It's a new dawn, it's a new day, it's a new life... for me

 10 down, 13 to go!

Here we are, mid-season. And I'm feeling... good. Everything I set out to do from my last post I'm still doing. One more items I added was being TRULY comfortable in the swim and creating mitigations if I am not. This is huge for me. Swim is one of those things that truly make what I do special but it also scares me. I'm not a natural swimmer. My feet and legs just sink and I'm shaped like redwood tree. 

One of my prouder moments was White Lake Spring. I started out and the waves were unusually high. Every time I breathed right (the only way I breath), I got hit in the face with a wave. I stayed calm, did my side-stroke to the left and just took a break. I remember seeing my friend and he gave me a look like "wtf". I kind of smiled and kept at it. Once I got to the first buoy, I felt good and took off. I went from being near dead last to being 1st or 2nd out of the water. What a lesson for me. Chill the fuck out Adam.

I've approached each race as a fun experience and haven't stayed (except for one time because they block you in) for awards. Don't care at all. Still feel amazing after every race. So in that sense, I'm winning this year. I'm still trying to improve however. I have managed to find SOMETHING to say I improved for every race. Sometimes frankly its just about everything. So I like that I'm able to accomplish that. 

There are so many cool experiences I have lined up. I'm heading to Mexico City with a bike to try to do the triathlon they have there. I'm signed up but we'll see how it all goes. Then later on this summer, I'm going to Boulder again. Remember how I missed that turn?!@#@!# Going to get my revenge on that race. I've decided it's ok to have these feelings about a race itself but not the competitors ;)

Then I'll be doing OBX again, Wrightsville (revenge for my penalty), back to Miami for Miami man (LIONS AND ELEPHANTS!), finally ending the year with an already booked Key West. Cannot wait to see how it all goes.

Having so much fun, trying to be grateful and present. 

Pursuing Excellence, Whole Hearted

 1. Intro

As I sit here, in the cold of December with an actual case of the actual FLU, I can tell you I'm still incredibly grateful and incredibly proud for the effort and manor in which I competed this year. We'll get to the results, but I have embarked on a new journey, one that has a mental sphere of influence beyond just triathlons or competition. I've enjoyed this year more than any previously not just because of the joy of the competition, but the joy in sharing my sport. I've made real friendships and have tried to share my love of the sport and knowledge and wisdom (if there is any). As I look back, I can truly say that I have embraced my wife's mantra of "make friends, have fun".

I guess if you read this Inner Excellence book enough, it starts to rub off on you ;)

I have, to the best of my ability, adopted the mentality of "living my dream" and not being so caught up in my goals. Goals are things you can't really control (not completely). This is completely obvious when a friend finishes way ahead of you in a time trial format race just to learn that you beat THEM by 1 second. The same thing happened TO me in my last race in Key West. It's a function of who shows up really. I can pick out 100 triathletes just in my age group that I bet I could lose to on any given day. So where does that leave goal setting? Does it really matter?

Well, if I were just goal driven, 2025 would be absolutely impossible to beat. I was healthy the whole year (got the flu a week after my last race fwiw). My equipment was completely on point. I had very few missteps (sorry about the penalty in Wilmington everybody). I competed to win every time but also realized winning wasn't what was driving it. I like the lifestyle. "Living the dream". I hope to remain healthy and do that in 2026.

Ok, but let's look back and document this bananas year I had. I'm convinced everything I'm about to say overstates the year I had, but its a kick to look back.

2. Year in Review

1. All American Status: My final USAT Score for 2025 will be 109.404. That is good enough right now to be ranked 4th in the country for my age group. So this will be a check 
2. Win NCTS For AG. My total NCTS Score ended the year at 37,624. That's about 2k more points than last year. And also got me #1 overall for NCTS, all age group/advanced males. 
3. Improve my overall USAT Final Score. I went from 95.676 to 109.404. I also improved my score in every USAT sanctioned race from previous years (the only exception was Wilmington where I got a 2 min penalty. If i didn't get the penalty, I would have beat my old score for that race as well. And that was with the same bike fwiw). 
4. Be the highest ranking triathlete in my age group in the state. I think I was the highest ranking NC athlete over the age of 41 last time I checked as well fwiw. 

Stretch goals added half way through:

1. >100 USAT Score 
2. Win NCTS OA 
3. Improve on every race 
4. Top 3 ranked in country  (almost, likely 4th)
5. Podium PR 
6. Avg Place 3 

<Update> I need to fit in one more thing here. This one wasn't even a goal (or stretch goal) I had. On January 3rd, I got word that I was the overall winner for the Trivium Multisport Series. This series has always been "the other" big triathlon series in North Carolina and one that I would fit in when I could. I never once checked my stats or where I was in their rankings. To win the OVERALL for this against the true badasses that show up for these all the time was the shock of the season for me. Because of this win, I get free races for life with them. Wow. Also, I can claim that I was the OVERALL Series award winner for BOTH Setup events AND Trivium. Truly grateful for that.

The Details:

1. 25 Triathlons, 1 Duathlon completed in 2025 (26 multi sport races):
• 23 AG Div Wins
• 22 AG Overall Wins
• 26 Top Ten OA Finishes. Lowest place was 8th (Wilmington because of penalty, would have been 5th)
• Podiums
• 7 Outright wins (including my first chase down win). Remember this?
• 4 2nd places
• 3 3rd places
• 5 4th places (fwiw)
• My average (and median) place for the year (including my 8th place in Wilmington) was 3rd
2. Highlights for me:
• First race of the year felt like a let down. I mentally couldn't compete with top 2 guys and I ended up settling for 3rd. My very next race I had my first ever chase down win. The only difference was between my ears.
• Pinehurst felt like my best race of the year. My legs felt fresh, I had gas in the tank at the end, my first 100+ score.
• Lake Norman: I always do bad in that race (I thought). I probably put my best performance together that day on a VERY difficult course. 
• It was great to finally fit Badin Lake in again after like 15 years.
• I tried 2 races in the same week. It was WAY hard.
• I didn't bring a wetsuit to a race in August and it cost me. I still had a good attitude that day though.
• Outer Banks is a great race. I really like that one. Some races are great just to be there. This is one. Extraordinary performance is a subset of extraordinary experience.
• Cocoa Tri was a great win for me, tough competitors, kept my composure.
• Key West returned! Maybe stayed too long. Don't need to see the Durt Bags that much. One night is plenty.

3. What's next?

This is always a question that bugs me. And I think I know why. Because I started to suspect that I could hunt and peck races to make me look better than i am. I didn't necessarily do that on purpose in 2025, but I could easily see myself doing that in 2026. I'm not going to do that. 

So here's what's next: I'm going to focus on living my dream and see where it takes me. I'm not going to try to beat my number of podiums. I'm not going to try to beat my USAT scores. I think I could do that and it would limit me. I wouldn't branch out, take chance, enjoy this stuff. If I just did VERY early and VERY late triathlons, I could podium ALL of them and maybe win most of them, especially the ones that I know and that do not necessarily draw the same level of competition. So if in one year I say "I had more podiums, a higher percentage of them, did less and was choosier with races", that would sacrifice why i actually do this. That would sacrifice living my dream. AND my dream is to race every weekend and feel the cadence of that. It's not a lifestyle if you do it once a month 3 months a year. I'm in this for the mental, physical, spiritual benefits. Hell, I didn't even save any of my first place trophies either! I stopped wanting my 1st place AG awards the same way I stopped wanting my participation medals. Who cares? Not me. It's always fun to appreciate the day in the moment and then move on to what's next. This is already who I am. If I did something different, it just wouldn't be me.

SO, what does that mean? It means, I'm going to try to continue to have the American Dream - to PURSUE happiness. The journey and the effort is what I'll celebrate. I'll be doing the now draft legal race in Sarasota. It will be a completely different race. Good. New challenge. 

