Lou 70.3 Race Report

Anyone that followed my Ironman Louisville 70.3 race knows I served a 5-minute drafting penalty, so let’s get it out of the way first. Yes, I was too close. Yes, Once I entered the draft zone I should have completed the pass so  it was deserved. I apologize to my competitors and accept it. I’ll go into some specifics on this during the bike portion.

By the numbers, this was certainly my best 70.3. I came out of the water the highest up in the overall, pushed my biggest power by almost 20W on the bike, and had the fastest overall run by just over 90s. Let’s get into it.

Pre-Race: This was such a fun weekend for me. I drove  down to Louisville on Friday with my buddy Drobs. He did all of the driving so I could just chill and catch up on work. We checked in later that evening, set-up most of our gear, and consumed $33 of Taco Bell for pre-race cleansing. We went to bed early with a plan of running in the dark and then biking as soon as it was light enough. Saturday was perfect. We knocked out our shakeouts, showered and ate a massive breakfast. After that, we just kicked back in the room with the AC turned down while I watched course previews and got some more work done. Around 4pm we dropped the bikes off and grabbed a sub sandwich for dinner. We ate in the room and watched Mad Max and The Incredibles until lights out at 8pm.

Race Morning: I was up around 4:15 after a typical restless night, but actually felt quite good.

Ate some PB, bread and a banana for breakfast before suiting up and heading to transition. A very short walk; we were there in about 5 minutes. It took me longer than normal to set my bike up, but once I was happy with it, we started our walk to swim start around 5:30. My conversation with Matt consisted of wondering why the heck we get so nervous before these races. The anticipation hit me much harder than normal, so it was nice to have a buddy to keep me grounded. One new thing was slamming a Redbull before the start, and I think it will become part of my routine. We got up nice and close to the front, and I had an awesome starting position.

Swim (28:04 - 18th OA): What made this race especially fun was a new friend and rival, John. We are essentially identical athletes across all 3 disciplines and agreed to start as close together as possible for a battle. We were about 6-7 rows deep to be up close but not get swam over. Once I ran in, it was game on. I felt very good on the swim and found my own space early on. I didn’t feel much of a current helping, and the wind was blowing up river causing a little chop to swim into. The water was 82 degrees F and I could feel myself heating up. I felt like I did a fairly good job sighting and didn’t need to navigate around too many people. The only tough part of the swim were some “swells” that formed under 2 of the bridges. I swallowed some water and told myself I should probably avoid any more of that nasty river water. I came out in what felt like a good position, but I never checked my time as I was focused on a strong T1. Looking back, this was one of my strongest swims.

 

T1 (3:18): Not my best, running to the wrong side of my bike, but it only cost about 10s to jog back around. With the non wetsuit swim, I couldn’t swim with calf sleeves and they’d be too difficult to slip on. I opted to test out my brand new aero socks for the first time (they arrived Thursday). I knew they’d be hard to get on, but I did practice a few times with wet feet/legs. Since I need socks anyway for the run, I was willing to take just a little more time to get these tighter ones on before the bike. My bike mount was pretty much perfect and I slipped into my cycling shoes straight away.

 

Thank you Devon for this gem!

Bike (2:19:58 - 16th OA): I was feeling really good starting the bike and had to back down to my race watts. I was told 1st in my AG with 2nd literally right behind me. Sure enough John came around me 2-3 miles in and off we went. We traded lead a few times and I was right at the top of my prescribed power numbers. Around mile 10 I noticed someone sitting a little close and threw in a hard surge to try dropping him. John noticed the same thing and surged by me once I let up. Around mile 15 we were coming up a roller and that’s when I got too close (within 4 bike lengths). In that moment, I should have completed the pass. For me, I was already pushing my limit and we were only going about 10 mph. I opted to let myself drop back and that’s when I got my blue card. This was frustrating to me since only I got a penalty when there was other drafting going on. I burned a match to try and get away, but got burned myself. That’s racing and I fully accept the result.

With that, I came by John and let him know about the penalty in case that altered his race strategy at all. I wasn’t sure if there was a penalty tent in the middle of the course, but figured I might as well go above planned power until I got a 5 minute rest. There was a tent at 30 miles, so that’s where I stopped. As soon as I got there I told them my number and there was a long long pause before being asked what color card I got. After stating blue, he THEN started the stopwatch…. That was at least 10 more seconds than necessary. As I was standing there moving nutrition around, John came by and eventually 8-9 other athletes before I could leave. Once I got the go ahead, I hammered the back half. In my mind, John was my main competitor and I believed I had a chance to pull 2 minutes back on the bike, and would need to run out of my mind to close the remaining 3. I had a choice to bag the race and focus on IMWI or see if I could make some lemonade. I chose to fully commit and go for it. Even though I could push a little harder with the rest, between stopping, the 5 minutes and starting again, I’m confident my mistake ended up being a full 5 minute loss. Without it, I’d have had the 3rd fastest bike split (for me, that’s a good indicator for where my bike is currently at. The Kú is fast). Moving on. I dropped from 4th to 15th, but it felt damn good to repass 6 of those guys before T2.

T2 (2:29): This was one of the fastest T2s on the day. Despite my shoes catching the ground every few steps, I did my best to keep my bike in control. It was rough, but I got it done quickly. Racked the bike and all I needed to do was remove my helmet and slip my shoes on. Nice and smooth, grabbed the hat and I was out.

