General Smallwood Race Report (#3 of 4)

If you’re like me you’re might be wondering, “Just who is General Smallwood and why is there a race named in his honor?”  Or not.  But here’s your Maryland history lesson for the day.  William Smallwood was a Revolutionary War officer, Governor of Maryland, and a member of the colonial tidewater aristrocracy.  In 1785, Smallwood was [...]

Week #12 of 13

 
It’s coming to an end.  I just hope I don’t turn into a pumpkin at midnight.  Speaking of pumpkin, I had an awesome pumpkin pie latte from Caribou Coffee this morning.  I was in DC for a training class and being in the big city, I went to a big city coffee shop for a [...]

SavageMan – Westernport Wall – 2 riders shot from below
Here is a short video of myself and Dave W. from the Mid MD Tri Club climbing up the Westernport Wall of the SavageMan 1/2 Iron Race

SavageMan Half Iron Race Report (#2 of 4)

There’s already a race in California that is called “The World’s Toughest Half” but this one is the world’s most “Savage” triathlon. Which is tougher? I doubt it matters. So why is this race called SavageMan?
The race site offers three reasons:
- the course takes athletes along Maryland’s Savage River and through the Savage River State [...]

Week #11 of 13

                                                    
Completing the SavageMan Half Iron triathlon on Sunday was an important and big step toward completing the Challenge 2 Help.  Maybe not Apollo 11 “giant leap for mankind” big but it was a confidence-booster.  Here’s the week in review:
Mon: Recover from Annapolis race
Tues: 30 min swim; 4.1 mile run
Wed: 20 mile bike
Thurs: 4.5 mile run
Fri: [...]

Nervously Excited about SavageMan

 
SAVAGEMAN HALF IRON
As if tackling a one-block long climb of 25% is worrisome enough, I realized earlier this week that the “Westernport Wall” is part of a mile-long climb that averages 15%.  Oh, and after that?  SavageMan keeps climbing, although much more gently, for another 5 miles as you cross the Eastern Continental Divide over [...]

Annapolis Race Report (#1 of 4)

Race #1 is in the books.  The Annapolis Triathlon (1.5K swim, 38K bike, 10K run) went as planned, if I really had a plan.  My family and I stayed the night in Annapolis so they wouldn’t have to wake at a ridiculous hour to watch the race.  My friend Chip and his wife picked me [...]

Week #10 of 13

Much like WVU and RB Steve Slaton this past weekend, week #10 for me got off to a slow start but things really picked up in the second half.  In fact, let’s get right to the stats so I can think about a race report while it’s fresh in my mind.
Mon:  Rest Day
Tues:  30 minute [...]

Wow, That was a Long Day

No, not race day.  But yesterday.  The day before.  Not knowing exactly how to approach these 4 weeks and when to taper, I woke around 6:30 AM and was on the bike by 7:15.  I ended up riding for about two hours – 32 miles.  I don’t normally do much of anything the day before [...]

Week #9 of 13

When I finished the week of training, I felt like someone put me in the wall. Simple as that. My legs were trashed and I was exhausted. But I felt good knowing that I accomplished what I set out to do during the week and the long training was behind me.
Here’s a recap of the [...]