Ironman Hawaii 2009

So this race report is a little late…they’re a little harder to write sometimes though when you aren’t completely happy about the result but then writing them is all the more important. The race started back in April the day of my qualifying race. I have been fixated on this race from the moment I got my spot- actually probably from the moment I crossed the finish line of last years Hawaiian Ironman. The 6 months leading up the race were stellar. I followed a somewhat new program- more hours but less fluff. Thanks to the recession, for the first time in my tri career- I was able to focus a little more on training. Meaning when I left work, I wasn’t thinking about work as much as I used to. We’re slow, still spend the hours at the office but have a little more space within the mental side of things to focus on training.

With this said and huge motivation, the thought of not achieving my goals in Kona never once entered my mind.

The Week

Paula and I had a stellar flight to Kona with Jeff Young keeping us company for the day. No problems- I was stoked. I’m healthy and made it the Island, as did the bike with no cracked frame this year. The week was off to a good start. We stayed again at the Kona Reef- a short walk to town and a simple little condo for P and I to share. We did miss our Ironman family of Terry and Kim in the Condo from last year, but Kate and Jeff were close by in case we got lonely. Race week was great, simple, streamlined being my fifth time here, and filled with great friends. Zoot took great care of me and all of their Athletes. Put together a great welcome party, made sure we had all the latest and greatest gear, and provided us with a personal bike mechanic, Chris Davidson. This was an incredible highlight of race week. He alleviated a huge stress knowing the bike will be race ready and made me feel like a pro.

Pre Race

Had the extra special bonus of being given race number 83- if you finish within the top 100 in Hawaii and race the next year- they give you your finish number. A great honor and one of the best highlights of the race for me. I racked my bike in the second row, right with the big dogs. Really really cool- I was flying. This race was mine.

The Swim

With number 83- I was able to enter the body marking/ transition area through the pro line. Andy Potts and Natasha Badmann followed right behind me- I was flying.

Met Paula, Nick, Caroline, and Karla at the big Power Gel outside the King K as usual and started lubing up. Sun was breaking, no clouds, and great energy all around. Hit the water about 20 minutes before the start and swam out to take it all in. Saw the filled sea wall, had my moment to thank everyone who got me here, and started the jockeying for position. Usually hate this swim. This time it went pretty good. No head kicks, punches, kicks, gouges, or pummels. Just flowed along with the washing machine. Only odd part was the Body Glove boat was not at the turn buoy. Kept looking and looking for the boat to signal the halfway point. Started getting worried as I was getting tired and didn’t think the halfway point was in site! Soon figured it out that there was no boat. Damn recession.

Had a great swim back to the pier did my typical pick it up and catch all the groups but as usual it was too late and exited in 1:02. 5x’s and I think I’ve swam the same time! But exited and felt warmed up and ready to start the race.

Had a good T1. Saw my friend Brad who is a stellar swimmer but taking his time in transition. It was his first Hawaii so I’ll let him off. Picked up my bike in an empty T1. Usually I’d be bummed about this, but with where I was racked, I was stoked!

The Bike

Headed out with no problems. Did the loop back through Kona with no problems. Everything felt fine. Paula shouted to me I was the first one out (from all of our SD friends) and that made me feel pretty good. The first tears came as I left town and hit the Queen K. I flashed back to the 4AM trainer workouts and how I visualized this moment during all of them…awesome. This is what racing is all about.

Settled in. Checked who I was riding with. I was prepared for the worse but people were riding well. Huge improvements over previous years in the draft packs. There were the dorks. This year you could really pick them out. The big packs were riding well though. Very fair but I was fixated on my run. I let them go.

Not sure if this was a mistake.

I rode comforatably to the turn to Havi. Saw my love there and got a huge boost. Was planning to crush the climb. Started the climb, picked it up dropped everyone. 5 minutes later they crept back up. Saw a great deal a crappy riding. Usually I can get away from even the draft pack on the hills. But they were right there. This was different.

