Ironman Cozumel

Yeahhh!! I did it!! 11h01min46sec to cross the finish line here at Cozumel!!

List of goals:

Swim in the first pack:  (felt good, but bad positioning) 

Go all out on the bike (fearless):  (died on the last 14miles!) pretty happy with bike split though!
Marathon under 3h:  no
Finish in top 8: no
Finish sub 9h:  no
Have Fun:  oww yeahh!! (more than planned - 11h!)

Finish:  Yea!! I did it!! 

Except for the last 14 miles on the bike, I felt good on the whole course.

The swim had a huge current against us for the first 0.6 mile, and I was on the further possible point from the shore, I mean the worst spot someone could be! :( I managed to get some positions back after the first buoy, but I have lost the 1st pack, which was my goal...

I had a terrible start on the bike. I got scared starting 112 miles like that, my legs were in pain since the first effort!! Luckily my quads warmed up in time to ride with the group that just caught me on the second mile...
In a three lap circuit, we started passing many age-groupers, and with a big rhythm variation I was a couple times very close to the next athlete, so ended up getting a draft penalty...

(Two days before on the race start!!)

2 minutes at the tent and I came back flying on the course, I was angry and felt strong!! On the next 30 miles I thought I could catch those guys again... Then I broke!! I was crawling with my bike for the last 14 miles!! And thats when everything annoys you: my feet were hurting, the bike seat was uncomfortable, I was getting hungry, the wind was against me, the heat was coming up and even the legs were getting tired!! :)
Soon another group passed by me, but I couldn't push it anymore, I was looking forward to get my special needs bike bag and get some treats!! Weew, so glad I filled that bag!!

That happened before on training days and I was prepared to fight it! So after agonizing for those 14 miles, I couldn't wait to put my feet on the ground, I knew I would feel better on the run, and I was right! I got really easy at the beginning, first 5km was sub 21min, I was going to finish easily sub 9hours!!

But then my knee yelled louder...  I have been injured since a month ago. It messed up quite a bit my training schedule, but it was over control on last days and I thought it would be gone on the race day. No, still there! And I alternated run with walking until half marathon, on 13 miles to go I had to decide if I would quit or finish the whole thing walking, because hurting my knee was not on the plan...

(With coach Siri!)

I had time to finish that! I had 8 hours to walk a half marathon!
Would be worth just to finish it!??

Ironman is an Ironman!! So many people walk, cry, craw and do whatever they can to make those 140.6 miles!! I had to complete that journey!! Plus quitting on the first Ironman would not be a good karma...

I thought for a while: When I was on the army, I did a 32k march, carrying 20kg of equipment, with no food, stopping every 3 hours just for a 15min nap, and cheering for the soldier in front of me doesn't fall, otherwise I would have to carry his equipment if not him till the end!
Yeahhh this walk was becoming really easy! Water, coke and gatorade at will, with music every 2 miles, people cheering me up everywhere, and the only thing I had to carry was as much chocolate bars I could hold in my hands!! :)

With no doubts I finished the mission!!
That was super cool!! When I crossed the line was already dark, and the finish line had so many lights that seemed I was entering in another dimension... "You are an Ironman" I heard from the speakers!! hahaha

It was great! Very happy with my performance until the sore knee...
Not satisfied... Im looking forward to the next one!!

Updating 172.7 miles!!

As I am used to do in triathlon, here goes 3 (race reports) at once!!

Sep 30th, LA Herbalife Triathlon: Feeling practically at home, I raced the traditional olympic distance race. Starting from Venice beach and racing up to downtown! I had a good swim but getting out of the water I got two big waves on my back, I couldn't ride them, so I just took a big breath and let them "pull" me (kinda submerse ride, ok I almost drowned!! haha). On the bike and run I went as fast as I could, it was really hurting! I finished in 13th place with 1h56min02sec.

Oct 14th, The Magic Mountain Man: The toughest 70.3 triathlon in the US, the bike course has 6.800 feet gain on elevation over 56miles! While competing I thought something was wrong as my watch was marking 1h30min into the race and my bike computer showed me at only mile 10 on the bike!! :-O The course was great and besides the toughness, powered by strong winds, I really had fun racing at Castaic Lake! I was the first one to cross the finish line at 5h11min31sec!! So couldn't be better!! :-)

Oct 28th, Austin 70.3: This was my last and best 70.3 of this season!! So its fair to spend a few more lines describing the affair!

