Fast forward to now: USAT has full control of the race – a move by our national governing body that has many race directors up in arms (they don’t feel USAT should be producing races).  I am here to tell you that USAT has made the right move by taking over the race; they are providing an experience for collegiate triathletes that no one else can consistently deliver.  What an incredible experience for all of the college athletes that make the annual pilgrimage to this great event (the race site moves around the country every two years).  This year they had a total of three races over two days: on Friday there was the first ever ITU Draft Legal Collegiate race, on Saturday morning was the Olympic non-drafting race and on Saturday afternoon was the Super Sprint Relay.

If you have never seen an ITU Draft Legal race, I can tell you as a veteran of 25+ years in the sport that they are really exciting to watch – especially when it comes to college racing. It’s like March Madness all rolled into a one hour race in April, with kids who aren’t getting huge scholarships to compete.  As cool as the ITU race was, the Super Sprint Relay was incredibly fun to watch. The relay teams are comprised of two women and two men; each athlete does a very short triathlon of 250m swim, 5km bike and 1.2km run – about 15 min of anaerobic amusement.

I haven’t seen this much pure fun in the sport for many years; it was the most enjoyable time I have had watching the sport I have grown up with.  Of course, it’s even better when you sponsor the team (my alma mater) with the men’s winner of the ITU and Olympic race (University of Arizona TriCat – Ben Kanute) as well as sponsor the women’s Olympic winner (Colorado – Michelle Mehnert) .

What easy triathlon tips can you use to become a faster triathlete?  What unusual triathlon tips do pro triathletes give to beginners?  There are lots of lists of triathlon tips out there (eat your Wheaties, be sure to stay hydrated, take your bike helmet off for the run – don’t laugh, I’ve seen people forget that one), but most of those triathlon tips you can think of yourself, or are pretty obvious.

This is a list of triathlon tips I have assembled, focusing on actually useful tips to being a faster triathlete, but ones that I am confident you have not heard before.  On each one of the triathlon tips you can click the links for more detail.

Added Bonus- There are actually 13 triathlon tips for the price of 10!

Pre-Race Nutrition Triathlon Tips: What You Eat Matters

1.Carb-load properly the day before the race:

• This is one of those things that everyone thinks they know how to do but very few people get right
• The day before the race focus on eating a LOT of easy to digest (and pass through) carbohydrates!
• Eat them early in the day (pancakes and syrup?)
• Your target is 15 grams of carbohydrates per pound of bodyweight- this is a LOT.  Think ~2 lb of pasta.
• Eliminate non-carb foods the day before the race so you are not overwhelmed by calories
• You can read more details on how to carb load properly for a triathlon.

Swimming: Triathlon Tips for a Faster Swim

2.  Learn how to draft on the swim!

• It’s not that hard to do, its 100% legal, and it saves a ton of energy.
• One great spot to draft while swimming is right behind someone- everyone knows this one.
• The secret great spot for drafting is next to the lead swimmer, but half a body length back.
• You can see a lot more detail on this triathlon tip here: draft while swimming in a triathlon.

Biking: Triathlon Tips for a Faster Bike

3.  Ride faster in a triathlon by riding on the white line when you are riding alone.

• On bad pavement it will surprise you how much faster you can bike!

4.  Ride on the fast pavement whenever you can!

• Sometimes just six inches to the left or right can be worth 1mph
• You can see details on this triathlon tip in this article: how to ride faster in a triathlon on the faster pavement without causing a crash.

5.  Evaluate your triathlon bike fit

• If you can’t ride for the whole bike leg (however long it takes you to ride whatever distance you are training for) in your aero-bars, you need a better triathlon bike fit.
• It’s far more important to ride in your aero position for the entire bike leg than it is to buy an aero helmet or even to pedal really hard.
• You can do an online triathlon bike fit, or go to a good local tri shop,
• You can even do a DIY triathlon bike fit yourself with a video camera

6.  Learn how to pass other triathletes on the bike efficiently via slingshot passing

• You will pass a ton of people out there- if you can save 1 second per pass by doing it smartly, it’s worth doing!
• Ride right up behind the athlete you are passing, then swing around at the last minute, having gotten a good rest while catching up behind the lead rider
• You have 15 seconds to go from 3 bike lengths behind to “your wheel passing the front wheel of the other athlete” -there is no reason not to use at least 10 of those 15 seconds!

