"You're insane, I could never do that" Marine Corps Marathon

It's December 14 and its almost 2 months post my first ever 26.2 journey.  I have been neglecting this post for long enough but there are some reasons behind that.  I have started to structure my "race reports" different and I don't want them to be a play by play of all the events leading up to the race.  Instead I am attempting to recreate the feelings leading up to, during and after the race.  This race had a lot of feelings behind it so I wanted to get my thoughts together before I put it all down.  Today someone said to me, "I still can't believe you ran a marathon!" and I thought there was no better time than the present to get things down on the screen.

Let's start with a few facts before the race, leading up and in training.  I was a complete rookie and I made every mistake possible so I want to get that all out for people to learn from.  Over the summer, after Atlantic City I began ramping up my running.  My first long run was a 13 miler and I decided to make it 13.1 to complete my first half.  This was a different first half because there were no aid stations, no cheering, just me and the rode.  I packed a couple gels and completed the run in under two hours.  I was thrilled.  From there things went down hill.  For about three weeks in a row I pack the SAME amount of gel or maybe one more and ONE water bottle.  I couldn't figure out why I was hitting a wall every time and couldn't get through 2 hours of running.

Fast forward and after many phone conversations with seasoned runners I came to terms with the fact that I was under fueling and under hydrating for the demands of marathon training.  I ordered a bag of custom Infinit Nutrition (check it out here) and waited anxiously for it to arrive.  It came and I threw every time goal out the window at this point and my main goal for the day of the marathon was merely to finish.  Leading up to Marine Corps I had one 18 mile long run and one split 20 mile long run.  This will come into play later.  Unfortunately due to time constraints this was all I could push my body to do in order to recover properly for the marathon.

The race was on Sunday and I left the Thursday before for Washington DC.  The expo was friday and I was advised to get in as early as possible and I am glad I did.  I met some amazing people for the first time who had helped me through training and they reassured me that I was ready and I WOULD finish.  Aside from the normal expo shannanigans it was business as usual.  My cousin had just recently moved to the DC area from California and so I got a chance to see him for the first time in probably about 4-5 years.  He is an active duty Marine so it meant a lot to me to see him before the race.  As we were walking back from a late lunch he said something to me that stuck with me for the rest of the weekend.  He looked me dead in the face and said "Listen I know a lot of people have told you a lot of different things about completing this race.  I am not hear to over load you with any new information, I just want you to remember one thing, don't ever stop moving.  He looked me dead in the eyes and said listen to me DO NOT STOP MOVING!" This resonated with me and I took it very serious.  Little did I know how useful this would become.

Saturday came around and I wanted to stop back by the expo to exchange a shirt I bought the day before.  We got of the metro at the exit and before we even got to the top of the escalator I could see the line.  I said to my girlfriend "Thank god we came yesterday!" we turned around and got back on the subway.  It was off to some sight seeing for the day.  So we explored DC and saw all of the sites.  Another key mistake on my part.  At the time I did not realize it but later that day I knew I made a mistake.  We walked EVERYWHERE that day and by the end of the day my legs were tired.  Not to the point of exhaustion but I knew that they were tired.  I knew it was a mistake but I couldn't change it at that point.  I met with my parents, had a wonderful dinner and it was off to bed.

I woke up the next morning full of nerves.  I tried to eat as much as I could but it was a struggle.  With every bite I felt like I was swallowing a boulder. I dropped of a bottle of nutrition with the facebook crew in the lobby that I would exchange around mile 20(another key point) and it was off to the metro.  The rest of my bottle were in a bag with my family and I would exchange them along the route.  We followed the crowds to the start and it was a long walk through the parking lot. From there it was just a waiting game.  I made my way over to the start and I was overcome with emotion.  It was time, I was about to embark on the hardest journey of my life.  I waited to see my mom and sister before I started because they wanted to send me off.  I saw them and then began walking up to the start line.  I was way in the back of the pack for the start.

Largest flag ever used in a jump!

Here we goooooooo!

A few miles in I had to pee so bad.  I didn't want to stop but it got to a point where I knew I wasn't going to be able to fight it anymore.  I found a tree, relieved myself and continue on.  I had one bottle in my pack and an extra bag of Infinit just incase I missed my family for a bottle exchange.  The miles ticked by and I felt good. I got to mile 10 and I had some tummy problems and I got nervous.  I thought man if this is an indication for my day, its going to be a long one.  I tried to sip some nutrition and just stay calm.  Luckily it subsided and I was back on track.  I was not going as fast as I wanted to but I knew I had a long journey.  I saw my family around mile 11 and did the first bottle exchange.  They were incredible and I cannot thank them enough for being a part of this journey.   The last thing I want to say about this point in the race was that I was heading back from one of the turn arounds and the "straggler bus" passed me on the other side of the road.  I remember telling myself this was the first and last time you would see this!

