The Road to my First IM..........Part 3

2 July 2011-

As I sit here in the hotel the day before my first IM I figured I better finish up this series that I started. If this is the first post that you have stumbled across check out Part 1 and Part 2 first. It has been interesting to reflect back on things and I have really enjoyed thinking about everything and looking back through some old photos. So here we go on the final portion of this............

I departed Turkey the end of August and found myself back in South Korea. I was pretty happy with this move as I was familiar with Korea and knew that the racing scene was a lot better than Turkey. Luckily I had already been here before and knew my way around logistically and already had some in's into the local tri scene. I would say I hit the ground running as in the first 9 weeks there I raced 8 of those weekend. It was not the brightest idea on my part as I had the big marathon coming up, but I raced some of the races a little smarter than the others and in the end it all worked out. Could the marathon of went better? Who knows, but I sure enjoyed the journey that took me up to that race.

I went into the marathon wanting to break 3 hours. That was the big goal of last year was running a sub-3 marathon. I had some great indicators going into the race with a 1:18:55 half marathon and then averaging 2:48 for 10X800's, AKA the "Yasso 800's". Well I am not sure if it was all of the racing or the tough course, but I didn't quite hit the low 2:50's that I was aiming for but still managed the sub-3, so the big goal from 2010 was completed. Where do you go from there? It was a late season marathon so I took about 2 weeks off and then the real journey began.

During the Chuncheon Marathon!

Yes, believe it or not I have been training for my first IRONMAN since beginning of December. I made the plunge and went full board ahead into this big race. I started out by seeking out a coach, and ended up going with Team TBB Online Coaching, and went with Scott DeFilippis. Having a coach has been awesome, it is great to have someone to hold you accountable and watch your training. I have been around for a short 3 years, so I have a brief idea of "what to do", but going into my first IM I didn't want any excuses. We have really made some great progress with my swim and bike, and well my run has stayed the same but has become really good off the bike. It has been awesome to have structured plan that every workout has a purpose and everything builds into something bigger. I use to just go out and swim, bike and run without much focus, other than my run workouts. Now everything has been very structured and it has made things really focused and with a purpose. I also purchased an SRM (power meter for the bike), and that has also been a great training tool that has helped my cycling fitness and power.

So this year I have cut back on the racing and stayed focused on IM China, well now IM Korea. I had some great adventures along the way, traveling to Singapore, around Korea for a few races and then of course the Tour de Korea. The TDK was probably the highlight of the year thus far, but all of that could change tomorrow.

Suffering in the brutal humidity of Singapore.......Team Storck/Rapha during the TDK.........

These last 10 months have been an amazing journey and there have been some great friends that I have met along the way.

Zach/Aaron- Thanks for always coming out and riding even on some of the craziest days. You guys have been a key reason why my cycling fitness has taken off. Can't thank you enough for all you guys have done for me and helped me progress as an athlete.

Dave- Meeting you within the first 48 hours on base was awesome! Can't say I have ever met another triathlete so quick on a new base. Best of luck to you tomorrow!

Des- Once again we cross paths and you are always around to help out with the little logistical ins and odds throughout Korea. Thanks again for all of the help you have provided me along this journey.

Team Storck/Rapha- Pablo, Jeremy, and all the guys on the team, thanks for the opportunity to ride the TDK with you guys. I know it was probably a headache having a triathlete on the team, but man was the TDK a blast. Can't wait till next year, it is going to be a blast!

Traci- Life is not complete without a swimming partner, hahaha......Actually I think that is true because once you got deployed going to the pool really sucked. It was always good to continously get my butt kicked by you and have some great swim sets! Thanks for all your help, I would say you are one of the reasons I am slowly becoming a "swimmer".

John- The TDK was a blast and having someone like you to mentor me through the process was great. Thanks for coming down here to Jeju to help me out. Makes a huge difference to actually have someone here supporting.(John came down from Seoul to hang out and "vacation", he is going to hopefully be able to give me some splits along the course and be able to tell me to HTFU and push it when the going gets tough.)

Pyeongtaek Tri Club- Once again you guys have been a huge help. I don't know to many people that will load up a foreigner and give them a lift all the way back to base from down in far south korea. You guys are truly amazing and some great people. Best of luck to those of you that are racing this weekend, Mr. Yu go and get your VEGAS SLOT!

Work/Chain of Command- It is always great to have the support of the higher ups. They have given me the opportunity and supported me with my racing. Without their support I would not have been able to take part in the TDK or receive PTDY for this race. Thanks for supporting me in my athletic endeavors.

Family- As the journey along this crazy lifestyle that I live continues, tomorrow is a big day. I thank each and every one of you, without you I don't know if I would be where I am today. THANK!

Bryan, Steve, Maddy, Mom and Me a few weeks ago at the Silicon Valley Race.Brenda, me and Dad at the Silicon Valley Race

The Road to my First IM..........Part 2

29 June 2011-

If you didn't read PART 1, here is the link: PART 1 LINK

As I sit here already packed 3 hours early for the departure back to Korea I figured I could knock out Part 2 of the 3 possibly 4 part series. So lets see, I left off with China 70.3 and leaving Korea. Seems like that was forever ago and in reality it was just 2 years ago, guess that is quite awhile.

