2010 Feaster 5 Miler - Andover, MA

Official Results: 32nd OA, 13th AG M20-29, Time: 30:34 (6:06/mile)

This is such a great race that is so close to home that it's hard for me to turn this one down. It's amazing that year after year they still get over 8,000 runners between the 5 Miler and the 5k. Even though I had sprained my ankle over a month ago I decided to sign up for it about a week before the race. After I spoke with my physical therapist she said that it would okay if I ran it. The good thing was that she taped it up for me 2 days prior and said go test it out with a walk/job/walk/jog and see how it feels and then ice it down after. After I did that the day before the race, it felt great and I didn't have any pain so I went back to the PT's office and had them re-tape it so that it would be nice and tight on Turkey Day.

This year I went to this race solo since we were driving down to CT for Thanksgiving this year, but also so Jess could go for a walk since trying to go for a walk in a sea of 8,000 + people is next to impossibly if you really want to get a good walk in. I don't blame her for that! I got to the race about an hour before hand so that I could go through the normal stretching and warm up routine. I also ran into some of my ex co-workers Tracy and Jason and it was great to see them for a short while.

Race morning was pretty chilly with the temperature around 28, but with the wind it felt like 20! I was cold most of the morning trying to warm up before the race and right up until 5 minutes before the start I was still contemplating whether to run with my jacket or without. I ended up running without it and I was perfect temperature wise once the race started considering I had my under armour top on and a long sleeve shirt on top of that. The goal of this race was to finish and not to hurt my ankle considering if I did roll it I could possibly break it and/or tear all the ligaments in it. I started towards the front to avoid any chances of tripping over people. Overall the race went okay considering my ankle issue and the fact that I just ran out of gas at about mile 3 and I think that's because I haven't been running or working out as much do to my ankle.

Here are my mile splits below from my Garmin Forerunnere 405CX:
Mile 1 - 5:52
Mile 2 - 6:13
Mile 3 - 6:21
Mile 4 - 5:55
Mile 5 - 6:18

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Shawn M. Nassaney 5K - Bryant University, Smithfield, RI

Official Results: 5th OA, Time: 18:25 (5:57/mile)

It's been awhile since I've done a blog post about this race considering it was over a month ago! The good thing about this race is that it doesn't start until 12:45pm so it isn't an early morning for Jess and I to get down there. We got there about an hour before the race started so that I could meet up with my parents, grandparents and get my race number. Once we meet up with them I started to get warmed up and stretched out.

The gun was off and the race was off. Like usual a bunch of college kids sprinted across the field like idiots and then backed off. I was in 3rd or 4th place once we got around the fields and into the woods. It was then about a mile in I rolled my ankle as I lost my footing. I heard it pop as I rolled it and I quickly backed off my run to a jog to shake it out to make sure nothing was seriously wrong with it. It took some time, but I finally started running again and took the rest of the trail run very easy as I didn't want to roll the ankle again. (As a side note I had a premonition that I was going to roll my ankle during this race this year, it was so weird considering I've never ever sprained my ankle over all my years of running and doing cross country.) Once I finished up the race I grabbed some ice and iced it down while I grabbed some lunch. The ankle was definitely swollen and it looked like I had a baseball in my ankle.

After the race I took the following week off from working out all together and picked up an ankle brace from CVS. After I took the week off my ankle was still swollen, but I wasn't able to get it looked at it for another week or so. The diagnosis was that I had a Grade 2 strain, which is pretty good. I'm in my second week of PT and I've already noticed a difference with only 3 visits, which is great and as of this post I ran the Feaster Five on Thanksgiving. Stay tuned on my results from that race.

Call to Honor Triathlon: A Triathlon in Memory of Captain Rick Cashin

Official Results: 2nd OA out of 180 / 1st AG M1-29; 47:06

This race is always a great race to do since it's so close to where we live so we don't have to get up that early for it. It ended up being great weather for the race, a little cool, but once the sun was out it was warm. We got there about an hour early to setup and warm up. I knew that going into this race that I would have a real good shot at winning it this year because Kevin Reen wasn't doing the race this year since he went to RI to do Firmman half.

