Into The Off-Season

It was a fun November, but now it's time to go down for a few weeks. I'll recap the last month since it's been a while since my last post.

BAA Master's men - 2nd at New England Cross Country Championships
The last time I had run at Franklin Park was 22 years ago, when I was an undergrad student at Northeastern University. It was fun, although I had already lost some fitness. The team was put together by my team mate Mark http://runfastermaster.blogspot.com/ and we had a strong lineup. My team mate Andrew and I helped displace the competition and keep us in second. I want to come back next year in shape and take this race seriously.

Palmer Cyclocross Place?

I wan't last, but this was a brutal course with steep run ups, which by the last lap was killing my back. My tank mountain bike just wasn't cutting it and I was at a huge disadvantage. This was my first cyclocross ever, so my MRC team mates were congratulating me anyway.

MRC Wrentham Cyclocross Cat 4 36th

Boy - a completely different course! I actually felt great on the bike and will take a mid-pack finish any day. My triathlete team mates were actually surprised I did as well as I did. I actually passed a number of guys (boy, that must have been embarrassing) and finished strong. The down side was the 20 degree temperature made the day just brutal and I barely survived. My mountain bike has just had it and loosened up again, where the crank was hitting the chain stay - I didn't care, just keep cranking those pedals. The day was a blast - drinking frosty John Harvard's brew in the freezing cold. I look back at last year at this time and I hadn't been on the bike for a month and a half, so this cyclocross thing is good motivation to keep going after my race season and something I can do for just fun and not take serious!

Anyway, I have run very little the last week and it is time to go off-season. It's very important for the serious athlete to do this part of periodization ever year. I think it's also helped me keep going all these years without any serious problems. I have checked the blogs and the pro triathletes are also on down time, so now is the right time. The only real training I will be doing is drinking beer and watching the Patriots. I'll continue to swim and go to the gym though, so things don't get too out of control.

Everyone else should be taking some time off too! Boston Marathon training starts in three weeks!!

Cheers!

-Kyle

Season Finally Comes To An End

Well, it has been a long multi-sport year and certainly a bumpy fall, but now I can start looking towards next year. The duathlon in Lowell yesterday turned out to be a big race, with a lot of big competitors, but I'm not surprised, considering the ideal conditions this late in the season. And yes, everyone was saying it was their last race of 07. I'm pleased with my race, eventhough I've lost some fitness and didn't have much power on the bike. I still ran really well considering how little I've been training, due to this foot (yes, it's Plantar Fasciitus - I was wrong again). Eventhough I was 11th yesterday, I would have been 2nd last year, but I will come back and give it another go - that was just my second duathlon. My first 5K (5:59 pace) was almost the same pace as my 5K race in West Acton a few weeks ago and I still manged to run 6:23 pace the last 5K. So on to next year: Ironman Fance in Nice June 22, 2008. I have already spent about 600 Euros so far and it's not going to be a cheap trip to the French Riviera. Also, I will be running my 12th consecutive Boston Marathon this coming April. I will continue to bike as long as this New England fall weather will permit and continue to run short distance. I'll also probably run a couple of 5Ks and see if I can actually get some speed going, but come Jan 1, it will be all training for Nice via Boston. Anyway, this foot thing is a lot better, the house is almost painted and I can enjoy some cool fall running and riding, maybe even try one of those cyclocross races. I hope everyone is healthy and fit.
Cheers, -Kyle

Press Release: BAA Masters Team Wins Winnipesaukee Relay

Straight from the BAA website:

In other racing action over the weekend, on Saturday, September 22nd, the Men's Masters team won the 2007 Fred Brown Relay Around Lake Winnipesaukee (NH) outright, finishing more than 24 minutes ahead of second place. The team completed the 65.1 mile event in a time of 6:44:20 (6:13 pace). Team members included: Bernie O'Reilly, Kyle Bowers, Andy MacDonald, Andrew Gordon, Bob Collins, Chris Smith, Bob Gerrity, and Pat Stumbras. For complete results, Visit the Event Website.

Report:
What a day! I have never done an event with guys from the BAA and we had an absolute blast! The report is short; Bernie was 5th, handed to me and I moved us to 4th and then Andy smashed the field and put us 1 minute ahead with more strong runners coming up. The problem with the other teams is they front loaded their runners and with me running 2nd leg, I would say that we did the opposite, but the truth is ... this powerhouse team just had so much depth that we continued to move ahead on every leg after mine. I believe it was 4 minutes after Andrew and was just building with these guys because they are so fast. I figured it out during the 6th leg that Chris was running and called my wife to tell her that we were going to win this thing all out. I had heard Bob had a fantastic leg and we would have the opportunity to join with the 6 finished runners to cheer on the last two - Bob and Pat; who both were smooth and strong on intense hills. We knew we had it in the bag and stopped every mile or so to cheer them on. All of the legs were extremely hard, not just mine. I did have one mile up hill to start my leg (6:45 pace) and then have steep pounding downhills, which unfortunately has made my foot sore, but I'll get over it. I ran 100% hard and I can still feel all those hills in my legs. I haven't run that hilly of an 11 mile course ever and did no hills in preparation, so trust me - I was glad to hand that baton to Andy!