So in transit from Korea to Turkey I had planned to come home and race some race called "Wildflower". I had heard so many great things about it I figured I should throw it on the schedule and go experience what everyone was talking about. OC had left Korea a few months before me and was out in Idaho. He made the trip over and we headed to WF to experience it the "right way", I say this because all first timers to this race should have to camp, but some people get RV's and live the "rich and famous" lifestyle while most people just camp. During this experience, which is by far one of the greatest races around the world, I met some great new friends. I had previously met someone in China just a few short weeks before the race and she was going to be there at Wildflower. We all camped together and I met one of her really good friends Amy. Amy has ended up attending WF the past 3 years now and has become a great family friend. The great thing about triathlon is all the great people that you meet along the way. So Wildflower was awesome and then off I went to Turkey.

WF #1, camping and this is OC crashing out in the camp site.....With aero helmet and all!

I had done a lot of research before getting to Turkey, and to my dislike there was not much of a racing scene. There were a few races on base here and there, and then I managed to find one triathlon about 7 hours away from base. I started up a local Time Trial series while there and we had a small group of riders and it was always a good time. I had 2 friends, who I became good friends with over my time in Turkey and we primarily trained together just running. So I was left out on the bike and the swim on my own. With the small amount of racing in Turkey, I managed to get into IM 70.3 Germany even though it was sold out. It was a great opportunity to travel up to Germany and stay with a previous friend from Korea. Shauna opened up her house and was my first official "home stay", her and Lucy were super excited for the race and were a huge help. It ended up being quite the journey as this is when I broke my radius in my right arm and Shauna had to play Dr. post race. This is when you know you have great friends, not only do they open up there home they take care of you when you get injured and then end up being high on percocet (Dr. prescribed of course). I would of been SOL if I was there in Germany all on my own, so I owe a huge thanks to Shauna and Lucy for taking care of me.

Leaving the race site I was able to grab a sign, definitely a race I will never forget! Thanks Shauna for taking care of me, O the memories of Germany!

After arriving back from Germany an advertisement popped up on the base website saying that USAFEurope was looking for runners for the AF Marathon and it was a paid trip back to Ohio. How could I pass up an opportunity like this? Well being young and dumb, marathon 4 weeks out, broken right radius, sure why not lets apply and see what happens........I go in way under trained but luckily had some early season miles in the legs and came out with just missing a Boston Qualifier Time, 55 seconds to be exact, but managed to be the #1 runner on the team. Awesome opportunity met some amazing people and had a great time.

Team USAFEurope at the AF MarathonBerlin and me with the guy that carried the flag for the whole marathon!

Then came my trip to Florida for the 70.3 World Champs, another great experience. Mom made the trip out from Cali and we got to hang out in FL for a few days. I also met up with Eric who I had met in Korea and raced with in China. Then there was Gary and Petra, who were out in Germany for the 70.3 who also made the trek to FL. It is amazing how some relationships are formed in such a short time and you can become great friends. Florida was a real eye opener for me showing me just how good the best in the World are at our sport and how hard you have to work to get to that level. Completely got my butt handed to me, but still walked away learning some key lessons.

Gary, myself and Petra in Florida!

After that winter hit and training became pretty boring. I had to commute 10 miles each way through some crappy parts of town to get to the university to swim. I rode my bike and it was always an adventure. I needed to stay motivated so I signed up for Wildflower Long Course, and planned my vacation around that race so that I could make it home for it. I had convinced Gary, who I met in Germany and then hung out with in FL to make the trek out for WF. It was a race that was on his to do list. Gary is in his mid 50's and is quite the inspiration. If I can be in shape like him when I am "that young" I will be very happy! Then Amy also joined in on the fun, she didn't like the camping scene too much the year before but luckily my parents came out and camped this year so we did it up like the "rich and famous" and went with an RV. It was actually quite nice to have a bed to sleep on, but like I said the first time WF people have to camp so they get the full experience. So back home to Cali and once again another eye opening experience getting my butt handed to me. I had heard the bike course was hard on the Long Course, but it wasn't the bike that was bad it was the pure misery of the hilly run course. All in all another great WF experience.

WF #2 with an RV and all! Myself, Amy, Gary

I got back to Turkey and well just when I thought the whole tour was a lost cause an awesome runner showed up. I already had Seth and Berlin to run with, but they were both married and I have a firm belief that family comes first and I completely understand that so there were times when they couldn't run due to family duties. Well Elissa showed up and she was single and an awesome runner. She has ran for the AF Academy and then for the AF Cross Country and Marathon Team. It was amazing to have someone with that kind of talent and experience on base to train with. I only had 3 months left but to be able to pick her brain on training ideas and actually be able to run with her a few days a week made things a whole lot better. When you have someone holding you accountable to show up it always makes getting out of bed easier. I was able to have her sit me down and lay out a training plan for my next marathon, which was suppose to be AF Marathon but that got changed due to having to head to Korea. We made some adjustments to the plan when AF Marathon feel through and I headed back to Korea to do my 3rd marathon with a goal of breaking 3 hours (if you don't remember how that went, it will be in part 3).

So all in all Turkey had its up and downs. It was not the best place to be for training/racing, although I met some great people out there. I was able to focus on school and take quite a few classes due to having a pretty laid back job. I was also fortunate to have a very supporting chain of command which allowed me plenty of opportunities to train and race and follow my passions.