Had a solid headwind up near Havi- but it wasn’t the Hawaii winds. Hit the turn and headed back down willing myself to be feeling good at 80 miles. And I did. A little tired but I had legs and jammed home. Steady headwind that pissed you off mentally more than slowed you down. I kept it in control. 5 times here and I’ve learned you need to be able to run. If at least to enjoy your day and tell everyone how much you loved the race. Running an Ironman on empty sucks and really can take away from the day.

Picked up the cadence and cruised home- no worries no problems. I knew was riding more conservatively than the day allowed- but I had 2:55 in my head and knew without a worry that I could do it.

The Run

This was it. This was what I had trained for 6 months to do. I had complete confidence.

Exited transition and felt on top of the world for all of 100 meters. Forst mile I knew something was off. I hadn’t felt this during a run for years. I faked it for 6 or 7 miles. Hit my goal pace for the first half, about 6:35 miles. But knew with every step that this was not what racing felt like. This was surviving.

I had some good moments. Seeing my friend Ian early in the run and witnessing a race of someone’s life. A big boost. Seeing Paula on the hill to the Queen K. OK…I cried again (second time only! Usually I’ve cried at least 4 or 5 times during an IM by now) as I knew I wasn’t having my day. She gave me incredible strength though. I finished the hill and felt normal again for a few miles. But it was still survival.

Running on the Queen K is every triathlete’s dream. Even in survival mode, I squinted my eyes and took it in . There is no other place I would rather be at than that moment. Even feeling off and knowing my race wasn’t shaping up to be what I wanted- this is the greatest place to be. Nothing can touch you, you’re on hollowed grounds, it is only you against the elements- perfect, my favorite place to be.

Those thoughts picked me up. But not enough to get me to be back in the race. I saw my friendd Ian Mickelson, another stellar Zoot athlete, having the race of his life, as I entered the energy lab. I was so proud of him but will not deny that was the race I wanted. I turned towards home and sucked up a few decent miles. A great deal of coke, water, and bananas hoping to get the legs back.

Ali’i was incredible, a magical place. I crossed the line with arms held high and soon sunk into my babydoll’s arms. A few tears were shed. A few pizza slices were eaten, and a few hugs were given to the friends who have shared my life through all of this.

Kona is an incredible place. It is such an honor to be part of this race, this spectacle, this circus. I won’t lie that I wanted more. I feel like I didn’t race. Like I’m still in one of those pre-race dreams we all have where you’re late from for the start or your bike breaks and you wake up in a panic but know it is just a dream. Never felt like this after a race, good or bad. I’m hoping to turn it all around though. A few thoughts keep me going. I wouldn’t have changed any training, I killed it for 6 months. I placed higher in the age division than ever. I fell back a few overall places. I didn’t have the race I dreamed of. But many did and they impressed me and inspired me. I will come back to the island and have my day. It will happen. I just know now that it will take more than just desire and training and confidence. It will take something I have yet to find, but I will.s

Thanks for sharing in my day, Patrick

Party!

Pretty bad ass holiday weekend.  Also a great week minus Paula being super sick.  But it was her birthday Tuesday and her mom was staying with us all week so she (and me!) was taken care of very well...clothes washed and ironed, homemade lunches, and interesting Colombian twists on housekeeping, love it!  

I was reminded once again how lucky I am to have Paula on her birthday morning...she woke at 4:30, had the coffee (fresh ground Peets with mucho vanilla coffee mate), opened her present by 4:45 (nau hoodie), and were starting a vo2 max bike and run workout by 5...all so we could go drink wine at Tratoria Trulli that night.  Simply awesome.

Unfortunately, the day kind of knocked her out as her cold got worse on Wednesday and she ended u out of work for two days.  I fought it with 10 or 12 emergen-c's a day.  

Training was somewhat light this week, somewhat of a mid-season break week.  Typically though, I probably could have been better at the 'break' part of it, but it was refreshing mentally which is often most important.  

A couple of new things this week too...started a new treatment for my hip injury.  I met  Dr. Dawn Lui at the encinitas race expo last week.  She's an ART specialist who happens to have an office right across the street from my office, Action Chiropractic.

I saw her twice and have been really into it.  She's really into the root of the problem and knows quite a bit, and it's pretty affordable, $34 a session.  

I'm going to keep at for a few weeks, but I'm feeling pretty good about this, ran today on hills for 45 minutes with no problems.  Did run easy though...