The only down thing of the day is that when we finished, no one was around!! Not even one other team car. We even waited for 15 minutes and could see nobody for a mile down the road! We would have had to wait four hours for the award ceremony. I had already driven home and had at least three beers by then!

Well done guys! The pleasure was mine!

-Kyle

Off To The Winni Relay

I'll be racing up at Winnipesaukee this weekend with the BAA masters guys. I'll be doing the second leg - 11 miles and hilly, should be fun. This team has been organized by my team mate and is pretty stacked. I would say I'm one of the least fastest guys on the team, but certainly not the slowest. This event has helped me refocus on my running and I'm starting to get back into form. My expectation is we will win the masters men category and probably be in the top three overall. I would really like to see us win this thing overall, but I guess it depends on the competition. Last weekend was the small 5K in Lancaster. Could not keep up with the 20 year-old, but I left it all on the course. I ran 18:13 (5:52's) to finish second, which is one of my faster, certainly my fastest 5K in 2007. This picture is from the Hale off-road tri, probably my last tri of the year :-( , but I'm getting back into the swing here for fall and want to do a fair amount of racing. I still have not decided on a marathon, but I will see how things go and maybe run the inaugural Manchester marathon on Nov. 4. It at least gives me time to prepare and have some fun doing some fall races. See you on the road (or trail), -Kyle

Hale Triathlon Race Report

Once again, looking for a little action last weekend, I went looking for a race. I've been riding my mountain bike quite a lot lately, so I figured I'd give an off-road triathlon a go. Also, most of the other races had been closed for several weeks. This is small tri that benefits kids going to camp at the reservation, which is huge. I have done the TT course, which goes around this resevation and Caryl park, I don't know how many times during IMLP training, so it was interesting to see the area. Anyway, the race; off to a fast start on the swim, but trying to not make the same mistake at Gardner, where my head was spinning, off balance, trying to put on my bike shoes. I was relaxed and concentrated on my stroke; long and quick. I was second all the way from the first buoy and swimming down the leader at the last turn. The last couple of swims was no-wetsuit and I felt like I was going very fast with it on. Right out onto the bike - I think first, because at the bike mount nonbody new what I was talking about when I said "how far behind?". I was confident this might finally be a tri win, but on with the bike. I had ridden out about a mile on the course and it was dirt roads. I figured this would be a lot like the duathlon last year. The race director anounced that they had been "practicing" the course since July and I was confused why that was necessary or it must be for first timers. I knew I had to let the bike fly. As I got out about 1.25 mile, I was flying down around a corner and oh boy, a mine field of large rocks. I was definitely out of control. The trail got worse, small-single track with wet roots and rocks. Pedaling fast and mountain bike hadling skills are two different things. It was a bummer to be leading the race and then give it up big-time, but I was definitely over my head here and it was the difference in the race. I had a real good run where I picked-up a number of guys, but followed someone the wrong way (again), which only cost me about 30 seconds. Got passed from the Colorado Springs transplant (Chris), but managed to stay pretty close to him and passed one more guy at the end. Run was good enough for second fastest (Chris was first), even with the screw-up. Anyway, good race and lots of fun. I have definitely got a long way to go if I want to be a mountain biker. I could also use one of those $4000 bikes that whipped by me - if anyone was unsure about what the want to buy me for Xmas this year. Results:

6th Overall, 1st AG
Overall Time: 0:51:56
Swim: 06:41 (2nd)
T1: 00:46
Bike: 0:29:01 (12th)
T2: 00:39
Run: 0:14:49 (2nd)

I'll post a picture from the race next week - they claim they will post them online. Back to run focalized training. Unfortunately, this may be my last tri of the year :-( I have got to prepare for the Winni Relay which is on 9/22. I'll be running with a stacked BAA masters team. These guys are good runners and there is pressure for me to sharpen my running, as I will be doing an 11 mile leg that features some tough hills. I will concentrate on this for the next two weeks and then evaluate what I'll to do next.

