Garry Bjorklund 2015

Heading into Grandma's weekend this year I had put in some solid run training. With that in mind, a PR should have been in the bag. The hard half iron the week prior was the one caveat in the plan. Well that and the weather...  Leading into race day the weather forecast was for steady rain at the start and heavy rain during the run. 

Pre Race

With a 6:15 start, I set the alarm for 3:30. Damn is that early. I got up, had my toast for breakfast and rolled out. I had to pick up Serena at 4:30 prior to hitting the DECC. She would be running her first half, so I was hoping to make the pre race challenges a bit easier for her. As we approached the DECC we passed by the long line and swung into the parking lot by the Irvin with no wait at all. Score one for having done this before. We grabbed our clothes bag and final snacks and got ourselves in line for a bus. 

No drama on the ride and we were happy that it was not raining as of yet. We both had a throwaway warm shirt on the stay warm at the start, and snacked over the short ride. When they dropped us off, we slowly wandered towards the gear trucks where we dropped our bags. We looked for fellow DRC group runners and said hello to a few. We then hit the porta potty line and took care of business. 

We found a couple runners that she was planning on starting with, and I found Brian and Dave so we wished each other luck and went to our respective areas of the corral. Our plan was for 7:00 flat to start and see where it went. 

Race Time

Off we went and I tried to get in a groove quickly. Mile one went by in 6:50 so a bit quick, but not worried. At about mile 2.5, the light rain started. Not pouring, but rain none the less. We kept rolling along and soon we were approaching London Road. At the Lester River, I started to notice my legs feeling a bit tired. Last weekends race was coming back. I tried to keep steady and see what I could do over the next couple miles. 

As we approached Lemon Drop Hill I was starting to struggle. The uphills were real tough. I really focused on taking advantage of the downhill after Lemon Drop because I knew the small hill at Super One would be tough also. By now my mile splits were in the 7:10 range, but a PR was still an option if I could keep it together on the flats through downtown. 

After passing DRC I really focused on turnover. After we passed Wells Fargo and turned onto 5th Ave West it was just one mile to go. Muscle up the hill and use the downhill to get my speed back. Around the DECC, by the Irvin and onto the homestretch. A PR was going to happen, and I ran strong through the finish line. All in all, a good effort. 

Post Race

As it was still sprinkling, I grabbed my clothes bag and changed to stay warm. I was looking for friends to see how everybody's space went. I caught up with Kris, Skeeter, Tiffany, Noah and Halie who all seemed pleased. I was really looking for Serena as her sprained ankle was a big question mark for her. I finally saw her in the crowd and she gave me a big hug. I was so happy for her to be able to get a great time for her first half marathon. She even got that time running with a really sore ankle. 

Early Tri Season Recap

Tri Season Kick Off

I signed up for my first ever indoor tri this year at the Essentia Health Indoor tri. This race runs with an equal time format where you spend 30 minutes at each discipline. For the swimming and running, this would be pretty basic. For the bike, the exercise bikes we would ride rewarded high rpm spinning. Not my forte, and with total distance being the goal I was pretty sure I had no chance at the overall. 

For the swim, I had a goal of 1600 meters and I ended up hitting it exactly. That was a solid start and I worked to change quickly and get to the bike as they only gave us five minutes. When the bike time started, I gave it my best shot. I held close to 125 rpm for most of the time which was very uncomfortable for me. However, the wide seats lead to some even more uncomfortable chafing. After thirty minutes of torture, it was down to the treadmill. At this point, I was .5 miles behind my buddy Ryan Dewey for our personal bet for breakfast after the race. With this in mind, I set the treadmill to 6:15 miles and off I went. 

When it was all said and done, I could not make up the last .2 miles. Although my 4.7 miles ended up being the best run effort, and my swim was third for overall distance. Not a bad start to the season. 

GW Du 

I had been doing some good run training so I was curious to put it to good use at Gear West. I had not been out cycling as much as I had wanted, but still felt I could ride hard. With this in mind I challenged tri studette Lisa Lendway to a heads up beer challenge. With her swim, I figured a duathlon would be my best chance against her. She has rocked some great times early this season, so I hoped the fact that I have raced this course would help me out. 

Mother Nature thought a good dose of rain as we setup would make for a fun race course. I chatted with buddies Nick and Mike (IM Wisconsin race mates) and we all predicted our finish times for a beer. Soon we were off on the soggy cross country run. I ran fast, but a touch reserved as I knew the second run would be tough. On the approach to the final sharp hill I saw Lisa (started a couple minutes back with the ladies wave) and made a mental note for the second run. 

On the bike, the gusty winds made for some mildly sketchy moments. First time this year with the disc cover and I need to remember to keep the power down and relax. I felt confident with my effort, but was unsure if I had ridden hard enough. When I hit T2, I moved quickly into my shoes and onto the run. I was able to get into my goal pace and roll. I saw Lisa about the same place on the second run and was not sure if that was good or bad. In the end, she got me by less than a minute!  Nice effort all day by her. 

I did manage to be within 40 seconds of my time prediction, but Mike was less than 15 seconds form his prediction for the win!  So in recap, a solid effort but two beer payouts when it is all said and done. 

Buffalo

We had a huge Duluth contingent heading to Buffalo for a season opening effort. Ryan Dewey and I cruised down together and bumped into Tiffany at packet pickup. Nick, Mike, Ryan Dewey, Skeeter, Clint, Kris, Tiffany and Michelle were all racing, so this was going to be fun. We put together teams for a beer bet and everybody put down a finish time estimate for another beer to the winner. 