Swim 1/4 Mile: 6th OA; 5:56 (1:28/100m)
The swim went really well for me this year even thought I was 3 seconds slower this year than last year, but that's because I haven't swam since I did Timberman. I thought I would have been much slower than this. I was in the second wave since the first wave was teams. Since the swim course was so short I ended up catching a lot of people from the first swim wave. For my swim wave I was 2nd out of the water and I was off to a good start.

Bike 10.5 Miles: 3rd OA; 29:20 (21.4mph)
I was really hoping to beat my bike time from last year, but I wasn't able to. The bike course is mostly flat with some turns and rolling hills, but its a great out and back. I know most of the course since my Saturday rides go through Boxford, but when I got out there, like last year I was worried that I would take the wrong turn and go off course so I ended up slowing at some of th turns to make sure I was going the right way. I ended up catching the guy that beat me in the swim about 3 miles into the bike and held him off until the end. I knew that once I caught him I was in 1st if I could hold of the other age groupers that were behind me since the other bikers that were ahead of me were part of teams.

Run 1.5 Miles: 2nd OA; 8:46 (5:50/mile)
Coming into T-2 I knew I was still in first, but I took me some time to get my shoes and socks on so I lost some time there. I was still able to get out in time before some other guys got out there, but it wasn't enough to hold them off since one of them had crushed me on the bike the 1.5 mile run wasn't enough time for me to get the time back. This was the only area I had improved in time this year and I was still able to take 2nd yet again, haha. Oh well!

Post-Race:
This was a well run race this year and as always the pre-race ceremony is great since the state police color guard is always there. The race director does a great job as well and I love how it's such a small race so close to home. Looks like next year I'll have to see if I can improve on my time from 2009 since I wasn't able to beat it this year.

Timberman 70.3 - 2010 Race Report

Official Results: 475th OA out of 2,141 / 59th AG M25-29 out of 161

Pre-Race:
I had signed up for this race only a day or after registration opened up last year and unlike last year I wasn't going to make the mistake and wait until the race got closer to book a place to stay so right after I registered I booked a place to stay. Last year we unfortunately stayed at a B & B called the Black Swan, lets just leave it at that. This year we stayed a brand new Hampton Inn and I must say the newly renovated Hampton Inn's are amazing! Jess and I had a suite that had just about everything in it.
Since the race was on a Sunday my parents drove up to meet Jess and I at our place and then we followed each other up to the hotel. Once we all checked in and dropped everything off, it was off to check-in at Gunstock and then drove off my bike at the park. Once we did that, we then were able to meet up with my Aunt and Uncle who have a house on Lake Winnipesaukee which was only about a 30 min drive from where we dropped my bike off. It was great to meet up with them for dinner, but Jess and I didn't stay long since it was going to be an early morning. After we got back, I headed down to the hot tub to loosen up and stretch out since my adductor started acting up from doing nothing the last few days before the race, it was odd. Once I got stretched out we headed to bed around 9:45-10pm.
Jess and I were up for the race I think at 4am? This blog post is overdue that I can't remember. Anyway it was still dark out went to meet up with my parents. Once we meet up with them it was off to the park. Luckily we got there early enough that we were able to park just outside of the park where the race started and ended. Once we got there I set up my transition area and prepared for the day ahead.

Swim 1.2 Miles: 79th AG / 859th OA; 37:51 (1:58/100m)
For my age group I was in one of the 3rd or 4th to last swim waves to start so we didn't hit the water until an hour after the pro's hit the water. Going into the swim I knew that I was totally unprepared for this since I hadn't been in the water for 9 weeks! The last time I did swim, I swam 5,600 yards for the week. Needless to say I knew that I had to suffer through it and get it over with. Considering that I didn't have the training going into the swim I was just happy to finish.