On Friday I had a bike fit with Retul certified bike fitter Dean Sprague.  It was a great afternoon.  Really just confirmed my fit.  Did a few adjustments to my cleats but other than that the fit was right on.  Guess I shouldn't second guess myself.  But it was interesting, he has an incredible wealth of knowledge about bikes and fit theories.  I don't spend enough time thinking about the little things in racing, I like being the rocket, not the rocket scientist.

Saturday was the big day though...party of the year.  It was Jeff Young's and Paula's b-day throw down extravaganza.  

Awesome night, great friends and drink.  43 people in the loft!  And I even got to play bartender again.  I consulted nyc bartender extraordinaire Jim Mehan for some drink ideas (I still like to think I taught him everything he knows, but he's surpassed me by far).    

I picked up a keg of Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale along with ingredients for Alpero Spritz (thanks Jim) and Chocolate Martinis (don't need help with these!) with dark chocolate pomegranate seeds.  Jeff and Mac took care of the BBQ duties and I was able to man the bar.  Kate brought a killer chocolate cake from VG's,  James a growler of Green Flash Im

perial IPA, Marcus some killer homebrew, Aunt Susie and Dick provided plates of gri

lled Veggies, and bake Nick did it again- a incredible cake with a plate of decedent homemade sweets- can't even describe them but they were awesome and supposedly healthy- dude seriously needs to open a bakery.  

Super fun night and I even stayed up till 12:30!  Sunday has been slow though...great masters weekend but the rest of the day has been spent eat

ing chocolate frosting and having one of these- my new favorite beer...It's mid-season break right??

The Local Scene

I've definitely come to a new level of endurance sports participation.  Part of it is due to the incredible place we live and another part of it is due to the weird way we (meaning me, my wife, and all of our friends) are driven.  It's not enough to just race a local sprint triathlon on a given weekend anymore.  Now we add on open 5k runs, paddle board races, ocean swimming, and century bike rides in order to earn our Sunday afternoon beers.  Crazy...but very FUN!

It was the battle of the toughest this weekend.   I settled on the century+sprint triathlon while my great friends Kate and Kim competed in the Machoman competition which consisted of a Saturday tear your legs apart 5k followed by a tear your arms apart 6 mile paddle board.  Sunday was the sprint triathlon followed by a one mile ocean swim.  I was sad not to compete in the ocean swim after the race, but I had mother-in-law duties while Paula did her long run.    It was a great weekend in North County, full of friends and great racing.  

It was probably my first and only century I will ever do.  I like racing.  I'll tour when I can't or don't want to race.  But I did get to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at every aid station so the day turned out good!  Also, I did the ride with Paula.  It was a fun way to spend the day together.  I feel so lucky we can share this life together...she's riding well and has a solid 2.5 months of training ahead of her till Canada.  I know this will be her best IM yet.

Right after the Wildflower weekend, my parents came to town and my brother flew in from Taiwan as well.  Paula's mom came in from Colombia shortly after and we had a great Mother's day celebration in Huntington Beach.  The training has been sporadic since then.  Work has been busy, with one all night tree installation that threw me for a loop.   Also, my Dubai job has come back to life so I think I will be busy this summer, which is cool because P and I have been scouting out the neighborhood for a new home to buy...more on that to come.

Back to my race today.  Race the wanna-be pro wave.  Came out in dead last place but next to Jesse Stensland so that gave me a good boost.  Fast folks out there.    Hammered the bike moved up to 7th in the guys race.  Was dismayed by the drafting of the usual folks.  You know who I'm talking about.  Lewis Elliot, a classy pro, crushed us all even with the idiots trying to hang on his wheel.  New pro and local guy Karl Bordine cleaned up as well with his powerful bike and was able to back it up with a 5k that almost caught all of the cheaters.   With another few miles on the bike and a few on the run, I would have been competitive.  But I ended up 7th across the line.  But I heard that I moved up to 4th so they may have DQ'd a few people.  We will see when the results are posted.  All and all a good race.  I'm getting faster, but so is everybody else!  Hmmm...it might be time to dig in and focus on Hawaii.  I'm fueled by emotion and the last two races have been only mediocre.  Need something to pick it up.  It will come. 

