First and foremost, I owe a big thank you to the hundreds of people that make triathlon races possible. Everyone who pays an entry fee to a race, the race organizers, my employer, my coach and most importantly my family and my wife Kim West… all of you support my hobby and lifestyle! Thank you!!
Tri Season 2011 went incredibly well. There were some ups and downs as with any endeavor worthwhile. This year, the ups greatly outweighed the downs for sure. I broke my personal best in Sprint Triathlon, I snagged 2nd place overall in the Mideast Regional Race, I won the Michigan Sprint Series Championships and my bike splits were the best they’ve been. The competition has been stepped up a notch and it seems everyone these days are in training for a triathlon of some sort.
Some moments this past season that really stuck out:
The Grosse Ile duathlon, where three of us runners were within seconds of each other on the first 5k… racing into transition, I was able to launch into the bike and put a few minutes into the field. It was my first multisport win of the season! That second 5k hurt, however; I kept telling myself in 18 minutes or less the pain would go away!!
The first Triathlon in Michigan, Island Lake Sprint, 800 meters swim felt smooth, 12.4 mile rolling hills on the bike (tight twists and turns almost like being in a fighter jet) and a challenging 5k run. My friend and toughest competitor Brian Francis was in a few waves back. Doing the math, I swore I had built in enough time… and it was like watching in the replay booth for a decision which came down to a handful of seconds. Either way we both had a great race and he got the decision that day. A few months down the road at the Regional Championships, his time bested mine, however; due to a penalty I was awarded the second spot. Racing so close can sometimes come down to both muscle and luck.
If I were to say I had a favorite race… Hmmmm…that would be tough. They were all good with the exception of a few events where the weather didn’t play nice. One race was the Mackinaw City Mix Triathlon, which waves forced this event into a duathlon… For me it turned into an epic failure (I’m due one a season). The other was the Mideast Regional Championships. I was certain I’d have a sub two hour Olympic performance, however; the wind and rain got the best of me and I’d have to settle for 90 seconds over.
The closest competition was the race that I won by 15 seconds. It was a sprint in the Potato fields of Notre Dame In. I had led the swim by about 10 seconds and then was caught on the bike about 5 miles out. I was a little frustrated because when I’m in my peak form, I would have held a better pace then what I was pushing. My legs simply did not have the oomph to go that day. Eventually, I loosened up and actually re caught the biker who had just passed me. This was an exciting 16 mile chess match. He bolted out of t2 in first and I was 30 seconds down. I was watching his running form and noticed that I would make up about 5 seconds per hill… and then he gave me the look back (whenever you look back, you are either scared or tired)… I was able to get right behind him at the turn around point. Going up the final large hill I thought this is it. I’m going to surge as best as I can, which paid off. I held about a 15 second gap the last mile and finished the year with a win.
I think triathlon and business mirror one another. The reality is this: You get out what you put in. If you are not having fun, then you should think about doing something different.
Offseason 2011 started with me being injured, overweight and feelings of insecurity. A lot of things in the past 2 years didn’t go as well as I thought they should have. The reality, my results in prior years were the product of halfhearted illogical training coupled with unrealistic expectations.
Coach Tony Venticinque did a great job teaching me about training right and enjoying the race. I love this quote of his “Sports and life mirror each other. Keep your head in the game, trust your coaching, and make the most of opportunities. Learn from your mistakes, play to your strengths and have fun. None of us are getting out of here alive.” – Coach Tony Venticinque.
We spent a lot of time working on how to get me back in the game. Going into the offseason, there’s now plan and the overarching theme is simple, train and race to the fullest of my abilities.
Stay engaged the entire game (even when you are up & down):
What’s my game? For some it’s the pursuit of the Olympics, for others it’s Ironman and even others it’s local age group events. For me it’s whatever I define the game to be. The rules of the game should be as such:
Enjoyable, fulfilling, mutually benefiting, non-masochistic, character building & most importantly (like most things in life), you should leave the game better than what you found it.
There can be a very dark side to any singular competition event (running, marathons, ironman..etc..etc…) And it’s important not to fall into this dark side. Most people let the game consume them entirely & virtually cuts of all other aspects of their lives.
Going back to Coach Tony’s advice = Sports and life mirror each other. Surviving success (in my opinion can be the toughest part of competing).
To sum up the race season 2011 in a few words, I’d say “Life Lessons”… It’s not always about being the fastest or the best, it’s about becoming a better person. In this life you’ve a choice of two directions – you are either growing or dying, there aint no third direction!!!
I’m eager to engage into 2012… It’ll be fun to see what’s around the corner!