Thanks to all of those people that were along for this part of the journey:

Family- You guys are there 24/7-365, anytime I need someone you are just a phone call away. You have been so supportive through this whole thing it is amazing!

Seth- Thanks for always giving me a run for my money and kicking my @SS! I will never forget us bartering with each other on what race to do so that we could both walk away with a new pair of shoes ;)

Berlin- Man did we have some good adventures, wish AF Marathon would of worked out for 2010. But I think the first one was quite a good time and then your first triathlon experience was another great adventure. All the best to you and your family and I look forward to training/racing with you in the future.

Elissa- What an awesome opportunity to be able to train with you and pick your brain on everything. It was amazing to be able to train with someone of your caliber and have someone constantly pushing me! Right now you are "faster" than me with your Marine Corps Marathon time, but I tell you I am gunning to take that record back ;) Keep up the hard work and look forward to our paths crossing again.

Gary- Pretty amazing how in less than a year we can race 3 different races together and become good friends. You are a true inspiration and I look forward to future races with you. I might just have to put IM Wisconsin on the list ;)

Amy- Pretty crazy how we met, but you are an awesome person. It is always great to chat it up with you and share stories. Thanks for filling in for me this year at WF and taking care of the family and sharing a few glasses of wine with my mom. Possibly next year I will be out for it??

Here are some pictures from this portion of the Journey:

Wildflower Prep race, UVAS Olympic distance race. Getting the bike ready with dad.

Part of the Incirlik crew at one of my last races before leaving. Berlin, me, Chad, Elissa, Jim.

The Road to my First IM..........Part 1

21 June 2011-

With IRONMAN Korea just 12 days away I figured I better get started on this blog that I wanted to post before I started my first IM. I think I will break it up into 3 or 4 parts and explain where I came from and where I plan on going. I will break it down into the last couple of years of training and where it all started. I figure the easiest way for me to reflect back is to do it by military assignments, and fortunately there has only been 3 since I started all this craziness. One of the most frequent questions that I get is, "What/How/Who got you into this?"

So the journey began in December of 2007, well that is when the thoughts of doing a tri crossed my mind. I got a random email with a flyer about a tri on base in June of 2008. I thought perfect, I have leave planned to go home in June and I was getting on the chunky side, yes for some of you that is hard to believe but I was close to 185lbs. I was staying somewhat active my first year in Korea, well if you consider playing Volleyball once a week and then drinking 2-4 nights a week active. Yes, Korea is known for its drinking, I can tell you skip 4 years of college partying go to Osan for ONE yes ONE year and you will get 4 years of college partying out of the way. So I drank quite a bit, wouldn't say I had a problem, but I was just tired of waking up hungover wasting the days away and not being productive.

I found a beginner tri plan online, picked up a cheap $250 bike and it all began in March 2008. I started riding with the local group of roadies and was getting my legs torn off for the first couple rides, well months. They all feared the beater bike that I had as the rear wheel was so out of true it wobbled from side to side and creaked like crazy. No one wanted to ride behind me as they feared this wheel was going to just come apart right in front of them. I finally upgraded two weeks before the first tri and did my first century on the Trek 1200 that I had purchased used. On that first century, me being the newb I was fell over about 25 miles into the ride, since I wasn't use to being clipped in. Pretty comical as everyone looked at me like I was a complete idiot, but I guess everyone has done it at least once ;)

Really, Who rides in basketball shorts, a t-shirt and reflective vest? I am surprised they even let me ride with them ;)The first bike, AKA A POS, A CLUNKER!

The first tri came and went and then I really got the bug. I went home on leave and lined up a bike to borrow from my uncle and signed up for another tri. That was my first open water swim, and both of my parents feared that I was going to drowned, well I thought it was a possibility as well as I was out there doggy paddling, side stroking, treading water and so on. Yes the swim has been my weak point since day 1! I got back from leave and met an awesome guy, which I have referred to before as "my logistical manager", Des. This is when all hell broke lose. From June-November I raced 16 different events, which included my first Marathon. To look back on that experience and how DUMB it was, click HERE. I didn't include it in there, but the longest run I had before that Marathon was an 18 miler, 4 days before. Then other than that was a half marathon the weekend prior and a few 5-6 miles run before that. Yes, I was young and dumb, well I still am, but I am slowly learning ;)

The first race, really who races topless? What a newbie!

All of my races throughout 2008 took place in Korea with one race at home while I was on leave. I was scheduled to depart Korea in April of 2009, so I signed up for my first Half IRONMAN with China 70.3. I came across a great deal over the winter and picked up my first tri bike with the Cervelo P3C. I got it on closeout and could not believe the deal I got on it and was really happy to be on a fast bike for my first big race. I went to China somewhat prepared as I had been training with some great people all winter long and was probably not properly trained, but I followed once again an online beginner plan and then did some other stuff on my own. I went to China really wanting to qualify for the World Championships, I had no idea how hard or easy it was going to be. I just thought I was in good shape, little did I know how rough of a day it was going to be and in what decent shape I was in. The one thing that saved me is that it got HOT, if you don't remember check out the race report and pictures. So I got that slot to the World Champs and had a great race for my first 70.3, well a great finish, I wouldn't call it much of a race.

Picking up the AG Win in China and the WC Slot to Clearwater!

