2016 Year In Review

Life can't always go your way... 2015 was THE YEAR for me!!! So many new and great things happened in my life that changed my life for the better. I couldn't have asked for more, but somehow I had hoped for it. I hoped for PRs, as many race finishes (if not more) and all kinds of milestones! Instead, life hit me with challenges, tribulations and a journey to remind me that it ain't easy...

The year started off with injury coinciding with the first Ironman finish hangover. Then pre-maturely racing a handful of races with the minor injury only perpetuated the problem (in addition to not being ready for some of the races). As the year went on, work only got more time consuming while training was supposed to pick up. By the time I completed IM 70.3 Hawaii, it was a steady downward trend from there. The China travel picked up and I reached my 90 day limit by August. 12 hour days turned into 16 hour days and many sleepless nights. I somehow went on to do IM 70.3 Vineman and the SF 1st half marathon. Work really hit hard in the next few months just barely easing up after Halloween. By then the Honolulu Marathon was basically upon me, with the holidays just around the corner. The whole combination meant I wasn't ready for a race I was determined to do... And I paid the price...

I sit here writing with pains in both feet, pain above my right knee and reviewing race results from a failed 2016 year. This was supposed to be the year I realized my potential... The year I hoped to podium at least once... The year I would leverage my recent Ironman finish and catapult to better triathlon performance! Instead, I sit reflecting on pain, failure and what went wrong. So to that, I say:

(Photo credit: http://diycandy.com/2016/12/new-years-printables-bye-felicia/)

In fact, 2016 was so devastating that I have all of 2 races lined up: Redondo Beach Sprint Triathlon and IM 70.3 NOLA. The former is my annual race which is a tribute and reminder of my very first entry into this sport. The latter is my destination race for 2017! But otherwise, there's nothing on the calendar... at all. I think I will use the beginning of the year to shore up my base fitness and reflect on where I am and where I want to go. That's just how devastating 2016 has been to me...

If there's any good advice for 2017, it might just be:

(Photo credit: http://www.keepcalmandcarryon.com)

Back With The Hive!

STING OR BEE STUNG!!!

So glad to get another year with The Hive! Being part of the Honey Stinger Ambassador program has been a wonderful experience! The premium benefit for any athlete is the very generous discount that you receive on all Honey Stinger products! I use the chews, gels and waffles so much that it's a huge benefit. Additionally, they have gear that supports a lot of endurance sports (triathlons, running, cycling) that receives the same discount. So gear shopping typically happens on the Logo Store rather than at my local sporting good store.

But the real benefit is the HS Hive community. You can connect with other Hive members who are all very passionate about the product AND their sport(s). Honey Stinger reps and ambassadors are at many races and you can likely catch them at the expo booth for your local race too. And everyone is great and friendly and it's such a good community.

And I've been lucky enough to have multiple friends apply and get accepted. So we get to continue to dub ourselves as the Honey Stinger Picnic Family! We got the name due to our love of Honey Stingers and our early foray into triathlons which often resulted in seated consumption of the waffles in a nervous wreck to get calories down! lol Oh the knowledge we have gained since those early days! These people are my pulse, my heart and soul to keep going in the darkest of times during the many stages of training and racing endurance sports. I definitely would not be here or have been going this long without them!

Race Report: Honolulu Marathon

Returned to my birthplace to run Oahu's great race! Growing up we never watched the marathon, we always avoided Wakiki and Hawaii Kai on this weekend and we definitely thought everyone there was insane! Well what a turn of events we have as I'm now one of those crazy finishers...

Race details:
Honolulu, Hawaii
Run: 26.2 miles

Course Reported Finish:

Garmin Splits:

Heart Rate Zones:

Race Summary:

Well what a day this one was. I guess the only way to start is from the beginning...

The Honolulu Marathon is an early start, one of the earliest. The race starts at 5am sharp and that's painful for me because I'm not a morning person. I will say that by the end of the marathon I was glad this was the case because my time spent running in the hot, blazing sun was only a little more than an hour. But still, early start times are painful.

What amazed me is the number of people doing the race (about 30,000) and the many shapes, sizes, ages and costumes of runners. I didn't see any of the same costumed folk from the Merrie Mile, but there were many interesting ones here as well. There was a 5 pc band with a tuba, trombone, trumpet, drum and flute. There were futuristic, metallic outfits. I saw many puffy skirts and wigs. People were sporting their country shirts or jerseys from Denmark to Italy to Argentina and of course all over Japan. There was a diabetes group. There were several different "Aloha Runner" groups. Many Japanese tourist groups. I mean the sights of the runners reminded you that the finishing times will range from 2.5 hours all the way to last year's last finisher time of 14 hours, 11 minutes. Just ridiculous...

