Prepping for the OBX Half

Two weeks from tomorrow is my last race of the season - the Outer Banks Half Marathon.   I'm excited to do this one (for the third year in a row), the only slight negative being that I will have to miss The Puppeteer's end-of-season athlete's party on the evening before!   :-(



I have had a heavy "run focus" over the past six weeks or so and my training seems to have been going pretty well and I've stayed injury free.   This week was a bit disrupted because of international business travel, but I'm happy to be back in Raleigh and ready to rock my full last week of work before I begin my taper for the race.

Two years ago this was the first half marathon I had run in more than 25 years and I was pleased just to be able to finish in around 2:17.   Last year I ran it again, trying to take things a little more seriously, but a bout of illness before the event really messed up my training and I went in with no great expectations and ran 2:11:33.   All of this was before I started training "properly" with The Puppeteer.

In March of this year I ran the American Tobacco Trail Half in 2:02:10. http://rogersroadrash.blogspot.com/2011_03_01_archive.html

So......   my times are improving and I feel that this is the first half marathon that I'm going to "race" and not just "run".  My first objective (other than finishing, of course!) is to break the 2:00 mark for the first time, and something inside me tells me that if things feel good on the day and the conditions cooperate (not always a foregone conclusion on the OBX!) that I may be able to get closer to 1:55 - we shall see. 

2:00 equates to an average pace of 9:10/mile and 1:55 to an average pace of 8:47/mile.   This makes me smile as I remember so well just a short time ago how running more than a couple of miles or at a pace of 10:00/mile was a challenge!

I still have to talk to The Puppeteer about how to pace this race (even splits?  go out faster and hold on?) but my current thinking is to look for 9:00/mile over the first 2 miles to get through the scrum at the start and get my legs under me, before trying to run 8:45 splits for as long as I can and then giving it all I have left over the last few miles.  I might cut myself a little slack when I get to "the bridge" at around mile nine!
 


More on this, nutrition strategy and so on later.  Bring  it on!

Oh, and.....    (you heard it here first!) a little voice inside my head is telling me that if this goes well I'll try to run a sub 4:00 full marathon this time next year!   :-)

Race Report - Dia de los Muertos 5k

The Puppeteer asked me to find a local 5k race to do in October, so being a good student/athlete/lackey/brownnoser (delete as you see fit) I duly signed-up for the first running of the "Day of the Dead" 5k in downtown Raleigh and raced it yesterday morning.



The event was in support of the local Boys and Girls Clubs and it was encouraging to see so many people turn up early on a clear but chilly morning.  Many of them sported costumes and face paint as appropriate for Dia de los Muertos - the (primarily) Mexican festival which is a celebration of ancestors and dead relatives. 

I ran into a colleague and his wife and, after a warm-up run and some dynamic warm-up exercises we soon found ourselves at thye start line next to the NC State House.   The course was a fairly straightforward "out and back" first heading north to the Historic Oakwood district and turning around close to the famous cemetary (kind of appropriate for Dia de los Muertos!).  Flatter than the previous two 5k races that I have run, but still somewhat "hilly" none-the-less.

My plan was to try to run a reasonably even pace and I think that I executed pretty well.  My primary "race thought" was to maintain a high run cadence and I think that I also managed to achieve this.  To cut to the chase, my finishing time (according to my Garmin) was 22 minutes and 51 seconds.  My splits were:

7:38  7:47  7:26

Felt good at the finish and recovered very quickly.

My official "chip time" was 22:49.5 which I am pleased with (6th in my age group and 57th overall male).  For me that's is certainly a reasonable time, but I have a suspicion that the course may have run slightly short of the full 5k distance. 

Given that I have the Outer Banks Half Marathon coming-up in a few weeks, I plugged this time in to the well known McMillan Run Calculator and it spit out an estimated half marathon time of 1:45:28.   Sounds pretty ambitious to me and another reason for thinking that the course may have been slightly short.

Overall a very good morning and at least I didn't end up looking like one of these...  :-)

I Love My wife!

I have been looking at some sweet end-of-year deals on tri bikes and SWMBO gave the two thumbs up on a purchase, so.....

I just pressed the "purchase" button on this baby!





