Alex McDonald Pro Triathlete

I arrived in San Diego last night after a rough 5hr flight. The flight was pretty bumpy and I didn’t actually get sick but my stomach and head certainly ached pretty much the whole flight. San Diego airport is pretty easy to navigate and I was in my rental car cruising up to Carlsbad where my home stay hosts were more than generous to wait up for me. Now I am in So Cal, where it is not so sunny this morning but I am getting pumped to race on Saturday.

As for the “it” that made it as well, I am referring to my race bracelet from Ironman Arizona this past November. As many of you know at races they give every athlete a bracelet with the name of the race and your bib number on it to keep track of everyone and allow athletes access to certain areas. I normally take this bracelet off right after the race, however, after IMAZ and the less than ideal results I let it on as a reminder of why I get up everyday and why I push myself to the breaking point at times and struggle to be the best athlete I can be. After a few days I just left it on and it eventually began a little game of how long with it last without breaking. Well, it has made it 4 months! That’s 294,000 yards of swimming, 2600 miles of biking, 665 miles of runner, 3 holidays, my birthday and who knows what else. It is hardly even recognizable any longer, the silver backing has long since wore away along with the writing and the several layers of plastic are breaking apart and disintegrating…but it is still around my writs. It has served as a reminded of why I am working so hard and pushing myself. Now that the 2009 season is virtually here I will take it off and see what the results are from leaving this bracelet on thru 4 months of steady, consistent and at times hard training.

It has been almost 4 months since my last race and it has been a long time. The hardest part of training the last few months has been the steady day-in and day-out training without and immediate race goals. All that changes next Saturday at Ironman California 70.3. My 2009 race season officially kicks it off in Oceanside and I am getting excited. The last 4 months of training have been solid and I think that I can count the number of days off on one…(maybe one and a half)…hands. I have never begun my season feeling this fit and never been able to bounce back from tough workouts this quickly. I attribute this to my attention on the daily “details” of recovery and focusing on the foundation of health and fitness. I have made sure to get enough sleep, wear compression socks during and after tough workouts, take ice baths, daily use of trigger point technology products, proper and balanced nutrition include the daily use of Base Performance Nutrition product line. In fact I have not been sick or had any illness that has limited my training in the last 4 months. Focusing on the little daily details to make sure I am healthy and ready to do the hard training is the most important piece of the puzzle. Next week in Oceanside I will kick off the 2009 season and see just how much the last 4 months have paid off.

I spent last week in Santa Fe, NM to enjoy a mid winter altitude training camp.  It was really my wife’s vacation and we wanted to get a little change of scenery as well as see her parents new house.  So it was a last minute trip, for just a week, but it was great! 

For those of you who don’t know Santa Fe is located 7,000 feet above sea level…let me tell you that is high…in fact 2,000-1,500 feet higher than Denver and Boulder, CO.  I could barely do a flip turn without gasping for breath! J  Although I did feel flat for most of my workouts there was one great ride I have to share.

The Santa Fe ski basin is at 10,000 feet and there is a single 15 mile winding access road that snakes it’s way from downtown to the summit.  I decided that I needed to make this trip on my bike, just to say that I did.  I began in the late afternoon when the sun was strongest and the temperatures were warmest.  However, as I began the ascent the clouds quickly hide my heat sources.  I had prepared for the descent, so I put on a few extra layers sooner than anticipated. 

About 30minutes into my climb I began a 30min tempo work set up the hill holding about 80% of my FTP, this helped me warm up quite a bit, even though I was barely going 8mph! J  As I got closer to the top the sun began to rapidly sink in the sky, the snow banks began to increase in size and the water on the roads soon turned to slush.  I considered turning around, but I had made it this far I had to continue. 

