it together throughout the race. When you overcome the obstacles and adversity that is thrown your way throughout the day.... and you cross that finish line knowing damn well you left it all out on the course and there is nothing else you could have done, under your control, to go any faster. This is how I ended my season

Ashley being a good sport about all the sweat I'm dripping on her

Top 3 M25-29 finishers, and Top F25-29

Aaron and I both finished with AG Victories!

Next to come:

Holidays with Ashley, Gain 10 pounds, and look forward to starting 2011 with my new team Pace Multisport! Oh and for a recap of the rest of our Vegas trip go to our blog here

Nevada Silverman Triathlon this weekend!

Almost "showtime" in Vegas :-)   Ashley and I begin the drive down in the morning. Stay tuned for Race Report and a Trip Report on http://www.joshandashleysworld.blogspot.com/

Ironman Hawaii 2010 - Macca vs. Raelert

Tha past few months:

Yes, yes it has been quite a long time since I have posted. I haven't gone anywhere, I am still as dedicated and consistent with my training. But its been nice to take a step back from being so focused and competitive with the sport and hit the "refresh button".  Here is a recap of whats been going on since June, this is kind of long!

JUNE:

T1 at Ironman CDA

Pops, me and Uncle Terry, day b4 race

Ironman Coeur D'Alene- The day did not go exactly as I envisioned it during the hundreds of training hours leading up to the race. I needed to finish top 4 in my age group to qualify for Kona. I had an ok swim-1:06 (27th in Age group). I cruised through transition and quickly found myself on my bike rolling through the field. This was my first Ironman and my coach and I were just a tad too aggressive in our gameplan on the bike. While I climbed my way up towards the front of the race, I was burning a long fuse that was about to reach its end before I blew. At mile 90 of the bike I was on track to go sub 5:05 for the 112mile ride--way too fast for me. I started hitting the wall, with very low energy, lots of sweating, aching eyeballs, man it sucked. I putzed through the last 22 miles and ended up riding a 5:15 bike split (21.30mph for 112miles). This is not a bad time at all, especially for my first Ironman. However I did not evenly pace myself to a 5:15 split, I fell apart into a 5:15 split---big difference! And I still had to run 26.2miles after. A little concerned, I still flew through transition and onto the run course with the new game plan to run about 30second per mile slower than I had planned for the first 5 miles to see if my body would bounce back. It never bounced back. The damage I did to it on the bike was too much. I hung tough, and finished 5th in my age group with a time of 10hrs 10min 29sec. I ended up in the medical tent with 6 doctors trying to find a vein that was not too dried up to stick an IV in. I made the podium in my age group, got a cool trophy, but missed out on the World Championships by one spot, and walked away a humbled athlete with some valuable experience and much respect for the distance and my fellow competitors..... Coach has analyzed the data and we know what I am capable of come my next Ironman in May (IM Texas)

JULY
I took two weeks off of training and paying any attention to my passion and the best thing ever happened to me. I met Ashley (thanks for the matchmaking Paul & Annie). I cant put into words all the great things about Ashley and still do her justice. She is that great. Lets just say, she is the best thing that ever happened to me, she makes me a better person, she supports everything I am about, I support everything she is about, she balances out my life. Everyday I am thankful to have her in my life...I am in love...a new "passion & dedication" in my world.

Ash & I @ Lake Shasta

Ashley, her bff Ashley, and bff baby Mackenzie

On July 5th, I officiated my first wedding. My best friend Adam Rich and his new bride Misty Rich. What an experience! It was an incredible feeling playing a huge role in the most important moment of their lives. Cheers Adam & Misty!

AUGUST
With Ashley now a huge part of my life, I still was getting the training in, but did not have quite the "tunnel vision" I once had for Triathlon training and racing. I now had balance in my life. I really credit her for my race result at the Midsummer Olympic Triathlon at Blue Lake. I ALMOST broke 2hrs. But had a great race (biking 57:25 and running 36:16- both pr's at the distance) and finished 3rd overall, with Ash and her fam cheering me on throughout the day. Craig Dean has a great race recap here:


I also wrote a guest article, in defense of Alternative Schools in Portland that was published on the Oregonian website. You can see it here

By the end of August I was gearing up getting good training in and feeling fit to race another Iron distance race- Rev3 Cedar Point- which GU Energy had set me up with a "comp entry" into. All cylinders were firing! Then I got into an unfortunate bike accident that would sideline me for 3 weeks w/ a badly bruised left shoulder. To make a long story short, I crashed into an older woman named Shirley, who was walking down a bike path. It was the fault of no one, but we collided hard. She would go on to tell me "you are the sweetest man I have ever ran into"  :-)

SEPTEMBER
I will not lie, after a long season with a lot going on it has been a little tough to have the same "go get it" attitude that I had when I was training my ass off for the first Ironman. I never stopped training. I still dont miss workouts, dont party a lot and I recover well. But I honestly hardly ever lay in my bed at night and fall asleep visioning myself sprinting through that finish chute to take first place. Sometimes I find myself on my bike rides and long runs never even thinking about a race. I have always, always, ALWAYS thought about my races in training. Instead, I think about the future for Ashley and I. I think about my growing business. I think about my role on the Board of Directors at Open Meadow. This is a good thing, I am sure of it. This does not mean I am any less competitive. This does not mean that I have stopped Reaching, Believing, and Achieving in this sport. I think maybe I am just pacing my mental strength and saving it for race day......


