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Intro:

Since many of our clients are athletes, specifically triathletes and runners, we thought it would be interesting to track the progress of one of our own, Pat Dwyer, as he prepares for Ironman Florida. Pat came to us a couple of years ago to help him resolve some piriformis issues, but he’s become a “regular” and sees several of our therapists. We’ve treated a myriad of injuries, aches and pains as he puts a lot of wear and tear on his body through his intensive training. He’s like many of our athletes/clients who depend on us to “glue” them back together after rigorous training.

Pat has been a member of the Boston Triathlon Team since 2003. He’s also a member of the Cambridge Running Club and Minuteman Masters Swim Team. He’s been racing triathlon locally since 2002, and was a USA Triathlon Age-Group All American in 2002 and 2004, and Honorable Mention in 2003. He also holds a 2:37 marathon PR.

Although Pat has a full racing schedule planned, his main goal is to qualify for the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. Pat’s going to keep us up to date with periodic reports about his training and racing. He also encourages readers to email him questions and comments about their own training and racing (he’s also not opposed to advice!).

Week 1 (6/6/05)

Yesterday was my first race of the season. It was a sprint triathlon in Ludlow, Massachusetts. I was using it as a tune-up for my first “A” race, the Eagleman Half Ironman, which is next weekend in Maryland. Anyway, I finished second overall and was generally pleased with my performance. But I see some serious room for improvement. I’ve been really working on my swimming this year, so I was happy to be in the mix coming out of the water- 4th place. The bike, however, is really my weakness. I have some long rides under my belt, but, like everyone else in New England, I’ve been somewhat limited by the weather. I felt decent during the bike leg…not too bad on the hills, which usually kill me. I managed to make my way into second place by the end of the bike. However, due to some misdirection (or lack of any direction) by the race officials I missed the last turn and found my way into third place just before the finish. As I came out of the second transition I started pressing the run to catch the guy in second place. I caught him pretty easily (the run is my strength), but used a bit too much energy doing it (I need to exercise more patience). By the second mile I was struggling a bit….so I just tried to maintain my pace. The race leader, however, was a bit out of reach (it was only a 4 mile run and he had about 1 minute on me), so I decided to back off and save myself for the bigger race next weekend.

This week’s training is pretty light as I prepare for the race. Today, however, was a treat…I got to see Kate for a full massage. It was sort of a post race/pre race massage…to get the blood moving. When Kate works on me she breaks up so much scar tissue and releases so many toxins from my body that about an hour after my visit I start having sneezing fits (that’s how I know its working!). My workouts this week will basically consist of a token track workout, a few bike rides and one masters swim practice. My wife and I are leaving for Maryland on Thursday and I have a lot to do before we leave.

Each season I basically choose my big races, otherwise known as “A” races. Then the rest of my season (training and racing) centers on those “A” races. Eagleman is a big race. It attracts the top pros and age-group competitors since it’s a qualifying race for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. It’s a notoriously flat course…which is good for me since, as I mentioned earlier, I’m not really a good climber on the bike. I really just want to have a strong race at Eagleman, but qualifying for Hawaii is definitely on the back of my mind. However, with the competition being so strong I’ll have to have a near perfect race to even be in contention….check in next week!

Week 2 (6/14/05)

Well…Blackwater Eagleman has come and gone. It was very rough day with a bittersweet ending. For those that haven’t been there, the Eastern Shore of Maryland is beautiful….flat….but beautiful. On race morning my alarm went off at 3:50 am. I had my usual pre-race breakfast and pre-race shower. I always take a hot shower to loosen up before I race. Then we packed up the car and headed to the race….with a quick pit stop at Wawa for coffee (if you haven’t been to a Wawa you’re missing out).

We got to the race site surprisingly early. I was able to get into my pre-race warm-up without too many distractions. It’s funny; I always get strange looks from people when I set up my bike on my trainer before a race. People either think I’m crazy or really smart for thinking of it. Putting the bike on the trainer, rather than riding the roads, enables you to control your warm-up. You also don’t have to worry about last minute flats. After my bike warm-up, I set up my transition area, grabbed my wetsuit, and headed for the bathrooms. Things were going very smoothly…until I saw the line at the bathrooms….at least 15-20 minutes long. Unfortunately this really put a dent in my swim warm-up.

My swim was somewhat uneventful. It wasn’t bad, but wasn’t good. I never really got into a rhythm. I lost contact with the top guys in my wave and was basically stuck by myself. The swim also seemed very long…which was probably due to the strong currents. I had a decent transition….although when I got to my bike I noticed that my helmet and glasses were on the ground. Fortunately I was out of the water early in my wave, so nobody stepped on them.

The bike leg was brutal. On my warm-up ride the previous day I kept thinking “man, this is going to be great…just sit in the aero bars and hammer…no hills”. Well, I was right about the hills, the course is as flat as can be, but it was also extremely windy. And it didn’t help my cause that my lower back was locking up. I tend to drop my chest when I swim which causes some stiffness in my lower back. It was really bothering me during the bike. Because it was so windy, getting out of the saddle to stretch it was like putting up a sail. As I was coming in on the bike I saw the Pro men and women heading out on the run. I yelled some words of encouragement to Karen Smyers as I passed her. I came into the second transition ready to run.

The run leg started great. I felt pretty strong. This is usually where I can reel in some people. However, it didn’t take long for the lower back soreness and the scorching heat to catch up with me. I decided to just get through the first half of the run and pick it up on the second half. Apparently I wasn’t the only one having trouble with the heat. I passed a number of people that looked like they were just melting. I started to get my legs around mile 4. At that point I was dumping ice in my race singlet at every water stop. Since the run is an out and back I was able to see the leaders of my age-group. I thought that I might be able to catch a couple of guys, so I started to really press the second half of the run. Somewhere between miles 11 and 12 I started to fall apart. I was just trying to get to the next aide station. I almost stopped to walk, but thought better of it. I finally made it to the aide station and took in some fluids and dumped more ice into my singlet. That was all I needed as I charged home to finish. Upon finishing, I found a nice shady spot to collapse and pour ice-water on myself.

I finished 25th Male Overall and 4th in my Age-Group. Not too bad considering the level of talent at the race. Eagleman consistently produces one of the best fields on the East Coast. It’s one of only 2 Half-Ironman Races on the east coast where you can qualify for the Hawaiian Ironman. I just missed my qualifying spot, so I’ll again be competing at Ironman Florida in November. Overall, I was happy with my finish at Eagleman, although I was expecting a much faster time (Eagleman is usually a fast course). I was also happy that I held up on the run. I’ve had some electrolyte problems in the past when racing in extreme heat. I’ve really been experimenting with my nutrition…and this time it seemed to work.

With my first “A” race out of the way, it’s time to recover and do a couple short races, before I ramp up the training for Timberman in August.

Week 6

This week was the Tour de New Jersey…otherwise known as my vacation. My wife, Jenn, and I drove down to my parent’s house in Cape May for a week at the beach. My coach scheduled my mid-season break around my trip, so I could enjoy myself (when you have a long season like mine, which doesn’t end until November, it makes sense to give your body and mind a little R&R in the middle). However, this “break” didn’t prevent me from racing. Every year I try to do a race or two in New Jersey…because that’s where I grew up. It’s always fun to do “hometown” races. This year I scheduled two sprint races that would bookend my trip.