Technically a run course record?

Run (1:19:37 - 1st OA): The information I got from my friend Katie was going to determine how I ran. I pushed the first half mile until I saw her and was told 3 minutes back from John. As soon as I heard 3 and his first split was 6:15 pace, I told her I’m going for it. Assuming the tracker was accurate on pace, I needed to run 6 flat without him speeding up. Sure enough I clocked 6:01, 6:00, 6:00 and 5:58. By mile 4 mile my HR was hitting 170 bpm and I usually don’t like crossing that until halfway through the run. The middle of the run was tough with some good hills and lots of turns. I had no ability to see down the road and there were no out and backs to check splits. I was in no man’s land without anyone I could see. I kept pressing and tried to get a split from random spectators but no luck. The aid stations were incredible and I got everything I wanted each time. One lady even told me to hold out my hat so she could fill it with ice, pro move. Quick side note, I netted 5 Maurten gels by the end. Around mile 11 there was a long straight downhill where I finally caught a glimpse of 4th. A rough estimate of 90s was all I had to go off of. I sort of lost hope, but that’s when we got back to transition with the crowds. I leaned in even more and held my HR over 175. The final mile uphill ended up being my fastest at 5:50. Normally running under 1:20 isn’t anything to brag about, but I’m pretty stoked based on how everyone else fared. I was the fastest runner by a little over 90s. 

Finish (4:13:24 - 5th OA): I’ve never regretted leaving everything I had on the course. Today was no different, and I walked away not feeling 100% dejected. I chatted with John after and apologized for drafting and ruining our battle. Thankfully, he’s a good dude and my apology was accepted. 

Chasing the same dream

This was a race where I felt good the entire time. Leaning into it felt good, like I had a smirk on my face the whole time. Going in I felt heavy, but the power was there on the bike and cadence was solid on the run. I will continue to question Coach Brent’s crazy methods (like 8 min/mile easy runs), and always be amazed that he was right all along. He knows it. I know it. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Up next, Ironman Wisconsin to defend a title. The field is stacked, so get ready for some fireworks. 

2024 DeWitt Sprint Triathlon

 

The 5-time defending champ is no more. As I’ve said in years past, this race has gotten faster every year since my first win back in 2018. 1:08:34 was enough for the win in 2018 and that would’ve landed me in 8^th this year. This year I finally broke the 1 hour mark at 58:19, over 10 minutes faster than my first race here. Despite the effort, I finished 37s behind the new champ, Tyson (who set an overall course record).

Pre-Race: With the new advancements in aero technology, I knew I wanted to wear calf sleeves for the bike. With transition being critical in a sprint, I was set on wearing as wetsuit (if allowed) so I could have the calf sleeves on underneath. If not, I was planning to wear a swim skin and not spend the time in transition to put them on. A generous temp measurement had us “just under the limit” and the water was quite warm.

Swim (6:12 - 2nd): They allowed us to do a wave start for those that wanted to start at the same time. Around 20 people were bobbing around in the water as they gave the ready-set-go! Despite my best effort to get onto the leader’s feet, I just don’t have the take-out speed to hang on (even though I was in a wetsuit and he wore a swim skin). I felt no one around me after that first turn and had clear water. Coming up to the beach, I was ~15 yards behind when the leader stood up. My swim was 28s faster than my previous best time, and I was over 1 minute faster than 3^rd place.

T1 (1:15 – 3^rd): I got my wetsuit down quickly as I ran to my bike. I opted to put my shoes on at my bike since the first bike out starts on 25 yards of gravel. With the amount of space we had at the bike racks, I was able to leave my shoes wide open to step into and felt very efficient. I got on the bike and was only 7s off the lead. At DeWitt, I’m normally 2^nd out of the water and 1st onto the bike, so this was new to me.

Bike (33:28 – 1st): Starting the bike, I already had my shoes set and took the lead that first ¼ mile. I put in a very hard effort to see if I could get a gap averaging 360W for the first mile. Around mile 2 I settled around 310W and just focused on pushing my numbers. Somewhere between miles 3-4, Tyson came around me to take the lead. I sat around 5 bike lengths back and saw my power drop to around 250W with the draft. My HR also dropped about 10bpm and I felt like I could sit there all day. Knowing I’m the weaker runner and a similar cyclist, I considering just staying put and conserving for the run. I just couldn’t play that game and took the lead again for another mile or so. Looking back at my power data, we played merry-go-round 4-5 times. Each time I passed, I did so with the intent of dropping him but no luck. We came into transition together as he passed me just before the dismount line. Since I started the bike a few seconds behind, I set the new bike course record on my Ku TF1.

Fastest Bike Split and new Bike Course Record

To put this in perspective, my previous best bike speed was 25.3mph on my P3. This year I was 26.9mph, 2 minutes faster over just 15 miles. Although there was some shared work between the leaders, I believe I had enough power in reserve to maintain that pace solo.

T2 (0:36 – 2nd): I came in at what I thought was a solid pace, but not nearly fast enough as Tyson blew by to the dismount line. Normally I’m alone in T2, so this was quite stressful. As I got my 2^nd shoe on, I saw him running the to wrong exit and hesitated a bit. Not sure why, but I took a few extra seconds to get going. I was still right on his heels as we sprinted out.

