I thought this was gonna be "just" a marathon

11 years ago I ran my first marathon. I was in my mid-20s.  The race was mostly downhill and flat. At sea level. I ran over 4h30. I'm pretty sure both my knees almost fell off. I said I'd never do another (standalone) marathon again.

I love Penticton. I especially love Penticton at the end of August. Dezz and I had traveled to Penticton 7 years in a row during Ironman Canada - twice to race and the other times to enjoy the vibe and the wine. So when I heard that Challenge Penticton was offering the opportunity for a full iron-distance relay in 2014, I instantly texted Rick. He was the obvious choice for team cyclist, so I quickly planned to take on the run. All we needed was a swimmer. And if we were gonna do it, we may as well do it right. Cue Kilah. Looks like I was wrong about that standalone marathon.

Jump ahead 10 months and we were on our way to Penticton once again. Coach Grant had me on a program ready to run a 3:10 marathon (post-Brazil, we decided a 3hr race was a big ask). Confident Kilah could swim a sub-1 hour swim, Rick and I were ready to lay it down for a podium spot. Despite being a couple hundred metres long, Kilah was handing off to Rick in 57 mins; second fastest female out the water. A small transition error and some unnecessary duct tape later (really, officials?), Rick was out on the road. And I was heading back to the house for some breakfast and some rest. With regular updates from Dezz and Twyla, I was back in transition an hour early, finding some shade before warming up. Rick was back into transition a bit slower than he'd hoped, but he had a solid ride sending me onto the run as the 2nd overall team (1st mixed team).

If you've read any of my race reports before, you'll know one of my biggest enemies on race day is my stomach. I've spent the last 13 months trying to find an answer and hoped my strict diet the past week would be enough. And it was...for 10km.

The race plan was to let myself start fast for the first 1km, then settle into a 4:25 on the first half of the run and try hang onto a 4:30ish on the way back for a sub 3:10. The plan was on point until 8km in, when I first started to get a bit of stomach cramping. (BTW, I loved being that close to the front of the race, with eventual winner Jeff Symonds only being about 6km ahead of me at one point thanks to Kilah and Rick. I pushed on but by the time I saw Dezz and Twyla at the halfway point I'd fallen well off my pace. And then the fun began.Walking a hill, I saw Sheila, my Talisman teammate and, on this day, my biggest rival as the runner for another TC team, running the opposite way while yelling Hey no walking! Start running cuz I'm coming after you". Following that little push, I walked a few aid stations but tried to keep the legs moving in a run/shuffle. Nausea started to set in but I just focused on holding that podium position. Apparently on the last 2km Jordan Bryden, one of the biggest triathletes I know and a very hard dude to miss, passed me to move into 1st place for the mixed relay. I have no recollection of that pass. I kinda remember the finishing shoot, thinking I can't hold onto Rick and Kilah's pace as we crossed the line together. I heard Steve Kings voice. And then I sat down.

About half an hour later, after a visit to the med tent and throwing up all the liquid I'd just taken in (6 times for those who are counting...one less than coach Elmar), I started to feel a bit better. Emphasis on BIT.

Running a 3:50 instead of a 3:10 was a disappointment. Especially when we lost first place by only a minute. But knowing I honestly left it all out there for the team helps a bit. Big congrats to Darren, Felix and Sheila for making us run scared and keeping it close with a 4th place finish (Yes I got chicked by Sheila...big time).

As for Challenge Penticton itself, it left a lot to be desired. I was a bit put off by the disorganization from day one all the way through the race weekend. But with new race directors and a (hopefully) new business model for next year's race, I definitely hope to see this race become a premier event again. Just like in the IMC days. After all, the venue still rocks.

Now just please don't tell my body I'm supposed to be slowing down and my knees are supposed to be getting worse as I age.

Glutton for punishment? Nah, glutton for fun.

Anyone that's done an early morning swim session with me knows it takes me awhile to get going. The same thing seems to be true of my race season. I started this year with the Napa Valley Half on April 12, and I don't think my body really started going until the last 5 minutes...of the run.  The swim felt decent until Dezz told me how long I took. The legs snapped and crackled over the bike course, but they lacked pop. And the run - and I use the term "run" loosely - was the wrong side of two hours.  I could ramble off 4 or 5 excuses, but at the end of the day I didn't execute.  So the following day I turned my attention to the next goal. Ok that's a lie. The next day I turned my attention to eating and drinking my way through Napa Valley. And then the next day after that. (Thanks Dezz, Shannon & Chris). But once I was back in Calgary I sat down with Coach Grant and figured out a game plan for the BMO Vancouver Half Marathon.