After mile 16 or so we made our way out by the Potomac River.  This was the hardest part of the race for me.  The mental game really began.  I just remember seeing mile 18 and thinking, OK I have 8 more to go, I can do this.  If you remember from earlier, 18 miles was my longest run leading up to this race.  So here began the run walk.  I had a bottle from my family and I knew I just needed to make it to the party at mile 20 to see the Red Felt crew.  I started to really look forward to seeing this party.  I remember hitting 19 and thinking ok, one more mile and I will see them, then it is just a 10k to the finish.  I remember seeing people stopping and stretching out.  I wanted to stop and stretch my calves so bad.  I thought "I could stop just for a minute, what's it going to hurt?" Then I remembered the conversation with Michael, NO!!! NO STOPPING!!!  I hit mile 20 and I couldn't find them.  Not anywhere.....this hit me hard. I was mad, I was stunned, I just didn't know what to do.  It got in my head really bad.

I needed to just continue on and finish my race.  I remember being in the middle of the bridge and thinking for the first time, am I even going to be able to finish this.  From miles 20-23 it was a mental game.  "You can do this" to holy cow, how am I ever going to finish this all in the same breath.  When we got back to Crystal City I dumped the bag of nutrition into my bottle and filled it up with water.  I knew I had this in me.  The energy through this city was like nothing I have ever felt before.  They carried me to mile 25 and my walking at this point was minimal.

I remember getting to mile 24 somewhere and people started saying "just one more mile, you got this!"  To those of you who run, you may be able to related to how I felt at this point.  I wanted to smack these people in the face.  DO NOT tell me I have one more mile when in reality I don't.  It was a false sense of security for me and I did not like it.  I powered through and looked forward to that mile 25 sign.  I remember passing it and reaching up and smacking it.  We were almost there.  For the last mile of the race, I don't know where it came from but I ran the entire thing.  There were two things I heard about this race.  One I wasn't sure of and the other I knew was going to be there.  The first was the magical man with the keg of beer around mile 24 or so, but I never found him =/.  The second was the uphill finish.  I rounded the corner of mile 26 and it was there, starring me in the face.  I knew my family was at the top of that hill and still to this day I don't even remember feeling it.  I ran up the hill so fast to see my mom and girlfriend there.  This is where the tears started.  I remember approaching that finish line and just bawling like a little kid.  I had done it.  From a 300+ pound couch potato to a marathon runner in just over 2 years of blood sweat and tears.  I crossed the line and just stood there for a minute.  I kissed my hands and just threw them up to the sky and said thank you.

When the Marine put that medal around my neck and saluted me saying "Congratulations Sir!" I could have lost it.  I wanted to hug him but I thought that might be weird so I refrained.  I remember them pushing everyone to keep moving when all I wanted to do was sit down!! I found a curb and sat down for a second.  I just wanted to take it all in.  I took off my shoes and got out my phone so that I could find my family.  Having my phone on me the whole race was key.  I could keep in contact with my family and find them after the race.  I did not use it for music because I didn't want to kill the battery which was key and I also know that service can be touchy throughout the race so I had an iPod for that.  Smartest 50 bucks I have every spent!

Post race the only thing I wanted to do was drink my chocolate milk and take an ice bath. Luckily my hotel was less and a quarter mile from the finish.  This was HUGE! The last thing you want to try and do is navigate public transportation after such a large race. Unfortunately I guess do to safety concerns you cannot plug the tub in hotels.  So I settled for a shower and my wonderful 2XU compression tights.  I remember receiving a congratulations text from a friend and she offered some words of wisdom.  I was laying in bed when I got this text and all I wanted to do was stay there.  She said "GET UP!!!" another key piece of advice.  I got up and continued moving as bad as it hurt.  I walked and got food and walked around a bit more.  It hurt but I am so thankful that I did it.  Plus it gave me a chance to go out in my new jacket with my new hardware ;).

I remember walking back to the metro with Jamee and she told me again for the millionth time how proud she was of me.  She has been there from the first day I met her and I am so thankful for that.  I said to her:

"You know, I'll be honest, it did not go the way I planned.  I did not hit my time goal, but there is one thing I did do and that is complete a marathon.  It is something I swore I would never do, it is something some people say they want to do but don't and its something some people will never be able to say they did.  No one will ever be able to take that away from me."  

It is completely true what they say, you will never forget your first and I believe it to this day.  Two months later and I still feel the same amount of joy writing this as I did that day.

