Alex McDonald Pro Triathlete

I returned to Bristol, NH for the third time on June 7th to race the third annual Mooseman ½ Iron triathlon. Keith Jordan and the folks at Endorfun extended a generous invitation for me to return as the defending champion form 2007.

There was an Olympic distance race on Saturday so Ashley and I arrived Friday night to enjoy Saturday’s festivities as well. However, before I get to the race I need to share a little experience that my home stay host provided. A common friend of mine put me in contact with Jim as he is a triathlete and lives less than 10 minutes from the race site. He provided an amazing pasta dinner Friday night for Ashley and I, as well as a few other triathletes racing. During diner the topic some how arose that Jim built a cannon…that’s right a homemade cannon. After quite a few questions clarifying this “cannon,” as well as a few stories involving the police and fire department investigating an “explosion” the first time that he set the cannon off. After all this we needed a demonstration which Jim was happy to provide…all I can say it wow! The noise was amazingly loud and the 3-4 feet of flames that shot out of the cannon were incredible.

On to the race! Returning as the defending champion added a little more pressure, but it was the kind of pressure that I love. There was also a small prize purse this year which I knew might bring a little more competition. Also I had not raced since Ironman 70.3 California at the end of March, so I was excited to see where my fitness was after some solid training. Race morning was my normal routine, except I made a major mistake!! I left my nutrition in the refrigerator at Jim’s house, of course I didn’t realize this until I got to the race site. Ashley saved me by going back and getting it for me, which meant waiting in long lines of traffic. Thank you Ashley!

The Swim: 25:55, 5th position
The water temp was only slightly above 60 degrees and it made for a chilly start. However, my Blue Seventy Helix felt great and not only kept me warm it also helped me to catch a good draft group and come out of the water in a great position.

The Bike: 2:19, fastest split of the day
After passing a few people in T1 I set out on the bike in 3rd place 2:30 back from the leader. The New Hampshire roads had taken quite a beating after the winter and the pavement was pretty rough in some spots. The course also has several rollers and a few short steep climbs that required patience in order to be able to run well. My goal was to hold a steady power throughout the ride and be patient. After seeing a few cyclists on the first loop I began the second loop still in 3rd position 2:30 behind the leader…I wasn’t gaining any ground, but I wasn’t loosing any either. As the race progressed the day began getting hotter and hotter (eventually hitting about 90 degrees) and I was working pretty hard to keep a consistent pace/power, but my patience began paying dividends. As the second loop continued people would shout my position and the gap up to the leader, “3rd place 2:15 back”…”1:50”…”1:30”…”1:10”ect. I began catching glimpses of the 2 riders ahead on the long straight stretches. The three of us rolled into transition together.

 

The Run: 1:19, First Overall
The two other guys had very fast transitions and left transition about 10-15 seconds ahead of me. The first mile they set the pace pretty fast and I wasn’t sure if I would be able to keep this pace. It usually takes me ½ -1 mile to settle in and find a good rhythm and as a result I let the two guys open up their lead a little. However after about 1.5 miles I moved into second place, giving my friend Charles a little encouragement as I went. At that point I found a steady pace and caught up to the leader at about mi 2.5. We ran together for a few miles at a hard pace. I noticed that I had a little more power up the hills than he did and as a result I used a hill to surge ahead and didn’t look back. At the half way point at ~6.5 miles I had a 30 second lead. I kept the pace steady until the last turn around at about mi 10 where I had a ~1min lead and knowing that I had to race Kansas 70.3 the following weekend I cruised in the last 3 miles enjoying the experience…after all racing hurts, but I love it, but that’s why I work so hard the other 355 days of the year.

 

I had a great day at Mooseman and I was able to see a lot of the New England area triathletes who I will not see together for awhile since I was moving to North Carolina. I also later found out that the reason the 2 guys with me in T2 had such fast transitions is that they did not put on socks, a decision they regretted. I, by the way, always wear socks in anything over a 10k.

Mooseman ½ Iron Race Resutls

I have never been hunting, but last year I bagged a Moose…Mooseman that is. Training in the spring can be tough, but knowing that this race is coming up gives a little extra motivation. Tucked away in quiet Bristol, NH is pristine New Found Lake where in early June the triathlon season officially begins inNew England. Moving toDurham, NC almost threw a kink in my plans to defend my title, but Ashley and I managed to arrange our travel/moving plans to accommodate this awesome race! Keith Jordan and the whole staff at Endorfun Sports do a great job with this race, as well as Mooseman’s big and more popular brother, Timberman 70.3. So if you get the opportunity make your way toNewFoundLake this June, I’ll see you there.

 

After 5 years and I lot of blood (literally) sweat and tears my wife Ashley and I graduated from medical school this past Sunday!  So, now I can remove that asterisk from my name when I say “almost a doctor!”  Now Dr. Ashley, Zoey (our puppy) and I have to pack up our lives and spend the next 2 weeks homeless, bumming off of family and friends, attend our 5^th year undergraduate reunion at

Connecticut

College.  In the same 2 weeks I’ll race Mooseman buy our new Prius and then drive down to

Durham, NC! J  It has been a busy week and there is no end in sight!  I’ll keep you all posted!

 

Graduation garb is pretty ugly and uncomfortable…but I at least perfer this hat!

 

 

This past Saturday I went out for a 4+ hour ride in the dreary cloudy weather with a temperature hovering around 50.  It was cold, gloomy, windy and I was pretty grumpy.  I didn’t see another cyclist the entire ride.  On the flip side, yesterday it was sunny and 70 degrees and I saw a plethora of cyclists!  It makes me appreciate those nice spring days even more. So what do I do for motivation when the weather is not helping?  I think of the quote I heard awhile ago, but can’t remember where…”good athletes train when they want to, great athletes train when they don’t.”  So go out there regardless of the weather and (as PowerBar says) “Be Great!”

