IRONMAN Poconos 70.3 Race Report - By Zach Pratt

Tri season always starts off so promising. You have a schedule of races you want to dominate. You have a training plan. You have nice new shiny equipment. Your training buddies are waiting for you. You are in good shape even after the "off season". Life is good, this should be a great season.

Then, as you start building up your training, the tiny pains settle in. Then maybe a bad race throws your confidence. Your equipment isn't as new or shiny. And it's only June.

Such was my season. The "A" race ws Ironman NYC. Leading up to that was AmZof, Harriman Half, and Rev3 Half. Sprinkle in a few other local races and you had my season. It was all to end with a top 10 at Ironman NYC and a ticket to Kona.

Oops. Turns out 20th place at Ironman doesn't get you to the big dance. This was a bit upsetting, but my team mates at Targetraining pulled me out of my Zombie like stare and told me to join them in some training rides and runs. A few swims with the boys and girls of Target (yes Frank and Tara, you are Target people), a few long rides in the dark, and a few LONG runs with Mitch and Jim Irvine. It did wonders for me.

I got race numbers at the last second for the Westchester Oly and Ironman Poconos 70.3. Westchester didn't go so well for me. My BMC TM01 was still broken and I had to use my Look 596 without a powermeter. Big bummer. And then my run was not up to par for speed at the 10k distance, I couldn't break 40 minutes.

Ironman Poconos was different though. If you ever saw the movie "Hot Tub Time Machine", then you would know the scene at the Poconos in Pennsylvania. Hotels not updated (nor likely cleaned) since 1980. Locals walking thru town with rifles and hunting bows. Nachos made of tostitos and velveeta cheese. I was way too afraid to get in the sheets in the bed.

Poconos 70.3 is a multi transition race. THe swim start and finish line are not in the same location. So you have to rack your bike and run bag the day before, 15 miles apart. It makes it a little difficult.

I got my TM01 back from Targetraining on Thursday and did one small ride on Saturday with it. The fork had broken at IMNYC and took a bit of time to replace from Switzerland. On Saturday afternoon when I went to rack my bike, I noticed my fork was loose. Actually, Eugene was with me and he noticed it. Nothing brings your world to a halt as a broken bike. I walked the bike to the mechanics in the transition area and sheepishly asked the locals if they had ever worked on the BMC TM01. As soon as I said it, I apologized immediately. What a jerk thing to say. Anyhow, the mechanic took it and fixed it in 5 minutes. Good to go. I racked the bike, then racked my run bag, and checked into the hotel.

Scary hotel, scary food, nice people. That sums it up.

Race day:

Swim start was a bit chilly at 45 degrees, so I threw on my Nineteen Rogue wetsuit to keep warm until my wave went off an hour later. The water was 65 degrees, so a bit nicer. The plan was to find the swim leader and stick to his feet. We were the second to last wave, so there would be some traffic. Within 200 yards of the start, the sprinter fell away and only a few of us remained. Then there were just 2 of us. I had to close the gap to get on his feet and then I stayed there until the last 300 yards of the swim. I sprinted for it and emerged from the water first in my wave. I'm listed as 3rd in my age group, but one guy had a 15 minute swim, so I assume he cut the course, and the other guy beat me but he was in the other wave, so I never saw him. So really 2nd in AG for the swim, first in my wave at 25:15.

The bike was going to be cold, so I planned to wear my long sleeve bike jersey and gloves. After jumping on the bike, it was a game of leap frog passing the other 10 waves before me. The plan was to hold 220 watts and slip stream between all the other riders in front of me. I had 2 guys in my age group go by me, so I assumed I was in 3rd place. I nailed my plan down and didn't push it to catch the other 2 guys.