This would be our 2nd annual trip to the race in memory of SweYen. One year on didn't make it any easier. Standing just behind the elite runners at the start line, I got uncharacteristically choked up as I chatted with SweYen. And then it was go time. Coach told me to go hard the first half and not rely on a negative split to reach my sub-1:30 goal. So that's exactly what I did.  I let the legs open up on the downhills and before I know it I was coasting down Cambie on 3:50/km. And then they just kept going.  Most athletes - runners, footballers, skiers, dancers - have experienced a day where they feel like they are floating.  That's how this race felt for me.  I skipped the aid stations (aided by the cool rainy day instead) and the stomach only threatened to slow me down at the 19km mark.  Knowing I would easily beat my goal, the mind told the legs job well done, you're starting to fatigue, let's cool it down now. But the heart was having none of that.  Life is too short to not give it your all. And as I crossed the line more than 10 minutes faster than I'd ever run that distance before (1:25:59) I felt a wave of emotion for the second time that day.  Part of it was the redemption after a disappointing Napa race. And the other part?

The other part was for SweYen. Not sadness, but rather happiness in her ability to continue to inspire. Dezz did her second running race ever (well, at least since elementary school), another sub-1 hour effort with Nat at her side. Carissa did her first ever half, with Shannon and Mindy (who'd just finished her first ever half one week before) pacing her home. Chris shaved 20 minutes off last year's time. And  the rest of the crew did the 8k...smiling. (After meeting SweYen's dad, I can definitely see where she got her gentle soul). I already can't wait for next year.

So what next? With a renewed confidence and a reminder that at the end of the day it's only a race, let the training begin (continue?) for Challenge Penticton relay.

Faster and/or Funner

The most common question I’ve heard lately is “Do you have any more races coming up?” I always assume people are asking about triathlon since I’ve been doing running races for so long that they only register in my mind as training days. But lately I’ve been excited to reply “I’m doing a bike race”. After a handful of cyclocross races over the last two years and listening to Rick regale me with stories of bike racing, I decided coming into this season that following my early Ironman I’d venture into a couple of road races. But my result at IML didn’t impress. Hold on road racing, I’ve got one more big triathlon to train for. OK, impressed. And then the body started to feel fatigued. So I cut back on training for a couple of weeks hoping I’d be fresh for the return of team J-Force at Sylvan Lake with my girl Ms. Reid. After going solo last year, I teamed up again for this year’s race. I managed to set PBs on the swim and run, while Erin hammered the bike leg, giving us a podium spot with 2^nd team overall. Outcome? What was a disappointing start to the season with Alcatraz and Lanzarote (in regards to my performance, definitely NOT in regards to the races themselves, both of which I highly recommend) ended on a positive note with GWN and Sylvan. 

Okay, NOW cue the bike racing. I competed in the Tour de Bowness road race on Saturday. Well actually competed may be a strong word. But I did finish. After making a rookie mistake right off the start, I was stuck at the back of the group early on and soon learned that if you lose contact with the peloton, you better find some buddies real quick. Asides from that one mistake, I was pretty happy with my performance on the day. Funny how a similar result in triathlon would have left me disappointed. So will road racing and cyclocross ever reach that point of good enough to be disappointed, or will they continue to be the just-for-fun cousins of triathlon? I hope it’s a bit of both. But until then, I’ll look forward to the Prairie Roubaix road race, a Fall full of cyclocross, and Banff triathlon...this one just for fun.

Redemption song

I woke up 2 days after Ironman Lanzarote, turned to Dezz and said "Okay, next focus: sub-5 at Great White North".

Fast forward 2 weeks and I'm sitting at Talisman Centre telling Grant about that same goal.

Sub-5 or bust.

Life has been lived over the past 6 weeks, but not much of it has been lived without a thought of how my actions would help or hinder GWN. Dezz commented about how my training didn't seem to decrease much after IML (true, but only because my IML training focused more on intensity than volume), I tried a new doctor-prescribed diet to hopefully help reduce any GI issues during the race, I memorized the name of said diet (Fermented Oligo-Di -Mono Saccharides And Polyols), I skipped beer and s'mores when camping in favour of water and multigrain crackers. But as is expected, especially when triathlon is a hobby and not a career, flood happens!  Some days training entailed ripping down drywall instead of ripping up hills. (We were fortunate enough to escape the floods untouched; some friends' weren't so lucky). Other days yardwork was left half done in favour of bikework.   Once again, I'm a very lucky man to be blessed with such a supportive wife. (I had to convince her that a girls trip to see Boyz II Men & NKOTB in Vegas should be more appealing to her than a trip to Stony Plain to watch me do yet another triathlon).

So come this weekend I was feeling ready. I had fought through a few days where the legs were feeling fatigued and just wanted to go home (I guess training since November can do that to a body), but I knew Grant had put me in a position to throw down that elusive sub-5.