If you have skipped all the mumbo jumbo in between and got to this point please just read this paragraph.   Years ago I remember talking to someone and telling them I would NEVER run 26.2 miles just for fun.  On October the 26th I did just that.  Something I thought I could never do in a million years.  If you have something that you have always wanted to do and said you never would, please take my advice an consider doing it.  I promise you that you will not forget it.  It will be the most rewarding thing you have ever felt in your entire life.  It was not an easy journey, it was a fight every day, but god I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I made some key mistakes along the way but it has made me better for the next one.

I thank you all in advance for reading this extremely long and over worded post. I hope you find some motivation or inspiration in this to do something that you have always wanted to.  Lastly I thank everyone for their constant support.  Without you I would Have never been able to complete such an amazing task.  I cannot even begin to list the people but you know exactly who you are.

Next up I have some exciting things that I can't wait to tell you all about!

Until then, thanks for reading, and thanks for your support!

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself!

Atlantic city International Triathlon

So the season has come and gone, are you satisfied with you results? What did you accomplish this season that was a challenge you were focusing on? What are you going to do different for next season?  For me my last race of the season for triathlon was the Atlantic City International Triathlon (my first race ever).  I am going to structure my race "recaps" a bit differently.  I am going to cut out some of the boring details and just focus more on how I was feeling before, during, and after the race.
Atlantic City is a special place for me.  It has a lot of significance.  I have been there in many different points in my life and for many different reasons.  From 21st birthdays, to bachelor parties and now my most recent journey triathlons.  No matter the reason I love going there.  On saturday before the race, I was driving across the bridge and I saw the city and the swim start etc for the race and an instant joy came over me.  I was ready to go for this race.  After pre race check in, bike, marking etc etc I just went to my hotel to settle in.

Race morning came early as always but I was ready to go.  I woke up ready to go.  I was looking for some strong results for this race.  Last year I went 1:05 which was solid for a first timer but this time I was looking for more, I wanted to shave about 5 minutes to get closer to that hour mark for a sprint race.  Unfortunately I knew the bike leg was going to be tough because it was a windy day.  I got all my gear set and was just listening to music, getting in the zone and getting ready.

Unfortunately I was not paying attention and couldn't hear Steve on the mike too well so I missed being one of the first in the water.  Once I got in I realized it was going to be a challenging swim.  It was dead low tide, there was a ton of sand and it was just a tough swim.  When I rounded the bouys and started heading back I was feeling good.  I went to climb out and sunk into the mud!  Thankfully there were guys there to help us out which was awesome of them.

Candid post swim shot!

On to the bike and I was feeling strong.  I had that hour mark in the back of my head and I knew I just needed to red like the whole time.  The wind on the way out was a bear.  I had zipps on my bike that I borrowed from a friend and I was still only about 30 seconds faster this year because of the tough wind! Coming off the bike I looked down at my watch and I knew I was so far off that hour mark I just had to hammer the run to finish with a solid time.

Bike leg from AC.

The run from t2 to the start of the run course was a bear so I just started easy and then hammered the course.  I knew I wasn't going to hit my goal but that was out of my control to a point(more on that in a min).  The run is completely flat and I knew I could drop the hammer.  When I crossed the finish line I knew I left it all out there and that is my goal for every race.  When I stopped my watch I was almost scared to look.  1:08 was my final time for the day which was good enough for a 4th place finish in my AG.  It is not what I wanted but it was still better than last year.  Yeas my time was 3 min slower but that 3 min was in the swim alone.  I know from my races this year, my swim is what I really need to focus on this year.  The bike leg is what it is, I can't change the wind and I was still faster than last year.  

The greatest moment and memory from this race was when Steve called my name to come get my AG medal.  He gave me a huge shoutout in front of the entire crowd for my weight loss and is was incredible!  The crowd erupted with cheers and it was like nothing I have ever experienced.  Yes my times were slower over all but it was a learning experience and I still walked away with two medals.

AG podium shot.

Receiving congrats from the mayor of AC!

The last thing I want to share is this photo.  This is one of my favorite pictures of all time.  Blog family, meet my wonderful and amazing girlfriend.  She is at every start, every transition and every finish line for me.  I can hear her screams louder than anyone on the course.  She has been through so crazy times with me including freezing her toes off on this morning all to cheer me on.  She motivates me and keeps me going through all of the rough training spots.  More importantly she understands the long training hours that are needed to accomplish what I want to do and she supports me every step of the way.  She is the most amazing girl I have ever met and I can't thank her enough for being there every step of the way.  Love you!

Next on the list is Marine Corps Marathon Recap. My first ever 26.2 so settle in for that one.  

Until then thanks for reading and sharing!

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself!

I do not post on here on a daily basis but feel free to catch me on other social media!