Run (16:50 - 2nd): As we took off, I was quickly dropped. Coming off an easier bike, I would have thought I’d have more to give. Regardless, at the 1-mile mark I was already 20+ seconds back. To me the race was over after that first ½ mile, and the next cyclist hadn’t even come into transition yet. I had no reason to push anymore but still wanted to break 1-hour.

 

Overall (58:19 – 2nd): In the words of Kristian Blummenfelt, it hurts more to lose. Yeah yeah, it’s just a sprint so whatever. I still gave everything I had and was beat by a better athlete. Going into the race, I knew my chances we slim but really focused on a positive mindset. Whether you say you “can” or “cant”…you’re probably right. So, all week I kept telling myself you can.

Let's find the positives. I’m incredibly proud of my swim dropping 28s from my previous best split at this race. In previous races against Tyson, I was a minute down starting the bike and this time I bridged up that first ¼ mile. I also got to mix it up with him the entire ride and dropped 2 minutes off my best bike split. I will say, it was much more fun and entertaining trading blows than riding solo for 15 miles. That’s how I want to remember this race, but I also want to remember that feeling of getting dropped like a bad habit. For me, it’s healthy to be humbled and is motivating to keep working.

2024 DSM 70.3 Race Report

This race felt like a little redemption after an ok result at Chatt 3 weeks ago. Having raced DSM back-to-back years now, I’ve copied my 2023 race report and am editing as I go. I’ll try to draw some comparisons throughout as they come up.

Similar to last year, I didn’t get much a taper until Thursday. This was something I requested from my coach after getting sick the previous weekend and backing off on my weekend workouts.

 

Race morning:

We left the hotel just after 4:45 and were walking into transition just after 5. I opted to forgo the flying mount this race with how close I was to the bike out, which saved me a bit up set-up time. I met up with Drobs and his wife to walk over to the swim start and we just chilled until we were 30 minutes out. Exactly the same as last year =)

 

Swim: 28:56 (26^th overall)

I started in the 3^rd wave of 3 getting into the water. Normally everyone is fighting to start up front, but it seemed like they were more timid this time. Before I got to the first buoy my chest felt tight, and I was having a very hard time breathing. Now, let me leave the exact text I had from my 2023 race report. “I had a first on the swim, and that was a claustrophobic type breathing issue. 200 yards in, it felt like someone was standing on my chest and gave me some heavy anxiety.” This was the exact same thing that happened last year. The main difference is that it lifted after 500 yards back in 2023. This time I felt like I was limited the entire swim.  So in typical Matt fashion, there is something I am going to overanalyze here. Feel free to skip this next paragraph as I get into it.

I don’t see this breathing issue as a coincidence and believe is has something to do with the water. Here is why… Post race while driving home, I started to have an allergic reaction to something in car. After a rest stop, I started to improve. Once we got back into the car, I was sneezing and plugged up again. When I finally got home and started handling my wetsuit to rinse it off, the reaction came back. I am thinking something in the water triggered an allergic reaction and tightened up my breathing. I will also say that 5-10 minutes into the bike, I cleared right up and went on to have a strong race.

Back to the bike… Needless to say, I was not happy with my swim being 40s slower than last year. I know I’ve gotten faster and swam this same pace at IMWI last fall. Regardless, I wasn’t overly concerned and was ready to hit it on the bike.

 

T1: 1:56

Out of the water I had already planned on skipping the wetsuit peelers. The run was also not very long so I wasn’t concerned with overheating. As I mentioned in my race morning, I opted to put my shoes on at the rack. When I leaned over to put them on, I felt dizzy and had to sit down. I was disoriented and struggled to get my shoes on. Even with that issue, I was only 19s slower than last year and I know I made some of that time back when I started riding. Once I was upright again, I felt fine, got clipped in and off I went.

 

Bike: 2:14:28 (5^th overall)

The bike was very solid for me. Since I opted to not pre-mount my shoes, I went straight to race power and blew by 2 other athletes still messing with their shoes. The first 5 miles were technical, but I had a good rider ahead of me to see how he cornered. Once we got out onto the main roads, I was with 2 other athletes and jockeyed positions a few times. I was hitting my power targets exactly how I wanted and let them do the work when it made sense. Once my power started dropping, I opted to make a move on one of the faster descents hitting 43mph. One thing I can say with confidence, my Ku descends incredibly well and fast! Post race I was told I’m very “slippery” on the downhills.

When we got out to a 10-mile straight, we were heading west into the wind (it was light). I was passed and decided to sit back for a bit to see where my effort went. After about 5 minutes I felt I could go faster off the front and put into a 20-minute effort around 270W. When we got to the turnaround, I saw I had dropped 1 of the riders, but the other was still close. He came by me up the main climb despite me pushing 305W. We exchanged a few pleasantries and confirmed our gap to the front of the race was 7 minutes. We went back on forth 2-3 more times until the end of the ride, and I felt very good holding my power numbers. I took over again with 5 miles to go and pushed it through the technical section back into T2.

Last year I made a wrong turn that cost me 2 minutes, biking 2:23. Even if you remove those 2 minutes, I was still 6.5 minutes faster on my Ku. This was also my 2^nd time riding under 2:15 (but on a course with 4 U-turns and more elevation).

 

T2: 2:31

Felt great getting off the bike and becoming confident in my flying dismount on the Ku as well! It seemed efficient and I was 23s faster than last year. I came into T2 with my buddy behind me, so I wanted to create a gap if I could. Sock and shoes came on quickly and I was off.