Thanks for reading, Patrick

Wildflower

Another wildflower weekend is complete...one of the best race weekends Paula and I have had there.  Only a decent race though, should be more happy as I went a bit faster than I've gone there before, but so did a few other dudes.

The work week before was wild.  We're (luckily) very busy these days and I'm on a new project, re-imaging Fashion Island.  Starting the site work on this one along with a presentation to big dogs from Saudi Arabia on the South Hotel project made the pre-race preparations a bit tight but we got the car all packed by Thursday morning and Paula and I headed up the coast.   I've been pretty relaxed about this race and the training since Cali 70.3 has been light with trying to get my hip healthy.  But of course, I knew as soon as race morning came I'd be itching to throw down a fight. 

We were the first to arrive at the Lake San Antonio from our group and searched for an hour for a good camp site.  Apparently you have to get to the site a week early or be on a 'list' to get any campsite with a picnic table and less than 2:1 slope...luckily, our San Diego Team in Training friends allowed us to set up camp in the TNT reserved loop.  Which was fitting as we've always associated Wildflower with great Team in Training friends and memories.   Set up camp, saw some old friends and got a pretty good nights sleep while trying not to think about the rain rumors floating around.  

Our group arrived to the camp throughout the next day.  A very solid crew, Kim Mcdonald, Brian Scott, Chad Green and family and his buddy Steve, Amanda, and James Dorris all shared our site.  Good people and fast racers.  We cooked the pre-race ritual of pasta, broccoli, and tuna and tried to ignore the steady rain that had been falling all day!  I don't mind racing in the rain and camping in the rain is okay if you're prepared. But what I was afraid of was camping in the rain, racing in the rain, and then going back to camping in the rain...not a fun weekend.

Luckily....we woke to this!  

Sun was burning away the clouds as soon as it came up, it was going to be a fast day of racing.

I was pretty excited to get out and race.  More relaxed than usual and feeling a great deal of confidence.  Had a nice jog down the lake shore path and ran into the groups of Cal Poly student volunteers heading down to the race.  They had all pretty much just finished up their kegs and were in great form!  One girl staggered up to me and handed me a cup of Gatorade and proceeded to squat down and take pee right next to me, priceless.

I was in the first wave of 3 of my age group.  I found out later that they had seeded the waves by previous wildflower times so our group was stacked with some of the top guys from around the country.  Had a a nice clean start without getting too pummelled and rounded the first buoy with just a small group ahead of me.  After a couple hundred yards I noticed somebody drafting off me.  It was cool though as I could tell the guy knew what he was doing as he was swimming very steady and in control.  I was cool with it, ok I did throw in a few zig zags (hey I'm a competitor! ) to see if he'd fall off but we ended up swimming the course together.   Caught up to a few folks near the end and blasted up the boat ramp to T1.  As soon as I pulled the goggles off I saw the guy drafting was my buddy Grady Funk who I now is a solid swimmer.  Struggled with my wetsuit, gotta practice the details...but was soon off with a quick shout out to Paula who was waiting for here own wave to go off.  

I exited T1 with Saul Raisin.  Saul is a former pro-cyclist who had a terrible bike crash a few years back.  We saw him speak a year ago and picked up his book, Tour de Life,  which details his life as a pro and his recovery from brain damage from the crash, a good read.   It was cool to see him ride, you can really tell the difference between a true rider and the tri-geeks like me.  He floated around the narrow corners of the first few miles looking effortless.  I laid it down on the first big hill though and never saw him again.   

The wildflower ride is epic.  It's relentless from the start.  It's not the slowest course, but it's rolling the entire way with a few big climbs near the end.  I moved up into first place in my wave by about mile 25.  Passed a few heavy hitters, Brandon Del Campo and BJ Cristenson along the way which gave me some confidence, but they are both incredible runners so I knew I had to stay on form.  A little after 30 miles one of my aerobar pads flew off, never had that happen.  It was minor now, just uncomfortable and have some big bruises though.  I think I forgot about it after a few miles.  Really crushed the big grade at mile 40 but unfortunately, paid for it...