I got off the bike feeling pretty good and switched to run mode. I threw on my Zoot Ultra Kiawes without socks and took off. Now, here is where those long runs with Mitch paid off. He got me to think about high cadence and forefront striking. I worked really hard on this for 6 weeks, even during our epic 21 mile run in the Rockies. It paid off big time. I kept a fast cadence and forefront strike the whole way. The plan was to run a sub 1:30. I started out at just sub 7 pace and held it going up and down hills, passing the remaining age groupers in my way. It was awesome to catch so many people on the run without having anyone go by me. About 1 mile to the turn around I saw one of the guys in my age group that passed me on the bike. I think I swore out loud as the guy next to me said "tough break buddy" as he must have seen my age and the other guys age on our calves. I picked it up a notch but then settled right back into sub 7 figuring 3rd place is where I would stay. I was pissed as I thought that there were only 2 spots for Ironman World Championships for my age group. At mile 8.5, I saw the guy again and blew by him. I figured I was in second place now. At mile 9.5 I caught the other guy in my age group and he tried to stay with me for about a tenth of a mile, so I picked it up until I knew he was in back of me not giving anymore ideas of chasing me down. I caught one more athlete at mile 10, not in my age group, and we ran for about a quarter mile together before he fell off. At mile 10.5, I started to slow a bit to just over 7 pace. My knees started to hurt and there was a tiny stone in my shoe. I considered taking my shoe off, but didn't want to chance it, so I flopped my foot around until the stone moved out from under my toes. At mile 12, the guy that I ran a quarter mile with caught me again and ran in front of me for a mile, but right in front of me. As he and I both turned the corner for the finishers chute, we both went for it sprinting down the lane. The towns people were cheering wildly (they had no idea that we weren't in each others age group), they thought they were witnessing a photo finish sprint. I edged him out at the line. A few high fives later with the other guys at the finish line and off I went to get my bags. There was a local YMCA allowing us to shower there. It was a GREAT shower!!

I got dressed and went back to the finish line where the town was having Oktober Fest with a live band, grills, beer, tents, the whole thing. Euge brought me up to date with my times. I was third in age group. Damn. For giggles, I checked out with the officials about championship slot allocations. My age group had 3 slots. Hot damn, I auto-qualified for Ironman 70.3 World Championships and Podiumed!!

A few minutes later, I was sipping a micro-brew and getting my spot at 70.3 Vegas!! Awesome way to end the year!!

Thank you again to my wife and kids, my mom and my in-laws, Eugene Doherty, TargeTraining, Mitch, Frank, Jim, Baxendale, Schinto, Tara, Stephen, Colton, Gio, AnnMarie, Ed, Chris Kinney, Matt Baldwin, and all the endurance athletes at TargeTraining. A big thank you to Jordan Rapp for dealing with me for the past 3 years. Also a thank you to Kathy at Chelsea Piers Masters for always giving me feedback on my swim. And Nick at the YWCA for getting my swim up to speed over the past year.

Swim – 25:15, Bike – 2:26:37, Run – 1:31:30, Total 4:27:31

My First Race (And a Twenty-Mile Ride Outside My Comfort Zone) By Jessie Chapman

There comes a time when it's harder not to do something than to finally just do it. You know; when you've run out of excuses and there is nothing more to think or say, and people start to assume you're simply not ready or your intention isn't true. Even you can't stand to hear yourself whine about it anymore. Fear is usually present.

That something for me was competing in my first race. That time was 7:30 am last Sunday at the Tour de Greenwich competing in the women's 50-59 age group. Needless to say, I'd waited long enough.

Sure, if I didn't try, then there would be no possibility of dropping a chain, blowing up, crashing or having an embarrassingly slow finish. But then there would also be no possibility of learning, accomplishing something new, or surprising myself. And couldn't it be enough to simply have some fun? Well, honestly, probably not. (Most Targetraining members are driven enough to relate to that!) 

A little background here: I starting amping up my cycling last December when I began taking classes at Target. (Until then, I had done most of my riding was alone; although I was better than a recreational cyclist, I was self-taught and had little idea what I was doing. I didn't even own a pair of cycling shorts.) My first experience with Target started with a bike fit. Classes were followed by an upgrade of my ride to a Cervelo, annual membership, logo-emblazoned shorts and jerseys, some private lessons, a power meter rental... You recognize the path and velocity here: I was drinking the juice and becoming a perfect member.