Focus On the Good

Since Jersey State Triathlon things have been fairly normal as they go.  I have been on my bike, I have been running, I have been swimming.  Training, hanging, and enjoying my summer, honestly I wouldn't have it any other way.  This summer has been absolutely amazing for so many reasons, I have met some great people who are a part of my life now, I have strengthened some relationships with people I knew and I have reached some goals already as far as racing goes.

When I started this blog, I started it to detail my story in becoming an Ironman.  I try to keep most of my personal life, personal and just keep it to racing.  However this has become my outlet and at times I must use it for just that.  This week I got news that I had lost three people in my life in the course of about four days.  Two of which lost a hard fought battle with cancer and one of which lost their battle with depression.  It is always hard to hear of these things but three in the matter of time that passed rocked my world.

Unfortunately this is not the first time my world has been rocked by the loss of a young life to suicide.  Before I started my journey to Ironman, I lost a great friend to the same thing.  When I learned of this, I began to relive this nightmare all over again.  I felt all of the same emotions, sickness and anxiety that I felt only a few short years ago.  It was hard, it put me down and I didn't even want to come out of my room let alone my house on Monday.  There are a lot of things I carry with me from day to day from the first time I was ever impacted by this disease.  I never thought sitting in high school health classes that my life would be affected by this disease, let alone twice.

Through all of this I have been told something that I have heard a million times and something that I did not really want to hear at this moment.... "Focus on the good." It seemed like everything was right on track and then it spun off so fast.  I had a job lined up, I had everything going right and them boom, It felt like I ran into a wall.  There were complications with the job and that sent me into a tailspin.  I have goals that I want to accomplish and a time line that I need to follow in order to reach those goals.  Knowing that I could possibly not have a full time job and having to cover bills makes me anxious about getting a new bike in order to reach my ultimate dream of becoming an Ironman among so many other things.

Yet I had so many people telling me to focus on the good.  Well this morning I decided to do just that, focus on the good and forget about the rest.  I have a great time at my part time job right now, I am helping people and inspiring people to better their lives, I am having an amazing summer, the list goes on.  Yes I hit some road bumps but I cannot let them derail the things that I am focused on.  I truly believe that I am being tested in order to make the victories taste even sweeter.  I am also making new goals.  In order to reach my goal I have started a Go Fund Me account in order to help offset some of the cost for my bike.  This is a dream that I have shared with so many people and I know that it is something that I cannot do alone.  I ask that if you read this and feel compelled to help please help in anyway that you can, whether it be a donation or just sharing my story for other people to learn about it.  I know I have the support of so many people and I can't thank you all enough, you have been simply amazing and any little thing that you can do to help me will be so greatly appreciated.

Marathon training has started here, looking at races for next year and so many other plans.  I can't thank everyone enough for their support a long this journey.  The messages and praise I receive daily are so rewarding and I thank you all so much.  I wish that I could meet every person who has touched my life and give them a hug, I like hugs.

Until the next time, thank you for everything that all of you do and please keep it up, I appreciate it more than you could ever imagine.


All for now
Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself




I do not post on here on a daily basis but feel free to catch me on other social media!

New Jersey State Triathlon Race Recap

This past weekend I raced the New Jersey State Triathlon in Mercer County NJ(settle in, this is a long one).  This race is a championship race for the state of New Jersey and I was excited going in but nervous at the same time.  My training had ramped up significantly since my last tri.  I had some long runs, some speed work and a few long rides going into this race.  I knew my training would get me through but would it be enough?

As I pulled into the park and headed to packet pick up the day before the race I saw A LOT of expensive bikes....this could only mean one of two things, people with lots of money or people who were very serious about racing, but it had to be one of the two.  Either way I rolled in and picked up my packet.  We could not leave our bikes there which was ok, but we still got a chance to walk through transition and check things out.  I knew that historically this race was not wetsuit legal although I optimistically packed mine.  I stopped by the TYR tent and picked up a Toqure speed suit with anticipation of wearing that morning of.  As I finished the pre race meeting was still going on so I sat down on the lawn to listen in.

New speed suit

Pre race meeting

Numbers on the rack are always nice.

Checking out the swim course.

Now I don't consider myself a pro at this in any sense of the word, but when I started to listen to some of the questions, I knew it was time for me to head out.  I still needed to check in to the hotel and find an italian restaurant for dinner.  

After finding the hotel it was time for dinner.  I went and had a delicious meal at Tre Piani, which was a small place right near the hotel.  From there it was time to head back.  I went back and got my things together for race day.  I put my numbers on, set up my chip etc. and got ready for bed.  The night before is never anything exciting, but when you have nerves and a 4:30 wake up call what do you expect?