7.  Conversely, you should also learn how to be passed efficiently

• This is just a reverse slingshot pass
• Remember you have to drop out of the 3 bike length draft zone in 15 seconds
• But you might as well do it while directly behind the faster rider so you can rest while dropping back

8.  Use the correct triathlon race tires to have a faster bike split with no added effort.

• While all tires may look the same (round? Check.  Black? Check) there are huge differences.
• Some are crazy fast.  Some are slow as riding in mud.
• A lot of research has been done on tires, and the result is a complete file of rolling resistance data (get it from the link below).
• There is a bit of a tradeoff with puncture resistance and tire speed, so read this article on how to choose the right triathlon tire for the specific race you are training for.

9.  Use the correct tire sealant in your race tires so you can run fast (and slightly puncture prone) race tires without getting flats.

• There are a lot of good choices for tire sealants.  My personal preference is “flat attack.”
• You can read an insane amount of detail about your tri tire sealant choices.

Running: Triathlon Tips for a Faster Run

10.  Do most of your training runs SLOWER

• Most people do almost all of their runs “at the edge of discomfort.”
• This is too fast for your day-to-day run training.
• The much better method is to do almost all of your runs at a very easy, comfortable speed, and finish feeling like you could do a lot more.
• Then once a week, do a really hard speed workout.
• This will actually make you a lot faster for races, and GREATLY reduce your recovery time and risk of injury.

11.  Aid station water is NOT for DRINKING

• Gatorade (or whatever with carbs and salt that they are handing out) is for drinking
• Water is for pouring on your head and keeping your hat, hair and clothes wet
• Water is not for drinking and is not for getting into your shoes (harder)

12.  Put ice in a “Michael Jackson Glove” to manage heat

• Ice makes a huge difference, but its hard to figure out where to put it when running
• Wear one surgical/latex glove (yes you look kind of silly) and fill it with ice at the aid stations

13.  Develop an efficient aid station routine

• There are 12 running aid stations in a half ironman.
• Save a few seconds at each one and it’s 4 minutes off your race time!
• Keep moving!  If you stop moving you lose time and your legs get cramps.  At least walk, or jog through it
• Develop a routine and stick to it- this way as you get dumb towards the end you don’t forget something
• The key thing to keep in mind is to do as little as possible in the aid station itself and to move on and do as much as you can while running.
• Here are suggestions on a routine that works,

About the author: Coach Noah is the head coach at T1 Triathlon LLC, a coaching company dedicated to meeting the needs of all triathletes, specifically including beginner triathletes, and often working with athletes training for their first Ironman. We had 3 first-time Ironman athletes this year, and one athlete race at Kona 18 months after starting triathlon.   You can read about our success stories, and the services we offer.

• If you want to ask the coach a question, send him an email!
• This “Top 10 Tips” list was developed from our popular “Triathlon Tips of The Day” service
  • You can get our future triathlon tips in your inbox by signing up here.
  • You can see all of our past triathlon tips in our triathlon tip of the day archive.
• You should also like us on facebook!

This blog entry was brought to you by coachfitter.com, a great service that helps athletes connect with the coaches they fit with in many different sports.

No longer an underdog after her 3^rd place finish in Hawaii last year, Leanda Cave is one of those athletes you root for because of her work ethic, and because she’s just plain nice. If you live in Tucson you can see her out on the roads and trails, putting in the hard work day after day, like Rocky Balboa. It’s not always the best man or woman who wins; sometimes it’s the ones who are willing to play dirty or sometimes it’s that annoying team with all the money. Leanda, however is not only one of the hardest working professional triathletes, but also one of the nicest professional triathletes I’ve had the honor of meeting.

I’ll never forget the first time I was introduced to her in the TriSports retail store, shortly after I moved to Tucson and started working here. It was my first time meeting a pro outside of a race setting. When I was introduced to her, the person introducing us mentioned that I was training for a marathon. I noticed that she seemed to be friends with everyone in the building, but figured that it was just because they had been there for so long. However, the very next time she came in, not only did she greet me by name, but she asked how my marathon training was going. Getting to know her on a few training rides and on a few social outings solidified my belief that she is a kind, down-to-earth woman.

Because of the wonderful person she is, the entire TriSports triathlon community was behind her on race day. I was, quite literally, on the edge of my seat as I watched the final miles of the marathon unfold. To be honest, I was a little worried at one point; I had never seen Mirinda Carfrae catch another athlete and not pass her. When Leanda held strong and then began pulling away, everyone in the room went wild. She made us believe, as she must have all along, that she could catch Caroline Steffen and win the race.

