Recently, I wrote on article on Endurance Corner about racing two Ironmans three weeks apart.
You can find that article HERE.
Recently, I wrote on article on Endurance Corner about racing two Ironmans three weeks apart.
You can find that article HERE.
Photos and commentary about last weekend's race at Ironman Mont-Tremblant:
This shot was taken six days before I was supposed to race Ironman Texas in May. I was in the medical center getting treatment for pneumonia. I ultimately decided not to start IMTX and looked to get back into racing later this summer. I had eyed both Ironman Canada-Whistler and Ironman Mont-Tremblant as potential races. In the end, I decided to do both, with the second event of Mont-Tremblant taking place three weeks after Ironman Canada.
Racing IM Canada and IM Mont-Tremblant three weeks apart was one of the more challenging things I have attempted and completed as an athlete. In the end, it worked out pretty well with a 3rd and 2nd place finish, though I'm not certain I would attempt that close of a double again (at least not in the near future!). Hopefully I can recover soon enough and try and race a little more before 2015 ends.
Cheers,
Justin
When I used to be into snowboarding, I had numerous places I wanted to to visit for that purpose. Since I've started triathlon, I've made trips to Park City, Queenstown (NZ), Wanaka (NZ), Lake Tahoe and now Whistler… …all in the summer months. Not what I would have thought many years ago.
For those that weren't following the race, it was, by far, the most difficult race I have ever competed in. Ironman races are generally pretty challenging. Ironman Canada has a solid bike course making for some additional challenges in ideal conditions. However, this year's race brought cold temperatures and heavy rain. Putting all those components together and you have an extremely challenging race.
The weather in Whistler during race week had seen cool temperatures and sporadic rain leading into the event with the race day forecast being the worst of the week. The bike course in Whistler loses elevation across the first half and gains it all back in the second half. With that in mind, I felt that if the weather could just hold out until mid-morning, we would be 'just fine' even if heavy rain rolled in. However, we basically had the opposite occur, with the heaviest rain falling during the first half of the bike (beginning as soon as we started the swim) and eventually letting up on the back half. I don't know how cold it was early on, but my Garmin showed an average temperature of 44 degrees for the whole bike. With those conditions, you can see why a number of folks were pulled from the course for hypothermia.
A basic recap of the day was something like:
1. The swim:
Bell, Barrett and Buckingham exited the water at about 48:20. Ambrose and Symmonds came out around 51 high, and I came out of the water with a group right at 53 minutes. Generally felt good in the swim.
2. The Bike:
0-32K: Was able to stay warm enough because of the ~12K up Callaghan Road.
32-45K: Trying not to freeze descending Callaghan.
45-79K: Trying to stay warm.
80K: I think this was the coldest point of the race for me. I remember seeing the 80K sign and I felt like I was shivering uncontrollably.
95-120K; flat part of the ride in Pemberton Valley, which is also almost 2000 feet lower than Whistler. There is a turnaround on this road and I could see Kyle (Buckingham) had a big lead, but 2nd-4th where not too far out of reach. First time since the end of the swim I'm starting to think about 'racing' again.
120-145K; tried to stay on top of things back across the valley, but starting to fade a little. Hoping the final climb will bring me back to life.
145-180K; climbing back up to Whistler. Originally, this had been the point in the race where I hoped to put time into everyone else. However, I felt totally wiped. This final section I tried to just do my best and make it to the start of the run.
3. The run:
3K: Moved into 4th
Maybe 10K?: Moved into 3rd;
10-30K: This was probably the best section of running for me, got the split to Victor and Kyle (running together in 1+2) down under 3:00 at one point. Thought there might be a chance for one more spot.
31-32K: starting to fade; gap to front is going out again.
32-42K: looking around every corner for that finish line.
42.2K: 3rd place.
I had a couple takeaways from this race:
1. Coming back from pneumonia in May made this race a bit emotional for me. I was so sick a couple months ago and being able to competently compete again was very fulfilling.
2. I tend to do better in races of attrition, but those races almost always involve hot weather. Being able to work through a day like that in the cold was also very fulfilling.
Until the next one,
J
This afternoon I have to give the unfortunate news that I will not be starting Ironman Texas this year. Last Sunday I was diagnosed with pneumonia. If this had been any other race, I would have withdrawn that moment, but this race has, and does, mean so much to me. With that in mind, I wanted to wait until the last possible moment to make a final decision.
After a final examination from my physician this afternoon, I feel the risk to my health is too great to make the start tomorrow. I was driven all week by my emotions, but I had to set that aside when making this final, difficult decision.
Thank you to my family, sponsors and The Woodlands community for providing so much help and support while preparing for this special race.
Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow; I will be joining you again next year.
-Justin
As a long course triathlete, I have been known to eat very large meals from (all the) time to time. On one such occasion, my Dad said it reminded him of one time he was issued an entire case of C-rations following an extended period of time when he and his platoon had run out of food.
A few days ago, I asked my Dad about the specifics of this occasion. He explained to me that during Vietnam, his platoon typically went out on patrols that lasted around three days. At the time, C-rations were still in a canned form, making the food quite heavy. He estimated that each Marine went out with around 80 lbs in their pack (more for radiomen) and so they did not opt to carry anything extra.
On one of these patrols, a situation led them to being out a couple days longer than they had planned which in turn meant no food for an extended period of time either. They had gone so long without food, that when they returned to base camp my Dad had each solider issued an entire case of C-rations.
I asked my Dad if he ever heard any of the soldiers complain during this time period.
His response was "I don't remember any of the men complaining, in this case or any other. Their focus was on being there and looking out for one another."
He also continued to tell me that "…Justin, this isn't really much a story. There are countless times in this war, and every other war, when soldiers get cut off from supplies for a time. It just happens."
And I get that. Within that context of memories for a solider with combat experience, having no food for a day or two is likely no big deal.
But I think this is where an outside observer can see something different.
What I see when I hear this:
Young men, many of them still teenagers, engaged in a foreign war, dealing with countless challenges, one of which includes running out of food for days.
And they didn't complain.
They put the needs of their fellow soldiers before their own. By serving for one another, they served us all.
We are approaching the final three weeks of my fundraising campaign for the Wounded Warrior Project. An anonymous donor has pledged matching funds for up to $5000. I am also pledging an addition $500 in matching funds. You can help us break our goal of $15,000 before I toe the line on May 16th for Ironman Texas by donating today.
Please click HERE to donate.
Thank you all for your continued support,
Justin
Today marks the start of our third annual fundraising campaign for the Wounded Warrior Project. Last year we raised over $10,000 and this year we have a goal of raising more than $15,000 by the time I toe the line for Ironman Texas on May 16, 2015.
Please consider donating to this great cause by clicking HERE
Thank you for your support,
Justin
We saw Brett Favre in San Juan while eating breakfast one morning. We didn't bother him, but we did snap a shameless photo bomb while he was posing with others for a photo.
It's hard to do much pre-race riding so we kept loose on the local exercise equipment in the park. The locals made it look substantially easier than I found it to be.
San Juan has a lot of historical landmarks all over the city making for some pretty awesome backdrops. This is looking across the final few hundred meters of the swim course.
The Race:
I made a decision just before the Endurance Corner Tucson camp to come down and race San Juan for the third time (raced in 2011+13). I would have preferred to wait a little longer post-camp, but I felt this race had the best dynamics as it relates to IMTX, with a non-wetsuit swim and a warmer run. Plus, I just like this race and was excited to go back.
Time goals should never be set in stone, but I make them anyway:
For this race:
Swim: 25:29, Bike 2:09:59, Run 1:19:59 (this run course is challenging). I thought those three would combine for a podium finish.
My actual splits:
Swim: 26:04, Bike 2:10:40, Run 1:23:35.
The swim and bike times weren't too far off target, but the run certainly was. That had less to do with run fitness and more to do with feeling a bit worked on the bike. I felt fine through 70K, then tired the last 20K. I thought it might just be low blood sugar so I hit the calories a bit harder on the run, but I still never felt like I came back to life. As it is, it's really just a sign that more bike fitness was needed, not more sugar.
Regardless, I managed to hold onto the last money spot with a 6th place finish and was able to get some good insight into how my fitness is really stacking up. It's one thing to feel good about your training, but racing shows you so much more.
I'll now be moving into the meat of my IMTX training and it looks like I have a good bit of work to do. I'm looking forward to returning to The Woodlands for my fifth consecutive year.
Thanks to NINOX, Shimano, Javelin Bikes, Voler Apparel, On Running, SLS Compression, Xterra Wetsuits and Powerbar.
-justin
It is with great pleasure to announce the following additions to my team in 2015:
NINOX: My title sponsor for the 2015 racing season.
NINOX is a designer menswear label based in Boulder, Colorado. NINOX was founded in 2014 to create sophisticated apparel using the finest materials & production. The vibrant energy of the city, the free spirit of the West, and the connection between the outdoors & everyday life are sources of inspiration for NINOX.
NINOX launched their first collection of menswear in the Fall of 2014, which combined luxury performance fabrics with manufacturing in Los Angeles, New Jersey, and Vancouver. NINOX clothing is available at select boutiques and on the brand's own e-commerce store at www.ninox.cc.