Had a really tough 5 miles or so with cramps and fatigue.  Shifted up and spun the legs out a bit to try and shake things out and ended up getting passed by somebody I didn't know at mile 50 or so.  As I made one the final turns back towards the lake, the legs were picking back up and I got back up to speed.  Had an epic bomb down the steep grade to T2 and was quickly off and onto the run.

The Wildflower run is just as relentless as the bike.  Again, it's not the slowest course, but it has some serious off-road climbs which most often I really like.  At least I tell myself I do...I was struggling from the start.  The guy that had passed me was just running out of T2 as I came in and I thought (or hoped) I would be seeing him again.  But with the injuries and missed run sessions this year, I didn't have the greatest confidence.  I'm a runner though with many years and many miles in my legs so I can 'fake it' sometimes.  You can't fake Wildflower though...

I hit the Trails and Brandon caught up.  He's a great guy and a great racer.  He gave me some words of encouragement but I didn't think I'd be able to stay close. I'm strong when I can race steady but the legs didn't have the strength to keep pace on the uphills so I was up and down with the speed.  Really dug deep for miles 3 through 8.  Both half IM runs this year have been by far the toughest of my career.  This sport just doesn't get any easier, you just learn how to push yourself harder.  I guess that's why I keep signing up for more races.

By mile 9 I caught up to one of the women professionals, Tyler Stewart.  She was running very steady, same pace on the uphills and flats.  She was being pretty cool, thanking all the spectators and volunteers, chatting with the other racers, but working hard.  I gave her some props as I ran by and she stuck with me as we headed out on the final 4 miles of paved rollers.  She was going to work off of me.  She was in 6th place and we saw 5th place a few hundred yards ahead.  5th place was starting to shuffle a bit so I knew we had her.  We bombed the hill to the turn-around and caught 5th just past it.  I saw Brandon about 2 minutes up along with the other dude about 1 minute up on me.  Also as I headed back from the turn-around, I saw 2 guys in my divisions about a minute behind me running strong.   

After Tyler and I had passed the 5th place girl, I hear a whisper behind me...'lets get another'.  It was awesome.  I think I'll remember that line and how she said for my next races.  The determination in the voice was great and I saw 4th place a hundred yards up.  As we neared I told her to look strong and we raced past.  She was so happy and invigorated with the endorphins of racing.  She just laid it down then and dropped me...yes she dropped me.  I guess in my head my race was over.  I was pushing hard, harder than I've ran in some time but didn't have the turn over to keep pace.  

Hit mile 12 and the big downhill mile to the finish.  I tried to bomb it but held back a bit to protect the hip.  I didn't think anyone was close but did hear the announcer at the top of the hill saw a name I thought I recognized at the top of the hill but I though he was in a different division (earlier wave) and I was already ahead of him.  But I guess he was in my division and had been waiting to pounce on me all the way down the hill.  He waited till about 50 yards from the finish and sprinted by...I couldn't do anything.    I guess it was payback time for him though.  I had passed him at mile 24 of IM CDL last year and won our age group so he took a shot at me and won this time.  Guess I learned to take a peak back near the finish of my next race...

This race drove it home for me that I need to get the hip healthy.  I can't race 100% when I can only train 90%.  I think I am almost there but have to be smart.    The rest of this month is full recovery mode.  It's all about Kona this year and know I can reach my goals there if I am smart.

Paula ended up knocking over a half hour off her previous WF time.  She was very happy which in the end matters more to me than my own results, so it was another successful weekend of racing for the Baldwin family.  We tool an extra day to relax and celebrate our good friend Billy Duval's birthday in Paso Robles on Sunday.  A beautiful afternoon filled with wine tasting and great food.  Somehow ended up with a case of wine for the house as well!  Great times...

patrick

The Landlord

the landlord of the sea is back in town...though i don't think he or she ever really leaves.

http://www.sharkresearchcommittee.com/pacific_coast_shark_news.htm

i guess you can't really worry too much about these kind of things. i know i know it's way more likely to go out in a car accident, but the thought and these recent sightings (and the cold ocean temps) don't make the area beaches that inviting!  it's a year anniversary next week for the for the shark attack in solana beach that killed triathlete Dave Martin.  i never knew the man but he swam with my masters club, san dieguito boys and girls club swim masters and had lived in the neighborhood for many years.  we didn't do too much early morning ocean swimming after that last year, but i think we'll get back to it more this summer when the water warms up.