So with all of this time spent in Korea there were some very very inspiring/influential people that impacted me and that have contributed in someway to where I am today. I owe it to them for shaping me into the athlete I am today, this has been a journey and without them it would not have been possible. So in no particular order, the people that were along for this portion of the journey:

Family- You guys have been along for this crazy ride the whole time. The support that you have provided is amazing and of course I would not be where I am today without you!

Col Becker (now General Becker)- For starting the sprint tri on base and being a mentor for me throughout the whole stay in Korea. Truly inspiring to see you at your "young" age still take it to us young guys and tear our legs off. To have a second family in Korea was really nice, for you and Sherri to open your house up for the Holidays really made me feel like I was at home, Thanks!

Mark- Once you arrived in February, everything went into fast forward and we trained HARD. You pushed me day in and day out and it was always a guarantee that you would show up for a workout. Crazy how fast two people can become great friends, but I guess when you spend crazy amounts of hours putting miles in that tends to happen. You and your family are truly amazing and you are an awesome role model that I look up to!

OC- Man o Man did we have some journeys throughout Korea. For making the trip out to Cali for WF and for all the memories, it was a good time.

Super Dave- For kicking my rear end on the bike day in and day out and teaching me the beginnings of becoming a cyclist.

Jeff- Man I was scared a few times you were going to run me off the road. You had to been tired of my newb ass the first couple rides always asking dumb questions ;) Thanks for making some awesome journeys throughout Korea and mentoring me on the tri scene!

Des- Dude you have been along on this whole journey. You have to be tired of all the favors I ask from you, but a lot of this wouldn't of happened without you there at Osan. I mean not being able to walk for a few days after my first marathon, I can thank you for that. Who convinces someone to run a marathon with no training...........YOU!

Eric- For making the journey out to China with me and experiencing that hell of a race. You have been a great mentor throughout this whole journey, thanks for all of your knowledge and expertise! Hopefully someday we will both be racing Kona together!

Tim R.- Once again another roadie that taught me about biking. Always good to share the road with you and enjoy some of Korea. I will never forget our stop at the Korean soup place out by the Ocean and how you didn't like sea food but still ate it.

Jess- For showing me what it was liked to constantly get "chicked" on group rides as you would tear my legs off. I was scared to go ride with you as it was never fun getting my legs torn off by you!

Shauna- For trying to make me a swimmer, I have come to the conclusion that it is a lost cause ;) I will get more into how great of a person you are in the next blog. But thanks for the great memories in Korea, and always telling me to get off the wall and swim more!

Tim L.- For being like Shauna and trying to make me a swimmer. I have come to the conclusion it is a lost cause!

Pyeongtaek Tri Club- These guys have been a huge help throughout all of my travels and racing in Korea. Without Mr. Yu and Bobby I would not have made it back from a few races or of gotten into some races. They have been an incredible group of people!

The Girls ;)- I won't name any names, juts that there were a few, very small number that put up with my craziness. I mean what kind of guy gets out of bed to go ride his bike and leaves a girl in bed on the weekend? Well I can say that the stupidity of that has paid off with the training and results, but not with the girls as obviously I am still single. But for the ones that put up with it for the time while I was in Korea I appreciated it!

Anyone else that I left off, I am sorry. It was a few years back and I am getting old so my memory is slipping me. The first couple of months were really just a blur as it seemed all I did was just race, well more than train, it has been said that when starting out you can race your way into shape, and it seems that I successfully did that without getting injured, lucky me!

So that was the first portion of the journey in a nutshell. I tried to keep it short and sweet and I am sure I left out some funny stories, but man it seems like that was a long time ago.

The group ride where everyone got to see me topple over. For some reason whenever we would have a century ride massive amounts of people would come out. I don't think we have this many roadies at Osan right now. Maybe all it takes is putting together a century and they will all come out.

Meeting Triathlon Olympic bronze meadlist Jan Rehula.

My first podium and AG Win!

Myself and Mr. Yu, this man speaks very little English, but he has taken me in as one of his own team members and has helped me out throughout all of my time in Korea. Great man and kick as Triathlete!

Well until I get around to typing up Part 2, this will have to do...........

Silicon Valley LC RR- All for the Family!

11 June 2011- Silicon Valley Long Course Tri-

So with IM China being canceled it meant a change to the schedule. I was able to come home early and get in one more race before my first IM. The race was a little akward on distances but it worked out quite well for me and suited my strengths. It was a 1 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 9 mile run. They had a military discount and on top of that I was able to use a discount code for 15% off. So all in all I ended up getting into the race for $142, which isn't too bad for a long course race. It was also only a few miles from my brothers new condo so I stayed the night there and then got a short warm up ride to the race start the morning of.

I have been racing all of my races now with a purpose and it makes them so much more meaningful and gives me a reason to push myself. Before this race I wanted to race for my family, for the simple fact of how much they support me. I also knew that all of them were going to be there for the race and that meant a lot for me. It is very rare to have them at my races since I primarily race out of the country. Knowing that they were all going to be there for some reason made me nervous, I have never been nervous before a race before. I didn't sleep all that well the night before and maybe got 2 hours of sleep.

So race morning came and I woke up and hung out with my brother and had breakfast bright and early at 4am. I got a good meal in, the typical cup of coffee, 2 instant bags of oatmeal, a banana and a sports drink. Also kept the streak alive and took care of business. So the morning went well and the short 15 minute ride to the race start was nice and loosened up the legs a bit.