I was also getting stronger quickly. But something was still missing.

I wanted to see how far I could challenge myself and possibly others. So, I joined the Endurance Club with the goal of doing my first race. At first, I considered duathlon. But with my daily commute to the city I realized how hard it would be to dedicate the time to train in one discipline let alone two. So, even though I had reasonable encouragement from Eneas and Tim (for competing in my age group) and strong V02 test results, I decided to focus on cycling. 

Fast forward to mid summer. Lots of members' impressive race results had been showing up in my Facebook newsfeed every Monday since early spring. But I still hadn't chosen a race. "How about Tokeneke?," I asked Eneas. "You can do it," he said. "Don't over think it. Sign up now." (You can probably hear his tone and economy of words.) A few others were less sanguine.

Needless to say, I didn't "sign up now"; I decided to ride the course first. On July 4th, on my way to visit friends in W. Simsbury, I did one lap around the Barkhamsted reservoir; a hilly, 22-mile loop with 2,100 feet of elevation. The race for women is two laps. Comparing my time for just one with the 2011 results, I projected that my best chance would be to tie for last place among the few women who manage to finish. But I didn't give up on the idea completely; I added gears and continued to train while on vacation by renting a decent road bike that I rode in the hills of Santa Barbara. However, when I came home I was hugely relieved to find out that I was off the hook! The race had been cancelled due to a lack of volunteers.

But as more weeks and races passed, I was feeling frustrated that I hadn't made progress against my goal. And how would I be able to I get any satisfaction attending the upcoming Endurance Club party? Participating in a few 100k's didn't seem like enough.

I got my determination back three weeks ago at the head of a Saturday morning Green ride with Chris and Bones. They encouraged me to do the Endurance Club's 40k time trial the following weekend. (I did the 20k earlier this summer.) And after the ride, Lois Duke and Eneas said the right words to finally convince me to do the Tour de Greenwich. "Life begins outside the comfort zone," Lois, regular aqua bike competitor, reminded me. "You'll do well," added Eneas.

Further motivated by a solid time in the 40k TT with the generous help of Chris K.'s Zipp wheels on my road bike (even after missing the first turn on to Westway by a 1/2 mile--aargh!!), I was finally ready to commit to my first race.

My strategy was simple:

- Shut up
- Sign up
- Show up

My competitive advantage is my strength for my age group. But I'm still light on road skills and, of course, have zero racing experience. So I appreciated picking up some helpful tactics along the way:

Start at the front...stay off the white and yellow lines...warm up and break a sweat beforehand (Eduardo); stop crushing your gears...don't get boxed in...(Bones); switch to the small ring when you pass the farm house on your right on Burying Hill Road...stay with any riders wearing Danbury Audi team jerseys (Kristin); use a heart rate monitor (Dean); don't over bake your turns  (okay, whatever that means?!)...the horse country, not Burying Hill Road will be the 'moment of truth'...(Rick); stay with the peloton...no matter what, don't get dropped...don't get dropped...don't get dropped...(Everyone). I even consulted Google.

Practice was limited to riding the course at a moderate effort the day before. Now, I understand that it could have made a much bigger difference to have ridden it several times. Better yet, with a coach to help me with strategy and pacing. But it still helped a lot. Knowing where the hills were saved me from dropping a chain on race day, which I did on Saturday, and practicing the windy downhills gave me more confidence on the scariest parts of the ride.

Plugged in to my iPod, I started to focus (and hydrate) the night before. DeadMau5, Blue Oyster Cult, Coldplay; high-energy stuff. A neat thing started to happen: I was itching to feel the road beneath me and start the race.  Was I audacious to even fantasize about placing in my age group? Would I be terribly disappointed if I didn't? What was my goal, anyway? Thankfully, this energy didn't interfere with getting a decent night's sleep.

