Thru Endurance We Conquer!

The announcement I have been expecting for several weeks came on Sunday the 28th. Due to the ITU Long Course World Championships, there will not be a Silverman Full or Half Triathlon in 2011. I was hoping that would not be the case, but I can completely understand the decision. I respect the choice of Lowery Multisport and applaud the courage it took to decide to not host both events. ITU Worlds is a prestigious event and this is only the second time that it has been held in the US. Silverman is a challenging and prestigious event in it's own right. Why should either race be diluted by attempting to hold both events? Logistically, I don't see how Lowery Multisport could hold both Silverman and ITU Worlds, on the same weekend - closing roads for two days, finding volunteers to be out on course for two days, ect. And to have two races of such different lengths on the same day is asking for trouble - we all know that triathletes are not the best at thinking mid-race! The focus of ...

For the sixth year in a row, I made my pilgrimage to Henderson, NV for the Silverman Full Distance Triathlon. I had some pretty high expectations going into the race but knew that it would be hard to meet my ultimate goal with the training I had going in. While running a few marathons here and there make great long runs, I had no other running since the beginning of September. And on a marathon course that brutal, the run would be a huge question mark. In the end, I came away with a 25 minute PR, a new respect for mountain biking as an appropriate method of training for any cycling event and the realization that after 12 laps of the run course, I should know better then to try to fake it! I was disapointed with my run, but still satisfied with the race. The weather conditions were challenging this year, warmer then most people expected (myself included) and with a lovely wind coming from the south most of the day. I was the second women, finishing in 11:39:11, which is the fifth fastes...

While I did not meet my ultimate goal at this year's Silverman, it was still a successful race. I set a new PR by 25 minutes and finished second overall. (Heartbreaking - led from the gun until mile 139. But the race is 140.6 miles!) I had a good swim 1:05:46, a great bike 6:16:18 and an okay run 4:10:18. It was great seeing the Silverman gang again. That is one the best parts of the race. I will have a full report coming up later.

I hosted an informal open water swim this afternoon at Boulder Beach today. Figured since I wanted to swim for a little and there was no swimming in Lake Las Vegas I could just do an open water swim. There was a small group but it was really nice. we all kept an eye on each other and it was a good, no stress swim. Having other people around made the open water less intimidating for everyone. At least untill Lake Mead came out to play. The water when we started was perfect and smooth. Since the tempurature was in the high 60s I decided not to fuss with my wetsuit. We all got in and started swimming. As we reached the turn around point the wind started to pick up. Then the water started getting a little choppy. No white caps but still rough. Not having the wetsuit on made the swimming in the choppy water a little more challenging. I will be wearing it tommorow for sure. The water temp is 69 right now and its a longer swim. My bike is sitting at T2 now. I have turned in my bike gear and...

Okay so we are in Henderson, not Las Vegas. But we are here and the count down to Silverman is measured in hours now. It was a pretty easy drive this time. No issues at all. We stopped for a short ride at the Colorado National Monument on Wendesday. Great place to ride and a good place to get out of the car for a little. Normally I would have run a little today but I am still in damage control mode from the marathons. No need to stress things yet. There will be plenty of time for that on Sunday. It looks like a few busy days before the race. Another easy ride on the course tommorow. The other pro in the full race is staying at the same house as me and we might ride together. Or I might be to slow for him. But we will car pool to the start of the ride. Then I will help out at registration for a few hours. That should be fun. Getting to know some of the other athletes in the race and being able to put names with faces. It is also sitting down in the shade. Unlike last year when I was o...

I would like to thank everyone who has donated to Challenged Athletes Foundation already. While I did not have the race I was hoping for at Silverman, the Operation Rebound athletes were out in force and the teams all had outstanding days. This was the first year a Challenged Athlete attempted the Full Silverman and the first year a woman hand-cyclist completed the bike course of the Half Relay. It was an honor to see these outstanding athletes succeeding despite physical limitations. These achievements would not be possible without our support. Please visit www.teamorsilverman 09.kintera. org and help support the efforts of Challenged Athletes and Operation Rebound

Silverman or Bust is a group of individuals documenting their training for the 2010 Silverman Half. Many of them have volunteered at Silverman in the past years, but have not yet taken the plunge. For many of them it will be their first triathlon. What a race to make as the first triathlon! I will be helping them with the journey from triathlon newbie to Silverman Veteran through guest blogging on the site. I'll be giving training advice, equipment advice and general comments as they train for Silverman. I think it will be awesome to follow them through the year, then see how well they all do at Silverman. The website is http://silvermanorbust.com/ so join us on this adventure!

One of the other Pikes Peak Tri Club Members just posted an nice report on his Silverman Half. Joe raises money for Caine Companions for Independence with his racing and added Silverman to his already busy race schedule. Take a read and consider making a donation to CCI after reading his report. Thanks! http://joeturcotte.blogspot.com/2009/11/2009-silverman-half-distance-race.html

A little late getting this posted, but a huge congratulations are in order for Frank and Meg from Lowery’s Multisport aka Silverman. I found out on Friday before this year’s race that Silverman had been chosen as the host race for the 2011 ITU Long Course World Championships. This a huge honor for an outstanding race. I’m thrilled for Frank and Meg and looking forward to the next two years of Silverman. I know that the Half Silverman will have more racers next year as people come to check out the course and that in 2011, the world’s best age group triathletes will converge in Henderson for the challenge of a lifetime. Every year, the race has gotten better. I love going back now and catching up with everyone, from the race staff to the volunteers to the other races. The same faces at the registration tents, asking how last year went. I’ve seen the same crew at the mile 7 aid station on the run every year. The announcers know the entire history of the race and aren’t afraid to tease you...

