Borger Endurance LLC. - Welcome to the blog of Ryan Borger : triathlete & coach

Pro-Elite Altitude Training Camp #1: Denver, CO

2012-01-30T14:12:00.000-08:00

                Training for the 2012 season is underway. This past week kicked off the first big volume training week of the year - which turned out to be my biggest volume week to date. Coach Melissa Mantak headed up her first 8 day elite training camp of the year. While many pro triathletes head to Tuscon, Arizona or Australia at this time of year, we opted to stay close by and train where we are at. Athletes stayed with both myself and Melissa all week, and came from the Denver/Boulder area, Santa Barbara CA, Boston, northern California, and Wisconsin. Melissa is looking to grow these camps in the future and hopes to hold one every few months, either in the Denver area, possibly Colorado Springs and a few out of state. I know I would see huge benefits to taking part in such camps every several months. There are physical gains, but equally important are the mental gains and motivation you take with you after weeks like this.
         It's amazing how much easier it is to train all day when you have 8 others training alongside you. Seriously amazing! A 33 hour training week is no problem with a group - it's a bit harder alone, and this is where discipline comes in. I've come away with a few big conclusions. First, these weeks are similar to what many top pros are doing - week after week after week, not just one week. This is what it takes, for many, to succeed at the highest level. I say 'for many', since there are always outliers and those whose bodies react better to lower volume training. Secondly, camps like this can fill the void of a social scene which I feel like I had been craving lately, after hours of training per day solo. I learned a lot more in the past 8 days than anticipated. Each night we held dinner discussions on a variety of triathlon-related topics, and took turns leading discussions and sharing our personal experiences. Lots of great stuff came from everyone. No matter how much you know about the sport, there is ALWAYS a lot more to know. I shared my experiences with muscle cramping in the past, and co-led a discussion on nutrition with Kyle Visin. We also discussed the importance of choosing nutrition products like Powerbar products, with their "C2MAX" formula of a 2:1 ratio of glucose and fructose, rather than products without both.
           My body feels great this week, after a 7 day period of about 32,000 meters of swimming, 61 miles of running, and 13 hours on the bike. We lucked out with pretty good weather all week, other than two runs in the snow - one of which was a 12 miler at the Highline Canal that was pretty memorable - a run in which we took turns slipping on the ice since the thin layer of snow kept us from being able to determine our running surface. Dirt or ice, it all looks the same with a layer of snow over it. We all came back with some good laughs and bit of blood and bruises to leave us with some good visible memories.

Elite training camp #1 athletes:
Myself: Denver, CO
Justin Daerr: Boulder, CO - 8:18 at Ironman FL last year and 2nd fastest Ironman time for an American in 2011. Justin is also a coach, and brought with him lots of great information on training, but more importantly true wisdom that only comes from years of experience in the sport. One topic he spoke on that stood out to me was this: We all signed up for triathlon training. We CHOSE this lifestyle. Don't complain, don't get people to feel sorry for us because we have to train all day, and don't act like training all day everyday is so hard. We GET to do it, and it's a privilege. We chose this!
Kyle Visin: Santa Barbara, CA - a friend of mine from California. Also a coach and 9:11 Ironman Kona finisher and top level amateur. I learned a lot from Kyle this week about the ins and outs of complex cycling analysis.
Mark Hillers: Boulder, CO - Mark moved from Texas to chase his dream of becoming a pro triathlete. He's also coached by Melissa. He has a great work ethic, and is never afraid to push the pace. I look forward to seeing him earn his pro license this season at the Ironman 70.3 distance.
Pamela Hutchison: Eureka, CA - Pam also is coached by Melissa, and is a hard working athlete balancing her job as a personal trainer while pursuing triathlon
Jackie Arendt: Wisconsin - Jackie is a Team Timex member and has finished in the top 3 overall/pro division at several Ironman events, including St. George and Louisville.
Jordan Jones: Golden, CO - Jordan came for about half the camp, as he had duties at work for his online ski shop powder7.com. Jordan is a good friend and former Riptide teammate of mine, a solid all around triathlete who proved last season he is a rising top level triathlete in the US. Solid swim-bike-runner as he qualified for the HyVee 5150 Championships, and looks to do so again in 2012.
Brett Nichols: Boston area, MA - Brett is a first year pro and a top swimmer. He lead the swim workouts all week, which made it nice to just sit in behind and push the pace following his lead. Great person and great athlete.

Most of the swimming was done at the University of Denver, the best 50m pool in the state. Cycling routes included Red Rocks area, Bear Creek Park, Lookout Mountain, Chatfield Reservoire/Deer Creek Canyon, and Melissa's house for trainer sessions. Runs took place at Bear Creek park, Red Rocks amphitheater area, Washington Park, the Highline Canal, and streets surrounding Melissa's house.

The Workouts: (credit: stolen from the blog of Justin Daerr)
Day One: 30 minute easy run, 4 hour moderate ride with two tempo climbs of ~20-25 minutes of duration up Lookout Mountain. ~5K swim, short course yards, with a mixture of intensities.
Day Two: 13 mile run with the final 4K uphill (steep) towards the top of Red Rocks. 5K swim, Long Course, with some pulling. One hour recovery spin on the trainer.
Day Three: 5K swim, Long Course, challenging main set. 30 minute skills session with dynamic warm up and run drills followed by a 10K run on trails. Afternoon ride of nearly 2 hours at moderate, aerobic effort.
Day Four: 5K swim, Long Course, pulling and fast 50s. 10K run with a main set of 3x: 10 x 30on/30off. Afternoon trainer ride with threshold and vo2 main set (2 hours) with 7K tempo run off the bike
Day Five: 5K swim, Short Course Yards, technique focused. 2 hour ride up Lookout Mountain. 45 minute aerobic run off the bike.
Day Six: 5K swim, Long Course, Aerobic/strength with fast 50s. Afternoon brick workout: bike/run/bike/run/bike/run. Lasted about 3.5 hours with a lot of intensity.
Day Seven: Morning run, aerobic/longer, 90 minutes (about 12 miles) in the snow/ice. 4K swim, Short Course meters, aerobic with skills.
Day Eight: 3.5 hour ride with 50-60 minute tempo climb. 7K easy run in the afternoon.

Here are a few snapshots from the week:

Ice Baths post-training

underwater video camera swim analysis


More cold tubs

Running skills workshop at the track

On the bikes

The DU Pool

A well deserved lamb dinner at Melissa's house

The Training Room

Powerbar goods keeping us fueled!

Jackie did a great job keeping her blog updated throughout the week. If you're interested in reading more about the camp and day by day recaps, check out her blog at: http://jackiearendtracing.blogspot.com

BIG thanks to my coach Melissa Mantak for putting on a great camp. Also thanks to Jason Kask for helping out all week. Jason is currently doing an apprenticeship program for USA Triathlon down in Colorado Springs. Also thanks to Jared & Ryan at Kompetitive Edge for helping out with some training supplies, and to Powerbar for keeping us fueled up. With various Powerbar athletes at camp, we were grateful to have access to the best training nutrition products out there.
Train hard!
-Ryan

Guru CR .901 Bike Review: Going Custom

2011-11-28T15:39:00.001-08:00

For 2012, I will be racing on my new custom Guru CR.901 time trial/triathlon rig. I previously never had ridden a custom bike, nor knew much about the custom process. Here I share my opinion on the bike, some thoughts on 'going custom', and compare the bike to a few of my past time trial bikes I have owned, which have been a 2010 Specialized Transition Pro, a 2010 Blue Triad SL, and a 2008 Kuota K-Factor SL.

            I picked up this beauty (recently named the Black Widow due to the black/white color with the dark red Guru sticker on it and a few red parts...cute isn't it ;)) from Kompetitive Edge, the premier multisport and swim shop in the Denver area (which just won Competitor magazine's best triathlon shop AND best swim shop for Colorado). KE is one of the only Colorado shops that specializes in setting up triathletes with their perfect custom fit bikes, and the Canadian brand Guru is the leader in custom triathlon rigs. There are times when an athlete fits Guru's stock frames and doesn't need to go custom, but a perfect fit on any stock frame is rare, and many athletes opt for a custom bike to get this ideal and perfect fit. Most people can find a stock frame from a variety of companies that puts them in the ballpark on fit, but it is VERY difficult to set them up perfectly, with angles that enable the most efficient and most comfortable ride. This is where custom has the advantage, and after your first few rides on a custom bike you can feel the difference.
           If you're near the Denver area, check out Kompetitive Edge and chat with them about seeing if a custom bike makes sense for you. That's what I did, and they're always extremely helpful and super knowledgeable. Explore the custom bike process if you're looking for an ultra- upgrade for next season. If you do look into getting a custom bike made for you, make sure the shop has a reputable fitter taking your measurements. KE teams up with experienced fitter Scott Geffre of Fit and Tri for the custom Guru process. Scott has fit pros and amateurs alike on custom bikes for over 13 years, so I readily put my trust in the expert. I let Scott take some body measurements, which is the first step in the process. A few days later, he showed me the proofs (below) of what my bike would look like, based on my measurements. After asking if I was ready to pull the trigger on production, I said "let's do this!" without even really looking at the prints. After all, Scott is the expert so I went with it. The cool thing was that when I got the bike made and had the initial fit on it afterwards with Scott, when I placed the stem at the lowest possible position (with no spacers on the steerer tube b/t the stem and head tube), the bike was set up for the most aggressive position I'd ever want to go . Any lower and I would be out of the perfect fit range. I left a few spacers above the stem and didn't cut the steerer tube, since I may want to raise the aerobars slightly down the road for an Ironman distance racing position (more on that later).
        The process is pretty simple, and starts with a few body measurements taken. The measurements are taken in account, put into a blender and walla!, before you know it, out comes spec sheets like these:

           Let's face it, our world of choosing a triathlon bike usually looks like this: 1) See how much money is in the budget for a bike 2) Find a bike that looks really cool or our top triathlon idol athlete is riding 3) See if our bike fit numbers are somewhere in the ballpark to fit decently on the desired bike 4) Start searching for a bike. Most people start searching for their frame size, i.e. a 56cm or 58cm, and assume that is all that really needs to be known. However, it's important to understand that each bike manufacturer may have very different geometry in the same stated centimeter frame size. Some bikes have longer top tubes, or reach, and others a lot shorter. After any bike fit, you should be able to weed out a few brands that aren't the best option for you. You will be able to find a brand that fits you better than others, but finding one that fits your body perfectly is extremely rare. In most cases you simply cannot get as close to the perfect fit.
   Now, just because you go custom doesn't mean you can't ever make any adjustments to the bike. You can't change the frame geometry, but you won't need to nor want to. However, you still can adjust the stem, aerobars, and seat position to dial in the perfect comfort zone. You may be wondering, why would I ever want or need to make adjustments if my bike is a custom fit? Well, bike fitting is still an adaptive process over time, and the proper position on the bike still allows for a small acceptable range. There is not always 1 simple 100% perfect position, but rather a very small range of very good positions. Your body changes over time, and as you get fitter and more flexible, this may change the position you're able to ride in slightly. Muscle flexibility changes are a huge reason you need to keep in mind your bike position still may change slightly in the future, and you may not always want to ride in the same position as far as aggressiveness goes. I personally try to ride in the most aggressive position possible in the bounds of 1) efficiency due to my muscle flexibility (some people aren't flexible enough to ride super aggressive, so it would hurt them rather than do any good, since they wouldn't be able to produce as much power in that position) 2) comfort - knowing I can ride a whole 56 miles in a position and still be able to run well off the bike.
       In going custom you still have the ability to change stems, or use a headset spacer to raise/lower the aerobars very slightly, which you may want to do depending on the distance you are racing. Most triathletes are able to ride more agressively for shorter races than longer races. Again, to reiterate, there is still a very small window or range in terms of a near perfect fit, and a custom bike frame will put you in this small window without limiting you 100% and still enabling you to make a few minor adjustments. With a proper custom bike and fit, you will be within the perfect appropriate adjustable range, which is hard to do with most bikes. The reason why custom bikes make sense, is simply because this range is very small are often hard to hit. Are custom bikes necessary for all? No, they are a luxury option for those who value precision, ultimate efficiency and comfort.
          My previous bikes all were made by reputable companies, and I liked them for the most part, but I will say I feel the most comfortable and sturdy on the Guru. No, I am not paid by Guru to say these things, nor am I a Guru sponsored athlete. I'm sharing my experience in going custom. This season I raced on a Specialized Transition Pro. Being a 'weight weenie' concerned about every little thing, I was curious to compare the weight of the Guru to other

The Guru CR.901 frame is extremely aerodynamic

bikes. Even though weight on a TT bike is a lot less important than on a road bike (aero trumps weight), unless you're riding a very hilly course, I still think weight is very important. This is especially the case for multi-loop courses with sharp 180 degree turns, where you are decelerating and accelerating numerous times during the race. I weighed the Transition Pro with the same training wheelset & components as the Guru, and the Guru was slightly lighter even though the frame size was slightly larger. The Guru CR.901 (Guru's top of the line custom bike) weighs less or near it's competitors - top of the line carbon fiber time trial bikes.
More important than weight was my discovery in the feel of the ride. At the Capital of Texas Triathlon this year, I used a Zipp 900 rear disc wheel with a Zipp 808 front. It was very very windy, and I had a horrible time trying to stay in the aerobars due to the deep wheelset and wind. In fact, in training as well, the winds affected me all year more than I thought they should. I didn't feel as confident in the aerobars, and confidence is a must have in order to focus, relax, and hammer on the bike. On my custom Guru, the #1 difference I notice is the stability and comfort in the aerobars in the wind. Scott, who fit me on the Guru, explained this is a result of being properly positioned on the bike, specifically the front of the bike. Weight distribution is correct.

Two water bottle cage mounts

I liked my Blue Triad SL a lot. It's was a nice bike, though I enjoy having 2 water bottle cage mounts on the frame - I only had one on the Blue and Specialized, so I had to rig up a rear seat water bottle holder. The Blue also had an integrated seat post, which was a serious pain for traveling with the bike as the bike barely fit in my travel case (since it was a size Large) - not to mention that you had to cut the carbon fiber seat post just to lower it, and there is no going back once you do. Another benefit of the Guru is that the frame allows enough width to run a 23mm rear tire. My Blue Triad wouldn't fit anything over 21mm wide in the rear. I also enjoy that the rear brake is easier to access and adjust. It is not tucked under the (bottom bracket area of the) bike like many aero TT bikes now have it, so it may not be quite as aerodynamic. However, with the aero frame of the Guru, the better comfort and stable ride of the Guru, it is worth it to me and those time-saving advantages are far more beneficial. The advantages of being able to produce more power in my ideal position outweigh a slightly more aero rear brake caliper. Also, it is very easy to adjust, and I don't have to worry about the brake rubbing my rear tire as much, since it was hard to adjust the rear brake on past bikes. Another advantage to the Guru CR.901 is the ability to run a standard bottom bracket or a BB30. This is rare! Most bikes come with one type, but the Guru allows the option for both with inserts. I recently swapped out my standard bottom bracket with a BB30 for increased stiffness and feel in acceleration.

The new BB30 bottom bracket

These red bottom bracket cups were replaced with a BB30 / internal bottom bracket/crankset

The Crono has a traditional rear brake caliper

My Guru features a tall, custom 19cm head tube. That's what I get for being almost 6'3"!

Its crazy to look back at my own bike evolution. I started out on a 60cm 2005 Trek Madone road bike which was WAY too big for me. I had no idea what a fit was supposed to feel like, which is to be expected as a beginner in the sport. Over time, I have learned, and felt, the benefits of a perfect fitting bike. When you are trying to compete at the top level of the sport, the details matter. If you're searching for the perfect fit, going custom is something to consider.

The steed of my 2009 season, my first triathlon season

Today's Ride. It fits.

Sponsorship 101: Want to Get Sponsored?

2011-10-23T22:50:00.001-07:00

By Ryan Borger
www.borgerendurance.com

Several people have contacted me lately about sponsorship,asking me questions such as: “How can I get sponsors?” “Am I a good enoughathlete to get sponsors?” “What is the best strategy?” “What can I expect toget from sponsors?”.. etc. There are many questions to ask, but one of the bestand most relevant questions to add to the list is this: “What skills andconnections do I have that I can offer to sponsors?” “What value can I add totheir company as a sponsored athlete?” “What ways can I promote them and gettheir product or company name out to market?” “How can I think outside the boxin ways to incorporate being connected with a brand that communicates theirmission to their target market?” These are the questions that will get youthinking the right way about sponsorship if you want to succeed, as companieswant people who understand that it is a partnership, not a one-sided opportunityto take advantage of someone for personal gains alone.

All parts of this article may not berelevant for every triathlete, and this article is written primarily for and directed to topage-group and professional triathletes seeking sponsors, but here I share somevaluable information that can relate to many other things outside of triathlon.It's more of a chapter as opposed to a short article, so get ready to read.As you will find out, sponsorship may have a lot less to do with how fast youare than you may think, and more about your community involvement and provingthat adding you to the team can add value to the company.

What doesit mean to be a sponsored triathlete?

Sponsorship is a broad term. Many athletes, amateur andprofessional alike, have sponsors. However, this often means totally differentthings. Some athletes receive 10% off at a local shop or from a gear-relatedcompany, which they view as a sponsorship, while others (i.e. Ironman WorldChampions or Olympic medalists) are earning over $30k a year from a single companysponsor alone. In triathlon, it’s difficult to obtain financial sponsors,unless you’re a professional at the very top of the sport. Triathlon iscertainly a fast growing sport, but it’s still a baby in terms of topprofessionals securing big corporate contracts and even top dollar prize purses.Don’t get me wrong, the best triathletes in the world make a great living inthe sport, but that many only be 20-30 athletes in the world, whereas thelowest minor league single A baseball players are earning a larger salary than 80+% of pro triathletes. There is a HUGE gap from the very top professionals tothe 2^nd tier professionals in terms of income earned from the sport.Most low and mid-level pros have side jobs or other part time or full-time employment. Speakingof that, when I worked full time at my accounting job in California, I wouldlisten to online interviews and triathlon podcasts almost all day long, as Iwas new to the sport and loved soaking in any info I could about triathlon. I rememberlistening to an interview on CompetitorRadio.com with Bob Babbit. He wasinterviewing 2008 Olympian Julie Swail-Ertel. Swail stated that although shehad been an Olympian and one of the top female triathletes in the US, she’dnever had a cash sponsor, only sponsors that gave her free product. That puts itin perspective a bit more. Only if our sport was golf (heck, or even crossfit now...crossfit?!) we would all be set.

Some people love to brag to their friends andcoworkers how they are sponsored. Itfeels good to have sponsors, and feels even better to tell people you’responsored. It’s every kids dream growing up. You feel like you’ve made it (at least somewhat) in thesport. When I tell people I’m a professional triathlete, many assume I ammaking a good living in the sport. The truth is, most of my income comes fromcoaching and side jobs as opposed to race earnings and sponsor cash, though thegoal is for that to change over the next few seasons.

Some athletes love to list sponsorlogos on their blogs and websites simply to appear professional or like they’re the real deal, and many of theseathletes are not professionals. They’ll list a company that has given themnothing more than a free T-shirt. I won’t go into whether I think they’re right in doing so or not, because it’s really irrelevant and it’s not my place to saywhether they are truly sponsored or not. You can debate that in your free time,but it’s somewhat an irrelevantconversation. Though their motives may be silly, you have to applaud them forbeing proactive and taking a great first step in promoting a company andattempting to start a relationship with them. Anything you can do to formrelationships with companies and promote them is a way to get them to noticeyou in a positive way, which can be very valuable down the road.

Let’s be honest. We all like freestuff; and we all like free money even more, right?! Just because this is true,doesn’t mean we are selfish and are sponsor-hunting simply for free kickbacks.Companies clearly understand money and free product is valuable to athletes, especially those in a with a tight budget.They also often realize that athletes couldn’t often continue what they’redoing without sponsor help, or at least do it on their given budget, especiallyif they are dedicated to the sport and have made a decision to forgo otherfull-time employment in order to train full time or near full-time. If most pros would calculate their hourly wage earned through prize money, factoring in training time, race time, and race travel time, among other time spent, they might just get depressed...though triathletes chose this lifestyle, and are hopeful they will keep climbing the ranks and this will change. Like any business starting out, the first few years are a hefty investment. The lessoutside income athletes have coming in, obviously sponsors become extremelyvaluable, and athletes are very grateful for them. Sponsors usually understandthis. They often know what athletes are seeking and after learning a bit aboutyou, they know what is most valuable to you.

So, whatis sponsorship?

It can be a variety of things: cash, free nutritionproducts, free or discounted services like massage or physical therapy care, abike, training and race gear, race travel airline fund donations, cash, and aslew of other products or services. Sponsorship can come in many ways.Sometimes it could be exchanging a service for promoting the company as asponsored athlete, such as massage. It totally ranges. A top professional usually will have cashsponsors, a bike company sponsor, gear & nutrition sponsors, and othersponsors. Their cash sponsors are often triathlon related companies, and are alsosometimes companies like banks or investment firms that have nothing to do withthe sport. The middle level pro’s usually have very few or no cash sponsors,but often receive free gear & product, and sometimes the chance to earnmoney in other ways, such as if their photo appears published in a newspaper oran online article and a company logo is visible in the photo. This is the casewith one of my sponsors, which provides product as well as this opportunity toearn cash in this way.

Pro field athlete (shot put) Adam Nelson used to compete in a "Space For Rent" shirt. I noticed this on TV watching him throw while in college. The shirt got some serious TV air time. A few months later he signed a big contract with Nike...now only if triathlon was on ESPN or ABC!

Why dosponsors support athletes? Do sponsors come knocking at your door simplybecause you’re a top pro?

There are stillsome top nationally-ranked pro triathletes will little or no sponsors. Why?Mostly because the athletes aren’t really concerned about securing sponsors norhave tried to do so. Unless you’re a top triathlete in the world, especially inthe Ironman scene which is more popular than Olympic distance draft-legal ITUracing (in the US), sponsors do not usually approach athletes. The top athletesin the world, yes, sponsors come ready with an offer on the table; but everyoneelse needs to be very proactive in their approach. Sponsors need a reason to partnerwith an athlete. They want to see how offering money or product to a singleathlete can directly translate to increased sales. Occasionally you do seecompanies willing to and wanting to sponsor athletes simply because they appreciateathletes’ sacrifices to have a chance to succeed in their sport, or company owners are either a fan or excited participant in the sport, but most often theyare looking for a way to add value to their company.

If you were a company, who would yousponsor? Athlete A is a middle of the pack amateur who races local races aswell as travels a few times a year to race. They also are a coach of the localcross-country team, the head Masters swim coach at the local University pool,and write articles for a top endurance sports nutrition blog. This athlete alsoactively uses social media like Facebook and Twitter, and as extremelyconnected in many aspects of the community. Athlete B is a very good US protriathlete, who is solely focused on racing and has no interest in having apersonal blog or website. Obviously athlete A, although will never be on thepodium on race day, may be able to offer more to a company through theirnetwork and connections tied to the sport and how they’re involved in it. I know an amateur triathlete who has a ton of sponsors. How? She adds value to companies through marketing. She has a following, with over 1000 Twitter followers and thousands of hits a month on her top-ranked endurance sports blog. Companies want to see blogs, websites, andtheir athletes to be connected to as many people as possible through onlinesocial media. Social media is powerful. What other way can you instantlycommunicate ANYTHING you want to 1000 people, and for free?!!Also, some companies choose to sponsor teams or clubs rather than individualathletes, even if the individual is a professional and the club consists of allrecreational athletes. Why is this? Well, they often don’t have to offer theamateurs as valuable of a sponsorship, but they also understand that 30 peopleon a team all wearing their logo may reach more people than a lone individual.

Companies want people who areinvolved in the community. They want coaches, teachers, instructors,businessmen who have friends in the sport, and who buy things. They want leaders of clubs and groups. They wantpeople who volunteer at local events and races. They want people with apositive attitude. What is worse than being represented by a pessimistic athlete,who is constantly complaining, swearing, and simply doesn’t act nor dressprofessionally ever? Be professional in every way! Be a true brand ambassador.Put sponsor logos on your race jersey, and your website. Write blog posts abouttheir products and do product reviews. Heck, put a logo sticker on your car! Be atotal brand ambassador for the company willing to support you. Commit topromoting them and none of their competitors. It’s important to understand youwill have a commitment to them, which may mean cutting ties to any possiblecompetitor brands.

Most importantly, they want people who understand what apartnership is, and understand business. Sponsoring athletes in any way is aninvestment for a company, most often financially, even if they are not offeringcash. Companies must buy their product, so if they offer free product, it’sstill cutting into their income statement. If they offer cash or product, still remember they can deduct some of this as a marketing/advertising expense on their profit & loss statement (...yes, I'm throwing in accounting terms just to feel like I learned something in my past job!). However, they want to supportathletes as they believe in the athlete’s mission, as well as understand thepotential in building a referral program through their athletes. Also, it’s aPR opportunity for a company, similar to donating to charity. Their media andmarketing team can publish articles explaining how they are involvingthemselves in the community and investing in people – things like that. Companies’reputations are extremely valuable, and when they become known as one thatsupports athletes, donates to charity, and runs their business with values andintegrity, naturally their reputation grows strong.

Howshould you approach sponsorship?

Whateverlevel you are at, understand that sponsors are making a sacrifice. Also understandyou can add value to their company. Both are important. In fact, the latter maybe more important, as ultimately it leads to helping out the sponsor once youdiscover your full potential to be of value to them. If you understand thisvalue and prove it in action, they will see your value and be happy to investin you, as they have a return on their investment. Seek out ways you can addvalue to a company. Start your sponsor letters or phone calls by introducingyourself and explaining ways you can do this. Do not start them out by askingfor things, and telling them what you need or want from them! If you introduce yourself as a triathleteseeking sponsors, asking specifically for X amount of free product, you’re notgoing to stand out. You are not in line at the fast food drive through, and this is not your turn to place your order. You’ll likely appear ungrateful and like you feel you’reentitled to things simply due to your level of competition in the sport. No oneis entitled to anything from sponsors. Earn it! Be valuable! Start your letters out by introducingyourself, explaining how you align yourself with their company values and whyyou believe in their products, and tell them what they want to hear. Tell themyou contribute monthly newsletter articles for the local triathlon club thatreaches 200 people. If you're a coach, tell them you’re a coach and have athletes asking you all the time for product recommendations. Tell them you interact withhundreds of people each month that may be interested in their product. Tell them ways you can be a vehicle todeliver their message to their market. If you aren’t a coach or don’t have a lot ofthese things on your resume, think outside the box of ways you can get theirproduct to market or exposure for their brand. There is always a way you cancreate value!

It’s important to believe in thepeople or companies you’re sponsored by. If you truly believe their products orservices are the best, it’s not difficult to refer people to them, as thiscomes naturally. If you refer people to the best quality products and services,you don’t have to worry about your reputation being damaged, as you knowthey’ll be please with their experience.

Sponsortypes

Sponsorshipis like getting a job. It’s often all about who you know. In college businessclasses I was told, “your network is your net worth.” I always was a bitbothered by the quote, as it makes deep and meaningful relationships seem likethey’re always simply established from wrong motivation, through takingadvantage of someone where the goal is selfish benefit from them rather thanhonest relationship. However, it can be partially true. Who you know isvaluable. It is the best way to secure a job, though not the only way. Connectyourself with local shops. Get to know the owners of the local running stores.Join the local triathlon club; participate in local events, group runs, andvolunteer opportunities. Get connected! Talk to people! Be professional whendoing so, and represent yourself well. The only way I was able to secure asponsorship this past season was simply by knowing someone, who knew a companyowner. They were able to put in a good word for me, explain how I was a decent guyand strong athlete, and I was able to get a foot in the door. Once in the door, you need to prove yourself. The owner didn’tpreviously know me, so we would be taking a risk in sponsoring me. Luckily, he was willing to take a risk with me. It’s oftenhard to get that foot in the door, but once in, then you have your time toshine over the next year and prove yourself further. Over time, sponsors willget to know you and you will have your chance to prove to them you are trulygrateful for their support, and will commit to being a true ambassador forthem. If you owned a company and were looking to hire, would you hire without looking at a resume or doing due diligence, or without an interview? Of course not. If a company doesn't know you, they're taking a risk by sponsoring you. If there's no connection with anyone you know and the company, this is how your blog or website can shed a bit of light about who you are.

There are a variety of relationship types in sponsorship,though all are valuable. Many large companies who sponsor many athletes simplygive athletes a discount code for discounted or free product. Athletes can login online to the order page of their website, and place an order. They may go 2years without talking to anyone or seeing a face of anyone associated with thecompany. Now, there is nothing wrong with this and companies still see value inthis type of relationship (and in fact sometimes it makes it easier for theathlete), but at the same time the most meaningful and long-term successfulpartnerships are those where a personal relationship is created. It is spending time in person with companyrepresentatives where they will get to know you, and thus (hopefully!) want tosupport you further, and at the same time you appreciate the growing friendshipand in return are more motivated to create additional value for them. It is through those relationships where youare introduced to new people, a new network, and additional relationships andcontacts are made.

What isthe process for sponsorship?

As I mentioned, first do some brainstorming and see whoexists in your network that may be a good fit for a partnership, or someone toapproach. This could be contacting friends who own businesses, in and outsideof the triathlon industry. Using your network to get a foot in the door is thefirst place to start.

Secondly, explore local sponsors, such as teams run out oflocal triathlon and running stores, and local athletic-related companies. Mostteams have a paper or online application you can submit. Always include yourrace results, highlighting your best (and omitting your worst), but also alwaysemphasize your community involvement.