 

Run: 1:18:54 (5^th overall)

I felt better starting this run than I did last year despite pushing more power on the bike. I was told I had a 7-minute gap to the lead, but I wasn’t sure who was in 1^st this point. The guy that won last year ran a 1:23, so I thought I had a shot. I had a slightly different HR plan to push harder early on and upped it every 2 miles. At 10K I reached true race effort and really started to work. Early on I was hitting 6:05-6:10 pace. I knew this wasn’t going to be enough, but it’s what I had at the time. I could see the 4 guys ahead of me at each turn around and measured each gap. It was clear I wasn’t gaining on 1^st or 2^nd, but I was gaining on 3^rd and 4^th. At mile 7, I decided it was time to dial it up a bit more. The next 3 miles I split 6:01, 5:58 and 5:58. The body was responding well to the push and that is when I caught 4^th place at mile 10. This was timed well with my plan to lean into the final 5K. He didn’t try to go with me as I split 5:54, 6:03 (uphill) and then 5:48 down that long straight. I could barely see 3^rd up the road but kept digging like I had last year. I ended up staying in 4^th just 35s behind 3^rd (and the winner of my AG).

Finish: 4:06:42 (4^th overall)

A 4.5-minute 70.3 PR and my first time under 4:10. This was also 7 minutes faster than last year despite the warmer conditions. Although my time would have won back in 2023, everyone was equally faster, and I finished 4^th once again.

Overall, I am very pleased with my effort and result on the day. But relative to my competition also improving, I have plenty of work to do.

2024 Chatt 70.3 Race Report

First tri on the season is in the books. I was really looking forward to Chatt, and it is one of my favorite courses. The weather was perfect and suited me well with a little heat and humidity. 

Pre-Race: This was one of my tougher pre-races in terms of travel and arrival time. We drove the first 4 hours Friday evening and stayed with my mom in St. Louis. She had my Taco Bell ready to go when we got there! 5am we were back on the road and drove the remaining 6.5 hours to Chattanooga. I ended up checking in around 1pm, rode my bike for 5 minutes, slapped on the stickers and dropped it off. I jogged back to the car and considered my shakeouts done.

We checked into the hotel, got my gear ready and it was already time to grab Firehouse for dinner at 4:30. My Cousin and her husband came up to watch me race, so we got to visit as well.

Race Morning: This went off without a hitch. Everything was smooth, I got my bike ready and hopped on the shuttle with a few of my Dynamo fam. We got to the swim start with an hour to kill and just hung out until it was time to throw on our wetsuits. I started the furthest up I’ve ever been and was very happy with that positioning.

Swim (26:56 - 9th AG / 34th Amatuer): Possibly my best swim, but it’s hard to judge being down river. Relative to a strong field, this was the best position I’ve exited the water in. Unfortunately I misread my watch and thought I swam upper 27 minutes, so it wasn’t until after the race that I appreciated how good my swim was. During the race, this would have motivated me a little more on the bike knowing where I actually was. The only real note is I spent more time on feet than I normally do, which ended up being about half of the swim. I had to work to stay on them, so I knew I was getting a strong benefit from being there as long as I could. 

T1: (3:10): I felt like my T1 was solid other than the wetsuit peelers struggling. I probably would have been faster to take it off myself, but it’s nice getting it off early to help cooldown while running to the bike. Everything went smooth and I moved up 23 positions and into 11th overall. At the time, I had no idea I was that far up. 

Bike: (2:19:50 - 7th AG): Unfortunately this is when my race started going downhill. From the start my HR was 170bpm. It took about 30 minutes for it to finally settle down, but I was never able to get it into the zone it was supposed to be in. I lost my rear bottle somewhere in the first 5 miles, but that only cost me 1 slow down at an aid station to replenish. My power was ok early on, but I had to keep it a little lower with the elevated HR. From mile 10-20 I was riding in with a strong pack, but got too close and decided to pass everyone. After taking about a 5min pull at the front, everyone went around me and I got spit out the back. Watching them ride away, I knew I lost my ticket to the front of the race. From there on, I picked off a few female pros every couple of miles. Each time I was hoping it’d be an age grouper but alas, they all stayed away. On the 2nd half of the ride, I just wasn’t able to hold my power numbers and my quads started cramping similar to mile 10 of the Boston marathon. This is a very new issue that I’ve been experiencing, and everything seems to point towards my new bike fit from February. I’ve noticed the higher heart rate since then as well. Needless to say, I will be looking into it and working on some adjustments to avoid it in the future. Overall I was 4-5 minutes slower than I would have liked, and I dropped down to 18th amateur going into T2.

T2 (2:15): Very smooth and efficient moving up 2 positions. I have been practicing a different dismount on my new bike that I tried out. I didn’t eat it, so that’s a win.