Swim- 1 Mile-
It was a 2 loop swim course with each lap being .5 miles and going around a small island. It was in a lake so there was no chop and it was smooth water. I was in the first wave with 18-34 Males and we had a decent size wave. I came out of the first loop in 2nd place, which I didn't know till after the race. I was kind of shocked by that as my swim is my weak point but is slowly improving. After the second loop I came out with 2nd and 3rd place swimmers and was in 4th. A few other guys from later waves got around me and smoked the swim so I ended 18th overall with my swim time.

Bike- 56 Miles-
It was a good ride with some great scenery. It was a little windy though and had 2 good climbs which had some switchbacks on it. Overall it was a good bike and there were 3 of us that legally worked with each other for a majority of the ride. I ended up dropping the 2 of them around mile 40 but then at mile 45 I had to stop and pee and they got around me. Took a couple more miles down the road and I ended up re passing them. Overall I felt really strong on the bike and was happy about my time and 5th fastest split on the day.

Run- 9 Miles-
With the run being 9 miles I was a little bummed as the full 13 would of been better suited for me as my run has become quite strong. The plan going into the run was to negative split and build into it. This is something that is pretty difficult to do but some of my run training has included some training with negative splitting the run so I felt like I could do it going into the race. The first 4.5 miles I went 28:18 and then for the second half I went 27:26, for a total of 55:44. I was able to run down 3 of the 4 guys that were ahead of me and crossed the line in 2nd. But due to the wave starts there was a 47 year old that finished within 2 minute of me but he started 9 mins after I did so he ended up winning the whole thing and then the guy that had crossed the line first came in 2nd overall. I ended up being 3rd Overall and running hard of the bike was a key to the successful day.

Splits/Stats:
Swim- 23:51/18th
Bike- 2:25:50/5th (23mph/avg)
Run- 55:44/3rd (6:12min/mile)
Total: 3:47:28/3rd Overall out of 307/1st out of 21 in AG

Overall-
I felt like this was my best race to date and I was able to put everything together and have solid performances in each event. I felt like I had nailed my nutrition as well which was something that I wanted to make sure was squared away before IM Korea. This was definitely a huge confidence booster going into my first IRONMAN and I can not thank everyone enough for all of their continued support. My family has been great, my coach has been there to keep me going when things got tough and then all of my friends, you guys are truly amazing!

The bike all setup in transition area.

Coming out of the water 2nd in our wave on the first loop, the guy right behind me was in 3rd.

Coming out of T1.

Headed out onto the run...

Bottle of wine and a Clean Water Bottle......Hopefully wearing that bright blue shirt on all these podiums will get us some more triathletes into the AF ;)

Mamma Weez and myself.

Bryan, Steve, Mom, Maddy and Me

Brenda, Me, and Dad

The 3 of us. Man I miss these 2 when I am gone! She can be a typical little sister most the time but I still love her to pieces!

First TTT=WIN.....But What is This Weekend Really About??

31 May 2011- Hwaseong TTT-

This past Saturday the team I rode for during the TDK reassembled to take part in a Team Time Trial(TTT). We added a few other people to form a strong 7 man team that we felt had a good shot at being the top team. The event allowed all Time Trial gear, so I of course used my P3, Rudy Wingspan Helmet and a borrowed Skin Suit. My buddy Zach Garrett rides for the U.S. Military Cycling team so I got a cool Stars and Stripes skin suit to show off. Peter (AKA Honey Badger) likes our as he calls them, "Captain AmeRICA" suits and laughs at us when we put them on, this weekend though since 2 of us had them on he felt left out and admitted that he wanted one of his own. This weekend meant a lot more to me than just going out to win a race.

I took the opportunity to sport the red, white and blue and take it to the top spot on the podium. I took great pride leading our team to a victory and making sure we pushed the pace. We started with 7 riders but only had to finish with 4. By the second lap we were down to 5 riders, we made some adjustments on the fly due to the wind. By the 2nd lap our team manager Jeremy was holding a sign that said "47" BACK", I was thinking crap we are down 47" already. Then it grew as each lap went on, I was a little baffled as I thought we were putting down a solid effort. On lap 6 Honey Badger heard on the radio that we were "UP 2 minutes", so there was some confusion, but we ended up winning by almost 2 minutes and showed some of the teams from the TDK that our finish of 2nd at the TDK was no fluke.

As for the rest of the weekend I got in some solid training and had a pretty relaxing weekend. Sunday I got out for a 5 hour ride, and ended up being solo. It was a good opportunity to reflect on things and appreciate everything I have been blessed with. As I was riding I was able to think about Memorial Day and what it really means. Being on Facebook quite regularly I was able to see quite a few peoples post about their weekend plans and what they were going to be doing. It ranged from: weekend get-aways, BBQ's, lake trips, drinking, partying, family get togethers. Then throughout these posts there were the occasional "Thanks to the Troops", "Thanks for those that served", and so on.

The one thing that I ask is that if you enjoyed this weekend and had a great 3 day break but for some reason it went by too fast and you were wishing you had one more day off, remember why you had the extra day off in the first place: MEMORIAL DAY. I am sure many of you know why we had the day off and actually appreciate those that have served and that are serving. Freedom isn't free and it is something that I took for granted growing up, but take a minute to remember why you had that day off and don't take the freedoms we have for granted. There are many people down range, away from their families, in a hospital or dead because they paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we could enjoy our 3 day weekend. Thanks to all of those that continue to support our troops, we really do appreciate it!

