A Mayoral Race

With Iceman settled into the transition area the day before, there wasn’t much to do when the alarm shook my limbs awake at 3:40 a.m. for the 2010 Inaugural Washington DC Triathlon. I soon found myself and a few shadowed faces ferrying our way through the dark, not toward the Styx, but rather an equally imposing Potomac. There was an energy and unspoken connection as we marched toward an unknown fate before the sun’s first rays had even warmed the water, roads, and paths that lay before us.

More than a few miles short on training, I knew that I had to race with my head rather than lean on a non-existent training foundation. I reviewed my transition set-up and found a spot to overlook the sprint swim start. Between pump-up songs and a mental run through of the race, Lauren rode up prepared for a full day of photography and overly-hyped spandex-clad triathletes before most have felt the rejuvenating power of caffeine.

With the sun barely cresting the horizon it was evident this race would have more than a taste of home as the mercury was set to hit the mid-90s. I was soon joined by my fellow 20-29 year old competitors for a wetsuit free struggle through the river.
The first few splashes and thrashes indicated the chaos that was to come, but I steadied myself and settled into a plodding tortoise-inspired rhythm.

Within a few strokes and errant kicks from my fellow competitors I could tell that this was going to be more about survival than speed. When my goggles fogged up, my suspicions were confirmed! After 1500 meters of mostly blind swimming I found myself approaching the dock and hit the ground running…and apparently in dire need of a tan!

The swim had been slow, but I was looking forward to seeing how well I could tackle the bike course. My transition was quick and soon enough I was rolling past the Washington Monument, the White House, and all of the DC sites.



I’m always surprised by the high speeds I see when I first start the bike leg of a race, however, mile after mile I kept seeing those high numbers. My legs felt great, so I kept pushing at every opportunity. Seeing Lauren after the first loop gave me a great burst of energy and I surged through the bike in a new personal best of 22.6 mph. Only a few people overtook me on the bike course, and since their bikes cost 3 to 4 times the price of mine…I didn’t feel too bad. Plus, I knew I’d get my revenge on the run.

Lauren rolled up next to me on her bike early in the run as I was giving a few words of encouragement to a few fellow racers. She mentioned that the mayor was only a few minutes ahead of me, so with some prey to chase down I let the legs loose. I felt great early on and knew that I was set for a good run. The miles went by quickly as I easily held my pace under 7s. In hindsight I probably could have pushed the pace a little harder, but I was more concerned with keeping my core temperature down and avoiding a late bonk (something I hadn’t been able to do in a few of my final workouts).

I spotted Mayor Fenty just before mile 3, but I knew the gap was too big. No matter, I was enjoying soaking in all of the sites and happy that my body was taking the miles in easily. I tried to push the pace, but I think in the back of my mind I was still worried about making my closing push too soon with one final climb up Capital Hill remaining. I got a few nice shout outs on the course and set my sites on the finish line.

Lauren was primed for the finishing stretch and I did my best to hold off any late sprinters. The Inaugural DC Tri was in the books, and I even stumbled into the Mayor (who incidentally I did beat, care of his earlier start)!

After catching my breath and finding my photographer (who did a pretty damn good job I’d say!) we strolled through the post-race celebration and cleaned up on the free gear and even snagged a recovery massage. With a BBQ with friends and a nap calling my name we were ready to hit the road, but I made one quick stop to grab my results. I thought the volunteer was just being friendly when he said congratulations, but much to my surprise I actually finished on the podium…3rd place in the age group! Wow, how that happened, I have no idea, but I was pretty thrilled…especially when you see the competition!

Final Stats:
2:18:21 (3/106 M25-29, 39/883 Overall)
Swim – 27:47…ouch (128th)
T1 – 2:07
Bike – 1:05:48 (73rd) – a new personal best!
T2 – 1:07 (99th percentile)
Run – 41:37 (38th)

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Grab Bag

Here are a few shots from the professional photographers at the Broad Street Run and then some from a 5K that Lauren and I raced in to support a friend and her school running program.