One more thing. Towards the end of the season, I started to lose this mentality a bit. I started to think about the wins. I didn't like it. It didn't change my results. It didn't make me happier. It just made me appreciate less. Whenever I get back to that, I need to re-evaluate and change my attitude. I'll always compete to win. But I need to remember, the journey and the pursuit is where my pleasure is. 

<Update to remember>
The Sarasota race was great fun. I saw friends and was shocked to hear that the book I recommended to one of my competitors was something he was reading. It absolutely made my day. Felt like I competed hard, didn't come close to winning. Got 5th. I drove all the way back to my airbnb singing this song. I used to think longer distances made me happier. They don't, I'm just as happy. I used to think winning a race made me happy. It doesn't, I'm just as happy if I feel like I competed at a high level. I want to be Neo at the END of the Matrix. I feel like that is when I'm most powerful. And I'm feeling....good.

Here We Are. Fall.

 

Ugh so the regular season is officially over now. I'm so sad that another year is in the books and its already fall. Except, I do really love fall. The only problem is it signals another triathlon year has come and gone.

Looking back at 2025, it's been an absolutely amazing year. I set a series of goals and I have blown right through them. 

With no issue at all, I've achieved all 4 of my original goals for 2025. I still have some hope to hit all my new/stretch goals as well. We'll see. I'll comment on that more in my end of year analysis.

I really just wanted to check in with how I'm feeling about the year. I feel incredibly grateful for my family allowing me to race as much as I have. I feel massively grateful for not having injuries or illnesses that would have kept me from competing. I'm more than a little apprehensive about future goals since I worry I truly peaked this year. I may be able to tighten some screws but the gains I saw this year have moved me up to next level. Given my age and the amount I can train, I'm really facing the first year (2026) where it will be VERY difficult to improve. But enough of that thinking for now, we're still in 2025.

I am beyond grateful for 2 more races this year. And I do plan on hitting the ground running with races in January, February, March to keep the streak alive. 

So all in all, felling very grateful, thankful of an amazing ride/journey in 2025. And super excited for the opportunity to compete and stay healthy in 2026. More on results in my next post. My journey to being whole hearted and pursing excellence continues. This journey permeates all parts of my life, even beyond sport. Someday maybe I'll look back at this journey and ponder what it was all about and what I achieved. In the mean time, I'm in the moment with gratitude and trying to focus on what I can do to improve.

Already More Than Half Way Through...

Ugh I hate that we are already more than half way through this season. But boy it's been a fun one so far...

I never have read a "sports psychology" book before but was really interested in this book when I heard A.J. Brown was reading it on the Eagles sidelines between plays, I thought "Hmm, good enough for him, maybe I'll give it a try". 

It's been amazing frankly. It's changed my entire viewpoint on competition and it has given a language for why I never stick around for awards. If you haven't read it, it's a great read. 

I think it's made me a better triathlete AND a better competitor. And by better, I mean someone who truly values everyone who comes out for a race. It's also shifted my mentality to be less results driven and focusing on enjoying the ride.

But to my wife's chagrin, I still do care about how things turn out. I mean, it doesn't say to not set goals or anything. The results are just feedback. And so far this year, the feedback has been really good.

Here are the things I changed coming into this season in order of impact from what I can tell:

1. Training Cadence: If you train more, you do better. ;) This year, I swim 5-6 days a week without fail. This has helped tremendously. Not just with the swim (which it has obviously) but also my general conditioning. I also have made a commitment to hitting the bike 3 times. I've been playing with running 3 times too (I have really reduced distance to a ridiculous level though to keep my right knee happy). 

2. Equipment: When I bought my new bike, this allowed me to free up my old Cervelo to be used as a training bike. I bought a  Garmin TacX Neo 2T and this has changed my bike training. Before, I'd go out and ride on gravel and it was fun. But it never seemed to translate no matter how hard I went. By locking in on my indoor trainer, I have hyper focused my bike form and cadence to be maybe 80-90% of race pace. I can do that because of the built in power meters on my new bike and the TacX so I always know how had I go. Now when I ride indoors or at races, I always look at Watts/kg 3 second average. I don't even look at speed. I only get that info AFTER I race.

My new bike has definitely given me some gains. It's kind of hard to measure because I also made so many other changes at the same time. I do love knowing that I have the fastest bike/wheels/aero helmet that can be purchased so really if I'm not doing well it's just me :)

Much less impact but worth mentioning is I have invested in quality race goggles and haven't had any fogging issues which I know keeps me more straight.

3. Race Approach: I always loved to race. I do love the "lone gunman" feeling of doing all this alone on my own. Training for instance is all just me. And that's the way I still like it. 

I have to admit though after reading the book, I love races even more and it's BECAUSE of the relationships. The friendships I've made in the last few years has really made it even more fun. Who else knows the trials and tribulations that we endure than these other old dudes doing the same thing I'm doing?! It's been amazing.

So how is it going? Well, if you'll recall I decided I would abandon the SCTS series and (with the exception of my beloved Tri the Rabbit) it's been wonderful not trekking down to a very far away place every other weekend. Those races (except for the aforementioned Rabbit) were really not my favorite anyway. I've reconnected with some old triathlons I did many years ago and have done all the close ones. Let's check in with the goals:

1. All American Status: Well as I type this, my current rank score is 108.305 (!) Frankly, this is a ridiculous score. I had a very legitimate 99.8 last week, but got awarded a 129.887 for competing in a new Super Sprint. Truth be told, I wanted to do the longer tri option that day but I did a Wed night race that week and my legs were dead. Either way, whether my 99.8 or the 108.3, achieving this goal was in the bag.

2. Win the NCTS for AG: There have been 9 races so far and there are 5 left (we are now enduring the long summertime where they inexplicably have no races for me to consume - how dare they!). As it stands now I have a best of 4 races total of 36,815 (I competed in 6 of the 9 so far...the next highest number of races so far is 4 - I'm putting Bill's kids through college.). Ok, so nobody really has come close to my raw number so I'll do an average. Assuming I don't do any better, I'll end the year with a 9203.75 average. The guy currently in second has a 8908 average. So that looks pretty wrapped up (unless the other guy scores a 10,091 or chips away at it in other races). In fact, I have the highest average of anyone in the Age Group category and 142 and 119 points away from the top 2 Advanced males. 

3. Improve my overall USAT Final Score: Last year I had a 95.676 and in 2023 had my previous best at 98.480. So that's already done. In fact, this year I have outperformed every single race I did last year from a USAT Score perspective (10 races). I mean, these scores are a bunch of bull but I'll take it. Doing it again next year... that will be the real challenge given how much focus and effort I've put into this year. That kind of thinking though is what burns people out...

4. Be the highest ranked triathlete for my AG in NC: Well, if my 108 stands, that looks pretty tough to beat... Had a shot before that too. But these 3 race folks who train and train and just do a race every 4 months? Who knows...

This is NOT something I want to be so results oriented with since it really doesn't mean anything other than who did or did not show up, but fwiw, I have 7 podiums this year so far with 3 wins (counting the duathlon win I had in February), 2 2nds, and 2 3rds. My average place this year is 3.57 (but again, not something I want to dwell on since its beyond my control and may be more a statement of folks not coming out to the same races as me, etc). But my record of 9 podiums from last year looks like it may be well within reach. Possible new stretch goal, have most podiums in a year ever. I'll go ahead and say I should include the duathlon win in the results since its multisport (as opposed to running races I've won in the past and haven't included). Need to make a call on that I think. 

If I ended (or still somehow do end up) with a 99.8 or whatever for a final score, I obviously would have craved a 100+ overall score. If things stand where they are, this stretch goal is already then achieved.

Other than continuing to try to best my old USAT scores for each race, I'm not sure what else I have for stretch goals... I'll keep thinking.

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

 A whole lot to catch up on since my last post! 

