Bringing on the heat!!!

It has finally hit!!!! Summer of 2009.

We are in the 6th day of 100+ degree days, and there is no end in site.

This weekend is going to be interesting in two ways. My love Mary is heading to the Grand Canyon with a group of people to run the Rim to Rim on sat/sun.

I on the other hand with be racing the Tempe International Tri on sunday. We are expecting temps of around 104, which should make the run very interesting. This is also the Arizona Club Championships, meaning that all of the tri clubs in AZ are going after the championship trophy. We (Triscottsdale) should be very strong!!!

It will be a lonely time for me without Mary around this weekend, even at the race. I enjoy nothing more than sharing my life everyday with her.

I am also posting one of latest race pics from the other day in the rain!!! SEE ABOVE

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!!!

Holy shit, where did April go? We are ready into the first week of May, and all that free time I thought I had until training started for Kona is gone!!! The beautiful days in the 80's are gone with it.

I am now down to like 22 weeks until the suffering on the lava fields, A.K.A Ironman World Championships (Hawaii)! We are now in the midst of our first solid run of 100+ days, and the winds are still crazy strong. So what better way to prepare for the Queen K?

I am still a little confused on how I am going to handle IMWI in Sept. or should I say how I will handle the run leg. I will go hard on the swim, and really work the bike, but the run is where i can really dothe most damage to myself just 4 weeks away from Kona. So as i see it my options are limited to:

1- Don't do the run at all.

2- Just do half of the run and drop out.

3- Take it very, very easy on the run and not care if it takes me 4 hrs +.

4- Just race the damn thing from start to finish and hope I can recover in 4 weeks for Kona.

There are pros and cons to each one of these choices, and I can't decide what is the best! Damn it!!!!

In the mean time, it is just a ton of training and suffering here in the desert and doing everything I can to make myself stronger everyday. I must remember that everyday is an opportunity to get myself faster and that each day counts as much as all the others.

Keep your fingers crossed for Mary and myself. It is a big fall for us. maybe bigger than anyone knows right now!! :)))) Stay tuned...

1 Down, 4 to go!!!

Fresh home after our little trip to California for Ironman 70.3 Oceanside. We had a great extended weekend. I love traveling and spending extra alone time with my Mary!!! We are so good together. :)

Up early friday morning we arrived at the Pacific Ocean before noon. It is so beautiful, I love it on the beach.

Anyway, we got all checked in and went for pizza and an early bed time seeing that race morning would be another 4am or so wake up call.

Lets just say race morning was a little cool. As we hurried to get our wetsuits on just to keep warm walking around. I could actually see my breath so it wasn't just that we have gotten soft living in the desert.

The swim went off with out my issue, I was suprised how the salt water tasted after being in the pool and lakes for sooo long, but with the wave start I didn't have to get used to swallowing it from repeated blows to the face an head like a typical Ironman swim. I exited the swim with (for me) a very respectable time of 31 minutes. Through T1 and off on the bike for one of the coolest bike legs I have ever done in a race or training for that matter. Several REAL big hills, with a view of the Pacific Ocean for the better part of the ride. I felt really strong the entire ride and as usual really felt good towards the back side of the course. i call it the "smelling the stable effect".

When I get close to the finish I really hammer it. I went by alot of people in the last 15miles. Suprising considering I don't fell like my training mileage is where it should be right now. Hey, I'll take it. Bike split 2:37. T2 and off to my favorite, the run.

I felt good from the get go, which is pretty common for me off the bike, I decided not to push it at all the first full loop and if I still felt comfortable I would pick it up later. My garmin wasn't working properly at first so I am not for sure what my first 2 mile splits where. The markers on the course where to hard to spot because of all of the constant comotion going on with the crowds and other runners coming the other way. By mile 3 it started to work and I was just watching my splits stay easy and consistant around 6:30. This is good news, because I have not been able to keep my pace where i would like for my 1/2 ironman runs spilts. This time it felt easy and consistent, finally all of this training is starting to kick in from the last 3 years. Even with 4 sections of running on loose sand i was able to kick the last 1/2 mile and run down a couple more guys in my age group and sprint to the finish line again. Finshing my run at 1:26 a new run PR for a 70.3 distance. Who would have thought it. I figured that the sand portion cost me about another 2 minutes of time, and that i could have easily went 1:24 ish without it. Damn, that is a good sign for the 2009 season.

After a few bites of food off to find Mary and see her finish. Mary was wayyyyy under trained for this race and was smart enough not to push it beyond her limits for no reason and to but herself in a place this early in the season that she would have to spend weeks to get out of. IMWI training started for her last week.

After the race we showered, went back to the awards and claimed my slot for the 70.3 World Championships in Clearwater FL Nov 14th. Yes that is only 4 weeks after Kona. We will see what happens.