Getting passed by the beer mile champion Corey Bellemore

Run (1:20:33 - 3rd AG / 5th Amatuer): Not the run I’ve flashed in the past or what I know I’m capable of. Overall I think I ran a little too conservatively, by using my HR as a guide without actually racing. I was told 8 minutes to the lead at mile 1, and based on my pace early on I wasn’t confident I’d close much of it. It was very spread out and there was no one within ¼ mile of me up the road. Around my 3, I saw some competitors at the turn around and measured my gap around 7 minutes. I planned to see how much I closed (if any) when we got back there on lap 2. I saw the pro men as well with Matt Hanson just FLYING. I knew he was running low 5’s. Around this time, I heard footsteps from behind and just felt defeated being passed. Instead of trying to go with him, I opted to stay within my HR plan. Looking back, I think I should have tried for a mile just to see. Bryan ended up running a 1:17, so I have a feeling I wouldn’t have lasted long. The rest of the run was pretty meh, and I was getting updates bouncing between 5th/6th in my AG. This was very disappointing when I thought I’d be top 5 overall. At this point, I just waited for mile 10 to up my HR to 175 and hold it until the finish. I did see my gap drop a bit at the turnaround, but it wasn’t nearly enough. When I hit mile 10, I feathered the gas some more and held my HR above 175. The final mile I was right at 180. 

Finish (4:12:42): My first thought across the line was failure. 10th Overall and 5th in the 30-34 AG was disappointing and felt like a step back to where I was finishing in 2019. My time was certainly faster, but the competition was just better. I dumped some cold water on myself and tried to find a positive before sulking. When I saw my wife, she told me I swam under 27 minutes and I knew that’d be my key take-away from this race. 

In the end it’s just a race, but I am determined to figure out what I need to do with my bike to get back to where I was in previous years. Once I get that worked out, I really think I can compete. I also believe that whatever is going on with my fit is impacting my run as well. I can feel it a bit in training, and this is the 2nd race where that same pain has occurred. Needless to say, I will be back in 3 short weeks with a vengeance at Des Moines. 

Bost Marathon Race Report

The Boston Marathon, what an event! My goal with this race report is to walk you through my experience. I was planning to cover some of my lessons learned and hopefully help out future first timers with logistics. But in my very typical race report fashion, this is already a long read. Be on the lookout for a follow up post!

My wife and I arrived Saturday afternoon, a day and a half before the marathon. With triathlon training, it was easier to get my final swims/rides in at home and I just did a short shakeout run after arriving. It also saved some money with hotels being $300/night, and I felt like this was plenty of time to get myself ready for Monday. We had time to go sight-seeing, but opted to just relax and go out for seafood that first night. Sunday I got up early for my final run, and we traveled to the venue shortly after bib pick-up opened. There was already a huge line, but the race organizers were incredibly efficient and kept everyone moving. For me, it was a little overwhelming since most Ironman races are less than 3,000 people. Once I got my gear, we saw a few things at the expo and went back to the hotel to chill. I spent my time relaxing in the pool and catching up on the T100-Series to kill time.

Race morning was perfect. Breakfast at the hotel started at 6AM, so we were ready for them to open. I shoveled down some “free” food before heading downtown and grabbed a coffee and bagel for the train ride. It was nice having someone like my wife Ty, who knows how to navigate, so I can just follow along. We got to the buses and off I went. I was fortunate to sit next the one of the top Master runners in the world. With a PR of 2:29 at 46 years old, I was all ears the entire bus ride. I soaked up as much as I could since this was his 12th Boston. I stuck with him all morning until it was time to head to the start. Everything else went well as I got to my corral. The morning temps were perfect and I was very comfortable after discarding my sweatshirt.

When the race started, everyone was already running 100 yards before crossing the start line. The first 4 miles were packed shoulder to shoulder, and I skipped the first few aid stations simply because I couldn’t get over. Checking my HR early on, I was at my first limit and figured it would be a long day. I mostly stuck with the flow of runners and stayed relaxed. The first aid station I went to was hectic. Everyone darted over, slowed down, tripped over cups…it was tricky. A few more miles and it started to open up a bit more, and after 4 miles I was allowed to raise my HR (per my race plan). I was cruising around 6:05-6:10 pace and honestly felt pretty good. But when mile 10 hit, I noticed some soreness in my quads. I felt like this was way too soon for that, but kept plugging along. Mile 16 is when my quads started to seize up, and I wasn’t able to keep my HR where it needed to be. I felt like I had done a good job with sodium since every aid station had Gatorade Endurance, and I was getting 1-2 cups each mile. Plus I’d wash it down with water and cool myself off with one final cup. At no point did I feel like I was dehydrated or overheating (it was only 55-65 degrees, but everyone I talked to said it was hot). At this point I wasn’t sure what to do. I was in more pain than any Ironman marathon I’d ever done. My cardio had so much room to go, but my legs were fried. Determined not to walk, I just kept the churning. When I hit 18, I told myself I had less than an hour to go, even if I slowed down to 7:30s. At this point, the downhills were more painful than the uphills. When I got to Heartbreak hill, I “hammered” up it and was greeted by the most amazing crowds. At the top, the screams were deafening and suddenly my legs started to come back. As I ran down, I gave over a hundred high fives and the received a massive boost from the crowd. I was passing a ton of runners that went by me miles 17-21. My quads shut back down at the bottom, but I was happy to at least have that mile of reprieve. I ran my slowest split of the day at mile 24 even though it was net downhill. For me, this was incredibly humbling. Watching other runners swallow me up and leave me behind is a feeling I will never forget. With a mile to go, my only focus was getting to those massive crowds that lined Boylston street. When I got there, the roar was so loud. Every step it got louder and louder and louder yet. I couldn’t hear or feel anything. I got to the arch and didn’t even celebrate with how broken I felt. I was disappointed being 6.5 minutes behind my goal, and I really suffered for 90 minutes of the race (should be more like 30 when done right). 