1. Spain! 

Ok, learned a lesson here. It was an amazing trip full of great family moments. But I'd have to admit it felt like a rehash of last year in Pontevedra. And the venue was pretty much as dull as I was expecting. Rather than an ancient European city (Pontevedra), it was a beach town that looked more like Myrtle Beach than anything. I also kind of almost died on the swim so that wasn't fun. The story there was just there was tons of people, HUGE waves, and some current to contend with. And if I was totally honest, my heart wasn't as into it as last year. Bike was real good, run was decent so I did fine, but nothing to really linger on. "Ok Adam cry me a river about your multi week Spanish vacation". I know I know. But I think I'm done with the high pressure World Championship venues for a while. I had a goal for 2024, I qualified, I competed, moving on. 2023 will be the magical World Championship we all want to remember. Michael Jordan as a Bull not a Wizard.

2. Year in Review: 

Despite the Spanish race, it was an amazing year. 2024. Pretty convincingly the greatest athletic year I've had to date. Let's make the call for the 2024 goals:

A) Travel as much as possible:

Jeebus this was a check. Sure they cancelled the Key West at the end of the year but I was still able to race in:

1. Florida
2. Cuba(!)
3. North Carolina
4. Virginia
5. South Carolina
6. Texas
7. Tennessee
8. Spain
9. Arizona

B) Win NCTS for Age Group:

 Done! Had the 5th most points overall (no one in same age range)

C) Win SCTS for Age Group: 

Done! Had the 8th most points overall (no one in same age range)

D) Get USAT All American Status:

They don't close the books until February but I can say done!

E) Qualify for 2025: 

Not sure how to score this one. I guess a miss. I realized half way through year that not only was my family burned out on these mega trips, nobody had any interested in Australia. So I skipped Omaha. If there is a miss here, I didn't recognize what a death march this would become.

F)<STRETCH> #1 Ranking for Triathlon in my AG in NC:

In the category of "better to be lucky than good", it looks like (not official until February) I'm going to end up as the top ranked triathlete in my age group in the state of North Carolina. There are some better guys out there but just didn't do the minimum 3 races. But let me make my case (to myself) that I should be in the conversation regardless:

1. Within those 9 places above I traveled, I managed to do 30 triathlons in 2024. I also raced on Thanksgiving which is the tradition and managed to squeak out a win at the Reindeer Romp 5k in Cary for the second year in a row. 
2. How did I do in these 30 triathlons?
• 27 1st Place AG Division finishes
• 25 1st Place AG Overall finishes
• 25 Top Ten Overall finishes. FWIW, the race in Spain was never going to be a top 10 OA and another race I did had the top collegiate triathletes in the nation, so...
• Improved my USAT score in 10 of 14 races I repeated year over year. Of the 4 I didn't improve, 3 were before I made an early season training adjustment. The other one (and actually one of the 3 previously mentioned) had some shenanigans. Like, the swim was much further, so our times were worse, so I ended up having a lower score. This is all voodoo but I pay attention to it.
• 9 Podiums
• 2 Outright wins
• 4 2nd places
• 3 3rd Places
• Highlight Races:
• 1st AG Overall in Cuba, stood on same podium that Gwen Jorgenson was on minutes earlier at the Hotel Nationale in front of peacocks. PEACOCKS!
• 1st Overall Master at the Cap Tex in Austin (massively huge race)
• 1st AG at NC State Championship
• 6th OA at YMCA Wilmington (massively huge race)
• 3rd American in AG at World Championships
• Won a Toy Pineapple for winning Sprint of the Konas in TN and saw lions and an elephant en route to winning Miami Man.

3. Now the Hell What:

Yeah. Still working on it to be honest. Some thoughts...

First, the idea of traveling to South Carolina to win a South Carolina prize makes less and less sense. This may be surprising but, I don't like in South Carolina. I'm actually pretty freakin far from these races. And I was (not kidding) literally passing closer races on my way to these races. So I'm done with the SCTS series. I may pick up a race if I happen to be in Charlotte, but that got old almost immediately. 

Second, I probably competed in the most races in America (or close to it). I can't help but feel like my USAT scores are not being properly calculated as a result. For instance, first race of the year last year, got second, felt like I had a crap swim, got a 95. Race 19 of the year, after racing every week, training hard got second again, felt really strong. Got a 92. I've also noticed that certain races I do, tend to produce better scores than others.

Third, now that I have actually (seemingly) achieved top ranking in state, I really can't make it a stretch goal anymore.

4. Here are my 1st Draft 2025 Goals...

1. All American Status: Gunning for 3 years in a row here...
2. Win NCTS for AG: Planning on doing a lot of these, going to go for my 4th in a row (3rd in this AG)
3. Improve my overall USAT Final Score: Again, there be shenanigans afoot. But I need some measure to show progress and this is easiest. I could mention here that I want to improve year over year again but that is implied within this. Also, I could mention that I may try to hunt and find high score races. But again, redundant to the above goal. 
4. Fuck me, be the highest ranking triathlete in my age group in the state again

Time for Triathlon Travel Time

 Well the NC season is over for me. That means its time to go to SPAIN!

Ok, first off, how's it all going? Goals:

1. Travel as much as possible: Spain, Miami, Phoenix. That's what I have left for travel (that's after all the tri trips we've already taken). So some meat still left on the bone!

2. Win NCTS for AG: It's official! Their season is over and I'm first in my AG. Looks like I actually have 1st place in the AG division! 2 Advanced guys ahead of me so I guess 3rd overall! Not bad. I did 8 NCTS races. If you compare my USAT scores for the same race, I had my best race this year in 7 of the 8 (New River I did better last year and that actually caused me to change strategies and train more which WORKED!)

3. Win SCTS for AG: Not official yet since they have 2 races left. BUT, looks like a done deal to get 1st AG. Looks like Erik got first in the division, with me 2nd. 4 guys in Advanced were higher so I"m looking at 6th overall. Not too bad!

4. Get All American Status: Again, won't know until February I guess. But looks like a lock. 

5. Qualify for 2025: Decided we were all burned out on this and no appetite for Australia. Maybe another year. 

6. STRETCH - Top in AG for NC: So far so good but I'm not holding my breath. Likely just a matter of time.

When you take away all the strange things, this is measurably my best season ever already. I promised my wife that we wouldn't take the Worlds seriously this year since last year was THE most stressful time we've had. So going to take it easy and just enjoy it. I'm frankly burned out on all the Worlds stuff from last year still. Maybe once a decade and we do other less stress inducing races overseas. 

OH, and I got the new bike. Here's my impression:

1. My fit is better than my last bike. The guy who did it was a rock star and it feels great.

2. It feels fast but I am not sure I'm actually faster. I think I'm possibly a little less tired going to the run.

3. Also, I have a powermeter and I'm looking more at watts than speed which I think may be helping. 

But we'll see. I'll be taking it to Miami next month so should be interesting.

Already August?

I got super sad when I told my wife that I have only 11 triathlons left this year. She gave me the look but how are we already almost done already?! And if this is a safe place for me to vent, WHY DID THEY CANCEL THE KEY WEST TRI IN DECEMBER?! So bummed. Such a great little tradition I had going there too. And also, no Sun Devil Classic this November? AND no Havana triathlon next February? Bad enough the season is almost over, but no I'm scrambling to fill up the post Spain calendar. I know, boo hoo. But c'mon everybody!

But I still do have 8 more races before we head to Malaga for the World Championships. Frankly, last year was so MUCH stress, Covid/illness while there, logistics that it was a big turnoff. This year I promised my wife it would be low key. I wanted to do Australia in 2025 but it was a big no way and I had to agree actually. Just burnt out on these high stress events. Maybe I'll give it a few years off on them and travel other cool places (like there is a triathlon in Chile in December? Maybe next year!

I think I have some replacement races that should be pretty great lined up and if I were being honest, I can only do the same thing every year for so long before I need to mix it up and miss it a little bit (I'm going to enjoy the hell out of 2025 Key West!)

In the meantime, it's been a great season so far. I learned that if I train more, I do better. I think I'm on to something. While my absolute score is well below what it was last year (because I'm frankly not doing high profile races that draw other folks with high scores), my year over year times and scores have been going up. It's a real validation to the training changes I have made. 