Speaking of that. The race is open to everyone, there's no signup limit and there's no finishing time limit. You could literally walk all 26.2 miles and there are many who do. The race director says it sticks to Hawaii's island vibe and that everyone will be allowed to finish as long as medically capable (I did see several folks get put onto ambulances). It's a pretty cool concept of inclusion but definitely makes for a crowded event. Thankfully, I ran at an above average time (despite being out of shape) so I never had to endure too big of a crowd or a lack of water or other racing resources.

One great thing about this race is the presentation. And nothing highlights this better than the starting gun being a huge fireworks show that wakes up all of Honolulu and Waikiki. And if you happen to be awake like my aunty and uncle who dropped me off, you can hear it in Pearl City too! Since it was a rolling start race, I was able to get a short video of it before I put my phone away and got to it. But it was pretty cool to get going with that!

The race itself is pretty iconic and familiar for a local (or former local). You start on Ala Moana Blvd in between the mall and the beach park. You thru Town and back before crossing the little bridge to Waikiki. You then continue along Kalakaua past the high end stores, The Duke and the Zoo. You climb the ocean side of Diamond Head before running towards, and on, the Kalanianaole Highway. The loop around Hawaii Kai gets you back onto the Highway, around Diamond Head again and finishing downhill into Kapiolani Park.

As evidenced by the data, this race generally went well and according to plan. While I didn't get the light rain that I wanted, the weather was generally cooler and lower humidity for most of the morning while the sun stayed hidden. I was able to keep my relaxed pace target of 10 to 10:30 miles for a lot of the race. And I was even able to keep a relatively good pace and cadence going up Diamond Head the first time. But as the sun came out around the 3 hour mark, the marathon started to get a bit grueling...

My legs felt heavier. I feared cramping and started taking salt pills every 20 min instead of every 30. The sun also beamed down and I could feel the heat. My back and neck started feeling tight and tense. My foot and ankle pain started to throb just a little bit more. And I generally felt hot. But the crowd energized me, the sights were beautiful and I kept pounding away. And while I didn't succumb to any major issues, the last ascent at Diamond Head got me...

I knew what was coming. I knew it was only a little more than 100ft of elevation gain. I knew that if I could just crest that gain, I'd have a 1.5 mile finish downhill towards the park. But despite all of that, my heavy legs and weak mind prevented me from going up hard. I succumbed to walking a decent amount of it. My fitness level just wasn't there and it mentally defeated me to walk it.

Alas, I started jogging to crest the final part. I made it to the top, breathed a sigh of relief and began my run downhill chasing helplessly at my goal time of 4.5 hours. By the end, I crossed the finish line happy to have it over, but staring at my failure time of 4:32... Missed it by 2 minutes... I just couldn't run hard enough early on to bank the right amount of time. My fitness level had fallen to a personal worst. And really just everything that I've been the last 2 years was gone. I really wanted to just go and have a mental breakdown in the finisher area as I tried to get my phone working for a finish line picture.

But after faking some smiles and walking out the physical pain, I got a call from my aunty and uncle. They made me laugh when they said they were at the finish line but somehow missed me coming down the final chute. The raised my spirits saying the time was "good" and that I crushed my oldest cousins time of 7 hours. Their happiness for me and their support of me just raised my spirits to where they should be. I didn't finish where I wanted. I almost finished an hour more than my marathon PR set just over a year ago. But I still did something most don't even think of doing and I still gave it my best shot.

With raised spirits I enjoyed the spoils of this race. You get a free picture printed right there in the finish festival area. You got a free malasada too and even asked for two instead of getting a banana! We slowly walked to my favorite drive-in spot (Rainbows) and I got the best plate lunch (Loco Moco, all rice with the over easy egg). And we even got my other cousins and their spouses out later that night for lunch at a local spot (the Aiea Bowl) for some Korean Fried Chicken and Kalbi and tons of dessert. It was great. Family is the best and I def miss them! My 92-year-old gramps even came to check up on me to make sure I finished and was still alive. Then he gave me a laugh, a congratulatory hug and asked if I was gonna run it again. This guy... This crazy, awesome, lovable guy. If only I could see him everyday, maybe I'd be this happy and fulfilled EVERY day of the year LOL.

Pics:

Race Report: Kalakaua Merrie Mile

It just so happens that the first year I decide to do the marathon is the first year that they offer a Pre-Race-Day run/walk event. Notice I didn't say race, as that's definitely not what it is for most of the participants...

Race details:
Honolulu, Hawaii
Run: 1 mile

Course Reported Finish:

Garmin Splits:

Garmin 920XT New Feature - Heart Rate Zones:

Quick note which I'll write another article on, but the Forerunner 920XT has several new features. Two of the running ones which are interesting is the Recovery Time and Heart Rate Zones. They also have a Cadence chart but I think that might not be accurate unless you have a foot pod. But I'm not sure. More review of that in the future. Recovery Time isn't shown because they don't currently record that. It's just displayed immediately after you finish a saved event.