Additionally, many large triathlon-related companies haveonline applications. You can often find out this info from their website, andyou can almost always find a website of someone in the marketing department tosend an email to if no sponsorship info is posted. A follow-up phone call isalways a good idea, and when possible stop in in-person, as long as you’re notinterrupting them. Asking them for an opportunity to introduce yourself inperson ahead of time is always a great idea.
There are different ways sponsorships are secured. Some have formal contracts signed by the athlete and company representative. If I was the owner or head of marketing for a company, I certainly would have athletes sign contracts. It is best for everyone, so there is no confusion and expectations are communicated. This can protect relationships down the road as everyone is on the same page. Some companies simply hand out free stuff, with no interest in discussing anything with the athlete about placing their logo anywhere or doing anything in return. In my opinion, they've missed a big opportunity here.

When doyou need to apply?

Most companies have their next years’ budget set by the middleof the 4^th quarter of the current year. Most triathlon-relatedcompanies have deadlines for sponsorship requests, and many are as early as theend of October, or mid-November forsponsorship for the upcoming triathlon. So, get them in early! It often takesmonths to hear back, especially from the large companies that receive hundredsof sponsorship requests.

There is not always one correct way to apply for sponsorships.You can be as creative as you like. Don’t be afraid to try a new approach andthink outside the box. I have written many letters to companies who don’tformally have a group of sponsored athletes or a sponsorship request process,and I was surprised by how many were interested in offering me a few productsfor free, such as a few pairs of sunglasses, clothing, or some nutritionalproducts, even though they typically don’t sponsor many or any athletes.

Issponsorship worth my time?

Only you can ask yourself this question. Remember theopportunity cost principle from business class in college? Approaching sponsorstakes time. If you have the opportunity to make money during the time spentapplying for sponsors, you may consider whether it’s worth it or not. Remember,even if you don’t secure large sponsorships this year, a foot in the doorstarts a relationship, which would prove to be more and more valuable as timegoes on, so it may end up more valuable than you first anticipate.

What canI expect to receive from companies?

I don’t know any non-professional triathletes receiving cashsponsorships. I know a few who receive free product, but most sponsorships withathletes at this level of competition involves a large discount off products orservices. Now, I did mention it’s not all based on results. This is true, butbeing a great athlete sure does help, as naturally you have opportunities to bein the spotlight if you’re frequently on the podium. Sponsors want to totalpackage. Unless you are a top professional, do not expect to secure a bikesponsor in the form of a free bike. The markup on bikes in retail shops is notnearly as large as something like running shoes for example, which you canusually figure costs a shop about half of what their retail price is. Bikes area much larger investment for a shop, and thus shops don’t have the ability tooffer free bikes. Large bike companies sponsor many of the top professionals afree bike (and sometimes additional cash), but unless you’re one of them, your bestbet on getting a deal on a bike is going through a local dealer shop. You willhave a much better chance through a dealer than contacting a bike companydirectly. Is a bike company more likely to respond to an email or phone callfrom you, an individual triathlete who’s done nothing for them yet, or a shopmanager who just purchased 20 bikes from them? Applying for a shop sponsorship or a bikecompany sponsorship with the help of a shop employee you have a relationshipwith is your best bet.

If you’re a mid-level professional,a more realistic expectation is to be given the chance to buy a bike at propricing, or about 50% off retail. Now, if you get a pro deal on a bike, expectto be able to sell it at the end of the year for around near what you paid forit, or possibly slightly above that. Depreciation on new bikes is huge! Thatsaid, you may consider saving some time by buying a 1-3 year old used top ofthe line bike on Craigslist or ebay. You may save some time, yet again you maymiss out on the chance to develop a relationship with a bike shop by skippingout on the attempt.

Some people have told me, “Ryan,free stuff isn’t money, and therefore it’s not worth much.” Remember,especially if you already own current gear. If you are able to get new gear forfree, such as a wetsuit and speedsuit, or a cycling trainer or bike parts, forexample, you’re able to sell your old gear for cash. Therefore, I argue, freeproduct is often equal to cash if you’re able to sell and replace your old gearwith it. It’s something to think aboutthan many people fail to realize. Triathlon gear isn’t cheap!

There is no one right answer to approaching sponsorship.Honestly, you have to take each sponsor by a case by case basis – andtruthfully, you never really know what will happen until you have tried. Applying and reaching out can never hurt, ifyou have the time. You never know what possible relationships may come from theprocess, just be realistic in your expectations, be patient, and understand theimportance that you create value for the company. Most importantly be trulygrateful for companies being willing to support you, and communicate thatgratitude with them.

I came across an interesting article written by Dan Empfieldof Slowtwitch.com titled Earn the Moneyabout sponsorship relations and athletes earning their money in a variety ofways as pro athletes, acting truly as professionalsin all sense of the term. You may find it interesting, as did I. The link canbe found here (as if this post wasn't long enough for you!):

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Opinion/Earn_the_Money_2334.html

Now, who wants to sponsor me?

Ryan Borger

Borger Endurance Multisport Coaching

Borger Endurance, LLC.

www.borgerendurance.com

What Happened in Chicago? Ups & Downs & Rev3 South Carolina: my first ½ Ironman

2011-10-11T09:13:00.000-07:00

My blog on race reports and updates has been a bit quiet recently.After some discouraging events, there was not a lot for me to say as far aspositive happenings, and what fun is it to report on the negative? The past fewmonths I have been trying to figure out a lot of things, after a few events with some ups and downs. Life is full of upsand downs, and we cannot expect anything different. It always remains a goal of mine to try to keep things in perspective during the low times as well. Triathlon is important, especially when the majority of your day - every day - is focused on it, but like any job that one has, there are manymore important things in life. When things aren’t as we alwayswish they were, the option we have is to do our best in turning things around,which often means changing attitude or perspective - a challenging task attimes.

I had a five week period of almost no running coming off a bursitis kneeinjury, and motivation was like a roller coaster for me both before and after the injury. Some days training wasfine, other days I dreaded it. I’d go for a week straight dreading my long solotraining days, not enjoying it much at all, cutting some workouts short, and wonderingwhere my spark had gone. If you're winning races every weekend, it's VERY EASY to be motivated, but when you slave yourself to training all day every day and do see the results, you start to hear the little voices around you inflicting doubt, telling you that you are wasting your time, and that you should be putting your energy into something else. I also was occupied with odd jobs, and got sick a fewtimes. Motivation fluctuated, though I still had a few decent training weeks here andthere and decided I was fit enough to race again. By raceweek I was ready to go, motivated again, fitter than I had been in a while and ever since coming back from the injury, andwas set up for a great race at the uber-competitive Chicago Triathlon, part of the Lifetime Fitness Series. My relatives drove from Iowa and Michigan to watch merace as well, so it was an important race in my mind. All things were lookinggood, and then you realize life doesn’t always go as planned.

The start gun went off. The swim in Lake Michigan was one of theroughest water swims I'd done yet due to the high winds. It was a battle out there with manyof the top Olympic distance men in the sport from all over the world. Abouthalfway into the swim, I felt my hamstring start to tighten up, a similarfeeling as those I’d had in nearly every race of my first season in which I washaunted with muscle cramping nearly every race. Since then, I had worked onnutrition, had another year of training under my belt, and thought my crampingwoes were a thing of the past. Thecramps came, so I tried a few breaststroke kicks to loosen it up. I got through the swim and hobbled out of theswim exit and shuffled through the 600m run to transition 1. Eventually I got to the bike, mounted,and was able to ride for about 30 seconds just fine. When I got mmy speed up and was ready to slip into my bike shoes, my leg totally seized up, and I was unableto bend it in any way. One of my most severe and painful cramps to date, I wasleft coasting slowly on the bike with my legs dangling, totally locked straight. Unsuccessfully trying to shake it out, eventuallyI was slowed to a stop and left on the side of the road for two or threeminutes unable to move any part of my left leg from foot to hip. After a few minutes and after most of themale pros who were behind me had passed me, the muscle finally leg go a bit andI was able to bend my leg and slip into my bike shoes. I was shocked,frustrated, and angry, so attempted to ride hard into the wind and make up abit of ground. After about 3 minutespushing the pace, the muscle seized up again, and once again was unable to bend my leg and therefore couldn't pedal. This was the trend for the next 30 minutes, off and on, and I found myself on theside of the road several times as I could only coast until the spasm left and Iwas able to bend the leg again. I couldn’t go on any more; I’ve never wanted todrop out of a race, but physically my body wasn’t work.

I got back to my homestay's apartment just a few blocks from the race while most of the men were finishing the bike course. I thanked my homestay for the place to stay, packed my bike, and left Chicago on a very low note. Ihad flown across the country to race, my relatives had come a long ways towatch, and I had spent money to get there. I was flat out discouraged, and had let more than just myself down. It tooksome time to put in the past, but I understand the need to get out of mentalruts, frustrations, and move forward. It does no good dwelling on things in the past we cannot change.

On the flight home I decided to doeverything possible to get the cramping figured out. It was my only option, ortrying to race would be pointless and I decided if I can't figure out the cramping issues, I'm done with triathlon. The next week I got extensive blood lab testdone (all electrolyte levels, metabolic panel, vitamin D, serum ferritin (ironstores), allergens, etc) as well as met with sports nutritionist & fellow Kompetitive Edge athlete Bob Seebohar.The causes of muscle cramping are not totally known, apart from what most peoplethink. Most common theories include lack of electrolyte balance, musclefatigue, and dehydration, but extensive tests have been done and really results have varied. My electrolytelevels were in the normal range, vitamin D was high, but I did discover a fewfood sensitivities & food allergies that I have, such as wheat, carrots, peanuts,and soybeans. My Chicago race daybreakfast included wheat bread with chunky peanut butter & a few handfulsof peanuts. So…I was hoping this was part of the cramping equation. I also believe this is likely part of thereason I’ve struggled with respiratory issues and have been trying tofigure that out for over a year,. Bob andI came up with a plan for next race that involved electrolyte loading the nightbefore, morning of, and during the race. He said it’s worked with a few of hisathletes in the past. Bob is a USAT level 3 certified coach, was the 2008 Olympic triathlon team sportdietician, and has a hundred other certifications under his belt. He thought that even though my electrolyte levels were in thenormal ranges for most people, I may not be able to be treated as the typical American, especially assomeone racing at a high intensity and prone to muscle cramping. I knew it was not a 100% certain fix, as crampingcan be numerous things, but the plan (detailed below) was definitely worth a shot.

The way the season had gone, a month after Chicago I felt like I had nothing tolose in trying new things out. I wasn't going to race until I had a plan to try to solve the problem. I have realized having a plan and experimenting is often the only way tofind out what works. I also was in need of something new and fresh to motivate me. So, twoweeks prior, I signed up for last Sunday’s Rev3 South Carolina halfironman. I’d never raced a 70.3 distance race before, and hadn’t really trainedspecifically for one, but have always wondered how I would do. There was also a chance to speak at a Tri Inspire event put on by Multisport Ministries there, which would give me another opportunity to create a bit of balance with triathlon. I adjusted my training a bit to get in some more volume, didthree 14+ mile runs in those 2 weeks as well as some longer brick workouts andrides. I also did a few local races to earn a bit of prize money and get insome harder training efforts in. A bit of last minute emergency long-coursetraining, but I had put in a lot of base work this season which I was surewould get me through it.

Entering the race I was extremely nervous after Chicago, butlike I said I had committed to trying everything possible leading up to therace to avoid future cramping issues. Some people think this is excessive orcrazy, but yet again most people don’t cramp 10 minutes into their swims onrace day. Every body is different and needs to be treated differently. Youcannot prescribe the same plan to all triathletes, even when they race the same distance, and the best way to figureout a plan that works for you is simply trying different things in training and racing. I’m currentlyon the plane heading home and have been reading 2-time Ironman World ChampionChris McCormack’s book I’m Here To Win. I found the following quote relevant.

“You’ve got to be willing to humble yourself and controlevery factor as much as you can in order to give yourself the best chance toperform well.”

I came up with the "try everything possible for anti-cramping" plan that included:

2 massages the week prior to the race
High spinach/veggie intake
Gluten & peanut free eating for 3 weeks prior
Epsom salt bath the night before the race
Using my homemade Ryobi reciprocating saw-converted into muscle massager the night before and morning of race, self-massaging the legs
Saltstick tablet loading prior to & during the race
Daily multivitamin, magnesium, and fish oil supplement
Trying to calm nerves and sleep more than the usual 1-2 hours the night before the race (unfortunately that didn’t happen)
Drinking a bottle of pickle juice before the race (Kevin, introduced below, swears by it (high in sodium as well), though I didn’t end up trying it)

The Rev3 South Carolina ½ iron distance race had about 40male pros, a large and very talented field with top athletes from the US,Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Great Britain, Ukraine, & Russia. It was Rev3’s largest pro fieldto date. I finished 22^nd. Thegoals of the race were to 1) not cramp 2) not bonk 3) race mentally strong 4)finish in the top 1/2. I honestly didn’t know what to expect, being my firsthalf, though came home pleased with the effort being my first one, and knowingwith ½ Ironman focused training I may do well with this distance in the future.

The day before the race I tweaked a deep neck muscle somehowturning my head during the pro meeting. Maybe it was the nerves and looking around and the competition! ;) Not exactly what I needed right then.Unable to turn my head to the left at all, luckily Rev3 had a crew of volunteerART (active release technique) practitioners at the expo. It’s somewhat similarto massage though uses different techniques – kinda like a mix of massage andchiropractic. I met Kevin, an ART specialist and Rev3 staff member. He workedon me for about 30 minutes on the spot, and another 15 minutes a few hourslater that evening, which I was very grateful for. It helped some, but mostlyonly temporarily. I knew the neck painwas something I’d just have to try to deal with come race morning. Luckily, I mostly breathe tothe right side in race swimming.

I swam fairly conservatively knowing the importance ofstaying relaxed in the long race, though probably should have swam harder toconnect with the large group ahead of me instead of swimming mostly solowithout the opportunity to draft. Onto the bike I raced using my power meter forthe first time outside of training. It helped me keep my wattage somewhat steady on the flats andhills to not totally cook my legs.My normalized power ave was 274 watts over the course (power file is HERE). The last 10 miles of the bike I began tostruggle a bit in the strong winds, and felt the legs wanting to tighten up abit. I was ready to be off the bike. The run started with 2 miles of lightmuscle cramping which forced me to run slowly around a 7:30 or so pace, but I managed to get in 5 salt tablets between miles 1 & 2 which seemed to ward them off. I ran a 1:22 half marathon (6:18 average pace)after a very hard windy and hilly bike course, with two very slow miles at thestart and a very slow mile 13, so I likely was running around 6 minute pace formost of the run. With proper training I know I can run sub 1:20 off the bike. I need to be able to run a steady, consistent effort the entire 13.1. I ran most of the ½ marathon with my friend and trip roommateBrooks Cowan. We swapped places a handful of times, and were able to encourageeach other a bit throughout the run to keep fighting. All in all, I felt strong on the day, followedmy nutrition plan pretty well without any energy lows, which I believe wascrucial, and enjoyed the challenge.

My plan was to take in around 3500mg of sodium the nightbefore, 800-1000mg at breakfast, and around 1000mg/hour during the race. Whatdid I eat/take in?

Night prior:

14 Saltstick tablets post-dinner (1 tablet every 10 mins, 250mg sodium per tablet + other 4 electrolytes. Don’t try this at home ;) )
Epsom salt (magnesium) bath. Part of this was to soak/rub my neck as well in hopes of relieving the pain.
Huge dinner of spinach salad, rice, chicken, fruit. Gluten free.
Magnesium, fish oil, multivitamin supplement

Race morning:

6 Saltstick tablets (1500mg)
3 packets oatmeal, banana, fruit, gluten free muffin, some rice
Magnesium, fish oil, multivitamin supplement

Pre-swim:

1 package Generation UCAN starch drink

56 mile bike:

10 Saltstick tablets (2500mg sodium + other electrolytes)
1 Powerbar
3 Powerbar gels
20 oz. wild cherry Pepsi
3 bottles on course Gatorade Endurance
1 package Generation UCAN starch drink
Half bottle of water (end of bike)

13.1 mile bike:

2 gels
12 Saltstick tablets (3000mg sodium)
Cup of on course Gatorade
Cup of water
Cup of Pepsi (mile 11)

Now that’s a ton of stuff to take in, but I believe I needed it. Do most 1/2 Iron athletes do this? No they don't. Everyone's needs are different.As soon as the cramping came, I took the salt, and it was gone within a minute.I was actually very surprised by this. I wouldn’t recommend this much salt foranyone and everyone, as you need to be careful with large amounts of sodiumduring races. It can cause water retention, bloating, and the inability tourinate if you consume too much. Ibelieve the reason why I was able to process it all without any GI issues was thefact that I stayed extremely hydrated the entire race, which is crucial (having to use the restroom a few times during the race..I'll not go into details on that one ;).

Rev3 puts on incredible races, and their series is growing fast. You all need to do a Rev3. By far the most professional done events that exist. They go big on everything compared to everyone else (prize $, race coverage, videos, recaps, website, free stuff, jumbotrons, semi trucks, a big stage, race expo, free pro race entries, family friendly venues (Amusement parks, hot air balloon rides, etc)).

I will likely turn my focus to half iron (70.3) distance racing for 2012,as I believe it’s likely my best distance with the appropriate training. I return from South Carolina in good spiritsand highly motivated. I also take lessons from the weeks prior to Chicago andknow the importance of living a balanced lifestyle in which you are able toenjoy what you are choosing to do, which in turn keeps motivation high and ahealthy outlook on things. Thanks to Trevor Stultz & themen of Multisport Ministries for housing me in their campground cabin the nightafter the race, and for the great fellowship this weekend as well and all the support from MsM. Also thank you to Jared & Ryan at Kompetitive Edge triathlon store in Denver. They have also become like family to me, and their support has absolutely blown me away this year! Check out the store or have Ryan give your bike a tune up. He's the best bike mechanic known to man. No, I'm not kidding either. Thanks forreading and for all your support!

Here is the Rev3 Race Video: http://www.vimeo.com/30297618

...and a photo from the Thursday prior to the race. I had the chance to speak to a PE class at Platte River Academy about bikes, triathlon, and life. They loved the bike, were shocked to feel how light race wheels truly are, and I enjoyed showing off the gear to the kids.

Athlete Interview: Brooks Cowan - Rookie Pro Triathlete, Bar Tender, Couch Surfer, & (Nearly) Sub 9 Hour Ironman

2011-09-17T15:35:00.000-07:00

Athlete Interview #1 : Brooks Cowan

This is the first of (hopefully) a handful of Borger Endurance athlete interviews. People often wonder what the life of pro triathlete is like, and hopefully this interview sheds a bit of light on the topic. As you will read, the life of many top pros who make a fine living in the sport is very different from the life of many rookie pros trying to make a name for themselves in the sport - sometimes struggling to get by financially while they pursue their dreams in sport. A highlight of being relatively new to the sport, such as in the case of 1st year pro Brooks Cowan, is the excitement that lies in the unknown. Athletes relatively new to the sport may have no clue what their potential is, since they haven't tested themselves across all distances yet. Cowan had never raced an Ironman, much less even a half iron distance triathlon. He had never trained for one either, but that didn't stop him for his random decision to see how far his body could take him, after a friendly discussion among friends turned into a bet. Brooks shared some thoughts on his 9:00:06 finish at the Rev3 Cedar Point iron distance triathlon, which landed him a 6th place finish and a (much needed) $2750 paycheck.

Borger Endurance: Can you give me a quick bio & tell me a bit about your athletic background

Brooks Cowan: I’m 24 years old and grew upswimming for Anderson Barracudas in Ohioand Mach 3 Flyers in Minnesota. Becky Lavelle and I were on the same team atone point, small world right? I Playedsoccer as well and quit swimming in 7^th grade to focus on that. I walked on to Miami (Ohio) UniversityTrack & Cross Country team, mainly as an 800 runner, but I had a bunch ofinjuries and started swimming again to cross train when I was 19. I hopped into a club meet and went 55.5 inthe 100 fly and 51.0 in the 100 free so I thought once my legs get healthy, Ishould get into triathlon. Unfortunately, by the end of junior year I had had 4 stress fracturesand Achilles tendonitis. I decided towalk on to Miami’sswim team as a 100-200 butterflyer my senior year, enjoy being on a team andcompeting for my school, and give my legs a break. I’ve had a few blips here and there but sincesummer 2009, I’ve been fairly consistent and healthy and have seen a steadyprogression in my triathlon performances.

BE: You previously were training in Boulder, Colorado then recently moved away from the mecca of triathlon. Why did you decide toleave, and where are your living now?

Cowan: What brought me out to Coloradowas a forestry crew job doing beetle kill removal, trail maintenance, and otherodd jobs for Colorado State Parks. Oncethat ended in December I started working in bars during the night whilespending my days training. I spent somuch time driving from Denverto Boulder thatI decided to move there and really make an effort to become a greattriathlete. I spent a year training withthe best in the world by day and working in bars and t-shirt stores bynight, in order to be able to afford it. My [usual] work schedule changed while I was away at a race, and I got fired for missing ashift. They often give employees astrike and second chances, but I was told I was showing up too tired from training to do a good jobas a busser/barback . My leasewas up in a month and the idea of finding a new job, new apartment, securitydeposit, and trying to make it to races was too daunting. So, I packed up andleft.

I learned that living in Boulderdoesn’t make people fast, but rather out-hustling the competition does. Most top triathletes were fast before theymoved to Boulder, and I can train hard anywhere. Traveling to races from Colorado was very expensive as well. Leaving Colorado allowed me to race the Evergreen Triathlon onmy way home to Troy, Michigan as well as placed me within a 4 hour drive of the ColumbusTriathlon, the Chicago Tri, and Rev 3 Cedar Point. I was able to carpool to Chicago with friends and thankfully didn’t have to pay for gas or housing, which was a help.

BE: Explain how your life has been as afirst-year/rookie pro this year?

Cowan: Tiring but fun. I really enjoy spending my weekends racing and trying to go as fast as possible. I often catch myself complaining about the cost of the sport and have toremind myself what a privilege it is to race in the elite wave and the chance to try andchase down the best in the world. It’s agreat way to see new places, meet new people, and challenge myself to do thebest I can. I love racing and am tryingto learn as much as possible. I feellike I have a better understanding about what I’m up against and what I need todo this fall and winter going into my second year as an elite. Only a handful of American triathletes aretruly competitive at age 24, especially at non-drafting. So, although Matt Reed,Andy Potts, and Greg Bennett have been kicking my butt by 10 minutes, it’s agreat life experience. Trying to becomea pro triathlete will give you a lot of life-reps which builds strongcharacter.

BE: A few weeks ago after the ChicagoTriathlon you told me you were headed home, going to look for a"real" business job, as opposed to working in restaurants and bars asyou have the past few years. Is this still the plan? If so, how will this fitwith your triathlon training? After hearing that, I got the feeling you weresick of living the poor man's life, working late hours at restaurants whiletrying to train a lot during the day, and thinking of moving on from the sport. Is this true, or was Iwrong? After going 9 flat in the Ironman at your first run at it, seems like itwould be hard to stop now, right?

Cowan: Working in bars meant that I mademost of my money on weekends, so leaving town for a race was a big opportunitycost. I was 12^th at Escapefrom Alcatraz, 1:30 behind the final money spot, and I got home Monday night with 67cents to my name. My next shift wasn’t until 5pm Tuesday so all I had to eat was10 eggs and a jar of salsa between the time.

I would like to preventsituations like that, which is why I have been applying for business jobs. I’ve worked 30-50 hours a week in restaurantsgetting home between 2-4 amso a 9am-5pm job seemspretty nice to me. That way I couldafford triathlon equipment, not have to borrow everything, and have weekendsoff to go to races. I’m not moving onfrom triathlon, I would just like to make the bulk of my income on weekdays soI can travel on weekends.

That 9 flat Ironman and thepaycheck with it has been quite a teaser. 9:00 doesn’t pay thebills but based on my preparation and knowledge of the event, it makes mewonder how much faster I can be. Racingfast takes patience and hard work and this sport isn’t cheap so I need to finda way to pay for it. The idea of being acouch surfing triathlete is always lingering in the back of my head though.

BE: You recently decided to hop in theRev3 Cedar Point Iron distance race two weeks ago, and surprised a few peoplewith a 9:00 & 6th placefinish. What made you sign up for that race after racing strictly Olympicdistance races this season, and much less only training for the Olympic distance? Did you do any half iron distance races, or skipthat distance and go right into the full?

Cowan: Since I returned to Michigan, my high school4x800m teammates and I have gotten together every Tuesday night for beers. We all competed in college and still do racesso it’s been fun to catch up. TheTuesday before the Chicago Triathlon we were speculating how fast I could do anIronman. I said that if I had a greatday, I could go 50-5:00-3:00 [sub 9 hours] but they didn’t believe me. The more I talked about it the more Ibelieved I could. I also had two brokenbikes of my own, one borrowed bike that was broken, and was currently borrowingMike Luginbill’s bike, one of the friends I was debating this with. Looking at the Rev 3 prize purse I thought Imight as well go for it, I’ve got nothing to lose and any cash prize would helpme get my bikes fixed. So I signed upwithout having done a 70.3 or even a marathon before. $2750 is a nice reward and I am in theprocess of getting my own bikes fixed up.

BE: What was your training like leadinginto the race? Did you get in any longer workouts? You can't really just 'wing-it' going out fast in an Ironman and not blow up completely, or can you?

Cowan: I signed up a couple days afterthe Chicago Triathlon. I went out toStoney Creek MetroPark three times and did acceleration rides around the 10kloop with each lap getting faster. 48miles on Aug 31st, 60miles on Sept 4, and 48 miles again on Sept 7. I did a good job of locking into my goal Ironman pace because I basicallyhit the same pace during the race.

BE: Describe how the race went, and whatyou were thinking throughout it?

Cowan: I read somewhere that PaulaNewby Fraser described the Ironman as “crisis management” which could also be anaccurate description of my day-to-day life. What was interesting about the Ironman race was the internal debategoing on in my mind. For 7 of the 9hours, I had the option of speeding up, slowing down, or maintaining, and kepthaving to decide…over and over. Mymentality going in was “get after it.” 140miles is going to hurt no matter what so I figured going harder than what feltcomfortable, chasing the guys ahead of me, and trying to hold off the guysbehind me would get my adrenaline going and make the race go by faster.

I crashed so hard the last 13miles though, it was brutal. It was a 2lap run and my 1^st lap was a 1:30 [1/2 marathon]. After that I had to stop a bunch because mylegs were locking up from cramps. I keptrepeating to myself, “Cramp & Rally Baby!” I brought it home in a 1:442^nd lap, good enough for a 3:14marathon. This was also the first time Ihad ever run more than 16 miles so I think with better pacing, nutrition, andfocused training I can do much better.

BE: Pretty impressive on Olympic distance training, I must say. What was your race day nutrition plan?

Cowan: I wanted to grab a Gatorade and a GU at every aid station, but I knew I mightbe in trouble when I wasn’t seeing any GU at the aid stations. I only taped 4 GUs to my bike and was able tograb 2 more on the bike course but I will definitely have more than 6 nexttime. I had 7 Gatorades and 2x Red Bullson the bike as well, which I think was a mistake. Next time I will have a lot more Gatorade andGels on the bike and then save the red bull for my special needs bag on the runso the Sugar crash/caffeine crash doesn’t hit me in the middle of the run, thatwas really rough.

BE: Had you been working with a coach atall this year? If so, were they supportive of this jump into the Ironmandistance race without perhaps, ideal Ironman training?

Cowan: I worked with Grant Holicky andNeal Henderson at Apex Coaching from April to mid July. I’ve just been coaching myself since leaving Colorado. They are awesome coaches who really helped meout and I enjoyed training with that group. I used to work 5pm to 2am,get up at 7:30am and then doa swim-bike- run workout with them from 8amto almost 1pm so I figuredif I could get through that, I could get through an Ironman, especially afterthose computrainer days ;) Since thenI’ve been on the wake-up and make something up plan.

BE: Is it true you raced on aborrowed bike, and stayed up til past midnightthe night before watching TV with your homestay?

Cowan: That was actually my 3^rdborrowed bike of the year. The onlysemi-functional bike of mine is a beaten up 9 speed 2005 trek 1500 (Discoveryedition!). I would borrow Doug Maclean’sbackup 2006 Felt B2 for races, and then I borrowed his road bike for an ITUrace. The steer tube on his Felt B2cracked and is past the 5 year warranty so I was able to get a Felt B16 loaner4 weeks ago from Mike Luginbill. Hugethanks to these guys, without them I’d just be doing aquathlons…which wouldn’tbe too bad. Getting a position locked inwhile having to borrow bikes gets frustrating though, I was making adjustmentsall the way up to Wednesday before the Ironman. I can never fall asleep before midnightanyways and did you see that Michiganvs. Notre Dame game? No way I was goingto bed.

BE: What's next for you?

Cowan: Not sure, I really just need tomake up my mind. Putting in a solid 8week block dedicated to going fast at Ironman Arizona would be interesting. It would probably be a bad decision but tryingto make good decisions never really works out for me.

BE: How can people's keep tabs on your in the future? Do you have a website, blog, or Twitter account?

Cowan: Yes, my blog is http://BrooksCowan.Blogspot.com and Twitter name is @TBrooksCowan

BE: Thanks for your time Brooks. I'm tempted to place some bets and get you hyped up to prove some more folks wrong in your next one, perhaps Ironman Arizona?? Thanks for sharing your thoughts, funny stories, and your 'don't try this at home' approach to Ironman racing. Good luck with everything.