AND, I've also purchased a NEW BIKE! I've been looking at this exact bike and color for about 2.5 years now. It is stuck in Germany right now but I should have it by the end of the season. AND I hit the go button on some brand new hookless Zipp 858 NSW's. I may even get the new disc this winter. I'm beyond excited (and frankly terrified to see if i see any measurable improvement). 

I am currently in a commanding (and frankly untouchable) position in the NCTS and SCTS standings for my age group (for Advanced and AG fwiw). I've also secured a USAT score that should all but guarantee an All American spot. I'm in my usual 1st place in the state position for this time of year (before the fast guys do their fall races). Should be top 3, hoping for #2 again but we'll see. I have 6 podiums so far this year which equals my full year total in 2022 and leaves me 2 away from my PR last season. I'm not sure I have "fixed" my podium problem but fwiw, I have 1 first, 4 seconds, 1 third so far. So it doesn't feel as bad as I finished last season. 

My official goals are killing it though:

1. Travel as much as possible. CHECK and more CHECK to come.

2. Win NCTS for AG: seems a done deal

3. Win SCTS for AG: seems a done deal (btw, I doubt I do this again next year. SO far from where I live, closer options, etc). 

4. Get All American Status: Seems like a shoe-in but we'll see

5. Qualify for 2025: Well, didn't go to Omaha because Australia didn't seem like a fun trip, more of a chore.

6. Stretch:  Top in AG in NC: Enjoy it while it lasts ;)

HAVANA NA NA NA

Spanish immersion triathlon 2 of 3 is done and it was an amazing trip. My wife, daughter, and I went down for a 9 day trip to Cuba to take in the culture, interact with the wonderful Cuban people, and participate in the 2024 Havana Triathlon.

As it turns out, sporting competition is one of the limited number of reasons to visit Cuba legally. We also were able to see a lot of friends and show Sofia the Havana that Emily (and to a much lesser extent) that I know and love. 

The race was the most surreal, unusual, crazy experience I have had in 25 years of racing. It was everything you'd expect a Cuban race to be. But I absolutely loved it and frankly can't wait to go back again next year. 

Sure, the race logistics were a bit unclear, wrong, miscommunicated, and confusing. We arrived to pick up the packet on Friday (note to self, just pick it up day before) and got some resistance. We stayed close to the Marina just before the race to make logistics easier (note to self, just stay closer to Hotel Nationale next time regardless of pre-race instructions). Sure, the race results times seemed to be randomly incorrect. But the placements seemed accurate and I managed to get 10th OA and 1ST AG (my first top AG placement for an international race). We met so many wonderful people at the race and the Cuban people have solidified a place in my heart as being some of the best, friendlies, and kindest people on the planet.

I was stretching and waiting for the start at the Marina when the elite women were finishing the swim and saw Gwen Jorgenson towards the lead of the pack. Later, I would see her at the Hotel Nationale preparing to accept her first place award and was lucky enough to snap some photos with her and my daughter. Just a really cool moment that I was glad to capture with Sofia. 

None of the actual times seem accurate on the website BUT I can say that my swimming was close to mid season form. My transitions were mostly good. My run was about average for me (mid 6:30s). My bike though... First off, I did get lost for about a minute. I was leading what turned out to be the third wave of triathletes and there was no one or police ahead of me. My GPS didn't work (a big thanks to Garmin for blocking maps in Cuba) and I made a bad call. I quickly recovered and finished back in the top placement of that group of cyclists (I had no idea there was another 2 groups of racers ahead of me but I did suspect I wasn't overall first). Also, I decided to try to turn my road bike into a tri bike. I don't think i was generating as much power as usual. Also, the potholes and "technical" challenges on Cuban streets, it was a learning experience. Just use my road bike like a road bike. PLUS, I really felt like I've already lost race conditioning despite all my huge bike training. You just can't train for race pace bike (or at least I can't). I get better and faster as the year gets on. I was somewhere in the 18mph range I think if my estimations are correct which is just terrible. Road conditions were bad and hey, at least I didnt flat. Probably should see what kind of drop off the pros saw;)

January and February races down for 2024. Next up I have Azalea next weekend and that's it for the rest of March. The longest stretch for months without races (not too bad). I wonder how my bike goes next weekend? I'll have my tri bike and a race under my belt within 2 weeks. Let's see if that makes any difference.

It's Going Great, But...Podiums

 Look, everything is going great. I've now podiumed every triathlon I've done since Pontevedra (5 straight races). I've podiumed 8 of my last 11 races. 8 of my career 13 triathlon podiums have come in the last 5 months. But there's something going on with me. I need to get in a better headspace over podiums.

When I look back at podiums for running, I didn't win/place/show anything FOREVER. It was only really in the last 2 years I ran (prior to knee injury) that I started winning races. And for a short time, I was winning and kind of often. I didn't really think about it at the time, but I got 10 podiums in about 3 years. Of the 10 podiums, I won 6 times, got 2nd one time, 3rd three times. That's pretty high for a winning percentage. Of the 6 wins in running, there were 5 unchallenged wins. In one (the second Vac and Dash) there was contention between miles 7-10 of the half (nothing at the end).

Now I know I've commented on podiums already. It's just a function of who shows up, etc. I tend to focus on scores that look beyond that (USAT does a good job, NCTS/SCTS a bit less so). But my goals are season long and sustained over timespans much longer than one race. But...

I had a look at my podiums for triathlon. 17 podiums all starting in 2022. 3 wins, 2nd place 8 times, 3rd 4 times. Whereas I was winning 60% of my podiums in running, I'm only winning 20% in triathlon. The three I won, they were all more or less uncontested. The second place finishes though... I can count at least 3 occasions where I fail to run down the winner including 2 times in the last 2 months.

In Orlando as well as in Sarasota, I was beat by the archetypical "Good Swimmer", "Decent Biker", "Poor Runner" triathlete (in the other occasion, the individual was a very strong runner and technically caught up to me although he started ahead of me so I see it as my inability to outpace him). These other two races got me thinking though... what can I do differently. 

And what kills is that I didn't lose to them by much. 10-20 seconds. In both situations I'm just unable to close the last little bit. And with running, you always have more to give so I want to blame my running. I think on both occasions I didn't have career days but I did have good running efforts. Maybe I could blame imperfect swims (which did occur in both of these races). But I really want to blame running since it was the last leg and probably my best leg. 

I think about Pontevdra and thinking about Emily and Sofia being in the stands and not caring about anything but finishing as strong as my body would allow. If I had that level of effort, I could have had 2 (maybe 3) more wins here. Just something for me to remember. 

EDIT: Had a thought. I remember in running only races, I would stress "running my race" and trying hard to block out the noise. I think that may help here too. There's a lot of weight and even stress if a podium is on the line. Maybe being focused on pace and work will help and then seeing where things are in key moments (towards end or at key spots where opportunities arise). More to do here for sure.

Looking ahead to 2024 and beyond

 It occurred to me that after 2024, things will be changing. My daughter will be in school starting in
September 2025. The idea of just heading out to some exotic triathlon destination in the Fall 2025 may be difficult. It will at the very least be very different. I would do it alone and/or for a much shorter duration. It will certainly feel a great deal different So I feel very fortunate to have one more year of family trips without the consideration of a school calendar. As I thought through what my actual goals were for 2024, this is where I landed. BLOW IT OUT WITH TRIPS!

My saintly wife knows at this point that whenever we take a trip I may just look for a local triathlon to check out. Now that I have invested in a Buxom case, traveling with bike is almost easy (not really but close). I've already hinted at some races for 2024 and a lot of this is still TBD. But first things first:

Goal 1: Travel as much as possible with family and bike in tow ;)

But where should we go? How about this:

1. Sarasota for the first triathlon of the year in January! Ok this one only kind of counts because I couldn't convince anyone else to join me in Sarasota. So this will be strictly a pop in/pop out race. I love that its the weekend after New Years (I may regret saying that if the weather sucks) to get a race every month!