OCTOBER
Beaver Fever Duathlon (Corvallis, OR)- 5k run, 18mile bike, 5k run
Thank you ATHLETES LOUNGE! Saturday before the race, Chris Bodreaux (co-owner and Pro Triathlete) offered a chance to win a new pair of Oakleys if I could beat two young guns (who were doing the race as a relay) into T2. All I had to do was come off the bike ahead of Dave (my go-to bike mechanic) after Eric Lagerstrom (a very fast young triathlete, with a remarkable racing resume) ran the first 5k. I really wanted to win this race, but I may have wanted those Oakleys more! I surged on Eric, Jaysun Pyatt and Joe Tysoe after about 1.25miles of pack running, and came into T1 with a nice lead in first place in 16:18 (5:15 pace). I was excited and motivated throughout the day to win this race wire-to-wire with my girl and her family there watching and waiting for me. During my T1, Dave (who was waiting for Eric to finish the run and tag him), yelled to me that he was going to catch me. I was also worried about my training partner, Aaron Jenniges, catching me on the bike, but I had about 90 second lead on him after the run. I kept my focus and hammered the bike at the front of the field. I rode hard up the two mile hill on the course and was determined to stay in first place through the end of the bike and get those Oakleys! Aaron had gained a minute on me and was only 30seconds down. Starting the second run (5k cross country course), I knew I would win the race and was thrilled about my new pair of Oaks I would be getting. I cruised through the fun two loop course, zigzagging through trees and around the school. The finish was 300m on the track where Ashley, her dad and brother were waiting, cheering me on as I broke the tape at the finish line. First win of the year.
 Vancouver, Washington athletes, Aaron Jenniges and Jaysun Pyatt rounded out the podium.

Eric and I on right, pre game smack talk!

and we are off!

Running hard into T1 (16:18 for 5k)

First into T2, I want my Oakleys!

Chattin' with the boyz after race

Next up is the Silverman Half Iron in Las Vegas on November 7th. This is arguably the toughest triathlon course there is. Next year it will be the site of two world championships, so there should be plenty of competition showing up to test out the terrain. Aaron and I will show up again, hoping to put Vancouver, WA near the top of the race results.

WILDFLOWER!

While I have done a couple road running races and a duathlon this year, Saturday was my first chance of the year to race a Triathlon and get a good idea of where I am at in my fitness and what else I need to work on to snag a Kona slot at Ironman CdA in June.
I travelled down to the race with first year Pro- Damian Hill (Alaska's first ever Professional Triathlete) who trains and races with the Skyline Racing Team out of Portland, OR. Since he was able to score me a VIP pass as an "Elite Guest" (not "Guest of an Elite", my name tag said "Elite Guest" lol). And so I was priveledged to be able to eat in the VIP tent amongst all the other Triathlon superstars who I have looked up to for years. This was really fun for me, although I tried to play it cool and didn't ask for any autographs. Instead of camping at Wildflower, we got to stay in a vacation rental home about 6 miles down the road with two other veteran Pro Triathletes. One was Peter Clode (he's too old to blog I think, so no hyperlink for him) a professional triathlete for 19 years, who was racing  his first race after a 2 year hiatus from the sport.
The other was Donna Phelan of Team TBB. I was really excited to meet her, as I have been a big fan of Team TBB and follow all of their athlete's results for a couple years now. It was a great experience and humbling to surround myself with such elite athletes in the days leading up to the race. The only negative is Donna may have been a bad influence on me since she eats like every 15minutes, and she rubbed off on me over the weekend, so now I am starving trying to get back to my "eating every few hours routine"!