Heart Rate Zones, on the other hand, is plotted and I think this is a sweet new feature. The plotted Heart Rate and Avg Heart Rate metric are helpful, but I think the Zone chart really captures what most data nerds want to see when analyzing post run or race. In my opinion, it's one of the best barometers of whether your training or racing was according to plan or not. And then if it's not what you expected, you can use the plots to better plan your next run. I hope to take advantage of this in the future!

Race Summary:

It was pretty cool to be apart of the Inaugural event. The Merrie Mile is yet another example of Hawaii's theme of aloha. The race invites competitors of all ages and paces and nobody is left behind. In fact, in checking the results, there were 4 finishers who completed the 1 mile run in 52 minutes. 52 MINUTES!!! Like holy crap! That's a long time to go 1 mile. But that's just aloha. It's Hawaii. And while I'd never do it if that's how long it took me, power to the folks who choose to do it and props to the race organizers who empower them to do so.

What also makes an event like this interesting is that it brings out many people just looking to have a good time. There was a pair of Japanese women dressed in full Yomiyuri Giants baseball uniforms. There was an inflatable dinosaur guy. There was a 100% vegan guy carrying a 100lb log. There was several santa outfits. Many neon colored groups. A group of runners with JAL airline shirts and a small inflatable airplane on their backs. And of course just all shapes, sizes and ages!

Anyway, my race went really well. I pushed hard, but didn't overdo it. I started out slow as I was getting around some slow people who decided to line up at the very front. After clearing those eager joggers, I sprinted out ahead of my wave as one of the top 3 runners. To be fair, I sand bagged my time (as per usual) and submitted an 8 min finish time. The first group was 6-8 min and mine was 8-10 min. I also had a great, wide turn at the 180° turnaround so to keep most of my speed. I finished the last quarter mile sprinting down Kalakaua and waking up to a 6:17 finish time! What a run!

Pics:

Race Report: We Run The City 5K

It's rivalry week and I finally decided to join the SC ranks for this 5th annual USC vs. UCLA 5K challenge!!! Go Trojans! Fight On SC!

Race details:
Westwood, California
Run: 3.1 miles

Course Reported Finish:

Garmin Splits:

Race Summary:

To call this one a "race" is a bit of a misnomer. This run started 5 years ago and is a run to support the Special Olympics group of SoCal. I've actually never ran it despite the recent love/hate for endurance sports. However, a good buddy of mine sent a link and since I've been dating Amanda (a bRuin grad), I decided why the heck not! Rep the school spirit for a good cause!

The actual run itself is hosted at the campus of the home team for the football game. This year that was UCLA. But generally, this run doesn't attract a ton of talent and I would say most of the finishers were walking this one. I even saw a few strollers on the course.

As for my run, the goal was to treat this like a training run. Try to start a bit slow, keep the Heart Rate down for most of it and finish strong. The finish strong part was done harder than planned. I saw some bRuin colored runners in front of me for the last quarter mile or so and so I ran hard to pass all of them LOL.

I might do this race every year going forward as it's a fun way to get a run in, supports a good cause and is super chill!

Pics:

Race Report: SF 1st Half Marathon

Doing a race just for another couple medals... Such is the status quo. This one was a bit tougher as I was quite a bit out of shape...

Race details:
San Francisco, California
Run: 13.2 miles

Course Reported Finish: 1:59:55

Garmin Splits:

Race Summary:

This race was literally just a check-the-box, get-the-medal kind of race. I had spent a ton of time in China. I had worked many 16 hour days... continuously... And well it was just all a recipe for not having your best race. And this final result was the sum of a year's worth of not being ready.

The end stats speak for themselves. Just under 2 hours... literally. Tons of struggles. Hills that killed. Heck I even had a friend who just blew past me. All kinds of no good.

The only thing I can say is that I fought hard. I fought through pain and struggle and many doubts. And at the end of the day, by the thinnest of margins, I still kept my sub-2-hour-half time intact.

Pics:

Race Report: IM 70.3 Vineman

It was awesome to do a race in which I ushered in my #TriSquad to the Ironman brand. Kim and Dave had a fun and great first experience despite some shuttle issues! The race was great swimming thru the river and biking through wine country! Oh and there's one absolutely EPIC pic of me seeing Kim and going for a high five!