2. Havana in February! An honest to goodness legal reason to take the family to one of the craziest places on earth. My wife is looking forward to getting back to where she studied. Even my daughter turned to me out of the blue and said "I can't wait to go to Coooba". This will be another perfect Spanish immersion opportunity for my bilingual (except me) family. And it's an international race that as I have learned will show in my World Triathlon profile  but will not show up in any USAT rankings. Oh well. But can't wait!!

3. Austin on Memorial Day! My wife turned to me and said "When is the triathlon in San Antonio?" as if every city has one or many triathlons. We have family there and she knows her husband. I did some research and apparently there is a TRULY MASSIVE triathlon in Austin on Memorial Day Monday. So I calmly said, "Ok, that would be Memorial Day". And it looks like it may just work out! May even be able to count this as Spanish immersion depending on where go too ;)

4. Omaha in June! But what about the World Chamionships in 2025? Well, like I mentioned, I'm kind of thinking this may not be a good fit do to school. But maybe I try to do it because it is a huge massive challenge that would require my absolute best? I'm kind of jonesing to try the mixed relay but want to really go for it. Not that I'm so great but I DID get 4th in the US at Nationals this year and 5th overall for the US in the Worlds. So I don't want to just show up, I want to get some not 5 talent around me. I put my name on a list but we'll see. I love the super sprint by World Triathlon doesn't so might skip that and just do the Sprint. Although frankly doing the Super Sprint didn't hurt me this year at Nationals. What's the point to this again? I'm not sure. This one is up in the air.

5. Malaga in October! Definitely the crown jewel of the year. We are going to do a big 2 week blow out in Southern Spain. I planned on doing Southern Spain after Pontevedra but then they announced Malaga would be the location of the 2025 WTCF and I switched it to Mallorca. I can't wait to plan this one. Probably not possible to top how well things went this year in Galicia but this race has a strong "prolonging the magic" kind of feel. And it's fully Spanish immersion!

6. Florida or Arizona in November? I didn't do the Sun Devil Classic this year and opted to do a family trip to Orlando which was great. I'm intrigued by the draft legal aspect (and a spot on the national team for age group winners). We'll see how this one plays out.

7. Key West in December: Need to defend my crown in 2024. And also it's just so darn awesome being there. Hope I enough family goodwill to pull it off. 

* I may have some "targets of opportunity" in Tennessee and Georgia depending on how things work out. May could fit in triathlons in 9 states and 3 countries all in all. YOLO!

What about other goals!? I feel it would be hard not to thinking about the following so may as well make them goals:

Goal 2: Win NCTS Series

Goal 3: Win SCTS Series

Goal 4: Get All American Status

Goal 5: Even though I may not attend do to Sofia's school schedule, I'd still like to qualify for the 2025 World Championships wherever they decide to have them. 

Super Stretch: Seems unlikely given our top state performer, but - Top ranked triathlete in NC for Age Group.

Keys to the Year

 

Just got back from Key West in what I hope is a grand tradition of winter triathlons and ending the year in style in paradise (that's me and Santa Earnest Hemingway at his family foundation's Rum distillery). The weather was perfect, it was a ton of fun and happened to finish the Sprint in first place this year. It was a perfect way to end what has got to be the most successful year athletically of my life and one that I won't even try to top.

Before I sum up where ended up with my goals, I wanted to document what turned into a major in-season goal for me - podiums. In 18 races last year, I had 6 podiums including 2 out right wins. Now I'm the first to admit that podiums are truly a function of who happened to show up as much as it is about my own personal execution. But it feels good to win and podiums are a good metric. I judge myself on age group wins but let's face it, winning the whole darn thing feels even better. 

In 2023, I participated in 25 races (also a record for triathlons) not to mention 3 running races as well. Of the 3 running races I did well overall, capped with an outright win at the Reindeer Romp 5k the weekend before Key West. Of the 25 triathlons I did, I managed to get a true (not divisional) win for my age group a total of 15 times (fwiw a divisional 1st in AG 21 times). Of the 25 triathlons, I got 8 podiums including my outright win in Key West as the capper. I ended the year podium'ing 7 of my last 10 races! Statically I have podiumed 33% of my races the past 2 years. That shocked me especially since several of these races I've included are the Nationals/Worlds as well as the "mistake races" of wrong turns and other such nightmares. 

Looking at my "in-league" play, I had a better overall average NCTS and SCTS score than I did in 2022. I also had a higher weighted avg (which is what really counts) for SCTS but slightly lower in NCTS (I think mostly due to the Lake Logan debacle and the fact that the Fall White Lake Event was attended to by some heavyweights whereas i was the overall winner in 2022). 

Perhaps the ultimate (and supposedly race neutral) measure of performance is USAT score. If you average all my races from both 2022 and 2023, my average USAT score jumped over 3 points. If you look at my weighted average (average of top 3 races within a year), my average jumped over 4 points to my all time high best USAT score - 98.4880!

Podiums are fun to track and, again, just a function of who shows up so i doubt I'll ever have it as a true goal. But let's review my goals and how I landed:

1. Qualify for Team USA 2024: Status: ACHIEVED! This was my #1 goal when I set out last year. As I've discussed, it was no cake walk. I'd say I barely qualified and it took an absolute career day on the bike, a very competitive swim, perfect transitions, and a run where I gutted out to the end. We have just started to sketch what our trip to Malaga will look like next October but I am absolutely thrilled and shocked beyond belief that we get ANOTHER chance to take my bilingual family to a place that speaks Spanish again. Spending back to back years in Spain during formative years for my daughter has been a blessing and the greatest series of events I could have asked for. 

2. Qualify for Team USA 2023: Status: ACHIEVED! This one snuck up on me. Didn't ever hear of a "super sprint" before but when I heard that there would be slots to go to Spain THIS YEAR, I jumped on it. Again, it took EVERYTHING I had to qualify and I did barely (4th place when top 5 would count). The experience in Pontevedra was beyond my expectation both in terms of the cultural opportunity it was for my family, but also the race itself where I was the 5th fastest American overall and the fastest American in my AG, 9th in the world. Couldn't have scripted that one better.

3. Win NCTS Series: Status: ACHIEVED! I participated in 7 NCTS events this year. One event, Lake Logan, was a disaster as I was in first place overall, was told to take a wrong turn, ended up going an additional 4-5 miles. Made even worse was that they are now no longer doing Lake Logan. So my favorite race of all time went out on a bad note. Of the remaining 6 races, I got a true 1st place AG finish 5 times, but divisionally (which is actually more important for points), I got it all 6 races. Frankly there wasn't a strong field here this year.

4. Win SCTS Series: Status: ACHIEVED! I participated in 5 SCTS events this year. I got a true 1st place AG finish 3 times, but achieved it divisionally all 5 times. Again, I never felt like there was a big group challenging my position this year. 

5. Get All American Status: ACHIEVED! Well, I should say 'should achieve' since all results aren't in USAT rankings yet. Honestly, the website is a mess right now with people with 0 races and a ranking of 144 in 1st place? Anyway, my analysis showed I needed a 92.9 last  year and I would be an all American even for the 40-44 crowd now. So feel pretty good here.

Then there was the stretch goal. 

6. Be the top ranked triathlete in NC for my age group: Missed! Again, the final results aren't in yet but I know for sure I won't finish higher than 2nd. But 2nd here would be a pretty good result and something to build on. It was a stretch for sure and I'm really proud to be in the company of the athletes I see at the top of the rankings.

That sums up 2023! What about 2024? What about goals? Well, I need to think about it. A few things are known for sure. First, I'm doing the very first triathlon of the year in 2024 in Sarasota! My 3rd Florida winter tri! Can't wait. Second, we know we'll be in Malaga for the Sprint in October! Trip planning to commence soon. Really excited about that as a Spanish immersion opportunity. The final thing that is known for 2024 is ANOTHER Spanish immersion. We are doing Cuba in February! It is a legal reason to go to Cuba and will be another way to get immersion for my family. Cannot wait! Other goals to follow soon!