Cheers,

-Kyle

Wapack Trail Race Report

What a day in the mountains! Absolutely clear as a bell. You could see as far south as Boston and as far north as the white mountains. I decided to do this race last minute, having not put in a run longer than 11 miles in the month of August, I knew this would be a challenge. Since there was no trip anywhere this Labor day weekend, I really needed to get out of the house. It has been 3 years, since I had run the Wapack. It is back to being a well run race, with lots of talented, young guys blazing the trail. I am really glad did it. I needed it.
I think there was around 50 runners? A pack of about ten took off real fast. I went in the back. For those that have not done this race and don't know the course; this is an 18 mile extremely challenging trail that is an out and back, over four mountains twice with some long, steep climbs. The pack was eventually gone when we got to the steep climbs and I found myself getting passed by a few guys that looked like they hadn't done this race and were going too fast. I got passed again on the first long downhill by a group - they were all bombing down the hill like crazy. I don't do the psycho-downhill thing. My balance isn't great and I don't have many steep hills around to practice on. It works against me, because there is so much of this in the race and it's a great way to save time. Also, the speed-hiking thing; I'm not great, but I think I did pretty well. Run when you can and where it's too steep, speed-hike. When we got to the flat stretch headed toward Wattatic (actual running!), I began to pick up people again. Going up Wattatic I kept passing one after another. When I got to the turnaround, I think I was 19th. The way back, oh boy this is a tough race - especially when you hit Pratt Mountain - straight up. You've got to pace yourself in this race or pay, and on the way back, I could see a lot of the guys were paying their dues bigtime. Everyone I could see on the trail I eventually passed and ran alone the last two mountains to finish 9th or 10th? I'm not sure because they haven't posted the results on cool-running yet. Anyway, here are the stats:

Finish Time: 3:16 PR by about 15min
Overall place: 9th?
AG place: don't know
Number of falls: 2 pretty good diggers, no blood, nothing broken or falling off
Times off the trail: 1 (also a PR), followed others who ran the wrong way, cost about 2+min.

This race is a must do for any serious trail runner. You should try "running" it before racing it. You need to also carry water, as this year was very warm and bring nutrition as the aid stations only have water/gatorade. It is extremely challenging and you will be payed back by the beauty of these southern NH mountains and actually cross back into Massachusetts for a bit.

Anyway, I am pleased the race went well and I have nothing that hurts, besides the tight quads from all the pounding downhills. I'm ready to get seious about running for the fall and pick some races. I also want to finish up the tri-season with a couple more races. I will post a schedule when I figure things out.

Happy training,

-Kyle

Why Train? Just Race!

I'm thinking of changing the name of this blog to "addicted to racing". It seems to fit lately. I seem to have lost my desire to do any real training, although I continue to work-out, it doesn't seemed to be focused in any particular area. Instead, I've just decided to race. 3 races in 4 days, 4 races in one week. I've come to the reality that I have a problem and probably need therapy. After the race Sunday I realized I was exhausted and needed to cool it for a couple of days, so just did some light running Monday and got lots of sleep the last few nights (i.e. 9-10 hours/night). Anyway, I'm trying to figure out what to with myself post tri-season. If I'm going to do a fall marathon, I need to start serious training next week. I'm also considering not doing a fall marathon and focusing more on bike specific races or maybe duathlon. The other possibility is to trail race - I would love to go back up to Vermont 50K and finally bag that race. That's an appealing option. Or ... not train for anything and just pick races!! Enough said here are the race reports:

Wildcat Triathlon
3rd Elite 7th overall
Swim: 6:57 Bike: 29:38 Run: 12:00 Total: 48:36

I thought I had a dynamite swim. I was right in the mix. Unfortunately, the swim is in the Merrimac, which is gross and I took a couple of mouthfulls. Got out and started hammering on the bike, worked hard with 2 our guys, passing and being passed, everyone kept pushing. I had a 16 year old pass me on the run, which I absolutely wasn't going to let him get away with that. Unfortunately, he was turning over so fast and I eventually broke. Anyway, three weeks of doing absolutely nothing and right back to racing! Good race, well organized and close, but swimming in the Merrimac - yuck. I would still do this race again though.

Clinton 5K
20:06 2nd in 40-44 and 7th overall 7:20 somethingish pace

This is a memorial race for Officer Chuck Martin. Mostly a cross country race up around the reservoir in Clinton, with uneven single track and hills. Race was put on by Central Mass Striders and was pack with runners and a big group of walkers. Fast pace of about 20 runners, many wearing CMS singlets, so I knew it was going to be a good race. Started picking off the pack which strung out as soon as we got to the trails. Finished strong holding off the former 2:30 marathoner in my AG. Great post-race banquet at the club with a huge spread (even cheesecake), beautiful trophies and a lot of fun. I befriended a bunch of law enforcement guys who would not let me buy a round after the lieuntenent (their boss) threw money on the table and told us to have fun. Great raffle afterward where I won a $200 membership to a fitness club - all on a $10 entry. A great race! Must do again next year! Thanks to our friendly local police officers.