After walking through the finish area and finding Ty, I finally sat down to assess the damage. I couldn’t bend my knees to 90 degrees without extreme pain. This was something I have never experienced with my quads before. After gathering myself, we hopped on the train and went back to the hotel. After getting back, I decided to go for a walk to the beach and clear my head. When I was done sulking, we celebrated the experience with more seafood and a Sam Adams. 

Right now, I am still licking my wounds after that. I’m less upset about my time now and more frustrated with being miserable for so much of the race. Instead of getting to soak in the incredible atmosphere and enjoy the crowds that lined every mile…I was stuck inside my own head just trying to not walk. I also felt disappointment with every timing mat I crossed, knowing that friends and family were getting updates of me slowing down and falling short. But, to end on a positive note, another one of my goals was to beat my bib number (1500) with a stretch of finishing in the top 1000. I was 884th place out of 25,500 finishers despite feeling like everyone passed me. I also saw quite a few athletes stopped at medical tents and getting wheeled around at the finish line, so my day could have been so much worse. I really do appreciate everyone’s kind words and congratulations after the race. And, I apologize for any lackluster responses you may have received while I was still feeling bitter.

Be on the lookout for a follow up post on where I think things went south for me, what I’d do differently and just general info on logistics for any future first timers. 

2023 Recap

It’s that time of year! This is a good exercise to look back on the past season, and it’s fun to relive some of those top moments. Along with the highlights, there are certainly some valleys as well. Good or bad, let’s dive into it!

St. Louis Marathon:

My first time running a stand-alone marathon since 2019. My main goal was to get that BQ with a secondary of running under 2:45. The most exciting part of this race was lining up with my brother Scott, who was running his first marathon. This was also one of my most well executed races. I had a heart rate plan that allowed me to increase it throughout the race along with how often to take nutrition. I would say that I executed this perfectly in that my heart rate constantly rose throughout the entire marathon. I was essentially running at my threshold for the final 10k. Other than the bathroom stop at mile 14, I wouldn’t change a thing. I ended up finishing 10th overall, with a time of 2:43:01. While I was certainly happy with this time, and the Boston qualification, there’s always part of me that knows I can be faster.

Chattanooga 70.3

This was my first triathlon of the season, and I was really looking forward to going back having raced the previous year. My expectations were very high since I was fully rested and not coming off an Ironman two weeks prior. The amateur field was stacked and I was ready to see how I fared. Unfortunately, this was where I had my first bike mechanical and I could not shift out of the little ring. Despite losing close to 10 minutes, I kept my head in the game and put the rest of my energy and effort into the run. I passed over 40 people and ran my fastest 70.3 split in under 1:18. Even though the result wasn’t what I wanted, I am very proud of how I pushed to the line.

Des Moines 70.3

This was my redemption race after Chattanooga. Despite knowing the course, I accidentally made a wrong turn that cost me about two minutes. Once again, I had to shake it off and stay focused for the remainder of the bike ride. One of my goals for this race was to prove that my Chattanooga run was not a fluke because of the easier bike ride. I am very proud to follow it up running 1:18 again. I made my way to 4th overall in the last 1/4 mile.

Ironman Wisconsin

Madison was the most important race on my calendar this year. I chose to forgo the Ironman World Championship in Nice France and chose to race Wisconsin. This was my A race, so everything I did was to prepare myself for this one day. Everything leading up to the race went as well as it could, and I truly felt like I was ready and prepared. Before the race, I felt the weight of the opportunity in front of me. It wasn't until the gun went off that it all went away, and all I had to do was race. When Ty told me I was in 4th overall on the bike, I felt like winning was within my grasp. I also received time gaps from other spectators, and everything pointed to me taking it on the run. The defining moment was at 10K when I finally made the pass into 1st at observatory hill. When I got down the hill and headed up State Street, I had my entire family and support crew waiting for me as I was running behind the lead vehicle. At that moment, I felt like I had won, but I remembered there were other strong runners behind me with 16 to go. Fast forward to the finish, and my dream of breaking the tape came true. Not only was this the happiest moment of 2023, but it was my happiest moment since starting triathlon six years ago. My wife greeting me inside the finish chute put me on cloud nine.

It’s easy to look back and only see the win at Madison from 2023. For me, I want to apply what I’ve learned throughout the season as I move into 2024.

Here are my top 3 take-aways from 2023:

1. Never give up. It would have been easy to call it a day at Chattanooga and not turn myself inside-out on the run. I will remember that there’s always something to fight for.

2. Not everything is a lesson: https://youtu.be/kyy5pirAaoI?feature=shared. Sometimes there isn’t anything to “learn” from an experience, and that’s ok. For me, I learned that it’s important to stop searching for a reason and move on. 

3. I can win. No more being intimidated when I toe the line. If I have my day, anything is possible. 

Little bonus if you’ve made it this far… I’m not typically open about my goals, especially the big ones. But here are my Top 3 Goals for 2024:

1. Top 5 AG 30-34 in Kona.

2. Win an IM branded event.

3. 2:35 Marathon at Boston

2023 Ironman Wisconsin Champ - Race Report

Everything leading up to the race was solid. After a final hard 100 mile ride the weekend prior, I took a heavy taper with 2 rest days leading up to the race. I stayed at my brother Brett’s house with his girlfriend Becca and was treated like royalty. They even turned the house temp down for me to sleep better! Two nights out I ate my traditional Taco Bell and the night before I got my sub from Firehouse. 