Super Sprint World Championship 2023!

Just back from Spain and it was quite a trip. A day after we landed, Emily got sick. We all slept about 14 hours a day the first 4 days in country. I was definitely fighting something off but felt way better than Emily so Sofia and I explored Pontevedra and Galicia more broadly. It was a truly amazing daddy/daughter adventure. 

I felt pretty worn out until the night before I felt a bit better. I told myself no excuses and went out did everything I could to put myself in a good position to do well. All the pre race stuff went about as well as could be expected given the INCREDIBLY complex endeavor of doing a major triathlon in a foreign country. I'll do a post about just that one day but I pride myself in my desire and ability to execute logistics and this stretched me. 

The race: Not sure I can swim faster, bike faster (over what must have been 24 speed bumps), run and transitioned harder than I did for this race. I executed the swim flawlessly for me. First off, it was a dive start. Good thing my mother-in-law taught me how to dive during the pandemic because it was literally the first time just about ever for me diving in. From there my training took over. I finished with about a 1:24 pace.

I ran so hard out of transition I thought I was going to collapse and die. But got to the bike, regained my breath and headed out. My stupid rubber bands came undone but really didn't cost me maybe 3 or so seconds. I was on the bike and luckily knew all the round about cuts (despite getting confusing and incorrect information about the course). Literally before I knew it, I was turning around and coming back down hill at full speed. The bike I rented was a top of the line tri bike that performed perfectly. I hit the turns about as well as I know how to.

Next transition felt slower but I was pushing it at 11/10. Got to my slot, got chided by an official for not placing both handlebars on the bar, fixed that, threw shoes on, took off. My biggest regret of the race was how I exited transition and took the first 200 Meters of the run. You can see in the video below my pace was not sub 6 at that point.

But after I go to the road, I hit a new gear. Once I entered the stadium, I knew Emily and Sofia would be watching so I took it all the way to 200 Meter pace. I got a couple of breaths when someone handed my an American flag and then told myself "no excuses" and did my 100 Meter pace for the last 200. I think it does actually translate in the video. 

Here's the video.

All in all I was extremely pleased with how it went:

• 5th fastest U.S. time for the race
• Top finishing American in AG
• 9th overall AG finish in the world
  

With all 5 of my goals now all but solidified, its time to finish with a couple of local races and then decide where/when to travel. 2024 goal #1 may just be my logistical "Sistine Chapel" - an international race in Havana.... tbc.

Pontevedra Bound!

 

Flights changed, shouldn't have any hurricane impacts, all is good (as of now). 

Looking forward to getting there, enjoying a vacation, enjoying Spain, and enjoying the race and race experience!

Update on goals:

1. Qualify for Team USA 2024 - ACHIEVED!
2. Qualify for Team USA 2023 (new goal after rule change) - ACHIEVED!
3. Win NCTS Series for Age Group - Had some bad luck with a course where I was redirected. Was in first place. Went 5 extra miles on the bike. Guy who passed me got a huge NCTS number and an absurdly large USAT number. Really bummed about it because it makes me now have to rely on good luck to overcome my bad luck with this goal. I'd say its more likely than not this gets achieved proving that with some goals its better to be lucky than good. 
4. Win SCTS Series for Age Group - First place AG in first race (worth the most points). ACHIEVED!.
5. Get All American Status -- Currently at 96.483. My score inched up to 96.929 and this is good for 41/673 as of now. Can't stamp this one as achieved until February but all but certain.
6. [STRETCH] Be the top ranked triathlete in North Carolina for my age group - Ugh the guy from #4 got a big number and I did not. If i had even got top 3 (not even the 1st place I was in) the worst I would have gotten would have been 97. This would have kept me in first place. But alas I'm chasing a high 96 at some other race. Not for nothing but neither the other guy or I technically should be (or likely will be) 1st in state since there is some error with scoring for the guy who is ACTUALLY in first. So even if i overcome the guy currently there, it is not possible to get past the other guy. Could there be some kind of USAT glitch where the guy who SHOULD be in first DOESN'T get it? Should there be an asterisk if there was some bug? I've concluded no since the USAT scoring magic seems to have a mind of its own and if you put any value in the metric it will certainly break under any scrutiny. I'd rather not take a sour grapes approach. Whomever is ranked first is ranked first for better or worse. Right now, I'm second and working to pass he who is in first as of now.

So to summarize it, I'd say its 90% likely I achieve all 5 goals and I would say I've got a 33% chance to get goal #6 if they don't correct the system, 0% if they do. But that WAS a stretch goal and I did have 1st place for better part of 8 months. 

Did some analysis as to where I am. I have 3 races this year i'm signed up for with 1-2 more this winter. I'm down slightly in the NCTS/SCTS tournament from a like for like perspective but I've concluded the races I've scored lower on are actually because better folks showed up. The USAT measure (which takes this into account better) has me up a 1.8 points over last year. 

When I dig into triathlons that I've done year over year I am seeing that my swim times are very much improved. And me with a wetsuit is downright fast. My bike times are stagnant or down, my run times are on par, but my T times are near world class. I've said it before, doing tons of triathlons may not make you great at any particular event, but it does make you great at triathlons and that means transitions. It goes as far as when I see someone a full minute ahead of me on the bike or swim I feel like I'll get them out of transition. It's crazy how often that happens too. 

So net net, I'm a better triathlete this year then I was last year. When you look at the USAT progression score wise since 2009, I've gotten better and better nearly every year. So maybe I'm the best triathlete I've ever been right this second? As my 3 year might say, "maybe yeah"

Still a go for Spain...

 For now, we are still a go to leave on schedule. 

Here is a heart thumping video produced by the Pontevedra Race folks

Wow! Going Back to Spain!(?)

 

It was 12 short years ago that I found myself in uncharted waters. The year before, I had qualified for USAT Nationals for Long Course, attended the National Championships and came up JUST short on making the team.

In 2011 I recommitted to do whatever it took to make the US Long Course National Triathlon Team. It was incredibly stressful to me actually. Luckily, the work I did paid off and I was able to get 9th in my AG at Nationals. So, in 2012, I headed off to an amazing adventure in Europe that started with a race in Vitoria.

FAST FORWARD TO NOW....

I set the goal at the beginning of the year to have another go at it. But as chance would have it, I had the opportunity to make Team USA for not just next year 2024, but also a shot (Due to a series of strange and unusual events) a shot for Team USA THIS year. The fact that it was in Spain made it extra attractive and interesting since my family is always looking for Spanish immersion. But I needed to get top 5 (?!) in my age group. Seemed unlikely. BUT, spoiler alert, I ended up getting 4th! So off we go!

Not so fast. There are 2 hurricanes directly in the way of getting to Spain from JFK (where we fly out of). What's going to happen? Will we ever get there? More to come...

Old Goals Achieved, What's Next - Set New Ones

 Let's have a look at my 2022 goals (and later stretch goals):

1. Win NCTS Series for Age Group - ACHIEVED!
2. [STRETCH] Win SCTS Series for Age Group - ACHIEVED!
3. [STRETCH] Get All American Status -- {wah wuh} NOT achieved.

Here were my 2023 goals going in to the season:

1. Qualify for Team USA 2024 - ACHIEVED!
2. Qualify for Team USA 2023 (new goal after rule change) - ACHIEVED!
3. Win NCTS Series for Age Group - First place AG in first 2 races, think this is achievable
4. Win SCTS Series for Age Group - First place AG in first race (worth the most points). Achievable.
5. Get All American Status -- Currently at 96.483. This SHOULD be sufficient but won't let up.