Crane's Beach Triathlon
2nd Overall (all though I am listed as 8th - this is wrong and I think my time was 55:09, exactly 3min off - no chip=no splits).

Triathlete beware of any race that does not have a chip. I am glad I did this race because of the ocean swim. This is a local's race, which is in the 20th something year. Very disorganized (hence my place), without transition setup and has dangerous bike leg on busy roads. It was interesting to swim in the ocean, run on the beach and then finish on the bike. I had a really good race, but I'll pass on doing this one again (Oh, by the way, the awards are six packs of soda). They will eventually have someone get killed if they don't restrict the traffic on that road. Good luck.

Gardner Triathlon
Swim: 7:11 Bike:36:29 Run: 23:35 Total: 1:09:22
2nd Overall, 1st Elite

The call this Gilligan's triathlon because the swim goes around this nicknamed island in Dunn's Pond. It's good to see Max Performance adding competition to FIRM and the others. Overall a well organized race. I went out hard on this one and may have swum too hard, had trouble getting into my bike shoes and felt tired on the bike. On the run at the 2 mile marker I put on a huge charge with the opportunity to pick up a couple of places with a 2:20-25 half mile, only to find out there was a second 1 mile loop that went around the pond - oops! (that's called 3 races in 4 days). I thought I was going to die. I actually ran pretty well even though I had gone anaerobic and finished strong. This was a fun race that will appeal to small timers on the same weekend as Timberman.

Trying to figure out what I want to do the next few weeks. Maybe Chicopee and/or Hopkinton and maybe Sherborn/Dover. Any suggestions?

Cheers!

-Kyle

Ready To Go On A Racing Rampage!

The vacation is over. I'm fully recovered from the race. Everything that bothered me before, during and after the race seems to be gone. I am ready to get back to racing. The first race back will be this Sunday at the Wildcat Sprint in Lowell. I absolutely need to be in the first wave of the swim - hopefully it will just be a mass start. I know this course well because it goes down and around the Baystate Marathon course - it's flat, fast and I am going to hammer all-out on the bike. The run is short, so this should be a good experiment to see how fast I can go after all of those months of endurance training and racing. I haven't really done a whole lot the last three weeks. Did a little bit at the track the other day. I have been riding real light the last two weeks. There's not really any training to do for these races and I'm just going to race. After all, I am still pretty fit from the intense training for IMLP, that started all the way back in January. I have gained a couple of kilos from the vacation, but it is slowly starting to come off - too may all-you-can-eat buffets and the post race pie-athlons.
After this weekend, I have three races planned in four days. They are all short, so I don't think there will be any issues. Here's the schedule:

Wildcat Triathlon, Lowell MA Sunday Aug. 12
Clinton 5K, Clinton MA Thursday Aug. 16
Ipswich Triathlon, Crane Beach Friday Aug. 17
Gardner Heritage Triathlon, Gardner MA OR Sodus Point Triathlon, Rochester NY - both Sunday Aug. 19
Chicopee Triathlon, Chicopee MA Sunday Aug. 26
Hoptkinton Triathlon, Hopt. MA Sunday Sept. 9

I need to find out whether or not I'm going to be forced by my wife into traveling to Rochester, NY next weekend. If so, payment will be the Sodus Point Tri, but I would much rather race at the inaugural Gardner Tri. Anyway, I'll refine the schedule as I get closer to the dates and hopefully the entries won't close.

I posted this picture of the swim start becuase I am in there somewhere. It's not possible to identify anyone in that mess, but that's where I was - right in the middle, about two bodies from the line.

If anyone has any suggestions for races - triathlons, running, trail, etc. Let me know. I'm open for suggestions.

-Kyle

Lake Placid Ironman Race Report

Sorry for the late report - I'm still on vacation and I've been without internet access for some time. First of all I would like to thank my family, team-mates, friends, training partners, the support crew and all! No one ever said this sport was easy and I just received another reminder of that reality!

Anyway here are the splits:

Overall time: 10:23:58
Swim: 1:07:40
Bike: 5:33:32
Run: 3:35:23

Report:

Swim did not go well. I found it difficult to find any open water. I got kicked in the side and popped a couple of times, once in the face, but luckily my goggles stayed on. My swimming has come a long way (see the other race reports), but it didn't show in this race. Too many people trying to go to the same spot:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTmT2gkWUgk

I still beat my time of last year though.