Race prep, blah, blah, race package, blah blah, nutrition blah, blah, Go!  I started very close to the front of the swim and managed to draft for about 1500/1800m of the swim. I was very happy to exit on 35 minutes (goal was 40min), along with club mates Jonesy, Gus and Slawinski. (In hindsight, I should have beat Jones since I actually saw him stop about 200m into the swim to check his watch).  The swim felt quick and very relaxed. Onto the bike and heading out onto the new bike course, I was excited to see what the day would bring. The course profile looked like it was completely flat. Although there was nothing I'd call an actual hill, there was enough climbing and wind to make the bike a bit harder than anticipated. I caught up with Jones and Slawinski, but couldn't reel in Gus or Faizel. The nice thing about the 2-lap course is it was easy to keep track of everyone.  On the day I didn't have the pop in my legs I'd hoped for, and had to hammer home to turn in a 2h37min 90km bike (a conservative 34km/h).

Out onto the run and although the tummy was feeling a bit of discomfort, I quickly found my leg speed. It's the first time I've used my Garmin on race day in a couple years and my pace fluctuated more than I'd have liked, but there were only about 10 minutes out there where it was a struggle (about the 10-12km mark) to move my legs. Otherwise I focused on technique and kept that sub-5 hour goal in site. Again it was great to see so many familiar faces out on course. And another reason I love triathlon - pros cheering on the age groupers. Kyle, Grant and Elmar were all coaxing me along as I passed in the opposite direction while they were still racing. Reaching the last KM of the race, I spotted Emma up ahead. Emma is a very strong triathlete in her early 20s who has much more potential than any of us age group guys ever had. But, we're typical guys with an ego, so the talk over the last week was that we couldn't get chicked by Emma, knowing that was a very real potential. One final push and a "let's finish strong Emma" propelled the two of us past a few other racers on the way to the finish line. Rounding the finishing chute to shouts of "Let's go Stringer", I crossed the line in 4:54:19. Goal: achieved.

Props to a great day of racing and new PBs by my teammates and coach, and cheering/cowbelling from Hillary and Jenn. And if you're ever looking for a good local race, check out the 2014 edition of Great White North. Just don't bother with the awards dinner unless you want some free food and have lots (and lots) of time to spare, or you are actually fast enough to win some money.

So what's next?  I'll let you know when I figure that out.

Ironman Lanzarote - A race report of sorts

If only I'd run as fast as the last ten days have gone by.

A little later than anticipated, but here's how life unfolded in Lanzarote May 12-20, 2013. Dezz and I arrived on Lanzarote May 12 about 9pm, picked up the Volvo V60, and slid the bike bag into the back before heading to our fave wee Finca Molina just outside of Teguise (if you ever visit Lanzarote, I'd definitely recommend Jose Carlos' place for a quiet retreat). We promptly started the process of making up for 4 months of sleep deprivation.

The next few days were an opportunity to relax, get the bike assembled, eat, sleep, spin out the legs, eat, sleep, run out the legs, eat,  sleep, swim out the arms, eat, sleep, pick up my parents, eat, sleep,  scout the race course, eat, sleep. Repeat (well, except for picking up my parents, we only did that once). The water was amazing and for the first time in my life I was actually looking forward to seeing how well I could do on the swim. On Thursday I went to the English-speaking athlete's meeting (I could have also selected Spanish, German or French), picked up my race package, did some shopping at one of the best race expos I've attended (Dezz, being Dezz, managed to by a pair of shoes), and started to prep for race day. Friday was a chill day. Just a little visit to the beach and quick dip to visualize how my swim would go, dropped off the Flying Scotsman for the night, promised I'd be back in the morning, and headed home to rest the legs. I also had a brief chat with coach Grant as he waited for a flight to Florida for his race (oh, the life of a triathlete); I hung up the phone realizing how mentally ready for the race I was. BBQ chicken, yams, grilled corn, broccoli and bed by about 9pm rounded out the day.

Sliding out of bed and into the Team JForce shorts at 3:15am, I slipped on the headphones, made brekky, and started to get my mind ready for the race. By 4:30 the whole house was up getting ready to the race start. My disdain of early mornings is genetic, so to see my mum up at 4:30am for anything, never mind watching 1900 crazy people jump into the ocean at the same time was a wonder in itself. Driving in the dark on the quiet, winding roads with DJ Dezz bumping Kanye, Buju, et al, the butterflies stopped fluttering and started to do the Cabbage Patch. Arriving at transition by 6am, the butterflies went back to sleep as there was final prep to be done. Pump up the tires, wait in line for the baño as the rain poured down, tug on the wetsuit and swim cap, and head to the beach. Lanzarote was a race that Jay dreamed of doing one day. So standing there in my Team JForce shorts, I thought back to where this whole journey started and hoped I could do the man and the team proud.

