Half Ironman Training with Eric - Page 8

emartin10 · 08-11-2006, 08:05 PM

Thanks Joe. I'll try to post tomorrow evening, just to let you all know how I'm doing from my sister's house.

E

Ogedei · 08-11-2006, 08:57 PM

Good luck man! We are all behind you! If I am awake that early you will be in my thoughts, if not I will think of you when I wake up!

Give em hell for all of us!

And above all remember, "I got no quit in me."

Og.

emartin10 · 08-11-2006, 09:17 PM

I hope you'll be up early enough, I'm shooting for under 6 hours, so I'm hoping to finish right around noon MST.

E

emartin10 · 08-12-2006, 09:54 PM

Just an update on the night before. I'm well hydrated, well fed (BIG plate of home made pasta with marinara) and really really ready to go. I'm actually pretty tired, so I'm going to bed shortly (about 9:15pm) and will wake up at 4 am, ready to fly.

Swim, Bike, Run, YEAH, sooo much fun....here comes, the morning sun!

Talk soon all!

E

Ogedei · 08-12-2006, 11:38 PM

Are you listening to that song as you type that message?

finboy · 08-13-2006, 07:34 AM

Well, it's Sunday morning - would be 6:30am Boulder time. Just caught up on your log a bit. Can't believe this is your big day already...I'm sure you rocked, Eric. Can't wait to hear your race report.

-fin

Ogedei · 08-13-2006, 01:51 PM

Well it's 12:50 so hopefully he has his first HI under his belt and he is either being masages, winning prizes or drinking some hard earned beer.

Can't wait for the report. It's a long race so it better be good!

Og.

ODB · 08-13-2006, 08:33 PM

I just got back intown and was hoping to read a great race report. He must be to busy with the reporters describing every detail of his win.

emartin10 · 08-13-2006, 09:18 PM

Hahaha, thanks for all the support guys. It was 5 hours, 17 minutes of agony. But I loved every minute! And no massage (40 minute wait, ugh!) and I had plenty of beer. So I'm happy, sore, and freaking tired. Oh yeah, I killed the swim, got killed on the bike, and held my own on the run. I'm happy!

I'll get a good report up tomorrow, for now, I'm going to sleep!!!!

E

Ogedei · 08-13-2006, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emartin10

Hahaha, thanks for all the support guys. It was 5 hours, 17 minutes of agony. But I loved every minute! And no massage (40 minute wait, ugh!) and I had plenty of beer. So I'm happy, sore, and freaking tired. Oh yeah, I killed the swim, got killed on the bike, and held my own on the run. I'm happy!

I'll get a good report up tomorrow, for now, I'm going to sleep!!!!

E

Awesome. 5h 17m is def under 6! good work man! Can't wait for the report. Give me something to do during work!

Og.

swiminto · 08-14-2006, 11:24 AM

Cannot wait for the report....You are frigging awesome...my hat is off to you Martin. You trained, worked your ass off, and now you can rest and enjoy the reward, until tomorrow.

ODB · 08-14-2006, 11:35 AM

I figure about now he is in beer heaven! Awesome time! When are you doing an adventure race?

Ogedei · 08-14-2006, 04:13 PM

Where is our damned race report! You'd think running a HIM was hard work or something and he thinks he gets to sleep in the next day!

Og.

emartin10 · 08-14-2006, 06:07 PM

5430 Long Course Race Report

Okay, okay! Here it is:

Woke up at 4am to eat 2 WW english muffins, a banana, 1/2 a cup of coffee, and some Gatorade. Got to the Res at 5am and got my transition set up real quick. Went for a warm up run. Had a gel at 6:20 (20 minutes before the swim start). Hit the water at 6:40.

Swim was cake. I could have kept going all day. I finished really close to the front of my wave, and probably pretty close to the front of the wave in front of me. No problems, nothing. It was a great swim. 1.2 mile - 31:51 (106th/799)

Had a really slow swim to bike transition (2:03) and was off on the bike course. I waited about 20 minutes for my stomach to settle before starting in on my nutrition - and then had a gel and e-cap every 45 minutes with water. In between I had Gatorade Endurance. The bike course was FAST. It was a 28 mile course, and you had to do it 2 times. I tried to pace myself the first lap, and go all out on the second. The second lap killed me. My ass hurt, and my legs were tired as hell. And my gel flask exploded on me in the middle of my second lap, so I was hosing myself off with my water bottle for a while. My bike split was 2:49:46 - average of 19.7 mph (not bad, but not good)(411th/799)

