Monday, August 31, 2009

Life after the Chicago Triathlon Triple Challenge.

I completed the Chicago Triple Challenge. 68 miles of swimming, cycling, and running in one weekend. Anyway here is the breakdown of all three races.

Look at my two Chicago triathlon medals! on Twitpic

Super Sprint Wave #18 starting at 8:20 AM
375 M Swim, 10 K Bike, 2.5 K Run

  • Bib # 11767
  • Clock Time: 00:42:31
  • Overall Place: 63 / 707
  • Gender Place: 59 / 324
  • Division Place: 17 / 76
  • Swim: 00:08:45
  • Bike: 00:20:29
  • Run: 00:13:15
  • Swim rank: 165
  • Bike rank: 57
  • Mph: 18.1
  • Run rank: 51
  • Pace: 00:08:33

In short I felt great and rocked it out. It was soo short it was too easy. Another Triple challenger told me in conversation that the bike part was hard because it had three loops and you lost so much time turning around. I kind of agree with that. The water was a little cold but it was so short it didn’t matter. Water temp was like 63 degrees.

Sprint Distance - Wave #1 starting at 6:00 AM
.75 K Swim, 22 K Bike, 5 K Run

  • Bib #: 304
  • Clock Time: 01:26:49
  • Overall Place: 154 / 2304
  • Gender Place: 129 / 1248
  • Division Place: 24 / 204
  • Swim: 00:16:51
  • Trans1: 00:03:40
  • Bike: 00:39:34
  • Trans2: 00:02:30
  • Run: 00:24:13
  • Swim rank: 235
  • Bike rank: 119
  • Mph: 20.7
  • Run rank: 321
  • Pace: 00:07:48

This portion was probably my best sprint triathlon ever. I felt so good after the sprint. I thought I would PR the international too. The water was warmer then the air. I had so much adrenaline pumping I didn’t care. As for the pace I didn’t feel I was going all out. I found out I was wrong during the run portion of the International. One of my favorite parts was when I came out of the swim I took off my swim cap and I saw my Dad cheering for me. For those of you who don’t know my Dad is my inspiration and one of the reasons I keep pushing myself to raise money for cancer and my body to new limits.

International Distance: Wave 45 starting at 9:12 AM
1.5 K Swim, 40 K Bike, 10 K Run

  • Bib #: 7350
  • Clock Time: 03:02:13
  • Overall Place: 2144 / 4243
  • Gender Place: 1760 / 2951
  • Division Place: 328 / 543
  • Swim: 00:31:10
  • Trans1: 00:03:22
  • Bike: 01:19:02
  • Trans2: 00:02:21
  • Run: 01:06:18
  • Swimrank: 1123
  • Bikerank: 1641
  • Mph: 19.2
  • Runrank: 3476
  • Pace: 00:10:41

Looking back at my times in the Chicago Triathlon 2007 (My first triathlon ever and international distance too) I improved upon everything but the run. The run was my down fall. My swim, transitions, and bike times all improved. You could tell I ran out of steam when I went from an 8-9 minute pace (looking at all my triathlons) to a 10:41 pace. During the run I had to power walk miles 2 and 3 and do intervals for the last half. I was so hungry at that point. Maybe if I ate another Gu or had peanut butter sandwich at transition things would have been different. I was planning on doing 5:1 run/walk intervals but my body told me I had to slow down.

All in all I was happy with my times. I expected myself to finish the sprint distance around 1:30:00 hours and the international in 3:00:00 hours. I did three triathlons in one weekend, something I’ve never done in my life. I’m extremely proud of myself and that fact. All I can do is learn and aim higher. Next year I have my eyes sighted on competing in a half Iron Man. Time, life, and god willing.

It was great seeing so many friends, family and teammates from Team in Training along the way. My mom saw me finish the International race. Some of my marathon participants cheered me on. I raced along my triathlon coaches Brian and Bill. The marathon coaches body marked me and cheered me along the way. It was such a great experience. Plus since I had green hair with a purple mohawk a lot people said they loved the hair. On top of that everyone was able to see me coming a mile a away because of the hair.

The times don’t really matter either. The most important thing is that I raised over $1,200 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. That money is now being used to help find cures for cancers. Hopefully some day the children suffering from a blood cancer today can compete in a triathlon in the future.

Be on the look out for my You Tube Videos about my Triple Challenge Experience.

Here is a link on Facebook with all the pictures I took over the weekend. More will be added as friends send pictures to me.