Everyone was amped to get the season underway and we had perfect race weather. After swimming in Pike Lake on Tuesday, Buffalo Lake felt absolutely toasty. I got rolling and turned left into the waves after the fountain. On this stretch I took a few gulps of lake water, but had a solid draft for a good chunk of the leg. Around the farthest buoy and heading back to shore and I felt pretty good. As I stood up and started taking my wetsuit off, I looked down to see Kris swimming in. Only losing a couple minutes to her was a good sign. 

I made my way through T1 quickly and onto the bike. It turns out I should have left my shoes on the bike as the wet grass in T1 got in my cleats a bit and made clipping in a challenge. Once I got clipped in, I went to work. For the first 15 or so miles we would be going over rolling hills and into the wind. I worked hard and managed to pass Tiff early, and with her running ability I needed to bike hard to keep her behind me. As I turned onto the out and bike I passed Clint and Michelle in quick succession. I then caught Ryan Dewey and figured that was it for race buddies I would actually catch up to. When we turned for the final stretch with the wind, I actually ran out of gears. With the tail wind and flats to slight downhills I really could have used a 53 front chain ring. 

Through T2 and onto the run. The goal was to try running 7:00 pace and see what happens. Right away I was a bit slow as we were headed up a small hill. At the top a lady went by at a good clip and I figured let's see if I can match that pace. Between the down hill and my new pace setter I made good time to the short course turn. Now I started seeing the long course leaders and Mike came by looking good with Nick on his tail. After three ladies I saw another Duluth athlete Elaine Nelson. With only 2 miles to go I figured even her running ability would not be enough to win. As I approached the turn, I passed a guy in my age group and made a push to help it stick. 

On the way back, the heat was noticeable. Couple that with the hills and my pace was a bit slower but still pretty good. On the way back I saw Ryan Dewey, Michelle, Clint and Tiffany in order. Based on their pace, they would have a close finish between the four of them. I finished with a solid time and felt good for the first race of the year. I beat my prediction by a few minutes so I knew I would not win that beer, but I was cheering on the rest of my team for the group bet. Tiffany and Michelle raced well and finished strong, but our team lost by 26 seconds. So, I have now started the year with five straight losses in the side bet department...  I need to work on that. 

Liberty/Capitol City Double

One week later and my first big race of the season. I was using Liberty as a check on my prep for IM Canada and IM Wisconsin. The goal was a PR, and if things went well a sub 5:00. The race was also supposed to be a showdown with old race buddy Lou Hughes, but he pussed out and signed up for the Olympic race instead of the half. 

Race morning arrived to gray skies. The weather forecast was for clouds, but no rain and light winds with upper 60's as temps. Perfect for racing fast. Into the water and I tried to keep a nice steady pace. As I exited the lake, I felt like it was a bit slow, but focused on the trek to transition and getting the bike rolling. At this point I noticed it was raining.  Really, rain for the bike?!?  

Try to ignore the rain and got into my groove on the bike. I felt good and focused on keeping my effort level steady. The first loop went well and I was keeping a solid pace. For the second loop I was a bit slower to make sure I was ready for the run and also the last 9 miles which would be with the wind back to T2. As I turned onto the road heading back to Rockford, I made a point to pick up the effort a touch. I wanted to use the tailwind as much as possible. Once through Delano I knew I had about three miles left on the bike so I focused on getting mentally ready to run. At this point, I realized I needed to piss. This is not a normal issue for me in a half iron. Luckily, I racked next to the porta-potty in transition. Of course, wearing bib shorts and the rain made it a bit of a challenge. It is a lot harder than you think to get out of a singlet when you are wet. 

After a quick visit to the porta-potty was done, I grabbed my race number/hat/gel/mountain dew and headed out. I took the gel in the first mile and sipped the dew through the run. I checked my split at mile one and saw I was sub 7:30. Not quite sure I can hold that pace, but I felt good so I kept with it. As I ran I noticed that this run was going up or down a hill at all times. After mile one, the next two had a good chunk of down that would be a challenging finish to our run as it was an out and back. 

As I hit the turn around, I was still holding 7:30 or so every mile. With the clouds holding on, I was feeling pretty good still. I tried to stay steady and even reeled in another few runners in front of me. As I approached the final mile I started to try and pick my pace up a bit. With about a half mile to go, I saw one guy just ahead. I was catching him pretty easy, but would he pick it up as I approached/passed. At the .2 to go point I went by him. As I did, he noticed I was in his age group and he sprinted by me. I just held steady and bided my time. With about 100 yards left I picked up the pace to make my move. I was able to pass the guy again and make it stick this time. When it was all said and done, third in my age group with a half iron PR. Not bad. 

After a quick break, I packed up and cruised over to St Paul to register for the Capitol City tri. The legs were feeling good, so I figured why not. CC was a nice sprint distance and the weather was looking good. Plus I had the beer I owed Lisa from Gear West with me and she left Liberty long before I was done since I am a bit slow. With CC being a sprint I figured I could get her the beer before she had to head home this time. 

With a nice short swim, I was just focusing on smooth swimming and sighting well. It went well, and I was back to T1 soon. I was not sure how my legs would feel after the hard effort the day prior, but with a closed course and 13 miles I figured a strategy of just hammering as hard as I could would work. I caught a couple guys early, and then went back and forth with two guys the rest of the way. As I hit T2 my legs were a bit sore, but I figured it would be good to see how hard I could push the tired legs for three miles. Straight out of transition there was a nice hill that really tested me. Once on top, I tried to get to a nice pace of just under 7:00 per mile. Outside of the hills, I held that pace pretty good and brought it home to a good overall time. 

Recap

Overall, I was pleased with how he season started. Specifically I felt I had strong efforts at Buffalo and Liberty. The PR and really good run at Liberty left me feeling good for the rest of the season. Now I need to get the miles in so Canada goes well in a month.