Borger Endurance Multisport Coaching: Now taking on additional athletes

2011-09-06T23:51:00.000-07:00

I've got 4 additional spots open for athletes seeking a coach. It's the perfect time to start up, with the 2010 season winding down & your dreams for a bigger, better, and most importantly faster 2011. If interested, shoot me and email to ryanborger@gmail.com or give me a ring (303-929-8722). I'll explain more about my coaching services and how it all works. Also, keep your eyes open for a new updated & much more interactive website coming your way. I will be combining my website & blog into one site, with articles, race recaps, featured athlete bios, and other listings frequently being added and updated. Stay tuned...

Weekend Recap: Guiding blind athlete Aaron Scheidies & Lookout Mt Tri

2011-07-24T21:31:00.000-07:00

What a weekend. I now have 6 runs under my belt with zero knee pain, including 2 training races, which is a huge encouragement. I finally figured out the cause of my injury, which was switching shoes in January after wearing the Brooks Adrenaline for 8 years with no problems. I switched to a very similar Brooks shoe, the Ravenna 2, which feels better as it's a bit lighter, though the minor change was enough to slowly build up bursitis in the knee over 12 weeks. It started with off and on pain and gradually worsened. I'm now back training normally as of last week, and eager to get my run fitness back. Part of this journey back to fitness meant hopping into 2 races this weekend for hard training sessions. Saturday I raced the Lookout Mountain Sprint Triathlon, which consisted of a unique and rare 525 yard pool swim, a 10 mile very hilly bike course, and a 5k hilly run which mostly was on dirt trails. I finished 3rd behind Aussie pro Tim Reed and my good friend and local pro Dan McIntosh. I had the fastest swim of the day, a first for me (thought it really wasn't advantageous in the short pool swim :) ). The 3 of us rode swapping the top 3 places frequently until about 2/3 into the bike leg, where the two got away from me on a fast downhill on their TT bikes, as I was maxed out with my gears spinning at 120RPMs after choosing to ride my road bike in place of the TT bike this race. I felt far from superior but that was to be expected, and overall got in a good workout.
Today was the highlight of the weekend. I had planned on racing the Denver Triathlon the following day as a training race as well as an opportunity to win a local race, assuming my knee pain continued to stay away. A few days ago I was asked if I would guide Aaron Scheidies, the world record holder for the visually impaired in both the Olympic distance and Ironman 70.3 distances. Knowing it would be a very cool and rare opportunity, I agreed to guide Aaron, and I had a great time. Despite a sore throat and not feeling 100%, Aaron pushed himself to finish 5th overall, racing his 3rd fastest Olympic distance time ever (1:59:04). We exited the water in around 8th place, rode up to about 4th place, and held on the 10k run with a 39 minute split. My role as a guide was to race with him, alongside him the entire way, directing him around the course. I swam and ran with him at his pace, and tried to hammer the bike leg on our tandem bike with Aaron, as it was where we knew we could make up the most ground. Thanks to Ryan Stedeford at Kompetitive Edge for giving our tandem a last second tune up before the start. He's hands down the best bike mechanic in Denver (no, that's not an exaggeration). We started on the right side of the swim beach start in the first wave, with the elite amateur wave. Overall navigation went pretty well. Aaron swam on my right, which meant me hugging the left hand turn buoys and staying a bit wide on the right hand turns. We had a smooth transition and rode hard. Everything went well on the bike for the most part. The only close call was nearly hitting some cones due to some sprint course athletes taking a wide turn alongside us. We practiced on the tandem for about 10 minutes the day before in a parking lot; it's a bit different - much heavier and a longer wheel base obviously, which makes turning and braking a bit interesting. We pushed a big gear and averaged mid 26-something mph on the 40k course. It was very cool to see over 10 visually impaired triathletes compete today, as the race benefited the C Different Foundation, which many of these athletes are a part of. Race director Chris Laskey and Matt Miller, who runs the C Different Foundation, put on a great inaugural race. It was a lot of fun racing with a different mindset than usual, simply there to help another achieve their best race as opposed to my own goals, whether that meant encouragement along the way to keep pushing hard, handing water cups on the run, or hammering it on the bike leg. Aaron was very much equally or more-so an encouragement to me along the way for sure. I'd love to team up with him again in the future and go for that world record for him!

The unfortunate update: Bursitis & IT band syndrome

2011-07-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

I've been a bit absent from the blogging world the past month. There's not too much to report, unfortunately. I've been hit with bad IT band syndrome leading to what I believe is bursitis of the knee and have been working hard to get the injury in my left knee healed. Unfortunately, the day before my flight was supposed to take of for the Washington DC Triathlon a few weeks ago, I had to cancel the trip after hobbling off the track in a workout the day before. I've had the pain off and on since coming back from my heal injury in April, but it was never bad enough to cut a run short until the week of the DC race, where I hobbled back to the car after 3 consecutive runs. The past 5 weeks I've been able to maintain my swim and bike fitness, with a few longer rides than usual, but have been forced to cut back on my runs, taking about 2 full weeks off of running and then getting in a few 30-35 minute runs hear and there. I still plan on entering the Denver Triathlon a week from Sunday assuming the pain lessens, as a workout in the build toward August races like the Chicago Triathlon. It will be a chance for a strong swim and bike, and a great chance to get in a hard run for the first time in weeks, assuming I'm able.
In addition to the DC race, I had to cancel my trips to Utah for the Dinoland Triathlon as well as the Boulder Peak Triathlon, which was the biggest blow as it was one of the only chances for family to see me race at a local event, as well as one of my favorite races.
Every season has highs and lows. I'm in a low right now, but learning how to put one step in front of the other and get back on a high note.
Special thanks to Dr. Carlton Laursen at Denver Physical Therapy (Castle Rock location) who has generously offered to help me get this thing healed. He's offered several sessions to me including trigger point dry needing work, ART, stretching and other treatment.
As discouraging as this can be, it's important to keep looking forward. Putting one foot in front of the other.
Ryan

Come Race the Denver Triathlon!

2011-06-10T15:34:00.000-07:00

Many big cities across the US host a major Olympic distance triathlon each year - Chicago, LA, Dallas, Austin, Philadelphia, Washington DC... and Denver has always been missing from that list, until this year. Borger Endurance is proud to be a race ambassador for the 2011 Denver Triathlon, which takes place at Sloans Lake on July 24. Sign up now HERE. The race features an Olympic distance, sprint distance, and kids duathlon, and benefits the C Different Foundation, which creates the opportunity for visually impaired athletes to take place in events like triathlon.

The CapTex Tri Debacle & Race Report...Warning: It's a LONG one :)

2011-05-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I raced the CapTex Triathlon in Austin, TX, the 2nd race in the Lifetime Fitness Series which offered $50k in prize money to pros, paying the top 10 men & women. If you follow triathlon, you may have already heard about the debacle that happened during the pro men's swim, which affected many pro's - like Hunter Kemper who may have lost $6,250 because of it. I'll explain what went down in a bit, but first share a bit about the events leading up to it.

Now, I must first say I am very thankful to race in the pro division. It's fun, fast, competitive, and I get to race head to head with the best in the world. I jumped off the dock yesterday next to 4 Olympians, a 70.3 World Champion, and a bunch of other big names. That, to me, is exciting - as I’ve dreamed of racing these guys for a long time though never thought it would happen. I hope to earn some decent money in the sport some day soon, but I currently don't make much like these guys. I got to thinking to myself, is it a right or a privilege to be a top pro triathlete making a lot of cash in the sport from prize money? Well, I think it’s a privilege, like most good jobs are. Having a job that pays (though our government aid programs may tell us what Americans think, or at least those in charge) is not a right, but a big blessing. However, should pro triathletes racing for income have the right to race fairly, under the same rules as one another, and deserve a professionally-run event? I think so, not necessary because it’s a right of theirs, but rather because they have a business partnership with race directors and race organizations. The pros are ambassadors for the sport, and for the races. The races do pay pros, however, the race’s success would likely not be the same without the pros. The pros often make the event what it is and hype it up, and hype up the sport in general. Would Ironman Kona be the same without the pros? No way. They attract participants and media, and put the race under a spotlight, which race directors love and profit from as it brings them more paying entrants as well as corporate sponsors.

How can pro triathletes show gratefulness for the opportunity to race for money when they don’t feel like the event they are racing in is well run and giving them all an equal shot at the money? How should they feel if the way a race is run hurts their chance to best succeed in their jobs? Is it ok to be frustrated? Or, is it not, since they were given an opportunity to race with the chance to put a lot of $$ in their pockets, and are not forced to come race by any means? These are all interesting questions.

The CapTexTri race itself is great. There are 3000 competitors, fans lining parts of the course, a great location, etc. However, many people were disappointed in the event. Amateurs pay around $150 to compete, and in turn I believe expect a well-run event. There will never be a flawless event, but you can get close with proper planning, prep, and organization. The pros showed up to the pro race meeting the day prior, greeted by the race director and the USAT referees. We were not given any printed race information or maps, instructions, or much else, which was ok, though it made everything seem a bit disorganized. We were also told we would be given things like VIP parking passes, which did not happen. Now, I do not think I deserve nor need a VIP parking pass, but when it is said to be given to us, I would assume it fair to trust that would happen. I mention this simply to point out details in organization that could have been improved. Our race packets had not been delivered to our meeting room, so we waited around until they were delivered. The pre-race announcements by the race director weren’t well organized at all, and it even seemed like a few race day decisions still were to be made. For example, the RD asked us whether we wanted an in-water start or a pontoon/dock dive start. He said we could vote on it. Obviously, the great swimmers and ITU athletes want a dive start, whereas the rest most likely did not. It’s not a huge deal either way, but this should be decided by the race, not a vote by athletes the day before. An dy Potts stood up and raised his voice on this at the meeting, and said something like, “this is ridiculous. There should not be a vote. That’s not how races go. You give us a course, and we race the course. That’s it. It shouldn’t be a vote.” I agree. We can’t vote on race rules, on wetsuit rules, how large the draft zone should be, and things like that. That is the job of the officials and race organizers. In the Tour de France there are no votes about what course to ride the day before. Obviously the climbers and sprinters would be at odds, which completely would favor one group over the other if an on the spot decision was made. The dive vs. in water start likely wouldn’t affect the results much, but it’s the concept and one more case of a lack of professionalism and organization that stood out with this race. I also was told by an age grouper on the plane this morning that did the race, that there were lines for over an hour into the late evening of athletes waiting to get their race packets.

Additionally in our pro meeting, the head USAT referee did not know the pro bike stagger rule, as she started telling us the age group drafting rules. After a few pros corrected her, she looked confused, and then must have realized that pros do actually have different rules on positioning on the bike. Two days after the race, there are still no accurate age group results up, and many people are saying their times are all off and they're even listed in the results as the wrong gender. Again, not a huge deal, but just one more issue that I heard people complaining about. I think from a business standpoint, making sure a race is run very professionally and the athletes are served well, could really come back to help the race organization succeed. Rev3, for example, has gotten an incredible reputation in just one year of putting on events, simply because they do business well, serve the athletes, and take the little race details very seriously. I think a lot of race directors could learn from Charlie Patten and Rev3. Now, having every little thing in place perfectly may not be a realistic expectation nor needed, but like in any business, if people pay a high price for your event, they expect good service and for it to be well run. And, when they receive great service, they proudly represent the race and speak very highly of it. I’ve seen many top pro’s promote the Rev3 race series on Facebook and Twitter simply because the race treats them well all around. Everyone appreciates each other helping one another out.

The Race:

I did not sleep the night before the race. With a similar bout of pre-race insomnia as I dealt with last year, I laid in bed with my mind spinning all night until I decided to eat breakfast at 3:45am. I took an Ambien around 10pm, though unfortunately felt nothing. I have taken 2 before, which has helped more, though I’ve been advised that 2 in considered an overdose and not safe. So, I opted for one pill, and unfortunately got zero minutes of sleep the night before the race. I felt pretty awful in the morning, but put that in the back of my head as I knew I could still race fine.

We lined up at the swim start on the dock, were called back off the dock and told to wait another 10 minutes. We were called back on the dock where we waited again for a bit. I’m not sure why exactly, likely again something to do with organization and planning. I lined up right behind Olympians Hunter Kemper, Matt Reed, and Andy Potts, knowing it best for me to take a 2^nd row swim position and try to draft of the feet of the true fish in front. The course was the most clear, simple, and well-marked swim course I’ve probably raced in. I give the race credit for that, though it turned out not to matter. It consisted of 4 yellow turn buoys which formed a rectangle. There was no confusion amongst the pro men on the course whatsoever. It was led out by a few stand-up paddlers, a few jet skis, and I believe there was a lifeguard boat somewhere out there as well. We reached the first buoy about 300m out, turned right, swam another 100m to the 2^nd turn buoy…and tried to turn right. I got to the buoy, slammed into a few people, and put my head up. It was chaos, as swimmers were yelling. I heard whistles, saw the paddlers and guys on jet skis pointing to the left and yelling at us to follow the lead boat. They had cut in front of the swimmers turning right, and instructed everyone to turn around and head the other direction, to ignore the buoy, and follow the lead paddle board. So, we followed the directions of the race marshals. Andy Potts and I believe one other athlete, Dan Tigert, ignored the commands of the race employees and swam right, following the correct course. They must have gone around the jet skis and paddle boards. The first few lead swimmers said a jet ski pulled right in front of them waving to turn, cutting them off. The 26 or so others of us who listened to the instructions from the race representatives in boats, not wanting to get disqualified, turned back the other direction and continued following the lead paddle board. We swam for about 60 seconds, and then slowly everyone realized we were headed down the river completely away from the race. Athletes started stopping and looking around. I heard a few people yell “what the F--- is going on?!” It was a bit chaotic. There is a lot of pressure in a race with $25k up for grabs for men, so every second can count.

So, the back of the pack swimmers, lagging 20-30 seconds back, stopped where they were and turned around at the same time, instantly putting them back in front (besides Potts & Tigert) and cutting out 50-70 meters or so of the course. I was about 5 seconds back from the leaders when we turned around, and we all had to catch up and re-pass the group and continue back onto the correct route. The swim continued and the lead women suddenly appeared with us. They started 4 minutes after us, so you can see how far off course we were made to go. By the time the women started, the race crew was well aware of their mistake, and the women all swam the correct course.

I honestly have no idea how on earth the course marshals could have made the mistake. It was the simplest, clearest swim course ever, and there was no need for lead paddlers. There were no other buoys in the river either, so I have no idea why anyone would think we were supposed to swim past our turn buoy.

Andy Potts led out of the water by several minutes, and eventually won the race by about 15 seconds over Hunter Kemper, who was (rightfully so) extremely upset about what had happened, and I believe trying to file a protest after the race. He would have won the race if Potts hadn’t gotten the several minute advantage, which cost Kemper over $6000. However, you can’t blame Potts, and he was swam the correct course, as I wish I would have. There’s really no right answer to the situation or anyone at fault other than the race directors and their staff. Some people proposed the two top finishers equally split the prize $ for the top 2 spots. However, what about the other athletes who’s money was affected? The rulebook says it’s the athlete’s responsibility to know the course, which everyone did, though it also says athletes must do as the race officials say. Maybe these people who led us astray were volunteers? Does that make us in the wrong for listening to them and not dodging their boats they drove in front of us?

One big lesson I’ve learned this year while losing valuable time in the swim in 2 out of my 3 races so far, is to simply ignore the race officials at times. You have to, or you might be put way back in the race. In general, follow what you know to be right, or follow the masses. At the start of the Miami 5150 race, about 20 athletes were treading water well in front of the start buoys and had started swimming well to the left of the start. The marshals on boats were yelling to get back to the line, saying they wouldn’t start the race until all the athletes were together behind the line. So, a few of us swam back to the line, just to hear the start horn blow. The race had began with the majority of the athletes about 10-15 seconds ahead of the start line, leaving me in the dust playing catch-up.

Hunter Kemper was the main person who got screwed financially yesterday. However, most people didn't think of the guys who finished in spots 6-10 for example. A second athlete who just snuck in the top 10 also swam the shorter course with Potts, thus taking a prize $ spot. If he swam the length we did, he'd have finished 1:30 behind me and out of the top 10. For Kemper, who financially is not struggling, it has been made a huge deal. However, I also think that for the guy who finished 8th or 9th and who is working 2 different jobs and sleeping on floors or even in his car before races, that matters just as much. He lost out on valuable prize money as well, even if it's one or two hundred dollars.

At the end of the day, I finished 13^th out of about 28 pros. Overall I was pleased with my placing and efforts, as I finished ahead of a few athletes I’ve never beaten and who finished a few minutes ahead of me in Knoxville two weeks ago. However, I am still continuing to get my run fitness back from my injury, and know the best is still ahead. I pushed hard on the bike, as it was my goal for the day. I averaged 308 watts which is an improvement from the last race, but I still have much strength to gain on the bike to compete with the strong cyclists. I wanted to ride harder than usual, as that’s where I have historically lost ground, and to test my legs and see if they could handle running fatigued after a hard ride.

The 4 loop bike course was extremely windy, as winds gusted up to 30 mph all day the past 3 days in Austin. I was racing with a rear disc wheel and a front Zipp 808, which was really sketchy at times as I nearly got blown to the ground. I have to improve in my bike handling skills and learn to be comfortable in strong winds like this while in the aerobars.

On the run, the first few miles I thought I was in trouble. I had biked hard, and my legs felt it. It was in the mid 90s and I was feeling the heat. I took only 1 Powerbar gel during the race early into the bike to avoid stomach cramping on the run like last race, and taking the nutrition earlier helped. I didn’t get passed by anyone on the bike nor the run, and passed 2 or 3 men on the bike. The last mile of the run was extremely painful, as Pedro Gomes (Portuguese Ironman national record holder / 2^nd place 2010 Ironman Florida) caught me and passed me with about 1200m to go. I stuck on his shoulder trying to draft a bit from the gusting wind. A few times I let him go about 5 feet ahead of me, playing mental games with myself wondering if I could hang onto him until the finish. I honestly didn’t think I could. I gave it a shot, and pulled back up on him. He slowed down and moved to the left to try to get me to take the lead. I was way too fatigued to lead, and enjoyed the slower pace for a few seconds. He moved back ahead and put in a strong surge with about 600m to go, and got about a 25 foot lead on me. I thought he was gone, but dug very very deep to reel him back in. With 200m to go I knew I had him, as I’ve vowed to never lose a sprint finish in a tri like this. It was a hard finish, extremely painful, but well worth the fight even though I was in the dirt on hands and knees in the finish chute after sprinting near all out the last 150m. I split 5:43 pace for the 10k. I had thought I finished 11^th at the time, but later found out I was actually 13^th. All in all a decent finish. If Potts & Tigert would have swum the same course, I would have been 12^th, two spots from the money. I’ve still got plenty of work to do, but with it I can move up.

The big prize money races are very competitive for men. The top 10 spots for men had a spread of only about 6 minutes and 45 seconds, whereas the spread for the top 10 women was about 16 minutes. There are talented women for sure, but usually the fields are not as deeply stacked, and you usually have to finish in a closer % of the winner’s time in the men’s fields as in the women’s fields to come home with money.

I think the race mishaps simply show a bit of where our sport is today unfortunately, compared to other sports. It’s simply not as big of deal, nor does it have the big prize money nor following of sports like cycling, golf, NASCAR, etc. In the big races of those sports, there’s not much room for error, and it’s pretty rare to see a big mess up like that. I feel for the guys who lost money over it yesterday, but it was just an unfortunate event caused by the race crew, no fault by any of the athletes. Sometimes that’s just part of racing and you just have to roll with it.

Added: 5/31 Just got a call from the race director & Slowtwitch.com. They're still trying to find out exactly what happened during the swim, and who led us off course. No employees/volunteers have confessed to being the one involved. They want to have the facts straight before they make a public announcement. I can definitely tell they know their reputation as a race/director has been damaged and feel pretty bad about everything. It will be interesting to see what happens. Will they award Potts & Kemper both 1st place or equal prize $ and points? Do they keep the results as is? Or do something else? Time will tell.

Borger Endurance & 2 Roads School

2011-05-26T15:48:00.000-07:00

I had to opportunity to head to 2 Roads School earlier this month to share a bit about triathlon, show off some fancy race equipment, and give a short bike maintenance clinic. The aero helmet was the hit of the day, as everyone wanted to try it out and see how much faster it truly made them go!

Rev3 Knoxville

2011-05-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you've just gotta go race. I made a late decision to race the Rev3 Olympic Tri in Knoxville, TN this past weekend. Originally I was not planning on racing until Memorial Day weekend, due to my lost fitness from the heel injury and getting sick last week, but about a week before the race I really got the itch to race. Coach Melissa had me do a 40k bike time trial workout to see where I was at. The workout didn't go incredibly well nor too poorly either; I'm not sure what it was that fed my desire to want to race, but on the way home from the workout I got VERY eager to race. I found myself thinking "forget the injuries, sickness, wondering if I'm ready, just simply go RACE! I train to race, not to just train." You can always be more ready, fitter, and so on. Just go race!

I booked a flight on Frontier using airline miles. I had emailed Rev3 previously a few weeks prior telling them to take me off the start list. I checked if it was too late to re-register, and was told they actually had never taken me off the start list, so I was good to go. (Side note: Frontier recently became the first airline I know to change their policy and no longer charge bike fees! Thank you Frontier!! This is HUGE, since Frontier's hub is in Denver. Frontier, you just got thousands of cyclists and triathletes to fly with you now!). Krista Baker at Rev3 arranged a hotel room for Josh & I, and I can honestly say that Rev3 has done an amazing job in the 2 short years of their existence. They know how to put on a professional, top-notch, high quality, big prize money race and truly serve the athletes. Everything is professional: race organization, setup, meals, videos, media coverage, website, etc. Thank you Rev3!

The week of the race I came down with a sore throat and bit of sickness, but there was a far larger concern that I thought may change my plans again at the last minute. My grandfather in Michigan unexpectedly collapsed in his yard due to bleeding in his brain, and had to undergo two emergency brain surgeries the next several days. I am very thankful that my grandfather is pressing on and slowly healing from the events; they were serious surgeries and the family was quite concerned. My mother flew out to Michigan to be with him the night of the first emergency surgery and has been there all week. He is slowly recovering, gaining memory, and hopefully will be able to come home from the hospital in the near future. He was coherent enough the night before the race to tell my mom to pass on a message to me on the phone: "Get er done." That was very encouraging to hear.

Multisport Ministries also is now connected with the Rev3 race series, and the MsM chaplain John Adams was putting together an event the night before the race called Tri Inspire, and had asked myself and fellow MsM teammate Josh Merrick to speak at the event. So, there were more than enough reasons to make the trip. The Tri Inspire event MsM was a great opportunity to meet new people as well as share a bit of thoughts about racing with purpose and finding joy in our pursuits, something I have been trying very hard to do lately.

The Race Report:
I finished 16th out of 28 pros and 12 seconds behind Josh. The swim went considerably better than the Miami 5150 race in March. My TYR Hurricane Cat 5 wetsuit from the guys at Kompetitive Edge was incredible, and luckily the water temp was cold enough for the race to allow wetsuits. This favors the weaker swimmers like myself. I didn't feel super great on the swim, but found myself sitting in the back of about a 15-person main chase pack. The last 10 minutes or so I became anxious to try to make a move and pass the group, but simply couldn't get around anyone as the group was strung out wide and I was sitting at the back. After a few kicks to the arms and one hard one to my face, I decided it was best to just sit in the group. This was a good decision looking back, as I was able to draft off the pack, conserve energy, and the leaders (Cam Dye, Olympian Matt Reed, the young stud and uber-biker Andrew Yoder, and Brian Fleischman who shares my same coach) were already strung out ahead so my chances of getting away from this group wasn't the greatest anyways. I came out of the water a bit over a minute down from the leaders, who were crushing it at the front. I honestly felt like it was a slow swim, as I really could have picked up the pace. After pulling myself onto the dock out of the river, I could see I was in the same pack as Australians J oe Gambles of team Trek-KSwiss and Richie Cunningham, and Andrew Starkowicz and other swimmers who I honestly would have thought would have gotten away from me. It was a fine swim considering I had a lot more left in the tank as well.
Onto the bike, the group honestly got away from me pretty quickly, other than a couple of guys including Starkowicz. He's usually a machine on the bike (he won the bike prime two years ago at the Ironman 70.3 world championships.. yes, he's strong), but he just came off an injury as well so was a bit off form. I passed Starkowicz the first mile or so of the bike, and rode behind another athlete for about the first 30 minutes of the ride until I knew I needed to move up on one of the steep climbs. The bike course was tough, and consisted of mostly rolling hills. Starkowicz passed me at about the half way point, and the rest of the ride my goal was to keep him in sight, which I did for all of it minus the final mile or two.

The bike is where the race got away from me. I NEED to make cycling a serious priority the next 6 months! I can usually run with the good pros in the sport when I am fit. I was right there at the Miami race. Apparently, with my TYR wetsuit :) I can hang on the swim with some of the decent main pack swimmers as well (but NOT the top swimmers yet; they're truly in a league of their own). But honestly right now, I CANNOT ride with these guys. It's discouraging, but I need to start facing the facts, and getting my butt in gear. Yes, I pass a few people during races and outbiked a group of the pros, but the truth is the bike spread is huge between the best cyclists in the sport and the worst. A poor bike split can set you back over 5-7 minutes, whereas a poor swim will only put you back a minute or two. This is why cycling is CRUCIAL in Olympic distance non-draft racing. If you're not strong on the bike, you're out of the race. Yes, the top pros have experience on me by many years, but I am racing in the pro division this year and need to man up and try to COMPETE. If my cycling does not improve, I simply cannot compete. I have a lot of work to do.
At the end of the bike, I found myself going nearly 30mph into transition 2, riding head on with 4 or 5 age group women coming out of the transition area straight at me. They had swerved onto my side of the road instead of staying on the right side out of transition. I screamed at them as did a number of spectators, and somehow I swerved around them all, avoided a crash, and was able to dismount at the last second before the dismount line and run into transition (with my cycling shoes on, clunking away, as I was unable to unstrap the shoes and run barefoot as I usually do due to the mishap). I escaped without a crash so I can't complain too much. However, it would be good if more athletes started paying attention to rules and course boundaries.

The summary of the run is this: I struggled the entire 10k with a bad gut cramp from taking an energy gel too late on the bike. I passed Starkowicz and one other athlete on the run, but was passed by teammate Josh Merrick at about the halfway point. Josh said I looked pretty hunched over when he passed me. My legs felt good, but stomach was forcing my pace to slow. I ran a mid 35 minute 10k, about 2 1/2 minutes slower than I ran in Miami with my personal best 10k run split there. A 35 minute 10k is no longer acceptable for me.

The goal of the race was to give an honest hard effort. I didn't expect a breakthrough race, but the hope of one is always there even if the fitness may not be. I gave a hard effort, but cannot honestly say I raced all out the entire time. I was hindered by cramps, but need to be stronger mentally to fight through them. Again, I have a lot of work to do.
The weekend was still a success, however, as I was able to meet some great folks from the race and fellow members of Multisport Ministries. I strive to continue to race for a greater purpose than myself, which has been a struggle to keep at the front of my mind at times, especially feeling the pressure that results are the only thing that matter...though that's not exactly the case; it's a goal of mine to keep a balanced perspective on things. There are many opportunities to impact others through this sport. Onward to the next race, the Capital of Texas Triathlon in two weeks. I'm headed to Austin to race and for the wedding of my good friend Derek Yorek the day after the race.
Time to keep putting in the work! Onward. Thanks for the support.

Some things are important, other things are more important: Marriage, Triathlon, Injuries, & Life

2011-04-13T11:19:00.000-07:00

The past three weeks have been the most monumental weeks of my life, to date…by far. A heel injury from the Miami race on March 20 left me limping, frustrated and very discouraged, but looking back I think it came at the right time, just in time to teach me an important lesson and focus on what matters most.

On April 2^nd I married the most incredible woman that exists. I was obviously overwhelmed with excitement leading up to the big day, had a very hard time sleeping and thinking about anything else the week of, yet at the same time during the few weeks prior, my mind was still consumed with triathlon. Although I knew Amy wanted to, we weren’t going to take a honeymoon, mostly because of money but also because I didn’t want my training to suffer. We were going to go up to the mountains for a day or two instead to enjoy a weekend away, but nothing extravagant. It was a pretty selfish standpoint on my part, knowing the Amy wanted to go somewhere memorable but knew she would support what I wanted to do. After training my butt off the past five months I did not want to lose what I had gained, nor could afford to spend big bucks on a wild vacation. Truth of the matter is that a lot of it had to do with pressure to perform well this year, and time off or a cutback in training may not help that. Quitting my accounting job and pursuing my nearly unpaid life of a rookie pro triathlete while trying to grow a coaching business, naturally put pressure on me heading into marriage. This is the year I need to do well, very very well, I thought to myself. It’s the year I’ve hired a coach, and the year I’m training more than ever…which really means more than the past two years since I’ve still relatively new to the sport. I put the pressure on myself, and everyone has been supportive of the pursuit, especially Amy, so I cannot blame anyone for that.

I trained long and hard the past five months, raced in Miami in late March and came home with mixed feelings and not quite the result I had hoped for. At the same time, my run had improved a lot and my coach Melissa Mantak’s training plan was working. She continues to remind me the top pros did not rise to the top overnight. It’s simply not possible in this sport, and takes time. I took two days off running post-Miami, and attempted to run on the third day. I made it 20 minutes and was forced to hobble, stop, and walk back a few miles to the car. My heel was killing me. I thought it was a simple heel bone bruise from racing in road flats on concrete, so took a few more days off running and was certain it would heel. Fast forward two weeks - I was limping around just walking and the area around my achilles tendon was very swollen. I then realized this was more serious than I thought, and realized I needed to take some time to focus on healing it.