T2 was better, 1:07. I was dreading the run. It was a 2 lap course, and the first 2 1/2 miles were like a huge staircase, climb, flat, climb, flat, climb. The second climb really hurt. I was trying for gels every 3 miles, but towards the end, I couldn't even get anything in my stomach. So I missed the gel on the last aid station. My first lap was fast, 51 minutes, too fast. The female pro winner passed me right as I was going for my second lap, and she finished in 4:17. So I knew that I had my under 6 hours goal met, I just eased off the second lap. Actually, I hauled ass to the top of the "stairs" and then I thought I was dying, so I let up. The last 4 miles were hell. There is a causeway towards the back of the Res, and there are signs that say, "Do not enter, Certain Death Will Ensue". I thought it was a pretty good option at the time, and thought about jumping in

I was pulling a Floyd at every aid station, testosterone in the ass....er....dumping water all over me to try and cool off. I shuffled home and crossed the finish with a 1:51:57 run split - 8:32/mile (209th/799).

My final time was 5:16:46.

My lips were numb when I crossed, and my GF said I started crying. I don't remember anything. Just going to the aid station and getting a Dr. Pepper and some fruit. It was delicious. I ended up 247th/799 overall, and 11th in my age group. I'm very happy with it, and hurt to no end today. It's unbelievable. No one will ever understand the pain until they do it.

I know a lot of folks don't agree with steady state cardio or whatever, but that's not why I do it. I do it because I love it. The race day atmosphere is like none other. I get so pumped and enjoy it so much. I've never pushed myself like that, and learned a lot about how far I can push myself. Go do a triathlon. Please.

E

ODB · 08-14-2006, 06:24 PM

That is awesome! I'd say a 19.7 average for over 50 miles on the bike rocks. I'm feeling highly motivated for a banana and Dr. Pepper!

kuri · 08-14-2006, 08:32 PM

Way to kick ass Eric! As Joe said your pace was impressive. Moreso after doing a swim like that.

Is it weird that my lips got numb just reading your report?

ninja · 08-14-2006, 09:26 PM

Holy shit!! Great job man!!!

Lost Dog · 08-14-2006, 11:02 PM

Nice work, Eric!

EdChap · 08-15-2006, 02:47 AM

Great jon, congrats!

hard_rox · 08-15-2006, 07:32 AM

Congrats, Eric! Outstanding effort!!

FishrCutB8 · 08-15-2006, 08:20 AM

Eric,

This is simply outstanding. I have sooooooo much respect for the time, the dedication and the effort you put into this. 11th in AG is amazing for first time, and your 19+ on the bike is fasssssst IMO.

I'd like to hear more about the internal talk that went on as you did it. One of the things I experience, even in training, but especially in races, is those things that go on in the brain.

Also, do you come at this from a swim background. It seems to me you did, but can't remember. Love to trade notes, as I'm thinking about going up to Oly or HIM next year....

Ogedei · 08-15-2006, 08:50 AM

Very cool Fishy, I think Oly is my eventual goal, but who knows.

My question for you is this Eric, this is something I exprienced on my small tri. I had trained hard and it had been my drive for so many months, after I was done, after I was finished it was almost like a let down. Now don't get me wrong, I was happy to have done it, but now that it was all over so quickly. Did you/are you expriencing any of this, or was my race just to damn short?

When are you planning on doing the IM?

It's nice to see everyone else in here saying congrats on this achievement as well.

Og.

drew · 08-15-2006, 09:05 AM

E,

I second everyone's remarks here...those results are pretty remarkable!! And I'm damn jealous of your swim times!!

I'm sorta in the same boat as Fish and Og...I've done several sprints now (and I'm doing another one in about a month), and then I think I'll upgrade to Oly. HIM? NOT ANYTIME SOON FOR ME!

You're a freakin badass for doing a HIM!

Ogedei · 08-15-2006, 09:44 AM

That and he swims like TWICE as fast as I do.

Oh no that makes him a jerk, not a bad ass. j/k!

emartin10 · 08-15-2006, 09:45 AM

Wow, I can't believe all the support in here. Thanks guys! It's really an honor!