The bike: What happened my second loop split? It felt like I was going just as fast, but my split was slow. There was a head wind going through the gap headed towards Keene. Anyway, still faster than last year, but a lot slower than my competitors.

The run: Warm and sunny. Another fight against dehydration. I took in an incredible amount of fluids to fight it off. Keeping cool anyway possible was key in this one. I was running while most were walking in the second half. I thought I had a pretty decent marathon given the conditions were a lot more difficult than last year and I still ran faster. The nagging left hip flexor thing again in the last three miles, but at that point, it's just another thing that hurts.

Anyway, some tough international competition with former pros and non-pro elites all competing in my age group. The long and the short - I missed Kona again by one slot! ughh! 10:40 would have got me there at the last non-male pro race two years ago. It shows I have got a long way to go - this being my second Ironman. I need to compete with those guys on the bike. As Chris McCormack has said in interviews - if he had just come to Kona and won on his first attempt, he wouldn't be the athlete he is today. I feel the same way about myself - take it to the next level and come back and nail it next year!

I'll post again when I'm back on 8/6, until then, happy recovery!

Rock On!

-Kyle

Race Week - Ironman Lake Placid 2007

Well, this will be my last post until the race. Everything has gone pretty smooth. I have trained harder, longer and more focused then I have ever trained for an event ever. My 41 year old body has held up and I have certainly never been as fit as I am now. I have made some huge strides, including my swimming, which has come out of nowhere. I am going to swim faster with much less effort, which is going to help me a lot this year in the later stages of the race. My bike miles have doubled from last year's training. I had a number of weeks at 300 miles with one around 350. I have forced myself to stop training, because I know that it will only have a negative impact on the race. This is definitely going to be an anxious few days. I can't wait to get up there and I think I will start to relax once I get up into the race environment. This should be a big day for me and I hope it will be a turning point for me as an athlete. I will use knowledge from last year's race to put in a solid and optimized performance. This picture is the run course out-and-back with the Olympic ski jumps in the background.
I hope everyone has had a good training period and is ready to race. I will post a race report when I can. I wish all the racers good luck - it should be a blast!

-Kyle

Patriot Half Iron Weekend

Well it's finally here ... The big race season has begun. I will be racing in the open division with the big boys on this one. I will be going hard. Enough said, I am hoping this is a race that I finally earn some respect in this sport - we'll see.

Last weekend's last huge training; 115 miles on the bike (4 loops of the course +) and 30 minutes of hard running, followed next day by a 20 mile run (7.5min/mi) is over - thank god. My mileage last week was the biggest ever; 350 miles bike, 55 runing and ~ 10K yards swimming. I wouldn't even consider this tapering for the race, but the timing is for me to be peaking with Lake Placid approaching. That is the race, Patriot will have to come second to the IM training. Anyway, I'm told to keep training by the coach - no days off, so I'll keep the high cadence stuff going, light running and moderate swimming. I'm looking for the big PR in this race, so wish me luck. I'm also anticipating big PRs on the swim and bike legs.

I hope everyone has a great race - team mates, friends, training partners and all! This should be an interesting inaugural race. I've already placed my money on my coach to win, probably by a landslide. Hopefully, he will tire everyone out from chasing him and I'll place in the top decade or so of the open cat.

Cheers! I'll post a race report when I get back.

-Kyle

Pivotal IronMan Training Day

So you are thinking about doing an Ironman sometime. Lake Placid is always a good choice, because you don't need to get on a plane (if you live in the Northeast US or Canada). Unfortunately, if you do sign up for a race (the year before, because they sell-out in about an hour), you'll need to do these kind of pivotal workouts - unless you want to suffer out there on race day, which I don't recommend. Read on ....

Sunday's workout:

105.4 miles on the bike; 7mi warm-up, 3x25+ on with 7mi recovery.

10 mile run; 2.5 warm-up, 4x1mi with .25mile recovery, 2.5 cool-down

We averaged overall about 19 mi/hr including warm-up and recovery loops, so I figure that the on-ntervals were between 21-22 miles an hour. All good when considering the on-interval loop climbs Oak Hill (only the locals can appreciate).

My 1 mile run splits were between 6:00 (1st) and 6:20 (last) and I felt real good, but the last one took some effort.

The total workout time was 7 hours. Not a bad day at all. I felt great all day and I am feeling real good on the bike for a change. I thought I might actually run four 6min flat miles, but the fact that I could run as well as I did after riding 5 1/2 hours, means I'm pretty fit. I hope I feel that good on race day - it will be a big day for me (cross fingers).

I followed up today with 1:44 run (12+ miles) not too fast, but to keep those legs going. Light commute on the mtn bike with back-pack et al. - I also like to get in a different (upright) position. I hope to get in 3200 in the pool tonight.

