Race Schedule 2010: Giddy Up, Buttercup

Every one is different.

Jeez Louise, that’s a very Mensaian insight. As a long time student of the Thoroughbred Racing Form, I have learned that different horses react differently to the same training regime, and the most successful trainers are able to ‘read’ a horse’s often subtle reactions to training, and based on this, adjust training patterns and intensities accordingly so that the horse raced to its full potential. Move a horse to a different trainer and the horse’s performance may improve or decline depending on how that trainer’s workout plan ‘fits’ with that individual horse’s natural training pattern. Successful trainers adapt the training to fit the horse and not vice versa.

Much the same can be said about people’s reaction to ARVs – the medications that suppress HIV. People react differently to the medications in terms of side effects. For myself, I have been dealing with intermittent, mostly unpredictable nausea as a side effect of the medications for years. Since there seems to be little rhyme or reason to the onset of nausea, I have had to learn to live in the moment more. Get things done while I’m feeling well, and roll with the punches when I feel like crap. For me, adaptability is the key to successfully living with side effects.

But there is no getting around it, the side effects are a burden, and I got a greater understanding of the depth of their impact on my psyche recently by my (over)reaction to a friend’s good news. He recently had to start on ARVs and told me he had no side effects whatsoever. My knee jerk response? “Fuck you”. We both immediately laughed at my envy - and the absurdity of life.

Thus, the same can be said about triathletes – a training program that works for you and gets you fit, may not work as well for me. One need only consider the results of Tereza Macel. Tereza was a strong swimmer and cyclist and lead many races at the start of the run only to be hunted down before the finish line. Tereza had been a moderately successful professional triathlete for the previous decade, no doubt having been trained by a number of different coaches, before joining triathlon’s most (in)famous coach at his base in Asia almost a year ago. My, how things change: since joining the new coach, Tereza won Ironman Lake Placid in July, Ironman Canada in August and then finished an excellent 4^th at the World Champs in Hawaii. Imagine what her athletic resume would have been had she hooked up with him years earlier. Her coach is a former thoroughbred horse trainer.

Some triathletes will enter Ironman races without swimming, biking, or running those individual distances in their training and do quite well. Other triathletes – on the same training plan – will end up crumpled on the side of the course wishing for the sweet relief of death. Experience – in training and racing – has taught me that I cannot suddenly do extra hours of exercise. My body, not being that of a ‘natural’ athlete, demands incremental increases in intensity and duration. As a former fat bastard, if I’m going to be able to run a marathon after swimming 3.8kms and biking 180kms, I need to train up to, and a little beyond, those distances otherwise my body will break down and I’ll be looking for a taxi (just kidding) or ambulance (not kidding).

So what has all this got to do with my race schedule? I need to get myself a horse trainer as a coach, of course.

Race Schedule:

My two “A” races, my two goal races, are Gay Games (A) and Ironman Louisville (A+). But I am training through all races and only tapering for Ironman Louisville.

Note the preference of doing an iron distance race 3 weeks before my A+ race. Any opinions or thoughts, beyond taking out a life insurance policy on me?

All races in Ontario unless noted otherwise:

May 21-23: American Triple T (4 races, 3 days!), Portsmouth, Ohio – early in the season, this one’s gonna hurt!

Jun 6: Woodstock (1k swim, 32k bike, 8k run)

Jun 27: Welland Half Ironman (2k swim, 90k bike, 21.1k run)

Jul 4: Peterborough Half Ironman (2k swim, 90k bike, 21.1k run)

Jul 12: Gravenhurst (1.5k swim, 40k bike, 10k run)

Jul 25: Bala Falls (750m swim, 30k bike, 7.5k run)

Aug 1: Gay Games (1.5k swim, 40k bike, 10k run), Cologne, Germany – hope to hit the podium!

Aug 8: The Outlaw Iron Distance (3.8k swim, 180k bike, 42.2k run), Nottingham, England

Or plan B:

Aug 8: Bracebridge Half Ironman (2k swim, 90k bike, 21.1k run)

Aug 15: Toronto Island (750m swim, 30k bike, 7.5k run)

Aug 29: Ironman Louisville (3.8k swim, 180k bike, 42.2k run), Louisville, Kentucky – the little engine that could: <12 hours

Sept 11: Wasaga Beach (1.5k swim, 40k bike, 10k run)

Sept 19: Lakeside (1.5k swim, 40k bike, 10k run)

Giddy up, Buttercup.