My favorite alarm!

The next morning came early and fast.  I was nervous.  I packed my things, got in the car and it was off to the park.  Once I got there, I set up my water bottles, put air in my tires and walked over to transition.  As I was walking through the field I heard some guy yelling but I couldn't hear what he was saying.  As I got closer he said it again "IT'S A WETSUIT LEGAL SWIM!! WATER TEMP IS 77 DEGREES!"  I thought to myself, this man is lying, there is no way the water dropped three degrees over night.  I had my suit in my bag anyway so I continue on to transition.  I racked my bike and filled my bottles. After one porter potty visit, the waiting game started.  I knew I needed to get in the water with this speed suit on and then I heard the guy on the loud speaker "Well folks for one of the first times in history today's race will be wetsuit legal, the water temp is 77 degrees!" So I knew I didn't need to put the speed suit on.  I was a little pissed the I dropped the coin on it but I knew I was wearing my suit.  

Setting up in transition.

Swim Course.

7:10 rolled around and it was time to head down to the start.  As I started walking, I saw someone racing for Wattie Ink who I follow on Instagram and I wanted to introduce myself so bad and tell her how much I love following her and her team.  I have loved this team and my dream is to one day race for them but I was just too chicken to say anything and I didn't want to bother her on race day like that.  After the national anthem and some pre race stuff it was time to zip up the suit and get in the water.  An in water start, another first for me but I have practiced them and I had a game plan.  I went out to the line and took my spot on the left side.  5, 4, 3, 2, 1......GO!!!

As the swim started, I quickly found out I was racing with the big boys.  My wave was huge, it was men 29 and under plus one of the older male waves all together.  I was running into people left and right for almost the first 200+ meters.  It seemed like I couldn't get into a groove.  After I settled in I knew I made a mistake right away, I started to get hot.  From then on I took the swim 100 meters at a time.  At each 100 meter mark I would take a few breaststroke and then continue on to the next buoy.  It got to a point where I just wanted to swim to end so bad.  I saw the 1300 meter mark and I knew I only had 200 to go, I can do this.  From there a few of the females from the wave behind me had caught me.....if that wasn't a confidence crusher! I hit the boat ramp and it was into T1.

As I looked down at my watch, I saw my swim time...31:XX, not what I had hoped for but not awful either.  I ripped my wetsuit off and was out on the bike.  Once on the bike course, my stomach was still settling from the swim.  I knew I needed to wait at least 15 minutes before I could take in any sort of nutrition.  By the time that hit I was so ready for some gel.  I slammed my first gel and starting laying down the hammer.  My goal for the bike in this race was more time in areo.  In the first lap I found myself in and out of areo, getting a feel for the course.  As I hit the sign for the second loop I knew I needed to hammer harder and spend more time in areo for the second lap.  From then on I was in areo for almost the entire second lap.  Slamming down hills and crushing flats, for the first time I felt like a "real triathlete."  As lame as it might sound, I thought of Dave Mirra who I have been looking up to and I knew I needed to stay down in areo and ride as he would.  As I was going through the course for the second time I could tell some of the later swim waves had found their way on to the course.  I was getting smoked by some dudes on $10,000 setups and holding my own with others.  I came into the finish and just hammered through the park to T2.  Finial bike time of 1:14:XX for 25 miles.  

T2 was quick, bikes shoes off, run shoes on, nutrition, belt, GO!  After Escape, I knew I needed to ease into the run.  As I left transition and headed onto the course I heard them announce the winner with a time of 1:57 and I just laughed.  The run course is through the park and again is flat and fast.  As I looked down at my watch I could see my pace bouncing between 7:30 and 7:15/ mile.  I just kept thinking my legs around going to give out at some point, they have to, but I couldn't slow down!  

About half way through the run!

The run was getting hot and hard.  My pace slowed in a few spots to somewhere up in the 8's but then worked its way back down.  I hit the five mile mark and knew I only had one left.  I wanted to finish it in 48 mins.  As I dropped the hammer one last time, I saw the 6 mile marker.  One of the beautiful things about this race was the volunteer presence along the run course.  All the people in blue shirts pictured above were volunteers who came in to cheer us on.  I was coming up to the tail end of the race and it was just packed with people yelling and screaming.  As I headed into the chute I heard a guy yelling and then he just started laughing hysterically and said "Nice hat man!!" I couldn't help but start laughing!  It was down the finish chute and I gave it everything I had.  Finial run time was 48:29.  I missed my goal by 29 seconds.  

Coming in hot!

Hitting the misting tent.

Post race.