The day before the race was the 70.3, and I had several friends racing. I got up early to get my final ride and run in, then went to the bike course to cheers everyone on. I tried to stay off my feet as much as possible, but it was hard with all the excitement. I got to see my dad finish before dropping off my gear, then we hung out for a bit before getting dinner and winding down.

That day I was having some lower back tightness, so my wife Ty spent over an hour working on it for me. She also spent another hour stretching me out for the finishing touches. 

 

I was clearly freaking out

Race morning was smooth with no issues of hiccups. I ate 2 pieces of bread with a banana and peanut butter along with a cliff bar the second I woke up. We left my brother’s and parked a little farther away where there was zero traffic or stress. I got all my gear setup, and we sat in a quiet part of the terrace for me to go through mobility without whacking anyone. Once it was go time, I suited up and walked down to the start. After a few tears I gave everyone several hugs and off I went. 

The swim (58:44 - 17th OA): Right before entering the water, Ty gave me one last shout to send me off. There was quite a bit of bumping until the first buoy, then everyone found their space. I was on and off different feet quite a bit and felt like I was slipping back in the group. It wasn’t that windy, but the top side of the loop felt very choppy and I took on a bit of water. I swam with my watch covered, so I had no concept for how fast I was swimming. But, I could feel it buzz every 500 for a sense of how far I’d gone. On the 2nd loop we merged with the 1st loop swimmers and navigated the best I could. Each turn buoy was very congested and had someone resting on it, but I felt like I got around them efficiently. Anytime I had some open water in front of me, I’d elevate my pace, otherwise I felt like I was swimming quite slow. In my mind, I was coming out of the water around 50th. Even so, I was stoked to PR my swim in under 59 minutes when I split my watch.

T1 (5:06): I got my wetsuit down efficiently as the peelers were very close to swim out. They got it off in 1 try and I was off. I passed a lot of people up the helix and absolutely love/hate running up it. The crowd support is incredible. The volunteers in the change tent were awesome as well, helping me get everything sorted. This was especially helpful since I decided to borrow a buddy’s aero socks the day before. Thank you Brian Willing!!! I ran with my shoes in hand across the top of the parking garage and put them on next to my bike rack while a volunteer grabbed it for me (and turned my Garmin on!) After grabbing my bike, I noticed another athlete (who won’t be named) with his shoes already clipped in. At IMWI, this is not allowed unless you are competing in the pro field… Needless to say, I moved up 9 positions to 6th with the 3rd fastest transition. 1s slower than someone who did a flying mount ;)

 

The Bike (5:06:08 - 4th OA): I started my bike computer at the bottom of the helix and took off way too hard, 40W above my target for the first mile or so. Once I settled down and got through the bike path section/sharp turns, I was right where I wanted to be. There weren’t too many athletes around me, and I remember passing a few and getting passed by 2. The stick out was light headwind, so my pace seemed very slow but my power was spot on. I had 1 guy sit behind me for the first 20-30 miles, but I was happy to just push my numbers without anyone influencing my effort in front of me. In 2 different spots I was riding back behind someone myself as the race official came right up next to me. Both times he gave me a thumbs up to indicate that I was the within the legal distance. As I came to mile 40, I knew my crew would be waiting with an update. Ty told me 7th, and at that point I actually assumed AG instead of OA (thought there were 20-30 people ahead from the swim still). Going into my first time up the 3 big climbs I felt incredibly strong and did my best to keep the power controlled under 300W. As I came through Verona to start my 2nd loop, Ty told me I was in 4th and 10 minutes back. This was good news to me that James Burke was *only that far ahead halfway through the bike, so I expected him to maybe take another 5 minutes the 2nd half. Planning ahead, I knew I wanted to be within 20 minutes starting the run and I was confident I could close that gap. Next to mile 80 I saw them a 3rd time and same story, 4th place but 9 minutes back. It was around this time that my power started to slip a bit and I was concerned about forcing it too much to run anyone down. I really took my time up those 3 climbs again and was ready for the home stretch. When I got back to the stick, 2 sets of spectators told me I was in 4th place and only 3 MINUTES back from the lead. I wasn’t sure I could believe the gap closed that much in 20 miles while my own power was dropping. Once the 2nd group said the same thing, I was incredibly motivated and felt like a win was within reach! The last 10 miles we had a generous tailwind pushing us home, and I focused on the bumps and staying safe along the bike path. By the numbers, I landed at 214W average and 223 NP with an average speed of 21.9mph. This was about 25W higher from when I raced in 2021.

 

T2 (2:06): Before the helix, I got my shoes loosened and started pedaling up. As I got to the top, I attempted to pull my feet out and was met with some nasty leg cramps. I wasn’t sure I’d get on top of my shoes in time but managed to get them off and barely got my leg over in time. A very slow dismount, so I may pull my feet out before the helix next time (yep, see you in 2024). The bike catchers were all cheering me on, but no one offered to grab my bike. I was about to leave it along a wall when one of them came to and let me hand it off. When I got to the change tent, I saw James still there putting on his shoes. I wasn’t sure what to make of this as I now had no idea who the other 2 guys were ahead of me. Having my socks already on, I blew through the rest of transition with the fastest time of the day.