Wedding week was upon me, and honestly my mind was not on training. I skipped workouts, had a ton to do, friends came into town, and my training was sliding a bit for the first time in a half a year. With the injury and wedding events, it was easy to justify. A few weeks prior, I committed to not let the wedding events alter my training much, yet reality hit with wedding planning, running around town, relatives and friends arriving…and oh yeah, I’m injured. Honestly though, the biggest thing that affected it was actually my discouragement and lack of motivation. It’s amazing how motivation can change with an injury, and thinking about triathlon while being injured is no fun. So, that led me to not want to think about it at all, skip more swim and bike workouts than I should have, and pour my energy into the excitement of getting married. As excited as I was, this was very easy to do, and looking back, I’m very glad; this was a good thing. This was a necessary thing! Marriage only comes once in a lifetime, for me at least, and unfortunately not for all. It is more important than anything else, such as training, and Amy deserves my full attention. Getting hyped up all week on getting married was incredibly fun.

Thanks to my sister and the generosity of the folks at Denver Physical Therapy, I was able to get in two days before the wedding to have my injury assessed. At that point I was thinking it was Achilles tendonitis, since it was a lingering injury that was worsening as time went on. The doc was a bit perplexed, as the pain was not coming from my Achilles nor the typical spot of the heel for the most common bone bruise. Rather, it was stemming from deep in the calcaneus bone area, and on both sides of the foot. So, it was likely either a bruise in a rare spot, or a fracture of some sort. Stress fractures usually come on gradually, and this injury happened from the race, which was a good sign as an acute injury means take time to get it healed and get back to work, rather than having to adjust a training load and plan in the case of an overuse injury. The doctor performed dry needling on my right calf. He admitted it would likely help more in the case of Achilles tendonitis, but it was worth a shot. Ouch!!… sticking 15 needles in and out of the calf, going as deep as the bone, doesn’t exactly feel nice. However, the treatment can work and that’s all that matters. I was shocked to be so sore from it, and hobbled around for two days thinking, this will be fun to walk down the aisle like this :)

The wedding was incredible. We had over 250 people join us for the day, and great friends came from all over, including the Westmont crew from California, Multisport Ministries guys from various states, 20 relatives from Michigan, and the locals including my best friends from high school and people like my coach Melissa and her husband Rob, who I’m just getting to know well but value our relationships so much already. Somehow I was still able to dance a bit with a swollen foot, which I didn’t even think about the whole evening…other than when coach Melissa whispered “how’s your foot feeling” during dinner :).

I’m on my way back from a week in Hawaii after an amazing honeymoon. Long story short, close family friends offered to let us stay in their condo on a beach in Kihei, Maui, and plane tickets were gifted to us in the wedding. Now, how can you turn that down? You can’t! I’m so thankful and grateful for generous people in my life. I ran 35 minutes today, in my first run in three weeks. I felt slow, a bit out of shape, but looking back maybe the injury had a purpose - to tell me to relax, focus on my wife since she more than deserves it, and maintain a healthy balance in life. I had imagined my honeymoon a time where I could log 55 miles a week at sea level in beautiful weather, but that was not to be. Funny how the injury finally healed enough the last day of the trip to run. Was God trying to tell me something? Maybe. I got in a few pool swims and 3 bike rides on a rented bike, but no structured training and an incredible time with my wife was what the week was about. Life is about more than triathlon, more than one’s job, hobby, career, etc. and sometimes it’s easy to forget about that.

I’m ready to get back to the swing of things, back to the training routine, and find out what married life is all about. I’ll have to see how fitness comes along the next month and decide if I am ready to race in New Orleans and Memphis in mid May. I met Amy just over 1 year ago, and now I’ve got a ring on my finger - pretty amazing how God can bless us just like that, completely unexpected. Some friends were surprised to hear I was getting married so soon after meeting Amy, and shared their thoughts on marriage with me. I love my friends to death, and love even more how we can share thoughts even when they differ. Some people think you should live together, travel the world together, and share finances together before you even think of getting married. I can see their reasoning, but don’t think it necessary. Others are shocked to hear Amy and I both committed long ago to remain abstinent until marriage. Although we chose this, which was definitely not easy, it’s cool to see most people respect it and acknowledge it’s cool to see two people follow through with it after 26 or 27 long years. These differences don’t get in the way of our friendships, they may even strengthen then. What really matters is how I feel about Amy, and not what anyone else says or thinks, or if they agree with my decisions and opinions or not; that we are right for each other and committed for life, and that we have friendships with people we can talk openly about this stuff with. Life is about living with people, similar AND different to yourself, respecting others opinions but yet ultimately following your own convictions - this is what matters.

I wanted to share a few pictures and highlights from the past few weeks, as well as my bike trek from the beach at sea level to the top of the Haleakala Crater at over 10,000ft elevation, an epic and memorable climb! The ride took about 3:20 minutes, and I was pretty taxed by the top after going out a bit too hard the first hour, not fully aware of the difference between a regular 3 hour ride vs. a 3 hour ride of constant climbing on a rented bike. *(I'll be writing a separate blog entry/post for the Multisport Ministries monthly newsletter on the trek up Haleakala, with pictures of the whole progression from beach to the top).

Thanks for tuning in!

-Ryan

The Kihei Aquatic Center, 25yd x 50m pool, & FREE to the public!

Swim workouts with the sea turtles!

I've worn my Powerbar socks at every formal occasion since 7th grade, why stop now? Years later they're a sponsor...irony or karma?

Some more wedding photos (by McCory James of Elevate Photography)

I was proud of my shrimp tacos I whipped up one night for dinner.

Cycling the Haleakala Crater: From beach to 10,000 ft

2011-04-12T11:04:00.000-07:00

By Ryan Borger, USAT Level 1 certified coach and owner of Borger Endurance LLC.

This past week I made my first trek to Hawaii, to the island of Maui for a week of solitude, honeymooning with my beautiful new bride Amy, and a bit of adventure. We stationed ourselves on the 6^th floor of a condo building off the Kamaole 2 beach in South Kihei, thanks to the generosity of some close family friends who let us stay at their condo for the week. I planned on mostly enjoying the week relaxing at the beach, taking a bit of a break from normal training, while still keeping my run volume up and doing some open water swimming, as the thought of running in Maui seemed pretty pleasant, especially coming off a relatively cold Colorado winter and I don’t get much open water practice. I had thought about trying to bring my bike along, but quickly realized that wasn’t a viable option thanks to United Airlines hefty $175 bike fee, each way. Unable to run as planned due to a heel injury, I decided to rent a bike for the week once I arrived. Prior to the week, I didn’t know much about the island, nor it’s cycling routes, though I had heard rumors of Canadian pro cyclist Ryder Hesjedal splitting a 2:30 ride to the top of some massive volcano there, so I decided to look into it a bit.

The idea of riding from sea level to 10,000ft drew my interest pretty quickly. I ride up to 10,000ft occasionally in Colorado, but I start at 5300ft, not sea level. There's a big difference. With the approval of the wife and soon to be driver to pick me up at the top and drive me back down, we decided I give it a go, and to make the trek by bike up this epic volcano. I rented the cheapest road bike I could find for the week, from South Maui bikes, took a look at a map, and set out for it. I will add that I came back very appreciative of my light-weight Specialized Tarmac SL3… after riding a heavy aluminum bike I realized I’ve been carbon fiber brainwashed, and need to not take my lightweight carbon rig for granted.

If you ever get a chance to ride on the island of Maui, I encourage you to make the epic climb from the beach to the top of Haleakala. Hundreds of people get shuttled to the top daily, and ride bikes down as a popular tourist even, but only a handful do it the other way around. It’s a cool accomplishment, and a rare opportunity to ascend over 10,000 ft.

What will you need for the ride?

- 2 large water bottles, bars/food, gets, $5 for fee into the National Park ($10 for cars), money for drinks/refueling at the market, a cycling jacket, and a pocket map may be a good idea, although it's a pretty straight forward route

I was warned that temperatures can vary 30-45 degrees from the beach to the top of the crater, and to bring a jacket, full finger gloves, and the whole nine yards. I scrapped that idea since I only brought a short sleeve jersey and shorts, and decided to take a bit of a risk. I got lucky as temperatures only dropped about 10-15 degrees at the top; I was shocked to be at 10,000 ft. by the end of the morning, while still sweating in 50+ degree weather. I was fortunate for my luck.

I rummaged the condo kitchen, packed a few baggies of Fig Newton bars, a Powerbar gel (unfortunately I only brought one on the trip), $10, a small map, and filled my two large water bottles. Unfortunately again I left my Powerbar Endurance drink mix at home, but not to worry, we still had some strawberry margarita mix left over in the fridge. I glanced at the ingredients on back, and realized it's pretty darn similar to Gatorade, and filled a bottle with half mix and half water. It tasted a lot like Kool-Aid, not bad at all and saved me a few bucks and a trip to the store.

The start at Baldwin Park: Elevation 2 feet

I topped of my tires at Maui Cyclery right in front of Baldwin Park in the small town of Paia, my starting point. The ride starts off the beach at Baldwin Avenue for approximately 7 miles, which is relatively flat compared to the rest of the ride, with a slight incline until hitting the second small town, Makawao. It was snowing ashes on me the first 45 minutes or so, as a nearby sugar cane field was on fire. I later learned this was a way of either harvesting, prepping, or processing the sugar. Possibly conducive to the sugar farmers, but not to cyclists' lungs.

At Makawao/ Makawao Avenue, you have the option of turning right onto the busier highway, but I opted to continue straight through the stop sign 1 mile on Olinda Rd. until reaching the rodeo, where I was instructed to turn right at Hanamu Road. This route has almost zero auto traffic. The roads wind a bit, have a few steeper climbs, and pretty areas of Eucalyptus groves. I was sweating a ton as I was pushing the pace fairly hard, and it was very humid. You will run into the Haleakala Highway/State Hwy 377 at the Haleakala Ranch, which takes you to the entrance of Haleakala National Park/Crater Road and up above the clouds.

Baldwin Avenue, from Paia to Makawao (7 mi)

There is a market at just over 3000 ft elevation which you can stop at before the steep climbing starts, so bring a few bucks for a mid-ride snack.

I stopped at the market to refill the bottles, enjoy a quick chocolate milk and Powerade, which was well needed later on. Several miles past the market you will reach your final turn, a left at the entrance sign to the Haleakala National Park, which also reads 22 miles to the top.

The rest of the ride consists primarily of switchbacks, and the grind goes on, and on, and on... passing the elevation signs every thousand feet. It's important to stay mentally focused, though it was relatively easy to do since you're excited to get to the top!

The final 45 minutes was more challenging than expected, as I was running a bit low on calories, and my rear was feeling the ache of a few hours on a new bike saddle, though I plugged away at it. As I passed the "Summit: 2 miles" sign, I also passed two other cyclists on the side of the road. One was standing up next to his bike, while the other was collapsed over in a ditch. The guy was taking a much needed rest, and I think he was either a bit under-trained for this ride or went out a bit hard. I don't have evidence that he made it to the actual summit, he did make it about 500 feet from it to the visitor's center parking lot, where on our drive back down I found him like this, as the picture shows:

By the top, my wife Amy had been waiting for me for about 45 minutes. The ride from start to finish took me about 3 hours, 15 minutes, pushing at a relatively moderate, though not hard, pace for the majority of it, though my legs were shot by the end of it. I can say that Ryder Hesjedal's record of 2:30 is quite remarkable!

Here are a few final shots of the last miles, as well as the view from the top. If you're ever in Maui next, give it a shot!

The road above the clouds, and 2 miles to the summit

A view from the summit

Mission: Accomplished

Miami 5150 race report

2011-03-21T23:37:00.000-07:00

The first race of the year, the Miami 5150, has come and gone. I've let a day go by, had some time to analyze it, and use it as motivation to train harder. Overall I finished 23^rd in easily the most stacked non-drafting pro race I’ve done. I would be lying to say I was pleased with the overall result, considering I’ve increased my training by about 10 hours per week compared to this time last year. I am pleased with my improved run and know I need to work even harder in the water. My 10k run split was over a minute and a half faster than it ever has been in a triathlon. Knowing the run course was possibly up to 30 seconds short, I still am much faster. Coming into the race, I’ve known my run fitness has improved after putting in 25 hours a week of training including running 45-55 miles per week the past few months, compared to about half of that last season while dealing with a slight calf injury in March. Another positive thing from the day was with nutrition. I did not have muscle cramps in the race! This is one of the first races I didn’t ever have to do the shuffle or try self massage on the spot, so my nutritional work is paying off. I learned some extremely valuable lessons in the water mostly, which I’ll take into the next race.

The Miami 5150 race was the first race in the new 5150 series, a series of non-drafting Olympic distance races all over the world owned by World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), better known as the owner of Ironman and Ironman 70.3. Athletes race for prize money and also for points toward qualifying for the 5150 championship race later in the season at the HyVee triathlon in Des Moines, Iowa. HyVee offers over a million dollars in prize money and takes 30 or so athletes of each gender from the top of the 5150 points list later in the summer. If you finish last at HyVee, you still walk with $3000. So, you can see why the qualifier races bring the big names. A few top names were Bevan Docherty of New Zealand (2x Olympic silver medalist), Chris Lieto (2nd at Ironman world championships), Matt Chrabot (US Nat'l champ), Cam Dye (winner of 2010 St. Anthony's tri), Olympian Matt Reed, Ben Collins, Brian Fleischman, Kyle Leto, Francesc Godoy of Spain, and a bunch of other top names including a few Russians and Brazilians. The pro field made up 10% of the entire race.

I arrived to the Ft Lauderdale home of my generous host stay Darlene at about 3am on Saturday after some travel delays, which is part of race trips, just like weather is part of race day. I was on a free flight down and avoided the airline bike fee, so I can't complain. At 10pm on Saturday night I discovered the gears on my bike weren't shifting properly, as the cables had somehow gotten altered after my test ride earlier in the day. Thanks to good friend and fellow pro Branden Rakita who was staying with me, we eventually got things working again. A late night pre-race stressor isn't much fun, but we got it taken care of. After 3 hours of sleep, which is about normal for my prior to race day unfortunately, I was up and ready to go.

On race morning I heard the rumors that the 2011 WTC banned swim speedsuits were being allowed in this race even though it was a WTC race, and regrettably I left my neoprene suit at home and replaced it with a WTC legal new suit, which is made of a mostly polyester. I was very surprised to see they were being allowed, but that’s why you need to bring them both to the races. Since the swim is my weakness I need all the speed I can get, or buy : ). Lesson learned for next time.

My biggest lesson and most costly mistake of the day came from the swim start. It was a unique in water start in the harbor of Biscayne Bay of downtown Miami, about 100 feet from the seawall. As usual, a giant yellow buoy marked the starting point. About a minute before the start, a few athletes started swimming far left of the buoy towards out towards a bridge. Soon, groups of the field were following them, ending up about 100 - 150 feet to the left of the start buoy where myself and about 4 other athletes stayed. I was looking around wondering why everyone was swimming away from and well in front of, the start buoy. I thought for sure the race starter was going to call everyone back, or wait until the athletes lined up together behind the start buoy and back in the proper starting position and in line with the first turn buoy, which was about 300 yards out straight ahead of me.

A race marshal on a kayak was yelling at everyone, telling athletes to get back behind the buoy, and come back to it. Unfortunately, the few of us at the buoy were the only ones who were listening, or who could hear the guy; meanwhile the starter was out on a boat about 100 ft in the bay with his megaphone. We waited for the group of about 25 to come back to us, which was a huge mistake. When the started announced 15 seconds til the start, I realized I was in a really bad spot, as the athletes had made there way well in front of the buoy and weren’t going anywhere but further ahead of it.

The horn sounded, I fought hard towards the first buoy about 300m into the race, and found myself third to last to it.

All that to say, these guys have been racing for years and they know what they're doing. There was a current, so they were positioning themselves to the side to adjust to it. I found myself having to swim further back around the buoy. There's no way to identify athletes in the water, so no one is at risk of a penalty, and since most the whole group is doing it, you might as well follow. If the group is starting in front of the start line, get there with them! The big lesson learned.

The swim fitness felt there, however I lost a lot of ground from the pack in the water. It was a rude awakening after 25-30,000 yards a week in the pool the past few months, feeling ready to go. The level of swimmers these guys are is absolutely incredible, and open water swimming is very different from the pool. This is the area I need to put in specific focused work over the next several months.

Onto the bike, I pushed hard averaging over 25 mph on the course, struggled a bit being comfortable riding in the strong winds in the aerobars, but was able to pass 2 athletes on the course. Waiting for more to come into sight, once again you realize the top triathletes in the world and nation do not have a noticeable weakness. They're strong - very strong, in all three sports.

I ran a lower 32 min 10k which equates to 5:14 pace per mile. I think the run course may have been about 30 seconds short, so that puts me a bit under 33:00. I was not passed on the run, passed several athletes and held off a few solid runners including friend Henry Hagenbuch from California, who consistently runs 30-31 minutes off the bike. It was he first time I've beaten him in a triathlon, in about my 5th attempt.

I have to take my improved run as the encouragement of the day, and the lessons learned into the next race. At this level in the sport, you need to put in the work for many months. I am set for a great season in 2011, will make some changes in my swim training with the help of my coach Melissa Mantak, and keep on keeping on.

It was a great day for Melissa as her other pro Athletes Matt Chrabot and Jillian Peterson both took home huge overall wins, and Brian Fleischman rounded out the top 10. Congrats to them all! Melissa and I will likely adjust my training a bit to focus on the weaknesses, but this sport is all about long term consistency. As she reminded me after the race, "do you think Matt and Jill were on the podium 5 years ago? No. You have to put in the time!" It is a true statement. I’m seeing improvements over last year, and know I will continue to see more.

Post race I was able to enjoy exploring Miami a bit, and enjoying dinner and Improv comedy show with coach Melissa, her husband Rob and fellow athletes Math Chrabot, Jillian Peterson, Cam Dye, Brian Fleischman, and Branden Rakita.

I’m blessed to have the chance to keep pursuing the sport, to work with one of the best coaches in it, and to have the support of family and sponsors. Thanks to Multisport Ministries for their support and Kompetitive Edge and TYR for supplying me with the best swim gear out there. I can’t wait to race in my TYR carbon race suit next race, as well get the chance to compete in a wetsuit legal race where I can take advantage of the TYR Hurricane Cat 5 suit! The thing is amazing, and I NEED it top be competitive with these guys in the water.

It's time to enjoy some exciting weeks ahead.... The most exciting weeks of my life, as I'll be married to an incredible woman in less than two weeks. Amy has been very supportive of my triathlon pursuits, which I am extremely grateful for. Thanks for all your support as well!

The Evolving Bike

2011-03-01T22:32:00.000-08:00

In rummaging through some pictures for my wedding slide show I'm making, I came across some fun classic bike photos. I found a few shots from back in the day; it's cool to see the evolution of bikes.

The plastic Big Wheel was a toddlers first pick. Perfect for off-roading, sidewalk storming, or hauling others on the back without needing to install aftermarket foot pegs.
When feeling ready, I decided to move up to the steel framed 3-wheeler. The basket on the front was a big selling point, but what sold me was the ability to hook up a trailer to the back and haul around my big sister. Plus, it's a great way to get in some extra low cadence muscle tension work.

My big brother was pretty cool with his big boy bike, so I ditched the wagon hauler for a more maneuverable plastic version 3-wheeler that allowed me to keep up with him.
Fast forward a number of years to 2008. Oxnard Sprint Triathlon. I think this was my 2nd triathlon. After my former college athletic trainer and friend Diana Palmer gifted me some aerobars, I strapped them on my 62cm Trek Madone 5.2 road bike. I didn't yet know what race wheels were or aero helmets, nor that the bike was a bit too large for me. It did the job well though.

After learning there were such things as race specific wheels, I borrowed a set of Cane Creek tubulars from a food Santa Barbara friend and co-coach Rowena Spence. They were amazing! Rowena played a big part in introducing me to the sport, as she was already a veteran. After winning the Oxnard Sprint and meeting Richard Smith of Fluid Recovery at In-N-Out Burger post-race, he gave me a few free samples and offered me discounted product, my first sponsorship of any type. I gladly displayed the Fluid sticker on the madone.

For 2009 I upgraded to a time trial/triathlon specific bike. Thanks to Erik Burkholz of Multisport Ministries, we purchased this Kuota K-Factor SL from a friend Cameron, who owned TriBuys.com at the time. The bike was fun, fast, but definitely took a bit of getting used to with true aerobars, as well as being quite a bit smaller ride than I was used to. I remember almost falling over on my first ride down the street, thinking "there's no way I can balance this thing in the aerobars."

For 2010 I picked up an aero helmet and upgraded once again to this Blue Triad SL. I also rolled a Zipp disc and front Zipp 404. This bike was awesome, fast, and pretty. My only complaint was the integrated seat post, which made it very hard to travel with as it couldn't be broken down.

Needing to free up some cash and while on a mad bike sponsor hunt, I sold the Blue, and secured this awesome Specialized Transition Pro frameset, and built it up with carbon everything and added a Quarq power meter. I will be racing with Zipp 808's and a rear Zipp disc for 2011.

The pain cave. Below is the room that I spent many hours in during 2009. My bedroom in my Santa Barbara apartment also served as my training room. It was here where I first really learned what triathlon was, as I found a video of the 2008 Olympic triathlon online, and streamed the race almost every day for a few months while riding inside during lunch break and at night after work.

Kompetitive Edge & TYR!

2011-02-09T10:18:00.000-08:00

I'm very excited to have recently added two sponsors for the 2011 season, huge sponsors that will help me swim faster for one, which is crucial as swimming is my weakest link in this sport. I will be representing Kompetitive Edge this season. KE is a local Denver triathlon shop, with all the tri goodies you'll need (TYR wetsuits, swim skins/speedsuits, K-Swiss running shoes, goggles, nutrition, compression gear, socks, sunglasses, books, massage rollers, swim paddles, training suits, fins, kick boards, lap timers, awesome TYR travel bags and transition bags... the list goes on). KE is a great company that only stocks the best quality goods. They also are backed by some amazing people. For all my friends and blog visitors, enter discount code "ryanborger2011" and take 15% off all in store purchases and/or for online orders (for you out-of- staters) (not valid on sale/clearance items). Check out Kompetitive Edge! www.komp etitiveedge.com

I'll also be swimming this year in the fastest legal triathlon wetsuit ever made, the TYR Hurricane 5, and the new WTC legal speed suit, the TYR Torque Pro. I can't wait for my first swim in the Hurricane, I've heard incredible things about the flexibility in the shoulders and overall suit quality. Worn by the best swimmers in the sport, like Andy Potts.

TYR Hurricane Cat 5 wetsuit

Bike makeover project

2011-01-11T13:28:00.000-08:00

I've been doing some bike flipping and parting out of bikes this past year, trying to make a few bucks here and there. It does take some bike and part knowledge, and for sure some time, but if you do it right you can make a little money and maybe even have the option to piece together a project bike or get an old junker back up and running with the extra parts you accumulate.

I ran across an old Trek 5200, the US Postal Service edition that Lance won a Tour or two on back in the the day. I bought it cheap, parted it out, sold the wheelset and shifters for what I purchased the complete bike for, so I decided a little project with it might be fun. The bike originally was a bit rusty, and the paint was flaking and in very bad shape. My vision of the Trek 5200 Multisport Ministries edition then came to mind... so I went at it. The frame is made of carbon fiber, so I didn't really know how to go about it. After a bit of research and some help from members of the Slowtwitch.com forums (thanks Erik Stevens), I learned a few steps to start with. If you have an old frame lying around, and a bit of time to give it a makeover, here's a quick summary to get you on your way.

Supplies needed: Jasco Paint & Epoxy Remover (or similar), 240 grit sand paper, 400-600 grit waterproof sandpaper, masking tape, a razor blade, Chemical proof rubber gloves, a wire brush, primer, color of choice top quality spray paint (House of Kolor is good stuff), and a glossy clear coat spray paint. You'll also need your standard set of allen wrenches and bike tools if you need to disassemble an existing complete bike.

The Process:

You need to get the frame free of all parts. Remove everything possible from the frame (handlebars, stem, crankset (bottom bracket tool needed), derailleurs, wheelset, etc, and take the fork out of the frame. Take off the front derailleur mount as well, which is screwed to the frame. You'll need an allen wrench for this. Fill any holes (i.e. water bottle screw holes, rear derailleur hangar hole, front derailleur mount frame holes, steerer tube, etc. with rolled up paper towel, filler paper, masking tape, etc. to avoid getting paint in any screw hole threads.

Once you have just the bike naked with just the frame, apply a varnish/paint remover to the frame. THIS STUFF IS HARSH! Make sure your product is safe on carbon fiber. I recommend Jasco Paint & Epoxy remover, which can be purchased at most hardware stores. Again... did I say this stuff is harsh..powerful..yes..be careful! You will need chemical resistant gloves, as it WILL burn your skin badly without (it will even burn through cheaper rubber gloves...as I've learned using it to remove glue from tubular rims in the past). Be careful not to get it on your skin. If any gets on the skin, rub it off quickly. To avoid this, wear long sleeves and pants. The remover comes out in globs, so try to spread out along the frame. However, the thicker it is applied, the better it works. Let sit for 20-30 minutes. The paint eventually should become bubbly and flaky. Using a wire brush or plastic scraper, start scraping away. This process is the most time consuming step of the project. You will need to repeat this step several times on the entire frame to get all the old paint off. I ended up using a razor blade to carefully scrape away any excess paint at the end so all that was visible was the gray carbon fiber. Be careful not to cut into the carbon frame at all and damage the structure. Once the bike is paint-free, lightly sand it with 600 grit wet sandpaper.

Mask any areas of the bike (i.e. the metal rings the fork slides into, the cable housing guides) with masking tape to avoid getting any paint on that area. Spray 1 or 2 light layers of primer as your first coat on the frame. After it fully dries, it's time to spray your first base paint layer. Be careful not to spray closer than 8 inches to the frame, to avoid thick paint buildup and any drips. Let each layer fully dry (overnight is recommended). You can lightly sand using 600 grit sandpaper each coat in order that the next coat adheres well with a strong bond. Paint must be completely dry prior to sanding. (If you don't do this step between coats, as I learned, you risk causing "crackling". When this happens, paint becomes ripply and cracks. Then, you'll need to start over sanding the damaged area which has cracked...no bueno.)
This light sanding step is especially crucial between your clear coats. After 2 coats of base color, let dry completely before applying the first clear coat. Again, to avoid drips, spray lighter coats as opposed to thick, heavier coats.
If you do have any drips, come back over them with 220 grit wet sandpaper after the paint has dried completely, and follow that with a light sand job using 400-600 grit sandpaper. If you sand into the color base coat, you'll need to repaint it, so be careful to sand just slightly into the clear coat. The clear coat is what will protect the frame, so 3-4 coats is recommended, whereas the base coat is simply for color, so 1-2 coats should suffice. Remember, the more coats you apply, the heavier the frame will be (I know...this is very important ; ) ). When lightly sanding between clear coats, the frame will look scratched up, white, and cloudy. This is normal, and should go away with the next coat of clear applied.

If you want to add any graphics, stickers, etc. that you want to be permanently bonded onto the frame, you can do so after applying the base color coats, and lying the clear coat over them. The thinner and flush (the frame) the decals, the better they will look when it's all said and done. You can find custom website decals on ebay for about $7 for a set of 2, as well as old bike decals in many colors. Paint/art supply stores also sell pinstripes and specialty pin striping tape.

If it's your first time repainting a frame, as it was mine, remember that doing the project is how you learn best. Try it once on an old frame you can afford to make a few mistakes on (and can afford to void the warrant on ; ) ), because it likely won't turn out perfectly your first time. Be patient, and work a bit on it here and there so you don't get frustrated and want to rush the project. You've put in the time already, so why not finish it right.

Once your frameset is looking good, go ahead and build the bike back up, and ride around town a bit taller than you did before. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: These are the steps I took as a first-timer. Research repainting bikes online first to be certain you haven't missed any crucial steps. I am no expert, and simply am sharing the steps I took in my project. That said, I don't take any responsibility in how your project turns out... unless it turns out amazing of course.
-Ryan

New Discoveries & Exercise Induced Asthma

2011-01-05T14:17:00.000-08:00

I've been a runner for many years now. I've tried hard, trained hard, put in the miles, but have always felt a step behind others for some reason, especially in college against the other guys. Some of it is physiological, but some may not be. Running has never come easy for me, and I've always known that. I became a good middle distance runner, loving the 800m and 4x400m relay in college, but the longer stuff was especially difficult. I put in the work, and had to for that very reason. However, I never really looked into it much nor paid attention to any details to get to the next level, like nutrition, stretching, and paying very close attention to the body, such as how hard I was breathing and when breathing gets worse.

Unfortunately, it wasn't the past few weeks where I started to take a deeper look into these things, with the help of my coach Melissa Mantak. We first started to look at my run technique. I've been working on a few things, like increasing my cadence and slightly shortening my stride to avoid over-striding, but my form overall is pretty decent. Feedback in any athlete-coach relationship is crucial. If athletes don't give much feedback, they are limiting the ability for their coach to be of as much help. In my feedback to my coach in my training logs, I'd simply document how I felt after each workout. Many days, my legs are fine while running, but my breathing is always the thing slowing me down. This is especially true in cold weather. Now, I can still run 6:40s forever, which isn't fast. Sometimes I breath moderately hard, other times not. But when I drop down to the low 6 minute range, my breathing starts to really ramp up. In the swims, I'd comment on hard breathing certain days, like when the air quality in the pool was worse than others. I never really thought much of it, and just assumed this was part of the training cycle. Sometimes you feel great, other times you feel like crap.