Sitting in the TriSports Tempe retail store is Leanda’s trophy from Ironman Arizona. At the beginning of the year our staff, along with some of our best customers and sponsored athletes, wrote resolutions for the New Year. Below is a picture of that trophy and Leanda’s resolution; that’s how the mind of a champion works, and I can’t think of anyone more deserving of the title Ironman World Champion. It was such a thrill watching our friend and sponsored athlete win the most important and exciting race of the year, becoming the first woman to win both the Ironman 70.3 and Ironman World Championship races in the same year. Leanda, you continue to amaze and inspire us, and we thank you for another great year. Congratulations, champ! Your win was hard earned and well deserved.

Our first stop is West Chester, Ohio for the USAT Youth and Junior National Championship.  We will be at the Voice of America Park Friday, August 10^th from 9am to 5 pm, and Saturday, August 11^th from 6:30am to 1:30 pm.

2011 USAT Youth and Junior National Championship

Next we will be headed to the USAT Olympic and Sprint National Championship in Burlington, Vermont. We will be setting up shop at the Burlington Sheraton on Friday, August 17 10am to 6pm, and Saturday August 18 from 8 am to 6:30 pm.

Burlington, Vermont.

We look forward to seeing you out there and make sure you honk and wave to Shari and Pam K in the truck!

Pictures from Triathlete.com

Over the weekend a good friend reached out to me in search of help for his young nephew who was just diagnosed with ALS (also known as Amyotrophic  lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s Disease).  And two days later I learned the triathlon community has lost another life to ALS: Doug MacInnes (RIP Doug). This incurable disease takes lives every day and for the most part ALS is not heard about and sufferers only live for a short time beyond diagnosis. The health of the patient deteriorates so quickly leaving family and friends with very little time to adjust to the decline of their loved ones health.

A lot of athletes train day in and day out to participate and ultimately achieve a great result in triathlon, or any sport for that matter.  To some degree, we race this sport of triathlon for no reason other than our ego driven goals.  But I like to feel there is a purpose for everything and to know there is an even bigger reward.  And so racing for a cause, or in the name of someone else, is one of my favorite ways to race. I encourage all athletes to consider the value it brings to your life and to others by getting behind a charitable organization and racing for them.

Besides raising money for research and awareness, the Blazeman Foundation for ALS has been a huge support network that distributes knowledge and assistance to families and friends of ALS sufferers.  For this and many other reasons, I lend my time, name and voice to the Blazeman Foundation in hopes to increase their visibility and hopefully be a link in the chain to those who I reach.  And what does this all have to do with my race at the 29^th annual Columbia 5150 Triathlon? Rob Vigorito, the event owner and organizer, is a Clinical Instructor at the University of Maryland and has done key brain tissue research on Jon Blais (of whom the Blazeman Foundation was named after) in pursuit of a cure for ALS.  Rob has given up his own time and raised over $4million in aid of charitable organizations.   I raced Columbia 5150 in honor of Jon Blais and to support the charitable efforts of the Blazeman Foundation for ALS who help and encourage those and their families who have been affected by this disease.  I will add that Rob was also kind enough to let me play around in his Porsche Boxter before the race!!

Back to the race report!

Let’s just say that I did it again.  I managed to pick (or I should say it picked me) another one of the toughest races on the triathlon circuit to continue my early season racing campaign with equally tough competition!  Columbia 5150 is probably one of the hardest races over the Olympic distance that I have ever done…..and I would just like to remind readers that I have been doing triathlon for 20 years! So it goes without saying that to do well over a course of this difficulty means that you are doing something right and your form isn’t that shabby.  Hence, I’m pretty pleased with achieving 2^nd place at this stage of the game.  But what is of more significance to me is that I am still able to lay it down in an Olympic distance event.  I have morphed into an Ironman triathlete over the past 5 years and technically I should have no speed in my legs at all!  Additionally, the 30 hour training weeks I have been putting in prior to this event are not exactly conducive to Olympic distance racing.  I hurt myself quite a lot at this event and it felt really good!  That sounds like I seek pleasure in pain but in fact it is just more the fun of racing neck-and-neck again.  All too often, with long distance races, I find am more or less on my own the whole way.

On to how the actual race went down……

The clear leader out of the swim for the women was Sara McClarty.  Sara actually caught some of the men because she is such a demon in the water!  Next was a pack of 6 girls: Annabel Luxford, Lauren Goss, Rebecca Wassner, Debbie Tanner, Lindsey Jerdonek and myself.  I forgot how fast transitions are in short course racing and I was like an old woman running to my bike.  Right there I lost about 100m on the girls but I reeled most of them back in after the first few miles of the bike……..the exceptions being Rebecca Wassner and Annabel Luxford.  And then, Sara McClarty was still in the lead somewhere in the distance!  The bike course was a toughie: Hills, hills, and for kicks and giggles, a few more hills!

