Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
70.3 World Championship
Another season has just about come to a close (Susanne Navas: You're my last athlete standing in '09 and IM Cozumel is calling!). Michelle and I headed down to Clearwater late last week to support 8 of my athletes who were all competing at the 70.3 World Championship. Once the dust settled, we had a slew of big PRs. Everyone PR'd for that matter and we even secured a podium finish thanks to Crystal Anthony's efforts; 20th woman (including pros)/8th amateur overall. Not too shabby. Crystal had the fastest bike/run combo of all amateurs and one of the fastest of the day compared to the pros too. Nothing new here, as it was the same case when she went top 10 overall/1st overall amateur at Lake Stevens 70.3 this past August.
Michelle posted a nice little weekend recap if you'd like to read more, but it was a great day all around and I had a great time meeting up with everyone. We snapped some nice group pics that I'll post once they're forwarded my way, but in the meantime, here's a nice shot of Crystal and I at the awards ceremony.
As for me, slowly but surely I'm getting back into shape. The gradual increase in training volume and frequency is helping me to shed the 13 pounds I gained during my 5 weeks "off" after Pumpkinman. I'm 34 at the end of this month, so it's time to get r' done next season and step up to the Ironman distance. I'll be working hard this winter, so that extra "chub-chub" around the mid section will provide some much needed insulation when I'm grinding out my long runs and rides in the midst of the oh-so-fun New England winter!
Michelle posted a nice little weekend recap if you'd like to read more, but it was a great day all around and I had a great time meeting up with everyone. We snapped some nice group pics that I'll post once they're forwarded my way, but in the meantime, here's a nice shot of Crystal and I at the awards ceremony.
As for me, slowly but surely I'm getting back into shape. The gradual increase in training volume and frequency is helping me to shed the 13 pounds I gained during my 5 weeks "off" after Pumpkinman. I'm 34 at the end of this month, so it's time to get r' done next season and step up to the Ironman distance. I'll be working hard this winter, so that extra "chub-chub" around the mid section will provide some much needed insulation when I'm grinding out my long runs and rides in the midst of the oh-so-fun New England winter!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
What does a 1:09 Ironman PR look like???
Perfect Pacing + Perfect Nutrition & Hydration = Perfect Performance (with a 7 minute OPEN marathon PR in the process!!!)Nice work Dawn!
Shout out to Dawn's husband Greg for finishing despite losing nearly 2 hours on the bike (double flat) and to Maris DiTolla - sliced tire at mile 4 of the bike and no way to keep the tube/tire inflated as a result. Neutral support was long gone so she had to walk back to T1 only to be told that her day was done as there was nothing anyone could do to help her.
There will be more Ironman events in your future Maris.
Next Stop: Clearwater Florida. I have 8 athletes racing this weekend. I'm looking forward to getting out of NE for a few days.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
How We Roll
One key to long course success is learning how to put your inhibitions aside, roll the dice and simply "Go For It" on race day. For VA based triathlete Joel Myers, who is Clearwater bound and ready to ROLL, this was his idea of an "inhibition reduction session" as (publicly) demonstrated at the Wicked 10k in Virginia Beach last weekend
Friday, October 30, 2009
2010 Gloucester Triathlon
Work is in progress on the new and improved Gloucester Triathlon. Race date for next year's event is Sunday, August 8th. Stay tuned for more info and our new website.
www.gloucestertriathlon.com
www.gloucestertriathlon.com
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Back to the Basics
We're 2.5 weeks out from the Ironman 70.3 World Championships now. I've got a small army of athletes that I'll be accompanying down to Clearwater and am very excited to watch them all compete. It'll be a great time in that I'll be meeting a bunch of these people face to face for the very first time, so the trip promises to be special for a variety of reasons.
Although it's always tough to sit on the sidelines, I can't wait to support my crew and watch them compete. It's a real thrill to see all of the hard work and planning you've laid down over the months come to fruition. I expect some great performances on race day, so stay tuned for post race recaps.
On the personal front, my life is finally starting to settle down and return to normal. 2009 was a very tough year for me given all that Michelle and I faced. No complaints on my end though, as it was nothing but "good" challenges that we had to face along the way:
Fixing up our new house
Helping to launch the VERY successful "Gloucester Tri"
Getting married!
I managed to squeeze some half-way decent training into the mix this year and a couple of noteworthy results, but my focus just wasn't where it needed to be given all the distractions/outside commitments that had to be dealt with between February and October.