I reach the summit at about 5pm, significantly later than I had hoped, but just as the sun was setting and it was beautiful.  I snapped a few photos on my phone and prepared for a cold ride back down to town.  It took me 1:35min to climb the hill and less than 45min to get back down!  It would have been a lot more fun if I didn’t have to slow down for the ice and I didn’t need to stop a few times and breath on my hands and into my gloves to keep my fingers from going numb! By the time I got home it was pitch dark and I was FREEZING!! When I got home I took a steaming hot shower and a huge vat of my new favorite 53×11 coffee!  It was not the best planned adventure, but it was great fun!  

I always like to look back at the end of the calendar year at all the training I have done. There is certainly a sense of accomplishment when I see these numbers all nicely lined up and broken down into various categories. These numbers have special meaning to me, because they not only represent what I have done, then represent a commitment to my athletic career and help to reinvigorate my desire to reach my goals. These numbers can become somewhat of a contest between people, as in “I trained more than _____” or I ran farther than ____.” The point is not to brag or show off the point is it make the most of the time we have to train and have a purpose and a goal for every working leading toward our larger objective(s) regardless of what they may be. So I added up my numbers and I encourage you to do the same.

Time (hrs):
Swim 210
Bike 460
Run 201
Race 26

Total Time: 897 hrs

Distance (mi):
Swim 430
Bike 9640
Run 1783
Race 693

Total Distance 12546 mi

Can I top this 2009? Yes!
Thanks for reading.

My rookie pro season ended on a mixed note in Tempe, AZ on Sunday. It was a last minute decision to race one last Ironman after Kona this year. Given the length of the season, the proximity to Kona and other factors I knew my race was going to be ridiculous…the only question was if it was going to be ridiculously good or ridiculously bad. It may sound obnoxious, and apologize if it does, but at this point in my career finishing an Ironman is no longer the goal, finishing an Ironman as fast as I can is the goal. Unfortunately, my race was ridiculously bad and my day ended with a DNF in the medical tent, although there were many silver linings.

I used this race to test my limits and see where things shook out. My goals were to swim hard, bike hard (harder than I usually do) and see what was left for the run. Quite frankly I accomplished my goals, so I can’t complain too much. I set personal best times in the swim at 52 minutes, exiting the water with the main group and then had the 14th fastest bike split of the day in a time of 4:39, another PR by about 16 minutes. I learned a lot and have certainly gained some confidence and insight that will serve me well in the future and will ultimately help me to become a better athlete. Enough about that…onto the days events.

The swim was a little chilly to begin with, as the sun was not even up at 6:50 when the pro wave started. It was actually pretty hard to see while I was warming up because of the tinting on my goggles. I lined up right on the front line behind some top swimmers and began hard right from the gun, yet made sure to not red line for too long as I have done in the past. I also made sure to stay focused and if I was not right on someone’s feet then I pushed the pace to make sure I did not lose the group, as I have done so many times this season. It was certainly a break through swim for me and I was able to figure out a strategy and pacing that works for me which will help me swim with some of the best in the sport.

As anyone who I have spoken to about IM biking pacing and power I certainly mixed thing up and tried a new strategy in this race. Part of my reason for this tactic was because of the nature of this course. IMAZ bike is a 3 loop, out and back course where there is a gradual 500 foot climb, which happened to be into a head/cross wind on the way out on race day. I had decided to push hard the first hour, around 80% of my FTP to try to get into a group and then let others dictate the pace on the way back into town. If the group slowed down too much then I would ride hard for 5-10 minutes to the next group if I could make it. I continued with this strategy until the last 5 miles where I just cruised in an attempt to prep my legs for the run. Despite this bike pacing I virtually evenly split all three loops at 24.09, 24.03 and 24.06 mph respectively. There were some very tough moments on the bike course, particularly into the wind and up the hill, however, I felt pretty good on most of the bike and my total AP power was actually pretty conservative, however, it was not nearly as steady and consistent as I normally ride and I think this high variability was part of my undoing on the run course.