At about 20miles into the bike I finally caught McClarty which moved me into 3^rd place.  I was busting my lungs to keep up with Wassner who was busting her lungs just trying to keep the gap between herself and Luxford turning into daylight. We came off the bike about 90 seconds down on Luxford, and we were caught by Margie Shapiro who put in a valiant effort after coming out a bit down out of the swim.

Considering how bad my swim to bike transition, I was the first of our little pack to shoot out on to the run.  I wanted to just go as hard as I could for the run but this was not an easy run. The longest flat section was a 400 yard stretch in the last mile.   Everything else was either up or down but I kept telling myself: “it’s only 10km”, quite a bit shorter than the half or full marathon distance which I am now accustomed!  I swear, 10km seems so short after you have raced a few Ironman! At the end, I managed to hold on to 2^nd place.  I only gained back 30secs on Luxford who took out the win, but I had to fight the last mile with the 3^rd fastest run to hold off Laurel Wassner who ended up with the fasted run split by about a minute.  I completed the race, with of course, the Blazeman Roll…….which all started with Jon Blais who said he would make it over the finish line at Ironman Hawaii even if he had to roll.

I’m so very happy with this result. It’s nice to know that I still have a bit of speed and it also felt incredible to fight so hard during a race.   When I raced Wildflower, I was coming from quite some time off from racing and felt that it showed in my performance but now, after Columbia 5150, I feel like I’m truly racing once again and am more in love with racing and triathlon than ever.

My next race will be the famous Escape from Alcatraz.  I already have won this one 3 times, and I have my sights set on another win.  Thank you to all my AMAZING sponsors who I appreciate to no end: Driscoll’s Berries, Pacific Health Labs, K-Swiss, Trisports.com, Pinarello, Easton, Giro, Blueseventy, ISM Saddles, Tor Hans, Skins, TriBike Transport, Oakley, Computrainer, PowerCranks and Katalyst Multisport.

Without a doubt one of our BEST employees!

Fast forward to November 2011 at the Ford Ironman Arizona and we were both going to be on the starting line.  Two days before the event, I had breakfast with her and she said that we should have a friendly wager.  The bet: I would get a 20min handicap.  She wins and I shave my head (a real problem because I don’t think it would grow back).  I win and she has to babysit my 3 and 6 year-old kids.  My goal for IMAZ was 9:30 and the fastest Leanda has ever gone was 9:20’ish. I took the bet.

Race day dawns and it is going well for both of us. I see her on the run course at about mile 6 (the pros left 10-15 min before the age groupers) and did a time check…she had 6 min on me so I thought all was fine. Mile 16 comes and I find myself stopped in front of hundreds of people under the Mill Avenue Bridge, unable to move because my legs are locked down from cramps.  I finally got going again and had one more time check on her that was north of 20min.  I should have been jumping for joy because I was about to crush my IM PR that I set 10 years earlier, but noooooooo, all I was worried about was having to shave my noggin.  I went 9:14, Leanda went 8:49.

I arrived at my hotel that night, got the kids down for bed, checked my Twitter account and found this message:

Yes, 26 minutes.  Look who’s babysitting now!

Leanda, the consummate professional, lived up to her word and in December she came over and watched the kids for a solid 5 hours.  When we got home at 10:30PM, Leanda was on the couch (reading Lava magazine) and I asked how the kids behaved.  Before she could answer, our 3 year old jumps up from next to her, yelling “mommy, daddy!” “Leanda, ummmm, bed time was 8:30PM.”  Her response: “Your daughter has a lot of staying power.”  I will take that as a compliment coming from one of the best athletes on the planet.  I guess her idea of pumping the kids full of candy didn’t pay off too well!

]]> http://blog.tri-sports.com/2012/03/15/leanda-cave-the-nanny/feed/ 0 http://blog.tri-sports.com/2012/03/13/trisports-cycling-crush-the-competition-at-tour-of-murrieta/ http://blog.tri-sports.com/2012/03/13/trisports-cycling-crush-the-competition-at-tour-of-murrieta/#comments Tue, 13 Mar 2012 23:21:53 +0000 Jaclyn A. http://blog.tri-sports.com/?p=5562 By Andre McNulty

The Elite men’s team went to Murrieta, California this weekend to test our legs against the best of Southern California at the Tour of Murrieta and came home with the team victory.

