2013 in Review

It is that time of the year again.  I am officially done racing and can take some time off from exercising.  This means I won't be swimming, biking, or running for any reason at all.  The next few weeks I'll be refreshing my mind, evaluating the year, and looking forward to 2014 races.  Here is a brief summary of all the races this year and some lessons I learned:

March Triathlon Series (San Luis Obispo, CA)

This was going to be the earliest triathlon I've ever done in a year.  Since it was cold in Iowa all winter I hadn't got out on my bike a lot and likely showed in my handling.  In the past year I hadn't had to deal too much with the physicality of a triathlon swim and this was an awakening of that.  Main thing I remember is that just being out in the sun the day before (which was a change from the cold March we had in Iowa) can cause  your muscles to get fatigued and sore.

USAT Collegiate Nationals (Tempe, AZ)

Collegiate Nationals

Tough run to push through.

I had never had a good race at nationals so this had to happen.  My swim focus over the winter allowed me to come out of the water in a group, finally. The technicality of the bike course showed that I still hadn't been able to be on my bike too much all year.  The run really had been my focal point for this race due to the fact that years past caused me to give up on it.  Keeping my pace up was extremely tough but I was able to hold on and kick just a little too soon which caused me to not remember much of the finish chute.

RiverRun 10K (Iowa City, IA)

This race was going to be a build race into my next few races.  I did a strong block of training the days leading into it to make it a sore and hard run.  This also began the downfall of my IT band injury as I could feel it warming up.  When the gun went off the adrenaline kicked in and I forgot about the soreness and injury until I crossed the finish line in 1st place.  First time I've ever won a race, it was nice to savor that moment for the closing miles.

RiverRun

Kansas 5150 (Lawrence, KS)

Picture doesn't even begin to describe the frustration.

A bad day for me to race.  Swim cancelled, two flats on the bike, and quitting the run within a half mile due to the pain.  It was frustrating to make such a long drive to have this kind of a result but hopefully that'd be the last time for the year. This race was more influential than most in that is helped me realize what was important and to keep composed with regards to things I can and can't control.

Kansas 70.3 (Lawrence, KS)

Going from having this as my one and only goal for the year for nine months, thinking everyday about this race, preparing for this one race, and then having to settle for just trying to finish was tough.  I was able to see the months of preparation on the swim and bike really shine out. Even with little run training and injury I was still able to put out a respectable run, showing that the months leading up to my injury were not completely wasted.

My plan to "Chris Lieto the bike" seemed to work well.

Evergreen Triathlon (Hudson, IL)

First time racing Elite. Brutal swim, got punched which caused me to bleed for the whole race.  The bike course I found out why I needed to taper and the same carried into the run.  More than anything though was I realized the mindset you have to be in to race at this level.  You can't let somebody just run in front of you; you have to work to get past them even if you don't want to go.

Omaha Triathlon (Omaha, NE)

My first time doing a race just to do it.  I let my racing mindset go and just enjoyed the day.  It was quite fun to be singing along during the bike but after a while I really wanted to get off the bike (I'm not sure why 1.25 hours seemed so long being as I had all of RAGBRAI to do still). Also would like to point out that my ENTIRE warm-up for this race was a not so graceful cartwheel walking to the swim start.

Bluff Creek Triathlon (Ogden, IA)

Bluff Creek

Finally racing back in Iowa where I know what to do. Swim came out amazing! Top 10 swim for first time ever.  This was a big realization that I wasn't tapering right and had nothing in the tank for race day.  My mind wanted to go but the legs just couldn't do anything. My motivation to make a change in my last few races.

Pigman Olympic Triathlon (Palo, IA)

Not the swim I wanted but finding the legs on both the bike and the run were huge.  It is amazing how much different I felt just a week earlier. Having a kick to really dig in the final miles of the run started to show in this race.

US 5150 National Championship (Des Moines, IA)

Overall, I never gave up.  Really happy with how I refused to go down without a fight.  Letting the mind go and just digging deeper when I knew it was necessary.  I took the kick from my last race and made it even bigger.

US 5150 National Championship

Indian Summer Distance Classic (Solon, IA)

I think WAY too much about what is going on.  Sometimes you just have to trust in what you've done and just go.  Know your strengths and use them.

IMT Des Moines Marathon (Des Moines, IA)

The intensity is a different level and style than a triathlon which would take the same time.  Never before have I had a pace feel so easy that I could carry on an easy conversation at one point be the same pace where I had to grit my teeth and bury myself a few miles later. The transition of different muscle groups throughout a triathlon allowed me to work harder overall where this caused more muscle fatigue than I'd ever experienced.

Overall, it was a great year.  I'm quite happy with how it all turned out overall.  I'd like to believe that any setbacks were able to spring me into my next accomplishment and will help to in the upcoming season as I prepare.  Thanks for checking in!