GO! STL half marathon and May tris...

On April 19 I ran the GO! Saint Louis Half Marathon for the third year in a row. I had a really good race. My chip time was 1hr 34min 24sec, my best half mara so far. Felt great from the beginning all the way until the end.

On the other hand I am pretty excited about Tri season, it's finally here. I am heading to Columbia, MO for my first tri of 2009. The name: Tri Zou Sprint Tri. I did it last year and my time was 1hr 16min 52sec. I wonder what's gonna be my time this year. Should be fun and hopefully we'll have decent weather... accuweather.com says mostly cloudy with a high of 60. Might be a little chilly early in the morning but as long as it doesn't rain I'll be happy.

On May 17 I'm doing Memphis in May, I heard great things about this oly tri and a bunch of peeps from the STL Tri Club are going, we'll have a nice group there.

There are other 2 tris happening in May in my area I am thinking about but not sure yet.... the Gateway Triathlon Oly in Carlyle, IL on May 24 and the Escape to the Bluffs Triathlon Sprint in Elsah, IL on May 30. Is that too much? or are they good practice?

Training is going better than ever. Feel great and strong and definitely seeing good results (Thanks Sammy!! :) )

Be safe out there and enjoy Spring time!

PC

Sarah Haskins and me...

On Sunday March 22nd I was able to meet Olympic Triathlete Sarah Haskins who was in St. Louis (her hometown). Sarah was invited to the YMCA where she used to swim to talk about what it takes to become an Olympic athlete from nutrition to training and dedication. It was really nice to meet her and talk to her for a bit. She's a very cool girl, smart and of course a fantastic triathlete.

By the way...I can't believe how bad I've been at updating my blog, I know I suck... Don't even have a reason... call it laziness, call it busy times, maybe a little bit of both?

Anyway, training for IM Louisville has been great. Haven't had any injuries and I can totally feel my bike has improved! Hard work is definitely paying off. It's so rewarding to see and feel those changes, those differences... I can really tell the difference of my bike now versus last year. Bad thing has been the weather but I have still managed to get out and ride. Last weekend I rode 36miles on Sat and 46 on Sun. Today I did 40 on a sunny but cold morning, it was in the high 30s when a couple of friends and I started.

Swimming has been also been great, all good there and nothing much to report. I'm in the 2,000+ meter per work out right now and feel pretty good. Finally the runs. My runs have improved as well. Back in March for the St. Patrick's Parade 5mile Race in downtown St. Louis I managed to PR with a time of 33min 58sec which put me in 15th place out of 168 in my age group (35-39). Not bad at all since I've been doing lots of endurance training and not so much speed work.

The GO! St. Louis half marathon is a week from tomorrow, should be interesting. I'm looking forward to it. The following weekend some local triathletes who are also doing IM Lou are going to Louisville for an IM training camp. On Saturday some of us will be running the Kentucky Derby Festival Half-Marathon in the morning and then we are swimming in the afternoon; Sunday we are riding half or the full IM bike course. I think it'll be a great chance to get familiar with the course and kinda of know what to expect on race day.

I am pretty excited about my first triathlon of the season which is less than a month away. It's the Tri Zou (formerly known as Race for Sight) in Columbia, MO. It's a sprint one, I did it last year and it's a nice way to start the season (I hear Simon Lessing is doing this race this year). Then later in May I'll be going to Memphis for the popular: Memphis in May oly triathlon.

In preparation for IM Lou I also registered for a half ironman distance race, the Cutting Edge Half Classic in Effignham, Illinois... it's on June 21st.

That's my little update for now... HAPPY EASTER!

PC