Melissa is a coach who listens to her athletes. My past coaches, such as in college, would often tell me what I am feeling is all mental, and that I just needed to find the love for the sport again and race, and put other distractions aside. The breathing is mental, the achy legs is mental, the need for Breath Right Nasal Strips is mental, cramping is mental, etc. Running is mental, period. There is a huge mental aspect to the sport, but we train our bodies for a reason. It is our legs and lungs that get us to the finish line ultimately.

Over the past few years I found some things that helped me as a runner. And no, not EPO, though I'm sure that would have helped a ton. First, I noticed I hate wearing heart rate monitors. The tight chest strap seemed to restrict my breathing. I frequently asked others about this, and never really found anyone who shared similar experiences. Secondly, Breath Right nasal strips help me, and open up my airway. While working for a surgery center billing company in California, I asked a few Drs about an operation that could open up my nasal passage and airway. I knew I had trouble breathing, and thought for sure this was the main cause. It still may be part of it, I'm not sure yet. I was told it's a nasty surgery to have, and a rough recovery, so didn't look into this surgery any further. Plus, my athletic career was over, I thought, so it didn't make sense to get it, even if I could likely get a free surgery.

In the pool, I have a very hard time with breath sets, for example when I do sets with breathing every 3-5-or 7 strokes instead of every other stroke. With my Riptide team, we would occasionally do these sets, and they were some of the hardest sets I've ever done, even though the swimming wasn't really fast. I'd get to the wall gasping compared to my teammates. I knew then that my lung function was relatively poor, though was comparing it to finely tuned athletes, so still didn't think much of it.

Melissa encouraged me to get some lung function tests done, so thanks to my nurse practitioner sister I was able to get in her clinic for a few tests, including a peak flow test. My lung function numbers were about 20% lower than they should have been. Especially for someone who trains 2-3 workouts per day, I should have above average results, not below.

Long story short, after being diagnosed with exercise induced asthma I decided to try a sample inhaler before a run (after confirming this was legal and approved by USADA... which for 2011 it is without submitting a therapeutic use exemption (TUE), whereas in 2010 a TUE was needed.) I did a peak flow test before taking the inhaler, used it, then re-tested my peak flow about 20 minutes later. The numbers went up by 100 points after using the infaler! I went out for my run, and it felt great, like my lungs were literally 20% deeper. Breathing felt cold deep in the lungs too, which was an odd sensation. It was a hilly trail run at Matthews-Winters park where we used to run in high school, and I was ecstatic thinking of the breakthrough this could be. That's when I really knew I had exercise induced asthma. The past week and a half, I've done a bit more research on it, found out that many relatives on my mother's side, including my grandpa, have it as well, though I'm not yet sure if EIA is hereditary or not.

Looking back, it was pretty clear that I've had this for a number of years. I don't know why I never thought about it or looked into it. I simply thought that was how breathing is supposed to feel. Now, I know I could continue like I always have, without taking any medications. I've done it for years, it's just been limiting my performance.

There have been many cases looking back that show my struggles with asthma. Some days it's not too bad, others it is worse:

-I have a much harder time breathing on runs when very cold out
-I am bothered by wearing tight restricting tri tops, the reason why I always raced with only shorts on. Same with heart rate monitors. It affects my lung function since it's already restricted.
-Breathe Right nasal strips help. Don't know if this is related or not.
-One day last year the chlorine levels at the pool got all out of whack, and I had to get out and go outside, I could barely breathe. My teammates had a harder time breathing than normal, but I was by far the most affected by it. It actually messed up my lungs for 3 days and I wasn't able to swim.
-Track workouts this summer, when the pollen was high, 4 weeks in a row while doing 400s, I hit the 300 mark and my breathing literally was through the roof. I explained this to my roommate Todd who I've been running with for years. I assumed I was a bit overtrained. I now realize the first 200-250m are mostly anaerobic anyways, and once the aerobic system kicks in, I need full function of the lungs. I'm not sure if it was allergy-related or not, combined with the asthma, but something definitely keeping me from successful workouts. My legs were fresh, but my breathing was through the roof.
- There were 2 college cross country races, including 1 in Fresno my senior year, when I had a breathing attack after. It took 10-15 minutes to slow my breathing. I remember the medical crew surrounding me and checking my heart rate. They poured ice over me, which felt great. Again, I never looked into this any further.
-Last year I did a ton of house remodel work with my brother. The days I did sanding and drywall work, I was affected a lot. I remember running on the Highline Canal after sanding in the morning. I had to walk for a mile, since my lungs and breathing were out of control. I knew it was from the sanding, but never thought about EIA.
All this means, is that I need to be extra aware of things like chemicals, fumes, running in the cold, allergies, etc.

I've been training with this for years, so it's not like I have been completely affected by it by any means. I'm the first to admit that. However, when you are trying to get to the highest level of an aerobic sport, that extra 15-20% lung function is a must-have. I am very excited for this discovery, and view this as a positive thing, nothing negative. I'm still learning about exercise induced asthma, and will have to learn how I react best to proper medication. I am very eager to compete this year with a bit of deeper lungs. I will miss the funny looks though, running by people sounding like a horse during races :)

I'll now run by people like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxR8gzgSxoU&feature=related

Happy training and to a successful 2011,
Ryan

MsM, Powerbar!, and the TT rig.

2010-12-14T23:49:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to announce a few 2011 season sponsors, the first being Multisport Ministries. The founding men of MsM have backed me since day one of this journey, believed in me, and have helped make this pursuit possible. They have helped me become the athlete I have become, but more importantly have walked alongside me on the journey of life, challenging me to be the best man I can - living for a greater purpose than myself alone.

I am also very grateful to be connected with Powerbar for the 2011 season, maker of the best nutrition and energy foods on the market. Many people just think they make energy bars, but they've come out with a ton of new stuff over the years: Endurance sports drink, Recovery drink, Powerbar gels, Powerbar gel blast chews, trail mix type bars, Energy Bites, Ironman Perform sports drink and Protein powder most recently, which is packed with protein and tastes like a milkshake compared to to the Cytomax brand powder I used prior.

I am seeking additional financial & product/service sponsors for the 2011 season.

I have also begun working with coach Melissa Mantak, who recently earned the highly prestigious USA Triathlon Coach of the Year Award for 2010. After my first month with Melissa, I will tell you that she is more than deserving of such an award.

After selling my Blue Triad SL, parting out a few bikes, scrapping some other parts, getting out the metal saw, and getting my Specialized Transition Pro frameset thanks to the folks at Bike Source, my new TT rig is built up. Can wait to throw the race wheels on it and let her fly.

Specs:

2011 Specialized Transition Pro, size XL
SRAM Red 11-23 cassette & derailleurs
Quarq Cinco Saturn power meter w/SRAM carbon cranks, 53-39 rings
Speedplay zero stainless steel pedals
Shimano Pro Missile aerobars with custom cut (& warranty-voided) Zipp chicane s-bend extensions & swapped Profile Design armrests
SRAM 900 TT carbon shifters
Profile Design ABS carbon brake levers
ISM Adamo Breakaway saddle
Garmin Edge 500
I'll be riding on a set of 2010 Zipp 808 tubulars, to go with my Zipp Sub-9 disc wheel

The new Specialized TT2 aero helmet, the fastest TT helmet you can find.

Swim Labs

2010-12-13T08:16:00.000-08:00

Last week could be called a maintenance week, figuring out what is not ideal in my form/technique, and what needs to be fixed. This can be a frustrating time, but it's necessary to improve. One can choose to take it as discouragement, or use it to motivate. This included a bike fit at Retul in Boulder, where I learned I was riding the TT almost like a road bike, and need to be much further forward on the saddle. This new position will definitely get some taking used to. It also included an hour and a half session with my coach Melissa at Swim Labs. My swim has been my weakness this past year, and I'm often playing a bit of catch-up on race day on the bike and run. Swim Labs has 2 locations here in Denver, each with several Endless Pools when you can swim against various speeds of current and film your swim technique from many angles: above, front, side, etc. It's a must do for any serious triathlete or swimmer with less-than-perfect form in order to know where to start keeping tabs on your technique. The difficult thing is putting what you know needs change in your stroke and implementing it in swim drills and training, especially after swimming a certain way for 2 years. It will take some serious work. My main issue lies with keeping my elbows higher and bent throughout my stroke after entering the water. I have the tendency of letting my elbow drop too quickly, which creates a bit of extra drag. I also need to pull all the way through my stroke to the waist, and maintain a bit steadier kick. Lots of work to do.

Swimming is a sport where technique is critical to success, more so than biking or running in my opinion. If you form is far from perfect, work on it early, ASAP. The best way to know what is wrong is to get filmed, and have expert critique. If you're in the Denver area, I'd highly recommend going to Swim Lab s for a session with one of their expert coaches. You can record a CD with video footage, and also compare it to other top swimmers side by side for critique. Swim Labs gives you the disc to take home and study for as long as you need to. Thanks to Giff and Mike for letting us work there. I've got my work cut out for me, but have no option other than using this as motivation to improve. Right when you are getting to the next level in the sport, you realize there is always much higher to go, and so many little things needing to be done to get there. The further along you are, the more important the tiny details become, and there are many of them in triathlon, since it's really 3 separate sports you can analyze. If possible, I'll try to see if I can upload some of the footage here on the blog in the next few days. Go check out Swim Labs!

Looking Forward to 2011

2010-11-06T20:55:00.000-07:00

My 2010 season is in the books, and the training build toward 2011 has begun. I'll summarize my 2010 experience as follows:

I learned more than I ever thought possible in my first season as a pro
I earned my pro license in May, which was the main season goal
I learned valuable lessons about choosing race formats that play to my strengths, and races that make sense financially
I came out of 2010 more motivated than ever
I earned my first prize money as a professional (not much, but it's a start)

My 2011 season will look a bit different than my 2010 season. 2010 had some highs and some lows, as far as training and racing. However, I learned more the past 12 months about the sport than I thought possible. I am learning what it takes to be a top US triathlete, establishing a plan to get there, and learning how race selection is very important. For 2011, I only plan to race events where I have a shot at prize money, those that offer free home-stays for pros, and those that are relatively inexpensive to travel to.
The past few months I've had to make some tough decisions about 2011, decisions that make sense practically and financially. I will not be a member of the Riptide Multisports Elite Team for 2011. The Riptide team has become like family to me, and I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the team for 2010, and for coach Sean Wendt and teammate Josh Merrick for helping me with a training program. I love the team, and enjoyed being part of something greater than just myself. Racing alongside and representing others as well as yourself takes meaning to the next level. I look forward to keeping relationships strong with the team, and hopefully will still be able to meet up for a workout here and there with the group. After struggling with the decision for a few months, I had to detach the emotional & relational side of the decision from the practical. I chose not to be a member for 2011 for a few main reasons: I could not commit to the swim practices anymore, as I would drive an average of 80 minutes per day round trip to join the team swims in Arvada. Due to the gas money spent, the need for 2-3 workouts a day, and opportunities for side jobs in Denver & Littleton, the inefficiency simply didn't make sense nor work out with my daily schedule and need to make money. I need the valuable time for training and working. Secondly, I have had groups & individuals offer to sponsor races. This sport is very expensive and difficult to make money in as a new pro, and sponsorship opportunities allow athletes to continue to race. It is important to be able to solicit and accept valuable sponsorships. To make it as a pro triathlete, part of it is being business-minded and finding sponsors to help make it possible. In the past 2 months, I have written over 60 letters and emails, and made numerous phone calls, in attempt to secure sponsorships of all kinds: financial (for race entry fees & travel), bike company, shoe company, gear companies, etc. I also sold my Toyota Tacoma, which was necessary to fund the season. The cubicle world will always be there, but I won't always be able to compete as a pro athlete. I am currently seeking sponsors for the 2011 season, and will gladly display company logos on my race uniform, website, and fulfill any other request one may have.

In 2011, I am looking to grow my coaching services and add athletes. I have taken on a few individual athletes recently, and have started using TrainingPeaks.com training software for my athletes. I will also be one of several coaches for a local women's triathlon club called CWW. I have learned a ton about the coaching side of the sport, and look forward to helping athletes succeed. In January of 2011, I will become a USAT level 1 certified coach as well.

This past year my life was filled with a lot of distractions. I moved from California to Colorado, and to 3 different houses here in Denver. I was busy working home remodel jobs and other work, adjusting to life here in Denver, and struggled with a true plan of action with triathlon. I lacked a bit of direction. I have decided to dedicate one year to nearly full-time training. The phrase 'Go Big or Go Home' is a good one, and that's what I am doing. This pursuit is multi-dimensional, and will be focused on all aspects of the sport: coaching, training, racing, nutrition, sleep, recovery, strength training, etc.

I will be working with coach Melissa Mantak for the 2011 season, who is the best triathlon coach in the sport, in my opinion. I am very excited to work with her. Melissa is a renown coach, a USAT level 3 triathlon coach, and a USA Cycling level 1 coach, and is local. She just earned the 2011 USA Triathlon Coach of the Year award, which for those who don't know, is a huge accomplishment. Melissa is also the head coach for a women's club team and head coach for Tri For The Cure. She coaches top pros Matt Charbot, currently ranked #1 in the US on the ITU ponts list and 12th in the world, I believe, and Jillian Petersen, who I believe is ranked 4th in the US for women. I got connected to Melissa and will be coaching alongside her with the CWW women's club team, and hopefully helping out with a few races and other local events. The partnership made perfect sense and was a great fit. After talking with her, I knew our goals aligned, and I knew she was the one who could help me progress, simply because she wants to see me succeed nearly as much as I do. She is local, a coach I am a firm believer in, and has helped me find opportunities for part-time coaching work. In my week with Melissa, I've had a one on one swim technique analysis session, which was the first time in my life I'd had a true swim instruction/technique session from a coach. I am starting a strength program this week with her as well. I will be swimming 6 days a week, and running and cycling 5-6 days as well, a necessary increase from my marginal 3-4 run sessions and 3 bike sessions per week this past year. I've told Melissa, I have one shot here. Let's give it a chance. I am a person who responds best to structure and accountability, and she is exactly the person I need for this. I have 2 years of experience now, and my body has adapted well and is ready to handle the volume. When I say that I can promise big things for 2011, I do not mean to boast, but say it in all seriousness, because I'm confident the results will come. The plan will consist of at least 2 and usually 3 workouts per day, a strength program, proper nutrition, and learning to get my body ready to race. I am 100% confident in the plan.

I have decided not to race ITU draft-legal triathlons in 2011, other than possibly US Elite Nationals and maybe one other US race. Most ITU races cost 2 to 3 times the price to travel to, and unless you're a front pack swimmer, it is nearly impossible to earn prize money. My swim is not to the ITU front-pack level yet, so it doesn't make sense. My cycling has advanced a lot this year, and I'm suited best for non-drafting races where I can use my bike strength to my advantage. Why do so many athletes race ITU? 1 word: Olympics. It's the one and only route to the Olympics. It's a long shot for many, but it's still a shot. The other reason is that USA Triathlon funds about 24 athletes for ITU racing, since it is really an Olympic development program. In 2011, my focus will be non-drafting Olympic distance race. WTC, who owns Ironman, recently announced the 5150 race series, which I'm very excited about. Visit www.5150.com for more info. This will help athletes like me have more opportunities to succeed in non-draft short course racing. I also plan on debuting in 1 or 2 Ironman 70.3 races this next season, and test my body in long course racing. I can't tell you how excited about this next season I am. I am focused, motivated, and having fun. Thanks for the support.
Ryan

USAT National Championships

2010-09-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

My teammate Dan Mackenzie and I traveled to Tuscaloosa, AL this weekend for the USAT Pro/Elite National Championship, along with 42 other pro men. This race was also an ITU Pan Am cup race, so was draft-legal on road bikes as opposed to time trial non-drafting format, and included some guys from Australia, Canada, Ireland, and Barbados. I’d never raced in a such a strong field before, as there were over 15 guys who race at the World Cup level, including a group of Olympians and all the US National team guys, whose ITU races & travel expenses are covered by USAT. Some also live at the Olympic training centers for free. I was looking around the room at the pro meeting 2 days prior to the race, and it was a bit overwhelming. It’s important to be confident, but at the same time you know where you stand as a swimmer, starting swim training at age 25 instead of having years in the sport. I knew who almost everyone in the room was, from watching them on TV or reading about them online. It was stacked to say the least. A few big names were winner Brenden Sexton of Austraila, Olympians Jarrod Shoemaker, Matt Reed, and Greg Bennett, US National Champ Matt Charbot. It basically included all the top US ITU athletes, minus Olympian Hunter Kemper who was injured. Many of these guys have been racing triathlon for 10-15 years.

Going into the race I thought it would be all about the swim for me, like all ITU races are... but by the end of the day I realized for the first time, it wasn’t really about the swim do to the circumstances. It turned out, if I would have swam 20 seconds faster, or slower for that matter, it really wouldn’t have mattered. I knew a huge main pack would form, and then the rest of us. We all knew the heat and humidity would affect the day, as it was in the mid 90s by our 2:15pm start time, and river water temps were about 85. As expected, a huge swim pack of about 20 of the 44 guys stayed together and grouped up on the bike. A chase pack formed a bit back, and then a string of a bunch of guys all coming out the water somewhat alone. That included me. Looking around, there was no group within reach in front of me to attempt to go solo on the bike and bridge up to, but also no one right behind me to work with. So, I caught up to one guy, rode with him for a lap before he was dropped, and then waited until Sean (recently 8^th in the World Duathlon Championships) and Darin Shearer bridged up to me. The 3 of us worked together for the rest of the 8 lap bike portion, wishing we had a group of 20 to pull us along as opposed to only 3. But, this is part of draft-legal racing with the swim being our weakness, and the tough part about racing ITU for us, since coming out of the water 30 or 45 seconds back of a large pack. We kept moving up on athletes who got dropped from the packs ahead. Some joined us, and some were dropped and eventually lapped out of the race (ITU rule). I felt strong on the bike, and went through both large water bottles early, as it was very hot. I started cramping late into the bike, and took 3 salt tablets immediately, which I think helped. The cramps stayed until about 10 min into the run, and then disappeared. I debated trying to break away after I had gapped my group on the top of the hill, but realized riding 2 laps solo would be very tough if I tried, and I’d likely get pulled back in by the group

The run turned into another sufferfest, just like Chicago. With temps around 95 and sun beating down, people were dropping, including myself and Jefferson, who is a 29 min 10k runner who ran for Nike/Oregon Track Club. It was a struggle to keep shuffling, and ice cup after ice cup being poured down the jersey, I made it to the line in 28^th place. It was ugly, and embarrassing, but I knew it was the right thing, to keep on gutting it out. By the end of the day, 16 out of the 44 athletes didn’t finish, they either were lapped out on the bike, or succumbed to the heat.

Hot, dizzy, and discouraged, I took a while just sit down in the athlete’s lounge and do nothing. Just sit. It was cool to be a part of the race, but anytime you run 11 min. slower than usual, no matter the reason, discouragement is there. Running well in heat is always possible, but much more difficult when you’ve been red-lining it in the swim and on the bike for 80 minutes leading into it.

The week before the race, I almost decided not to go after my teammate Jordan switched to race the non-drafting format Westchester Tri in New York, which had prize money too but a legitimate shot at it, with most of the top US guys at Nationals and for us being better at non-drafting events.

My 2010 season is likely over, unless I race in November. All in all, it was not a great season as far as my results went. However, I earned my pro license in May, learned a ton about racing, and have thoroughly enjoyed getting a chance to pursue my goals. I’ve learned the importance of needing to stay consistent in training, to choose races carefully that play to your strengths and make sense financially. ITU racing is fun, especially with the big names there and TV helicopters overhead like yesterday, but it’s also expensive, difficult to make money, but doesn’t make much sense if swimming is your weakest discipline. I will still keep working the hardest at improving my swim, and may race 1 or 2 draft-legal races next year, but the focus will be on non-drafting and Ironman 70.3’s, which I think will suit me well. At the beginning of the year my goal was to turn pro, and that was it, nothing further. I thought I’d likely stop if I achieved that goal. I’m taking what I learned this year and making necessary changes, which will be big this next year (more to come on that soon). As long as I can cover my costs, have support, am racing for the right reasons, and taking care of my responsibilities, I’d love to keep going. Just like last year, I’ll say it again. One more year. Thanks for your support.

P.S. I am getting my USAT coaching certification in January, and am seeking additional athletes of all levels to coach. Spread the word!

Brad Rides

2010-09-19T22:09:00.000-07:00

My roommate Brad is cycling across the country, beginning next week, to raise money for a great cause. Check out his blog!

http://bradrides.blogspot.com/

Malibu Triathlon race report: A Costly Puncture

2010-09-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

The last 3 races have all been disappointing, but for different reasons -not because I'm out of shape, struggling with confidence, or some other issue...just things you can't control too much (like staff infections, heat exhaustion (although now I realize it was partially my fault in Chicago..nutrition was bad, calorie intake way too little for the afternoon race on no lunch), and now a flat tire.) You live, learn, and try to avoid bad luck.

I flew into Santa Barbara for a day and a half (AKA paradise, I could write another separate entry on why SB is the perfect place for any pro triathlete to train...minus the cost of living) and headed to Malibu with great friends from Multisport Ministries and Riptide teammates Jordan Jones and Josh Merrick.

The swim: The ocean swim wasn't too bad. Waves were smaller than most years, so it was relatively calm. My arms were heavy from the start, but that was fine, as I never blew up and the heaviness never got any worse throughout the race. It was a chilly 58 degrees, but I didn't notice it at all when the gun went off. For once, my goggles didn't fog which was great. I've finally learned the secrets to no-fogging!! Finally! It has to do with simply buying new goggles..frequently, and not racing in the same pair you use at the pool since the anti-fog stuff wears off after a few uses. A little spit can help sometimes, but never rub it around with your fingers, which removes the original anti-fog stuff. I also found some good Barracuda anti-fog drops (which also never worked before in old goggles), but adding these to newer goggles helps too...so basically, get new goggles and only plan on using them for a few races. Then replace them. For the pool, use separate goggles and wash them out with shampoo (baby shampoo and use fog drops right after that). That's the only thing that's worked.

I came out of the swim as the 6th pro I believe, right with my teammate Jordan and about 1:30 back of Olympian Matt Reed, which was a fine position for us both. Josh was about 4 min. back, but as always his bike and run moves him up in a hurry. On the bike, I road side by side with Jordan out of transition, didn't see a huge speed bump, tried to hop it but slammed my disc wheel right on it as I didn't bunny hop far enough! Jordan laughed with me about it post-race, it was loud, and sounded like my bike could have cracked. I felt great on the bike, and both Jordan and I were biking great and moving up in the field, passing all the super-swimmer women like Hayley Piersol & Olympian Julie Ertel within the first mile or two. We caught my friend Chris Berg a bit before the turnaround and were both feeling great. I was having probably my best race to date, sitting in 5th behind an Olympian, the 8th place Ironman Kona finisher Mathias Hecht from Switzerland, Fraser Cartnell of the UK and of team Trek/KSwiss. He was also the Ironman UK Champion and is a multiple time Ironman 70.3 Champ. Jordan was in 4th.

Boom! On my way back along the coast, on the beautiful PCH, AKA the Pacific Coast Hwy for all you non-SoCal lingo speakers, I heard a loud pop, looked down, and saw air spraying out of my disc wheel. My day was done, my tubular was flat, and I found myself sitting on the side of the road with my hands on my head and my thumb up eventually trying to find a ride back. I killed some time by hurling some rocks into the ocean and found that a great way to take out anger, along with screaming very loudly. Athlete after athlete rode by me...I was crushed, and sat on the side of the road for about 25 minutes until the Triathlon Lab van rescued me. From emotional high to devastation, I had thrown my bike down screaming (a few, or perhaps a few too many, words I shouldn't repeat on this blog...words that rarely come from my mouth). I was crushed emotionally, as this would likely have been my best pay day as a pro so far, as top 5 get paid.

I made it back just in time to catch the finish and to see Jordan finish an incredible 2nd place (with a blazing sub 32 min run) to Olympian Matty Reed, and collect his $2500 check. Reed came home with $5000. Josh rounded out the podium with a 5th place finish and also a paycheck after a crazy fast run as well, where he passed a few to grab the final spot. Congrats to my Riptide men for huge results!! I was so pumped to see them do so well.

Things like this happen, and there's not much you can do about it. Just move onto the next race. It's part of racing, and you just have to accept it.

Here's a podium shot I took... wishing I was up there too. Just serves as more motivation, that's all. I'm getting hungry to be up there :)

Thanks to the Multisport Ministries men who helped sponsor the trip, Bethany Nickless for letting me borrow her car for the weekend, and my boys in Santa Barbara who let me stay at their place.

Here's a few pictures of some great things from the weekend.Los Banos Pool: 50m. In the Santa Barbara harbor lot. Awesome. I used to swim there daily at lunch with a group of guys. I miss the pool, and miss those guys. I got a short pre-race Friday workout in with them, it was great to be back.

SB City College Track: Up there with the new Westmont track, the most scenic track in the world, across from the harbor. I miss doing my 400s there.

Westmont College Track: the new track I wish we had when I ran there.

Malibu Beach Inn: View from our Malibu hotel. Thanks so much to Steve Silverstein and Erik Burkholz for sponsoring the stay and race! I was looking for a floor to crash on, and ended up with a pullout couch and a view like this!

Chicago Tri Race Report

2010-09-02T10:20:00.000-07:00

After two recent races that didn't go as well as I had hoped, it's been a bit hard to focus and stay on track this week. The thing about triathlon is, you can't judge an athlete by a single race. Some days things just happen, and the only thing you can do is stay positive and keep after it. Some tell me I am hard on myself, and I do hold myself to high expectations, but I think that's necessary to continue to climb to the top. After coming home from Canada, I had two days in Denver, then packed up the time trial bike and flew to Chicago to race the largest race in the world, with over 10,000 athletes, and visit my cousin Brandyn. The pro race was absolutely stacked, with a few former Olympians, world cup ITU athletes, 6 members of US National teams, the winner of St. Anthony's, and some Ironman 70.3 winners. My goal coming into the race was top 15, after seeing the list. By the end of the bike leg I was in 14th or 15th, and finished 18th on the day, but it turned from a race into an episode of Survivor.
The swim in Lake Michigan was nice. I wore a swimskin for the first time, since it wasn't wetsuit legal, which helped a ton. I learned my lesson at Boulder Peak, being 1 of only 3 pro's not wearing one, and as a weaker swimming compared to these guys, I need the help! They aid you about 30 seconds in a 1500m swim (as tested in the pool a few months ago). I swam well the first 1000m, and was in a great position for me. The last 500m I fought through it, but drifted a bit mentally, as well as literally too far left against the seawall, which made me lose contact and the ability to draft of off my teammate Jordan, and into choppier water as waves were bouncing off the wall. The run out of the lake to transition was almost a half mile I bet, on cement, by far the longest run-out I've done. I passed 4 or 5 people on the bike leg, and entered the run in 15th and feeling strong.
It was about 95 degrees out by 1:30pm when we entered the run, and extremely humid. That's when people started dropping like flies, myself included. My first few steps off the bike didn't feel good already, and unfortunately that never changed. Long story short, if you could get through without heat exhaustion, you'd have a great race. There were about 5 or 7 of us that it hit hard. Cameron Dye went from 1st onto the run, to finish 12th I believe. Olympian Matt Reed ended up 7th. Stephen Hackett ran a 44 minute 10k (or shuffled/walked), and Ethan Brown dropped out in front of me on the run, as I saw him sitting under a tree along the course. People were suffering out there. I was struggling at mile 2 already, just from pushing it hard for the previous hour in the water and on the bike. Running in that heat & humidity isn't usually a problem for me, but I don't test myself much after an all-out swim and bike. I was forced to walk some at about mile 3, my body was shutting down early. I wasn't cramping which was great, so my nutrition has been working, but my head was pounding, and I felt like I was in a furnace, and I was very very weak. At each aid station, I forced myself to drink 4 Gatorades the last 2 miles, or I knew I wouldn't make it across the line. I poured cups of water on my head every mile, but after 10 seconds later my body was screaming for more. I nearly dropped out many times, and debated what was the right thing to do. I ran/walked a 44 minute 10k, 9-10 minutes slower than usual : finish slowly and trash the body, or drop out and come back stronger in training this week. I flew to Chicago, which is a long ways, so knew I needed to finish the race. I stumbled across the line, onto the ground, was hauled to the medical tent on a stretcher chair where they took my vitals. My heart rate and blood pressure was very high, so they made me take an IV in my right arm. I told them I don't need it, since I'm not a huge fan of needles, but they ignored me and said, "yes, you do!" 10 minutes later I was told I should probably go to the hospital, and was asked if I wanted to. I refused of course, knowing I don't have the health insurance for that, and once I got an IV in me I'd be fine. The hospital was not necessary and would be going way too far. I had heat exhaustion, and knew it. Lying there with ice on top of me and the IV in my arm, I didn't really know what to think. I wasn't really mad, but just simply sad. I was having a strong race, and if I could have run my usual 34-35 min 10k run split, that would have put me in 9th or 10th, and 1oth place took home $600. 10th in a race this competitive would have been a great result. Usually I'd be very frustrated, this time I simply was very bummed, probably because I don't really know what I could have done differently to avoid this. I felt hydrated coming into the race. Sometimes there are answers and things you can learn from, other times you simply don't know why it happened and how to prevent it for next time.
I have two more races left for 2010 for sure: Malibu and Pro Nationals in Alabama, and will finish the season strong and with confidence. I have a plan for next season already, a different plan from this year, which I know if I stick to it, I'll reap the rewards. It will take more discipline, training, and planning than ever, but now know what it takes to compete at the top.

