2018 Joe Davis 10K Race Report

I did the Joe Davis 10K two years ago.  It's a local race that is right near my house, so I wanted to support it.  I really didn't like the course, so I didn't run it last year.  I did come out last year to support my wife running the 10K. The course seemed a lot better, so I thought I would give it a whirl this year. They also have a 5K

It's obviously cooler in January, but this time it was much cooler than usual.  The average low temp in January in Fort Mill is 32 degrees. On this balmy morning it was 11. But it was plus 11, so we had that going for us.  I debated what to wear, but finally went with compression sleeves, shorts, long sleeve t-shirt under my BSR jersey, gloves and head warmer. I considered a short sleeve t-shirt, but decided to err on warmth. Just cause I'm old, I guess.

The race start is 1 mile from my house, and I could take a paved trail all the way there. But considering the temperature, I decided to drive over. I parked at the top of the hill. I jogged around for a bit just to check everything out. At this point, I had long pants and a pullover, as it was pretty freaking cold.

I saw one of my friends, CarolAnn, doing a little warmup as well.  We jogged for a little bit, and I got a good 2 mile warmup in.  I went back to the car to strip down to my race clothes.  I headed back down to the start and did some pickups while everyone was assembling.  They played the national anthem and the Boyd's talked about their brother and Keystone Recovery Center.  We all just kinda huddled and listened, trying to stay warm.

They let the wheelchair people go first. Several people started running as well and had to be called back.  I recognized Ethan, Fort Mill High School's top cross country runner, at the front.  I asked him if he was doing the 5K, and he was. I think I could probably take him in a 10K, but definitely not a 5K.

I put myself near the front as well.  As we took off I felt pretty good.  The first 3/4 of a mile is flat and downhill, so that's nice.  I hit the first mile in 6:07 and was pleased with that, as I felt I wasn't pushing too hard.  Several guys were quite well ahead of me already.  You really couldn't tell who was running the 5K or the 10K at this point.

Heart Rate and Elevation

After that fire 3/4 mile, we're on the paved trail.  We loop around Walter Elisha Park and then head down the trail the takes you Harris Street Park.  Once you get past the big dip just past the Elisha parking lot, you can really zoom down that trail. It's a good 65 foot drop over a 1/2 mile there. I felt smooth through there and then made the turn at the bottom to start back up hill. I split a 6:10 there, as I started the climb.

I wasn't really running with a lot of people. There was one guy at the start that dropped back by 1.5 miles.  Then another guy who dropped back by 2.5 miles. Other than that I was pretty alone.  The climb for mile 3 wasn't as bad as I thought. 90 feet of gain in that mile, but I split a 6:30.  Originally my goal for the entire race was to average 6:30.  So suddenly I'm thinking I can blow that out of the water.

Walter Elisha Park

Pace and Cadence

At about the 2.8 mile mark, the 5K people split off.  At this point, I really can't see anyone at all.  I was truly in no man's land and had no idea what place I was in.  I just tried to keep it smooth.  Just past the 3 mile mark, you go back through the start and begin the second lap.  My miles 4 and 5 were not nearly as fast as on the first lap with a 6:22 and a 6:14.  Definitely wasn't dying and was pleased with the 6:14 for sure.

Now we come to the final mile and the final climb. 100 feet of gain in the last mile. I really tried to push and I was passing a lot of the walkers that were doing the 5K.  I was warm enough that I took my gloves off at that point. I started doing the old math equations in my head, like what do I have to run here in the last 1.2 miles to break 40 minutes.  Confident I had it in the bag, I just relaxed and went.

After really doing a lot of hill repeats in training the last few years, and then still really sucking on running hills in races, I have embarked on a new strategy.  Hills are mental. You wanna run hard up a hill? Run hard and don't be a namby-pamby about it. It's all in your head.

That training strategy seemed to pay off as my second time up that hill was only 0.8 seconds slower than the first time.  As I got to the top, I just tried to push the final 1/2 mile to the finish.  I felt good, not great, but still kept the turnover going.  The course is a little short at 6.1 instead of 6.2 miles. The last 0.1 mile I had a 5:46 avg pace, so pretty good finish.

Right after I crossed the finish line, a woman asked my bib number. I think she was with the timing crew.  I felt pretty warm at the finish, and walked around some. I wasn't really hungry and didn't grab any food. I talked with some of the tri guys Keith (who won the 5K) and Matt from Fort Mill. I did grab some coffee and that tasted really good. I just hung out and talked for a while. Being a local race, I knew quite a few people there.

I saw CarolAnn finish and talked to her and her husband.  Then they announced there would be no awards because the computers were all frozen up.  That was a new one on me.  They did announce the top overall male and female for both races. Not top 3, just the overall winner for each.  So I just headed home to warm up.

