One week later...

For the past week, I've been motivated to do the following things, possibly in excess: eat my roommate's cookies, sleep, give myself the coffee jitters, hang out with my crew of elementary school kids, pack my belongings (more on that later...) and hike. What I haven't been motivated to do is anything triathlon related- an impulse that is probably pretty healthy, given the long, draining season that I've just wrapped up. Now that I've recharged the batteries a bit, I'm ready to tackle my final race report of the year.

After a good training block in Clermont, I headed over to Clearwater to meet Team Groff (Mom, Dad, Lauren, Clay, Adam, Mike, Beckett and Cooper, the dog) for the 70.3 World Championships. In the lead-up to the race, I was able to spend some time with my family and my sponsors and to scope out the course. Going into the race, I was feeling fairly confident about my fitness, as I had just come off my best training block of the year, but nervous about tackling an unfamiliar distance. Bobby and I did our best in preparing me for the race in the time that we had, but I had a pretty daunting task in trying to play "catch-up" for my lack of bike fitness going into the training block.

The conditions were pretty perfect for the race- sunny, calm and warm. Due to the chop, the race organizers had changed the swim venue to more protected waters and changed the start times, having the women begin 8 minutes before the men. I was a bit disappointed by the change in swim course, as a rougher swim benefits me and it would have been easier to break away. I lead out of the water with a line of women behind me (the swim exit was next to a pirate ship. Argh!). I have to admit that I was pretty overwhelmed by the WTC transition and floundered a bit with the concept of gear bags, people trying to peel my wetsuit off of me and trying to take my bike from me in T2!

Heading out onto the bike, I found myself exactly where I had hoped, settling into a comfortable pace in a group of women. When the tight pack of 30-40 men went by, however, the tone of my race changed drastically, however. Instead of letting the men pass, as I had assumed, the other girls tucked into the men's group and were out of sight before I could process what had happened. Needless to say, the officials didn't enforce drafting rules as strictly as I would have hoped. For the remainder of the bike, I had to put my head down and ride solo, managing my effort and trying not to get too worked up.

By the time that I entered T2, I was more emotionally and physically exhausted than I had anticipated. I was still hopeful that I could put together a strong 13.1 miles and settled into a steady pace. Going into the race, we planned to build through the run, gradually increasing pace each 5k. At the 5k mark, I realized that the plan wasn't exactly going to match up with the race as it was unfolding! I pushed through the run in a pretty ugly fashion, having to take a walk break with 5k to go. Ouch! While I was disappointed to have run 5-6 minutes slower than I had trained to run, I am proud that I gave the race everything that I had. When I crossed the line, I was completely spent, having given every ounce of energy to finish in 7th place. Julie Dibens, the super-cyclist (and really nice chick), dominated the women's race. She has set the bar really high for next year!

While I may have wanted to finish off the season in a slightly stronger fashion, I had a really great experience in Clearwater with my family, friends and sponsors. I was also overjoyed for the victory for my good friend, Michael Raelert, who ran away from the men's field, posting an incredible 1:09 half-marathon. We had spent the previous 4 weeks together in Clermont and I was able to see how incredibly hard he had trained in the lead-up to the race. It was gratifying to see his hard work pay off and feel that I may have had a very small part in his win, having forced healthy dinners on him!

Thanks to my family and friends for supporting me in Clearwater! The experience was far more fun, having shared it with you. I look forward to returning next year (a top-10 qualifies me for 2010), armed with this year's experience. At the very least, I won't panic when the volunteers try to take my bike from me in T2 next year!

Okay, back to the cookies, coffee and naps...

Giving Thanks

Earlier this week, I had the kids make a Thanksgiving poster. Instead of the typical hand-shaped turkey, they traced their hands and wrote one thing that they are grateful for on each finger. If you couldn't guess, mine is the big one on the bottom left. Yes, I have massive paws.

Lessons about triathlon from a Phillies fan

When I was a kid growing up in Cooperstown, home of the Baseball Hall of Fame, I played Little League baseball for a few years. I was a pretty mediocre baseball player, more interested in practicing my pirouettes in the outfield than in catching fly balls and in perfecting the art of the grass whistle than in learning to hit. While I had a great time, my career as a baseball player was short-lived and undistinguished, to say the least.

Although I am a pretty bad baseball player, however, I am a pretty good fan of the sport to this day. Through the years, my interest in watching post-season baseball has increased, especially when the Philadelphia Phillies are playing well. For the second year in a row, the Phillies have clinched the National League title and earned their way to the World Series. Although the Phillies ultimately lost to the Yankees, my least favorite team in baseball, I really enjoyed watching their post-season play. Maybe it is because I'm in the midst of a hard training block in the lead up to next weekend's 70.3 World Championships, but watching the Phillies actually reinforced some lessons about triathlon...

1) Even old guys can bring it. While 38 year old Pedro Martinez may lack some of the speed and power that he once had, he used his experience and skill to do a pretty solid job on the mound (okay, they kept him in a bit long, but still...). In triathlon, athletes can still kick some serious booty into their late 30s. At 27, I'm just middle aged as a pro!

2) It takes a team. It doesn't matter how many home runs Utley hits. If the pitching is off, you don't stand a chance and vice versa. From Charlie Manuel to the under appreciated Carlos Ruiz, the Phillies were a pretty solid unit. Likewise, it takes a team to produce a successful triathlete. From a great coach to support staff to family and friends, nobody can make it to the top entirely on their own.

3) It is always more fun in the company of others. I enjoyed watching the Series by myself (for some reason, my German roommate wasn't interested), but I would have had more fun watching with other Phillies fans. Or Yankee fans with a sense of humor. Likewise, I've realized how much I miss training with other people this season. I am getting a bit tired of conversing with myself on long rides.

4) Some people will just never understand your interest. The aforementioned roommate just didn't grasp why I was excited about each hit or disappointed by each run scored against us. No matter how much you explain it, not everyone will understand why you care about baseball, triathlon, pinochle, scrapbooking or whatever else you love.

5) Sometimes it just isn't pretty. Baseball involves frequent "adjustments" and spitting- not terribly flattering ways to be caught on camera. Racing in triathlons frequently leads to photos of anguished expressions, snot and sweat covered faces and some horrendous running forms. I like to say that the day that I have a great run photo from a race is the day that I retire.

6) Pace, pace, build, race. I admit that I am a bit of a fair weather fan. I start to get interested in the Phillies when we are doing well and a have a chance at winning our division. Even then, I don't watch games until the post-season. The way that I see it, I only have so much emotional energy to expend as a fan. I would risk serious mid-season burn out if I were emotionally invested in every in-season game. In triathlon, you are best off starting the season strong and trying to build throughout the year. Every year, there are athletes that have amazing early season results and fizzle out by July. I prefer the simmer method, personally!

7) MVP to LVP. Cole Hamels was the MVP in 2008. 2009 was an "off" season, shall we say. In sport, you can have good plays followed by bad ones, great games (or races) followed by disappointing ones and amazing seasons followed by a mediocre one. There will always be ebbs and flows, but you have to keep looking ahead to the future without being held back by your past, good or bad.

8) Facial hair is awesome. Chan Ho Park was rocking a pretty killer beard. If I were a guy, I'd race with facial hair like that. Kinda like Fair Al-Sultan, but cleaner-looking. Okay, that had nothing to do with triathlon.