Kelowna ITU / Canadian Nationals Race Report & Thoughts on Future Racing

2010-08-27T22:33:00.000-07:00

I travelled to Kelowna, British Columbia last weekend for an ITU Pan American Cup race, which also happened to be the Canadian National Championships. This type of race always draws great competition, and some big names like Simon Whitfield, Olympic gold and silver medalist, and Kyle Jones. I finished 39^th out of 66 competitors, which was a very disappointing finish for me. Race day was cold and rainy, but the swim remained a non-wetsuit swim. Most of the other competitors brought their wetsuits to the start to warm up in. I, however, didn’t. I decided I should still get in a quick warmup, then stood shivering for about 15 minutes before the gun went off. The swim in beautiful Lake Okanogan was a 2 lap swim, 750m each lap. I started hard, as is necessary in ITU racing, but slowly saw the group string out. I had one of my poorest swims in recent history, unfortunately, which put me back in the pack. On the 6 loop bike course, I was able to group up with about 5 guys, and we slowly caught people to form a chase pack of about 15. The loop had a killer steep hill up the hillside, which sent everyone’s heart rates through the roof. The view up there was awesome, overlooking the city and Lake Okanogan. This type of draft-legal racing is so different from non-drafting, with the surging and pack riding as opposed to the steady burn in non-drafting, which suits me better as a better time trialist. On the last bike lap it started pouring on us again, which made it fun, but a bit more dangerous. Going around the penultimate turn of the course, I rode over a steel manhole, which sent my rear wheel sliding. I thought for sure I was going down and my day was done, but somehow I steered out of it, stayed upright, and fought my way back up to the pack. I picked off a few more athletes on the run, and ran steady the whole way through.

Heading into the race I was confident, yet had some unfortunate events leading up to the race. About 10 days prior, I noticed a sore lump on the back of my right knee. I didn’t think much of it, but by about 6 days later, I knew I needed to see a doctor, as it had grown, swelled, and was making it hard to bend my leg without a ton of pain.I'd woke up for about 5 days unable to walk until it loosened up a bit, so I knew it was getting into my muscular system. I could see the redness spidering it’s way and spreading.. I was forced to take some time off that week from workouts, and especially swimming with the open wound once I had it opened. Any time I’d sit or lie down, it would stiffen up and be painful to walk. Before the trip, I knew I needed to get the growth cut open, and hope it would heal enough by race day. My coach Sean, at a team crit loop bike ride, told me I need to open it up ASAP. He told me to soak it, but some baking soda on it to draw it to the surface, and find the biggest needle I could and go at it. Rather having someone else do it, I looked around the house for a razor blade, called my sister, and asked her if she had any iodine, and planned on heading to her house. Although health insurance wouldn’t cover these needs, since I have the cheapest, most catastrophic plan around with terrible benefits, she convinced me to go to her clinic and let a doc do it, since she was off work that day and couldn’t do it herself at the clinic, and he’d cut me a deal. He fit me in between his patients, took care of it fast. With scissors, scalpels, and lots of squeezing, he sent me sweating and gritting my team while he went at it. It didn’t feel good, but helped me a lot. I had a cyst on my leg, which was confirmed to be a staff infection after testing. I had to keep a gauze packed in the hole for a day, which made if fun walking around the airport and sitting next to people on the plane, wondering why there was a white gauze coming out of my leg. The antibiotics are working well, and all the muscle aches and spreading has stopped. Mmmm appetizing. Hopefully I can blame my poor swim on my lack of swimming that week prior.

I had a fun trip with my girlfriend Amy, and teammate Dan and his wife. We drove to Penticton beach where Ironman Canada is, went to a winery, and relaxed. Those were the highlights. I tried my best to stay positive after the race, but was overwhelmed with frustration from the poor race performance and thus justifying the trip, unexpected rental car fees and feeling very deceived, airline bike fees, etc. I had a lot of time to think about the trip, and ITU racing in general. Right now, ITU racing may not make sense for me. My heart is in it, and everyone wants to race Olympic-style racing. The Olympics are everyone’s dream, but right now I simply cannot swim at the level needed to finish at the top in draft-legal racing, despite my improved swim. Swimming 25,000m a week is a lot, but not enough for me. If I commit to ITU racing, I will be swimming 40-50,000m a week this winter. I also cannot fully take advantage of my bike fitness without a time trial format, as ITU races are draft-legal. It’s also very expensive to race ITU races, since most are in Canada and Central and South America. It’s hard to win prize money as well, since they pay top 10 usually and without coming out with the lead swim pack, it’s almost impossible. Next season, I’ll likely focus on domestic Olympic non-draft racing, and possible a few Ironman 70.3 races. Racing the biggest races in the world like Chicago, still allow me to race the best in the world and continue chasing my goal of being competitive with those at the top, yet make it more doable as pros can usually get free home-stays at these races, where no rental car or hotel is needed. That being said… I am currently seeking sponsors for 2011. I have a ‘sponsorship guide’ I’ve created with all the info; contact if you, your company, or anyone you know may be interested. Spread the word! With two days back at home, I’m now off to Chicago for the biggest race in the world. Pro’s go off at noon. I hear it’s a cool environment, with 11,000 people cheering along the streets. Should be fun. Thanks for all your support!

-RB

Racing Weight....shhhhh

2010-08-27T22:24:00.001-07:00

I ordered the book Racing Weight by Matt Fitzgerald recently. Weight is an issue that many athletes refuse to discuss. They’re afraid of leading someone down the dark path of obsession, which is a valid concern, which could ultimately lead to an eating disorder, which we never want to see. However, (hopefully) most of us athletes are smart enough to take a common sense approach to it, understand the importance of maintaining nutrition, the right mental mindset, and know what a healthy weight is.
I asked two-time defending Ironman world champion Craig Alexander what his thoughts on racing weight were. “Do you pay attention to it? How does being thinner help your running? Does it hurt your swimming? If I know it helps my running, can I know if it will hurt my swimming?” This is the struggle with the balance of triathlon. Everyone has different thoughts on it, partially because I believe everyone’s bodies are very different. Some need the extra weight and strength, while to others it feels like they’re racing with ankle weights on. Alexander was answering my questions in front of a large audience, and as I thought he would, he kind of avoided the issue with a few other comments, and then said our bodies tend to adjust to a good weight naturally. He may think that, but I think that’s not the case with everyone. I know it’s not. I think that’s the generic answer that many top athletes have, rightfully so. Heck, if the world champion says skinny is better, I guarantee it would cause many to panic and start checking the scales every morning. The last thing he wants is to cause people to become insecure and obsess to the point where it’s unhealthy. Peter Reid of Canada, also a former Ironman world champion, was more open about his thoughts on weight, however. He quoted that he used to go to bed so hungry it would almost make him sick. He was scared to take an extra bite. He obsessed with his weight, since he knew he needed to stay thin to compete at the top. Reid, however, may have taken it a little too far, but maybe not. After all, he was the best in the world.
My teammates often discuss this issue with me. Most of them don’t agree with me on the “skinny is better” theory. I understand this. For one, they’ve raced very well at their current weight. Some feel the need to gain a few pounds, to stay strong enough for the swim especially. We’ve compared the Body Mass Index (BMI) of other top pros, and often many have a higher BMI than myself. As I said, I believe everyone is unique. There is clearly a point where too thin will hurt you, and make you weak. Personally, I’m still trying to figure out my triathlon race weight. I know what my ideal running weight is: 150 lbs. I’m 6’3”, and I know that is very thin. But, all I have to go by is experience. I tried very hard as a college runner. I worked hard! However, I tried to race 8k cross country at 165 lbs for 2 years. I was a marginal 28 minute 8k runner. Nothing special at all. After working in Missouri for a summer, sweating all day every day in 100+ degree heat, unknowingly I lost about 13 lbs. I returned to Colorado, and felt incredible running. I couldn’t figure out why. I hopped on the scale for the first time in forever, and realized how much my weight had changed. That next season, I committed to staying at 152 lbs or so. I cut out all cheeses and salad dressings from my diet, replaced this with fruit on salads, and drank more water and less juice/Gatorade for about 8 months. I also cut my calorie intake a fair amount, and cut out late-night binge snacking. My problem with Craig Alexander’s theory, is that WE put the food in our mounts. If our bodies adjust naturally to the correct weight, what does that say about how much we eat? If I eat well versus terribly, a lot versus a little, clearly that will affect my weight. By body will adjust based on what I put in it. It’s a simple equation. Calories taken in = calories expended = no weight gain nor loss.
On the same exact training, I ran over 2 minutes faster in the 8k my senior year. The ONLY thing I have to account for it is weight loss. Because of my experience, I can’t help but subscribe to the ‘lighter is better’ theory, for runners. Fitzgerald, in Racing Weight, acknowledges that in running, athletes will benefit more from staying thin than in other sports, but that it also is beneficial in rowing, swimming, and cycling. I don’t necessarily agree with him, especially in swimming.
When I get very thin, I feel weak. Part of what I left out, was that my senior year of college, my 400m and 800m track times suffered from, I believe, from being too thin for middle distance running. It helps in long distance, but losing strength hurts speed. This brings me back to triathlon. Which is better? A lighter, a faster runner? Or a bigger, stronger swimmer? Maybe it’s possible to become faster in the water while thinner as well? And what about cycling? It’s a power-to-weight ratio here too. Being thin helps you climb, but being bigger helps you sprint. What about the time trial? Andy Schlek in the Tour de France took 2nd overall. He looks disgustingly thin. He can climb, but he can’t sprint. Isn’t he too thin? I sure wouldn’t recommend anyone getting to the point he’s at…but maybe I’m wrong.
There are always outliers and those who throw a wrench in any theory. The Chris Solinsky argument is definitely one that throws a wrench in mine. Chris recently set the American 10k record, and became the first sub 27-minute runner in US history. Solinsky is clearly the heaviest man in his races. He races on strength, at I believe 165 lbs, and he’s well shorter than I. How he can run that fast in his body, I don’t know. I guess this shows how unique we all our. There may not be any right answer for everyone, and this discussion should be approached on a case by case basis.

I wish I had all the answers for triathletes, but I don’t. I do have an answer for me if I was only a runner, but I'm not. I may try to drop weight, and I may try to gain it. I don’t know yet. I may factor in more weight training and try to maintain where I’m at now, around 160 lbs. Experimenting can be risky, but seems to be the only way of finding out, for me at least. The one thing I know, is that I am stable enough to discuss this, and even experiment with this to a small degree. Some are not. They will obsess too much, and they will take it too far and compromise health and nutrition, which is the dumbest thing they could do as athletes. Staying healthy is the most important aspect of endurance sports success, but there are still a few places to go without those boundaries. The discussion continues…

Product Review time! Introducing TRISLIDE & TRISWIM

2010-07-22T15:42:00.001-07:00

I was asked to do a product review of SBR Sports, Inc. products TRISLIDE and TRISWIM from Tim Aukshunas. Tim was a friend of mine from Santa Barbara who ran for UCSB while I ran for the neighboring college Westmont across town. He now continues to run (marathons) and works for SBR Sports, Inc.
I had seen TRISLIDE at running stores and at tons of races, as triathletes use the anti-chafing spray on race day to avoid rubbing and blisters, as well as to simply make their skin slippery so the wetsuit slides right off. I usually don't mind a bit of chafing, since I'm out on the course for under 2 hours usually, but if you're doing an Ironman I can see how you'd definitely want to avoid chafing altogether. However, I do often race back to back weeks, and my first few races of 2010 left me with a cut on the right side of my neck from chafing caused by my wetsuit, since I always breath to the right in open water races. It's not a big deal to me, and heals quickly, but does get annoying if it's not healed by the next race. I sprayed TRISLIDE all over my neck the next race, and literally had zero chafing! Sweet.
I first heard about TRISLIDE a year ago from one of the athletes I coach, Sean Harwin. He loves the stuff, and uses it under his wetsuit as well as on his heels to prevent chaffing from his shoes. Triathletes usually don't (and should never!!!) wear socks in races, and it's a waste of valuable time in transition 1, and without socks can come chafing on the feet from both cycling and running shoes. TRISLIDE is great for that as well on the feet. I first tried out TRISLIDE at the Boulder Reservoir Stroke & Stride race a month ago, at a Thursday night swim & run event we do just for training, often as our 2nd or 3rd workout for the day which is always fun and painful. Previously, I'd used Sport Shield and Body Glide. Body Glide may be the most popular product right now, and it comes in a deodorant type stick. For me, it's just not slippery enough, plain and simple, and that's my #1 concern, although most triathletes probably care more about the chafing issue. It may do the job with chafing, but it's just not slick enough to help the wetsuit slide right off your skin in transition. So..why not just use 1 product that does both! This is my first season racing as a professional triathlete, and I've definitely learned the importance of fast transitions. When wetsuits stick to your body and you just can't get it all the way off your heel or foot quickly, that's no good at all. I've found Sport Shield to be the slipperiest of the 3 products I've used and is great for this also. It comes in a roll-on stick. TRISLIDE is very close to Sport Shield in the 'slippery-factor', but not quite as slick. It's way more slippery than Body Glide, and I haven't become a big fan of Body Glide, and always wonder why people use it over other products. The spray can TRISLIDE comes in is super convenient and easier to apply than the other two. I often find the Sport Shield leaking in my bag, and somehow it always gets on my goggles leaving a filmy residue. TRISLIDE also can't melt, like Body Glide can, and does. There's no goey mess to deal with.. I learned this at the CapTex Tri in Austin, TX. My cell phone melted in my race bag it was so hot, and the TRISLIDE was nice in the spray can. Body Glide would have been a nice mess all over the place.
Another nice use of TRISLIDE, I've found, is it helps get your skin slick for pre-race self massage. I always grease up my legs prior to putting on the wetsuit, and do a quick 3 minute self massage of my legs to get the blood flowing. You can't really do this with Body Glide, and Sport Stick is nice, although actually is a bit too slippery in this case to dig out the muscles just a bit. Again, the ability to spray on TRISLIDE is nice here. It also makes it very easy to get the wetsuit to slide ALL THE WAY ON. Getting the arms and shoulders of the wetsuit in the right spot is crucial, because if you don't you'll feel extra drag and tension from it while racing, and who wants more resistance in the swim from improper wetsuit fitting..

TRISWIM shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and lotion are other products I tested. My elite triathlon team swims at the YMCA daily throughout the week, with free shampoo/conditioner in the showers, which is almost always my #1 priority: cost. As a guy who probably should spend more time doing my hair (now that I have a girlfriend), I really don't care too much about what shampoo I use to be completely honest. Although I will say (and my girlfriend will too, as she points it out), my skin gets very chalky and white when I use the stuff at the YMCA. Good thing they have free lotion there too :). However, honestly the TRISWIM lotion keeps it moisturized a lot longer than the cheap free stuff at the Y. The TRISWIM shampoo and body wash definitely gets the chlorine out of hair better, leaving it not near as stringy feeling, as well as moisturizes the skin more. I really like the stuff, and you can definitely tell the difference from the cheap stuff at the YMCA. Go check it out at local running and triathlon shops all over, as well as www.sbrsportsinc.com. It's a great company that supports the triathlon community, and supports the Challenged Athletes Foundation as well!
-Ryan

Capital of Texas Triathlon: race recap

2010-06-01T21:02:00.000-07:00

I have an hour to kill at the Austin airport before my flight, so I figure I’ll write a race recap to kill some time. A few months ago I decided to sign up for the CapTexTri in Austin, TX and booked a flight as I had a free ticket on Frontier through reward miles. The race crept up on me fast. I finished 4^th overall and was the 1st amateur to cross the line, so I hopefully should be able to earn my pro license as it was one of the few qualifier races around the nation where the top 3 in the amateur field can qualify.

The goals of the day were to earn my pro license and to avoid muscle cramping on the run. A year ago I thought this would never be possible, but I’ve worked very hard for over a year and a half for this and slowly I’ve realized it’s well within reach if I keep chasing it.

The day before the race, when I checked in I realized I had been put in the wrong wave, with the 25-29 year olds starting at 8:30 instead of the open invitational division at 7am. I went back to the race expo and luckily I got it changed with ease. While I checked in, the race director asked me if I’d like to be interviewed on Slowtwitch.com by Tim Carlson. Slowtwitch is the #1 triathlon website in the country. It’s huge. ESPN.com is to all sports as Slowtwitch is to triathlon. It was pretty random and of course unexpected, but I said yes and thought being on Slowtwitch would be pretty neat. While in my cubicle last year during work I would listen to triathlon podcasts, CompetiorRadio.com shows, and visit Slowtwich daily...while working hard of course. There’s only a few new stories on the site each week, but I’d always read the articles.

I thought to myself, ‘now I've gotta to win this thing, don’t I? I don’t want to look like a fool, haha.’ Plus, they probably won’t write the article unless I win. I found myself daydreaming a bit and envisioned a victory and a front page headline on Slowtwitch with a big finish line photo, in addition to the pro license, and a ton of joy. How cool would that be…Well, the victory didn’t happen but that’s ok. Hopefully some day, right?. I’m not sure if the article will come out or not. From a reporter’s view, there’s not much of a reason to write the article if I didn’t win the race, really. 4th place is 4th, not 1st! I was told the article wouldn’t be with the main results, but would come out later in the week in a special feature section. We shall see. Back to the race..

I didn’t really know who was in the race, and found out 3 pros (James Bales, Nathan White, and Nicholas Sterghos- Bales & Sterghos recently raced my teammate Jordan at the Ixtapa, Mexico ITU race last week, & White was supposed to as well but missed a flight) had signed up, along with a few good locals. I thought winning was a good possibility but of course would be a challenge. I was going to give it a shot.

The swim was very long, which I knew, and the race director today announced the swim course was 350m long due to a release of water into the lake and movement of the buoys. No wonder I swam 24 minutes! The leader out of the water was a young gun at age 20 with the name Yoho on his back. I had never heard of him, but saw in a hurry he was a stellar swimmer! He usually swims an 18:30, and came out in the mid 22’s. I believe he swims in college, and sure was impressive! He told me he too came to try to earn his pro license. Yoho ended up 5^th with a great finish.

I swam with the lead pack and tried to stay relaxed. Unfortunately I never really felt well at all nor found my rhythm. The race was in Lake Austin (which is really the Colorado River), which was mostly smooth and obstacle free other than a few bridge posts, but I ran my arm and leg into a huge sharp rock about halfway through the swim, which I didn’t see until the last second when the damage was already done. It through off my focus a bit, but things like that are part of racing. My friend Beaux from Austin actually told me about rocks out there the day before. I’m sure I got unlucky as I was swimming a bit left, and didn’t hear about anyone else hitting it, though I’m sure with 3000 people in the two races, several others did as well. I was feeling it in my arm a bit, but tried to stay focused on just getting to shore and ignoring the distraction.

I was out of the water in about 10^th, in pretty poor position and way further back than I expected to be.

The bike course consisted of 4 loops through downtown, with some up hills and downs, 6.2 miles each loop. I’ve rarely felt as poorly physically as I did in those first 2 loops for some reason. My legs were screaming, I couldn’t hammer at all, I was sweating like crazy; just plain struggling physically and thinking to myself, I have come a long ways and this is going to be a very long day. Finally by the 3^rd loop my legs started to come alive and I tried to change my mindset and regain focus and positive thinking. I don’t believe anyone passed me on the bike, but I didn’t think I had passed anyone either. By the 3^rd loop the age group athletes were out on the course, and I had no idea which lap anyone I passed was on or what place I was in. It was constant weaving around people, though passing people got me motivated to push harder…even if they were elderly folks J. I tried to use it as motivation and not frustration. I took 4 salt tablets, a PowerGel, downed a bunch of my salty drink mix in hopes that may help some. On the laps, I checked my clock splits and knew I had outsplit my first 2 laps by about a minute and a half on my 2^nd two laps, so I definitely was feeling better by the end of the bike. In transition, I somehow slammed my bike into the ground (twice) while running it to the rack. I was cringing thinking about my race wheels hitting the ground like that! Not good at all. The run into transition was on a long, hard and rocky dirt field. I guess I need to practice running with my bike more J.

The run course was 6.8 miles, not 10k, according to someone I talked to who raced with their GPS, also long like the swim (and thus the winning time was 2:03 where it would have been about 1:56 or so). I ran steady, started out conservative with the heat, picked off a few people the first loop, and then caught up to the stud swimmer Yoho and decided to sit on his shoulder for the last 2 miles, exactly like I had done with Chris Berg at Malibu last year. I passed him a few times, thought about taking off to try to catch Sterghos who was about 25 seconds ahead, but was fearful of muscle cramps since it was very hot (about 95 degrees) by then and no shade on the run. So, I decided to tuck back on his shoulder and just sit there. Honestly, I simply didn’t care enough and felt too terrible on the day to really go for it, though truthfully my legs had it in me. I knew there were a few pros in the race and realized I actually was still up near the front, and probably the top amateur still. I got complacent and told myself I felt too terrible early on in the race, and just wanted to outkick this young gun, which I knew I would easily do if I didn’t cramp up. Though kinda embarrassing and not wanting to be the guy sprinting the last 50 meters that everyone sees and says “wow he had way too much left in the tank”, I waited til 75m til the finish, then went on by to get him by 6 seconds. I was very, very glad to be done with that race!

That’s one thing about triathlon, your training often takes you through it, even if you’re not feeling the best. I was hoping to have a bit of a better race truthfully, but am pleased I have the opportunity to step up and race at the professional level in the future.

A special thank you needs to go to Erik Pace Birkholz who I met in California and has supported me and believed in me since day one, and for financially sponsoring me and this race trip. Also thanks to Clair & Alfred Mayo for letting me hang out and crash at their house overnight. Finishing as the top amateur on a day like that is encouraging to me and shows the level I can compete at when things go well, and I am pleased I made the trip. I plan on applying for my pro license soon, and focusing now on getting my run strength back for Pro Nationals in September and hopefully a few other draft-legal and non-drafting races, so I’ll likely switch my schedule around some the rest of the season assuming all goes according to plan.

A few highlights of the weekend were being able to meet up with one of my best friends from Santa Barbara, Bethany Nickless. She coaches track now at UCSB and I was able to watch part of the NCAA Regional track meet on Friday at UT with her. Also, I got to know Beaux Benson well, a friend from Multisport Ministries who I’d only talked to on the internet prior. Beaux was in a horrible cycling accident and comatose for weeks last year. He had a 10% chance of coming out of the coma. We prayed for him daily, God spared his life, and today he has recovered fully and has an amazing story of how God is far from being done with him yet. Things like this are the most important things of life. They put things in perspective, and confirm that these types of relationships are what life is truly about and what is most important, not personal glory, race results, or selfish pursuits.

Thanks for reading & for all your support.

-RB

Click Here for a local newspaper recap of the race. Here's a few photos from a news website before the race:

Capital of Texas Triathlon
May 31, 2010

(Jay Janner AMERICAN-STATESMAN)

Ryan Borger of Denver pauses for the National Anthem.

Littlefoot Triathlon race recap

2010-05-29T21:01:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago our team, or should I say mostly race director Amy Dannwolf, our female pro on the team, put on the Littlefoot Triathlon at Bear Creek park. She did an awesome job and it people had a ton of fun at the race. It was a sprint distance race with a small pro prize purse, so it brought about 15 Colorado pros. It’s crazy that a small 200 person race will bring quality athletes like this. Only near Boulder I suppose, would this happen. Our elite race took place after the age group race, which was nice as it was a bit chilly out still and the water temp was 52 degrees! It had snowed earlier in the week, and double swim caps were necessary for sure. One age group athlete raced in just board shorts, and on my warm-up bike spin I found him standing and shaking in the grass along side the course, staring at the ground… hypothermia. That’s one gutsy dude. It reminded me of my first triathlon. In 2000, my brother and I signed up for a sprint race in Cheyenne Mountain and raced in our swim team speedos in 50 degree water. That’s the only race I’ve beaten my brother in, only because he literally froze and didn’t finish…and my sister’s stellar Performance mountain bike that I rode came through for me.

My father helped us out as the motorcycle driver carrying the USAT referee on the back, so it was cool to give my dad some thumbs up’s while racing and riding next to him, although he said he didn’t see me at all during the race. He was probably too focused on the road or didn’t recognize me in the aero helmet and racing topless without a tri jersey. Our team ITU uniforms come in a few weeks, so I had to sport my trademark old school style one last time. Mostly though, I have a very hard time breathing on the run in tight tri tops, and find it much more comfortable.

I finished 5^th out of about 12 or 15 pros, and a total of 20 in our elite wave, and was pleased with the result. On the swim, Branden Rakita, a very good Xterra pro and ex-Riptide team member led out of the water by about 15 seconds, while a group of 5 of us came out all together close behind, including teammates Matt Balzer, Jordan Jones, and Dan Mackenzie. Forgoing my swim warm-up after swimming about 10 seconds out into the lake, I assumed it best to stay warm until the gun goes off. The bike was steady and I stayed in about 4^th or 5^th place the whole ride, trading places often with Matt Balzer and James Hadley, a pro from Great Britain who trains in Boulder, until Matt pulled away from us a bit on the second loop.

With my recent calf injury, my run is where I was worried most. I’ve never been more confident in my swim than my run, ever. I am a stronger swimmer than in the past, and my run volume has been pretty low lately unfortunately. I got through it with no cramps and little pain, passed James Hadley, and got passed by my coach for the past 2 seasons & now teammate Josh Merrick, who came from behind out of the water to claim 3^rd place with his blazing run. Jordan continued his great season and took 1^st, Rakita 2^nd, Josh 3^rd, Joe McDaniel 4^th, myself 5^th, and Dan & James Hadley just behind in 5^th and 6^th.

It was a decent day at the race. One surprise for me was to see some very stellar Ironman athletes further back. Brad Seng of team Sport Beans and Justin Daerr, who was 3^rd at Challenge Wanaka Iron distance race, and who’s PR is about 8:45, were behind our front group. I had assumed with a base volume like those guys do in training, they’d be able to crush a sprint race. However, it shows how different these types of racing really are.

It was fun having my parents, my girlfriend Amy, and my sister and my lovely little niece and nephew there cheering me on, as they don’t get to see me race much.

Last weekend at the Columbia Triathlon in Maryland, my teammate Dan Mackenzie had a great race to take 3^rd place behind young gun uber-cyclist Andrew Yoder and Tim O’Donnell, the reigning ITU long course world champion. Dan brought home $2500 and James Hadley also won $500 that day, so I know in the future I can be in the money range as I finished just ahead of the two at Littlefoot, though I must acknowledge Dan had a better race at Columbia than Littlefoot for sure and is just starting to break through this year. Congrats to Dan for a huge race and the paycheck!

Maintaining Balance & Positive Thinking

2010-04-04T18:33:00.001-07:00

In any pursuit toward an end goal, I think it'd be a heck of a lot easier to focus and motivate oneself if there was a certain and direct positive relationship between time spent/effort and end goal success. If 20 hours of training equaled an average Olympic distance race time of 2:05, and 30 hours equaled a 1:58, etc.. it would favor those most disciplined, which would be pretty nice in a way. If I was told training 60 hours a week would get me to the top, of course I'd put in the 60 hours. Not even a question. If this was the case, however, it also could make life more stressful and frustrating when things got in the way of those efforts or hours put forward toward the effort, like injuries, work, family, etc. since you'd know exactly what you're missing out on.
Triathlon is a sport where a lot is still unknown. I've talked to several people about this last week, including my teammates. When I trained with '05 Ironman champ Faris Al Sultan from Germany before his race in Kona last October, I remember cooling down after a track workout talking about this. Faris, one of the best in the world and one who has been in the sport since his youth, believes we still don't really know the best way to train. Everyone tries things, puts in the hours, but we often don't know if we'd race better with more training or less. We simply train, go along with our best guesses, and race. I think that is something just to accept, to experiment with on an individual basis, use a ton of common sense (& some research) and see if we can narrow anything down and find out how our bodies respond to different types of training.

I have made it a goal to stay positive, and think about these things at times like the past few months when things have gotten in the way of my training, especially how training less may actually help us perform better. Last summer I was pretty overtrained and didn't feel strong on a single training run the last 3 months of the season. I would push through up to 18 miles on Sundays in the hills of Santa Barbara, struggling much of the way. So, with my run volume forced to be down the past 3-4 months due to injuries and sickness, I'm trying to stay confident that some rest is good. I have only been able to run 3 times since Mazatlan due to a calf injury that simply won't go away yet. In the back of my mind, I know my run volume has been pretty poor, and that I do need much more volume in training, but if only negatives creep into our minds, there is nothing positive that can come from it. It hasn't always been easy to stay positive, but it's a goal I have. It's important to turn the negative around and seek out the positive. For example, my swim has gotten stronger due to the running injury. We often dwell on the negative and see past anything positive, which will eventually break our confidence down more and more. Obviously we'd all wish to stay healthy, since many of us have sacrificed a lot to be able to train, and when we aren't able to train as we wish, it becomes stressful since we know how much we've sacrificed. We don't want to perform poorly and hear from the critics. Injuries and sickness are part of life. If we're smart about preventing them, then we've done a good job, and when they come, it's important to simply deal with them, stay positive, and keep on keepin' on in the other things we're still able to do.

