Team IE Heads South

With less than a week until our first race of the season Lauren and I have been backing down a little to get ready.  There is a delicate balance between getting ready to race and keeping the training up since we are still 8 months away from Nationals!  Lauren has traveled far for a race before, but this is my first time flying out of the country for a race.  It is a little crazy to think that I am going to be racing in Honduras in January.  While in high school I did not run much over the winter and certainly did not race.  In college I did indoor track so I am a little familiar about racing during the winter months.  The only difference from that is I had three seasons and two weeks off from January through the end of November.  Greg is a great coach and there is no doubt in my mind that we will be ready to race Sunday as well as Nationals in late September.

The race is in Roatan (Honduras Bay Island), an island north of the Honduras mainland.  It is a relatively new destination for tourism, but that does not matter.  We are not going for a relaxing vacation on the beach, although getting out of the South Bend cold for a few days will be nice, and we will have one day of “vacation” since we are staying there through Tuesday morning.  We are going there to take care of business and see how we match up.  This could be an indicator on what races we focus on this year, ITU draft legal or large non-draft races.  The course consists of a beach start, a one lap ocean swim with minimal waves and light current, a very challenging bike course and a road/off-road/sand run.  The bike course consists of a hill known as “The Wall,” a 16-19% incline hill of about 1km long, 3 more hills, 2 laps of a rolling hill circuit, and then over the back side of "The Wall" into T2. The website states, “This is surely one of America’s most demanding courses, with great views of the island’s shores, and luscious tropical forests along the way.”  I will be sure to check out those great ocean views while suffering up “The Wall!!” J

Profile for the start/finish of the bike course.

I hope everyone is well and staying warm, if you are located in a cold climate.  Check back shortly after the race for recaps and photos.

"Human beings are made up of flesh and blood, and a miracle fiber called courage." ~George Patton

Kaleb

Radio Show Interview- Sports Talk Radio AM 1400 - Click this link to hear interview

On Tuesday I had a great radio interview with Mac McDonald on am 1400 sports talk radio Charlottesville/Richmong and Central Virginia.  I loved being on the show and it was great to represent the sport of triathlon on a station that primarily is football/basketball focused.  Although I have to say, it is very odd having a conversation with someone in which they can only ask questions about you.  The whole interview, I really wanted to ask the host a question to make the conversation balanced!  I guess that is not how radio works though! 

I am so happy to be a part of the team IE family and although I am not in south bend to train- I love seeing the great pictures on this blog of all the intense hard core workout sessions going on there in every condition imaginable!!! When Mac, the radio host, asked me who I train with, I thought of how tough my teammates are training in south bend! I know my teammates are going to be really really tough come racing season.  Training in a cold place is often a blessing in disguise-  I learned this running in college up in New Hampshire.  Your are never too fit too early- you are sharp at the right time in the season, and it makes you really really tough mentally and strong physically!!  Keep posting those great pics!!

Happy Training- Nicole

Blizzards & Burritos

Breaking records before the season even begins--32.4in of snow in 24 hours in South Bend!

So in the 10 days I have lived in South Bend it has been the hottest it has ever been this time of year and it has snowed the most it ever has at this time of year. The run this morning was epic! I am in awe of the energy the members of Team IE have even when conditions are far from ideal. This morning we all woke up to 3ft of snow and terrible roads. Two of our guys, Craig and G-How, got stuck in the snow in their cars on the way over and they STILL ran! Man I love this team.

Post run

Today was quite an adventure. The drive to the pool was crazy! Unlike the south, everything does not close when it snows so thankfully the pool was open. Our pool is very unique. Most elite triathletes have the luxury of training in large 50m pools. Team IE trains in a 4 lane 25 yd pool and we love it. It is much more challenging to swim in a shallow small pool as opposed to a large 8 lane pool. We are okay with it though because we know the hard work will pay off on race day!

Pool!

Before I moved here Greg always raved about the burritos after Saturday morning workouts. Today I finally got to experience the magic! We picked them up before the trainer session because we knew the snow was not stopping. I highly recommend "Tacos and Burritos" if you are a local.

Bob the burrito builder

A car covered in snow in the parking lot of Tacos and Burritos 

The last workout of the day was awesome. Thanks to Computrainer we rode a challenging course to prepare for Honduras. I love riding with the team; we have so much fun jammin out to the ipod and pushing each other at the same time.

Team IE always having a great time!

Blizzards and burritos...fun day in South Bend. Being snowed in is fun after all : )

Lauren

Base to Race

Over the last couple months I have been building a base for the 2011 season.  With 2 weeks until my first race of the season, my training is getting ramped up so my body is not in shock when it is time for a race effort.  Greg and I are jumping the gun a bit as I am still in the middle of my build phase, but it would be more dangerous for my body to go straight from base to race.  With the help of Hammer Recoverite and Whey Protein I have been able to train at a high level and recover!  With two tests down, a 500 TT swim and a 20 min. watt test on the bike, only one remains.  I have made great strides in the water and on the bike, but with Greg in my corner there is still more to come!!  The final test is tomorrow when we head to Notre Dame’s indoor track for a 4k.  I am most excited for this because running is my first love and it is what got me into triathlons.  Hopefully my legs remember how to run fast!