I was 19th out on to the run at a race time of 8:35 with a top ten finish and a 20-25min Ironman PR within my grasp if I was able to run my “normal” IM run. However, I was not taking anything for granted. The first mile of an IM run is usually pretty uncomfortable but then things loosen up and I am able to settle into a rhythm. However, around mile 2 I knew I was in trouble. My lower back is normally a little tight for the first mile or two of the run, however, today the spasms set in pretty early, began getting worse and was effecting my run stride. A very similar problem occurred at my first race of the 2008 season at California Ironman 70.3 in April. I continued on hoping that things would work themselves out, after all as I constantly tell myself on race day “it’s a long day and anything can happen.”

At mile 16 the spasms in my lower back became unbearable and my run stride had turned into more of a hopple/shuffle. As a perfect example of how interconnected the entire body is, due to my odd “running” form and interconnectedness of all the muscles in the kinetic chain involved in running my quads and hamstrings began to seize up as well. I began limping, and at this point my run had turned into a side ways shuffle/limp. Additionally I began shivering despite the sunny skies and temps in the mid 70’s. I knew at this point I was in serious trouble and if I continued I was in danger of doing serious damage to my body. I walked/limped for about a mile and a half before I finally made the decision to throw in the towel which was a very difficult decision, I could have walked the remaining 9 miles or so, but at what cost? I deiced to limit my injuries and live to fight another day…and went to the medical tent.

This was the first race I have ever DNF’d, in fact it was one of the first time I have ever quite anything I started. I am certainly disappointed in myself, as I have mentioned in the past, quitting is just not my style. However, given the situation, as painful as it was both physically and mentally to drop out, I know that I made the right decision. The worst part is that, I feel like I let down, my family, coach, friends and everyone who has supported me in my passion to reach the pinnacle in the sport of triathlon.

I know this race and a DNF will only fuel my fire and I know that this race in general, the good and the bad, has put me in a much better position to take 2009 to a new level, as my coach said, “sophomore year will be much better.” Additionally, my sister-in-law, who deals with famous, professional athletes on a daily basis, put it all into perspective. “Pros get injured and sick but the rules are different since they do it all in the public eye. What separates champions from the rest is the ability to refocus and learn from the imperfect days. Tiger Woods has had rounds he’d like to forget. Brett Favre has had games with multiple interceptions. This is a great experience for a young pro….you went out too hard and now you know what happens. You will have that perfect race and when you do, you will appreciate it all the more.” I couldn’t have put it any better myself.

A huge thank you to Timex, Team Sports, my sponsors and all the people who have supported me this season…there are just far too many to count. Thanks for reading…now a few weeks of down time and then back in the saddle with renewed focus on 2009.

http://www.nasports.com/results/results.php

It has been a long season!  I began racing at Ironman California 70.3 at the end of March and for some reason I thought that Ironman Arizona in November would be a good way to end the season.  Well I must admit it has been a very long season, although my body is holding up pretty well.  Training 20-30hrs a week for almost 8 months certainly takes it toll on the body, however, I have been taking the time and energy to focus on the little details of recovery to make sure that I stay healthy to get out their day after day.  Ice baths, Trigger Point Technology Massage Balls, CherryPharm, MAP, yoga, regular massage with Jeff Wells, a well balanced diet (with some help from Pam - At Nutrition for the Long Run) and sleep, at least 8hrs a night are all an important part of my routine.

However, the physical abuse is not the toughest part of racing as a pro triathlete, I really think the hardest part is staying mentally focused.  I do 90% of my training solo, due to the nature of my training schedule and the fact I am still new to the Durham, NC community so I am not really plugged in with many training partners….although I’m working on it.  As a result the beginning of yet another 5+ hr ride or 2+ hr run can be a little daunting, however, I approach training days a lot like race days, just break it up into small bite size segments, even if all you can stomach that day is running to the end of the street.  I find that starting is the hardest part, once you’re out there the time seems to go by pretty quickly. All that being said I am feeling great after Kona.  I took a week off after the race and did nothing (incase you are interested Rachel) that’s right I didn’t look at my bike, touch my running shoes and showing was the closest I got to swimming.  Although I did stay on top of my recovery routine.  After that week I got right back into the swing with 3 weeks of pretty solid training which ends this Sunday and then it’s taper time…again.