The first race was the Hammonton Sprint Triathlon. I was a bit tired due to all the traveling. Most of the triathlons in South Jersey are in cedar water lakes…which is very dark and murky water caused by the cedar trees. Before the race I ran into a recurring problem….not adequately warming up for the swim. However, when the gun went off I shot to the front. It was only a quarter mile, so I had to go very hard. As we made the first turn I was in second place. I figured that the guy in first was Matt Stypul, a good local triathlete and top swimmer (I was right). I exited the water in a tie for second place, but wound up in third after a terrible transition. I could not get my wetsuit off. I had the same problem at Granite Ledges (NH) last year. I think it has something to do with the way I put it on (not pulling it up all that way over my calves). I wound up losing around 25-30 seconds…which is an eternity in a sprint race. Anyway, I was in third place getting on the bike. I pushed pretty hard and caught the guy in front of me around mile 3, who proceeded to draft off of me for 3 miles (and would have done so longer if other athletes hadn’t seen him and yelled at him). I put some distance between myself and third place, but then had a complete mental lapse….and made a wrong turn. I quickly realized my mistake and got myself back onto the course. Although the guy behind me didn’t catch me, the clock did (as I would find out later). I got off the bike in second place and tried to use my run speed to catch Matt in first. The run was basically a trail run, which is nice for running, but not great for trying to catch someone since you can’t see them. I wound up finishing in second position, but, ultimately had to settle for third since a guy in a later wave beat me. If I didn’t have my transition troubles and was closer to Matt on the bike, I think the outcome would have been a little different. But hey, there’s always next week, right?

The next day Jenn, my dad and my brother-in-law were doing a local 5k road race called the “Sister Blister” in Avalon. I decided to jump in for fun (although for me, that can mean racing very hard!). So, I decided to wear training shorts and shoes, so I wouldn’t treat it like a “race”. I seeded myself behind my dad (who’s a good age-group runner). My goal was to progressively get faster and finish strong. And that’s what I did. I passed people the whole way. As I was bearing down on the finish there was a pack of runners that I thought I could catch. But that would have required digging deep and this was a training run…so I opted to cruise to the finish. I crossed the line at 17:50…good for 13th Overall. Not too bad for a training run (and a few beers the night before!).

The following weekend was the Lake Lenape Triathlon (.25/10/3.2) in Mays Landing. I was interested to see how I raced considering I did very little training during the week. Way back when, I did the inaugural Lake Lenape Triathlon….there were about 35 people and the results were handwritten. My how far we’ve come! I knew that this race was going to be competitive…as I had recognized some of the local athletes. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that I could have asked to be placed in the first wave (with all the other “contenders”). So I would up racing in the third wave. I don’t like the fact that athletes can be “bumped” into the first wave. It’s an unfair advantage. If they want to do this there should be an “elite” wave (like the Timeout races). Anyway, the gun went off, and again I went to the front. Except this time I had to race through the previous waves. I always feel bad when I clobber swimmers from previous waves. It’s not intentional. I do try to avoid them, but sometimes you just can’t help it. I really clobbered a woman at this race. As I was taking a stroke, my arm wrapped completely around her head and took her with me as I followed through. I think she was the only casualty (sorry!). Anyway, I exited the water first from my wave. I had a pretty good transition and made my way on the bike. I felt fairly strong on the bike. I was able to see the leaders on the out and back course. Again, I made a mental error….I took my feet out of my bike shoes too early, as I thought the transition was closer than it was…dumb, dumb, dumb. I was the 8th person off the bike (including the 2 previous waves), so I knew I was in decent position. I had a decent run…but nothing stellar. Unfortunately for me, a few of the top guys could run. And I ran into the same thing that happened the week before, I couldn’t see my competition (until it was too late). I wound up finishing 4th overall (9 seconds separated me from 3rd and 18 seconds separated me from 2nd).

I took something away from these races. One, sprints are an entirely different kind of race. You have to go hard the entire time. And you can’t make mental errors. A couple of seconds can kill you. Two, I’m finally learning how to ride the bike for short distance. I’m not there yet, but learning. As my coach explains it…it’s teaching you how to “suffer” on the bike. And three, I’m not a sprinter. I can do okay in these races, but I’m a distance guy.

Anyway, as I return to Boston, I’m getting ready for the big buildup to Timberman…big training weeks to come. I’m sure that I’ll be seeing a lot more of Drew and Company in the coming weeks