Our team was represented by Brian Ellis, Ben Lair, Andre McNulty, Justin Orkney and two composite riders Michael Dziedzic and Christopher Chase.

Friday’s time trial was like nothing we had done before.  It was a 6.5k rolling course that ended on a climb up an unpaved road with several challenging switchbacks.  Brian, Justin, Andre and Michael had impressive showings.  They scored points by placing 5th, 7th, 10th and 15th respectively.  Though we all managed to stay upright and upbeat, we were losing the team competition to the California based Team Revolution.

Saturday’s race was a fast and furious 6 corner criterium in downtown Murrieta that was made especially challenging by strong winds.  Multiple attacks were attempted but nothing stuck until the teenage phenom that dominated the time trial got away solo for the win.  With 6 laps to go, Andre jumped across to two riders from Team Revolution and Team Clif Bar Cycling.  With three riders in the break representing three of the bigger teams, the break was successful.  The three riders worked well together and Andre placed second of the breakaway for third overall and a place on the podium.  With strong finishing sprints by Michael, Ben and Justin, we were able to take the lead in the team competition.

Our spirits were high going into the final day of racing despite strong winds and a stacked field.  The cat 2 men set a blistering pace finishing the 56 mile circuit race as fast as the pro field.  Midway into the race, after a flurry of attacks and a crash, the field split in two.  Justin and Michael made the split of 16 riders.  Realizing, we had numbers in the break, Brian and Andre were able to discourage chase efforts.  In the break, Justin took monster pulls to ensure they would stay away, allowing Michael to unleash his killer sprint.  Michael won the bunch sprint, placing second to one rider who attacked late in the race.

Knowing we had a 7 hour drive home, it was tough to stand around in our racing kits.  We had goosebumps from the chill in the air as the sun was setting. The wait was well worth it when we stood on the podium hoisting the crystal team award above our heads.

Ah, the sweetness of victory!!!!

Thank you to California Pools and Spas for putting on an awesome race and to The Bike Shop of Temecula for sponsoring the Jorge Alvarado Team Competition.

A huge thanks to our  generous sponsors Orbea, Zipp, SRAM, Pyramid Coaching, Technicians for Sustainability, R&A CPA’s, and TriSports.com!

Youth Deucathlon at Dueces Wild Triathlon Festival

In our hearts, we are racers- athletes. Our culture was born from racing and competing and has grown from a commitment to racing and participation at all levels- from beginner to world class.

TriSports.com Sponsored Athlete

TriSports.com supports athletes and events around the country- and around the world. From our top professionals like Leanda Cave, Ford Ironman Arizona Champion and 3^rd pro at the Ford Ironman World Triathlon Championships in Kona, Hawaii in 2011 to our grass-roots triathlon team that provides coaching and support for local athletes of all levels.

Our commitment to racing goes beyond just generating results. It includes supporting events around the United States with sponsorship and logistical support. We even host our TriSports.com Deuces Wild Triathlon Festival here in Arizona, the largest multisport festival in Arizona including a 70.3 distance triathlon, an X-TERRA off-road triathlon and children’s races.

Racing and supporting the sport is a part of our foundation at TriSports.com- and a part of our future.

This past weekend I had a very emotional and rewarding victory at Ironman Arizona – my final race of 2011!  Here is a summary of my 2011 season: 13 races, 3 of which were World Championship events.  Two Ironman races, two long distance triathlons, six half-ironman, two Olympic distance and one duathlon.  I managed five wins, four 2^nd places, two 3^rd places, and two random off the podium finishes of 6^th place.   Pat on the back me!   I’m exhausted!

My main goal for Ironman Arizona was to break 3-hours for the marathon.  I also really wanted to win because I hadn’t won an Ironman yet.  At the back of my mind I wasn’t so confident about achieving either goal.  It was a big ask from my body and very ambitious after racing so much since the Ironman World Championship in Kona 6-weeks earlier.  But I had nothing to lose because it was the last race of the season for me.  I had a bloody good reason if I sucked and it was a bonus if I could pull it off.  But in terms of racing itself, I just wanted to be done.  I was looking forward to getting to the finish line more than the process for this race.

On race morning I woke up with one thought in my head: “oh crap, I’m racing an Ironman today”.  The whole idea started to dawn on me.  But it was too late to back out now.  My sister, Melissa, and her boyfriend Tim, had come all the way over from London to watch me race.  I was committed!