As I said before, Silverman did not go well for me this year. The weather was perfect for a race, sunny, clear and hardly any wind. I just had a bad day, physically. I started coughing up crap on the bike at mile 10 and never stopped. My swim was 55:31, thanks to the smooth water. T1 was in and out, efficiently in 2:05. I did have my fastest bike time on the course by over two minutes, riding 6:36:10. T2 was a little slow in 2:08. However, I had to walk the run. I could not run at all and took 5:50:38 to do the marathon. My final time was 13:26:30, which is my second slowest time for the course. But I finished. I also have some photo from the trip and venue http://picasaweb.google.com/TracyThelen.triathlete/Silverman2009 I had had a nagging cough since I was sick two weeks ago. I really didn't think much of it, but noticed that it was getting worse on Friday and Saturday before the race. Woke up race morning, bright and early. I made my oatmeal (three packets of the Quaker Heal...

Well, Silverman did not go as planned. Had a great swim, then things went downhill. Started coughing at mile ten, kept coughing every few minutes the rest of the ride. And I was coughing up oddly colored crap. Still had a decent bike split despite the coughing fits. But I could not run at all. My chest was starting to hurt and the coughing was getting painfull. So I walked the marathon. I'll get a full race report posted after I get home.

Finally made it to Henderson, NV early this afternoon. I forgot how horrid the drive between the Junction of 15/70 and Las Vegas was. Just long, straight and hot. The sun was strong and bright the whole drive. We got off 15 at Overton, so we could drive the North Shore Drive part of the bike course. There's a little construction near the turn around - rebuilding some bridges and repaving. The road's a little messed up, but nothing like the second year of the race. It shouldn't be a huge issue at all. We stopped to run a little on the bike course, in the "flattish" part of the course. I felt really good running and was able to settle into a comfortable pace on the hills. Hopefully, that's a good sign for Sunday. The only issue was the heat. Much hotter then what I'm used to. It is also the hottest that it's been since the first year. I am still refusing to look at the weather forecast. I don't want to know what will happen come Sunday. Tommorow will...

On the road today to Nevada. We'll get about halfway to Henderson today, then finish the drive tommorow. Its been an uneventful trip so far, just the way I like it. Sitting in the car, listening to music and spacing out. I keep reviewing the run course in my head, the ups and downs and where I fell apart last year. I wish I knew the bike course as well as run course - that would give me more to ponder on the drive. We finally got to ride in the Colo Natl Mont today. Timing was close - it was getting dusky when we finished riding. But Rim Rock Drive is pretty, espcially in evening light. We drove to the top and started at the visitors center. I had no desire to ride uphill or downhill for four miles before my race. Asking for trouble in my mind. What we did ride was perfect, hardly any traffic, gently rolling and views. It was also the perfect time to get out of the car.

It's time to get everything packed and organized for Silverman! I'm leaving tommorow in the morning for the drive to Vegas. It feels like there is so much more stuff that I need for an iron distance race compared to an Xterra, but when I got everything piled in the middle of the floor, there wasn't much more. Wetsuit, goggles, CAF kit, bike shoes (need to make sure I've got the road ones, not the MTB ones!), running shoes, sunglasses, hat, helmet, ext. There's more warm clothes in the pile, but given the history of Silverman... Having a vest or jacket and other stuff in my swim to bike bag could save the race. I'm also packing more food, but with the lenght of the race, that's a given. I haven't checked the weather forecast yet. Almost scared to check - it seems that Silverman Sunday is always the black sheep in the week. I decided that I wouldn't worry about the weather, but just make sure I've got the clothes to ride in anything. The only thing...

I just realized that there are only three three months left until Silverman. This is the fifth anniversery of this great independent iron distance race. I'm looking forward to the race this year. I have had a lot more time on the bike this year. Since there is so much climbing on the Silverman course, the time on the bike is very important. Since this is also my fundraiser for Challenged Athletes, I'm hoping to wear the Operation Rebound jersey well. We'll see what happens.

For anyone thinking about doing Silverman Full or Half Distance this year, take a look at the photos from the race last year on Flickr. http://www.flickr.com/groups/silverman/ There are some really nice ones that capture the power of the race.

I hosted the Silverman DVD party for the tri club this weekend. I think it went well and everyone had a good time. We didn’t go down to Lake Pueblo State Park like I had originally planned since the weather here has been so nice. After I canceled the Lake Pueblo trip, another member of the club offered to host a mountain bike ride out of Stratton. Nick and I tagged along with her group. It was pretty good ride, with the long climbs up Buckhorn and Palmer trail and the fast decents down Capt’n Jacks and Section 16. I’d actually never ridden Palmer or Section 16 before. I’ve run the trail in the opposite direction, so I knew what was coming up, but it looks different on a bike. The ride took longer then Nick and I’d planned, so we didn’t have time to really relax when we got home. The turnout for the party was decent – there were about 10 people here. Everyone brought food and something to drink, so there was plenty of food. My chicken tortilla soup was a hit. I think we spent nearly an ...

I got the DVD from Silverman this week. After watching the coverage from Kona in December, I was concerned that the DVD would be nothing but a pity party because of how hard Silverman is. Happily, I was wrong. Silverman is a challenging course, with over 9000 feet of climbing on the bike and 3000 feet of climbing in the run. The weather has also made the race difficult in the last three years, with 2008 being no different. The DVD – Champions of the Silverman brought the reality of the course to everyone watching. As someone who competed in the full distance triathlon, there was a little too much focus on the half, but that’s where the race was. Chris McCormack has participated in the half the last two years and the interview he provided on the DVD was really good. He really is an articulate speaker. Another major interviewee was Dave Scott. He did the swim and bike the first year of the race and has been a major figure in the race every year since. Having experienced the brutal hills ...