Endurance & Charity

So there seems to be a very strong connection between the world of endurance sports and charity. This starts at the very entry level of running/walking a 5k for a local cause. It ratchets all the way up through Team In Training, Livestrong, Crohn's and Colitis Foundation Team Challenge, Endure to Cure (E2C), and my personal endeavor for 2010, Ironman - Janus Charity Challenge.

Team In Training raises money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Livestrong Challenges raise money and awareness for all types of cancer. Crohn's and Colitis raises money for those respective diseases. E2C, started by Jason Sissel, raises money for pediatric cancer. The Janus Charity Challenge allows an athlete who is racing in a full distance Ironman to raise money for the charity of their choice. Janus provides the management and documentation tools. For Ironman Lake Placid July 25, 2010 I will be raising money for Autism Speaks. I will be trying to help children like my cousin, Malachi Fleck-Raybuck, in their battle with Autism. The more we raise the better the odds of getting matching funds from Janus.

So where does the tie between endurance and charity begin? That's a tough question, but I think it lies in the initial motivation to undertake something outside of our comfort zone. Endurance activities particularly on the longer end of the spectrum aren't done on a whim. They require planning, sacrifice, prioritizing and often a single minded focus. These qualities lend themselves very favorably to a fundraising campaign. The similarities are not lost on potential donors. People see someone willing to put in the blood, sweat and tears in preparation and completion of some event, and figure OK I can put a few bucks behind that.

It becomes quite the virtuous circle. The athlete has motivation for those early morning training days. Donors have something tangible to cheer for in the fundraising and the event. The charity receives more money than is likely through simply asking for donations. The awareness raised also pushes those buttons in others, who think, "I could pick up that torch and carry it too!" When all is said and done, the completion of the event is icing on an already fantastic cake.

Happy training!

Harvest Moon Half Ironman Race Report

Sept 11, 2009...8 year anniversary of 9/11 and the day before my race. Having lived and worked at ground zero that day and watched the horror fly over my head into the South Tower, the day is a stark anniversary of various emotions. Today I was pretty relaxed and focused for the day. I woke up at 5 and did 15 minutes each of swimming, biking and running with a couple of quick pickups in each. I kept my nutrition plan well. Nothing too fibrous. No caffeine (3rd day in a row...yikes). Lots of water to sip. I was looking forward to the first race this season (and my last tri of this season) in particular because I got to sleep in my bed the night before. I picked up my race packet after work at the Red Lion Hotel with no particular fanfare. At home I prepared a dinner of salmon and mashed potatoes. Nothing fancy and washed down with some water. I got the 4-runner packed and headed to bed at 9:30pm.



Sept 12, 2009...Race Day. I slept very soundly, a true benefit of a very local race. I woke up sharply just before 5 and headed downstairs to get coffee and breakfast. 2 cups of black coffee, 3 poached eggs, 2 bananas and a peach. A good mix of macronutrients and my first caffeine in 4 days. I felt good. I grabbed my prepacked nutrition from the fridge (1500 calories of Heed and one water bottle). I ran back upstairs and kissed Dana goodbye and headed out in the dark. I arrived at the Aurora Reservoir at 6:15 with a good hour and a half before my wave started. I methodically set up my transition and was pleased to again find the rear tire bike racks. After getting set up I headed over to the reservoir to check out the swim course. It was chilly so I headed back to transition and put my wetsuit on and a long sleeve shirt over it and waited. About 7:30 we all headed toward the water. I decided to get in and warm up a little. Being that the water was about 16 degrees warmer than the air (66 vs 50) I decided to stay in the water while the 3 waves in front of mine took off. I ate a Hammer gel and headed toward the start area.



Swim 1.2 miles - 35:20 - Perfect. Funny thing is I started out and felt strong. Then as the swim leg wore on I felt like man this is really taking long. I didn't want to look at my watch as I felt the impending disappointment. Alas I stepped out of the water and saw 35 on the big numbers of my watch and was very I happy. The 4 weeks of work I had done at Swimlabs www.swimlabs.com had paid off. 9 minutes faster than my swim a month earlier at the Boulder 5430 Half Ironman. I quickly ran up toward transition.

T1 - 3:03 - getting there. I am finally starting to get some rhythm in transitions. I decided this race to not take in gels in transition. I would rely on 1,000 calories of Heed on the bike and take some gels out on the run. I peeled the wetsuit quickly and got the bike gear on. For the sake of caution I sprayed my shoulders with sunscreen and headed out for the bike.

Bike 56 miles - 2:50:50 - 19.7 mph. I was worried about the bike. It was considered tougher than Boulder with the hills and wind. Here I would find out if I was fitter and if the long mountain bike rides in my legs would provide meaningful benefit. Also I was 5 pound lighter and hoping to get the 15 extra watts. My weakness would be whether my knee would hold up as it had really been bothering me the last 2 weeks and some massage work I had done was quite holding. Well it was windy and cold. My feet were freezing. Fortunately, I was able to keep in aero position most of the flats and downhills and really came up only for the tougher climbs. I methodically took in calories every 20 minutes. My knee held up great and I had no problems until after mile 41. Then the started to ache and the climbs really got tougher. But I gritted out and finished with the same time as Boulder. Definitely fitter on the bike and didn't give up my swim victory. Now time to run.

T2 - 1:38 - Awesome - except not. I put Yankz in my racing shoes for this race. So I quickly got out of my bike gear took a big 250-300 calorie gulp from my Heed bottle in transition and slid on my easy shoes. I grabbed my hat and was off. Buuuuuut 150 yards out I realized no race number belt. There was a strict warning that no number at the run turnaround = DNF. I changed direction and sprinted back to transition. I told the gate keeper I needed my racing belt number, she smiled. So from the looks of things on this transition time and my forthcoming run time this minute lost was stuck onto my run.

Run 13.1 miles - 2:01:15 - Great. I was really hoping to break 2 hours. I am certain my forgotten belt was worth a minute maybe not a minute 15, but given the stomach problems I encountered the final 4 miles and the aching knee the whole run, I don't really care. It was a solid performance and given the effort I put out on the bike everything held up including my psyche. I met a guy named Josh on the run who said he was aiming for under 2 hours about a mile into the run. We were spot on in terms of pacing so we just went with it. I was figuring if I could keep up with him I'd be good. He said the same. So we chatted and dealt with our individual pain. He had a nasty gash on his foot from the swim and cramping legs. I had a bad knee and some soon to be strongly felt stomach issue. Anyway we chatted occasionally and just hammered it out. My wife was out on the run course and took our picture. With 4 miles to go I was cramping and feeling the pain in my stomach. Burping helped a little and water helped a wee bit. But I figured I'd just keep pushing. Finally with the finish line in site I felt a little burst of strength and was able to give a little at the end, but not much. Josh and I shared congratulations. He thanked me for running with him, and I told his wife he did great. Then I went in search of a bathroom and to figure out what was going on in my stomach.

Total time - 5:32:05 - ECSTATIC. A month after shattering my PR, I raced a tougher half ironman and took 9 more minutes off my PR. 1 minute lost for not being mindful but all in all a very solid effort for my last triathlon of 2009. I look forward to the offseason, with a few run races, skiing and base building. 2010 looks to be quite promising. I'll need to figure out that issue with my stomach. Maybe too many calories taken in. Maybe not enough water since I backed off as it was cold. I'll figure it out. I give this race and 2009 an A for triathlongs. 1 full Ironman, 2 half Ironmans, 1 Xterra World Cup and 1 Xterra America's Cup offroad triathlon.

Happy Training!