Capital Pursuit 2023

It was a quick turn around from the Gateway Challenge Triathlon last weekend to the Capital Pursuit this weekend, but I was ready to go. The Capital Pursuit is one of the oldest races in the Des Moines metro and is put on by the Capital Striders running club. There was a 10 mile and 5k option for the race and I opted for the 10 mile as it fit nicely in my half marathon training program. 

I set my alarm for 6:30am, which is really late for me, but was awake before it even went off. After getting changed I headed out on a half mile walk to wake myself up and then enjoyed a banana and bagel as a prerace breakfast. Traffic was light as I headed for downtown, and since it was a small race, there was plenty of parking near by so I got a spot just 3 blocks from the starting line. 

I quickly found my friend, Adam, and we hung out until it was time to line up. I had taken time to review the race results from the past several years and knew that I would be one of the last finishers, so I lined up at the back of the pack. After the national anthem played, we were off!

At the 1 mile mark, I was indeed in last place as the sweeper was hanging out just behind me. As happens in most races, everyone went out really fast but I tried to hold back a bit. I managed to pass a few people during mile 2 as we went through Grey's Lake Park. The park was super busy for a Sunday morning. We entered Water Works Park just before mile 3 and the crossed the pedestrian bridge over the river for a run through the woods. With so few racers around me and a lot of other people using the trails, it often felt more like a training run then a race. 

I kept a really good pace through the first 5 miles. My target pace was 12:30, which would give me a finish time of 2:05. I ran 10 miles in 2:07 last weekend so I felt that I may be able to go even faster. My 5 mile time was 58:17 so I was well ahead of pace and feeling pretty good. It is at mile 5 that I decided to see if I could push and beat 2 hours. Mile 6 began just south of Greenwood-Ashworth Park and was almost entirely up hill. It slowed me down a bit but I felt really strong the whole way. 

I've done so many races that the miles spent on Park and Kingman I already know like the back of my hand. The hills heading south on 28th to Grand were a little unexpected but I executed well on them also. As I turned onto Grand, I had just 1 mile remaining and shortly I found Adam who had circled back after finishing to find me. He ran the last 3/4 mile with me and I was grateful to have the company because my legs were really starting to feel it. As the clock at the finish line came into view I got excited to see it just crossing the 1:59 mark. I stepped on the gas for the last 100 yards and crossed with an official time of 1:59:23!

Adam running with me to the finish line

Finishing sub-2 hours

Garmin provided me all the data I could ever want

I was a little disappointed when I crossed the finish line and was told they had just run out of finisher medals. Lucky for them, even though I really like collecting medals for the memories, I'm in it for a lot more than that. Erin and the girls had come downtown after church to see me finish and it was great to see them. I quickly helped myself to Abigail's chair in the shade for a few minutes before taking some pictures and heading for home. 

Trying my hardest to get up

Adam makes me a better runner

My biggest cheerleaders

What a confidence builder this race was going into the IMT Des Moines Half Marathon in a few weeks. I was originally hesitant to sign up but am sure glad that I did. The race was both a physical and mental challenge and I can say that I raced harder than I have all year. My legs had very little left to give after crossing the finish line (I'm sort of dreading my run tomorrow morning). The best part though, I'm starting to see glimmers of my previous self except even better. 

Next up, the John Deere 5k next Saturday at Des Moines Works in Ankeny!

Gateway Challenge Sprint Triathlon 2023

 After work on September 15th, I loaded up the truck and headed for Marengo. I worked hard all summer to get comfortable on my PR3 with the hope that I could ride it in this race. The weather forecast was calling for rain and I wasn't so sure I wanted to risk the time trial bike on wet roads, so I took both bikes with me. Traffic on Interstate 80 was awful so the trip took an extra 15 minutes. Once I arrived I drove downtown to pick up my packet. I then proceeded to drive the bike course and discovered that it was extremely flat which got me even more excited for the race. 

When I signed up for the race, I envisioned having to get a hotel room nearby or staying with friends or family in Cedar Rapids or Iowa City then making the early morning trip back to Marengo. As it turned out, my friends Maureen and Nick lived just a few miles north of town and offered to give me a place to stay. I enjoyed the evening at their house playing with their dogs and children before getting a good nights sleep. 

