Over the past few seasons Oceanside 70.3 has become my annual season opener and 2014 followed the same path. In 2010 I did Oceanside for the first time and it was my first 70.3 distance race. Ever since then, this race has been fun for me. It is also allows me an opportunity to travel to San Diego, stay with my Aunt, and for my parents to come watch me race.
After spending the winter months in California doing some bigger volume base training and with only a few weeks of intensity back in Boulder, I wasn’t exactly too sure how this race was going to go. My goal for this year is to have a consistent season of racing all the way through the end of November. With that goal, racing in March is pretty early in my year. However, my training had been going really well and I expected to be able to put together a very solid race. After having a good swim that brought me 4th out of the water, I sort of settled into the bike leg. I missed out on the opportunity to go with some guys that eventually formed a lead chase group and the race really went up the road away from me. During the race I thought I couldn’t make that move or effort on the bike. However, since reflecting on the race, I feel like I subconsciously made the decision not to go. I really wasn’t IN the race as far as my mindset was concerned. If I am being honest with myself, I have to admit that I was sort of going through the motions during this race. I never really committed to the suffering, pain, and aggression that is necessary to actually RACE the race. At this race I was competing against a very solid field against some of the fastest triathletes in the world at this distance, I shouldn’t except the race to come easily. This was a mistake that I made mentally and it is something that I don’t think reflects my physical preparation. I was able to have a decent run and finished 13th at the end. I have had worse results at this race with more preparation and a better mindset, so if I am able to learn from my mistakes, I think that this is a good starting point for the year and makes me excited for the races to come.
The highlight of my trip was definitely the two days I spent in San Diego county post race. Thanks to Keith Butsko, I was able to surf and enjoy some excellent breweries; which are possibly my two favorite things! Especially when the breweries involve STONE!
Next up for me will be Wildflower. I won the Olympic distance version of this race in 2009 as an amateur and I have always wanted to come back. I feel like this is really where my triathlon career was started and I can’t wait to compete here again. I also really like participating in TriCal events. I received a lot of support from the organization during my first year pro racing in California. This will be another great opportunity to race with some of my Olympic Club teammates and some old training partners from the Bay Area.