3rd Overall Twinsies

They did have the results posted that afternoon.  That's when I found out I was 3rd Overall.  I gotta say I didn't think I could hold that pace for the entire race.  Maybe that 2 months I took off after Chattanooga Worlds to heal my hamstring actually did some good. Maybe letting my body recover some was a good thing.  Anyways, glad to support a local race, especially one that is on trails and roads that I run every week. Always happy to make the Overall Podium, because, well, #iheartpodiums

Me in the middle, snuggly

2018 Goals Thread

It's been a while since I made a yearly goals post.  For the last few years, my goals have been much more focused.  I mean I used to make training goals to swim, bike, and run a certain amount of miles or yards.  I also used to have certain time goals. Both for individual legs, and for races overall.

Lately, though, my goals have had more to do with placing, and subsequently qualifying. All my training was focused towards that.  Also, now that all of my PR days are behind me, I really don't get into time goals that much. It's more about competing for masters or age group placings.

Not This Kind of Goal

The PR thing is something I've come to grips with. Everyone always wants to get faster.  Now I never will.  I really hadn't thought about it much until my wife started running about 4 years ago.  She can set PR's. Her friends can set PR's. I was able to set PR's in triathlon until now.  Since I ran in college, and did a marathon right after college, I came to grips with not being able to set any more running PR's since, oh about 1995.

Honestly, until this year I thought I could still set PR's in triathlon. But I've realized now that I will never be faster than a 4:13 for a Half Iron, and a 9:29 for a full Ironman. I think I'm ok with that. There are still other things to accomplish. I can still have other goals. I mean I've managed to not get divorced. So there's that.

#BuzzwordBingo

So without further ado, the extensive, comprehensive, exhaustive, all-encompassing list of my 2018 Triathlon Goals:

1. Win my Age Group at an Ironman 70.3 event
2. Don't Embarrass myself at the Ironman 70.3 World Championships (yet again)
3. Stop Drinking Beer*

I think that covers it. Thanks for tuning in.

*Ha! LOL. Just kidding. The only reason I do tri's is to drink beer ;-)

2017 Year in Review

My training in 2017 was down a bit this year.  I wasn't training for a full again, and again focused on the Half distance.

Everything was going pretty well until August when I strained my hamstring. That brought things to a screeching halt.  

July was once again my biggest month.

SWIM:
Yards: Unknown. See last years post.
Time: 149:03 (Up 10 hours from last year, Yeah!)
Biggest Week: August 28th (4:47) 3 pool swims and a OWS
Biggest Month: July (16:40) Chatt Worlds had me motivated.

BIKE
Distance: 3,677.6 (Down 26% from last year) More Trainer time.
Time: 213:35 (Down 20% from Last year)
Biggest Week: 206 Miles August 14th
Biggest Month: 609 Miles in July
Longest Ride: 85.5 Miles on July 22nd

Wow really down a lot from last year. And 2016 I was down from my ironman training years. I think I need to get some more miles/time in this year.  I really tried to take time to recover, but that didn't seem to work any better at the end of the year.  Just need to go back to hammering the miles to get stronger.

RUN
Distance: 1,132.3 Miles
Biggest Week: 47 Miles August 14th
Biggest Month: 155 miles in April
Longest Run: 15 Miles (3 Times)
A bit of a dropoff from last year. But after Chatt Worlds, I took 2 months completely off from biking and running due to my hamstring.  That really affected those overall numbers.

TOTALS:
Time: 507:50, down from 555:59 (down 9% from last year)
Biggest Month: July 62 hours
Biggest Week: July 17th with 18:43

In 2017 I again got the Ironman Brand 70.3 All World Athlete Gold. My ranking wasn't as high as last year, since one of my races was the World Championships.  Obviously don't get as many points for that abysmal placing.  So I was ranked 45th in the world and 23rd in the US in my age group.

Chattanooga 70.3

2017 USAT Score was a little lower with year with a 94.238 but my local rankings were better as I moved to the 45-49 age group. I was once again #1 in South Carolina and #2 in the entire Southeast Region.  My national ranking slipped from last year to 87th this year.

Boulder 70.3

2017 had it's ups and down. So close to that first AG win at Chattanooga, losing by 34 seconds. Then finished the year straining my hamstring and having another horrific 70.3 Worlds race. In between I had a lot of fun races. I was happy with Boulder 70.3 and the trifecta: Podium, Worlds Spot, and TriClub Award.  It was fun to do a charity swim and another beer mile as well.

Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Chattanooga, TN

So what does 2018 hold? More Ironman 70.3's, a race I have to fly to, and a World Championships. Actually that sounds exactly like my 2017. Also hopefully I will not embarrass myself at 70.3 Worlds this year. Wait, that was exactly like 2017 as well.  Whatevs. The TriClub Championships at Florida 70.3 will be amazing, as we will have over 60 BSR's racing. I will also do my first International Race, and my first Trip to Africa. Pretty stoked about that. Man, I'm ready to get this party started!

Awards Haul

2017 Waxhaw Beer Mile Worlds

Last year was my very first beer mile ever.  It was quite a lot of fun, and I looked forward to it again this year.  After re-aggravating my hamstring at Chattanooga in September, I took a full 2 months off from running and biking.  I only took 3 weeks straight off of swimming, as that didn't hurt (as long as I didn't breaststroke kick).

The People Gather

So the weekend before the Beer Mile was my first ride and run in two months. My hamstring felt sore, but didn't really hurt. I kept the runs short, at 3 miles. I figured that since this was only going to be a mile, it would be no problem.