I seeded myself about mid-pack and as the race started I sauntered (running would only raise the heart rate and would require a fair amount of slalom) towards the ocean, starting my swim 1min 3 secs after the gun went off. I tried to find my rhythm early on, heard clearly in my head "Let's go Dave, you've been here before" and despite utter chaos for the first 750m, I fell into a comfort zone fairly early in the swim. We've been working on accelerations in the pool lately and I was happy to find out they actually work, either to close the gap and catch a draft, or too open up a gap when someone is constantly trying to hold hands with you on the swim.  I exited lap one at 39min with a smile on my face and the start of some chafing on my right side. Lap two was no less chaotic at the start, but after having my goggles knocked off a couple of times and swimming directly into the sun, I made the final turn and swam directly towards the end of the rainbow (literally). Fatigue started to creep in over the last 600m and I wasn't surprised to find I'd lost some time. Overall I shaved off 15mins from my IMC time and beat by goal by 5 minutes, emerging in 1h25. Good start.

My transitions took nearly as long as my swim. This wasn't due (completely) to my ineptitude in transitioning as much as it was an artefact of the transition zones themselves. After finally jumping onto the bike on a rain-slicked road, I started putting some distance between myself and Puerto del Carmen. Unfortunately the wind had other ideas. The bike course is stunning and very challenging on a good day. The drizzle only lasted about an hour, but the wind lasted for the entirety of the bike leg. I knew going in that my goal of a 6 hour bike would be a challenge, but as the kilometres ticked away I became more and more aware of how truly huge that ask was. Saying we had a head or crosswind for the entire bike leg would be a fallacy, but it definitely felt like 140 of the 180km were completed without a friendly breeze at my back. I was mentally strong, never once thinking "I don't want to be here", but the legs just didn't have it on the day and a bit of stomach cramping prevented me from being in aero as much as I would have liked. Nutrition and hydration felt pretty solid. After hammering a fun, flowing decent back into town, I was off the bike in 6h37. Ouch. (Looking back on the results and talking to a few other athletes, it wasn't a completely off day for me on the bike, it was more just the nature of the course and conditions).  Hands down the toughest cycling I've ever done. Dezz caught a telling photo of me on the bike, passing by oblivious to the cheers, staring at the ground. But it was also probably one of the most rewarding days on the bike too.

T2 wasn't much faster, but I was anxious to get out on the run. This time slipping out of my bike shorts and into the new Talisman tri shorts, my first 6km had me on pace for a 3:40 marathon. And then things fell apart. Feelings of nausea kicked in and the tummy decided it was done with all that jostling around. I felt my pace slow, pick up a little bit, and slow again. The 3 loop course gave me lots of opportunities to see Dezz and my parents cheering, and I also walked a few hundred metres chatting with Dezz.  The legs felt strong and when I did kick I could still get some good speed (usually when some little Spanish kids were shouting Venga Davi! Vamos Davi! Rapido, Rapido! but it was followed by more nausea kicking in. Having the legs ready to go but not being able to do much with them definitely started to get into my head. By the end of the run, the odd orange and many ice cubes got me through. A shot of red bull and water with 5km to go gave me that final boost as I dug deep to avoid a 5 hour marathon. 4:59:44. Phew!

My overall time was a very disappointing 13:28. It's funny the thoughts you have when the body is fatigued. After months of training, I felt I'd let down Dezz after all her support, coach Grant after getting me to the start line with great potential to lay down a solid race, and Rick because I know my training partner wants to see me succeed almost as much as I want it myself. I sat on the curb, literally dozed off for about 30 seconds, woke up, looked down at the fuchsia pink wrist band I was wearing, and suddenly everything fell into perspective. Sure there would still be disappointment, but thoughts of Swe-Yen put the race back into perspective. I just completed one of the toughest Ironman courses in the world under gruelling conditions, had my wife and parents there waiting to congratulate me (my folks probably learned more about triathlon in a single day than they have over the last 7 years), and whether I did an 11h50 or a 13h28 wasn't going to change any of that. In 2009 and 2011 I barely had an appetite following the race. I certainly didn't suffer from that symptom in 2013. Bring on the food!

Dezz and my dad hired bikes (thanks to ProBike Lanzarote who actually opened their doors on their day off to get them kitted up - amazing service) and we got out for an easy 40km spin the next day. Dinner that night was very enjoyable, as was a well-deserved glass of wine (or was it two?). On Monday we headed to Gran Canaria and spent an all-too-short 6 days with my sis, Alberto and our nephews. A great way to end the trip, and at 1 and 3 1/2 years old, they really don't care how fast Tio David can run unless it's how quickly I can go get that soccer ball.

Muchas Gracias Lanzarote. Hasta Pronto.