 Post race I went to look up my times.  The first attempt there was nothing there so I thought I was too early.  I went back to my car and changed and came back again and still nothing.  I found a woman in the results tent and asked her why they wouldn't be there.......she said "Did you check the DQ list?" and with that my heart sank.  I felt like a school aged child checking to see if I got the lead in the play.  I went up and down the sheet of paper three times.....NOTHING!! Thank god, with that I went back to her and let her know I was not on there.  She informed me they had some issues and it would all be posted later.  With a finial time of 2:37:56 I was 16th out of 30 in my AG and 309 out on 1139 overall.  It wasn't what I had hoped for but it was a good race.  I knew going in that this race was going to be competitive, but I had no idea it would be this FIERCE!  With everyone gunning for nationals, I got a look at how competitive this sport can really be! 

One thing I left out from the run, was quite possibly the coolest part of the entire day.  As I was headed for one of the turn arounds I saw this guy coming towards me, I noticed that he was starring at me for a good while.  I thought nothing of it, but out of no where he yelled out "HEY!! I know you!"  I figured out that it was a follower from my instagram page that I had gone back and forth with a few times.  He recognized me on the run and was motivating me every time we crossed paths.  It was so cool to see someone who knew me and knew my story out on the course.  I remember reading a post from NYC Running Mama about her experience with this and I thought it would be so cool if that ever happened to me and it did!

Post race meeting Stefan for the first time.

I later found out that there were more people who recognized me along the course and yelled at me but unfortunately I was so in the zone that I did not hear them.  It is one of the coolest feelings in the world knowing that there are people out there reading my stuff and following what I am doing!  

All in all it was a good race.  Big time learning experience but I wouldn't trade the weekend for the world.  I had an amazing time with some amazing people and I loved every second of it.  I thank everyone for their support a long the way.  As always for all the texts before, during, and after the race.  The support on the course from both people who knew me and people who didn't and from my readers.  Next up is AC International Tri sprint distance in September!

All for now.

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself

I do not post on here on a daily basis but feel free to catch me on other social media!

Post race excitement, Next race worries

Everyone knows that excitement, that feeling of accomplishment just after the race.  You can usually ride it for a few days, maybe even a week.  It's a nice cruise to come down from, but as will all good rides, this one must come to an end.  Once the ride comes to an end you start to dissect everything that happened from said race.  Things like breakfast, the car ride or walk to transition, the sleep, the nutrition both before and during, the swim, the bike, and the run.  You look at all aspects of it and try to determine, did I give me best? Where can I get better?  If you have multiple races close together, here come the worries of the next race.  Do I have enough time to get better, faster, stronger? Will I improve or will I stay the same?  God forbid.....will I get worse? And cue the emotional roller coaster of race season!


Since Escape the Cape I have been training my tush off for the Jersey State Triathlon.  This race is much bigger than my previous.  It is bigger in the field, longer in distance and just bringing some nerves.  Once my wave came to an end after ETC I knew it was time to get after things.  I was having good sessions on the bike, in the pool and on the run.  Things were just going well.  I wasn't shaving huge chunks of time off but my training felt good.  This could only mean one thing, I needed to step it up.  As soon as you get comfortable you need to get out of that comfort zone, or you could be stuck there for awhile.

So I started to step training up.  Workouts were getting harder and longer, efforts were going up and I was seeing results.  With Fourth of July right around the corner I knew I needed to take my bike with me to the beach.  Over the weekend I completed my longest ride to date.  30 miles through the beach towns and it felt great.  Coming home I was feeling good off of this ride.  I went to swim Monday however and I felt like garbage.  I couldn't hold my times I wanted to and I could barely get through my swim.  Things just started to go down hill from there.  The next swim felt like crap again.  At first I thought it was from the weekend away, having fun and enjoying myself, which is something that everyone needs to do.  As I thought about it more though, I knew that if it were because of what I was doing, I wouldn't have been able to do that ride.  Now I am not someone who looks for excuses, when things are going bad I put it on myself to get better.  I was standing on the pool deck one morning though and I noticed the board was reading a temp of 86 degrees in the lap pool.  I started talking to a friend and his swims were also struggling a bit.  I knew it was the water temp. I was freaking out about the upcoming race, knowing that the field is WAY more competitive than any field I have been in before and this wasn't helping.


Fast Forward.....I started this post at the end of last week.  Since then I swam two more times and went for another ride and run.  I swam outside where it was cooler and my times were right where I wanted them to be again.  My bike was the longest to date again, 46 miles and my run was 7.15 miles in an hour.  I am feeling much better about my training going into this weekend now.  I am pumped to compete against a competitive field and I know its going to push me to my max and I am very excited for that.  Coming off of some great workouts that were key going into taper week and thanks to the support of some amazing people the nerves have been calmed a bit.  On my ride this past weekend I conquered my fear of getting into areo on the road.  This was a huge step for me and I thank my buddy Brandon so much for pushing me to get over this.  It seems very small but it was a HUGE step for me.