Race day. Got up at 4:30 am, which I usually do. Caffeined up, showered, ate fruit and a Luna bar. Hydrated some more. Adrenals geared up. Arrived at Greenwich High School at 6:30 to warm up. Recognized a few friendly Target members--all guys; exchanged encouraging words of support. (Thanks again, Gary, for helping me pin my first number on so it wouldn't flap in the breeze.) Unfortunately, no other women wearing Target jerseys or who I recognized. I was on my own.

Time to start the women's heat. I took a place at the front and surveyed the competition, as they surely did with me, including their ages.  I was definitely one of the oldest riders up front. (But it can be hard to tell when women are fit, wearing glasses, arm warmers, etc.) No Danbury Audi jerseys to hang with. However, Bethel Cycles would certainly do. Equipped with my Cervelo and Zipp wheels, and kitted out from Target Training, people might have assumed that I knew I was doing. Oh, if they only knew! I left my power meter off, (which I still haven't figured out how to fully use) in favor of rented race wheels and had no heart rate monitor. My perceived effort, speed and focus would be more than enough to think about.  Nerves gave way to feeling numb and like a poseur.

The race was off. After clumsily clipping in, I easily handled the two immediate hills. The lead peloton formed with about a dozen women including me. I felt strong but stayed in the middle. (Let the the front do the work...) That is, until we were north of the Merritt and made the right turn off Round Hill Road. By the time we hit the first hills on Old Mill Road I'd been dropped. (So had a few others.) I was afraid that if I worked any harder to catch up I'd blow up on that short wall that is Burying Hill Road. I thought maybe I could catch up later.

As you experienced riders already know, I never did. (Even though I had the thinned-out peloton within sight a couple of times in the horse country.) I knew my only chance at a decent finish was to ride the rest of the race like I was in another time trial: on my own, as fast as possible. It was a joy to finally get on to the gradual decline of Stanwich Road. I settled in the drops and did my best to fly home.

Although no woman passed me after I'd been dropped, I wasn't sure if any were close behind. In fact, I never looked behind me once. (In hindsight, I should have. I didn't realize until final results were posted that a few were much closer than I ever realized. When had they stealthily gained on me? Why hadn't I heard them?)

Twenty miles and a little over an hour later my comfort zone had officially become larger. I crossed the finish line right behind two men with a time of 1:02:39. Good enough to place third in my age group. (15 finishers) And just over 1:00 minute behind the 1st place woman--a 30-year old. (2:00 minutes  behind a woman who competed in the open category.) I placed 8th among women overall, including the open category competitor. (50 finishers)

If anyone had told me, even a year ago, that I would be training and racing with Targetraining I would have said, "No way." For years, I've loved seeing fit, fast Target riders in beautiful pace lines along Green's Farms Road. They filled me with envy and admiration; but I never thought there'd be a place in that line for someone like me. (Okay, well maybe there still isn't a place in THAT line for me!) 

My first year year at Target and my first race have turned out to be pretty amazing, after all. Now, maybe it's time to finally figure out how to make better use of that power meter I'm renting...

IRONMAN Mont Tremblant Race Report - by John Meyerle

Travel: 

We arrived in Mont Tremblant from Connecticut on Thursday at around 3:55pm, only 5 minutes for my wife to register for the Merrill 5k run.  We would have been there earlier but we got lost after entering the Canadian border.  We had printed out the route from Google maps, however the road signs did not appear to match the instructions.  We stopped at a gas station and purchased a map, the local people, were very nice and trying to help us but could not speak English and we did not understand French.  We were directed to go towards the "tunnel" which we found and eventually became oriented with the map.  Lesson learned, 'O' = ' OEST' = 'WEST'.