RACE DAY:
Swim- 32:29 (239th place)- Ewww, not a good start to the day, I was expecting my first sub 30min swim! Not sure if it was the pink goggles I borrowed from Krazy Kat, or if I just did not push hard enough, or if I was just a little rusty swimming in the open water my first time since November. Last year I swam a 30:30 on this course. I think I just did not push hard enough, especially the first 400 yards where I usually swim all out and then settle in to my race pace. Another problem I have is my eyesight is not the greatest, so I have to look up and sight more often to figure out where the next buoy is and make sure I am swimming on course.
A couple things I will work on: 1- Go out HARD, then if anyone passes me after 400 yards in, I know they are a strong swimmer and can trust to get on their feet and catch a draft. 2- Get comfortable with drafting in the water. It is perfectly legal to do and it will give you free time. All the great athletes do this. 3- Get prescription goggles to help with the "sighting" in open water.
One thing I didnt do when I got out of the water and looked at my watch, was my dissapointing swim time get to me. Its a long day out there and going 2 or 3 minutes slower in the water is not the end of it....

T1- 2:01- 5th fastest of the day. Up a very steep ramp and a long run through transition to my bike.

Bike- 2:36:32- 17th fastest split and 3.5minutes faster than last years. Last year I was much more agressive the first 40miles of the bike and paid for it big time the last 16miles. This year I stuck to the game plan religiously. The plan was to capp my wattage on all uphills and stay conservative the first 25mile and then start pushing it the next 26miles, then ease up just a little the last 5miles to prepare for the run. This was a very lonely bike ride for me. I passed maybe 10 guys in my age group the first 20miles, but I never had any one around me that was riding a similar speed and no one came up from behind me so the last 36miles I would pass up women pro's and even a few pro men but I was usually all by myself. On the big five mile climb up Nasty Grade I felt GREAT. Completely opposite of the way I felt last year when I was struggling after pushing too hard early in the race. It was such a good feeling to be able to push big watts late in the 56 mile ride and feel good vs. trying to push big wattage and just really struggling and feeling like crap going into the run. Being conservative and not burning too many matches early on is the way to go in a race like this!

T2- 1:19- Not the fastest. But I had to put on a fuel belt and socks to get ready for this run

Run- 1:26:23 (6:35/mile pace)- 7th fastest of the day and 8 minutes faster than last years time! I am really really happy with how my running is coming along. Damn, I felt great and like a champ out on that tough run course. And I even think I could have gone a little faster on this run had a couple things not happened.

I was racing with a fuel belt with 3 doses of nutrition to take 20, 40 and 60 minutes into the run. This was my first time racing with a fuel belt on and only my second time running with one on (the first being a week prior to the race). My coach and I agreed that it would be a good idea to get some race experience with the fuel belt on since I will NEED to race with one at Ironman CdA. It is really too much to write in this blog, but long story short is I made an error on my nutrition and did not get my first full dose in until 40minutes into the run. Its my fault and I accept responsibility for it. I also accept responsibility for the full flask that flew out of my fuel belt at mile 8. A was running hard hard hard and just kept running, but a volunteer picked it up and sprinted to catch me and give it to me. I wasnt even thinking about the "no outside assistance" rule because it was an aid station volunteer. But just as he handed me the bottle a USAT official was riding a bike my way and saw it and was shaking his head. I asked if it was ok, he said "not really" so I threw it back down on the ground and kept running. I borrowed the fuel belt and flasks from my coach, so I owe you a flask coach!
The run was pretty lonely too. I was passed by no one. I passed maybe 10 or so guys in my age group or the 20-24 age group. But other than that the only time I had company and would gain extra inspiration to keep pushing was at the aid stations with all the energetic volunteers. The rest of my motivation was all in my head. The plan was to take it conservative up the hills and really let my legs go on the down hills. Then after 8miles in, I would really really let my legs go. I did just that, and really pushed those last 5miles, but the lack of calories on the run I feel did slow me down just a little. But that is all part of the race. (I plan on running with a fuel belt, nathan or amphipod on all my long runs leading up to Ironman so I will not have to deal with this stress in the big race).

Altogether, it really was a great result for me. I am finally running really well off the bike and feeling incredibly confident out there. I am really thankful for my Coach right now.
I  finished 10th Overall Amateur, and 3rd in my age group. This is a huge race with a long history and some of the best athletes in the country come out to compete, so I feel great about the Top 10 result. Last year I was 46th overall and 11th in my age group... I went a whole 10minutes faster than I did last year, and beat a handful of guys who finished well ahead of me last year as well. I also came in just a little over 10minutes behind overall winner Tim Hola, and last year I was a good 26minutes behind him! The guy that was first in my age group and 5minutes ahead of me, went 9:07 at IM Arizona in November for good measure. So the HARD WORK is paying off, but still more to do.

I really want to thank all my family and friends for their support and encouragment and belief in me, you all know how much I appreciate you.
I feel blessed to race with the big "a" on my back (Athletes Lounge), and would be a complete wreck if I didn't have the shop to lean on when it comes to getting my bike ready to go and having anything I need for raceday and training at the store.
And of course thank you to GU Energy for being there for me for the 3rd season now.

Finally, here is a short video clip of me on the podium (#3) in my Age group at Wildflower awards ceremony: