Time to Run

I am over my hang up with doing a triathlon this year. Sure, I did work hard at the swimming, and was a lot more prepared for my tri this year than last. But even had Des Moines worked out perfect, I had spread myself too thin between very different types of competitions.

This was never to be my year of the triathlon. This was the year to improve in the three disciplines, not to master the tri. This was always to to be my summer to do the Pikes Peak Ascent. Now its time to refocus on my original goal. It's time to run.

How to Do a Du?
If anyone has any hints on duathlon strategy, I am all ears. Sounds like a very taxing day on the legs. I remember thinking last week at Batavia, that I was really glad I was doing the tri because the du looked really hard.

Pikes Peak
64 days until the Pikes Peak Ascent. I am going to put a countdown widget on the site the next couple of days, as well as a link to my workout plan.

Thoughts are in Iowa
As a native Iowan, my thoughts and prayers are with everyone back home who are having to deal with issues related to the flooding and devastating weather.

Notes:

• Lots of good links today in Daily Triathlon media watch email. If you don't already get it and are into tri info, that is a great source.
• They posted an interesting article on the USOC site about how they are still scrambling to find a swim location for the pros in Des Moines for the Hy-Vee tri. They still want to make it an Olympic qualifying event, but to do that it sounds like they really need the swim.
• With all the news of the floods in Des Moines, I have yet to report on the pro's race last weekend Vancouver. Matt Reed continues his good racing by placing 5th and in doing so secured the US three spots in the triathlon in the Olympics. Here is the story in Inside Triathlon.
• On the Time to Run theme, CARA's (Chicago Area Runners Assoc) marathon training program started this week, with the first group run this weekend. I have decided to lead one of the pace groups this year. Hopefully I will have more than two people in my group like the winter half training group had (it will be closer to 20 this time).

Email from Hy-Vee Triathlon on Changes Due to Flooding

Below are the contents of an email to the particpants of the Hy-Vee Triathlon:

As participants of the 2008 Hy-Vee Triathlon we know how disappointed you must be to learn that we are hosting a Dry Tri this year due to extreme weather conditions. Trust us; we are very disappointed by the situation as well. While you’ve been training for months preparing for this race we’ve also been busy getting ready and were excited to watch all of you compete in each of the three events. Unfortunately we can’t control the weather and had to come up with a plan that keeps each of our kids, junior and age-group participants safe.

Since the Dry Tri announcement was made, we have received many questions and concerns from participants—we hope this e-mail will help field those.

First of all, please understand that eliminating the swim portion was the very last option on our list to consider. Over the past few weeks we met with various communities in the greater Des Moines area to host the swim event. However, all of these bodies of water, which include Gray’s Lake, Easter Lake, Copper Creek Lake, Raccoon River and Lakewood Lake, have all been impacted by abnormal amounts of rainfall and less than ideal temperatures, resulting in high bacteria counts, beyond the allowed limitations. To ensure that our kids, junior and age-group participants are safe, we had to do what was best and avoid potential health concerns and problems by eliminating the swim.

Having said this, USA Triathlon has asked us to continue exploring any options to accommodate an elite swim. While we are doing this, we are not optimistic we will find a swim venue that will be suitable to accommodate an elite swim, let alone an age-group swim. If there are dramatic improvements, we will consider any options to host the triathlon, but are currently proceeding with our plans for a world class duathlon.

Finally, unfortunately we are not offering refunds or the option of transferring registrations to those who are now unable to participate. If you read through your registration form again, you’ll see that the form explains our no-refund policy—this policy still remains in effect.

We greatly apologize for any inconvenience this causes but hope you’ll all join us on June 21 and 22 for what promises to be an exciting event!

For more info on the Hy-Vee Tri, click here to see my other blog entries.

Update: Flooding Will Move Hy-Vee Triathlon, Dry for Age Groupers

They have announced that the Hy-Vee Triathlon has been changed to a duathlon for age groupers.  They are going to run a 10k Run, 40k Bike, and a 5k Run.  Sounds like they want to keep it a triathlon for the elite athletes, but they are still looking for a place to swim.  

They have changed the location of the transition area to the Valley Southwoods Freshmen High School in West Des Moines.  With the location so far from downtown Des Moines, it sounds like it will be entirely in West Des Moines.

Here are the sources:

• The Des Moines Register has a story on the tri.
  
• KCCI, a news station, also has a story on it.  Click here for the whole story.  They note that they new course will be announced Friday.

I know the race directors are doing the best they can, and making decisions best for the athletes.  I also know there are people who are having big losses due to these floods.  All that said, I can't help but be a little disappointed. I have been really working on my swimming for months now. I have taken lessons, spent hours in the pool, I even went in the 60 degree lake tonight.

Truth be told, I wasn't sure if I was really ready for the 1500m swim yet, but I wanted to give it a shot.   I know I can finish it, but I wanted to do it comfortably, and to really cut some time off of my last year's finish. 

Now I am not sure what I should do. I would like to sign up for another triathlon, but my summer schedule is so full, and I really need to switch my training to focus on the Pikes Peak Ascent. I am going to talk to Melissa, look at the schedule, and figure out what's best.

For more updates, click here for the blog main page.