It's February, what else is there to say?

Feb 3 to Feb 9

S - 20,900 yards
B - 145.5 miles (9.5hrs, 2mtb rides)
R - 35.44 miles

Time - 20.44 hours

Feb 10 to Feb 16

S - 7,100 yards
B - 124.3 miles (7:46 hrs, 1 mtb ride)
R - 38.2 miles

Time - 14.59 hours

These two weeks will be filled with a picture and video story as opposed to a word story. I would guess, although I wouldn't wanna put money on it, that people get a little tired of me writing in my blog. So, consider this a break to you...my faithful readers.

Week 1 ended with a glorious day in Charlotte. 3:45 on the roads with the machine you see on the left followed up with :40 on the trails with the machine you see on the right. Doesn't get much better than that!

What the wha!? Little did I know what the weather gods had in store for us here in the southeast this week. Having not perused the weather forecast prior to Tuesday I was informed via the twitterverse and facebooking that we were in for quite the wintry storm starting on Tuesday morning.

Don't let the steadiness and good lighting fool you, this picture was taken while extremely unstable on the rollers on Tuesday evening.

On Wednesday morning three of us partook in a pre-super-thick-snow run in cold temperatures, merrily whiling away the time with stories of great feats of strength.

Both symbolic and literal. We are deep thinkers.

Scott and I even partook of a mountain bike ride in the snow. It was fun for about 45 minutes and then I got really, really cold. Unfortunately the ride, due to it being an out and back (basically), lasted an additional 50 minutes beyond that point.

The snow and ice got even worse and on Thursday it was pretty comical watching people try to drive around in OBVIOUSLY unsafe conditions.

By Thursday night it was just boring. Business were closed. Boredom was happening. "Cabin fever" is, I believe, the appropriate expression.

The weekend rolled around and Saturday brought with it a mini-group indoor ride. Causebrook, Behme, Woodbury and myself all enjoyed a good ol' time while watching the last period (and OT + shootout) of the US vs Russia game (Murrka) and the first bit of a movie.



We then quickly transitioned into our go-kart racing kits and partook in several hours of kart racing up at Victory Lanes Karting. To say I had fun would be akin to saying Katy Perry's chest area is relatively famous.

Sunday brought more riding and more running and a decent end to a somewhat disappointing week from a training standpoint. The race I had been planning to do (Two Twenty Two Duathlon) in Greenville, SC was canceled due to the conditions so we made do with what we had.

The weather took a snowy dump on us

S - 9,000 yards
B - 147.1 miles (08:01 hours)
R - 34.2 miles

Time - 15.06 hours

I got to spend some quality time on the new road bike this week, which was extremely exciting. This made up for a rather abysmal mid-week weather hiatus on the ol' swimming front. Unfortunately pools' schedules were all kinds of messed up and consequently my time in the pool suffered.  I'm not gonna go so far as to say I was "unhappy" about this, but I was definitely a wee bit sad.

I finished "personalizing" my road bike before riding it and a couple of the features are definitely worth noting.

The bike itself: a 2014 Felt AR4.  Modifications include Zipp SL handlebar and stem and Shimano wheels (versus the stock options).

Step 1 of having a good bike = finding a good saddle.  I've frequently heard people say things like: "well I like to move around on my saddle" or "I am stronger on one side than the other" and what they're ACTUALLY telling me is that they're on the WRONG saddle.  Saddle choice is the foundation for EVERYTHING else on the bike.  On that note, I've chosen the Specialized Romin Pro 155. If I had measured my ischial tuberosities before ordering I would've selected the 143 width model but unfortunately I did not have that knowledge prior to my order.

It's pretty impressive to NOT have any numbness or anything on a road bike.  My seat bones are sore after a weekend of riding, which is a great thing.  They can get used to pressure while my soft tissue will never get used to it.

Finally, the Garmin Vector power pedals.  I've only used them for 6 hours so far but I can say that I am flat-out impressed. The numbers seem "reasonable" to me though I don't have a direct comparison with something else (just going off pretty intimate knowledge of my own power numbers).

Finally, here is a video of a little bit of our ride from Sunday. Of special interest: the new ICE Racing kits.


That's all, folks.

Back at it

S - 15,400 yards
B - 70.3 miles (8.25hrs)
R - 23 miles

Time - 16.8 hours

So I suppose it is time to start back to this whole "training" thing. This was, admittedly, a bit of a shock to the ol' system.  What has been languishing for many weeks is now being forced to hop out of bed and go to masters. Run almost every day. Get back on the bike.  All the stuff it HASN'T been doing for quite a while.

On the plus side, I've really enjoyed riding my bike.  Specifically, my mountain bike. I haven't yet put a leg over the brand new road bike but I am sure that will be coming along soon enough. I've also had the time and/or the desire to create some videos from these trips to the trails.

Where has James been?

The first thing you should ask yourself upon a reading of the title of this blog is why the heck am I referring to myself in the 3rd person?  Well, I have no clever answer to that question and so continue on unperturbed.  Where have I been since December 1st you ask?  Well, for a brief and fantastic moment I was in Mexico.  Then, I was back in Murrka doing a fairly foreign thing: relaxing.  This relaxing continued on for quite a while actually. Only now, in mid to late January, will I be discontinuing that protocol.

This extended break was both planned and un-planned I would say. I had quite a long year of training in 2013 (and racing, obviously). I NEEDED a physical and mental break. But I also got sick.  Then I was gone for a week for Inside Out.  So basically it all adds up to roughly 6 weeks of unstructured training.

For the past three weeks I've tried to put a little structure in my life.  Running almost every day (but short), riding trails one or two times a week, swimming as it fancied me. I am in somewhat decent out-season shape I would say.  I proved that to myself by winning a 40' short track race out at the US National Whitewater Center last Sunday the 12th.

There are several fun ways to talk about that race, not one of which involves me actually writing anything so let's go with that methodology as me writing can get kind of boring for everybody out there....

A pictorial article from Pinkbike.com, one of the most well-known mountain biking specific online journalism websites.

A brief video and thread on Slowtwitch (that I started, sorry JB!) about the crash of Mr John Behme, which unfortunately took him out for a couple of weeks with a mild left radial fracture near his elbow (or maybe it was his ulna, but who knows I'm just trying to sound smart).



Another video with footage taken by a Mr Scott Woodbury showcasing the 40' short track race.

W. Weaver is a fantastic action photographer and took a bunch of great event photos

Full Short Track Results can be found HERE

All in all, it was a fantastic and unique event put on by the USNWC, who has an ever-growing portfolio of excellent outdoor activities going on at their facilities.  If you haven't been out there you are seriously missing out on one of the best parts of living in Charlotte.

I did not get the chance to blog about my epic adventures (or myself) as upon waking on Monday morning following that race there were two things to do:

1) Realize how sore I was from that race (concrete is HARD)
2) Pack and fly out to San Jose, California to attend Specialized Body Geometry Fit Level 1 Course.

Now, #1 is fairly self-explanatory.  #2 involves a little more explanation (don't they always)

Specialized has a program that it calls "SBCU," which stands for Specialized Bicycles & Components University.  This set of classes is designed to impart on their retail sales professionals, technicians and fitters and increased knowledge base and skills with which they are better suited to both help customers and sell to customers.  There are retail sales management classes, suspension service classes, marketing and display classes and most importantly, 3 levels of fit "classes."

Since Inside Out Sports sells Specialized aero products, it makes sense that someone in the Charlotte store should attend the BG Fit course.  BG (Body Geometry) represents Specialized's brand philosophy when it comes to apparel, fit, and equipment.

Originally developed by Andy Pruitt, BG Fit is a science based, multi step process that puts the rider in the optimal position for their body on the bike.  Fit Level 1 deals entirely with road bike fit and the pre-fit assessment of the rider.

 This is the van that transported us to Specialized headquarters in Morgan Hill, CA every morning.  The class consisted of ~25 retailer people like myself with varying levels of fitting experience. I was the only triathlete-focused rider in attendance so a lot of my preconceived notions were luckily related to aero-fit and not road fit.

 Hard not to be intimidated by a public entrance that features Crowie, Cipollini and Sam Hill.  The headquarters just give off this vibe of awesomeness.  It's really hard to put into words.  You can tell Specialized is a HUGE company and everybody that works there LOVES bikes. If you didn't like bikes, you wouldn't want to work there.  Admittedly, 8 weeks ago the atmosphere surrounding Specialized and its vibe was a little more tense, but I wouldn't put the "blame" of that on the people that work there (except, maybe, for the slightly overzealous legal department).  Specialized is a brand that obviously wants to protect its identity and luckily, because of how big it is, gets to play that card.

Anyway, the class itself consisted of teachings from 4 different people, each of whom has vast experience with BG fit. Day 1 was a lot of classroom instruction and a brief ride. Day 2 was a morning of instruction and an afternoon of lab work (fitting, further lab-specific instruction, etc) and a brief ride.  Day 3 was all lab work (fitting, specific assessment instruction, video demonstrations, etc).

Specialized BG Fit Lab

One of the main highlights was getting to pick whatever bike you wanted from a huge stable for the group rides and the fit sessions.  On day 1 I rode a Venge Pro and on days 2 and 3 I chose an S-Works Tarmac SL4.

The SRAM Hydro recall-affected SL4 Tarmac

On day 2 we also got to tour the ~year-old Specialized Wind Tunnel (more casually referred to as the "Win Tunnel" and the "Breezy Hallway"). Considering I've had a fair amount of experience at a wind tunnel myself (3 visits anyway) and was the only person among the group that had tunnel experience I felt "special" in a way. The tunnel itself is very cool.  Interestingly, a lot of their modeling was done based off A2's construction (Specialized was one of the biggest clients of A2 prior to their own tunnel construction).  .

Engineer Chris Yu demonstrating drafting effect

Speaking of wind tunnels, I have a fairly exciting announcement that will likely wait until nearer to the end of the month...

1 hallway of bikes

At the end of 3 days of instruction and lab work, we all emerge as certified BG Level 1 fitters. What does that mean? Well, at the outset it does not mean much. Many fits down the road there will be a perfected (or at least more fully developed) practice and a bigger base of experience for each of us. At that point, maybe you tackle level 2 (although I would guess that the transition to level 2 does not happen for most Specialized dealers) and aero-fitting? Who is to say what the future holds.

I am very happy to have had this instruction because it means I'm basing what I am doing off more than just intuition and my own experience. I'm basing it off scientifically proven methodologies that have sound grounding and a huge "case load."

All in all, it's been a good, if off, 6+ weeks. I am excited to get back to working out on a regular schedule again. I am excited to start crushing dreams again. Even if they are my own, the time has come to get back to being a real athlete.

My 2014 schedule is not really set in stone yet because I don't really know what I want to do this year in terms of racing, but hopefully that will flesh out a bit in the next month.

Leavin' on a Prop Plane

Digging Holes

I am currently arriving at the end of a fairly long, straight road. I use that metaphor because it's not a twisty turny road full of surprises and fun; it's a predictable four-lane highway-style road. I entered the on-ramp for this classic highway way back on December 2nd.  Well, actually it was about mid-afternoon on December 1st if I am being totally honest.

This is the highway to recovery. To a recharge. To feeling motivated again. It is, really, the opposite of one of my OTHER favorite highways:

That highway is what you get on pre-race. When all you can think about is crushing dreams and taking names. Not necessarily in that order. But sometimes it is.

It's actually been the longest I've gone without Accelerate3 scheduling. I've even got one more week! The travesty of being slow and out of shape is debilitating, mentally.  But I can say with 100% surety that I am going to be friggin' READY when the time actually comes.

I am probably going to whine a lot (heads up) and complain about being slow but in the end I've experienced a great "valley" of sorts. Everyone needs to ride the Valley Highway (I'm slaying it with these metaphors, aren't I?) if they want to improve progressively over time.

Partaking of this recovery period means that I have dug myself a solid hole, however.

But I've dug a good hole. It's a hole that you WANT to be in, to a certain extent.  Too many people think they are digging a nice, round hole but they are really just using bad digging technique and tossing what little dirt they actually dig off to the side (for proper technique see above). You gotta really WANT that hole. Badly.

Have you dug a good hole? Have you used proper technique? Have you ridden the Valley Highway this winter? You should ask yourself all of these questions and then in June, reflect back on how you answered.

Or maybe I'm just saying all this because I'm self-conscious and sad about myself.

Getting Over Stuff

There are things that make me annoyed, frustrated, disappointed, etc. Those things most frequently revolve around racing and what goes into a race and can happen after a race and the consequences of racing in general.

Ok, racing. Yea that kinda covers it.

When you hold yourself to a high standard you ALWAYS want to reach that standard.  When something gets in the way that's out of your control you really can't do that much about it. Crazy swims, windy bikes, rain, heat, etc...can't do nuthin' 'bout them thangs.

But when I do something that I can only blame on myself well...then we've got ourselves a little problem.

I can think of one, very specific example of this from 2013. One shining, stupendous example of my own ineptitude. My lack of care. My poor preparation.

NC State TT

I came into this race off a relative high. I had CRUSHED the SC TT.  My time may not have been otherworldly, but I beat some of the best time trialists in the tri-state area. This little triathlete comes in and takes away their prize. It was SO. AWESOME.

As an aside, there are very few things I love more than taking prizes from roadies. They frequently look down on triathletes so crushing their dreams and making them go home and whine about it to their roadie, weight-weenie friends is spectacular.



24.99 miles in 54:56 at 27.3 mph AP/NP 287/288.