Fish - I have a tendency to think the worst and hope for the best. I think it's a natural thing before your first LDT (long distance tri) to not necessarily visualize finishing (positively) but to hope and pray you finish (negatively). I do come from a swim background, so the entire swim, I was shooting to pass as many blue swim caps as I could. The blue cap wave started 5 minutes before mine did. It was strange. In all my other races, everyone really kind of scoots their way to the front of the swim start, even if they shouldn't be there. Sunday, I just walked right up and hardly anyone wanted to be up front. So I knew I was with some fast swimmers, I just stayed on one guys feet for about 200 meters, almost like a sprint lead out in a bike race. As soon as we cleared the masses, I just pulled out and was in probably the lead 25% of my wave. That was nice.

On the bike, I just tried to stay positive and not stress about the fact that I was getting passed by a lot of folks. The hardest part for me is to reign in my desire to win, and save the energy since I know I'm not as good on the bike as those guys. It was a lot of self talk, saying "race your race, race your pace, drink, easy..." That sort of talk. I was also telling everyone under my breath that I'd see them on the run

One guy just blew by me, and I looked over, and his gut was touching his top bar. Just a moose, and I later passed him on the run. That felt good.

The run was really dig deep time. The first 2 miles were tough, since they were hills, and I just told myself to shorten my stride, and just get up them. Run aid station to aid station. The run course was 2 laps, and you run past the finish line as you start your second lap, which is a mental kick in the jugular. It was nice though, my sister and her boyfriend, my mom, my girlfriend, a friend from Australia, and my training partner's girlfriend were all standing at the start of the second lap, cheering like CRAZY!! That is some great motivation there. The second lap was really picking out people that were running at a pace that I wanted to run at, and sitting on their heels. At about mile 11 on the run, I was dying, and I just said, "Look man, you've propelled yourself 68.3 miles today, you can do 2 more, Suck it up!" Once I saw the finish, my mind really just shut down.

OG - I still have one more triathlon in 2 weeks, a FAST sprint in Steamboat. It's going to be fun, but I'm going all out. I've taken yesterday and today off from training, and it's really weird to not have training to do, but my body needs the rest. I let myself go a bit and had a burger and a few fries last night, and a few beers, and this morning, as I type this, I'm in my favorite coffee shop with a BIG latte. I have a hard time letting myself go though, a big plate of wings or whatever just doesn't sound good. Guess it's a lifestyle change.

I think I'd like to try an Ironman, but I need to get the head right first. Sunday drained me mentally as much as it did physically. I might shoot for March 2008, Ironman New Zealand. We'll see though. For now, I'm excited to kill this sprint, and then hit the weights this winter. I'll still swim, bike, and run, but I think NROL is calling my name to gain some of this weight back. But for the next month or so, I'm just going to wake up, and decide what I want to do and just do it, not have too much planned.

My sister took some GREAT pics at the race, and as soon as she emails them, I'll post them here. Thanks again for the support all, it means a LOT!

E

finboy · 08-15-2006, 10:14 AM

Eric,

You are a Half Ironman...congratulations! Thanks for sharing the report and your thoughts while racing...great stuff. Enjoy some down time, then kick some butt in that little pissant of a triathlon...a sprint!

-fin

emartin10 · 08-16-2006, 08:51 AM

Thanks man, that's cool to say. I'm a Half Ironman.

The one side effect that I'm just now noticing is how foggy I've been mentally since the race. I'm finally feeling up to speed today, but the past few days, I feel I've been about 5 steps behind everyone else. Feel reallly stupid. Interesting...

I'm back to working out today. I'm riding my bike out to the group open water swim and back. We'll see how the body holds up!

E

RobertT · 08-17-2006, 07:47 AM

Congratulations! Excellent time, interesting reading your reports. But this sums it up:

Quote:

I know a lot of folks don't agree with steady state cardio or whatever, but that's not why I do it. I do it because I love it. The race day atmosphere is like none other. I get so pumped and enjoy it so much.

I couldn't agree more!

emartin10 · 08-17-2006, 08:12 PM

My body is doing better. I went for an open water swim last night, 1250 m swim (we had buoys and measured). I did about a 40 minute run today at a really high tempo, and did pretty well. I'm trying to get my 4 mile run for the last triathlon of the year under 7 minute miles. So I'm just going to haul ass.

That's all folks.

E

emartin10 · 08-17-2006, 09:02 PM

MY AERO BARS CAME TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Woohoo!!!!!

E