Thankfully, the end is now in sight and slowly but surely, I'm building back and getting back in touch with the training focus that allowed me to attain a good deal of athletic success from 2006 - 2008.
I have no regrets about the 2009 season and actually learned a lot about myself along the way. I'm not one of the most talented athletes out there, so in order to hold my own on the pro circuit, I need what amounts to a year-round laser focus when it comes to training and race prep. As someone who's juggling a pretty successful one-man coaching operation, I've come to realize that over-committing myself is something that's easy to do, so I have to plan ahead and be sure to set aside enough "me" time so that I can chalk up the necessary training and recovery time to compete at my best. Lastly, I've learned that in order to operate at full capacity and remain happy, I have to avoid/cut ties with people, and in some cases, athletes, that either require too much "maintenance" or simply bring too much baggage and/or negativity to the table. Although this may sound cold, at the end of the day, the reality of coaching is that it's not a "job" that you never walk away from. Unlike other jobs I've worked in the past, there is no punching out at the end of the day and your "work" stays with you 24/7. Given the fact that I love my job, I have no problem with this, but the only way that I can keep my life in balance and move forward on all fronts is by maintaining healthy relationships with everyone I (closely) interact with on a daily basis and avoiding everyone and anyone who stands to get in the way.
So now that my "house" is nearly in order, it's time to start focusing on the 2010 season. I'm prepping my body for the Ironman focus that lies ahead. At this stage of the game, if I'm going to race on the pro circuit, I am going to focus on the races and distances that will allow me the greatest chance for success. 70.3 has become so competitive these days that losing even 1 minute in the water puts you nearly out of contention for a top 3 overall finish. And now that more and more ITU/Olympic distance specialists are flooding the 70.3 circuit, podium spots are harder to come by. If it's one thing I've found over the years, the longer the race goes, the better I do, so it's time to extend out and see what I'm capable of on the IM circuit.
Although it's always tough to sit on the sidelines, I can't wait to support my crew and watch them compete. It's a real thrill to see all of the hard work and planning you've laid down over the months come to fruition. I expect some great performances on race day, so stay tuned for post race recaps.
On the personal front, my life is finally starting to settle down and return to normal. 2009 was a very tough year for me given all that Michelle and I faced. No complaints on my end though, as it was nothing but "good" challenges that we had to face along the way:
Fixing up our new house
Helping to launch the VERY successful "Gloucester Tri"
Getting married!
I managed to squeeze some half-way decent training into the mix this year and a couple of noteworthy results, but my focus just wasn't where it needed to be given all the distractions/outside commitments that had to be dealt with between February and October.
Thankfully, the end is now in sight and slowly but surely, I'm building back and getting back in touch with the training focus that allowed me to attain a good deal of athletic success from 2006 - 2008.
I have no regrets about the 2009 season and actually learned a lot about myself along the way. I'm not one of the most talented athletes out there, so in order to hold my own on the pro circuit, I need what amounts to a year-round laser focus when it comes to training and race prep. As someone who's juggling a pretty successful one-man coaching operation, I've come to realize that over-committing myself is something that's easy to do, so I have to plan ahead and be sure to set aside enough "me" time so that I can chalk up the necessary training and recovery time to compete at my best. Lastly, I've learned that in order to operate at full capacity and remain happy, I have to avoid/cut ties with people, and in some cases, athletes, that either require too much "maintenance" or simply bring too much baggage and/or negativity to the table. Although this may sound cold, at the end of the day, the reality of coaching is that it's not a "job" that you never walk away from. Unlike other jobs I've worked in the past, there is no punching out at the end of the day and your "work" stays with you 24/7. Given the fact that I love my job, I have no problem with this, but the only way that I can keep my life in balance and move forward on all fronts is by maintaining healthy relationships with everyone I (closely) interact with on a daily basis and avoiding everyone and anyone who stands to get in the way.
So now that my "house" is nearly in order, it's time to start focusing on the 2010 season. I'm prepping my body for the Ironman focus that lies ahead. At this stage of the game, if I'm going to race on the pro circuit, I am going to focus on the races and distances that will allow me the greatest chance for success. 70.3 has become so competitive these days that losing even 1 minute in the water puts you nearly out of contention for a top 3 overall finish. And now that more and more ITU/Olympic distance specialists are flooding the 70.3 circuit, podium spots are harder to come by. If it's one thing I've found over the years, the longer the race goes, the better I do, so it's time to extend out and see what I'm capable of on the IM circuit.
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