Everything was going great even before getting the flight from LAX, where Jennifer Tetrick and I were with 2 bikes packed in one box trying to save a hundred bucks but instead we saved 200 hundred!!
On the trip I was telling Jen that we should try to watch the bats. I've been to Austin several times, but never had the chance to watch them! There are thousands of bats under a bridge, and every day when the sun goes down they leave in a huge pack flying away from under the bridge!!

Out of the airport we went freezing to the hotel, dropped everything there and went to Jack and Adams bike shop to get some warm racing gear (gloves and toe covers were the urgent items!). As the sun was setting down we decided to jog 20 minutes at the Town Lake, which is a couple yards from the bike shop, and guess what!? Passing under a bridge we could hear a bunch of high pitched noises, and when I saw all those people on the other side, I got it immediately! "Stop!" I said, "lets watch the bats!" And 1 or 2 minutes later there was a huge cloud of bats flying out from under the bridge!! Darn cool!!

On Saturday was the race briefing, we also went for a short ride on the course and a some swim strokes at Barton Springs, definitively my favorite swim pool!!

"PENDING LARRY QUOTE"

The race...

My swim was astonishing!! I started with a good rhythm and suddenly I was leading with two other guys. It felt easy to hold that pace. So I thought "Something is not right, Andy Potts is here, so there is no way the swim could feel that easy!" I looked forward 3 or 4 times trying to find someone ahead of us, but that was it, no other competitor on the sight. Awesome!! I left the water in 3rd position and ready to smash the pedals!!

I felt great on the bike, but had a big negative point: lack of confidence... I was going all out, but when others passed me I did not try to ride on their pace while maintaining legal distance. Finally, I rode near two athletes who caught me on mile 15.
On the run, it took a while for me to warm up. I got some quad cramps but could manage after the first 4 miles. I finished strong and happy in 6th place at 4h03min47sec.

Curiously Jennifer and I had raced the Long Horn 70.3 three years before!! I stole the idea from her's race report at Jennifer's blog to compare the times on both editions and I was surprised, only two seconds faster!! While in 2009 my t2 was longer due to a draft penalty, this year I spent more time at t1 as I wore a jacket and gloves!!

2009 - 15th place

00:23:23  t1-1'56"

02:21:51  t2-2'48"

01:13:51

tot- 04:03:49

2012 - 6th place

00:23:10  t1-2'08"

02:20:20  t2-1'20"

01:16:49

tot- 04:03:47

70.3 World Championship

What happens in Vegas, is close to what happens in Henderson!
Just a few minutes from Las Vegas, Henderson hosted a big challenge in the middle of the desert...

Sunday 4:30 am: I was making final bike adjustments, filling my tank with calories that would keep me energized for the big day, and was already drinking tons of fluids (thinking ahead about the desert heat!)

Bets!?

I was confident.  I didn't know my opponents very well, as I focused on long distances for only 6 months, so my plan was to race "balls to the walls!" and see how it would turn out!!

The fun started in the water, I had a good start for the 1.2 miles, and kept myself in the first group until about 0.8 mile, I was right behind a feet, which dropped out from the group, I was already dying so I just kept settled with that athlete, as I thought that 1 minute or so would not make a big difference at a half ironman. (I was right, as the winner left the water 1 minute behind me!!)

Lets head to the next game, because on this first one I would not gain anything else!!

The bike was more strategic. With a bunch of athletes so close, it was necessary to take benefits from the pace, but observing the no-drafting rules. Just like a gambling, some moments I felt I would win, but during others I felt I would loose everything!! Near mile 30, on one of the climbs the group started to disperse and I was more or less in the middle.

I stood by myself, and started to break down, I looked back but there was nobody. With an average temperature of 100°F in Vegas, the heat began to rise and it was hard to complete those 56mi! I rode as hard as I could, trying not to let anyone else reach me. Tired of turning that lever, I couldn't wait to start the run!

I ran well the first lap, I had a controlled pace, running every mile under 6 minutes. My intention was to build my rhythm as my legs felt ok! But then I had belly cramps... Damn, I shouted a lot of rare Portuguese words! I hope none of those many Brazilians who were cheering me on heard... (It was really cool to see so many Brazilians there!!) Well, after almost walking in some portions of the course, by the end of the second lap, I could pick up my pace again, I did not gain a position, but I could keep those coins in my pocket!