So I've had a good start to 2023. First the swim:

I feel like I never get comfortable in the swim. So this off season I hit the pool hard. Covid was no longer a concern so I went at it hard. Last summer, I would do a 15:52 for 900 yards and not think much of it. I was enjoying great success in races including my first 2 outright wins, but still putting up times in the mid to upper 15's. As I closed out the Fall, I started to consistently see times in the 14's. After the season ended, I knew I had momentum and decided to hit the pool extra hard in the winter. My times went from upper 14's down to mid 14's. my the time I go to Spring, I was seeing low 14's and even dipped down. Since I have seen a few times in the upper 13's. This is after maybe 10 years being in the low 16's to upper 15's. I also invested in some upgraded equipment in the offseason. I got a Roka Max Buoyancy wet suite (which does help my dragging long legs) and a Roka tri suite (after being torso nake for 14 years). These help in the water. Strangely, the bike was my weakest leg last year.

Even though (maybe because of the fact?) I trained a lot on the bike last year, my bike times would often be my weakest leg. BTW, my transition times have gotten to be elite whereby even the elite folks at Nationals had comparable transition times. Any rate, everyone who does triathlons excels in bike, not really me. I hit the bike about the same in the offseason but have adopted a new strategy (that I eventually found mid last year) which was NOT biking or doing any leg work the week of races. The results have been dramatic. It turns out I needed more rest. A lot of it. So now during race weeks, I'll swim, I'll do core and yoga, but that's it. Leave it for the race. Surprisingly, I've had only positive results from that (in terms of conditioning, race results, etc). I guess I'm old, I'm realizing it, I'm adjusting. I also made a few bike equipment mods in the offseason. I got my dream helmet (Rudy Project Wing) which I swear cuts through the wind and propels me forward somehow. I also got new aero bar pads that are super thick and comfortable. I used to feel bumps, now I don't. Finally, had some 105 pedals and upgraded those to dura ace. Not to even mention I had to go out and buy a dang road bike for the Nationals and ended up getting good value with a S-Works SL6 that had disc brakes so I could use my 303 wheelset. Embracing wide tires on that bike and lower inflation values got me to 25 mph so I'll forever trust the Zipp calculator. But I'm a runner and I found something that I didn't think was possible.

My wife said, "You hear about these carbon shoes?" It was January this year. Of course I had. But I have bad knees and I had forever put myself in a special needs type category. Wear Brooks Glyerin's, don't get hurt, move on. BUT, I thought 'what the hell. I'll spend up[like 250 bucks?!]' My first training run, my first mile was 5:50. WTF?! That was 20-25 seconds faster than the week before. I ended up with something like an 18:15 3 mile for my hilly course. I was sold. Since then, I've been in love with these shoes. And my body had some initial protests, but I think I've figured out a winning formula. My experience so far is that it gives me 10-20 seconds per mile. My choice is 100% validated at Nationals when I look and see around me nearly EVERYONE wearing not only the same sneaker but same color. Training wise, I got into the 6:30-6:45 range early and often in the off season (rather than taking a little 7 minute mile break like I usually would). Body holding up so far so good. But the result has been an improvement on what is my best leg and something I haven't improved in years. My first race this year, had a slow, soggy, horrible bike but then did a dead on 6:00 pace for the 5k. As I have gone harder on bike, that has gotten harder, but I think I can settle in on a sub 6:30 pace after killing a bike leg. That is going to help me this year. 

SO, looks like all the goals are squarely in the "achievable" or "achieved" category. My true feelings are actually that I would be SHOCKED a 96+ doesn't get me All American (in the 40-44 let alone the 45-49 age group). Just looking at historic numbers, I think I'm good as of now. As far as NCTS and SCTS, I feel like I'm beating the "Advanced" folks at my age group right now. Something may change, other's may step up, I may get injured, but there isn't anyone right now in my age group that is killing it (there is someone in the 40-44 age group in SC that may be a problem in a couple years though). So not spiking the football, but I need another goal. Something bigger. 

My current score would have me ranked as the #3 triathlete in my age group in 2022. Of the two guys who would have beaten me last year, 1 is moving to the 50-54 age group. I had a look and there is no one who moved up with me to 45-49 that had a higher ranking. So just looking at the numbers, I could be top 2 in the state. So, new stretch goal......... to be the #1 triathlete (all distances) in my age group in the state of North Carolina.

6. [STRETCH] Be the top ranked triathlete in North Carolina for my age group

Team USA, I'm BACK!

 11 years. Lots of changes. Too many to count. My diary here is too spotty but let me catch myself up
here. At the end of last year, I had reached my goals and many stretch goals. For 2023, I alluded to setting my sights on getting back to Team USA. There is nothing easy about triathlons Logistically, effort-wise, organizationally, its all VERY complex. First Gnoce Te Ipsum. I'm not going to train or do any long events. My knees can't keep up. But as I've demonstrated the last couple of years, I am quite capable in the shorter recognized distances. I dug in and learned a ton about the current state of affairs. And you wont be surprised, its super complicated. 

ITU has decided to go draft legal for shorter distances (to be more like the pro's and maybe Olympics?) So Draft Legal is the future. USAT is in the process of transitioning. And its messy. There are now (and I think for now during this transition) 2 separate National Championships. The "Multisport" and the typical Nationals. There are generally 18 slots (used to be 15 back when i did this in 2010-2011) per age group. But since the ITU is going Draft legal, they've decided to allot 10 slots for the Sprint World games via the "Multisport" or draft legal sprint and only 8 slots for the traditional Nationals (in Milwaukee in 2023). I decided 10>8 and decided to target the Multisport in Irving, Texas. 

Second, there is a new race length known as "Super Sprint". Its like a 18-20 minute race. I decided to sign up for that during the Multisport nationals just to have another race to do and frankly to diversify my ability to make the team. 

A couple of things happened:

1. ITU cancelled the 2024 Super sprint.

2. USAT decided to allot 5 (JUST 5) slots in the 2023 Multisport nationals for Super Sprint to go (in 2023) to the World games in Pontevedra. This means there are NOT 18 slots (easy) but rather ONLY 5 (VERY HARD). I decided to do it anyway. Secondly, I want to take a vacation to a Spanish speaking country (for wife and toddler reasons) so it could be perfect if I could only kill it and get top 5.

So I went to Irving this week with a VERY difficult task. Not get top 15 or 18 but rather get top 10 in the Sprint and top 5 in Super Sprint.

To put this into perspective, I got 9th place in the 2011 National Championships for Long course. Back then, I was a upper 70's, low 80's scoring triathlete. I devoted my entire life to doing it, I did it, it was a major thrill. BUT now, I'd be going up against triathletes ranging from low 90's to mid 110's. The competition is 20-30 points better and intense. 45-50 at the national level is intense. 

I didn't really realize it, but I was feeling a lot of pressure to do well. I couldn't take the idea of leaving my family for the better part of the week without achieving anything. I did some scouting and it was going to be tight. I would have to have maximum effort and career days to pull it off. It was NOT a situation I could just show up and qualify. It turns out the very best triathletes still show up for Nationals and the competition was SIGNIFICANTLY better than what I faced in 2010 or 2011 to qualify. Luckily, I'm a lot better too.

Since 2010, my USAT ranking has improved nearly every year slowly but steadily. The idea of beating someone ranked with a score in the mid 90's was once impossible. Now it is possible and would be necessary to qualify.

Super Sprint

First up, Super Sprint. I originally signed up as an afterthought. After finding out it would be in Spain, it took on a major importance to me personally. I wanted to take my family to Spain and enjoy the slow pace of a Spanish town. Spanish is my family's first language (other than me) so it would be a real cultural experience. To get there, I would need to beat some very good triathletes from around the country. I had a near perfect swim, my bike didn't hurt me, and I ran the fastest pace I've run in probably 23 years. I left it all on the field and squeaked by and got 4th in my age group. 

Sprint

I really thought the Super Sprint would be the hardest of the two. After I qualified with the Super Sprint, I thought I may be able to take a breath and just relax. But the pressure of achieving my original goal was very intense. My swim didn't go great. It was very choppy, felt long and I never got comfortable. Luckily though, I've hit the swim SO hard in the off season, that I was able to essentially PR in the 750 meter. I reduced my times in the offseason to a pace I never thought I'd reach. It wasn't comfortable or fun but it was fast. Then came the bike.