  

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Street Cred

May signals the arrival of one of my favorite races every year, the Broad Street Run in Philadelphia. This year would be no different as I’d been training for it since early February. I was gunning for a PR, and more importantly, Lauren would be doing the same! Four years of spectating had taken its toll and she was determined to earn another notch in her growing race belt.

After an uneventful drive from DC (filled with some wonderful traraffic-avoiding decisions by yours truly) we swung by the expo to pick up our race gear, and as Lauren likes to put it, get our street cred (the race t-shirt). Unfortunately, the street cred was pretty ugly, but we did find a great deal on a race tech tee for Lauren. You didn’t think she’d go through all these months of work for nothing, did you?!

After a wonderful evening with the Beckers and Billy & co. we were headed back to lay out our race gear (note the very conservative new racing flats recommended by my friend Wil, whose running store gear I wear for big races) and try our best to get some rest in despite the nerves.

Race morning, as it tends to do, came bright and early, but this one didn’t have that usual crisp feel. There was no way around it, it was going to be a hot one!


We made the quick trip to the stadium, caught the subway (along with our new 29,998 friends) and were to the starting area with time to check out the facilities, drop off our gear, and grab a quick warm-up. In no time the mayor was thanking us for being part of the 31st Broad Street Run and the largest field in history, 30,000! I was lined up in the purple corral and Lauren was just a little back in the grey one.

The start was a whirlwind as always, filled with avoiding slower runners, the curb, and myself! I was right on pace from the start and thrilled to see my splits over the first few miles on track. However, whether it was the heat or the headwind I slowly began to give back a few precious seconds over the next few miles as we trekked toward William Penn atop city hall. It was early in the race, so I tried not to read into it, but I was a bit concerned.

The next 5 or so miles were a blur as I did my best to enjoy the experience, keep up the pace, and look out for friends. I spotted the newly engaged Chris and Kristin at mile 6, but it appears I didn’t smile for the camera (it probably had something to do with the fact that I had just run 6 miles and had FOUR more to go!).


There isn’t much to report about the closing stretch. I usually pride myself on powering from mile 7 to 8, but this year I just didn’t have the legs to push through. In hind sight, it looks like the conditions were much more challenging than I realized at the time. At the urging of a spectator at mile 8 I picked up the pace and built my speed all the way to the line. It’s always so rewarding to finish strong…or to finish at all, for that matter!



I crossed the finish line 2 seconds slower than last year (but several hundred places higher in the results), again, a testament to the conditions. Strangely enough I had exact splits of 33:00 and 35:00 for a 1:08:00 total. However, this year, my race was far from over as I sped off to grab my race bag and the camera I had packed inside. I quickly stationed myself on the top row of the bleachers and anxiously awaited Lauren. In no time she came strutting down Broad Street (very quickly I might add) and I did my best to completely botch the picture (note the pink blur with black tights).


After fighting the crowds, I found Lauren and we were soon off to rehash every mile and revel in Lauren’s first Broad Street Run (and fight a massive traffic jam)!

Official race pics coming soon!!

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Living the Good Life

I’ve had many blessing bestowed on me in the past few months and I’m extremely excited to be typing this update from my new apartment in Washington DC (Woodley Park neighborhood to be exact). With lots of free time on my hands throughout the move, I did my best to chronicle each step. My place is still a work in progress, but I’m thrilled with the set-up so far. I love having myself to report to for everything in the apartment and having a home in which I’m proud to host my friends!

Without further ado, I give you the move…

A beautiful morning dawned, and an almost humorously large truck arrived to begin the departure!

In no time the bedroom was organized, packed, and loaded into the truck.

A few additional piles were boxed and loaded in no time as well.

Less than 24 hours later…

It’s still a work in progress, but here you can see the new couch, kitchen table set, coffee table, and the basic set-up of the place. Once I find a home for everything I’ll have to take a few more pictures in better lighting. However, it’s all coming together nicely so far!

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