 

Run (3:00:56 – 2^nd OA): Now keep in mind here… I’ve never been in the top 5 coming out of T2. After splitting my watch, I saw 2^nd place running across the top of the parking garage. I knew right away my pace was quicker and closed the 50 meter gap before we even hit the exit.  I told Ty I would at least be satisfied with my race if I got to run with one of the lead bikes, and that box was immediately checked. I must’ve been a little too quick because I didn’t see my gang by the run out for an update. Regardless, I knew the HR target and started to execute. As I was running by the capital, I was able to get an update telling me I was 3 minutes back from 1^st. I jokingly asked a few volunteers if I looked faster than him, and I was given a “yeah, you’re flying”. The first 2 miles were downhill and clicked off a pair of 6:30 miles. A few times I was able to see 1^st up the road and got a 2.5-minute and 2-minute split about a mile apart. I knew I was closing at least 30s/mile, so I stayed patient and kept my HR under control. This was the best feeling for the first half of the run…Telling myself, you need to ease up, don’t go to hard. Consciously holding myself back meant I was feeling strong, I didn’t over-bike, and I felt like I was floating out there. As I got to the base of Observatory Hill, I made contact with Kyle in the lead. We exchanged a few words, and I went to work up the hill. When I finished the twisty descent, I looked to the top and he hadn’t made it up yet. With no one ahead of me, my focus switched to who might be coming from behind (a thought I’ve never really had before). It was so cool running with the motorcycle up the road and my bike escort Thad right behind me. I got to my favorite part of the course which is the out and back up State Street. I could see my friends and family up the road, and everyone just exploded. It was surreal to be leading an Ironman with 20 miles still to go, and the run leg my strength. The energy and excitement had me feeling like I had already won….but Matt, this is an Ironman let’s not forget. I couldn’t get a gap time since I was the FIRST across each timing mat. Again, never been in these shoes before. As I continued around the top of course, my next focus was getting halfway. As I passed the BBMC tent, my buddy Dustin said he’d have my gap when I came back around. 8 minutes…What is happening?!? As I got back to the capital, I was still feeling good as I grabbed 3 more gels from my special needs bag. I pulled more energy from the crowds and I really felt that rush as I was met with athletes on their first loop. I split a 1:28 that first half, just over 6:40 pace…but I started to unravel at mile 15. Running on the turf in Camp Randall Stadium seemed to take all the energy from my legs, and that float left me. Instead of being able to elevate my HR up a notch, it dropped. What I thought was going to be an “easy” jog to the finish turned into a grind. When I got back to Observatory hill, I shuffled up at a 10 min/mile. It was a controlled stumble on the way back down, but I was almost back to State Street. At this point, I needed anything and everything the crowds would give me. I got my update again of 8 minutes, so I knew I was running stride for stride with 2nd, even though I was slowing down. A spectator along the road informed me that James Harrington was behind me. He won in 2021 in a rundown, and this got my mind going. I didn’t give my crew any response at the turnaround and prepared to suffer the final 7 miles. This was a very dark spot for me. That top stretch gets lonely on the crushed path even though I was with other athletes and Thad. I will never forget the thoughts that went through my head.

“Who cares about breaking the tape...”

“You don’t want it that bad...”

“We’re fading, just give up...”

I did my best to snap out of it, drawing on my community back home intently refreshing the tracker. I also started my runner math. With 10K to go, I knew I could give up 1 min/mile and didn’t think James would be running faster than 6:30’s. I convinced myself 7:30 pace is all I’d need to seal the victory, and any time under that was additional insurance. I don’t remember much other than being completely numb to cheers and it felt like I was running 9’s. Looking back, my slowest split was only 7:27… but it felt so much worse. On the final out and back, I was turning away as I saw James for the first time just coming around the corner. I calculated a 9-minute lead with that final 5K. I still felt threatened, so I kept pressing but couldn’t get my HR up or go fast. When I hit mile 25, it was uphill to the finish and my hamstrings simultaneously cramped. I panicked at the thought of walking it in and performed an awkward straight legged run until it subsided. When the capital came into view, for the first time I knew the race was won. I closed the uphill section in a 7min mile and came around that final turn…

 

The Finish (9:12:58 – 1^st OVERALL): The cameras, lights, red carpet, and the TAPE outstretched waiting for me. Words cannot describe what I felt in that moment. The pain melted away, I pumped my fists in the air, and I was on top of the world. When my feet hit the carpet, I saw Ty standing there next to the media, big smile on her face waiting for me to finally grab that tape. Some last second high fives and I was the 2023 Ironman Wisconsin Champion. To come back to my first full on September 10^th, no pro field, and my wife there to hang the medal around my neck… Embracing her at the finish line, tape laying at our feet, was the happiest moment of my entire life. WE did it.

Kudos if you made it through all of that. I tried to leave nothing out so I can read this again and remember as much as I can. My friends and family were all there for me celebrating and losing their minds. Emotions flying, tears rolling, and hugging everyone in sight. I can say with 100% confidence that I could not have done this without you all. Whether you were there or back home, I drew on your energy the entire day. I don’t want to list names for fear of leaving someone out, but you know who you are. I am going to continue to soak it in for the rest of the week before picking apart my performance. My run should have been better on the back half, but on that day…it got the job done. This was the perfect end to my triathlon season, and I look forward to working towards Kona 2024. I’m sure there will be a few more people paying attention this time.

My Team