Bike 56 Miles: 40th AG / 338th OA; 2:38:24 (21.2 MPH)
Once I finished the swim I was looking forward to the bike again this year since before the season started I purchased a set of Zipp 404's and I was really looking forward to trying them out over a long distance. Needless to say they were great and the first half of my bike I had averaged 22.59 MPH, but it was the way back that I only averaged 20.0 MPH. First off I tried to take less nutrition with me on the bike leg and tried to pick up more while I was out there. I took with a bottle of water and a bottle of HEED with 3 scoops mixed with water. I also had 2 gel bottles with me that held 4 servings each. Either the nutrition wasn't enough or I hadn't but in enough long rides or high intensity rides for the race that on way back to T-2 I just feel short of where I wanted to be. The last 15 or so miles of the bike my legs where just in pain. I've never had such pain from a ride, my quads were just burning. I'm okay with how I did on the bike leg, but I was hoping that I would have been able to be faster.

Run 13.1 Miles: 78th AG / 651st OA; 1:51:07 (8:29/mile)
Once I got into T2 and ditched my bike I was off on my run. As I exited T2 I saw my mom and Jess and I stopped and gave Jess a kiss. She was so caught off guard by it that she thought something was wrong, I was like nope, I just wanted a kiss, haha. Once I hit the road I was struggling, my legs were dead and my head wasn't in it anymore. I was ready to give up on this race and I wasn't even a mile in yet. I saw my dad out on the course at about the mile mark or so and I think he could tell I was struggling. I told him at some point that I just wanted to finish standing up. It really wasn't until the last 25% of the half marathon that I felt like I started to come around and was back in it mentally. Coming to the finish line, it was great, Chrissy Wellington was again handing out finishers medals, but as my mom went to take the picture, a guy walked in front of her so needless to say I don't have one to post yet again. Oh well!

Post Race:
I was glad to be done with this race once I finished. Once I was out of the finish chute I headed over to the food tent and grabbed just about everything in sit and then meet up with my parents and Jess who were waiting for me on the beach. We got to talking and I told my parents how I just wanted to quit during the run and my dad goes "How many times have you ever started a race and not finished it?" My answer was Never. I've never started a race and never finished it.
After hanging out on the beach and refueling I packed up and we headed home. A few weeks after the race and still now I don't think I'll be signing up for any Half Ironmans next year, with our wedding next year and the new job being an hour away it's just not in the cards. I'm okay with that since I've been more focused on running this year anyway.
Up next Call to Honor Triathlon, stay tuned for another well over due blog post on that race.

New 10K PR - Lone Gull 10K - Gloucester, MA

Official Results: 19th OA, 14th AG M20-39, Time: 36:09 (5:49/mile) NEW PR

I had signed up for this race hoping to crush my 10k PR because the course was mostly flat and I knew that I had a good shot at doing it and that is exactly what I did! I ended up beating my old PR by 4:33!

The race didn't start till 9am, but with the race about an hour away Jess and I were up at 5:45am and we left our place at 7am so we could be there at 8am. Once we got there, I checked in and had about 30 minutes to warm up and stretch out because where registration was and where the start line was, was a bit of a walk. It was a great location to have the race since it was at Good Harbor Beach in Gloucester.

I knew that going into this race I wouldn't be finishing in the top 10 so I was just hoping for a top 20 finish considering a lot of clubs run in this event it attracts a lot of fast runners. Once the gun went off the race was on and the first mile came to fast at 5:18 and I was about 10th and the lead pack was definitely under 5:00! I quickly readjusted and let off a little since I had continued at that pace I would quickly fade and not have anything left to finish. During the race my legs just felt heavy, sluggish and dead. It was a strange feeling since I haven't felt that way before. I was worried because I thought I wouldn't be able to hit the time I wanted, but once I got through the first few miles I knew that I was still on pace. I hit the 5k mark at 17:39 and felt good. A few more people were catching me, but I wasn't concerned, I wanted to race my race.

All and all it was a good race, I'm just not sure I would run it again. The race I thought wasn't very well organized unless you had done it before. There was no one there to direct you to where you needed to pick up your numbers and where the start line was, etc. I'm just thrilled that I was able to get my 10k PR and my 5K PR within a few months of each other. It's been a great year in running for me this year with all the my records falling. I'm really looking forward to concentrating more on running I think next year than triathlons. If I do any triathlons next year it might be a few sprints and olympics, no halfs or fulls since I don't have the time to train for those with my new commute to and from work being so far away.

After we got the results Jess and I decided to make an afternoon of it since we hadn't been up to Gloucester in a very long time. So we ended up driving to downtown and walked around for a bit and checked out the stores and then headed home.

Here are my mile splits from my Garmin Forerunner:
Mile 1 - 5:18
Mile 2 - 5:52
Mile 3 - 5:48
Mile 4 - 6:02
Mile 5 - 5:54
Mile 6 - 6:04
Last 2/10 Mile - 5:10

Chilmark Road Race - 5k

Official Results: 3rd OA, 3rd AG M18-29, Time: 16:55.9 (5:27/mile) NEW PR

This post is long overdue. I ran this race back on Saturday August 14, 2010 while on vacation with my family on Martha's Vineyard. The race was limited to 1,500 people so I was able to sign up a few weeks before our vacation signed up. Still at 1,500 people is a large race for such a small town on the Vineyard and it showed. The race was a point to point 5k so there were buses that were running people out to the start line and there weren't enough buses for all the runners. Needless to say the race was delayed an hour and didn't start till 11am.

Even if there weren't busing issues I still had decided to run to the start line to get in more mileage for the week so I did the course as a warm up. Once I got to the start line it was a long wait waiting for the people getting bussed to the start. So I tried to stay warmed up for an hour.

The race was a little hilly when I ran to the start, so I didn't think I had a shot at running a PR. I've been hell bent on trying to get my 5k PR since it's a PR that I set back in High School. I didn't realize that I was going to get it until I saw the clock near the finish line and once I saw that I made a mad dash for the finish line. Jess got a picture of my facial expression that she had never seen before, it was pretty funny! (I'll have to post it when I scan it in.)

All and all it was a great race, for getting 3rd place overall and for my age group I got my entry fee back and more by getting a $50 dollar gift certificate to a restaurant in Menemsha and a free clam plate at another restaurant in Menemsha.

Here are mile splits from my Garmin Forerunner:
Mile 1 - 5:12
Mile 2 -5:25
Mile 3 - 5:52
Last 1/10 mile - 4:17

25th Mystic Valley Triathlon

Official Results: 13th OA, 4th AG M25-29; 1:09:16

Pre-Race: This was the first time that I have ever done this race which is funny since it's only 15 minutes from where my parents live. It was great that I ended up doing it because Jess and I made a weekend out of it visiting with my parents and then walking around Mystic Village and Downtown Mystic after the race since we haven't done that in awhile, it was great!

Swim 1/2 Mile: 42nd OA, 6th AG; 10:20 (1:10/100M)
There were only 2 swim waves for this race. The first wave was all men and the second wave was all women and teams. It was great being in the first wave, but it made for a lot of bumping and swimming over people over the whole distance of the swim. The swim leg seemed much shorter than the advertised 1/2 mile, but who knows. I was surprised I was out of the water as quick as I was since I haven't really done much swimming this year.

Bike 14 miles (actually 13.88 miles): 29th OA, 4th AG; 39:03 (21.3 MPH)
The bike course was mostly downhill and flat with some rolling hills. It was a great course considering there weren't many turns and you could really get into a good rhythm. Driving the course the night before I knew I would do okay with this portion of the race. The only downside was that there was way too much drafting out there. I had some 50 year old guy sucking on my rear wheel for most of the way and then he passed me at the end along with like 6 other guys that were right behind him. I was furious after that and knew for a fact that I would catch them on the run anyway.

Run 3 Miles: 3rd OA, 2nd AG; 17:11 (5:43/Mile)
I've never felt so good coming out of T2 till this race. I felt like my legs just clicked and I was on my way. I ended up catching a lot more guys on the run that I had expected. The run has always been my strong suit and I've definitely been able to put in a lot more miles this year than last year. The run course was very flat with one hill that you hit twice since it was an out and back course.

Post Race:
Even though I was hoping to finish higher up in my age group, it was still a great race. When I signed up for the race and looked at the results from the last year I figured I would be happy with a top 20 finish and I did that. It was a well organized race and the volunteers were all very helpful. It was great to that my parents didn't have to drive to far for this race since they are the ones that usually have the longest drives for my races. All and all it was a great weekend with the parents and spending time with Jess walking around Mystic.