the weeks have been rolling along and wildflower is in 2 weeks...alot to do before then.  the saudi team (big dogs) on my saudi arabia project are coming to town the 28th and i have to have my work of the last 2 months ready to present.  we also picked up a few model home projects that we need to bang out next week, haven't worked on anything like that in some time but we'll take it for sure.  

also had my annual white irish boy living in california trip to the doctor where they chopped me up a bit to check out some funny looking moles, crossing my fingers on this one.  on another medical note, started physical therapy up again this week for the hip.  i was buzzing after the race and i kind of forgot about it, but it is still there...MUST TAKE CARE OF IT.   hard for a tri-geek to do.  but it easy for me to listen to the pt guy when he says 'you must take it easy' by enjoying a glass of wine or two after work, keeps me off the bike!  no comments from the competition please...

patrick

california 70.3

a week after the race, my report.

probably the most surprising and shockingly happy result i've had in triathlon yet.  it's been a challenging year training.  2008 was probably my best tri season ever.  won my first triathlon, the big kahuna 1/2 ironman, won my age group at ironman couer d'alene, and had the best race weekend ever with paula at the new york city marathon to finish off the year.  so i was stoked for 2009.   then i got injured...hip flexor strain, it's going around san diego, must be something in the water.  it's taken about 4 months to diagnose, figure out how to deal with it, and start recovery.  it's a funny injury because you can train through it, but you know you shouldn't- a very tough concept to handle correctly for triathletes.  i took january and february off from the run with no change to the injury.  but started physical therapy in march and things started looking up.  also during the injury time, my second isaac time trial frame cracked- hence 3 months i've trying to sort out getting a new frame.  then my super cool fsa neo pro cranks started to come apart.  everything was telling me not to race.  completely surprised that i toed the line last week.  i guess it's not that bad as i write it out,  but it sure seemed tough in the weeks leading up to the race.

paula was racing as well, love it.  i'm so lucky to have such a beautiful wife who shares the same passion, it's what allows me to do this stuff!   i spent the friday afternoon prior the race getting the bikes ready, not to self...don't throw everything in a box after the last race of the season and expect t all to come together again.  barely had time to make dinner before bedtime but we were in bed by 9 and both excited for the day.

the hardest part about this race is driving to the start and watching the temperature gauge dip to the low 40's as you make your way up the coast.  at least it wasn't raining as it has in years before.  we got rock star parking and were in transition early, too early as my wave was the very last of the day.   spent the time seeing a few friends and then escaping to my secret restroom and chilling out under the stars for a bit.  it was cooooold, but as sun as the sun started breaking the horizon, you could feel it warming up.  hung out with my friend nick who i seeevery year, but only once a year as we line up for this race.  water was perfect for racing, cool and not too stinky.  swim was pretty typical but this year i had the whole race in front of me so there was even more crashing and bashing around.  didn't look at my watch as i exited but felt fine with the effort.    raced through t-1 pretty well, except...if you're going to walk from the swim to your bike, please move out of the way and walk on the pavement and not the carpet strip, it really really hurts to run on the asphalt...

had a brand new set of lightweight wheels to use compliments of Dan Plummer.

incredible wheels and very pricey, i'd have to sell my car to get a pair.  rode the disk which is good for the course, but i prefer the standard set of lightweights anywhere else, they're so light and stiff.  the new isaac worked out pretty good as well.  rode a pr for the course, just out my head down and jammed, felt good, a few mental low points, but the legs were there.  the highlight was passing paula at about 10 miles, she was looking strong and happy, always a great sign.  came up on Mark Harms about 1/2 way into the ride, scared me as i didn't know he was there and he is an incredible athlete.  i laughed with him for a bit and then hammered away to put a little distance between us as he can run...we had a nice run back into town, for a change, there was no head wind which probably didn't make a difference with trashing the legs less because i worked harder then ever!