Tomorrow back to the track for some fast 400s, probably an early morning ride. This weekend will be the townie road race, which I hope to bag, but seems every year that a non-local comes in to take it. The following day is the next scheduled complete day off - June 17th - exactly three weeks from the last.

Anyway, the 42 year old body is holding up okay. I need to add in some type of yoga or I guess more stretching to keep the body loose. Anyone that has any questions about Ironman training should feel free to email me (included in profile). I continue to be coached and am doing some coaching, so I can see both sides of the fence.

We are 6 weeks away from Lake Placid IM http://www.ironmanusa.com/ . I'll do another one of these in two weeks, but it will probably be less miles because of the Patriot 1/2 Iron race http://www.patriothalf.com/ .

I'll conclude with three words; bike, bike and more bike.

Party On!

-Kyle

Race Report Mooseman International Distance Triathlon

I don't think I've ever won anything at a triathlon before, certainly not at a race this big, not to mention the short distances I didn' have big hopes for this race, but I managed to grab 2nd in my age group and 25th overall.

The weather held out and didn't produce any rain, in fact at times it was very sunny and felt hot.

The race featured Jarrod Shoemaker (Pro/ITU/U23 World Champion), who was just looking out over the water taking in the sights as he passed me by from the out and back run, cruising along at a 5min/mile pace.

This race for me is a big disadvantage because of the long swim. I did go into the race thinking I would try to swim hard and follow with a fast bike. I sprinted at the beginning of the swim and got into a decent pack which I held onto throughout the swim. A few times I had to sprint to stay in the paceline, which was just fine with me, since we were moving at a good pace (and I wasn't leading). I am getting better at taking a breath every four strokes on the sprint, which is helping me a lot. Also, I stop kicking to preserve the legs for later in the race. I didn't start kicking until the end, where I opened back up and sprinted in. Probably my best swim at a tri to date and felt really fresh going into T1. I had a good bike. I rode hard, but I got passed by my AG competitor at shoreline drive and I really needed to stay with him. I am kicking myself because I know I could have stayed with him - I just needed to ride harder. I could see him throughout the run, but could not reel him in, despite a hard charge the last two miles. I felt hot on the run and really didn't have a fast run, but I'll take it. I think it is all a result of the heavy training the last few weeks, with many hours on the bike. The most important race is July 22.

Some fast times the next day at the 1/2 iron race. Almost all of my team mates had PRs. My biggest AG competitor for Lake Placid (that guy from Quebec) put in some blazing splits and won the AG with no competition. It's motivating me to reanalyze what I need to do for Placid. I'm not concerned with the swim, but I need to get faster on the bike and still have a great marathon.

Anyway, a light couple of days and back to it tomorrow. Here's the splits from the race:

Swim (1mile) - 24:52, Bike (27+mile) -1:15:03, Run (10K) - 40:24, Total - 2:23:00

Back Online May 25th

Hope everyone's IronMan training is going well. A large number of athlete's at Walden Pond this morning at 5:30am. I know some are training for Coeur D'Alene in June, which I plan on in '08, but most of us are training for Lake Placid. It feels great to be swimming open water again.

I'll summarize the last couple of weeks: allergies, sick, 2 hours a day each day on the trainer with the cold, rainy weather, stress, not much fun. My coach is telling me to cycle 350 miles a week. A distance I have yet to reach (mostly in the mid-200s), but now that the weather looks like it's going to be decent for a stretch, I think I can come close to that mileage. Last weekend was the Lion's Sprint Triathlon. Any race that starts with the word "sprint" is not going to be a great race for me, but I managed 3rd in my AG not far behind some pretty quick guys.

Swimming is going well. I've ramped down my swimming lately, but the 5 days a week over the winter has really paid off. I think I have made it over the hurdle, finally. I am also trying to keep my running fitness and still improve on speed, but I will continue to concentrate on the bike. It is my best opportunity to shave off time the IronMan.

Race Schedule is:

June 2 - Mooseman International Distance, Bristol, NH
July 1 - Patriot (Inaugural) Half Iron, Freetown, MA
July 22- IronMan Lake Placid, NY

I am doing things different this year, doing different races and distances. I want to keep this sport interesting and the best way to do that is to mix up the races. The coach's theory is: rather than doing the Mooseman 1/2 and taper/recover, instead do Patriot and not taper, then I can recover and taper for the IronMan at the same time. The schedule also has fewer races, so I can focus on the primary goal and get to race in Kona this year.

This weekend is the "Sufferfest" 55mi bike + 6x1mi on the track at 6:00 pace (or faster) with 30 second rest. I think we'll be doing a post ride of maybe 25. It should be fun. It will be nice to get out and train with some of the local pro-athletes.