I am feeling very good physically and mentally, despite the late calendar date, and I am very focused on Ironman Arizona.  There are a lot of great athletes signed up at this point, but I know that I am going to go race hard and push my limits to end the 2008 season on a high note.  Just like Palani Hill in Kona, the end of the season is down hill to the finish so go hard and empty the tank! :) 

I went for my first run down Alii drive yesterday and I forgot how much I love this island. There is truly something magical about this place. There is an intangible quality that I really can’t describe…perhaps it is the “Ironman Spirit” or the “Hawaii Spirit.” Whatever it is, the Hawaiian islands really need to be seen and experienced to understand. Additionally, the same is true for the Ironman World Championships!Another reason I love this Island is the fact that my wife and I got married here last year after the race. We decided to celebrate our 1 year anniversary with a fantastic dinner at Brown’s Beach House an amazing restaurant at the Fairmont Orchid Resort in Waikaloa. We wanted to go to dinner after the race, but due to all the different post race celebrations we decided to go to dinner early in the week. This is the same restaurant that we went to after our wedding ceremony last year. Oh man that was an amazing dinner, the scenery was amazing, and the company was fantastic. We were right on the beach and watched the sun set before our eyes! Here are some shots from the evening.  

I hope everyone is enjoying all the Kona festivities, whether you are here or following online.
Thanks,

In summary Ironman Lake Placid 2008 was a memorable day. It was very, very wet…in fact in retrospect I should have just wore my wetsuit the entire race. With 3 inches of rain over 14 hours my times were slower than I wanted, but given the circumstances I’ll take it. I finished 8th and on the podium in my first Ironman as a professional, all in all a very satisfying feelingl.

Swim: 57:46, 91st overall
I’m still not sure what happened here. I swam really hard for the first 5-10minutes and then tried to settle but I was never able to find a steady rhythm. I think I probably pushed a little too hard at the beginning. I found a good draft group toward the end of the first loop but then lost it shortly into the second lap as they surged and I couldn’t stay on their feet.

T1: 3:33
Those of you have been to IMLP know that T1 can be a bit of a haul. After a disappointing swim where I was already pretty tired in combination with completely rain soaked carpeting and grass I didn’t try to go too fast and focused on moving thru smoothly and steadily.

Bike: 5:08:52, 14th overall
This course is unforgiving for those who over pace themselves on the bike, especially the first lap. As a result I pushed a little for the first 15min to find my rhythm and after that I settled into what felt like a pretty relaxed effort. I just kept my cadence up and power steady regardless of terrain. There were several people who passed me, especially up the hills, however, my mantra on race day is “the race begins at noon.” That is, for the first five hours of the race it is just a steady up tempo training day for me, then at noon if there is anyone around, then I can start racing and that’s just what I did. I saw several of those same guys who I re-passed on the second lap of the bike or the run. Additionally making this course more interesting and challenging the roads were completely drenched and there were rivers running down the road in some sections. I played it a little conservatively on the corners and the down hills as I knew losing a few seconds to minutes was preferable to crashing. My Trek performed perfectly and certainly helped me to maintain an upright position throughout the ride. The day was beginning to grind on me around mile 100 as I began the climb back up to town from Wilmington and found a little trouble concentrating and keeping my power steady. All in all I was pretty happy with my bike split and my power, although not super human it was respectable at 250w, along with a VI of 1.03, which for that course is very satisfying.

T2: 1:19
Fastest of the day…this is my 3rd Ironman in a row where I had the fastest T1 overall (including Kona last year)…so it’s fun to see how fast I can get thru! Again, not a sprint just a steady smooth relaxed process. 

