What I'm Shooting For

During the last week, I took some time to figure out what I wanted to do with the summer as far as racing. I committed to a few things last week and I wanted to give a little rundown on each of them. I'm really excited about the events that are coming down the pike. BUT........

We all need to give a big Chasqui shout out to ChasquiSam. Sam ran the first Ragnar Wasatch Back with us, as well as the first Ragnar So Cal. He is an incredible athlete to say the least. This last weekend, Sam competed in the Ironman in Coeur d'alene in Idaho. That's a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike, and a 26.2 mile run. Sam completed the race in 11:58.32. 1:19 for the swim, 5:43 for the bike (that's 19.5 mph), and 4:35 for the marathon at the end (that's 10:30 per mile pace). I am amazed at anyone who completes an Ironman. Sam, well done on a super performance. I'm proud to know and to have competed with you.

Ok, now for a few event rundowns.

Oceanside Pier Swim- Labor Day Weekend, Chasquitristan and I will be doing this as a fun father/son event. Just for the heck of it and have some fun doing it. The family is coming down for it and we'll end up spending the rest of the day on the beach in Oceanside with my cousin and her family who I invited up from San Diego. This will be fun and a good primer for events to come.

Amica Lake Las Vegas Triathlon (Sprint)- Sep. 11. This event had me scratching my head for the better part of the week. If you win this tri outright, you qualify for the series finale in Phoenix. I thought that to qualify, you raced the Olympic distance which is longer than the Sprint. This in not the case. The winner comes from the Sprint distance. I looked at the winner's times from last year where I raced the Olympic distance, and blew up spectacularly. Bruce Balch won, I know the guy, I've ridden with him a couple times a few years back. This is his M.O. haul ass on the bike and survive the other 2 disciplines. I looked at his splits and then went to work figuring out on paper, ON PAPER, what I was capable of. I could very well win this race, i think. So, that's what I'm going for. I did a few bike tests last week and I really think it's doable. Race day is something completely different. I"m going to go for it anyhow. I'm also stoked for the Chasqui Relays that will be racing the Olympic course.

Slam the Dam- 8 km. open water swim- Oct 3. This is the event I want to really do well in. I have never swam that long, straight. I have swam workouts that take 2 hours where we swim about 6-7 kms, but not a straight 8 k. JB and Weintzy are going to be my required paddlers/life support. I think it should take about 2 hrs to swim this race. Race day conditions will ultimately decide the outcome, but I will show up in shape, ready to dual anyone. Glad I have a "team" for this too. So much more rewarding when you can share a success with a team. Ragnar has showed us all that.

Sharkfest 1 Mile Open Water Swim, Oct 16. We'll see how well this goes. I hope to have recovered in time after the Slam the Dam event. It's only a mile and should be fun. The participants are taken by ferry out to some island and, from deep water start, head straight to shore- a drag race so to speak.

And speaking of Ragnar......

Ragnar LV, Oct 22-23. Need I say more?

I will write up some race reports for your reading pleasure after each event. It should be a fun summer of training leading up to these events. Speaking of training, it's lunch time I gotta get a swim in.