Thursday, March 12, 2009

Cause for Concern

So its now the middle of March and the St. Paddy's Day 10k in Holyoke is 10 days away. This is a race that suppossed to be a bench mark for my winter run training. Unfortunately I have been sidelined with mild calf issues that have prevented me from putting in the necessary miles to put forth a worthy effort come next weekend.

At this point I am not sure if I am going to run it at all. I NEED to race but at the same time the race that matters most at this point is Rhody 70.3 If I overdue it next weekend it could screw me over for Rhode Island.

On a brighter note, I accepted a position as a physical therapist in Springfield about 4 miles from campus. Once I begin working I will be able to complete many more swim workouts than last year. I realize that most swim leads get swallowed up on the bike or run, but with my bike legs being as strong as they were I normally maintained my position on the bike or made gains. If I put adequate time into my swim (3 days/week) I think I will have a little more to work with come race season. This will also give me time to heal my legs for building necessary base miles for the run.

I will continue to hit the gym at least 3-4 times/week and hopefully eat better in order to get down to race weight come July. I am very excited to see how these next few months pan out. Till next time

Cheers,
Paul

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Second Attempt

This morning I registered for my second attempt at the Kona Ironman World Championships. My first attempt was obviously IMLP 2008, but the goal was moreso to complete the race than qualify. This time around the goal is to qualify.
Ironman announced that the Amica 70.3 Rhode Island race will now have a few Kona slots available. By registering for this race I have a shot at both Ironman and 70.3 World Championships. My only concern is that it is in July and my base isn't where it should be. Time to get to it!

Cheers,
Paul

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

March in like a lion!!

Just when I thought the weather was taking a turn for the better, it goes ahead and dumps 8 inches of snow! Lots to report on over the last month with plenty more excitement to come also.

First and foremost I PASSED MY BOARDS!! I am officially a registered physical therapist in the great state of Massachusetts. The studying has paid off and I am amped to get a job and begin my career as a physical therapist.

On a sadder note, I have no heard from the producers at CBS in regards to my Survivor audition and I assume I wont this go around. That is ok because up next in the auditions is the Amazing Race with Kara. We have talked about it a bunch and think it would be a blast to give it a try.

Skiing lately has been awesome. This past Sunday we headed up to my favorite and first mountain, Bromley. I forgot what a great mountain it is, and furthermore realized its not as big as it was when I was 9 and 10 years old. Regardless its name showed true as we had the Sun all afternoon long with little to no lift lines...BONUS!!

As far as the running goes I have felt great. Last week I put in a total of at least 20 miles and no calf pain! I am continuing to build my base for this years St. Paddys Day 10k in Holyoke. I am hoping to get the jitters out of my system in May at the Sherriff Sprint where I would be defending my win from last year.

A pretty cool thing happened two weeks ago, I got invited to the 2012 Talent ID Invitational Sprint in Lubbock, TX in April. This race is for triathletes ages 18-23 (this year I am 24) and 24-34 year olds whos national rank score was 90 or higher. The idea behind this race is to find talent prospects for the 2012 and 2016. As appealing and awesome this oppurtunity is, its not a reality. With me starting a career and student loans coming in I wouldnt be able to find the time or the money to put together a good race. That just means 1 thing, I have to perform well this year in order to get invited back next year.

That is it for now, until next time (which will hopefully be sooner than a months time) its back to the job hunt and interviews with some runs thrown in for good measure.

Cheers,
Paul