A Cannondale Slice 3 (58cm) with Shimano Ultegra components.  Here are the specs for those who may be interested.....    I LOVE my wife!   xxxx

Full carbon frame

Wheels

Mavic Cosmic Elite

Tires

Schwalbe Durano S, 700x23c, folding

Chain

Shimano Ultegra 6700

Stems

Cannondale C2, 31.8

Handlebar

FSA Vision OS Alloy Base Bar w/Vision Vector Carbon Extensions

Front Derailleur

Shimano Ultegra 6700, braze-on

Rear Derailleur

Shimano Ultegra 6700

Shifters

Shimano Dura-Ace bar-end

Crank

Vision TriMax Carbon TT BB30, 53/39

Bottom Bracket

FSA BB30

Cassette

Shimano Ultegra 6700, 12-25

Seat Post

Cannondale Slice Carbon Aero, 2 position, 350mm

Headset

Slice Si, 15mm top cap

Brake Callipers

Shimano Ultegra 6700

Brake Levers

FSA BL Aero

It IS all about the bike!

OK, I admit it, I'm becoming a little obsessed with bike racing and, especially bikes!

Although Lance Armstrong's famous first biography is called "It's Not About the Bike", recently for me it has been all about the bike and I have done a huge amount of reading about tri bikes, geometry, fitting, components and so on as I agonize over the whens, whats and hows of buying a triathlon bike.

I did recently make a good move in the right direction when I bought a very nice used Zipp 808 wheelset.  For the uninitiated, these are lightweight and aerodymanic race wheels that, theoretically, can save a few seconds here and there.  What I can say for certain (having not yet taken them out for a spin) is that they look super cool and, if nothing else, will make me feel faster!   :-)



My original thought was that it might be fun (and a good learning experience) to buy a frame set and build a bike from the ground up.  This is still very much in the back of my mind (I even cleaned out my workshop!) but my enthusiasm has been tempered slightly by some sweet end-of-season deals that I've found for complete 2011 model bikes.   Decisions, decisions!    One possibility is to buy a tri bike but then build a knock around mountain bike or cyclocross bike.   So many fun options!  I'll keep you informed!

On top of this bike obsession, I have also become fascinated with bike racing and racers.   I have always enjoyed watching the Tour de France, but since I have started riding and training on the bike in earnest, I have taken this interest to a whole new level.  The tactics (and politics) of team road racing are fascinating.  Perhaps even better is the history!   My recent reads (in addition to the afore mentioned "It's Not About the Bike") have included:

Tour de Lance by Bill Strickland - the story of Lance Armstrong's second Tour de France comeback in 2009

We Might as Well Win - Johan Bruyneel - Lance Armstrong's manager's account of his seven wins

A Race for Madmen - Chris Sidwells - a history of the Tour de France

Fallen Angel - William Fotheringham - the story of Fausto Coppi, fallen hero of Italian cycling who was even excommunicated by the Pope! (fascinating!)

Slaying the Badger - Richard Moore - the story of the Lemond Hinault rivalry

Still to come.....

Put Me Back on the Bike - William Fotheringham - the story of Tom Simpson

Sex, Lies and Handlebar Tape - Paul Howard - the story of Jacques Anquetil

In Search of Robert Millar - Richard Moore

Wide-Eyed and Legless - Jeff Connor - story of the 1987 Tour de France

We Were Young and Carefree - Laurent Fignon biography

Rough Ride - Paul Kimmage - Inside scoop on professional cycling

Tourmen - Les Woodland - famous Tour riders

Ascent: the Mountains of the Tour de France - Richard Yates/Gabor Konrad

The Story of the Tour de France Vols I & II - Bill McGann

Boy Racer - Mark Cavendish autobiography

.....and that's just scratching the surface!   Should keep me busy for a while!


I particularly love all of the "old school" stuff.   If you have some time to spare, check out this 90 min video of the Paris Roubaix race in 1976:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4IDCkcnnHg   Awesome!

What a long strange trip it's been......

Phew!   I'm back.......

Wow!   What a crazy month September was (and the first week in October).

Don't get me wrong - I'm so very grateful to be gainfully employed and to have a job that I really love.  That said, however, six straight weeks involving airports, hotels and the inevitably delayed flights wears pretty thin! 

Most importantly, all of this travel plays a certain amount of havoc with family life and SWMBO is an absolute trooper and keeps things together when I'm gone.  What would I do without her?  I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful spouse, soul mate and best buddie!

On top of that though, it also really messes with your training and the past 5 or 6 weeks have been difficult, to say the least.  Not worth going into too much detail here but, suffice to say, I haven't exactly kept up with what The Puppeteer has been scheduling!  All of the business travel, including trans Atlantic flights and too many "red eye" flights back from California have played havoc with my training schedule, but what can you do?   My rule has always been family > work > training and that's just the way it is - I have to take the rough with the smooth.

Thankfully, as I look forward to the Outer Banks Half Marathon in November, I feel as if I'm finally getting "back on the horse" and I'm very happy about it!   The Puppeteer is delivering a heavily run focused trainig schedule and I'm feeling good. 

Bring it!