Alright now that I am off my soap box, here are some pictures from the weekend along with some power data for you cycling nerds!

1st Place out of 20! 54:16, strong cross wind, won by almost 2 minutes!

Duration: 54:16
Work: 853 kJ
TSS: 75 (intensity factor 0.91)
Norm Power: 282
VI: 1.08
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 2938 262 watts
Cadence: 29 197 94 rpm
Crank Torque: 0 1807 235 lb-in

Click Power Chart to englarge...

Peak 5s (1301 watts):
Duration: 0:05
Work: 6 kJ
VI: n/a
Min Max Avg
Power: 353 2666 1301 watts
Cadence: 46 151 82 rpm
Crank Torque: 648 1807 1127 lb-in

Peak 10s (803 watts):
Duration: 0:10
Work: 8 kJ
Min Max Avg
Power: 71 2666 803 watts
Cadence: 46 151 69 rpm
Crank Torque: 115 1807 786 lb-in

Peak 20s (624 watts):
Duration: 0:20
Work: 12 kJ
Min Max Avg
Power: 71 2666 624 watts
Cadence: 46 151 76 rpm
Crank Torque: 115 1807 618 lb-in

Peak 30s (542 watts):
Duration: 0:30
Work: 16 kJ
Min Max Avg
Power: 71 2666 542 watts
Cadence: 46 151 82 rpm
Crank Torque: 115 1807 526 lb-in

Peak 1min (413 watts):
Duration: 1:00
Work: 24 kJ
Min Max Avg
Power: 7 2666 413 watts
Cadence: 46 151 83 rpm
Crank Torque: 8 1807 405 lb-in

Peak 2min (344 watts):
Duration: 2:00
Work: 41 kJ
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 744 344 watts
Cadence: 75 105 89 rpm
Crank Torque: 0 683 324 lb-in

Peak 5min (291 watts):
Duration: 5:00
Work: 87 kJ
TSS: 7.8 (intensity factor 0.965)
Norm Power: 299
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 792 291 watts
Cadence: 82 110 96 rpm
Crank Torque: 0 705 260 lb-in

Peak 10min (281 watts):
Duration: 10:00
Work: 168 kJ
TSS: 14.9 (intensity factor 0.945)
Norm Power: 293
Min Max Avg
Power: 64 832 281 watts
Cadence: 82 110 94 rpm
Crank Torque: 53 740 254 lb-in

Peak 20min (269 watts):
Duration: 20:00
Work: 322 kJ
TSS: 28.5 (intensity factor 0.924)
Norm Power: 287
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 2666 269 watts
Cadence: 46 151 96 rpm
Crank Torque: 0 1807 238 lb-in

Peak 30min (264 watts):
Duration: 30:00
Work: 474 kJ
TSS: 41.3 (intensity factor 0.909)
Norm Power: 282
Min Max Avg
Power: 8 2938 264 watts
Cadence: 56 197 93 rpm
Crank Torque: 9 1259 239 lb-in

The 2 Teams, one of 7 and one of 4. 5 Americans, 3 Koreans, 1 South African, 1 Irish, 1 Belgium. Quite a diverse group of guys!

Leading the group in the Awesome Red White and Blue, Stars and Stripes!!

The 5 finishers on our 1st place team!

On the podium, holding the bike that I will hopefully be on next year ;)

Yeosu Tri

8 May 2011- Yeosu South Korea-

Well with the race being on Mothers day and all and me being away from home I figured there was no need to stay around base. So instead of sitting in my room and being sad about not having all the great motherly figures that are in my life around and not getting to spend the day with my Mom, I packed up and headed South. One of my friends was suppose to go with me, but with it being mothers day he was put in a sticky situation and ended up staying home with the family. I don't blame him one bit, that is one thing that I value more than anything is FAMILY, they come before everything, well except my faith. So since I have started racing each race with a purpose, I raced this race for all the Moms out there, especially my mom, step mom, and grandmas!

The interesting thing about this race is that it was the first Olympic Distance race I did way back when in 2008. So I was looking forward to this race. I talked with coach about racing with it and we disagreed on it and he wanted me to get a big weekend in. So I convinced him to let me race it and we would still go big and just push right through it. So what did that mean? Well it meant a 20 mile run on Friday, and then getting up at 430am on Saturday to get in a 4 hour ride before heading down there. The somewhat crappy part about the early morning ride was that it ended up being somewhat miserable with rain and being wet, but luckily it was in the 60's. I even conned two buddies into joining me in the misery, so it ended up not being too bad. Came back from the ride and rushed to the train station to sit on the train for 5 hours.

I showed up to the train station and they told me the next train was "Sold Out", well luckily I knew what time it was leaving and bought a ticket for the next "available" train. The funny thing is I knew I was not going to be using a seat anyways since I had my bike. So I snuck on the early train and just hung out in the food cart. After about 2 hours a lady came by and asked me for my ticket, I showed her my ticket and she gave me the "O NOOOOOOO". Then the fun began, she informed me I was on the wrong train, and I played dumb American. Then she tells me you are in luck though it is headed to the same location. I ended up having to pay a "fee", but it was cheaper then what I originally would of payed to ride that train anyways. That train was faster than the next one by about 30 minutes, it had less stops. So in all actuality I save a couple dollars got there about 2 hours earlier and had somewhat of a stress free trip down there.