Dropped down and getting over the fear!

Fenwick Island on the 46 mile ride.

Now it is time to taper off and rest up for this weekend.   I am going in feeling good and confident along with excited to see how things pan out.  As for the rest of the week I have some open water stuff on Wednesday depending on this weather along with one more run.  After that it is just some shake out stuff and a long care ride up to Princeton NJ for the race.  Race is sunday but I will pick up my packet and everything saturday and stay there Saturday night so that I do not have to travel far on race morning.  Anyone else have an races coming up this weekend or in the near future? What are you racing and when? Please share!



All For now
Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself




I do not post on here on a daily basis but feel free to catch me on other social media!

Escape the Cape Race Recap

Good evening all! I apologize on the delay of this post but settle in because it is going to be another long one.  As follows is my recap of the Escape the Cape International distance triathlon.  I will try to cut out most of the mumbo jumbo and just get straight to the facts.

Friday came around and I didn't leave my house until around 8:30-9pm.  In my head I knew that I would much rather arrive at the beach on friday night at some point rather than shake out, get in the car and drive down on Saturday morning.  All Delmo Sports events have mandatory bike check in the day before the race and a very good family friend has a place down the shore so this makes my life very easy.  I got down there friday night and had enough time to make my bed and pass out.


Saturday morning I awoke and took my time, had some coffee and breakfast and then went to do my shake out stuff around town.  I went in a backwards order and did run, bike, swim, but actually skipped the swim part.  After the shake out I was feeling good and decided to just go with the flow for the day.  I knew if I left Sea Isle and went to the early meeting that I would just roam around and think about the race which would only increase the nerves.  I instead decided to sit on the beach for a few hours and chill before getting in the car.

After sitting on the beach for a few hours I knew it was time to go do check in and so I jumped in the car and headed for Cape May.  After parking and entering I went upstairs to collect my packet and various other things for the race, got marked and then I was off to get my bike.  I put my tags on my bike and walked it into transition.  Once I found a spot close to the end, I racked and it was time to hit the meeting.  There were A LOT of speakers at the meeting, some of which were just babbling and others who were giving great info.  One speaker in particular that I remember clear as day was the Doc who was going to be on the boat with us the next day.  He went through some breathing exercises with us if need be and then he began talking about the race.  I specifically remember him saying "everyone here has selected this race for a different reason.  The challenges that you all will embark on tomorrow mean something different but you picked this race for a specific reason and a specific goal.  You will all go out there tomorrow and jump off that boat and embark on a journey that you will never forget.  ENJOY IT!" I literally felt like he was talking specifically to me and no one else was there.  He was right, I picked this race for the challenge and to prove to myself that I could in fact do it.  After the meeting I stopped by to grab a pic of transition and then it was off to get some rest.

I arrived at the house, grabbed a shower and threw on some pasta.  I was in a complete calm at this point after everything the doc said and I got a good night sleep.

The next morning it was up at 5 and off to transition.  We arrived and I started laying out my stuff.  I put everything in place on my towel, got some air in my tires and just started the waiting game.  The worst part..... my batteries in my beats were dead so I had to listen to all of the people around me.  As the guy came over the loud speaker to announce we needed to start boarding, I grabbed my suit and headed for the line.  

One of the challenges of this race is that all athletes board the boat at the same time and take the same ride.  So all 1,500 of us were on the boat and heading out.  We got to the start of the sprint distance race and the first few people went off.  However what they did not account for was the current pushing the tide back out.  Some of the first people off the boat ended up in the jetty and it was a mess.  It all took about an hour and a half for the 800 or so sprint athletes to get off the boat.  By this time it was already 9:15.  I had been on the boat for an hour an 15 mins.  Thankfully I planned for this and brought nutrition on the boat with me.  If this is a race you plan on doing, and I highly recommend it, may I make two suggestions.  One, bring nutrition on the boat with you, even if it is just a gel or something.  You need something in your stomach for that swim, especially if you are doing the olympic distance.  Two is, don't pull your suit on until you are just about to jump, you will bake like a potato in it if you pull it on too early!!