A great, relatively even effort.  Flat course, wind, hot. Great "fun."

Fast forward a bit to the NC State TT. A shorter, more rolling course. Last year I had ridden a 55:35 and come in a (fairly distant) second among Cat 3s and 8th OA.

In 2013 I was coming in with a faster bike, faster equipment, and more fitness. I was hoping to break 54 on the (slightly shorter than) 40k course.  My power was good but my time was not. I was extremely frustrated the last 5' of the race as nothing FELT weird but my time was much, MUCH slower than the year prior. I got off my bike completely flummoxed by what had happened. Something HAD to be wrong, right? Well, it wasn't until I was pushing my bike that I noticed what that might be. In my haste and time-crunched rush before my start time I had plopped my disc in without much care for carefulness.  I had shoved my rear brake and it was rubbing. Not BADLY enough to notice while riding but badly enough to where it wouldn't turn more than 1 revolution when you lifted the rear and spun the wheel.

DAMMIT!



It's important to note that you SHOULD be proud of your success.  You should also be aware of your failures but realize that they, in no way, represent you in your entirety.  They are but one paragraph in a small chapter of your life. They are learning experiences.  They help make us stronger.  Despite my 2+ minutes slower time I was still under 58 minutes. I was still third in Cat 3's. I still beat a LOT of people. Was it as fast as I could've gone? No, no it was not.

But I'll never know what I was truly capable of that day. That is what compels me to write this post. To advocate realizing your own mistakes and failures but to LEARN from them. So many people make mistakes but then never realizes the lessons that were in that failure. Either that, or they take the wrong messages away and let the failure itself bring them down.  Don't miss the forest for the trees.

Two Thousand and Thirteen

2013 was a long year.  But it was also a very short year.  I might venture to say that it is surprising that so much can be crammed into three hundred and sixty five days.  The year went by really fast, but it took just as long as any other year I've had the great joy of experiencing.

My first Mardi Gras

It feels like just yesterday it was January and plans were in the works to make 2013 the most fantastic-est year in the history of my years.  Fast forward a couple of months, a few workouts and some racing and we've arrived at the end of yet another year of life.

Since my life is all about triathlon and triathlon to me is all about racing, let's skip the sappy, emotional parts and get straight to the meat.  So if you're a vegetarian...PEACE.

My year began at the Cary Du Classic, where I opted for the long-course helping. A 5 mile run, a 30 mile bike and another 5 mile run on a rolling venue were enough to sate my early-year appetite.  I luckily managed to snag the win but more importantly raced on my P3 for the last time.

Up next for me was the White Lake Half, wherein I achieved my first 2nd place finish of the year to speedy first-year pro Patrick Wheeler (look at me, referring to a rookie pro like I'm a VETERAN, ha!).  My memories of this race circle mainly around how ridiculously miserable the swim was (sub 55 degree, choppy water) that day and how fast I ran (sub 1:18, setting a new half-marathon PB).

Only two weeks later, I headed down to the home state of Louisiana to participate at the New Orleans 70.3.  I have completed this race 4 times out of 5 editions and while this race was nothing special for me from a performance standpoint, it was a welcome trip home to see my family.

My next venture into the racing world was up in Salisbury at the Buck Hurley Triathlon.  This race, sponsored by local businesses and the YMCA in town, was absolutely spectacular. The friendliness of everyone, the pre/during/post event availability and contact was fantastic (and the prizes weren't too shabby either). In spite of being sick all week and dreary, cold weather (in early May), I managed to snag the win along with Jenny (our first, but not only, double win of the year) by almost 3 minutes.

Once I got healthy and paraded around with my prize-purse purchased pimp cup (just kidding) for a while I raced again in Kings Mountain, NC. I haven't raced Over the Mountain in several years but ended up with the victory. Tyler Jordan, who crossed the line first, was relegated to a lower placing due to a drafting penalty on the bike.  It was a decent performance from me. In hindsight I would have not started the run so hard, but hindsight has (usually) perfect vision.

We carry ourselves to another bustling metropolis of NC: Hickory.  This short but sweet race was good in most respects other than the bike; I ended up in second place There is nothing remarkable about the Lake Hickory triathlon other than the fact that it's a solid, no-frills race with beautiful scenery.

Considering I was doing whatever I could to NOT race Tri Latta in 2013, the choice of the South Carolina State TT Championship as that weekend's racing should come as no surprise. Jenny and I managed to come away with a double win again (and Ross a category victory), me by a mere 1s over TT badass Eric Christopherson and Jenny by a whopping 3 minutes. I am proud of my sub 55 minute 25mi time, but am hungry for more faster-ness.