 

The weather in Vermont is always hit or miss, particularly in the spring. Well I have gotten outside on my bike 3 times in the last 4 days!! That’s incredible for this time of year! Granted I had to bundle up, but hey there was even some sunshine out there. On a side note, when did they add a traffic light to Heinsburg!? I got very confused when I came riding through this intersection, the same way that I had a million times before, only to discover a traffic light. I thought I taken a wrong turn at first. On a 2:30 ride I discovered 2 new traffic lights within a few miles, which for Vermont is A LOT considering on many of my usual loops I hit maybe 3 traffic lights. It made me realize that I had not ridden outside in VT since last August! I was in Durham, NC (my soon to be new home) last September and then Hawaii in October and then this nasty little winter thing interrupted my training!

 Ok so I haved blogged anything since October!! It’s been a busy winter and now that triathlon season is upon us I’ve decided that I need to do a better job keeping up with this blog. Soooooo…I officially kicked off my pro triathlon career and my 2008 season this past weekend at Ironman California 70.3.   Although I had a great experience and finished with a solid effort, it was not exactly what I was hoping for. I had a pretty good swim exiting with the main pack and had a solid bike considering it’s only March. I rode myself into 15th position after the bike. However, exiting T2 my lower back cramped pretty severely and I shuffled 13.1 miles in quite a bit of pain, almost 10 minutes slower than I know I am capable. I finished 25th in a field of almost 50 pro triathletes and ultimately, I am pleased considering it is only March and I have a long season ahead of me.   Full race repor to follow.

After the race I was in Carlsbad for 3 days for fun in the sun at the Timex Multisport Camp, which was a blast.  The people that compose this team, both athletes, managment and the Timex corporation are all truly great and inspiring in so many ways.  I’m very excited to be back on the team this year and looking forward to a great 2008. 

After a seemingly short month, my Santa Fe training camp comes to an end. It has been a great experience where I was able to focus solely on quality sleep, great southwestern food, quality early season training and studying for my medical boards. I am, however, looking forward to getting back to the comforts of home particularly my fiancé. The dry sunny 40-50 degree days will soon be replaced by the cloudy 10-20 degree snow covered roads of Vermont.

I arrived on February first with my bike, running shoes, a few bathing suits, a pile of books and two goals. The first of which was to study for and take step II of the USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exam) a test which will partially determine where I will do my medical residency, but before I continue with my medical career I will try my hand, and feet, as a professional triathlete. Which brings be to my second reason for escaping winter for a sunny southwest town at 7,000 feet. Having signed up for Ironman.

California 70.3 I was a little afraid of racing other triathletes, many of whom have the luxury of riding outside for Feb and March. I also wanted to give my race season an early jump start. My training is feeling great and although I will not have my test score back for a few weeks, I think it is safe to say, “mission accomplished.”

Santa Fe is a great southwest city that is very unassuming; driving down the highway you might miss it due to the fact that the red-brown adobe and stucco 1 to 2 story buildings blend into and seem to wander across the landscape. There are small boutiques and many art galleries partially due to Georgia O’Keefe’s influence in the area. Museums and historical sites are also a popular attraction throughout the region, in fact I often found myself running thru a region of the city known as “museum hill.” There is also a strong Native American influence as many street vendors can be seen selling Native American jewelry and art around the downtown square. Lastly I should mention the wonderful southwest cuisine as well as the multitude of options for the health conscious athlete. The elevation, bright sun, breath taking views, and funky coffee shops of Santa Fe made for an ideal training locale.

After my morning swim at the Chavez Community Center (50M pool) I would often entrench myself at one of many local coffee shops for a few hours of quality study time while I waited for the temperature to rise before I headed out for an afternoon workout. Although the temperatures at night where frequently in the 20’s by mid day the temperature would be 40-50 and almost always sunny, which would cause any of the previous evenings snow to quickly melt and evaporate into the arid climate.

After about a week I had sufficiently adjusted to the altitude, although I was never fully able to adjust to the winding streets of Santa Fe. I had many great workouts some of which I found myself a little lost, but I always managed to find my way back again. One particular sunny warm day I climbed the 15 miles up to the Santa Fe ski basin a mountain pass that took me almost 3,500 feet above the city of Santa Fe. From there I could seemingly see forever, not to mention feeling a little extra short of breath. Another day I rode south through the plains where I could observe the gigantic mountain ranges from a distance. On this particular day the winds were gusting to 35mph and virtually blew me off my bike. I just thought of it as good practice for a particularly race known for the windy conditions. I had two notable struggles while enjoying my time in Santa Fe. The first of which was adjusting my taste buds to the southwest spice. I like spicy food, but not extremely spicy, I tend to think of myself as a “medium” to “hot” kind of guy, however, out here, I am a whippy “mild.” I still am amazed at the degree of heat than many food carry.

The second obstacle is not a new one for me. Every early season when I get outside, especially on the bike I have recent memories of last year’s final race where my fitness was in top form. After a few months of the off season and indoor training I tend to get a little stale. I always have to remind myself that in order to ultimately climb the fitness ladder I have to slide back a few rungs in the off season. While I consciously know that I am not going to be as fit as last October, my body is always a little thrown off when I’m not able to ride as far or as fast especially in February. The altitude at Santa Fe further compounded this problem and caused me to question my off season training. Instead of comparing training logs, I try to focus on one workout at a time and train with one workout with a goal of that single workout in mind and not yet worry about the big picture. By sticking with this strategy even after a short month I am able to see the fitness gains and feel my body readjusting to the rigors of in season training.

This camp has been has been a great experience. I was able to get some great early season work in as well as experience a great city. However, I am happy to be heading home knowing that spring eventually arrives, even in Vermont.