Going into the race, I did my standard three day carbohydrate load. With nationals on Saturday, I started my carbohydrate load on Wednesday and kept track of everything I ate over those three days with an app on my phone. At 175 pounds (79.5 kg) I was aiming for 635 (8g/kg) - 795 (10g/kg) grams of carbohydrate per day. On Wednesday I took in 770 grams, on Thursday I took in 677 grams, and on Friday I took in 784 grams.
Race morning came and the women started at 7:30 and the guys at 10:30. All week there was a possibility for rain but it ended up being pretty great weather (60's and overcast) for the race with no rain. It was fun to see the girls start and I was able to watch them a little bit while trying to stay off my feet and get ready for my race. At 9:15 I hopped on the trainer we set up at our tent so I could get in a bike warm-up before the race started. After that, I grabbed my wetsuit and headed down to the river to get in a short swim warm up before the race started.
The swim: 20:17 (1:15/100 yd) - The start of the swim on this course is usually pretty crazy as you have over 100 people crammed into a very small space holding onto a dock. Luckily this year it wasn't too bad and I got out pretty fast to avoid getting kicked and hit around. About 1/4 of the way into the swim, I got kicked on the wrist and my Garmin 310XT fell off my wrist. I would highly recommend NOT wearing your Garmin during the swim portion of a triathlon. I know of another guy this happened to and its just not worth losing a $300+ watch...after that I was pretty upset about having lost the watch, but just accepted it and moved on knowing there was nothing I could do about it. Overall, the swim went pretty well. I took advantage of a couple of drafts and think I swam pretty smart.
T1: 2:13
The Bike: 58:54 (25.3 mph) - As I mentioned before, I got new bike shoes the day before the race, and I am 100% positive that they helped me have the solid bike split that I did. I took the first mile to get situated and from there pretty much hammered the rest of the way. I took advantage of the downhills and tail winds and held my ground pretty well on the uphills (where I have struggled a little bit in the past). I finished with the 3rd fastest bike split behind my Fast Forward Triathlon (FFT) teammate Jay McCurdy who split a 58:44 and Karl Kahsar who had the top bike split of 58:37 (only 17 seconds ahead of me). I came into T2 in 5th place and had made up a lot of ground on the bike.
T2: 0:38
The Run: 35:50 (5:46/mi) - I came off the bike and felt pretty decent. Knowing that there was a lot of great runners behind me my goal was to maintain a solid pace and hold off as many guys as I could, knowing also that the guys in front of me are all great runners and it would be difficult to catch them. The first couple miles are pretty hilly and tough and my medial quads on both legs started to cramp during the first mile. I have had this happen before so I knew that the only thing to do was to push through it and hope that it subsides, which it usually does and it did. I got passed just after coming out of T2 by Ryan Bice (who had the top run split of the day) but otherwise, I did not get passed the rest of the run.
Finish: 1:57:49 - 7th Overall and 3rd Graduate. I was very pleased with another top 10 finish and finishing 7th overall especially considering how competitive and deep this field was. Every year I have competed in nationals I have placed better. Back in 2008 in Tuscaloosa I was 25th, then in Lubbock I was 21st in 2009, 18th in 2010, and last year back in Tuscaloosa I was 10th. The atmosphere at nationals is outstanding and has always been a favorite race of mine, for the competition and the camaraderie that comes with competing with and against your friends and fellow athletes, many of which you have the chance to meet and come close to over the years, makes collegiate nationals a truly unique and fun race/weekend.
Congrats to my fellow FFT teammates Jay McCurdy who finished 8th overall and who motivated me to have the great race that I did. Jay and I went back and forth on the bike multiple times and I knew he had the ability to run me down which motivated me to run that much faster. Congrats also to the girls, Hallie Blunck, Erika Erickson, and Kathrine "Moose" Warren on finishing 3rd, 6th, and 7th in the women's race.
Thanks to my Coach Alex McDonald of Fast Forward Triathlon for pushing me in the months leading up to the race. I am looking forward to building upon this race and having a great 2012 season.
