Double duty

Due to circumstances, I was forced to do double duty & handle land activities between 2 teams. This also was the last weekend of events prior to September.

Sunday agenda- Key Biscayne triology

Although sponsored by Mack cycle, it's managed by Multirace.com. This timing company has three series on-going. This day was the finale for the triathlon trilogy, but also counted toward the S. Fl triathlon series. Add to that a duathlon (also a series), and we had a record sellout! In fact, we had to wait to the last minute to get our numbers, even though we were pre-registered! This one was quite a challenge because I had to cycle for the duathlon team in order to meet the minimum requirements to be in the S. Fl. duathlon series, & then follow up with a 5k run for the tri team. I got in this predicament because the same cyclist that stood me up in training, 'stalled' me for the race. 2 other cyclists had other plans, so therefore, I had to fill this position & acquire 2 good runners. By the grace of god, I held my own & posted the fastest bike time of all the du relays, & better, the runners bettered in their respective positions. The du team took the top prize & all but secured the series title for the team. However, the series is not officially complete until after Miami man. Our tri team began in 2nd overall co-relay, thanks to the stellar performance of the swimmer. Long time friend, Hector, rode his best but lost several positions. I did my best to reduce our deficit, & I was successful, thanks to God. We finished 2nd in the co-division but were the top relay team in both series. The fastest relay was the all male team from runners depot. We wound up 2nd in group, 3rd overall, including men. The day started off miserably, because it rained prior to the start & then got hot & humid real quick. Despite all that, we did well, & picked up our respective plaques.

c u @ the next one.

M.I.A.

Missing In Action. There were no local races. There was one I might have done in Ft Desoto, but since ESM decided to count only 3 events plus the champ race, it would be pointless to spend the time & money. Besides, I needed to do some hard training.

Saturday agenda-the long run

I broke out my brand new vomero 2's. Since they are Nike +, I "tuned my run" using my I-pod. Due to inclement weather, I delayed the run by 1 hour. That allowed me to see old Niketown friends Ann, Dee, & Berta, plus current ones, such as one who competed with me, Carol & Jean.

Sunday agenda-the long ride

I got stood up by the cyclist of the champion du team of last year, causing nearly a 2 hour delay. My bad, as I should have known not to propose training for today on a Saturday night. Therefore, I made it a local, flat ride. Good thing, because it was windy. The course I would have done would have added hills to it, & instead of crosswinds, I'd return versus the wind toward Miami Beach, the most notorious. It was still humid & a hotter, brighter start than usual.

Well, gotta go. Keep up the training!

Fun & run in the sun

Saturday, I dub as fun in the sun & Sunday as run in the sun.

Saturday agenda-ING marathon kickoff 5k

This event was put on by both PR racing & the Greater Ft Lauderdale road runners club. It was a FUN run. Since it was hot & humid, with the sun blaring, I refer to this one as a fun run in the sun. The mission was to pace comfortably with a Niketown member, but fast enough to qualify for the top 30 finisher's medal. Although I did not push until after 3 miles, the pace he chose was very quick in the 1st mile, before I noticed a drop. Once I thought I hit the mark in the final mile (the .1), I took off sprinting to get a feel for what it would be like the next day. On that burst, I passed the 2nd overall female, plus 2 other masters there. In light of events scheduled the next day, I felt this was the best action to take. With the pancake grill broken, this dropped to a 2 star amenity event.

Sunday agenda-Bikila track meet

This was the 1st for Stevie B (partner of a previous event), president of Bikila athletic club, but 2nd annual event. The club brought back the 4 events of last year, plus added a 4x400 co-ed relay.

Trivia #1, which events did I select?

a. 400 meter dash
b. 800 meter dash
c. 1 mile
d. 3K
e. 2 of above
f. all but 1
g. all of the above
If you chose e. or f., 1A. which ones did I do? ________________
for e., pick the 2 you think I did, for f., pick the 1 you think i did not do.

Trivia #2, which of the following did NOT occur?
a. Jonathan M beat his time of last year in the mile
b. I beat Jon W in a heat
c. Mike N competed despite incurring a injury in training
d. I was on a relay team with Carol Postigo & Jon W

The good- the event was held again & added an event (4x400 relay)
The bad-poor amenities in regards to food (drink was plenty)
The ugly-results not posted neither by timing company nor bikila club.

Due to the ugly, I can only confirm that I beat my 400 meter time of last year & won the heat, ruling out b. for #2 & affirming a. of #1 as an option.