Mazatlan Pan Am ITU continental cup : Race Report

2010-03-24T21:12:00.001-07:00

Most importantly it was a good day for my Riptide teammates. Jordan finished 11th overall to earn ITU points, the first time a Riptide athlete has done that in a while. He had a great run. Dan and Matt followed Jordan a little bit further down the pack, also decent performances, yet we all know they have more in them as well. The 3 of them were able to get in the same bike pack, which I just missed by about 20 seconds if I could have swam with more fury. Amy also finished her first ITU race. Cyrus barely missed a bike pack and had to ride solo for a while and unfortunately was lapped out. He'll be back for the next race and will be able to get in a pack.

My first ITU race was a lot of fun, even considering my horrid & painful run leg, which consisted of bad quad cramps forcing me to stop often, trying to shuffle to the finish. I struggled to run a 38:12 10k, so a good 4+ minutes slow. I had to take 3 days off of running after the race, as my legs were still a painful mess, but am now ready to get back at it. That being said, I was able to enjoy an hour long swim to an island and back to our beachfront hotel with Dan, and enjoy the hot tubs.
I learned a lot from the experience, and it was awesome to be part of a big international race. At the day's end, I finished a disappointing 40th place out of 52. It was a stacked field with various Olmpians (Shoemaker, Serrano, Plata), and countries represented included the USA, Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, & Israel.

I knew coming into the race that my fitness was not where I had hoped it to be, due to up and down training due to 2 bouts of sickness, a slight hamstring strain, but mostly other life happenings and distractions, which are all part of life and must be dealt with. I put my doubts aside and focused on giving 110% effort and nothing less, and I knew my swim fitness was still better than it's ever been so had confidence in the swim. For ITU racing, the swim is everything..well kinda. If you can't swim fast, you have no chance in ITU racing since the bike leg is draft legal, and a slow swim will leave you alone and likely to get lapped out of the race on the bike.

Race recap: We lined up on the beach for the 2 lap swim start. It was an awesome environment. A TV helicopter over the water covering the swim. The announcers introduced us one by one as we took our starting spots. There were quite a few locals watching as they held a local race prior to ours, which started at 11:30am. My first 500m of the swim hurt me, as I was not near aggressive enough, and I struggled to get around a few slower swimmers I was trapped behind. I had planned for a crazy start, but I still didn't get out quick enough. I had a ton of trouble trying to get around people, and got my head fully palmed and dunked under by someone, right before getting my leg pulled on, which got me a bit frustrated. It's like slapping people in a washing machine and getting pulled for the first 400m or so. This is racing, and it's important to stay calm and focused. I tried to push the 2nd 750m swim loop harder than the first, struggled with a crazy chest cramp, but made sure I had my eyes on the guys right with me so I had a group to work with on the bike. I exited the water feeling too fresh. Part of it was coming to sea level from altitude, which felt great, and part of it was my swim fitness. I was encouraged to feel fairly fresh out of the water. Yet at the same time, this meant I hadn't left enough in the water.

I sprinted to transition, grabbed my bike, and tried to TT my way up to the large pack, which I just missed by 18-20 seconds. Problem is often in ITU racing, and in this case, this 20 seconds meant a finishing time of 2-3 minutes slower, since that huge bike group biked a 1:01 and our smaller group clocked a 1:03. Again, lessons learned. The swim is what it's all about. I waited for a few miles until I slipped my feet in my shoes, as I knew I needed all the speed I could maintain and to give it my all to try to catch the group. After spending myself quite a bit, I realized the group was gone, and I wouldn't make up the time as I was riding into a crazy headwind as well. The bike course was 6 out and back loops, and we averaged about 7-8 mph slower on the way out compared to the way back to transition, to give you an idea of the wind. I ended up joining up with my friend Henry Hagenbuch (USA, All-American steeplechaser for UCLA) who was just behind me, and we worked together to catch Americans Jimmy Archer, Sean Jefferson (ex-pro miler for the Oregon Track Club), Victor Plata (2004 Olympian), 2 Mexican athletes, and another rider. Our group worked together for the entire bike. Henry and I did a lot of work for our group. Draft-legal racing is a ton of fun as you still have to hammer, but get breaks here and there when on someone's wheel. Still hard, but not the same effort as TT'ing for 100% of the time. I got to use my Spanish a lot and often yelled at the Mexicans to do their share of the work, who were found slouching in the back here and there.
I came off the bike with super-runners Henry and Jefferson, cramped badly about a half mile into the 3 lap 10k, and was forced to hobble a bit. My legs simply wouldn't let me run, so I had no option but to try to rub it out, stop and stretch, and try again. This was the trend on the run. Jimmy Archer and I shared similar experiences, as we passed each other often, and then cramped often. The run course was crazy hot, and I had only taken 2 salt tablets on the bike. They had about 6 aid stations per lap, with bags of water you bite into to break open. Before that race I thought that seemed crazy, but the last lap I took water at every station to pour on myself as I was really overheating.
Although it was not the perfect race, I am happy to finish my first ITU race and excited to take the lessons learned into the next race. I will continue to attempt to figure out my cramping issues, and plan on experimenting more with salt, nutrition and diet, and am planning on getting a Vo2 max test, sweat rate test, and other tests done to see if I can narrow things down a bit more. I've talked to a few people about it and have gotten some great recommendations. I think a big part of my muscle cramping is the need for more runs off the bike, and the need for that muscle memory. I am adding more brick workouts to my training, and am confident that is a great place to start.
Thanks for reading, and thanks for your support.
Ryan

Here are a few pictures from the weekend. Dan's wife Beth took some great race shots, thanks Beth!

Tribute to A Cyclist: Uncle Larry

2010-03-04T21:43:00.000-08:00

Sometimes things wake you up in life, and make you realize what is truly important in life; and how little things we stress about are absolutely not worth stressing about. I've been sick lately, had a hamstring injury, and a few other setbacks. There are days I've been a bit discouraged about this stuff, but when we put things in the right perspective, those things aren't a big deal at all. It is a blessing to have each and every day of life, whether we are sick or healthy, we have life. And we know if we are sick, we will soon get better. These are blessings. Two tragic deaths happened lately, two people who are or were once close to myself and my family. My mom's uncle Larry was killed cycling. He was 77 years old, and had been an avid cyclist all his life. He was hit by a car. He was doing what he loved to do. The image is tough to look at for me. Cycling is something I do 4+ times a week, something that needs caution. Cycling is something I can relate to, such a sad loss. RIP Uncle Larry, who is in heaven. This picture was in the newspaper along with an article.
My best friend Kyle growing up lost his mother a few weeks ago, very unexpectedly. She was like a 2nd mother to me growing up, always shuttling us around to basketball practice, home from school, to the rec center. She was such a generous woman to all. Thank you Barbara for your generosity and hospitality to me growing up. My thoughts and prayers go out to both families. Things like this definitely hit you hard and make you realize, maybe today shouldn't just be about me. We are never guaranteed another day of life. Each day is a gift from God. Cherish it, live it out as fully as possible, and engage with and serve others in the process.

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/02/jenison_bicyclist_77_killed_in.html

Colorado Runners Association article

2010-01-28T10:26:00.000-08:00

Not that it has happened much, but when people mention you in an article, it does a few things in my mind. 1) It motivates me. 2) And it serves, in a perhaps odd way, as accountability to me. Who am I accountable to from an article? Well, maybe it's the readers in my mind, although they may not really care. Either way, little mentions like this help keep me motivated to continue pursuing goals until they're met.
Hopefully articles like this motivate others as well, that is the point, not to talk about me. To get others off the couch for their first run ever or to pursue sport further as I am.

The Colorado Runners Association wrote up a little blurb on their site. It can be found at:

http://www.corun.org/view_artilce.php?article_id=47&from=home

-Ryan

Good read on cycling cadence

2010-01-19T21:39:00.000-08:00

Encouraging article for me as I TT in races around 105 rpm, but I think it's slowing dropping for me. I've recently held the mentality I need to push bigger gears, as Chrissie Wellington has talked about learning to do in recent interviews. It will get your legs strong, whereas high cadence will get your heart rate/aerobic system working more. Both good things, which is why there are times to incorporate both high and low cadence in training. This article praises Lance's high cadence:
http://www.trainright.com/articles.asp?uid=4613&p=4366

The infamous Neil: I really appreciate this guy

2010-01-02T23:03:00.000-08:00

My college roommate and one of my best friends Neil Bezdek has been extremely supportive of my triathlon pursuits. He's encouraged me from day 1 (via phone since he was in NYC and I was in Santa Barbara), and I've tried to do the same for him as he's pursuing pro cycling. Many weekends last season we'd call each other and give a race recap, pep talk; I'd try to pick his brain about cycling training, and we'd keep telling each other to keep on chasing the dream, when not everyone around us did. He's supported me as much as anyone in this..and since he's the smartest person I know, I figure I'd be ok listening to him. Crazy to think both of us are really chasing a similar thing. 4 years ago I would have laughed if someone told me we'd be doing what we are now.
Check out this recent article about Neil on VeloNews, the largest US cycling website there is. This is huge exposure for him. To give you an idea, this article was (& is currently) on the front page for a week, along with about 8 other articles: one about Lance, Schleck.. big stories. Really cool read. Congrats Neil!
http://velonews.competitor.com/2009/12/news/neil-bezdek-has-gone-fro m -bike-messenger-to-a-domestic-pro-in-two-seasons_102134
[Picture: Neil found this beach cruiser he is on in a dumpster, we (kinda) fixed it up in the dorm room, entered Neil in a beach cruiser race where he won a big growler of beer on a piece of crap bike with a wobbly wheel, whose name became Money due to the success & awesome green color. Neil's first of many wins & where his talent was discovered.

Training winter style, snowed today so kept us on the trainers.

Super Foods. Go Get Some!

2009-12-14T20:25:00.000-08:00

It's nearing the holidays so we're all supposed to talk about food, how much we've eaten, how many desserts we've made, but don't you dare talk about how fat we're getting. That's a no no at this time of year. I do like deserts though, but have realized I need to focus on chomping down the good for you stuff, not just the taste good stuff. Only the good things about food. Ok. I last wrote about how my cramping issue will make or break my pro triathlon quest. I've tried everything...legal: salt tablets, electrolyte salt, powders, pills, vitamins, coral calcium-magnesium (I know, it got a lot of hype with a multi-level marketing scheme a few years ago, google the Okinawa people and coral calcium in their diet. Still, I had to try it, I was/am in need of a solution). While reminiscing about my youth, although I didn't watch that many cartoons, Popeye came to mind. .
All I know is that I have not cramped in 2 weeks, had no massages, and have been downing 2 bowls of spinach a day, one right before my swim. Spinach is a high alkaline food, and from my understanding, could help balance out lactic acid levels. It's still trial and error, but I'm going to stick with this for a while, along with my Garden of Life Perfect food green powder, although I have to gag it down at times. Everyone's blood type is different, and some need more alkalines to neutralize acid levels (if I'm wrong, please tell me, I'm still a newer self-experimenting and self-named nutritionist). I know the cramps are from lactic acid buildup, which is why massage helps me, as it clears out lactic acid. Costco is the only way to buy spinach if you're planning on eating it rabbit-style like I now have to. $3.50 gets you a HUGE tub of it, which would cost $20 for that much elsewhere.
I'm pumped for my new discovery. If the cure is this simple, I'll be jumping for joy. It may be not this easy, especially as training volume/intensity increases the next few months, but a good discovery. I have realized that doctors and many experts all have their own opinion, and I've always taken it with a grain of salt. Some know a ton, but I think we know our own bodies better than anyone else often. I've explained my alkaline-acid theory to a few doctors, and they insist I'm still low on salt or magnesium. I don't buy it, as I've had blood tests done when I had my nice health insurance, and my levels were great.

Mix1 also has been helping me a ton. It's a great co. out of Boulder who supports our team. Check out their protein/antioxidant drink, filled with tons of good stuff and perfect for a light snack before a swim or a good recovery drink after. Check it out next time you're at Costco, Whole Foods, King Soopers, etc. Zoey the dog agrees to as you can see in the picture... ok quick story. My 2 year old niece Anna was getting sick, so we put her on the high fiber/antioxidant (tan color bottle) drink for a few days, pumped her full of good stuff, and she was better in a day. Check it out at www.mix1life.com !

Justin's Nut Butter has also been helping keep me energized. Another local company who is very supportive of our team, they make bomb organic peanut butter and almond butter. No goopy oils, all natural, lots of flavor. Just plan good stuff. The squeeze packs are good for long rides too, like a gel, just squeeze it out. mmmmmm. You can pick some up at places such as REI, Whole Foods, King Soopers, Toys R Us or online. They now have chocolate flavors mmm.

In other news, training is ramping up again. I took an easy November, worked a lot on a house remodel with my bro, got in 1-2 workouts a day, but nothing at too high of intensity yet. I did my 1st swim meet this weekend, first one since age 12...and still racing head to head against 15 year olds. I swam the 1650 yd/mile, in a sweet 25 yd pool in Ft. Collins with touch timing and all. Felt like Phelps out there..timing pads, not speed-wise. I swam 19:41, had some goggle issues and was messing with them a lot to get water out, and went a bit too conservative having too much left at the end. For my first race, I now know my fitness and that I can push harder the first half of that. 66 lengths in the pool is a bit long, so I didn't want to blow up half way through it. I am fitter in the water than on land right now as far as endurance goes, which is probably a first. I need to get in the 18:00s in the next few months to be where I want to be. That should be doable I believe. We do these youth meets just for training and a good workout. And to intimidate little kids before the race who are 12 next to us on the blocks, since we know we can't do it after the race since they may beat us. These kids are the fast kids who swim for club teams before the high school season starts. The serious ones!

Train hard. Treat every day as a gift from God. Chase your goals and don't look back.

The End of Season 1: A Look Back

2009-10-30T13:31:00.000-07:00

Wow. It's October again. 1 year ago I remember laying on the floor in Santa Barbara of my bedroom thinking to myself, "I wonder how good I could be if I trained for this sport." So I decided to go for it, for 1 year, & was ridiculously motivated from last October thru about April. I didn't want to go 50%, not even 80% at it. I wanted to give it an honest effort. I probably missed or cut short only 1 or 2 workouts from my training schedule those first 5-6 months. I got fit pretty fast, aerobically at least. As I look back and analyze my first season, getting ready for season #2, there are definitely lessons I've learned. I'll outline a few of them below. Looking back, yes I've come a long ways and have gotten a lot better. I did my first Olympic distance race in about 2:12 I think, and now have a PR of 1:58. Am I pleased with the improvement? Yes, but I have a new mindset and goals. I don't plan on stopping until I'm a pro triathlete..and then I'm sure I won't plan on stopping either. I now know where I stand, and know that goal is well within reach. There's no reason I shouldn't earn the pro card this next season. Before this season I had no idea where I was at, or what this pursuit takes.. Would 1 year be enough? I honestly didn't know. Maybe you can get great at this sport in 1 year, I thought. If I ask myself that now, I'd say it does take more than a year, especially for the cycling muscles to come around. Oh yea, and the swim technique. I think that takes 25 or 30 years. I now know more about my potential, as well as what it will take to get where I want to be. I didn't plan on continuing for over a year necessarily, but deep down I think I knew I would. I'm now in Colorado and in a completely different surrounding than I was in Santa Barbara. My life has changed a ton. There are a lot of unknowns here...I moved and everything is kinda up in the air. The only thing I really know about this new life is I want to keep doing triathlon. I need make some decisions in the future, such as work, should I go to school, should I just train for a year unemployed? I have the Riptide team now to swim with daily and also do a few other weekly workouts with, which is awesome. I was used to biking & running out my front door to the hills, and driving a short way to the pool, instead of being in a real bigger city. There will be a bit more travel time here to get to the training spots, but that's just part of it. There are a lot of benefits to life here, or I wouldn't have moved,, like the team, much cheaper living, altitude (although still getting used to it), and more balance in my life with things like family, a 2 year old and a dog around, friends, etc.

Some lessons learned from season 1:

1. The season is long: It's important to have fun, have variety in training, and find people to train with. Last year I trained alone, every day at lunch and every night after work, either a night trainer ride in my room or a night run in the dark. Until I met up with the guys at the pool for lunch workouts. I was maybe too motivated if that's possible, and when I got to around May, June, and July, I was feeling the effects of the long season and was still only halfway through it. I would read Slowtwitch.com or Triathlete Magazine before bed, which caused me to wake up half the nights thinking about swim technique or training methods. I struggled with sleep a lot for a while, tried some sleeping pills here & there, which I refused to take more than once in a while, and I think my lack of balance in life had something to do with that. I began to stress over sleep, knowing not sleeping would affect training, and thus couldn't sleep even more with my mind upset. All this to say.. the triathlon season is long, and maintaining some balance will help keep me motivated and healthy. There's no reason to think about the sport 24-7, which gets your life way out of balance, and be patient gaining fitness in the the off-season, as it needs different training intensities than mid-season workouts. Fitness will definitely come.

2. Cycling legs don't come overnight: With my running background, and my weak chicken legs I had, I thought I could just hammer bike workouts for a few months and be able to ride fast. I realized consistency and as a family- friend/former pro-cyclist Eddy Hilger told me in an email (I'd hassle him with training questions, such as those on how to get fit/fast on the bike in the off-season, nutrition, etc). He responded, "just keep riding." I wanted a 2 page email with the 'secret workouts', not a 3 line response. But in a sense he's right. It wasn't until about August or September, 10 months after I started real cycling training, where my legs began to feel a bit powerful. I have a ways to go, but am encouraged to have a year of cycling legs under me now. Year 2 is where I expect to really see the benefits.

3. Swimming speed doesn't come overnight: I thought if I just put in the time in the pool, I'd get fast, like running and cycling (eventually). Wrong. Well, and right I guess. This one is hard. I swam a lot, I thought, about 3500m - 5600m per workout, 4 days a week this season. I didn't see my 100m speed get much faster in a year, however, endurance is gained which helps you come out of the water less fatigued. What do I do then, if I don't have the swim speed I want? Keep swimming. And swim more. There's no other options. Lifting weights may help, and I'm starting to lift more. But what I've realized, especially through talking to people, is 1) I really wasn't swimming that much, 2) to get better, you gotta just swim tons! And 3) focus on technique!! That's more important than just putting in the yards. I am bringing my swims up from 4x/week to 6-8 sessions per week this off-season.

4. Cramping: Keep Trying Things: I would likely have my pro card right now if I could have figured out my cramping completely this season. I got 5th at the LA tri in the elite amateur race and needed top 5. Like often, I cramped on the run and ended up getting passed. It's the most frustrating thing, since I want to hammer, but the body doesn't let you. You literally start to hobble and can't keep running normally. I tried salt tablets, green nasty powder drinks, Calcium/Magnesium vitamins, salty drinks, etc.. everything. All but massage, until late August. I went in about 5 times to Kim Freetly in Ventura, who really helped me. My legs were soooo screwed up she said. I had a horribly painful first massage of 'muscle-stripping', was sore the next day, but my legs started to feel much better. I went in 2-3 times before my next race and had NO CRAMPING at Malibu, for the first time in a race! Massage is something I will NEED to do this next season, once a week. As a stingy and currently (semi-)unemployed person, I may need to bite the bullet on this one. It's the only thing that seems to be helping my cramping in races. When I run prior to swimming, I often cramp in the pool. In races on the run, I cramp. My body is different than anyone else's I've realized. I talked to Chris Lieto on the phone one day (2nd place at Ironman this year) about salt loss, etc, and talked to Terenzo and Faris when I trained with them. I've talked to doctors.. and everyone says electrolytes, salt, etc. But I've realized I know my body more than others I think. I know I cramp 15 min into a lake swim in a race, where I'm not sweating yet or losing salt. That's why I think it's purely muscular. I'm not losing salt 15 min into a swim! Anyways...massage hopefully is the answer. Now who wants to be my massage sponsor?!

5. The Pursuit Must be Fun: At the end of my life, how good of a triathlete I will have become will matter sooo sooo much. More than anything else I do in life. Right. Just kidding. Having fun in the pursuit whenever possible is important. Why? Because at the end of it all there are bigger and more important things in life, and if you chase a goal not enjoying it, and living in it selfishly, then it's pretty pointless. There are more important things we'll realize looking back on, like how we lived our lives to help others, etc. There's no need to stress over triathlon goals or achievements. Have fun with it. Pursue the goals, enjoy the journey, know it's not the most important thing in life (though yes it's still important to us, or we wouldn't do it), give it 100% since God's given the opportunity and talent, and use triathlon as an opportunity to meet, serve, and enjoy others.

6. Take More Pain in Races: Mental & physical toughness is the key to being fast. This sport, especially the run, hurts like crazy. There were races where I simply didn't want to hurt enough. I need to work on simply taking the pain, sucking it up, and hurting. It's a race, it's supposed to hurt. I know for a fact if I took more pain in several races this year, I would have run 30+ seconds faster. Period. I did hurt bad in some races, but not every single race. That needs to change. I hurt a ton in training, especially on bike intervals, and need to really get back to hurting and taking more pain on the run. Not that I don't hurt, I just know I can hurt more. A good article I saw on this is at :http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/29/fashion/29FITNESS.html?_r=3&hpw

7. Training: The term training is so broad, but I think there's a ton I've learned about training this year that I need to incorporate into next season.. we'll see if that happens :) I can't pinpoint just one area I need to change. There are many: higher swim volume, more track/speed work on the run (this is huge I think), more sleep, and massage are some. Did I say MASSAGE?!!! Oh yea and swim technique and kick. Oh yea, and 10 other things.. My bike workouts were pretty on target I think, thanks to Josh Merrick who would write up my workouts. Looking back, I did some crazy hard bike interval workouts and brick workouts with hard runs right after the bikes. I trained a ton last year, and was pretty consistent, yet in about July I hit a low point, lacked mental toughness and didn't feel well physically. I may have been a bit over-trained or mentally needing more variety in my life. All these things are things to think about and learn from for this next year. I can tell already with more balance in my life, some of these issues naturally go away.

Last 2 Races of '09: LA & Dallas

2009-10-29T09:34:00.000-07:00

My last 2 races didn't go spectacular. I finished 5th in the amateur elite div. at LA, top 3 was needed for the pro license. I struggled that day all around, which makes me kick myself I couldn't take advantage of a good opportunity. After cramping on the run I was passed and finished 5th. The swim was by far the craziest swim of my life. The waves were HUGE, I thought they might cancel the swim. There was a crazy current too, bringing people near the rock jetty. My friend Ant is an LA lifeguard and was working the race out there in the waves. He said they were pulling people out one after another. It was very hard to see the buoys. After the swim, I was rather tired from what felt like a wrestling match, and was out about 7th or 8th in my division. The bike for me wasn't much better; my legs never got going and it was super windy with my disc wheel which I shouldn't have used. The run was 2 loops basically up this huge hill and back down, twice. I tried to regain my focus I had lost for most of the race, settled in, until cramping with about 1.5 mi to go. I ran a 35 min 10k again. It's important to focus on the good things of the day though. I won a sweet TYR backpack, which was much needed. I also met a guy named Jeff Petersen. He finished 4th and passed me on the run and finished about 20 sec ahead of me, 12 sec from 3rd. Cool guy. He won the Pac Grove race a few weeks earlier where top 3 earned the pro card also. We both weren't going to pay the $25 fee to shuttle back to our cars from Staples Center to Venice beach, so we biked the course back with all out gear on our backs. So my broken Westmont track back will be replaced by a sweet TYR bag with straps! No more aching backs while riding back to the car after races I to ridiculous fees!

I slept a few hours, packed my truck, and drove to Colorado the next day. Two days after arriving I flew to Dallas, where I got to stay with a bunch of friends from Multisport Ministries at the Four Seasons. It was incredible, and was probably the first and last time I'll get to stay in a hotel like that. That race was rough. I started cramping in the water, got through the freezing rainy bike, and settled in on the run for another 35 min 10k again, still sub-par. My buddy Derek Yorek, who raced the pros- which included Matt Reed and Greg Bennett, was unable to finish the bike as he froze up. It was a great trip though besides the race. I thought I could still race ok off no sleep and after the hectic week with the move, and wanted to give it a shot at least, since I didn't have many costs to race there with a free airline ticket (& arguing out of the 2 bike baggage fees..somehow, after making a scene about it) and the hotel hook-up.

I racI biked the whole time with my sunglasses like this below my eyes, since I couldn't see a thing with the rain.. I still don't know why I didn't throw them off somewhere. Guess I didn't want to go back and find them.

Malibu Triathlon & Team Abu Dhabi

2009-09-21T23:29:00.000-07:00

I've got 2 more weeks left here, it's kinda crazy. Then on to my new life in Colorado. I've got mixed feelings of course, but am excited for change. I've been doing some training lately with Faris Al Sultan and Swen Sundberg, both German Ironman athletes who I met at the pool. They're here for 3 weeks until Kona for the Ironman on Oct. 10. Faris won it in 2005, and is a powerhouse especially on the bike. On Friday we met up at 8:30 am, where I got a lesson on how to strap road flats to the aero bars (see pic), something I hadn't seen before, and rode 2 hours and ended up at the UCSB track for a track workout (after stopping for Coke and Twix of course.. crazy Ironmen, what's the deal with Coke in training, Terenzo drinks it too) with the main sets 5x200m w/200 float, followed by 5x1200m w/400 jog. It was a good workout, and while talking with them I realized I haven't been on the track enough this season, especially as an Olympic distance athlete. We rode another hour back to town, and later ended the day with a swim at the awesome Los Banos 50m pool at night, a pool I'm going to miss a lot.

Yesterday we all did the local group ride, along with Andrea and Werner. Andrea is also on their team (team Abu Dhabi - which is sponsored by the tourism district there, in the United Arab Emirates) and Werner is an ex-pro who's their team manager. It was one of the fastest rides out to the top of Hwy 150, I think because the local racers wanted to TRY to give it to the triathletes. We were flyin' on the way out with about 50 people. Aaron Olson, a local pro who used to race for T-Mobile and Bissell, and Kim Anderson, another local pro on Columbia-HTC who won the women's version of the Tour de France was there, along with Cody who is rides for the Bissell pro team. Most of the group turned back at the top of the hill, where about 12 of us did the whole 70 mile loop with Faris, Cody, and Aaron pulling for most of it. I took a few pulls for a few minutes but knew my legs were feeling the track work from Friday, so I stuck in 2nd or 3rd position staring at Faris' butt for most of it, shaking my head in amazement at their strength!

We all went out for steaks last night with Swen, Werner, and Faris treated, but said when I win the Ironman and get the paycheck he expects me to treat. He's a super nice guy and a lot of fun.
That's it for the update, I might race the OC Tri next weekend, haven't decided yet. Then it's the LA Tri on Oct 4, a move to CO on Oct. 5 or 6, then another race in Dallas to end the season Oct. 11.
pic: always-smiling Faris & a great shot of my right shoulder, Werner had some camera issues :)

I camped out in Malibu in tents with friends, always exciting with no sleep, and raced the Malibu Olympic tri last weekend; I took 2nd in the amateur field, which I'm pretty pleased about since it was a big race of about 1000 and my time was faster than a few pros. My bike is really coming along, as I've just hit about the 1 year mark of real cycling training. Finally I am seeing the rewards of the training as now I am much more confident in riding harder. 8 months ago my cycling was weaker than my swim. I had the fastest run split and 3rd fastest bike. I need to get my swim around this next off-season, as I can get stronger and need to improve the swim to come out of the water with the lead pack. Can't wait to get with the Riptide team in a month or so. They swim a ton from Nov.- Feb., exactly what I need, with a few double swim days every week.

Until next time.. Ryan
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Santa Barbara Group Ride videos: some Saturdays we get up to 80 people, about 10-15 do the full loop

Colorado - bound

2009-09-04T23:56:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm moving to Colorado in a month. I think it's time. I was accepted to be part of Riptide Multisports (www.riptidemultisports.com) elite tri team for next season; composed currently of 1 amateur and about 8 pro guys, so it will be awesome being part of a group, which should help me continue to progress as I aim to earn my pro card by the end of next season, as well as give me a little social balance with training. Finding a part time job will be the not as exciting part of the move, but I'll be living with my sister for a little while to save $. It's a great opportunity, and I look forward to the change. Last week I got offered another job here as well as a good local sponsorship, but unfortunately will not be able to take advantage of them. I know there are good things in store in Colorado..I'm headed back "home" for a while. I know I will miss living in paradise though. That's inevitable.