Then it was off to Margaritaville!!! Yes, we had been thinking about this for weeks. We where joined by our friend Dean and after several Large beverages we stumbled our ways back to our hotels for some well deserved sleep.

Sunday brought the day I had dreamed about for months, a complete day off from training and spending it on Mission Beach with my True Love. What a nice day. Coffee and breakfast, a walk down Oceanside Beach and two hours on Mission Beach. It doesn't get any better.

Oceanside or bust!!!

Yes!!! Mary and I are heading to California this coming friday. I can't wait.

I love California!!! Especially San Diego area. So even though we are doing a race.

it is kind of a (C+) race. Really it is a good reason to get away for a few days, do a

cool race and spend another day in San Diego chillin after the race.

When we get back it is all in for Ironman training. Shit!!! Ironman Wisconsin is 24 weeks away.

This summer is going to be spent becoming a kick ass cyclist. I don't want to finish last in my age group at my first World Championships in Kona.

I have finally decided that Kona is my one "A" race of 2009. This is the first time maybe ever that I have only one "A" race in a year. So I must really focus on just hammering the shit out of it. (Though I may end up doing the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in NoV) Just a thought!!

Until then I am going to enjoy a little alone time on the beach with Mary!!!!

Boston here we come!!!! :)

Fresh back from our long weekend trip to Napa, CA.

Mary and I went there with one goal in mind. Qualify her for 2010 Boston Marathon.

We where very much all business the days leading up to race morning. We just enjoyed each others company, and the fact that we didn't have to be anywhere or doing anything for atleast 48 hours. A very nice break for us. If Mary was nervous she sure didn't show it. I tried to keep her preoccupied mentally on other things. Like the damn rooster that woke us up the first morning at the crack of dawn. Lucky I did'nt have a shot gun!!!

Seeing that I had never been to Napa and Mary was a many time visitor she kinda took over as tour guide on friday and saturday. We drove the main road hwy 29 up the valley seeing all of the famous vineyards, until reaching Calistoga which is the start of the marathon course. So we then traveled back to Napa along the Silverado Trail. 23 miles of the marathon are run along this road. Checking out the topography and making mental notes for sunday. Mostly we relaxed and ate (way to much)! leading up to sunday. Now I won't give the race report, because Mary did an excellent job on her blog. http://runnerchick-skirtgirl.blogspot.com/. check it out.

The bottom line is it was a successful weekend, and Mary proved just how damn tough she has become! She hurt, she suffered, and she keep on pushing all the way to the finish line. I am soooooooooooooooooooooo proud of her. I know how it feels to have all the emotions that she has gone through for the last couple months, and so maybe I get "it" better than most, but eveyone should understand how hard she worked physically and mentally to obtain this goal!!!!!

We are now getting ready to head back to california in 4 weeks for the Oceanside 70.3 Ironman on April 4th. before really kicking up the training load to prep for the fall Ironman racing season.

Keep you posted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Desert Classic and then off to Napa!!

Things have been pretty quiet on the Dan and Mary front. Just trying to get healthy and preparing for our first flury of races for 2009. Both mentally and physically we have been trying to get back on top of or games.

This weekend we are racing the Desert Classice Duathlon, (http://www.desertclassicduathlon.com/).

Always a fun and challenging course in the Sonoran Desert. This is a world championships qualifier and should have some really kick ass competition form all over the country and world.

Our sights are really set on March 1st. (Napa Marathon), This is going to be the biggggg day for our house hold. Mary WILL qualify for Boston!!! I can't wait.

We come home from Napa and then head back to California in April for the Ironman California 70.3 April 4th. One step at a time though. Keep your fingers crossed and poitive thoughts for us on March 1st~~~

Back from Mars

Hey, just back to earth! I know I have been away for some time from the blogging.

My blogging kinda goes with my daily life and how I am feeling. As you can see based on the lack of blogs, that I have not really been inspired by any earth moving happenings lately, but finally something exciting. I feel like I am back to REAL training, Mary has a new Marathon picked out on March 1st (Napa Marathon), we have the Desert Classic Duathlon coming up on Feb 22nd, and Amanda Lovato is our Home stay for the weekend. After our Napa trip we come home put in some more solid hill training and then head to Oceanside, Cali for Ironman 70.3 on April 4th.

This past weekend I finally did a longer bike ride to Tortilla Flats, AZ. Some really nice hills and it felt easy!! SHHHHHHH, don't tell anyone!!! wouldn't want to jinx myself.

Most encouraging right now is that my love Mary is feeling good again, and is ready to go get that Boston slot for 2010. At this point we haven't really figured out if I will run all or any of it will her. She will keep me posted!

So we have the Shirtchaser 5k coming up on Feb 14th, which should be lots of fun, Mary has once again volunteered to get in over her head with helping out with the race, but the after party should be a good time!!!

Positive thoughts, and I will keep you all posted!!!