My next adventure found me up in Williamsburg, VA for the inaugural Rev3 Williamsburg Half. It has been a great many years since I was in the ol' stompin' grounds (William and Mary '07) so I was excited to return.  The course was on roads I traveled frequently on two wheels and the run went right through the middle of new campus...pretty suhweet! This swim was abysmal, as the tidal currents wreaked havoc on the non-elite swimmers among us.  My bike was good and my run was average.  A great weekend though.

Staying closer to home I next found myself at Cane Creek Park in Waxhaw NC, trying my best to win the Tomahawk Triathlon.  This was a first-year event put on by veterans (but new to NC) Start2Finish racing and they also offered a prize purse so there were extra incentives.  My main competition was Tyler again, but the more "normal" length swim of this race (vs Lake Hickory) proved to be good for me and I snagged the win.  This was another double win for ICE Racing, as Jenny won by a fairly commanding 15 minutes.

For the next journey, I went a short ways up the road to Mooresville, NC to compete in the Stumpy Creek International, a race I have done each of the years it has existed.  Matt Wisthoff and Derek Kidwell were both going to make an appearance, so I knew my A game needed to be brought-en.  I raced to win and managed to come away with the win. I was happy to finally beat Matt at a short-course race. He's been the cream of the crop in NC for quite some time so I was happy to give him something to think about. I figured he'd get his comeuppance soon enough...  Stumpy was...yet another double win for ICE, with Jenny winning by a...decent margin (15 minutes again?).

My first "title defense" of the year came at Lake Norman Sprint up in...Lake Norman, NC. I wanted to win and figured I "should" barring any catastrophe. Luckily, my dreams were not thwarted with ill-happenings and I crossed the line in first. The main thing I remember about this race is the awesome quad-copter drone that was flying around at the swim start but I've yet to see any video footage or anything as a result of this curious appearance (maybe it was a UFO?).

The next race was a chance to have a go with Matt again at White Lake International (Fall edition).  This course is flat and fast (and a long bike, as all NC "int'l" triathlons are wont to include) and hot so it was gonnd be a slug-fest.  I ran out of room on the run despite running sub 35 minutes for the first time, losing to Matt by 22 seconds. The 16 seconds I gave up to Matt in transition is something I'd like to have another try at, but that will have to wait a while!

Yet another local race and my last NCTS race of the year was the inaugural Carolina Half in Davidson, NC.  This was going to be a tough course, with a rolling and twisty-turny bike with a very hilly run to follow.  I had a decent swim, a decent bike, and a good run to take the win by ~7 minutes (and set a course record? hell yea! haha).   ICE came away with two wins (yea, Jenny again) and a third (Kenneth in his first race of the year), not too shabby for a small team!

My last "planned" race of the year involved another trip down to Venice, FL for the Rev3 Florida Half. Embarking on the trip with Jenny and Ross in our rented [amazing] mini-van was a dream come true.  I had a solid race and set a new PB of 4:08 and change. It was a controlled race as I knew a bigger event was on the horizon.  Both Jenny and Ross set new PBs as well (Jenny earning money at her first pro race), making it a successful race experience and trip.

My truly LAST race of the year was Ironman Cozumel.  I really just wanted to finish this race. It has been 3 years since I attempted the full distance and 4 years since I finished such an endeavor. I only added this race in late September after getting curious about trying again while spectating Ironman Louisville. It would allow me to finish the year as planned (at Rev3 FL), while continuing training and carrying more fitness into 2014.  Unfortunately, my race didn't go as "planned," but I still had a fantastic experience and enjoyed the race in spite of myself.

My yearly totals were a bit down from 2012 in some respects, but it's obvious where the concentration was versus the year prior (plus, in early 2012 I wasn't working so had all the training time I needed AND spent time in Tucson putting in some SERIOUS hours).

Swimming - 745,300 yards (510,800 in 2012)
Biking - 6,905 miles (8,320 in 2012)
Running - 1,685 miles (1,822 in 2012)

The story isn't told completely by numbers however.  I increased my FTP and my MMP over various time periods, lowered my running paces across all levels setting several new PBs along the way, and dramatically increased my swimming capacity and pace capabilities.

Since Cozumel (December 1st), I have run ~13 miles and have swum ~1200 yards (no biking) so I am feeling a little slower than I was 4 weeks ago. But that is ok. Few people take as much time off as they really should so I am reveling in my readiness to crush more dreams by being more rested so I can better prepare.  And all that good stuff.

All in all, it was a pretty great year. I have few complaints and hope to take advantage of every year I get to race, train, blog and other sweet stuff with good friends! Here's to 2013; you were a good one.