SB Long Course & Sprint Nationals

2009-08-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

I wish 'almost' counted sometimes, haha. I had a good learning experience and have mixed feelings today looking back at the SB Long Course tri yesterday, my first race longer than Olympic distance. I finished 5th to some good pro's, and was having a great race entering the run in 2nd a few minutes behind Pro John Dahlz & a few minutes ahead of 3rd. Dahlz won in 2:53 (while I posted a 2:57), he's the '09 College Nat'l Champ & recently placed 4th at Vineman 70.3, where he beat the likes of '08 Ironman champ Craig Alexander by over 5 minutes. Congrats to John, who also sports the Breathe Right nasal strips like me..thatta boy, they help! I was 4th in the elite wave out of the water, passed a guy in T1 and another 2 miles into the bike and remained in 2nd for the next hour.
I just needed to not blow up and hold on for the 10 mile run and 2nd was mine. I guess easier said than done. I cramped 2 miles into it in the quads, grabbed my baggie of salt tablets, and found I had dumped them out somewhere. Apparently I still managed 6:15 pace on the day but had to stop a few times in the race to rub out cramps, once for the restroom, and a few times the last mile since I was really feeling horrid and struggling bad. Patrick Baldwin & pro Mac Brown passed me around miles 6 and 8. I gutted it out to finish the last 200m strong and made it to the line where I fell over in the sand, and then blacked out for a bit to find people soaking me with sponges, which felt really really good. I tried to be mentally tough on the run, but sometimes the body just won't go.
I gained good experience from my first longer race ever, learned about nutrition and how a longer race feels, so I will take positive things from it.
I used my new Hed Stinger disc wheel that they Brian & Josh at Inside Track Ventura helped me get, which was pretty fun. Unfortunately my Garmin GPS flew off my bike on Toro Canyon Rd somewhere after hitting a huge bump; after searching for over an hour yesterday after the race it was nowhere to be found. My water bottle flew off a mile into the bike too, which couldn't have helped my hydration; stuff was like popcorn yesterday flying off my bike. They said they would DQ anyone who's water bottle flew off the bike and didn't stop to get it, as they were very concerned for safety of other riders since a lady died on the course last year. The bike has some big up and down hills with sharp dangerous curves. But I wasn't about to stop going 25 mph and look for my bottle in the weeds. Everyone..keep looking for my GPS along the road. Thanks!
A few weeks ago I won the 25-29 age group and took 3rd at the USAT Sprint Nationals in Newport. So I guess they give me the age group National Champion title, but really I wouldn't call it a true Nationals. It was turned into a duathlon since the waves and current was too dangerous apparently. It was a fun sprint. I ran a 15:43 3 mi split on a tough course with 2 very steep hills.
Here's one rather funny pic of the little fainting spell yesterday. It was awesome having my friends out there cheering and Meyers there to help drag me to the medical tent.
I also got to meet Matt Laferty from Lifewater Int'l who I'd been in touch with via email for a few weeks, a non-profit helping bring clean water to villages all over the world for the first time. I may try to race some tri's and try to raise $ through their Team Lifewater events. Check out http://www.lifewater.org.

Strawberry Fields Tri & HyVee

2009-07-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

Today I raced the Strawberry Fields olympic tri in Oxnard, and got some encouragement from it. I still have a lot of work to do but am pleased with my improvements. A year ago I won the sprint race there on my birthday, which was my first real dabble in triathlon, although I didn't train much for that race. So I realized I've been in the sport now exactly one year, and started real training around November of last year. It was nice to be able to drive there the morning of for once. I didn't sleep the night before the previous races this season, which I'm working on, but I slept better last night after takinga sleeping pill, and got 4 1/2 hours of sleep, which is 4 1/2 hours more than I have gotten in past races so that felt great.
I finished 4th in 1:58:15 and lost to 2 pro card holders (Brett Brown, and Henry Hagenbuch, an ex-UCLA steeplechaser who just won the Escape from Alcatraz amateur race and earned his pro card there a few weeks ago. He had the fastest run split in that race by 50 seconds, faster than all the pros..Andy Potts, etc.. Impressive.) Brown was 3rd at the Wildflower olympic this year. I lost by about 2:15 to Brown & 1:40 to Henry today. The swim was crazy wavy, a true ocean swim. Swim times were super slow with the chop and a nice current and I think the distance was a little long. We swam straight out to sea for the first 7 min. or so...true shark territory. It was crazy how far that buoy was out there! For some reason my cramping has been less severe in ocean swims, and I don't know why (different stroke/less kicking? swallowing salt H20 helps? Who knows?). In retrospect, I should have hammered the swim harder though, as I felt pretty fresh the whole time. I came out of the water 7th. We all got our butts kicked by Brown in the swim, but I came out in front of Henry by 4:00. Talk about spread out early between the top group. Basically that says Henry is a beast of a bike/runner (he split 31:50 on the 10k!), and I need to work on my swim! The bike was flat and fast and was probably 3 minutes short, but the swim may have been equally long to make up for it.
No one passed me on the bike, but I didn't know what place I was in entering the run. Turns out I was in 3rd, then Henry flew by me about 5k into it. I knew he was coming fast since it was a 2 loop course, and was going to try to latch on, but it didn't happen. I ran a 35:07, which is rather poor for me. I need to be mentally stronger when I'm hurting. I've run much faster off the bike, so I wasn't necessarily excited about my run. Overall I was pleased with the result though, and had no cramps for the 2nd time ever which has been my huge issue, so no cramps was great. I tried lactic acid buffer pills before the race, salt tablets on the bike, and got back on my probiotics/super green veggie powder this week, so one or all of those might have helped.
Hy Vee in Iowa was a cramp fest from the start. No wetsuits allowed. 2500+ people. 83 degree lake water. I cramped in the quads 14 min. into the swim, hobbled into T1, cramped off and on during the bike in the hamstrings and hips (that was a new place for me), and struggled on the run. The course was slower than I thought it would be, and a lot of competitors showed up. I finished 25th in 2:06:08, very disappointed and frustrated with my body, but that stuff happens, and I need to learn from the big race experiences and take something positive from it. I was very impressed by the race organization. It was an incredible production, with the world cup pro race which had all the Olympians, grandstands, helicopters, NBC cameras all over, $2 million in prize $, etc.
It was a long day, as my race started at 6am. After we Dutched as much free food and drinks our bags would hold, my cousin Brent and I hopped in the car and drove 10 hours to Denver and arrived by 9pm

IM Training, Tahoe Relays Altitude Fun, & LA Tri - Bonelli Park

2009-06-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

As the season continues, I’m trying to change my mind set a bit, focus more on enjoying myself in training and racing and less pressure to perform well. I've realized the pursuit is not worth it if you’re not enjoying the journey, not to save every workout will be fun; the results will come from training. My two weeks training with Terenzo Bozzone is over as he’s off to Portland for a few weeks, fresh off 3 wins including the Eagleman 70.3 last weekend. I’m excited to see how he does this year in Ironman Germany in July and the at the World Champs in Kona in October. Over those few weeks, I learned a lot about Ironman training, which is quite different from the shorter stuff. I know it’s not the exact type of training I need for olympid distance racing, but base work never hurts and it was an awesome opportunity and I got a good friend out of it. Within 3 days, I did my longest bike and my longest run ever. They were not the hardest workouts that I've done, but most volume single workouts.

One day consisted of a 100 mile ride, a nap, then a 11 mile run, and I only joined him on the end of his run. Two days later was a 17.5 mile morning run (21+ miles for him, of 5 min 1200m hill repeats in Hope Ranch) I wasn’t feeling too great but hung on for most of it. We cooled the legs in the ocean after, got soaked, went out for an omelet breakfast after. I got to lie down for 10 minutes on the couch before heading to the pool for a 4000m swim. Again, got to lie down for another 10 minutes after that before my phone rang and it was time for a 3 hour bike to Ventura and back. It was a big training day for me to say the least, with my longest run ever plus a swim and bike after. By the end I wanted to crawl in a hole.. it was pretty mentally tiring. I was supposed to get up and ride 5+ hours the next morning with him, over the mountains, but wasn’t feeling great and stayed in bed. I probably should have just sucked it up.

I decided to race the LA Triathlon @ Bonelli Park since I hadn’t really raced in a while. At midnight the night before while I was pumping up my tires, my tubular race wheel valve stem ripped off and my race wheel was done for. Luckily I found an older road bike in the garage of a house I was staying at, stole the front wheel from it, and raced with that thing on the front. It made me realize how much I love my Zipp 808s! They’re fast and light! It was hard to stay mentally focused the whole race, maybe due to the big training week, I don’t know why. I won by a few minutes but it was nothing too impressive. I didn’t hammer as hard on the swim start, which helped keep my arms feeling decent, and swam a 20:11. I cramped again the last 3 miles of the run though, so stopped a few times to rub it out and stop hobbling, and just tried to relax to the finish so my muscles wouldn’t spasm again since I had a decent lead. I should have used the electrolyte salt in my H20 bottles like last race. I really need to figure out this cramping thing. It’s frustrating.

The Friday before I did a short fundraiser bike race at Sandpiper Golf Course. A short time trial on the cart path!! It definitely requires more handling skills than a tri that’s for sure. Good thing I decided to bring my road bike and not my TT bike. I clipped a pedal on a sharp turn, flew off the path, went over a curb, and somehow managed not to go over the bars. I dumped sideways, but was able to clip back in and get back on track. It was pretty fun, a new experience for me racing a curvy narrow course like that. I won a raffle for a pair of $400 Mavic cycling shoes, the highlight of my day! I also raced the local Echelon Goleta time trial the Monday after, so 3 races in 4 days. I got 2nd to Gary again, but times we a little slower for both of us…don’t know if that’s b/c no front race wheel for me or the fatigue. Like always, a good time at the local TT.

Last Saturday I headed to Lake Tahoe with some friends for the Lake Tahoe Relay race: 72 miles, 7 men, up to 7,000 ft altitude. I got in a ride and a 5 mile easy run the day before. It was a fun race, my first chance to see what type of run shape I’m in coming from sea level the day before. I ran 5:45 pace for about 10 miles, which is decent for me at that altitude. My lungs were feelin it at the end though. One hilly mile must have been 7:30 since I was crawling, but I flew down the back side of the hill to the handoff zone. We got 2nd to Chico State like last year..those guys are good. It was great to be with the guys again and get away for a weekend. Our team consisted of Andrew Dixon & Kyle Louv (ex- Westmont/UCSB runners), Brian Ball (ex-Biola runner training in Mammoth this summer), 3 of us ex-Westmont guys (Aaron Megazzi & Robby Cherry) and a random Chico St. kid we found since one of our runners bailed the day before. Going to the mountains makes me feel alive again..fresh air.

Training with Terenzo

2009-05-22T00:02:00.000-07:00

It's been great to train with people lately! I've been training with my new kiwi friend Terenzo Bozzone who's living here in SB for a little while ('08 Ironman 70.3 World Champ). His place is close, just about a mile from me. I enjoy finding new people to train with; he's a really cool guy and I've really appreciated him letting me along on workouts. His girlfriend Kelly and brother Dino are super nice too. They joined us for the Nuggets game last night at Sharkeez after we ran... and yes the Nuggets won. I love being a Nuggets fan when they're playing the Lakers, everyone here worships the Lakers while I enjoy hating them.
It's interesting to see the type of training the top long course pros do. His volume is incredible, some 8 hour days. I've swam with him in the mornings, go to work while he's out for a 4 hour ride, then run together in the afternoon. Also, I never knew how coke can be a staple training drink for long rides and runs ha! I'm still pondering it all, trying to figure out half and full Ironman training and how it is similar and different Olympic distance training as a current working amateur trying to move to the next level. It does make me want/feel the need to do more..man if I could put in 5-8 hours a day, think of the fitness I'd gain. I'm very impressed with what people like Terenzo does day after day; it's a full time/8 hour a day job..and more than just 5 days a week. I look forward to (well..scared might be a better word) trying to hang on his hard bike and run days coming up... tomorrow at 6:30am is a 5+ hr ride mostly along highway 101..we'll see how long I last hanging onto his wheel.
(4/24/09: I did my first 100 mile ride yesterday. I left my house at 6:15am and met Terenzo at his house, from where we rode the Montecito hills, followed by a 2 hour/50 mile time trial for him while I latched onto his wheel and went along for the ride. He was flyin!!. We then rode up Old San Marcos - a long steep climb up the hills and back down thru Montecito again. During the TT I hit a bump and launched my full water bottle early on and wasn't about to stop and get it, so had to conserve my small bottle for a few hours. Luckily we stopped at a gas station for some Coke and bars, so I got to refuel. I got back 5 1/2 hours later, 98 miles later, and had to do a few laps around my place to hit the 100 mile mark. I wasn't going to stop at 98! I wanted to join Terenzo for his hour run after, but figured I needed to be smart and refrain from it even though I felt pretty good. He advised it and knew that ride was nearly 30 miles more than I'd ever rode. He asked me how my legs were feeling a few times after 4 hours.. I'm just gettin' warmed up!. Really, I felt good.
Yesterday's morning swim was a tough one, with the main set of about 30+x100m on the 1:30 interval (split up 8x100, 100ez, 7x100, 100ez, etc..). He swam faster than I of course, but I was able to stay on the 1:30 interval for most of it, starting out the first set in 1:19s, and a bunch of low 1:20s for a while. I did have to take a short break in the 4th set though, and I got a calf cramp in the 5th set..so I guess my body didn't like my mind trying to will itself faster than the body could handle. I downed some magnesium pills and finished the last few sets and the cramping was gone. Nothing crazy fast but after 30 of those you feel it in the arms. It's crazy how fast 4000m goes by when you're mentally in a zone. Today's pool workout was a longer ladder workout, with some paddles, and i was feelin' yesterday. Terenzo is 10x the athlete I am, but I definitely can see how being pushed like that in the pool a few times a week would really help me. It's been fun getting to know new people from another country; I'm always curious to what life is like elsewhere, and would love to travel to New Zealand some time. It's good to get a little motivation back, and not ride and run alone like most days.I will say though, there's the temptation to compare training and tell myself I've got forever to go to get to where I want to be.. but we're training for different types of races in a sense, have completely different backgrounds, are at different places as athletes (unfortunately, ha) etc. He's been in triathlon for 10 years or so. But I'm getting there..give me a year. I need to learn a few things from it, not get hung up on training stuff, keep sticking to my plan, and enjoy the new friendship.

Snowing Ashes

2009-05-10T00:02:00.000-07:00

We had another huge fire here this past week, the Jesusita Fire. It affected this week's training and sleep, and it kinda forced me to take an easy week, which was the plan anyways. But that's not of any importance, I don't want to act like my ripple in training is of any relevance as far as effects of the fire goes. 85+ homes were burned; I feel terrible for everyone who lost everything. Unfortunate. This one was closer to my house than the last. We were under the evac warning until yesterday. The first afternoon we were 3 houses away from the mandatory evacuation, as our street corner was barricaded and the cops were manning the corner 24-7 not letting anyone past; but I could still get home by going the back way to our street. All the neighbors across the street were forced out. The cops told me to get ready and pack up, and said they left messages on all our streets phones saying we're under a 'reverse 911' and to be ready to evac soon. We don't have a house phone, nor a TV, and our internet was down so I didn't really know what was going on the first night. I shouldn't have stayed since I didn't sleep that night. My roommates left, but I had already packed and unpacked my stuff twice. I was ready to go, then thought it was kinda silly to be freaking out since the fire was still a ways away, so I unpacked. My neighbors and I watched some flames on the hill get closer, so I decided to repack the truck again with my bike and a few clothes. I watched it for an hour, then decided to unpack and try to sleep. It must have been over 100 degrees in my room that night. It was around 100 that day here in town, and windy, which didn't help the firefighters, and I couldn't open any windows because the smoke and ash. It was a fun night of lying in my sweat and listening to helicopters shake the house. At about 11pm I heard the megaphones from the street, something about an "evacuation by the City of SB...pack your belongings and leave immediately."
(Here's a picture I took from my street). The next night I stayed in Goleta at my friend Chris' house, she's awesome, she let my buddy Taylor and I crash on her couch. It was night to get away from the ash.
The pool was closed most of the week, and I didn't want to ride or run outside for a few days. I took 2 full days off this week, almost a 3rd but I decided to 24 hour fitness and found a 15m long pool, and lasted about 15 minutes. A flip turn every 4 strokes gave me good turn practice though. I was going to use this past week as a recharge week, mentally and physically, before I ramp up the volume and start the 2nd building phase of the season. Mentally I've been trying to stay motivated lately, don't know why it's been hard lately. I still do the workouts, but need to stay focused more on the hard days. I am going to try to find people to train with more.
Yesterday I drove 40 min north with my bike to get away from the smoke, and found a road from Refugio Beach and started up it. 90 minutes later I had climbed over 4000 ft and to an amazing view, overlooking the green hills above the ocean. At the top I road about 5 miles south, and was above the layer of smoke and fog. It was incredible; didn't have the camera though. Good workout on my TT bike, as my HR was between 155-162 BPM for a lot of it, which is pretty high for me. I was wishing I had my road bike though :) . I decided to run 8 miles at night here in SB, after it seemed like the air quality was better down by the beach than it was that morning. I ran another 13 alone today around UCSB; I think the fires are completely out and the air is clean again..so nice. Tomorrow I start up the swim volume again, and I'll probably do the local monthly 10 mile time trial race tomorrow night. This week I only swam twice! Yikes. Gotta get back in that pool!
In other news, my buddy Derek Yorek graduated yesterday from Adams State (finally..jk Derek). Yea buddy! He's gonna tear it up on the tri scene this year..this guy can (and has) run a 30 min 10k at the end of a tri!

Wildflower... helmet issues to bike issues

2009-05-03T00:03:00.000-07:00

Today was a really disappointing day...just one of those days you can't control what happens, and you just gotta go with it and move on. It started off plain bad. Wildflower is a HUGE race - 3200 people in my race, top 3 get their pro card (if they don't already have it). I never knew the magnitude of this race, with 8000+ people camped out everywhere around the lake the night before. Craziness. This race was huge! It started off with no sleep in the tent all night, but that's normal before races, not a big deal. I was about to warmup before the race; I had about 50 minutes til my wave start time, and a guy at my bike racked in transition said they were going to DQ me for my aero helmet, and I should try to track down the USAT race official. What??? I was pretty confused. He pointed me to her; she'd gone through the 3200 racked bike spots, happened to come across mine and tell me my aero helmet was not legal and I couldn't race with it!! Are you kidding me??? Apparently my CSPC sticker was missing, so it was not a certified helmet. Nike joke lady! It's the Giro Advantage 2, probably the 2nd most common aero helmet in triathlon, and of course it's certified & legal. "There's no sticker. It's illegal," she said. I tried to be polite and explain about the helmet. I took off a few peeling stickers a few months ago since they were flaking off..no clue what there were, that they'd ever be needed, or that it would come to this. I told her with her job she must know it's a legal helmet..it's super popular. She knew the Giro Advantage 2 was legal.. but apparently without the sticker it's not?? It doesn't change the helmet though does it, I explained. Anyways.. she said I'd have to try to argue it with the head USAT judge. We searched for him for about 20 minutes (there were 3000 people in transition..difficult task), but finally found him. I again tried to be polite..but got fired up in a hurry. He said the same thing. Can't race with it. They literally weren't going to let me on the course with it they said. Meanwhile he was busting another kid with a Bell Meteor 2 helmet (which is illegal in USAT races), but his had the sticker! It was removed from another certified helmet and not the original. He couldn't race with it either. I tried to explain to this judge how his logic is flawed here. He knows my helmet is legal but I can't wear it b/c no sticker. He knows other kid's is illegal, no matter the sticker. So, really he's saying the sticker doesn't affect anything nor change the status of the helmet legality. The Bell helmet is an illegal helmet, that's all there is to it. I explained, so the sticker doesn't affect anything... Either the helmet is legal or it's not. So sometimes apparently the sticker is important, other times it's not? Anyone can stick that sticker from one helmet to another. That's when I blew up, told him this was absurd and USAT has no respect for it's athletes to treat them like this. I know they need to have certified helmets, but when he knows it is certified, acts like it might not be b/c a sticker is rubbed off...are you kidding me? Apparently Giro sold a version of this helmet pre-2006 in Europe that wasn't CSPC certified, he said... perfect, I still had a sticker on there saying "Giro Advantage 2 - 2007" ..he still didn' comprehend. Also, that Euro version was the Advantage, not the Advantage 2. I also had the Ad 2 sticker on the outside.. I also found another guy's idential helmet, 100% identical..nope, didn't work. Anyways, I'll stop with that. Can you tell I'm fired up! :) I then had 10 minutes til start time, hadn't done my warm-up run nor my swim. I scrambled to try to find another helmet, got the announcer on the mic (Sean, who works at a local SB bike shop) to announce if anyone had a helmet. I was freakin' out, pretty frantic, just upset about the circumstances.. That's when my MsM team came to the rescue and Reed McGinnis ended up getting a new helmet from a vendor for me to use. He's amazing! He'll do anything for anyone else, the guy is awesome. I threw on my wetsuit and headed to the lake.
The swim was ok, my arms were feeling it and legs starting to cramp a little at the end, but not too bad. I got to T1 and still was cramping a bit getting the suit off, but got the bike out and felt better and off I went up Lynch Hill. The bike starts on about a mile long crazy super STEEP hill. It rises about 800 ft in elevation I think. My bike gears were acting kinda funny, not shifting well and jumping from one to another, but I made it up. Then the stuff hit the fan again when I started to crank on the flats. I'd shift into a larger gear, and my chain kept getting thrown off into my axle and jammed in the cassette, so I'd shift out. Long story short, my gears were screwed. They got jammed 5 times and completely locked the pedals, so I had to coast without being able to pedal until I could slam on the brakes, hop off, yank the chain out and back onto the cassette. This happened about 5 times. The last time the chain got so jammed I couldn't get it unstuck from the crack. My day was done. My pedals were frozen, and I found myself watching people from the side of the road for about 10 more minutes. A motorcycle marshal came, asked him if he had a screwdriver..nope. I finally got some tools from another motorcycle, rigged the chain back on, and got back to transition eventually. I ran the run course for the workout after walking around for about half an hour, but mentally I was beat, frustrated.. it was unfortunate. I completely blame myself. I should have gone through the gears with my race wheels on (I usually do a bike warmup, but not with the helmet issue). I've just never have had any gear issues in the past swapping between these wheelsets since the cassettes are the same size. Ahh..another learning opportunity, gotta keep things positive.

Kyle Leto from UC Davis won the race in 2:02. Studly performance on the crazy tough course. In the UCSB regional college race a few weeks ago he finished about 4 minutes ahead of my time in the open race. I don't know if I could have pulled off a 2:06 or 2:07 today, but 4th and 5th were in the 2:08s so sub 2:10 and top 10 was definitely doable. It was the hardest and hilliest course I've ever seen. Insane, especially the 1/2 iron long course...gotta be the toughest half iron course there is. It's not really rolling hills...just plain hills.

Just one of those days I need to keep a healthy perspective, take some lessons learned from it and apply to to the future. The season is early. I got to spend some quality time with the MsM guys this weekend and meet some new people. We talked to a lot of people about the group, and people everywhere are getting pumped!

UCSB Tri... welcome to 55 degree swims

2009-04-02T00:04:00.000-07:00

Posted by Ryan Borger on Sunday, September 6, 2009
Last Sunday I used the local UCSB olympic tri as a training race, to get some experience and a very hard workout. Results at http://www.sbtiming.com/ucsb_open_2009.htm. I was hoping to get the time a little under the 2:05, but it was ok considering the hard training week I had, the course, and the wave 4 start. It was a collegiate regional championship race also, with all the CA teams (Cal, Stanford, UCLA, UCSB, Cal Poly...) so the top college guys and "elites" went in wave 1. I was hoping to race the college guys head to head, but the race director refused to put me in wave 1 after several email exchanges, since I don't have an elite license yet (although he put Mike Smith, a 45 year old stud and 7-year pro who I swim with often at the pool, in the first wave, since he's won the race the past few years). Mike finished 2nd to me by 3:18, but he said he made a wrong turn on the first run loop so he would have been closer). He's a fellow Westmont grad, who still trains 2-a-days. He told me about a junior college track meet 5k a few weeks ago, and we both hopped in it for a hard workout. I ran 16:16, nothing too special but a good hard workout, and he was only a few seconds back at age 45! Anyways, Mike tried to convince the RD to move me into wave 1 also. I told the RD I'd raced in the elite wave at the Toyota race and explained it will make for a better overall race, and it's dangerous to pass 3 waves of people on a 5 foot wide narrow bike path (open to public) the first 6 miles of the bike course. It was a little frustrating trying to get around everyone as I started in the last wave of the day, but that's part of racing sometimes. The top college guys were flying in the college race, as this was their tune up for nationals. Chris Stehula, who got 2nd in the college race, is a pro. I've seen him race last year when he was 4th at the Scott Tinley race in a good pro field. So there were a few current and future pro's in that race. Props to the college boys.
The swim was poor for me. The ocean was 55 degrees and brrrrr!! I tried to do a warmup and lasted about 30 seconds before heading back to the beach. I knew it would just make me colder. I wore 2 caps which probably helped some. I shivered for about 15 min since it was cloudy and windy, waiting for the other waves to take off, then on we went. My timing chip fell off (the 3rd time this has happened, you'd think I would learn :) as I dove in, so I had to stop for about 15 seconds to grab it and re-strap it on my leg, which meant a horrid start and the fight to get around everyone. I hadn't done an ocean swim in 5 months, and felt like training with a water polo team would have helped better than swimming laps in a pool, fighting the choppy waves. The swim exit was rough with huge rocks I slammed into and kept falling over, but I made it out and up the 3 flights of stairs to T1.
The bike went ok after getting past the weaving slow girls on that narrow path the first 6 miles, and the 2 loop run was fine. I'm still learning how hard I can push on the bike. I ran 17:26 then 16:57 for each 5k loop, which was decent coming off the bike and on that course, which had some rolling sandy hills on the lagoon and 3 flights of stairs to go up each lap. I know I can run low 33s at least on a fast course when I'm fit. I put some electrolyte salt in my drink on the bike, seeing if that would help my cramping issues. I only felt the cramps starting to come the last mile of the run, tugging a little but never actually cramped up!! It's a first! I was super worried too, since I had a bad night cramp in my hamstring the night before. I have no clue why, since I was on my vitamins and super hydrated the 3 days prior. It was like college XC season all over again, I'd wake up weekly with a painful leg spasm. I'm excited my body is adapting to the training and I'm figuring out what nutrition I need to help the cramping. I didn't sleep again the night before the race. I need to learn to turn off my mind somehow. I haven't gotten a wink of sleep the 2 nights before my 2 races so far this year. It gets frustrating but I'll figure it out.
Training is going pretty well. Last week had some tough/good workouts with a hard swim and bike Monday, a brick that included a 50 min bike with 12 min all out time trial followed by a 9 mile run with 3 mile repeats around 5 flat in there along the beach path, and Friday a track workout that included 12x400m, then the Sunday race. Mom, Kristyn, and Anna came out for the weekend, which was good to give my life some balance and think about something other than triathlon. I need more balance in my life. I am starting to think about some possible changes for the future, that could involve grad school or a move, as well as trying to find a training team. Training alone has forced me be to disciplined and self-motivated, which is good in a sense, but I think I could really benefit from a group, both for training purposes as well as social.

...I'm racing the Hy-Vee Triathlon in Iowa June 28, my cousin Brent lives there so I'd have a place to stay and a chance to see him and have a little vacation and race together. It's a huge pro prize $ race on Saturday where all the best in the world come, and a pro card qualifier race for top 3 finishers in the age group race Sunday, so there will be some good competition. I've been wanting to visit Brent for a few years now.

(Last Minute) Season Opener: Toyota Desert Int'l

2009-03-09T00:05:00.000-07:00

I got a last minute call Friday night by Erik at MsM asking why the heck I wasn’t racing in Palm Springs on Sunday. I’m trying to stick to my training plan and whatnot, was sick the week prior and had a hard training week last week, and wasn’t going to race til the end of March. I checked the race site and registration was still open the day before the race. I got the offer to sleep on the floor of their hotel too, so I said let's do it. I sped to Fastrack where Dave, the owner (ex-Olympian and Lance’s tour mechanic of the past) glued my tubulars within the hour for me that I was in process of trying to glue myself. I just had to let them dry overnight and hope they were good to go by race time. I didn’t sleep the night before, after driving 6 hours, a 4am wake up, a loss of an hour with daylight savings, and my mind that always spins all night before races. I don’t think that mattered much though, since it's 2 days before that sleep is needed.

I finished 3rd behind Kirk Nelson, a super nice pro guy from Colorado (http://www.trikirk.com/), and another guy who was a pro in ’06 & ’07 he said. Props to this guy, entering T2 he hit his front brake too hard and flew over the bars and cut up his face and legs, and still hammered the run. It was not quite a full Olympic/Int’l, being a ¾ mile swim, 24 mile bike, 6 mile run. I finished in 1:52:01. My swim went decent, got out of the water about 30 sec back and in about 3rd or 4th just ahead of Kirk. My transition was poor as my wetsuit was stickin' to me, and 2 or 3 guys passed me in T1. The 24 mile bike was flat and fast; I averaged 24.32 mph, staying fairly conservative, worrying about cramping which has happened on the bike. Looking at the splits, this is where I lost it, the top 2 got me by 3-4 min. on the bike split. I tried to be conservative and stay fairly relaxed, and found it feeling better to spin around 100+ cadence vs. 90. It was my 2nd int’l distance race ever, so I lack experience on how hard to push, but am learning. Two of us almost slammed into a fire truck that suddenly swerved in front of us right before a narrow turn down to T2. People we yelling at the truck to stop. I got off the bike in about 7th, feeling decent. I hadn’t cramped yet so that was good.

I wanted to start the run conservative, so went out in 5:30 and passed 4 guys that first mile. It was a 2 loop half sandy/rocky beach type path for about half and then a road for the rest, back on the beach for the finish. I was flying by people and feeling good. The last 3 miles my quads started to cramp, so as I ran I tried to rub them out as much as I could every 15 sec or so. They felt super stringy so I new I might be in trouble. They got worse and I battled it the rest of the race, stopping 4 times to rub them out when they seized up to the point of making me hobble. But I managed to get to the line, and still averaged 5:40 on the run and got the top 2 guys in the run split by quite a bit. I lost time from cramping, but don’t know if I could have gotten the guy ahead still, I think he was about a minute up on me, and no way I’d have caught Kirk who was about 2 min. ahead. Congrats to those guys! I know one of the guys behind me a few minutes has his pro card also. (I entered in the "elite" category although don't have the card yet. Why not, right :). I know with time that goal is within reach for me.

Overall I’d give it about a B grade race. I will try salt tablets in the future, and have only done 2 brick workouts so far, so that should help. Results at http://events.bazumedia.com/event/DTRI2009