Alright, enough suspense. I got 4 gold medals, thanks to the Lord. Oh, you can scratch the idea of an uncontested victory; I had to move!

One of the biggest surprises to me was not positive. a. of trivia #2 could not happen because he did not appear. I sure hope all is well & to see him compete in the upcoming race season (2007-2008), which unofficially begins after labor day. My dad has been on hiatus thus far, but plans to kick off the new season with a distance race.

Regarding trivia #2, b. occurred in the 400 meter dash, surprising all, including myself! c is the rough & tough attitude I expected from him. He was justified to skip this, considering how bad the road rash was. He noticeably struggled but still performed well, placing in all individual events he competed in. Great payoff & reason why one must not quit. Despite the pain, he agreed to be on the relay & was very instrumental in our efforts to stay with the experienced kids. This relay was new to all members on the team, which confirms d. as true.

Keep up the training!

Sizzling!

Although some may say I run like that, I am referring to the temperature. It was hot & very humid, and although the actual temp was around 90, the 'feel like' temp was triple digits.

Saturday agenda-summer sizzler 5k

This was appropriately named, considering how hot it was.

trivia #1: which of the following occurred at this race?
a. I placed in the top 3 overall
b. I was the top master
c. I placed in the top 3 age group
d. I did not place at all

If you picked d., 1A. what was the reason?
a. forgot/lost timing chip
b. tough field (too many faster than me)
c. DNS (did not start/enter) due to injury or fees
d. DNF (did not finish) due to injury
e. ran 'bandit' (no chip)

This was race #2 of the 5k 'trilogy'. Still reeling from my personal best, I came in with high hopes. However, I started to have doubts around the start of the race. First, it was sizzling hot. Second, friend George was literally running late, but the race director held up the race to give him a chance to line up with the crowd. Once it went off, all the 'kids' & the usual fast ones (Luiz & Jon) took off. One kid bumped me to get in front, a no no. I naturally tracked him. Another was weaving until he finally tripped while I was adjusting to this. I did a rookie mistake & stopped to try to help him back up. If not for the grace of God, that could've been a costly error. Fortunately, my final position was not affected, just my time. In the 1st loop, I was maybe in 12th position, but by the last, I cut it to half. I sprinted as fast as I could after the stop sign (mile 3) to try to make up for failing to do that last time.

My time was worse than the 1st. Someone who beat me at the 1st race informed me that he could not find my name. He asked my age to verify if he was looking in the right section. I quickly ran to the results area & looked for the master winner, certain I'd be there. Ralph Guijarro, the strider prez was there & didn't break 19. I am thinking, "oh, heeeeell no"! I panicked & went to Al, the timing/race director. He calmly stated I was one the first ones (choice a.) It never crossed my mind to check that. Naturally, I was both embarrassed & proud. I had to edge out a 16 year old to claim the last overall spot; still got it!

As far as 1A., I once lost my chip & had to request a replacement, plus face the penalty for that error. After the race, divine intervention (God) helped me to find it & avoid the fee.

Luckily, the field was not so extremely fast, although 2 threats to the master title showed up, with one winning it, but for a rare time, not taking it from me, but instead, receiving the title due to my better placement.

I pray to avoid DNS & DNF. Money will always be factor & would be a reason for the last choice but as far as injury, unless it is extreme, I always strive to finish what I started.

Sunday agenda-Huntington's disease triathlon

This one offered both a sprint & Olympic distance. This time, finances helped to dictate which one to do. Due to time constraints, I could not select teammates in my normal fashion. In order to better ensure a successful completion, I chose the lesser, knowing anyone, including myself on the bike, could compete well. This was one of my few appearances on a male relay. For the greatest speed & challenge, this is the division. On short notice, Thad agreed to fore go his normal routine of competing as an individual & joined a relay team for his first time ever. The cyclist, Hector, was long time friend & is on the triology tri team. Our combined efforts helped up to be the fastest relay team. Although our division was uncontested, I'm sure everyone did their best to, not only insure victory, but to satisfy personal goals; I know I did. The swimmer selected the team name- Race Pace III -which insinuates 3 people moving very fast. We strove to meet this objective.

This qualified as a 4 star event (amenities) & was novice friendly. As a term of the 'contract' to sign Thad, I had to swim a bit in the ocean under supervision. I fulfilled this & therefore 'swam' in the ocean for the first time ever. I then got on my backup bike, completing a very rested triathlon (used all disciplines). See you at the races!