Category: Race Reports

Rational Brain/Emotional Brain: 2013 Ironman Lake Placid Race Report

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I wanted so badly for this race report to be a zero-to-hero story, the dream-come-true-story, the local-small-town-girl-goes-big-Kahuna story. I wanted to be the dark horse that no one saw coming. I wanted to be the American Dream equivalent of Ironman racing – work hard, realize your dreams. I wanted to qualify for Kona. But, I didn’t. Despite giving this race everything I had – mentally and physically – I came up short for a Kona slot, 4 minutes and 53 seconds short to be exact.  That’s how far ahead the 4th place woman was. She earned the last Kona slot in …

2013 Eagleman Triathlon Race Report: Possibilities, Penalties and Mudpits

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“5 seconds… 3… 2…,” the announced said, and then the siren went off. And so began the 16th swim wave (females 40-44) at the 2013 Eagleman Triathlon. With 30 Kona slots and 40 Vegas slots, some of the biggest studs in triathlon come to play at Eagleman 70.3. And there I was, in the water with them. I felt like I was swimming strong, passing caps in my age group once the fray settled down. After some time, I was also passing caps in the 2-3 waves prior to mine. I thought I was swimming strong. I thought I was sighting …

Simple But Not Easy: 2013 Bassman Triathlon Race Report

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My race strategy for the 2013 Bassman Triathlon (half distance) was pretty simple really:  Swim hard. Bike hard. Run hard. Simple, but not easy. My coach Vince emailed me the day before the race, “Tear it up tomorrow!!  Stay warm.  Swim hard. Be strong on the bike and then try to hang on during the run… :).” Gone were the carefully planned watts targets, the heart rate zones of previous races. While I would be using my fancy gadgets, watts or heart rate would not be the primary focus. My racing orders were to go as hard as I could. …

NJ Ultra Festival Race Report: 100 Miles to Go

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This post is from my husband John Jenkins. It is his NJ Ultra Festival race report, which details his first experience running 100 miles. The race was held at the NJ State Fairgrounds in Augusta, NJ, starting on Saturday, March 23, 2013. This post is a little on the long side but so was the race, so grab some snacks and enjoy.  *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 100 miles, 10 x 10 mile loops. This one is hard to put into words but I’ll give it my best. “Go!” race director Rick McNulty exclaimed exactly at 7 a.m. And, with that, I started my first 100 …

Getting My Irish On: Annual St. Pat’s Boardwalk 10 miler

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For 5 or 6 years now, my spring season has begun with the St. Pat’s Boardwalk 10 mile run, which runs up and down the length of the Atlantic City-Ventnor Boardwalk. This is a very community-friendly race, that raises money for The Donny Fund. I love doing this race, as many of my friends from the local running and triathlon community come out of winter hibernation to enjoy a fun and festive day. This year the weather was still in winter mode, with 35-40 degree temps, and a relatively light 10-12 mph northeast wind. Compared to some years, this is great …

Making Dreams Real: Kona Report – part 2

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This is the second part of my husband John’s experience at the Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona, on October 13, 2013. Part 1 can be found here.  Into T2, and it was time to flip the switch and go do what has always been my best event of the three. My target heart rate for the run was 145 beats per minute (bpm). At the first aid station, I was way through the ceiling at 165. On the bike I was able to offset the heat with the wind and by consuming over 12 water bottles. No, I’m not kidding. …

Chasing Dreams: Kona Report – part 1

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It has been a few months since my husband John finished the Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona on October 13, 2012. While it is a little late for a race report, I wanted him to share what he learned with the Running A Life Community. And, I know several of you have asked as well. What follows is his response to our request. Enjoy!   As I exited the water at Dig Me Beach, and shook off the salty Pacific, pieces of my dream fell to the ground and gave way to the reality. In the water, you could see …

Roll With It: Bone Island Triathlon Race Report

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January is an odd time of year to do a triathlon for someone who lives in the dank cold of the Northeast United States. But, after Ironman Mont Tremblant in August, my coach Vince and I decided that I would pass on the fall racing season in favor of building my bike fitness. Somewhere around mid-October, I knew I wouldn’t make it until the spring season without some sort of race. So, I consulted my friend Google. Oh, wise Google, what type of mischief might a marauding triathlete get into in January?  Google replied: This inaugural event, organized by the same …

Kona: An IronFan’s Perspective

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  It’s been two weeks since the Ironman World Championships, where John crossed the finish line in 10 hours, 13 minutes and 37 seconds, which places him in the top 23.8% of the best triathletes IN.THE.WORLD. Impressive. Almost as impressive as his IronFans who hopped and shuttled and pushed and cajoled around the race course to make sure we were in just the right location to scream our crazy heads off and snap choice money shots, like this one:   But, hey, it was our job, which, to use the words of our friend Danny, included:  “Eat. Drink. Applaud. Repeat.” As …

Ironman Mont Tremblant: The Course

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I raced Ironman Mont Tremblant in its inaugural year in 2012. In sum: It’s challenging. It’s spectacular. It’s worth doing again. In this post, I want to share details about the course that will help guide training if you are signed up for this race. Because the course is the same for the 70.3, this post should also prove useful for those of you signed up to do that race. If you are on the fence about doing this race: Get off the fence, whip out your credit card, and do it. It’s awesome. (In a previous post, I covered …