Anyway, evrything is going well. I had a massage yesterday and feel good, although the transition to heavy biking from marathon has had some small impact on the legs.

See you on the road,

-Kyle

Epic Training Weekend

I'll keep this post short. Here it is: 10 A-team triathletes, one weekend of training.

Friday Workout Day #1: 5600 yds swim, 56 mile bike, 4.3 mile run.

Saturday Workout Day #2: 3000 yds swim, 100 miles bike, 1.25 mile run

Special thanks to MD for making this happen. We were on a roll. For me, Sunday was the NE 10K championships in Groton. I managed to run okay, even after the intense days of training. It did feel a little bit like a run off the bike, but all things considering, I'm happy with it. I'm not sure I will ever race again 13 days after running a marathon.

I did a short spin (1/2) this morning and already swam 2500 yds. I'll finish the day off with 1/2hr easy running. That's called a recovery day.

I feel good. It's amazing I did that much cycling without any reaction from the body. I'm still a little tired though, so tomorrow may be moderate also. Next Sunday is the NE 5K championships in Westford. I'm hoping to PR, but don't want the race to get in the way of the IronMan training.

Get out on the bike everyone!

-Kyle

Post-Marathon "Noodle" Week

The recovery week has gone pretty well. I managed to escape my 24th marathon without any issues. I went for a massage on Friday (I'm finally doing things right this time) and that was the end of any signs of the race. Not much to speak of this week. I call it the "Noodle week" because even though I did some stuff this week, it didn't really amount to anything - some light running, spinning and 30 mile ride on Saturday morning. I even managed to "blow off" my 5 mile run later Saturday morning - see, there is still hope! Although, I struggled, wasn't even sure I could do it! Thought I might have to run later in the day, but I managed to keep from doing it. Took the ENTIRE day off on Sunday. Just enjoyed the beautiful weather on my deck, without worrying about being carried off by mosquitoes. Three hours of yardwork later on killed any need to do any training that day. I think the lousy weather really took the desire to do any real training last week. I made up for it by eating barabecue ribs, ice cream, all-you-can-eat chinese buffet (they lost money on that one), the typical post race loss of discipline, but that is now out of the system and I'm back to reality. I really hope this weather will stay with us for a while, we've definitely earned it.

Some quick stats and recap of Monday:

2:53:11

We did score 4th masters, results finally corrected: 4. B.A.A. 8:36:39 (Bell, Bowers, Nerrow)
24th marathon, 11th straight Boston

PR by 5:15 seconds, Boston PR by 9:19 - almost ten minutes!!!

Some folks have asked if I think I can get faster at 41. I think I can go much faster!!

I hope everyone had a good noodle week. The training has already started again today. I am back on the bike and need to go for my run now, spring swimming session resumes tonight.

Next stop: IronMan Lake Placid July 22, 2007

I am ready to train at a higher level than before. I am going to train my head off!

I want to win this race!! No Secrets!

Back to it!

-Kyle

Race Report - The 111th Boston Marathon 2007

You may have seen one of these lime green shirts over the bridge at 128. The cheering section was pretty hard to miss. Even a fellow BAA teammate cheering on noticed all the green shirts and asked, "Are you guys cheering for Kyle Bowers?"

I would first like to thanks my wife, who shuttled 1/2 dozen athletes to the start and picked us up at the finish. My family, friends, MRC teammates, BAA teammates and everyone that has supported me over the last year. I sit here writing this with a Guinness in my hand, and boy does it taste good.

I would also like to congratulate my BAA and MRC teammates who ran. The times are unbelievable! I will definitely have to get faster next year.

Here is the report: I saw BAA coach Jeff on the way to the village and he said he had heard a report that there were bands of showers coming through. Just as he said that, it began to downpour a very cold rain. I opted for the long sleeve coolmax, my hat and gloves. The plan was to keep everything dry as long as possible. The race shoes and socks went on seconds before the start. In the corral, I dropped one of my gloves in a puddle while lubing, before I could grab it a squeeze the water out, someone picked it up and threw it away. The gun went off and I was quickly warm, wishing I had gone with the coolmax tee. As always, off to quick start - first 5k was 6:22 or something. It's aways fast coming down the hills, it's just going to happen. It felt so good to be running! The two days off before the race; the first day my legs were tight, the second day was worse. I guess I'm just not made to stop! I spent a lot of time soaking and messaging - to try to losen them up. Race day everything felt great. I even got some sleep with the wind and rain pounding the side of the house. Anyway the first half felt like nothing and I went through at 1:24 and change. I was hoping to sustain that pace throughout, but I knew I would lose time in the hills. I got whipped with some wind and rain up the first hill, but I could feel the conditions getting cooler and windier going up Heartbreak. From there on the headwind was tough, it's going to slow you down. It's in your face, there is nothing you can do. I was on target for 2:50 and I know I have it me, but this year wasn't the day. It was starting to look like 2:52. I also started to feel a cramp coming on the last three miles. I tried to keep from lifting my right foot high on the kick and just turnover as fast as I could. My nightmere of my calf seizing, but of course that didn't happen and I finished strong.