oceanside is a great race with all the fan support on the run and it helps being a local.  tons of cheers and spectators lining to course.  coming off the bike felt pretty normal.  right out of transition BJ Christensen passed me.  he's in my age group and won his age group at lake placid last year with a sub-three hour marathon.  it tried to stay with him for a bit, but he was steadily pulling away.  there were 3 waves of my age division though so i had no idea if he was ahead of me or not but I guessed that i had the lead of at least 3 minutes so i'd just have to minimize the damage.  first 6 miles went ok, steady pace but i knew i was going to have to fight.  i was also fighting the temptation to back off a bit and call it a day, and chalk up a mediocre result to the injury.  funny how your mind tries to talk yourself into things like that when it really hurts.  

i had a good deal of support on the run though so i couldn't back down.  i just took it one mile after another trying to keep it up.  the age stations were packed!  hard to grab drinks but managed a little coke and a little water at each one.  mile 7 through 11 were the real fight.  i knew i had a shot at kona still but would have to work.  i had energy, but the legs were failing. but, this is often my favorite time of a race.  it's a cool spot if you don't mind the pain.  it's one of the few moments in life when nothing in the world can touch you or get into your head.  it's all you, and nothing else matters.   

at about mile 10 i passed paula which was a huge boost but she knew i was hurting as i was kind of glazed over, usually i can pull myself together during the run to slap fives or say hi to some friends, but today i was cooked.  the photo at the top from my buddy James says it all...

ended up holding it together and having a nice last 2 miles.  everybody said i was in 4th place but i didn't believe them.  finished with a course pr and second in the age division behind Adam Zucco, a great athlete who I knew was one to watch out for.  i had been watching him ahead of me a little but i didn't know for sure who he was or what wave he started in.   i must say though i was a little bummed crossing the line, not sure why as in looking back it was a great day where everything went perfect...i think it was being so close to the win and the kona spot.  i was even more shocked when i found out they had a few extra kona slots and divided them up between the largest age groups, with mine being one of them.  they had 2 spots...i was in disbelief.  disbelief at how perfect everything was working out when i had such poor expectations.  paula and i were both elated.  the registration girls said they hadn't seen anyone as excited as i was in a long while...

we hung out for the awards and paula was able to register for ironman canada so it truly was a perfect day.  my goods friends and training partners Brian Scott, Charisa Wernick, and Vickie Alexander also grabbed spots so the october group is coming together.

so now it's time to get healthy and figure how to get myself up on the podium come october, at least there is ample time to sort it all out!  i think i also need to figure out how to make these reports shorter...thanks for reading if you made it through!

patrick

The first post

every week, i get excited to read the blogs of a few friends i follow.  it's a cool insight into their lives and lets you know what things are going on around town.  a few scare me into training a bit harder or a bit less and a few others simply make me want to eat better.  so here is mine!  hopefully i can keep it up to date...

a little about me...born and raised in minneapolis, minnesota, educated in the greatest school in the greatest city in the world, madison, wisconsin.  further (and more important) education as a bartender at paul's club, the greatest bar in the world.  moved out to san diego in 1999 and started work as a landscape architect.  2 years after the big move i raced my first triathlon and told my coach after i crossed the line, one down one-thousand more to go.  fell in love with the sport and have pretty much spent all my time (and money) racing triathlons since.  met the love of my life while serving as a triathlon 'coach' (just trying to meet girls), paula gomez in 2004 and we were married down in colombia, where's she from, in 2007.  she loves the tri-lifestyle as much as i do and our favorite times are when we pass each other out on the race course, doesn't get any better than that...

when not training i'm at my office in solana beach, burton studio.  we're a small landscape architecture studio specializing in resort design.  we're all over the place right now.  finished a 7 year resort project in newport beach last year, the resort at pelican hill.

also had a great project on cabo recently too that brought me all over mexico for 'research'.  now we're keeping our heads above water in pretty scary times but busy on a ritz in saudi arabia and a 35,000 sq.ft palace in dubai!

paula and i live in del mar, about a 10 minute run from 'the sunday run'.  love the location and house and share it with our cat, celeste.  that's about it for an intro, now on to the fun stuff...

patrick