Race: 
My plan was to finish in 10:45. Actual time: 10:10.
Swim: 1:08
Bike: 5:45
Run: 3:45
Transitions: :07

Swim 1:07
It was a wide beach start, however there were boats on the left side that we found out later should not have been there. They caused a funnel effect very early into the swim.  It was like a six lane highway merging into two lanes, not a pleasant experience for a lot of people I talked to after the race.  I started on the right side, and still experienced a significant amount of contact.  It was not as bad as last year at IMLP without the wetsuit but it was close.  I had a mostly clean water swim after about a half mile and I was happy walking up the beach right on schedule.

Bike: 5:09
The bike went very well, I felt comfortable and fast.  I had a plan to hold specific wattages on the flat and climbing sections and stuck with it.  My time for the first loop was 2:35, 17 minutes ahead of schedule,  and I was a little worried that I was over-doing it and would pay later on the run.  I backed it off a little but then went back to the plan since I was feeling great.  My coach Dominic Gillen spent some time with me on my position and apparently it paid off big.  The plan was to ride the Duplesis (Hilly) section which comes at the end of the loop out to Lac Superior a little easier the second time to get ready for the run.

Run: 3:45
I was a little concerned at the run start after seeing the 5:09 bike split, but I felt good.  I was very cautious in the first few miles and held back the urge to go faster.  The plan was to run 8:30-8:45 pace and the miles were ticking off in the low 8's for the first 8 miles.  The first loop went great,  I saw my wife who made an awesome sign and felt super motivated going into the final 13 miles.  This is the best I have ever felt in my last four Ironman events. The good part was I knew the course and what was ahead of me.  The trail section was starting to get crowded it was not very wide, which made passing more challenging than normal. I was spoiled from the first lap with a  clear shot and empty aid stations.  In the back of my mind I was thinking about the "mile 18 wall" that has hit me in the past so was trying to be cautious as that approached.  It was cool having the km markers instead of miles, I felt like it broke up the run into more workable segments.  With 10 and 5k to go it seemed shorter than miles.  The run pacing was right on target at 8:39/mi average and I felt great at the finish. 

This was my best race execution and result in the four Ironman races I have done.  The training and coaching I received from Dominic Gillen and Targetraining gave me the ability to outperform all expectations! I will be back to IM Mont Tremblant in 2013.

Yoga for Cross Training by Sue Gold

It is truly a challenge to try to fit everything we want to do in a given day. We have to make choices often as to what is a priority and once we make that decision, follow-up is the key. It was a great gift to myself when I discovered yoga and made it part of my routine as an athlete. You don’t need to be a competitive athlete to reap the benefits of a yoga practice. All you need to do is “show up” and be present on your yoga mat.

Yoga should be part of every athlete’s training program. You’ll discover the amazing benefits that a consistent yoga practice has on the body’s ability to train and perform. Yoga and breath is like medicine for your muscles. The challenges of trying to achieve a particular pose is not dissimilar to the challenges you will find off  your mat, and the focus and determination you bring to your practice, you can carry with you throughout your day, and the benefits are powerful.

Speaking of being powerful, who doesn’t want to be defined and flexible? Yoga is one of the most effective ways to achieve that tone, stability and strength. The beauty of the practice of yoga is that it is a life-long journey and the results are immediate.

Vinyasa is a Sanskrit term to describe a broad range of yoga styles.  I offer a Yoga Class on Wednesday evenings at 7pm that embraces a flowing and core strengthening practice  designed for all levels so that everyone can progress at their own pace. Poses can easily be modified to each person’s capability and more challenging versions are always possible.

What is most important is that you enjoy what you’re doing and that you learn to cultivate patience and self-compassion. You want to give yourself permission to grow in a way that is authentic for you. Take that leap of faith and the results will astound you.

Think of yoga as an invitation to discover and uncover more about who you are. What a blessing to be able to build a practice into your training that can only bring you joy, contentment and a sense of peace.

In sum, yoga for cross-training will build strength and flexibility in your hips and legs. You will find more stability and increase your balance and focus. As a road racer for many years, the breathing, focus and concentration I practiced in yoga was invaluable to me at the start of every race.