23rd place was good! Although I am not so happy with my performance. But by far, is better than doing my best and coming in 30th! lol

Oww and of course, after partying for 70.3 miles, I had my hangover too. For 3 days I felt like I got run over by a truck!! :-D

11th at 70.3 Brazil!

Ok, I know it took forever to write this race report!! But, after spending 5 months in US, it was not easy to update the blog while at home for just one week!

The 70.3 Brazil surprised me with such good organization and structure that it would be the envy of any international race. The weak point was the three lap cycling course, which made regulation of drafting almost impossible.

For my personal race, nothing was close to what I had expected.  I felt tired and the effort I put out was not translating to the speed I expected on the bike.  I couldn’t understand why I felt so weak. 

Afterwards I discovered that a spacer which I put between frame and crankset created additional resistance, and probably cost me some minutes...

But I don’t want to think about the “ifs”, and now I am already based in LA with total focus on the 70.3 World Champs, where I can’t wait to race on the next weekend!!

10th at Vineman 70.3

Hosted in Sonoma County, California, is one of the most beautiful courses I have ever seen!!
It was colder than expected, so the day before the race I went to a Goodwill store, and got a kid's sweatshirt (which would be very tight to the body) keeping me warmer and not dragging during the bike course! In the bike picture below you can see how athletic it looks like!! lol

We swam for 1.2 miles in the Russian River; certainly one of top 5 spots for aquatic workouts. The bike passes by a bunch of vineyards.  It has rolling hills and amazing views. I think the run course is nice but it cannot compare to the beauty of the first 57.2 miles...

I swam poorly. I missed the front pack right at the beginning, and I couldn't catch up. I jumped on the bike and it felt good. I rode balls to the wall, as planed!! My bike ride was lonely, as the first person I saw, was my teammate, Jonathan Shearon who with Eduardo Sturla (a pro well known to Brazilians; as he won Ironman Brazil four times) passed me at mile 45.

I had a fast transition and ran at a good pace for the first couple miles. I caught both positions I lost on the bike plus one more! I broke with only 3 miles left!! I was making a tremendous effort to stay in the  boxing ring and run away from the people coming from behind.

It was funny when at one of the aid stations someone yelled "keep it up! 1 mile to go!", I felt relief for a second, then I remembered that at that point it would be at least 2.5 miles to go, and he was wrong. I give thanks to my teammate Rebekah Keat, who made me become familiar with the whole course.  That way I did not have the extra mental suffering wondering why the finish line would never come!! 

Happy with my results and performance, I felt good on the bike, which has been my worst section on every race. Still my bike leg needs improvements but it is also important to celebrate achieving small goals!! 

Two top 10s at 70.3 Ironman: Buffalo Springs and Rhode Island

Last weekend I achieved another top 10 finish in the Ironman 70.3 circuit!

I placed 9th at Rhode Island, just two weeks after my 6th at Buffalo Springs

Its true that the best views are only seen after great climbs!! 

These two fantastic races treated us with breathtaking courses (figuratively and literally!). 

Add heat to the hills and you can just imagine how unforgettable each race was!! lol

I felt really good on both (But still finishing dying!) haha 
I had a mechanical problem where a piece of my bike frame broke just a few days before Buffalo Springs.  I could not fix it, and then I had to adapt instantaneously to a loaned bike for Rhode Island.

Getting two more top 10s this season put me very close to qualifying for the 70.3 World Championship, which is going to be on September 9th in Las Vegas.

I am proud to announce my newest partnership with Ignite Naturals.  It offers a brilliant product line with 100% natural ingredients, with no artificial stimulants or synthetic sweetners. This means extra motivation for workouts and races which are nutritionally very well supplemented!

Right now I'm having a recovery week before the next step, Vineman 70.3, which will be on July 15th, where I hope to consolidate my position for Vegas!!

Photos: Brightroom - 70.3 Buffalo Springs

14th place at CapTexTri!!

From Orlando, I made a strategic stopover in Texas, where I spent a week and raced the Toyota Cup.

I was penalized 1 minute for a stagger line violation.  I had no idea that there was no distance for which two bicycles could be following the same line.  I thought that being 15 bikes behind the other cyclist would be enough...

Despite being penalized, I felt good on the bike and ran without any cramps! I am finally getting used to the TT position!

Many thanks to Jim and Michele Ryan, my hosts who showed me some hot spots in Austin, including this donut factory (pictured), where we tasted free donuts just out of the oven!! :-D