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SHIMANO: My groupset, wheels, aerobars and cycling shoe sponsor for the 2015 racing season.
To read more about Shimano's complete product line click HERE.
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ON RUNING: My shoe sponsor for the 2015 racing season. You will find me racing on the Cloudracer this season.
To read more about ON's unique technology click HERE.
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SLS: My compression sponsor for the 2015 racing season.
View their complete line of compression products by clicking HERE.
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In addition to these new sponsors, I am excited to continue working the following sponsors for 2015:
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Triathlon is an individual sport made possible by a team of support. Thank you to my new, and returning, sponsors for helping make all of this possible.
The 2015 racing season begins next month at San Juan 70.3.
See you all soon,
Justin
Written January 22, 2015.
For over five years, Endurance Corner has put together a swim challenge for our athletes and for the last two years, we have posted daily workouts on our site to help encourage a broader participation level.
Written January 9-17, 2015.
Every year Endurance Corner puts together a two-week challenge for our athletes to up their swim training during the dead of winter. Like last year, we wanted to expand this challenge beyond our team and encourage anyone who visits the EC site to join us.
Written January 4, 2015
A few days ago Endurance Corner wrapped up the Big Steel Challenge. For one month each winter, we encourage athletes to strength train more than most likely would and log each pound they push, pull, squat, lift, etc. Last year around this time I really felt that strength training was coming to the forefront (more than usual, at least) as a topic in endurance-themed articles.
Written December 1, 2014
A few years ago, an idea came up on our forum to put together a “Steel Challenge.” The idea was basic enough: track the amount of weight you lift for one month. And while adding up the amount of heavy stuff we picked up and put down may or may not have been the best measurement of work, it was certainly the simplest and easiest tracking method.
November 26, 2014
In my last article I covered what to do when you take an offseason. Assuming you took a break from the swim, bike, run world, the next question is: So now what? The answer, as with many things is: “It depends.”
My latest Endurance Corner Article:
In 2010, I raced Kona for the first time as a professional. Following a less-than-stellar race that year, I made the decision to not return to Hawai'i until I won an Ironman. It took me almost four years to make that happen, but it finally did and I made my way back to Kona last week.
As I mentioned in my previous post, my original plan to close out the season included racing Ironman Lake Tahoe 20 days before Kona. With Tahoe being cancelled, I had to adjust my training and preparations and I felt as though I did my best with the time I had.
The race:
Initially, the swim started out pretty well for me. I was tucked in the 2nd group, but just as we neared the turnaround I lost contact. I'm not sure if it was from a lack of focus or another reason, but I was on my own for the second half of the swim.
I came in from the swim and flew through transition trying to make up some of the ground I had lost. I quickly mounted my bike and got out onto the course, but something felt really wrong. I felt completely restricted in my range of motion. Then I looked down and realized I was still wearing my swim skin. I pulled over and tried to get it off as quickly as I could, stuffing it down my kit and riding on. I've done a lot of races, but new mistakes still manage to happen.
This was definitely not the start of the day I was preparing for, but I tried my best to settle into a rhythm on the Queen K. However, something still felt way off. I wasn't sure what, but I kept rolling as some races take a while to settle into. A few riders came by and I couldn't respond as I was just didn't have anything. I kept trying to get myself going, but nothing seemed to help.
By the time I had reached the turnaround in Hawi, I was almost dead last. Pretty discouraging.
I was running through a rolodex of ideas in my head to try to find something positive, but there didn't seem to be a whole lot available. So I started with my seed number. I was number 44 and I was racing somewhere around 50th position, so I convinced myself that if I just keep rolling, I can beat my seed.
By the time I got back onto the Queen K, I had managed to catch a few people so I figured I had probably made that goal. Now I made the goal to get into the top 40 as there are more points for 31-40 than 41+. By the time I got back to transition I had moved into the mid 30s. Now I made it my goal to try and get inside the top 30 by the end of the marathon. "Pace doesn't matter, just don't stop" was what I told myself.
Hawai'i has a huge amount of spectators on the run (except the Queen K) and that made such a difference after only hearing the sound of (strong) wind in my ears for nearly five hours. I kept trucking along and by the time I made my way out onto the Queen K I had moved inside the top 30.
The final half of the marathon was long and challenging and I was very happy to make that final turn onto Ali'i to the finish line. The crowds along the finish were amazing and I took my time to high five as many people as possible. Soaking in their positivity was a great way to end such a long day.
Ten+ weeks ago I fought to win a race. Last weekend I fought just to finish a race.
They both have their own rewards.
Until next year,
Justin