Yoga will help build heat or tapas in the body that will open up the heart center and give you greater flexibility in the shoulders and chest. Deep breathing in and out of the nostrils is a very effective form of breathing for all kinds of exercise. The rhythmic flow of yoga to awaken and strengthen the body will help you de-stress.

Yoga will help you breathe better, become strong and compassionate with others, relax, restore and energize.

 I hope you will join me on this journey and make yoga part of your life. Life and happiness happen in the now. The best of times is always now.

With peace, light and love, Susan Gold

Susan’s evening yoga class will begin on Wednesday, September 19^th from 7-8pm. Kathy Salvo will also be teaching on Monday's and Friday's at 12 PM.  All classes take place at TT Westport.

New England TT Championship Recap - by Mike Kirby

I woke up Saturday morning and checked the forecast.  Rain and 10mph wind….Yes!!!  I love racing in bad weather.  Most people are overly timid in the rain so I decided I was going to ride aggressively.

I arrived at the race early and drove the course.  I knew the course from last years race but I wanted a quick refresher.  It is a moderately technical course and there are a few areas where you can lose a lot of time if you don't manage the course carefully.

I laid out my plan for the day.  Start off easy (This is my plan every TT but I am not always good at this!) for the first 2 miles, zone 5 efforts through the climbs in miles 2 to 4, 8.5 to 9.5 and 11 to 12 with high zone 4 the remainder of the way with a dip into high zone 3 on the downhills if I needed a bit more recovery. One of the strongest riders in the race started directly in front of me and I wanted to make sure I caught or passed him by mile 8.5 as from here to the finish there are lots of twists and turns and it's easy for someone to get out of sight. 

I started my warm-up only to see that my heart rate was 285!  A bit of addrennaline maybe but certainly not 285.  Those of you that know me know that I am a numbers guy and not having a working heart monitor was going to drive me crazy.  I went back to my car and thankfully I had an extra heart rate strap in my bag (BTW, who carries an extra heart rate strap in their bag!). 

I finished my warm-up and got to the start line a bit later than I wanted to but enough time to get focussed. 

The first two miles went to plan and I was 10 watts below my target for the day which is where I want to be.  I took the first turn aggressively and picked up the pace as we were hitting the first set of climbs.  That's when my power meter starting going haywire!  It would read 0 for 10 seconds or so, then the correct power for 10 seconds or so and then zero, etc.  It obviously screwed up the average but it came on enough to give me a general feel which is all I really needed.

I did a quick time check against the guy in front of me and by mile 3 I had made up 10 seconds and by mile 4 20 seconds.  Throughout the climb he kept looking back so I knew it would only be a matter of time before I caught him.  He wasn't focussed and was obviously losing time by looking backwards. 

The next 3.5 miles were rollers into a downhill with a tight 90 degree turn with sand on both sides.

I stayed about 10 seconds back until the turn where the rider in front of me took it very slowly.  I hit the corner hard and thankfully made it through unscathed.  I was now only a few seconds back and passed the rider around mile 8.

I hit the woods at mile 8.5 and picked up the pace for a mile though rollers that went progressive uphill.  I stayed on pace until mile 11 where once again it was time to drop the hammer for a while.  After a quick recovery it was time to go all out for the last mile to the finish. 

It is mostly slightly downhill until 250 meters to go where the race organizers kindly installed a nice 6% climb to the finish just as your legs are about to fall off!

I crossed the line feeling good about my performance and knowing that I had at least secured a podium spot but feeling like I was going to win as I took 1 minute and 3 seconds off last years time where I came in second, 23 seconds back.

I finished my race at 11:40 and it only took the organizers until 1pm to post the results!  Nothing like sitting around in and waiting for results!  It was worth the wait as it turns out I Won!  

I love riding my TT bike and participating in time trials.  I've blown up during races more times than I wish to recall but I have to say that it all came together today!