Here are the stats:

Finish: 2:53:11

I scored 2nd for the BAA masters, behind my talented teammate Mark B. - check out his race report: http://runfastermaster.blogspot.com/

Why aren't we scored as the fourth masters team?? Does anyone know?

1st Local runner Acton/Boxborough

468th Overall

438th Gender

70th Division

14th Massachusetts Master

I hope everone had a good race and are satisfied. You never get ideal conditions in New England. There is always some curveball thrown at you. This year was advantage us, because we've trained in lousy conditions all winter and are mentally prepared for it.

I'll be checking the other bloggers to see how things went - Michael?:

http://love2runcanada.blogspot.com/

Anyway, I am ready to get faster as a runner, but next stop is the:

IronMan Lake Placid July 22, 2007

I am hoping for the same type of performance at IMLP as I had at Boston. For me it's all about the bike. Training resumes in one week and as you have guessed, it will go to the next addicted level.

Bottoms Up!

-Kyle

Pre-Race Day 2007 Boston Marathon 111th

My legs surpisingly are a litte bit achey. I'll continue to work them out, stretch, etc. to see if I can make it all go away. It's the typical pre-race thing, you never feel as good as when you are training hard, beating up the body and the mind.

Well after several days of media-hype about the storm and concerns about hypthermia, it looks like race day, at least the part during the race isn't going to be too bad. It's just like a number of those supposed snow storms that just turn out to be a dud. I think the conditions are going to be ideal.

This race will be my 11th consective Boston. I am looking to smash my PR (2:58:26 BayState 2006) and last year's Boston PR (3:02:30). I certainly have the fitness to do it. Now it's just putting the money where the mouth is ...

I wan to wish everyone good luck in tomorrow's race: BAA team mates, MRC team mates, friends and all the folks coming in to experience what a spring New England race is all about. I know the conditions will be wet and there will be a head-wind, but I just hope they can keep the streets from flooding - that would be a real big problem. Everyone should be off thier feet and enjoying the carbo-loading. I have aleardy gained a few pounds, which I think is good, since I am fairly thin this year (~150 lbs. and 6% body fat).

Anyway, get rest, relax and have a great race tomorrow!!

-Kyle

Last Week Before The Marathon

Ah, yes, the taper week. It's always something I struggle with; to slow down. The typical addict struggles to stop. I had some pain above the ankle on the right foot yesterday, but it seems to be gone today. It's good I have a little pain, because it puts fear in me before I go run, making me take it easy. I have a massage scheduled for Thursday anyway, just to be sure that the legs get workout.

I'm satisfied with my last two major workouts; one at the track and one with Mark, check out his report at http://runfastermaster.blogspot.com/ . All the splits were fast, a positive indication that I am going to have a real good race. Some tempo today and Thursday at MP, but no big deals. I can't find my watch, so I will probably just play it by ear and try to stay in control.

The work is done. Now I'm just trying to get plenty of sleep, eat high vitamin food and figure out my schedule for race day - no more sleeping in on race day! Ughh!

Anyway, I hope everyone's training has gone well. These few days are the toughest, because when the body is fine tuned, it just wants more. Get rest and take it slow! If I can do it, there hope for us all.

Cheers,

-Kyle

Week Of March 26th

Last hard workout yesterday, 3x2000m @ 10K pace. My pace was the same on all three, right at 5:50 per mile, which gives me a 36:10 10K. That would certainly be a PR since undergraduate school. According to the McMillan calculator http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/Running%20University/Article%201/mcmillanrunningcalculator.htm that would give me a 2:49:44 marathon. That's wishful thinking for Boston. Anyway, I hope everyone gets their last hard workout in. Next week things start to slow down. Just under 3 weeks until the race. Cheers! -Kyle

Week Of March 19th

I think I've finally got my running together this year. What I lack in talent, I'm making up for with persistant training. Last weekend was New Bedford Half Marathon (time:1:22:08, pace 6:16). I am trying to figure out what my Boston pace should be, but the McMillan calculator came out with 2:53. I think that might be fast for Boston, but we'll see. I'm off to go run a 20+ miler. We'll see how it goes.