Achievement Unlocked: Augusta 70.3 Registration!

It's hard to put a monetary price on becoming a 70.3 athlete, but WTC has done it.  I put the money down about 30 minutes ago, and I'm ecstatic!  

So, now that I've paid, what are my goals?  I'll break them down into 3 categories: A (Best race day ever!), B (What is possible with a solid training schedule that I stick to), and C (Worst case scenario).  

A Goals:

Swim: 27 Minutes (We're going downstream, so this is realistic)

T1: 4 Minutes

Bike: 3:25 (16mph average)

T2: 3 Minutes

Run: 2:11 (10 min/mile pace)

Total: 6:10

B Goals:

Swim: 33 Minutes

T1: 6 Minutes

Bike: 3:45 (15mph average)

T2: 6 Minutes

Run: 2:30 (11:30 min/mile pace)

Total: 7:00

C Goal:

Finish.  Without dying.  

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.

Yes, it has been FOREVER since I've written here. I'll give you the breakdown.

I finished Rocketman Florida! 8:23:19 for those interested in the time. Here is my finisher's picture.

What's next? I'm glad you asked. Here is my short & long term race calendar.

2014
March 15: Centerpoint 5K
May 11: Agape's 3rd Annual Run for a Mom 5K (I'm running the course an hour before to turn this into a 10K)
September 28: Augusta Ironman 70.3
October 12: Montgomery Half Marathon
November 1: Volunteer at Ironman Florida
November 2: Sign up for Ironman Florida 2015
November 3: Pray that I don't have buyer's remorse after dropping the cash on Ironman Florida.

2015
November 7: Ironman Florida

Where I currently stand-
The Good: I have a 70.3 distance behind me. I know I can do it.
I still like swimming. A local swim coach has offered to coach a couple of us as well.
I'm actually enjoying the runs that I'm doing. I have a copule of guys who I run with, and this makes it much more enjoyable, even on my solo days.
Speaking of those guys, they are great accountability partners. I can tell the accountability is going to be great.

The Bad:
As of this morning, I weigh 243. I'm a big dude.
I still don't have a convenient place to practice open water swimming.
I'm more involved with Upward Basketball than I have been in the past. Time is at a premium until after March 1.

The Ugly:
I'll never be a good blogger. This is nothing new.

I'm continuing my journey to 140.6. I'm looking forward to hearing, "Jerry Shands, You are an Ironman!"

Introduce the Wetsuit

One mile swim today in the open water. And by open water I mean the FRIGID open water.  Many thanks to Mark of Team MMS who opened his lake house for us to go out and get some open water time in.  After this, I feel very good about the swim portion of Rockeman Florida!

Time to Refocus

What should have been a couple of the strongest training weeks have dwindled into almost nothing. Sickness and home repairs knocked training down to the bottom of my priority list. Not good when my first 70.3 is only 31 days away. Here is my plan to get started again: Tomorrow, I'm running at 5:00am. I'm going to run for 45 minutes, then swim 2000 yards at 6:00am. I'm rested, so I should be able to do both of those. Saturday will be a two hour bike ride with a 20 minute brick run. Sunday is an open water swim with Team MMS. Going forward I have to focus on improving my running, and maintaining my bike and swim abilities. I also have to do a brick run after every bike ride. Even with the setbacks, I'm still confident in finishing. It is going to be a great day, and I'll wear my medal with pride!

Where Does The Time Go?

Wow, it has been over a month since I posted... oh well, I can't go back and change that. Training is going pretty good. Swimming is still great, biking is still good, and running... well, I can't drown on the run. I've been able to swim the 1.2 miles with relative ease, and a couple of weeks ago I got in a 56* mile ride on the bike. Running is coming along OK. Two weeks ago I set a PR in the 5K at 31:46 - over two minutes faster than my previous PR! Now, I just need to work on my brick runs and get my distance up. There is only 6 weeks until the Rocketman Florida 70.3. Just as I did with the blog today, I'm sure I'll be saying, "Where did the time go?!?," but I'm looking forward to the race. I had to take the last week off of training due to illness. And by illness, I really mean "the crud" that comes from allergy and sinus trouble. However, I'm back to 100% now, and should be able to bounce back into training. Until next time! *56 miles was really 55.5, with the last .5 walking due to busting BOTH tubes and only having one spare. Lesson learned: I will have two or three spares with me on race day. However, if I go through 3 spares, I might just give up.

My Next 13.1

Here is the last 13.1 miles of the Rocketman Tri.

Make sure you have the Google Earth plugin for your browser.


       
 

Aero Bars

I love 'em!