Here is one about all the pre race stuff:

P.S. you can still make a donation and help me reach my fundraising goal of $2,000 but donating at http://pages.teamintraining.org/il/chitri09/rdobroski

GO TEAM!

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Results from Chicago Triathlon Super Sprint

The water was a bit cold for my taste, but running and the bike conditions were perfect.
Here are my results for the Super Sprint.

  • My clock time was 00:42:31
  • Overall I came in 63 out of 707 Finishers (8.9%).
  • 59 out of 324 Male Finishers (18.2%).
  • Out of the 20-29 Age Division 17 out of 138 (12.3%).

This was the break down of the miles
  • a 375 meter (.25 mile) swim in Lake Michigan parallel to the beach
  • a 10 kilometer (6.2 mile) bike
  • a 2.5 kilometer (1.55 mile) run
Not to shabby huh? Time for a nap.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Race Day Weekend for the Chicago Triathlon Triple Challenge. Wish Me Luck!

It's less than 24 hours until I race in the Chicago Triathlon Super Sprint and less the 48 hours until the sprint and international triathlon races.

I just wanted to take a moment and thank everyone that donated to my fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The money is being used to help fund ways to cure blood cancer & support families being affected.

Everyone that donated was able to vote on the color for my hair on race day.

The winner was…

Green with a Purple Mohawk. Watch the YouTube Video to watch the process. I’ll reply back on Tuesday with the breakdown of the votes.

Like any big race I’m a little nervous but very excited too. I had the whole week off from work so I’m rested and ready to go!

When I go to the expo this afternoon I’m on a mission to pick up Yankz shoe laces for my second pair of running shoes, 10 strawberry Gus & a Hydraform Handheld water bottle from Aphipod. I want to make sure I have two of everything so I don’t have to go back to transition after I finish the sprint race on Sunday. I’m going to have the people at the Team in Training Tent hold my second wet suit, goggles and a peanut butter & jelly sandwich to refuel on.

Tonight I’m going to find a nice place to have dinner. I’m in the mood for Chinese. Tomorrow night I’ll go to the Team in Training Pasta Party at the Hilton. I love cheering on the participants as they walk down the red carpet. On Saturday, I’ll be making a guest video blog on my friend’s, Mara, food blog at www.imadedinner.com.

You can watch the Triathlon online this Sunday at Slowtwich.com

I’ll be making Twitter updates as much as I can to chronicle the journey this weekend. When I get to the expo I’ll tell everyone my bib numbers. According to all the official email I’ve been receiving I’ll have three bib numbers.

Wish me Luck, Rock on My Friends & GO TEAM!

Monday, August 24, 2009

Team in Training needs people to man Water Stations

Are you training for Nike or the Chicago Full and have friends and family that would love to support you and TNT?
Do you know any kids who need community service hours?
Are you completing RNR or taking this season off and looking for a way to stay involved with your TEAM mates?
Did you complete the 10 or 16 miler last weekend and REALLY appreciate that great support you had at the waterstops?
We are looking for volunteers to man our waterstops for our next two long trainings of the fall marathon season, not only to pass out water and gatorade but to cheer our participants on and make these trainings extra fun and special and to show everyone on these paths training that day that TEAM in TRAININGRocks!
When and Where: Saturday, September 5 Chicago Lakefront
Saturday, September 19 Chicago Lakefront
Specific waterstops will be assigned when you sign up!
Who: Anyone who would like to come out and support the TEAM!
*We will sign letters for anyone who uses this opportunity to get
community for service hours.
*If you are training these days this is a great way for your friends and
family to show their support for YOU!
Time: Training starts at 7:00 am on each of these days. Not everyone will
have to begin at 7:00 am and no one will have to stay the entire
training unless they want to. Shifts will be assigned when you sign
up.
What do volunteers have to bring and what do they have to do?
We will provide coolers with water and gatorade, cups and sports nutrition (power gels and bars). We will also provide directions to water stop locations.
Volunteers need to bring their enthusiasm and support and anything else they would like to bring to support our athletes (snacks, fruit, signs, cowbells). They will pass out water and gatorade to our athletes and cheer them on. They can set up whatever kind of fun cheer station they want!
Interested?
Contact Marie Jarrell at 708-359-1989 or mysunbow@yahoo.com to sign up or to ask questions.

Anybody need a...Look on eBay!

T minus 5 days until the Chicago Triathlon Triple Challenge.

I have the next 5 days off from work. To keep myself busy I decided to do some spring cleaning and get rid of some items just lying around my house on eBay.
Anybody need ...
The above auctions ends August 31, 2009

I have 2 items whose Auctions End Today !