Run: 3:01:36, 5th overall
I felt ok for the first few miles and then I began to settle into a rhythm and got going after mile 4 or so. I knew that there was still plenty of racing ahead and beginning the run in 18th position I was confident that I would be able to make up spots. At the special needs station at mile 13 I couldn’t get my bottle and lost most of my intended calories for the second half of the run…crap! I stayed calm and instead of my usual race day nutrition, I just drank and ate as many carbs as I could at the aid stations. Then the run began to get interesting. At about mile 16 or so a spotter told me I was in 10th position, at that point I wasn’t really sure how many guys I had passed. I thought to myself, “dig deep,” as this was really my goal in the run portion. I wanted to leave everything I had out on the race course, I didn’t want to walk away with any regrets wondering what if I had pushed harder, like I often do. At mile 22 my arms and hands began to tingle and turn numb. At mile 23 I was informed that I was 40 seconds behind fellow Timex Team member Dave Hardju (a former Ironman Champion) and I was trying as hard as I could to run him down. The last hill climbing back into town nearly destroyed me, but I kept pushing and the last mile my feet were turning numb as well. I crossed the finished line and collapsed, something I have never done before. According to my Kurt Perham, my coach, I looked like death…well let me tell you, I felt like it also. After a little while in the medical tent I felt better and then I took the greatest hot shower I think I have ever experienced.

Honestly I have mixed reactions on the day. Having finished on the podium in my first Ironman as a professional as well as obtaining a spot for Kona I am ecstatic! However, my swim was very disappointing…3 minutes slower than last year, that one I cannot blame on the weather!  Also I know that I can run faster as well. So I walk away with feelings of pride and satisfaction as well as a little disappointment and feelings of missed opportunity. At this point in my career I know that the big improvements are very few and far between, therefore I need to focus on the little victories. After placid I am taking a “mid-season break” both mentally and physically for about a week to 10 days. Then I will be ready to hit the last several months of the season with renewed motivation and my sites set on the Big Island in October.

Lastly, a big thank you to all the folks who braved the rain, rain and more rain to cheer us on all day. In particular my coach Kurt Perham , who gave me splits all day, as well as worked the phones with my wife, giving her updates and words of reassurance all day.

Normally I like to include some pictures of the day, but due to the rain and soggy illegible race numbers there were almost none taken!!  However, this one at the finish line sums up the day pretty well.

Ironman Lake Placid 2008 Results

Whenever I have a conversation with a non-cyclist/triathlete about the issues of leg shaving, the main reason I quote for doing so is the ability clean up the road rash after an accident. I always tell people, “it’s not an issue of IF you crash, but WHEN you crash,” because everyone at some point or another will crash, or worse yet get hit by someone or something. Well, this past Thursday, after 5 years of competing and training for triathlon the inevitable hit…literally. I was at 4:50 of a 5 hour ride in 95 degree heat after some hard Ironman pace sets, I was exhausted and glad to be almost home. I was climbing a hill and going straight thru a green light and before I knew what was happen there was a car turning left across my lane…into me!! Had I not been so tired I may have been able to avoid the car, but I was only able to let out a yell, and before I knew it I was sprawled out across the pavement in the middle of the intersection. I immediately sat up and had a few choice words for the driver, so I knew I couldn’t have been that badly hurt.

I had landed on my right side, helmet and hip taking the brunt of the impact with some road rash on my shoulder, elbow and ankle. Aside from the terrified driver stopping to make sure I was ok and apologizing profusely, there were 2 or 3 other people who stopped as well, all willing to help out in anyway they could, which was very kind of them. My personal favorite was an older gentleman who ran up to me saying “That was totally her fault, you had a green light, I’ll be your witness if you want to sue!” I thanked him, but I thought I was ok. I asked the small crowd if my pupils were the same size, if I was slurring my speech at all and went through several other symptoms of a concussion and after realizing that I was, for the moment, ok I turned my attention to my baby…I mean bike.

Amazingly it seemed in relatively good shape. It appeared that she had hit me on my left rear wheel skewer and basically just pushed the rear of my bike to the right and out from under me. I was going slowly enough over the hill and she was turning slowly enough that there was only some cosmetic damage to my trusty Trek, although I still inspected the carbon fiber frame carefully for cracks.