Note to self: Garmin elevation is effed!!!!!!!! Need to get the watch checked out... :(

Race details:
Windsor, California
Swim: 1.2 mi - open water, river swim
Bike: 56 mi - road, point to point from the river to town
Run: 13.1 mi - run, out and back

Course Recorded Finish: 6:12:56

Garmin Splits:

AG Finish: 41/66
OV Finish: 952/1996
AG Race Factor: 1.63
OV Race Factor: 1.47

Race Analysis:
Transitions:

Transitions were pretty solid for this race. No issues with gear, no extended time spent doing anything too unnecessary. Ironman transitions are just a little bit bigger and you have to put gear into the bags so it just takes a bit longer than my typical sprint or olympic race transitions haha.

Swim:

The watch is definitely effed because my swim shows up on the road. I mean obviously mountains and such in the area, but clearly the watch had some issues. But I def felt like zig zagged about that much. But from a pace standpoint, things look worse than my pace actually was. The river itself was awesome and temps were great. But there were two annoying things: 1) water was super shallow in most parts so you couldn't dig too deep 2) the current going up was rough but coming back you got no accelerated drift. The former made it tough to get too consistent until you got into a deeper area and the latter just kinda gassed me a little bit. But all in all, it was a great swim!

Bike:

The bike for this race was pretty damn good. Again my elevation can't capture the real life elevation of this race which is a shame. It wasn't flat but it wasn't super hilly either, which I appreciated. I will say that the bike was pretty technical in that there were a lot of windy roads, a lot of rolling hills and just generally a need to manage bike gearing, speed and turns, not to mention idiots on the course and cars which is always an issue.

What was also rough was a strong headwind through. The winds seemed to always be pushing me backwards even on the one or two sections where the was some downhill. You can actually kinda see that in my speed chart how there are really only a couple blips and not much else. But despite this, I really was able to focus on spinning my legs out and keeping the heart rate generally low. There was some time where it creeped up near the one "climb" but it was otherwise pretty good. Oh and because I had one of the latest starts, the weather really started to heat up here...

But generally speaking, the bike was not too easy or too difficult. You went from kinda that river area rolling up through wine country and nice vineyards and then through into town for a bit and finished in a very city-like area. But there were a lot of scenic opportunities and a lot of time spent by vineyards!

Quick aside to long course comparisons: I've now done 4 races at the 70.3 distance. My worst was epically hilly Wildflower at 3:53, my best was 2:55 at super flat Superfrog and these last two were 3:10 and 3:16. Fitness, gear and course difficulty made a difference. Superfrog and Vineman were the only two where I had my road bike and aero wheels. Wildflower I only had aero bars. Honu I had a rented TT bike. It seems that there are two def paths to speed for me: 1) get a TT bike and always use my race wheels 2) get strong on the bike. Former def easier than the latter... LOL

Run:

The run... Oh the run... Always a challenge and always seemingly ending up on the struggle bus. I started off pretty damn strong and the pace shows that. 9min/mile range given my current fitness level is pretty above average. But by mile 7 you can see I was settling into my fitness level reality. And then after that it was a model of consistency... albeit super slow and sad consistency.

I will say that the run was pretty damn hot for me. Temps sky rocketed and the sun was out and blaring. The only saving grace compared to Honu was that this was a dry race aka no humidity! That really helped at least keep my consistent. This race also had some shady areas so I was able to kinda let my body cool down a bit (altho admittedly not much) in some of those shady areas.

But aside from being slow, I think it was a pretty good run. Pretty consistent and just one sad clown point on the struggle bus. It was mile 11ish or just after. I was really pushing hard the entire time for a sub-2 hr run because I thought that'd get me under 2 hours (little did I know I needed like a 1:40 due to my slower than I thought bike time). Anyway, I pushed really hard to get that goal and when the 2 hour time for the run hit on my watch, I just had a mini pity party. I stopped to walk it out, collect the realization of crushed dreams and then I moved on to keep going. It was a brief albeit sad moment though. I mean to just hope so hard for sub-6 hour total time and just not be able to make it while about 1.5 miles out was rough.

But I did finish strong and happy looking and there's a really epic and awesome pic of me seeing my squad and getting ready to high five Kim as I sweep in!

As for the overall race experience, there's nothing like doing a race with my two best friends and maybe our budding new #TriSquad I am ready to dub the #TriMigos. I know some might be saddened that they're kinda getting left out and we're kinda making a little group within the Honey Stinger Picnic Family... But they haven't been keeping up with their racing for a number of legit reasons so it might be time to rebrand for a bit... lol But that's just me loving to do silly things like think of new nicknames and hashtags and all the rage that is being young!

Pics:

Pre Race and road trip:

Carb Loading:

Race Pics:

THE EPIC race pic:

Post Race with the #TriSquad #TriMigos:

Post race beverages:

Road trip pit stops on the way back:

The road trip was so rough Ellie was PTFOed!!! LMAO