I am excited and nervous to be heading to Roatan for my first race as a professional.  It is time for me to step up to the plate with the big boys and play their game!!  I am not sure if the nerves are from the thought of racing as a pro or racing in a draft legal race.  The swim is very important and I am hoping my progress in the pool shows in the open water.  The only downer at this time is that I will not be able to wear my new ITU suit from Champion Systems.  I could use a fast suit for the swim, but I have been hard at work designing our suits and they should be ready for the US Sprint National Championship in Clermont in March. 

As you may know from previous entries, Lauren recently moved to South Bend.  It is nice having her to train with, but Nicole is missed from our daily workouts!  Hopefully someday the whole elite team can be together.  Lauren and I are a great match in the water and it is fun having someone pushing me in the pool again.  But don’t get me wrong, Greg can still bring it for 25-50 yards!!  Maybe someday I will beat the coach in a sprint!

This week we received 2 pairs of Vibram Fivefingers!  They are amazing shoes that I am looking forward to wearing around as well as some light jogging eventually.  I have always loved walking around barefoot and these are as close as I can get where shoes are required.  I will give you updates throughout the year as me feet and lower legs get stronger!

I hope you are well and enjoying the new year!  2011 is going to be exciting!

“We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.” ~Aristotle

Kaleb

540 Watts of RAW POWER

Today I was thinking about all of the athletes that are heading south to train. I was wondering, is that where we should be? Is there something wrong with this picture? So that caused me to think more about what I have always said about Indiana. There is something wonderful about the beauty of a season and the beauty of forced rest and change. If we were in Tuscon for instance, it would be more of the same. Sure its beautiful but doesn't it satiate a part of the mind that needs to be hungry? How great does it feel to ride on that first 50 degree day in March ! What you see here is what I will call the 540. That is 540 watts of combined power for our 20 min test. That is a lot of watts! Watts more, we did that right there in that facility. Riding no mountains, only our Computrainers. So what is the cost of being cold and training here? I don't see a cost, what I see is an opportunity to separate our selves in a way that few are willing. The sacrifice is actually an investment. The investment of going to the pool in the snow, running through snow on ice and riding in the basement. For these two the value was three National Championships in 2010 and yet to be determined in 2011 but I have a great feeling. The same feeling I had in 2000 when I was a lone wolf pack of one but have now grown to a lone wolf pack of 70. It was said that if you build they will come and I have been building and they have been coming. Whats coming next will blow every ones mind because the lone wolf pack will finally have a den!

Looking forward to 2011 with some lessons from 2010...

A month and a half ago concluded my rookie season as a pro triathlete.  The Princeton web dictionary defines a “rookie” as- “an awkward and inexperienced youth.”  I get that. I learned a lot of things this year and I hope some of them can help someone else’s transition to triathlon be a little less painful than it is supposed to be……

*"I don't believe in the danger of overtraining, but I do believe in the danger of under-resting”

-Deena Drossin Kastor

The debate about overtraining aside, I think Deena makes a great point here about how the training benefits of rest are often dramatically undervalued.  Building rest days into your program is just as important in preparing you for your race as building in hard workout days.  I would put myself out there to say that appreciating the value of rest is the single biggest factor that helped me make the jump from age grouper to professional.  It is incredibly ironic, but to be faster- you have to learn how to rest more. 

*Don’t give into intimidation

Before my first professional race in Philadelphia this year, I thought my guts were going to explode from nervousness before the gun went off.  I thought I seriously didn’t belong in a field of athletes ripped right off the pages of Triathlete magazine.  I didn’t have a professional looking uniform- I was wearing a sports bra and some tri shorts that didn’t match- I even looked like I didn’t belong.  My goal going into the race was just not to get last by too much.  The gun sounded, I raced within myself and ended up on the podium.  All that worry for nothing; I should have been enjoying the race from the start.

*You can’t be successful if you are not having fun

Self explanatory.  For most of us, triathlon is supposed to be a source of enjoyment, fun and friendship.  When triathlon becomes stressful and a burden- it is really hard to be successful.  Keep it all in perspective and have fun!!

Going into 2011, I am so excited because I feel like I have learned so much in one short year already. I know there is still a lot to learn and improve on; I am so excited to be moving into 2011 with some great coaches and teammates in Team IE and amazing sponsors in Champion systems, Cobb saddles, Finis and Rudy Project.

New year, new home, new sponsor!

Happy New Year! I finally made it to South Bend to train with my coach and teammates for the next few months. I have had to adjust a lot to the weather, but I really think that the icy cold will only make me a tougher athlete. Kaleb and I have had an awesome time training together; not only is the company great but we also are able to push each other in workouts. Unlike most, we are racing in a few weeks in Honduras so   I am more motivated to push myself during workouts with someone who has the same goals as me. I am looking forward to racing this season---only 21 days!

We recently received some new suits, clothing, and equipment from our new sponsor, Finis. Finis makes great suits for training and very warm thermal gear to wear pre and post swim!!

Finally, I want to thank Dave at Metro Run and Walk for giving me the opportunity to work for him!! I never knew selling running shoes could be so fun :)

Hope everyone is keeping their new year's resolutions....

Lauren