Photo by: Hai-Ping Hwang-Twigg

I pumped my tires up, went for a little jog and headed over to the swim start.  The water in the Tempe Lake is a pretty cold 60 degrees this time of year, and we have to swim a bit of a way to the start line, which means hanging out a little too long in the cold water.  I froze.  I’m not good in the cold at the best of times.  I tried to warm up but just felt tight and lethargic.  When the gun went off, I was slow off the mark.  Any hope of hanging on to the feet of the male pros quickly vanished.  I did have a couple of other pro woman around me (we had yellow swim caps, and the males had grey), and they would be my company for the swim.  I come from a swimming background and normally the swim is just getting from A to B and I don’t think much of it.  But it seemed to be taking forever, and just before the last turn buoy my left calf completely cramped and I had to stop.  Then the most sportsmanlike thing happened.  Meredith Kessler, who was swimming on my feet, stopped and asked if I was ok!  Couldn’t believe someone would be so kind to do that.  I waved Meredith on and just thought to myself as I waited for my cramp to ease how amazing and generous some athletes really are.

I exited the water in 4^th place, about 3 minutes down on the leader, Amanda Stevens and a minute down on Meredith Kessler and Kelly Williamson.  The gap wasn’t huge, and I thought I could reel them in over the course of the bike.  But that idea was sidelined when I discovered I had a flat tire right out of the gate.  I ran back into transition to get a spare wheel from the mechanics tent, but they told me all their spares were out on the course about a mile up the road.  So to get me by, they put air in my tire and discovered the valve was loose and I didn’t have a flat after all.  With the valve tightened and air in my tire, I thought I was good to go and started to wind up the gears to get back into the race.  But then my chain started slipping and I couldn’t get into any of the harder gears.  At this point I had gone about half a mile past the spare wheels on the course, but I knew I had to go back as I had no other option.

I was wearing a bracelet on race day in honor of a local triathlete, Sally Meyerhoff, who lost her life earlier this year after a truck hit her on a training ride.  It read: “Be Relentlessly Positive”.  I looked down at it through all this commotion a number of times, and it really flushed away all the doubts and negative thoughts about the situation and it gave me the energy to forge ahead.

Eventually I changed my rear wheel and essentially lost about 6 minutes in doing so!  But I was good to go now and that’s what I did.  Linsey Corbin had caught me and encouraged me to make an effort with her to chase down the girls ahead.  We kept gaining time bringing the initial 8-minute deficit down to 5 minutes after the first lap, then 4 minutes by the start of the 3^rd lap.   By the time I reached transition, Meredith Kessler, Michelle Vesterby and I were 3:30 down on Stevens.  Lindsey was a further 2 minutes back after suffering in the last lap of the bike.

I went out on the run in 4^th.  I set out feeling pretty average.  I’m not sure anyone feels amazing when they get off a 112-mile bike ride!  My transition was pretty slow and I found myself chasing down Versterby in the first 2 miles.  I then had my sights on Kessler, who I caught at about 4 miles.  Meredith hung with me for a few miles, but had to slow a bit to find her own pace.  So now it was just me chasing down Stevens.  By 6 miles the gap had closed to 1 minute and by 7 miles I was in the lead!

I forged ahead and kept my sub 3-hour marathon goal in mind.  I was feeling pretty good on the 2^nd lap.  But I knew the worst part of the race for me is yet to come.  This was my 4^th time racing Ironman Arizona, and in the past, I have fallen to bits in the final lap.  I tried to put that in the back of my mind and concentrate on the goal ahead.  My coach Siri was screaming at me about some really fast overall time.  She was saying I was on target to go under 8hrs50min for the race.  I was just thinking there was no way!  I’m just going for my run goal and now to win my first Ironman.  But she was right.   I came down the finish chute in 8:49!!  I also ran a 2:58 marathon!! Wow.  My body amazes me.  After I crossed the finish line, I ran back down the chute to slap hands with the crowd.  I’ve always wanted to do this!  Then of course I did the Blazeman Roll.

My support team is what made this season possible.  A HUGE thank you to the crew at K-Swiss, Accelerade/Endurox R4 (my secret recovery formula), Sandy at Gita Sports and the boys at Pinarello, Blue Seventy, Nuun, my team back home at TriSports, Tri Bike Transport, NOVA Light, Chuck and Jim at Easton/Bell/Giro, SKINS, Oakley, TorHans Aero and Computrainer.

Thanks to my family and friends for all you support throughout 2011.  2012 is going to be even greater!!

Yours in sport,

Leanda Cave