It was still dark when I woke up the next morning, after putting on my tri suit and filling my water bottles I headed for Gateway park. I was greeted by thick fog with limited visibility and wondered what would happen if the fog didn't lift by race time. I arrived at the park about 5 minutes after transition opened. Even with the fog, the roads were dry and there wasn't any rain on the radar, so I unloaded the PR3 and got it ready to go. I dropped my things off in transition then headed to get marked. After getting things set up I checked out the transition area and swim course before grabbing a banana and waiting for the pre-race meeting. 

You can see the fog in the background

PR3 racked and ready to roll!

During the pre-race meeting the covered the usual stuff, an overview of the course, general rule reminders, etc. but also mentioned that they were going to start the race on time in spite of the fog hoping it would lift quickly once we were underway. As we lined up for the swim start, the fog was still thick enough that I could only see the first 2 sighting buoys. I started out pretty well on the swim and things went pretty well. It was a steep climb up out of the water to transition but I made it without issue. I didn't bother looking at my watch when I hit the button for T1 but didn't much care how long the swim took. 

I had been lined up at the back of the line for the swim so very few bikes were left in transition. Things went so smooth in transition. I used the same method as my last race and instantly sat down to get my socks and shoes on instead of trying to do it standing up. In no time at all my helmet was on and I was running for the bike out. A quick glance at my watch showed a T1 time of 1:26 which is an all time PR for me. 

Here is where the tricky part of the course came in. Transition was setup right along the lake in the grass and the parking area and road into the park was all gravel (and not in the best shape either). The mount line was out on the hard surface road just outside the park entrance. This meant that we had to push our bikes almost 200 yards from transition to the road and this time would count against our bike time. To make things more difficult, I had to do this wearing my cycling shoes (technically I could have done it with bare feet and put my cycling shoes on at the road as well but this seemed even more unpleasant). After making it to the road, I struggled to get clipped in before finally getting on my way. 

The 200 yard push at the start and end of the
bike really cut into my time

The bike course was a big loop that headed north out of town, east to West Amana, south to South Amana, and then back west to Marengo. As mentioned earlier the course was very flat and pretty open. The course was open to traffic but all of the vehicles that past were very kind to give us plenty of space Once out of town I got to work quickly. I had a goal to average > 19mph on the bike and I knew that I was already behind due to the rough start. I managed to track down 18 riders on the bike course and was extremely happy with my 5-10 and 10-15 mile splits. As I made my way through town and back to the park I was feeling pretty good but was also a little disappointed because my bike time wasn't going to be what I had hoped for. I dismounted at the park entrance and pushed the 200 yards back to transition very carefully.

Middle 2 bike splits were fantastic

After a very speedy T2, I was out on the run course. The run was an out and back along a fine crushed gravel path that looped around the lake and headed into town. I somehow managed to get out of transition before the race leader crossed the finish line which is very rare to me. The out and back course resulted in a lot of encouragement from all of the other racers on the course. This is one of my favorite parts of triathlon, the support that everyone has for each other.

My legs felt great but I didn't really push it very hard on the run. I opted to not take my GU gel like I had at the Hero Hustle. Even though it had made a huge difference there I really just felt like I had enough left to push through to the end of the race without it. I quickly drank a cup of Gatorade at the turn around water station and headed back towards the finish line. I pushed hard for the last half mile and felt fantastic as I finished. After receiving my medal, I had 2 other racers track me down to compliment me on how well I had done on the bike. The bike is my strength, and I know that, but all that I could think is how much better I could have and should have done. I probably just need to be better at accepting compliments. 

I quickly packed up in transition and headed for my truck to get home. Overall, it was a great race. While I'm not thrilled with the start and end of the bike, the rest of the course was fantastic and the triathlon was well run. With an open offer from Maureen to stay at their house anytime, I'm guessing that I will be back for this one in future years. 

Proud finisher!

Race Highlights

• 1:26 T1 is an all time PR
• 1:02 T2 is a SB
• 34:50 is my 2nd fastest 5k of the season, only 6 seconds slower than the Hero Hustle
• 38th fastest bike split out of 98 finishers

It is hard to believe it, but my 2023 triathlon season has officially come to an end. In a season that started with an indoor triathlon back in January, and no plans to sign up for another one, I ended racing in 6. I am extremely proud of how far I've come this year and really had a lot of fun along the way. I still have a few road races left for the year but it was very sad washing and packing away all of my triathlon gear this week. I've got a lot of work to do this winter in all 3 disciplines but I think I'm up for the challenge. I'm still not sure what next year will hold, but whatever it is, I'm certain that it will be absolutely epic.