Starkermann Duathlon

Little brother Daniel did the Jr. Starkermann. Quite the accomplishment for a 6 yr. old

Rachel, baby, and I

End of the bike

Coming into T1

This blog seems to be harder and harder to keep up, but I'm going try my best to get back on board. I should have more time this summer to get at least one out per week.

I raced the Starkermann Duathlon last weekend and was fortunate to come up with another win. I had some more competition than my first race of the year and even had to run a guy down on the 2nd 5k run. All signs pointed towards my training working very well. I am for sure as fit as I've ever been on the bike and run front. Swim wise things have been a bit different b/c I've done a lot of swimming solo, but the sets I've done in the last couple of months have been very specific to triathlon and the distances I focus on. I think this will pay off, especially as I start to freshen up these last couple of weeks before Eagleman. This past weekend I capped off this build with a 16 mile progressive run with the last 5 miles under 6:20 pace. Nothing special really, but after the week of training I laid down it was a solid workout. I also rode 4.5 hours with lots of time very close to half ironman effort and then a short run off the bike at close to HIM goal pace. There is still a bit of work to do, but it's time to start freshening up. This has been a different build than I've ever done for a 70.3, but it seems to be working great and I'm coming into better shape each week. I am really looking forward to June 12th and absolutely laying it all out there. It's been a while since I've gone completely to the well and I'm excited to have an opportunity to do so. I cannot wait to go toe to toe with some of the best triathletes in the country. Eagleman is always one of the most competitive 70.3s on the circuit b/c it's one of only a few races left where you can qualify for Kona without doing a full ironman.

Newspaper clip from race.

Steelcase Duathlon

Starting run #2
Coming into t1

Little brother and I before the start

Rachel, baby, and I

Well, Spring is finally here. I am coming off my best training week of the year so far, but still some work to be done before Eagleman. I am getting close, but still need a few more solid sessions/races. I had a solid weekend of an 8 mile tempo run yesterday and then today was a solid 5 hours on the bike followed by a short t run. It was tough, especially after the sessions I did during the week. I think I am going to be hitting peak form just in time for Eagleman.

School is coming to a quick close. Soon enough our baby will be here and I'll have more time to train...well really, more time to recover (if the baby sleeps well? hopefully?). I probably put in 20 hours this week and won't hit much more than that this summer. Not having to go to work in the summer allows me much more flexibility with my training and my ability to recover goes through the roof! Really hoping to make a nice jump in fitness as the summer goes on, but first Eagleman.

Rachel is feeling good and we're getting really close to having our baby's room all done. It's been a little more work than I think we anticipated, but it's all good.

Next up, another solid week of training and then Starkermann Duathlon this coming weekend. Looking forward to laying down another good effort to help me get to a new level.

Thanks for reading.