Instructions are Given

It's about 25 minutes over to Waxhaw. I got there about 12:45pm to hang out and help set up.  We hung out a little longer, as there was a big wreck on Providence road that delayed several people.  We had a good crowd this year as again Karen invited the entire MSA swim group to the event. It was billed as the MSA Christmas party.  Mostly because we knew that Coach Patty wouldn't be up to it this year (more on that later).

MSA in the House

As usual, there were a lot of EPT Racing people there was well.  Although (thankfully) Laurent was unable to make it.  That Canadian destroyed me last year. Mostly on the drinking part.  Also 3rd place finisher Mark wasn't there either.  So the biggest competition was uber swimmer Jeremy.

"I Want You to Run the Beer Mile"

Since this beer mile is just for fun. We don't follow the official beer mile rules. First is the use of dixie cups. We just set up a table in the cul-de-sac, and fill up cups from a keg. Last year we some good Triple C Golden Boy. Evidently there were some complaints that it was a little heavy. I thought it was fine. I like good beer. So this year they got some Miller Lite Swill. (I added the 'Swill', that's not actually the name - I'm talking to you Trista).

Anyways, Karen gives everyone the instructions.  I would guess we had 30-40 people (counting kids doing the 'juice box' mile). Someone is the "Official" timer by using their phone. Everyone grabs a cup and gets ready. I have the cup up and ready to start my garmin and drink at the same time.  Someone yells go and we start chugging.

Heartrate and Pace

Jeremy in the lead

The first one, honestly, isn't so bad.  The worst part is that on this 4 loop out and back course, is that the "out" part is uphill.  So you slam the beer and then try to trudge uphill.  I'm probably in 10th place when I start running.  I don't really catch many people on the uphill, but once it hit the cones at the top and start coming back down, I start to reel people in.

Proper Form: Bent Knees, Head Up, Feet shoulder width apart

I see Jeremy is the first one back at the table.  We had all put our names on the cups that we started with. I see Jeremy looking around for his cup.  As I'm coming to the table, I decide that I can't waste any time on that.  I just grab the closest cup at the table and start drinking.  Even then Jeremy is still probably 10 seconds ahead of me.

Looking Rough

This time up the hill is much slower. Jer is several places ahead of me.  I am still catching people, so that was good. That 2nd lap was my slowest.  I get back for the 3rd beer, chug it, start running, and start burping like I may lose it. I'm like, Keep it Together, Man!

There's the Heel Striker I Love

The 3rd lap starts out the slowest, but I pull it together on the downhill some. At this point, I'm not sure I'll catch Jeremy.  I get back for the last beer, and try and chug like there is no tomorrow. I turn to run, and feel like total dog crap, more burping, and hard to get the legs moving. I'm like, 2nd place isn't so bad.

Sprinting for all I was worth

I push to the the turnaround and decide I'm not that far behind. So I try to sprint back down the hill. I catch Jeremy less than half way back down, and push through the finish for the W.  I just put my hand on my knees, tried to catch my breath, and keep my beer down.  That is a rough feeling.  For such a fun event, you really feel like crap for a bit.  Then your stomach feels better, and then you start feeling reeeeally good.  It may have something to do with putting down 4 beers in less than 7 minutes.

Male Winners

So that's why we all hang out for a couple of hours afterward and eat until we can drive home.  After everyone finishes the race, Karen does the awards and provides the top prizes.  I had brought some six-packs from my local Brewery, Full Spectrum, for 2nd and 3rd place prizes.
Men
1. Me, Bell's Brewing Kalamazoo Stout
2. Jeremy, Full Spectrum Carolina Blue Pale Ale
3. David, Full Spectrum Upstate Orange Wheat

Female Winners

Women
1. Karen, Bell's Brewing Hell Hath No Fury Belgian Dark Ale
2. Jen, Full Spectrum Carolina Blue Pale Ale
3. Shannon, Full Spectrum Upstate Orange Wheat

Kid's winners

Karen gets Bell's Brewing from Kalamazoo, MI as that is where she is from.  Fun Fact: I was born in Kalamazoo as well. Whoah.

That guy looks like he had 4 beer in less than 7 minutes, and he sweats a lot

We all retired around back of the house for the food.  Karen's husband was grilling up some burgers and everyone had brought a bunch of food.  I hung out for a little bit letting everyone else get some food before I jumped in. That way you can tell what the good stuff is, and what people are passing over.  I thought all the food was really great.  It was nice to hang out and talk to everyone.

The Winners

Coach Patty came out and brought her husband Tom. He had a stroke a few weeks earlier.  Physically he seemed really good, but he is still having issues speaking and forming sentences.

Those were some good burgers

All in all a fun event, even if the actual beer mile can be a little miserable at times.  Next year, I may take this event a little more seriously. It would be nice to actually be in shape to run it.   I had the drinking part down this year, but wasn't in very good running shape.  Maybe next year I can be in shape for both. Thanks to Shannon for the pre and post race pics. Thanks to Judd for the in-race pics.