I met up with some friends from Seoul who had traveled in a big group down there. We all stayed at the same hotel and it was the exact same place I stayed in 2008, what a coincidence huh? This is the first time I have ever had problems with the Korean Tri Federation. I never pay in advance and always just pay at the race, well except for the one race last year where I was able to race AG Elite. They did away with that this year so I am not able to race for free anymore :( At registration it turned into a big ordeal that none of us had paid and kind of made pre-race day a little bit of a nightmare. I mean all in all it was my fault, but when I have been racing here since 2008 and have never had a problem it was a little strange.

Onto race morning I woke up and got a little bit of food down and as usual was able to take care of the pre race ritual. It is one thing I wake up every race morning fearing I won't be able to accomplish the pre race mission, but still haven't failed yet. Considering the past couple days of training I was feeling a little sluggish but figured once I got in the water I would wake right up and the body would start going.

Swim-

It was a 2 loop course that you never had to exit the water. So if you were a really bad swimmer you could of just exited on your first loop with a decent swim time of low 20's. I guess they trust the Koreans and us foreigners, its hard to believe since the bike courses are always a draft fest. Anyways the first loop I had some clear water and actually found some feet to draft off of for about 1/2 of the lap. The second loop was somewhat of a nightmare with a lot of people out on the course so it was more of a maze and just trying to find clear water. I came out of the water 4th in my AG, which wasn't bad at all. Luckily I had some friends spectating and they were able to give me some splits. I was down about 1m30s to "The Honey Badger" from the TDK aka Peter Tuhoy. The goal was to come out close to him so we could "work" together on the bike knowing that it is Korea and how you get in the draft or you just see the trains go right on by.

T1-

I should of just considered this as the additional mileage for the run, more to come on that. But the transition was probably close to a 1/2 mile trot, I took my splits from my garmin and adjusted them to there splits, since they didn't time T1 and T2, and it was 3:47 for T1.

Bike-

Well when you take 461 people onto a 4 loop bike course what else do you expect, a DRAFT FEST. I was pretty much solo for the first loop, I had passed a few of the people that came out of the water ahead of me, the 30-39 AG had a few people in our wave and there was a few of them that got out ahead of me. I hammered the first lap trying to catch Peter, and sure enough at the end of lap 1 we were together. We did some good work together but the 2 guys that were out of the water a little bit ahead of him were still up the road a bit on us. By the time lap 4 started Peter was getting a little tired, and he was riding a road bike with clip ons as well as a compact crank. The course and some rolling hills, so on the down hills he struggled to hang on. I knew I had to drop him or else he would come off the bike thinking he could run with me, and when you give him the thought he will somehow pull it off. He hasn't been running much and was just focusing on the TDK, but knowing him if he was with me he would of given it everything. So the other portion of the plan was to get away from him and create some separation headed into T2. Luckily I was able to get away and stay away.

T2- Not near as long as T1, but still a good jaunt out to the actual run course. I had a decent transition and the legs actually felt good.

Run-

Like I said surprisingly the legs felt good. I was told that the other 2 guys were 1:30 and 3 minutes up the road. I knew I had some work to do so I just kept focused and tried to reel the in. I pushed hard and just couldn't bridge the gap. I had some very solid miles though (well only 5 of them since the course was short) 6:17/6:22/6:04/6:06/5:43. I ended up crossing the line in what I though was 3rd, but of course in Korea some weird things happen. More to come on that.........

The biggest disappointment was that the bike and run courses were both short. The bike was about 5K short and the run was 2K short. The sad thing was I knew the bike was going to be short, but in 2008 the run was at least legit.

Here are my Overall placings and splits with Pros Included from the KTF. There were a total of 13 Pro Men that started the race!:

Swim-23:31/18th Overall/8th Amateur
Bike-54:55/4th Overall/2nd Amateur
Run-32:07/7th Overall/3rd Amateur
Total-1:50:31/7th Overall/2nd Amateur

My times adjusted w/ T1 and T2:
Swim-23:31
T1-3:47
Bike-51:08-24.5mph/avg (20.9 Miles)
T2- 1:36
Run-30:29-6:07min/mil avg (5 miles)

So the interesting thing was at awards they called me up as 1st Place in my AG. Then the official results came out a few days later and I was listed as 2nd. Then there was no results for Peter or the Korean guy that "won" the race in the Amateur Division. According to Peter the 2 guys that beat me have been down in Jeju training to become pros this year and that is why they were not put in the results at the race, but not sure why the one guy was in the "official" results, maybe he didn't make the cut to become a Pro, not sure how the Korean system works.

Overall though I am extremely happy with the results considering how hard I had trained that week coming into the race. Always looking at the big picture and staying focused for the #1 goal of the year, IM CHINA..................O wait if you hadn't heard IM CHINA WAS CANCELED! Luckily I was able to re arrange some things and I am coming home early 5 June-30 June, as opposed to 23 June -11 July. I will now be home before my first IM and will hurry back to Korea to do IM Korea on July 3rd. You may ask why I wasn't just doing IM Korea in the first place, well they didn't announce it till March 18th, my birthday. I had already had IM China planned and paid for so there was no turning back or switching plans as I was already committed financially. More to come on how all of the cancellations and financial burden this cost me in another blog, this one is already WAY to long!