It was 9:30 and finally my turn to jump, I stepped across the matt, hit start on the garmin and I was off! I never thought twice about the jump, but I had a lot of adrenaline flowing and I was ready to go.  My goggles popped up in the back and I had to take a min and adjust them when I landed, so when they say hold them tight, they mean TIGHT!  For us it was easy, or at least for me because I was using the ferry terminal as my sight.  I just knew to look for the big blue roof and keep swimming.  Before I knew it, I was out of the water and on to the beach.  Up the beach and in to T1 it was.  I made sure to grab two cups of water and throw them on my feet so I wasn't putting sandy feet into my bike shoes.  My one complaint about this part of the race is that the sprint athletes were done at this point and hanging around transition basically getting in the way and so you needed to be very careful!  One of the things I know that I need to work on is getting my suit off faster.  I could have cut a significant amount of time off my total had I not taken so much time in T1.  I grabbed my bike and it was off on the corse.  Just as I was exciting I heard my name!  My cheering section was there and had a great presence coming out on to the bike and I was so stoked.  

From here I knew I had a solid ride ahead of me.  It is a two loop 10 mile course on the bike through the town of Cape May.  As I went up and over the bridge we were approaching a sharp turn and the race guy standing there said take it slow and wide and so I began to do just that.  I heard this idiot behind me start screaming, what are you doing and cursing me.  I wanted to say listen lady, I am following the mans directions here, that is all.  But i didn't I just stayed in my zone.  15 minutes had passed on the bike and I knew I was safe to take in some more nutrition.  I sucked down a gel and it was GO time.  The bike course is mostly closed except for one road and it is relatively flat.  There were a few tough spots with rocky terrain but all in all it was a nice course.  I came blasting in to T2 to a nice welcoming party and they really got me in the zone for the run.

off the bike and ready to run!

T2 was significantly faster than T1 and just as I was leaving I thought you know what, I am going to bring a water bottle on the run, thank god I did.  The first part of the run was on the soft sand shore.  I knew it was a beach run, but I was not prepared for what was to come.  I attacked the run and made it to the road.  From there it was one foot in front of the other and just trying to hang on.  As I was coming down the road someone came up on me pretty fast.  I said ok, I am going to hang with this guy for as long as I can.  Just as I said that I looked down and saw a dark 22 on his calf.  NOPE not hanging with him, I am off!  I knew that he could be the difference between me and a podium spot, which is obviously the goal when racing.  I took off and never looked back.  As I hit the second aid station I thought the turn was coming soon but I forgot about the second part of the beach run.  YES you are that correct a second beach leg.  If you thought the first one sucked, the second was nothing but a strugglefest.  The turn was on the beach and I hit it and tried to accelerate a little.  I knew that it wasn't far to get back to the road and that's all I kept telling myself.  I got back to the road and knew I only had about 1.5 miles to go.  I sucked down one more gel and just gave it everything I had left in the tank.  I kept telling myself embrace the suck and just get it done!!  At one point running down the road I remember saying to myself, "as much as I am hurting right now, I absolutely love this and wouldn't trade it for the world."

As I approached the path to enter the finish chute I had that rush of emotion that I get coming down every finish chute.  It's a rush of emotion that I can not explain to you unless you have done something you have never thought you could do.  I positioned myself on the left so I could see my squad one last time and just as I did that I could hear them going insane.  I heard my name over the loud speaker and I about collapsed as I crossed the line....I had done it, yet again I had done it, something I thought was never possible just a year ago.  

Post race I am never hungry, I sucked down some recovery drinks and ate a little something but I wasn't hungry....I had one thing on my mind, results.  It seemed like it took forever for them to be posted.  I sent my buddy Dave over to check and see if I needed to stay or go while I went back into transition.  When I met back up with him his response was this "I got some bad news buddy......WE GOTTA STAY, YOU TOOK THIRD PLACE!!!!!"

I couldn't believe it, everything, all the hard work, the training hours, everything paid off in that one moment and they were all there to share it with me.  I can't even begin to say how grateful I am to have shared this whole day with them.  

First, Second, and Third for AG

 Same as above but with 4th and 5th.

Dave and Katey I can't thank you enough!

Jamee was absolutely awesome and I am so glad she made it!

Notice that huge plate of food, still full, never hungry after a race

This is my favorite picture of the day.  It captures all the emotions I was feeling as I stood up there on that podium in front of everyone.

All in all the race was fantastic, but for me it was a one and done.  There are just too many races going on around this time for me to repeat.  I also did not like hanging on the boat for that long.  I am not trying to shy anyone away from this race, it was fantastic, just ensure you are prepared from A-Z, don't just breeze over the packet and course map!

I can't thank everyone enough for everything that you have done.  The support was absolutely amazing and I couldn't believe it to be honest.  Thank you to Dave, Jamee and Katey, for coming down and screaming your lungs out for the entire race.  Thank you to everyone for your messages and texts both before and after.  Just thank you....Thank you to everyone.  Up next for sure is Jersey State on July 21st!

Until Next time

All for now.

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself!

I do not post on here on a daily basis but you can follow my training and other posts here!