After taking a few minutes to collect myself, I stood up, brushed off, collected insurance and contact information, and rode home for my transition run. That evening and even a few days later I am realizing the full extent of the bruising and general soreness that comes with hitting the pavement. However, with IMLP very near there is no rest for the weary. So, please be safe out there and no matter how safely you ride, you cannot control others. Lastly, at the risk of standing on a soap box, always, always, always wear a helmet it most likely saved my life, thanks Rudy Project! No excuses now go train!

When my buddy Ryan called me in April saying that he would be racing Ironman Kansas 70.3 and “strongly encouraged me to join him” I was unsure if I would be able to go. However, when the guy who convinced you to do your first triathlon, who you haven’t seen in over a year, calls you and tells you to race…you better go race. So that is exactly what I did. I was also looking forward to racing some of “the big boys” after a disappointing race at Ironman California 70.3 earlier in the year.

I got to Lawrence Kansas on Friday and was greeted by what seemed like an army of volunteers (really just a big family) to pick me up at the airport and take me to my home stay as well as registration. They also took me out to dinner on Friday night with Jo Lawn, her husband Armando, Lindsey Corbin and Paul Ambrose. They were certainly VERY hospitable, which really allowed me to focus on my race and I am very grateful to them all.

It was great to see my friend Ryan and my dad came out to watch the race as well, an unexpected surprise, but it was great to see him and (appropriately) spend father’s day with him. At the pro meeting we found out the water temp was 75 degrees, so there would be no wetsuits, which mean that I would be at a disadvantage not being the strongest swimmer. I went through the usual pre-race routine and got ready the race. Race morning nothing too exciting to report. I got my stuff set up and jumped in the water for a warm up.

The Swim: 33:30, 20th place
What a horrific swim…not because of anyone’s fault but my own! I missed the first, and second and third swim group. Not to make excuses but I don’t have much experience with beach starts or with the frenzy and pace of the start of a pro race. I began hard and thought I had found “the group” and began to settle into my rhythm, when I looked up and there was a 5M gap, I swam hard to try to close it but they were gone I was left to swim 1.1 miles on my own, which is exactly what I did. I came out the water and there were not too many pro bikes left on the racks…the thought of droping out did cross my mind for a nanosecond.

The Bike: 2:16, 14th place
Rolling out of T1 I knew I had work to do, so I put my head down and rode at my goal power. Having a PowerTap is really critical to my race as it helps to push me when I am all alone and helps to hold me back when the competition gets the better of me. The first 15 minutes of the bike my legs were screaming at me and I was afraid that racing Mooseman a week earlier had taken too much out of me, however, I was able to find my rhythm and ride. As usual I was all alone for about 90% of the bike ride, the good part is that 10% of the time I was passing people. The hilly and windy course made for some challenges, however, I was loving it and felt great all day and even better toward the end of the bike. I had ridden myself into 14th place.

The Run: 1:20, 10th place
I wanted to run myself into the top 10 and thought it might be possible if I was smart. I ticked off the first few miles at a great pace, then the heat and dirt roads began getting to me and my pace slowed a little, but I kept telling myself that anything can happened and push through. At one of the short out and backs I saw Timex teammate Andrew Hodges and knew that he would catch me, but I kept my pace and was pleased to hold him off until about mile 6. I thought that if someone was going to pass me “at least it is a great guy and teammate.” I pushed through the second loop and saw a few other Timex athletes and by buddy Ryan. As I approached the finish chute I heard the announcer say “rounding out the top 10…” I wasn’t exactly sure what place I was in, but was very happy to hear that I met my goal!! 

All in all a great race and I got to see a bunch of Timex teammates, a friend from med school who first got me into this crazy sport and my dad!! The post race festivities were cut a little short due to some thunder and lightning but it certainly worth the trip to Kansas.

Ironman Kansas 70.3 Race Results