Here are some pictures from the race weekend:

My little corner of the train. The Cervelo and a bunch of beer, can't really think of a better trade off........

What? I am really only 1m30s back on Peter? You sure that is right??????

1st Lap solo.....Imagine that riding solo in a tri ;)

Hammer down trying to catch Peter.......Out on the run, the course got crowded on the second loop.....
An extra medal, cool trophy and of course the typical Korean Certificate(which I left in Mr. Yu's car :(, will get it back sooner than later). And then the bonus, 10lbs of Kimchi! Mr. Yu's wife was much appreciative of it, they wouldn't take gas money so Kimchi was a good trade off!

I was lucky enough to catch a ride back with my buddy Mr. Yu. We stopped and had eel, it actually was not bad at all. He told me it gives you lots of "stamina" and I am pretty sure he was referring to the stamina that is needed in bed and not in a triathlon.........Can't say I can tell you if it is true or not, what kind of girl would be interested in a guy that commits 20+ hours a week to training and all of his other time to a college degree?? ;)

TDK Reflections........

9 May 2011-

Well it has been 2 weeks since the TDK ended and that has given me sometime to reflect on the whole experience. First off I want to say thanks to everyone for their continued support through the 10 days. It was amazing to see all the comments on FB and on here and know that a good group of people were following. It was an amazing experience to say the least, and I feel very fortunate to of been a part of the whole experience.

So with this being my first road racing experience I came in with no expectations. I had a few friends tell me that I was going to do great and surprise myself, so I had a feeling things would be alright. I don't think my coach was to fond of the idea being that road racing is notorious for crashes and with 9 days of racing something was bound to happen. Going into the race I had told myself I wasn't there to win, podium or go all out for just a higher finishing position. I was there to help the team and benefit them in anyway that I could. I just wanted to get 9 solid days of riding in my legs and not have to worry about work or anything else. I feel this was accomplished and luckily I kept it upright for 9 days and was not involved in any crashes.

I think all in all the whole experience was amazing. Although it seems the cycling world is a little more drama field than the triathlon world, well triathlon is drama free, so that is the one thing that was a little irritating. It is funny how whiny and fussy grown men can get over the littlest things, and then being around a testosterone field van and team of cyclist for 9 days doesn't make things much better. But some great friendships were made and lifetime experiences were had that will never be forgotten.

I can't wait until next year, and this just might become the main goal for early 2012 as I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. Thanks again for all of the continued support! A big thanks also goes out to my leadership for allowing me the time off work to go and race and represent the AF. Many ask how I get so much time off of work, a former boss once told me "Brad, as long as you come to work and bust your @$$ and make me 'money', I will do everything I can to support you. But you have to remember, the MISSION comes first". With that being said one thing I learned early in life with racing Quartermidgets and seeking sponsorship was what my Dad told me "What is the worst thing they can tell you when you ask for Sponsorship? NO! But if you don't ask you will never know". So with that being said, I ask for a lot of time off from work to compete in some big race around the world. Not to blow my own horn, but I believe I am allowed to do what I do because I show up to work I produce quality work and I am rewarded for it. Some also ask how is it that I get Permissive TDY for this and not charged leave, well luckily the AF is great about promoting its image. With physical fitness being one of the hot items, they don't mind allowing us to do things like the Tour de Korea, IM China, AF Marathon and so on, because it brings a good image to the AF and also promotes a good neighbor program when overseas. So I am fortunate to have such an understanding and supportive group of leaders who have continued to support me throughout the past couple of years.

Since I didn't really post results throughout the TDK here is a recap of each stage-

10 Days, 9 Stages 24 hours of total saddle time, 487 miles of racing and then because I am a goof ball Triathlete 3 hours 46 minutes of running with 27 total miles, but couldn't find a single pool :(

Stage 1- 116th/150 -33:13 off of leader (Gave up wheel and waited for support van. Would of been around 25th, -6:17, that is the group I crested the mountain with and then had to stop on the descent.)
Stage 2- 43rd/147 -0:08 off of leader
Stage 3- 63rd/149 -2:55 off of leader (First main pack, 4 man break got away. Lead out Elmer from 1K to 12th Overall)
Stage 4- 77th/130 -3:59 off of leader (Stopped to pull GC rider back to peloton after he flatted. The gap was too big and we were in 2nd group)
Stage 5- 72nd/130 -3:49 off of leader (Just flat out got dropped)
Stage 6- 45th/124 -9:21 off of leader
Stage 7- DNF (border line hypothermia day) 36 of 111 DNF'd
Stage 8- 44th/132 -3:21 off of leader
Stage 9- 34th/146 -0:24 off of leader

And some pictures that I may have or have not posted throughout the TDK:

On the sea wall setting the pace for the peloton......

Amazing scenery.........

Cherry Blossoms in full bloom...

The day we finished in Gunsan (where Kunsan AB is)

The Team......My mentor who is 30 years older and kicked my butt!

You know you have been in Korea to long when you eat cookies with chop sticks!

And all good things have to come to an end. This couldn't of been possible without the efforts put forth by our team manager Jeremy Moon. The guy put up with a lot of shit, and I joked around a lot with him, so when I was being serious I had to state up front that I was being serious, because I guess my sarcasm gets lost in translation. Looking forward to next year buddy!