I never had done a draft legal race. I didn't know what to expect. As soon as I got out on the course, I got behind a couple of bikers. This became a huge peloton that I stayed with the whole time. I think I was very lucky to get in with these folks. But it also took a HUGE effort to stay with. That effort was rewarded though. I average over 25 miles per hour (previous best on the bike was in the mid 22's). When I got off the bike, I all but knew that I had qualified. I didn't model myself going that fast on the bike. I was actually 3rd fastest in my AG on the bike leg (traditionally my worst leg). I was conservative on the run. I knew roughly where I was based on some names I knew. I figured I was somewhere in 6-8th place (I was in 7 then 8th in turns out). So I kept some in reserve and read the field. Truth be told though, my legs were tired and I'm not sure how much better I could have done (ended up with a 6:36 pace).

When I finished and checked my phone, I got 8th place. I had qualified for Team USA 2024 (location TBD). I had hit both my goals!

I'll have some more posts soon but still processing how much stress this was, how difficult this goal was to achieve, how it compares to 2011. From what I can tell the difference is:

1. In 2023, I had smaller margin for error. It was 15 slots in 2011, I was hoping for 18 slots, I ended up having to deal with 5 and 10 slot races (which is very low for other distances). 

2. The caliber of competition is substantially better. Maybe 20-30 points in the USAT scoring system.

3. My current age group is very competitive and lots of folks who are very capable show up in outstanding shape with outstanding equipment. 

Next up will be a nice full season of triathlons getting ready for and culminating in a trip to Spain in September!

2022 In the Books!

It's been a long road back. If you recall, the end of the 2019 triathlon season, I really left it all on the field. I ran my fastest ever Lake Logan Intl which ended my season. My daughter was due in September so final preparations began as we prepared for the date. She was born and it was quite a lot. I am not sure we had a more difficult case than others, but through the end of 2019 and into 2020, we certainly had our hands full just surviving our new special circumstance ;)

Then in March 2020, something happened that I never thought I would see outside of a movie. A global pandemic shut down the world. Since triathlons are part of the world, those got shut down too. At first, it didn't seem like that would happen. In March/April we would "flatten the curve" but surely by summer things would be back to normal. They were not. To my knowledge, there was only 1 triathlon that went off in 2020 and it happened to be in Hendersonville, NC. I was tempted, but the cost/benefit didn't see worth it.

Fast forward to spring 2021. Vaccines were beginning to be made available. Hope was eternal. Surely by the summer time everything would be normal. Triathlons did come back but there was still some fear. We didn't want to get Delta so I was extremely cautious. I only did outdoor events and wore a mask before and after the events. I did a few triathlons but never got in good shape until the fall. That is, until White Lake Fall where I finally felt back! I placed very well and felt like life was back to normal. Then, on the way back home, I got a kidney stone (my first ever) and experienced pain I didn't know possible. Later in the week, insult was added to injury and I received a diagnosis of Covid positive - Delta. How did the most paranoid and careful person get Covid? Must have been the race somehow. I ended up giving Covid to my daughter and my wife. My daughter maybe sneezed once. My wife had a bad cold. I had it VERY bad. I couldn't keep weight on, sometimes losing 7 pounds (in sweat) a night. That ended my triathlon season 2021.

In November of 2021, we got word that a close family member had stage 4 cancer. All of a sudden, getting covid again (or ill in anyway) became a much more fraught possibility.

Throughout the offseason, I trained and worked very hard. I wanted to have a major comeback from years of struggling. I set out on a very ambitious schedule. The last 2 full seasons I had finished 2nd in the state NCTS triathlon tournament for my age group. Nothing motivating like having two second place trophies on my mantle.

My 2022 triathlon season just wrapped this past weekend. Here is what I was able to do:

First, I competed in 19 total races (was signed up for a 21st but was sick and unable to attend 1 and a hurricane cancelled a second). This is far and away the most I've ever done. It's truly a testament to my wife's patience and generosity. 

Second, I had one goal at the onset. Get 1st place in my age group for the first time in the NCTS tournament. This would be my final year in the 40-44 group so was important to me to do it this year. I ended up competing in 8 of those events. I received 1st place in my age group/division 6 of the 8 times. With this goal well in hand, I started to have some stretch goals.

The first stretch goal was 1st place in the South Carolina SCTS tournament. I spend a lot of time in Charlotte with my in laws so this seemed like it was logistically possible. I ended up competing in 5 of those events. I received 1st place in my age group/division 4 of the 5 times. This one was a little closer because I, unbeknownst to me, missed an important race worth a lot of points. But I was still able to get 1st place in my age group in this tournament as well.

The next stretch goal I had was to try in compete in Age Group State Championships. I participated in the North Carolina state championship and got 3rd overall. I participated in the South Carolina state championship and got 7th overall (1st place in my age group both times).

Next, I really wanted to get back to traveling and racing. This is something I would do all the time for marathons, but triathlons are logistically very difficult. So I invested in a good bike case and got out to Boulder for the Boulder Sunset triathlon. This trip was fun but VERY frustrating because I got off course on the bike while I was in 4th place overall. I ended up going off course for 4-5 minutes but still managed to get a 3rd place AG finish. The race I just got back from was a wonderful triathlon down in Key West. I got 3rd place overall, 1st in Age Group.

Another stretch goal I had was to win a race outright (something I always entered running races thinking I had a chance to do). The thing I hate the most about triathlon is that there is Overall, Division and Age Group distinctions. Ultimately we all know that winning a race means that no one finished in front of you. So my goal was to do that. In September I ended up winning back to back races. First the White Lake Fall Sprint followed by the OBX Sprint Triathlon where I won by more than 6 minutes! From an overall perspective, I got 1st place twice, 2nd place 3 times, and 3rd place 1 time. 

Another stretch goal is being the best in my age group for a race regardless of division. Of the 19 races, I was the fastest in my age group regardless of division 9 times. Amazingly, there wasn't a triathlon I did where I wasn't either the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd fastest overall for my age group the entire season (finishing 3rd just 3 times). And fwiw, 14 1st place finishes for the age group/division.

Another stretch goal I had was to continue to improve my overall USAT ranking. I had never finished higher than a score of 89 or a state ranking above 8th in my age group. As of right now, I have a USAT score of over 94, I'm 4th overall in the state for my age group.

Another stretch goal I had was to improve in cycling/swimming. I come from a running background and running is important, but frankly not as important as cycling for sprint races. So I worked very hard and made major gains cycling. My improvement in cycling was the reason for my successful season. But something else strange has happened. Swimming is by far the least important event for sprints. We're in the water for a flash. Given that most events this year were wetsuit legal, this really helped me. But I also worked VERY hard in the pool. My training times were far and away the best I've ever done (frankly not even close to what I used to do). So when you look at my race stats, by the end of the season, it would not be incorrect to say that (somehow) swimming was my best event. That is, I would placement wise often finish ranked better in the swim than the bike. Even stranger, quite often, my swim rank would beat my bike AND running ranks. I'm a swimmer now?

The final stretch goal I had seemed like the hardest. Despite all my top finishes, the distinction of USAT All American seemed a bridge too far. That being said, as of right now, I am currently a USAT All-American. The results aren't final until 2/1/23 however if it holds, it will be the ultimate honor I have enjoyed as a triathlete. My name will be added to the All American issue of the USAT magazine next year. 

This has been truly satisfying and I look forward to taking a small amount of time away from training before ramping back up in the beginning of 2023. I am excited to be entering a new age group (45-49). Who knows, maybe its time to start to set goals about returning to the Age Group National Championships but this time for sprint distance. I would have to head to Milwaukee in August :-/ but would have a shot of getting a ticket to Townsville Australia in 2024! Have to think about that one ;)