–By Terry Ritter

September 9^th saw big time bicycle racing return to the Detroit area. The Detroit Athletic Club put on the inaugural Detroit Cycling Championship. This event had a large purse ($45K!), and drew both amateur and pro teams from around the Midwest region and our friends to the east, Canada.

The course was interesting as well, though rather challenging. Three of the main roads used ran the perimeter of Comerica Park, where the Tigers play Major League baseball. Between corners #2 and #3 was a pretty good downhill that generated speeds in excess of 30 mph. From here there was a short section between turns #4 and #5, then #5 and #6, and back onto the long, slight uphill straight. And, being inner streets of a major city, the patched pavement and utility covers were plentiful, with the worst examples of the former on the course’s fast decent. Add a quality prize list and the accomplished riders that show for such a draw, and you’ve got a technical race that was fast and strung out from the gun. Having frequent primes only ramped things up more.  Moving up and maintaining position was a challenge, especially since the opportunity to transit through the field of riders was muted by the speed, and dive-bombing corners was a common occurrence.

The ample purse meant a lot of new riders, and opportunities to have different race classes combined compared to the normal Michigan scene. This meant not only grouped category 3s and 4s races, but category 2s and 3s as well. There was also a full masters class. Ultimately, this left the racers on Team Athletic Mentors the opportunity to not only get a couple of events in, but to race with each other when we normally don’t get that chance.

Toeing the line in the combined Cat. 2/3 race was Terry Ritter, Rich Landgraff, Luke Cavender, Collin Snyder, Ross Williams, and Bobby Munro. Like all the races, this one was fast. Collin won a prime early on, then took a flyer to try to get away with three laps to go. However, there was too much horsepower for anything but a sprint finish.

Ross and Bobby were active in their Cat. 3 only race, with Ross attacking for a prime and then Bobby countering the next lap to try to get away. Great to see some tactical racing from our up-and-coming racers.

The Masters race was all three categories (35+, 45+, 55+), and it made for a large field but interesting dynamic. It wasn’t slow by any means (the 35+ group assured that), and there was a national champion kit in the mix as well. Richard, Peter O’Brien, and Terry doubled up (Peter was in the Cat. 3 Masters race earlier), with Jonathan Morgan joining the crew.

Elaine was our sole female Team Athletic Mentor rider and competed in the Cat. 3/4 race, as well as the Cat. P/1/2/3 race. Like the other races, the group was rarely grouped together, and the later race was especially fast. There were a few teams that were recognizable from the National Criterium Championship race earlier in the summer.  With this being Elaine’s first year of serious road racing (not to mention criteriums), she did very well and represented the team impressively.

The final event of the day was the Pro/1/2, slated for 80 mins. A lot of big regional teams were there and it was super fast. Dan Yankus, Collin, Peter Ehmann and Jonathan started. Many riders didn’t finish due to the pace. Eventually, a group of 5 got away, including two Bissell Pro riders, that lapped the field. Then, with about 10 laps to go, there was a crash that left a few riders in need of medical attention and the race was halted, only to restart after the break with a fast conclusion. With a $200 prime on the second to last lap, the pace was high…until the group passed the first corner as the last lap bell was ringing. Bissell slowed a bit around corner #2, with Daniel taking advantage and shooting up near the front on the outside. Unfortunately, a number of riders dive bombed the inside corner, pushing Daniel and the Bissell train towards the outside and into the barriers, causing a crash. Fortunately, no one was hurt too badly and the race finished on that lap. Collin came home with 30^th on the evening.

Not getting enough racing for the weekend, Bobby, Daniel, Collin, Terry and Ross headed to Uncle John’s 56 mile gravel race north of Lansing on Sunday. Glen Dik joined the mix. The team was active early, with Daniel finishing fourth out of the small break that got away from the rest of the field. Collin got 6^th overall and Terry came in 13^th, and 3^rd in the 47-51 age group. Elaine and JoAnn Cranson competed in the women’s 24 mile race as well.

There are rumors that next season the Detroit Criterium Championship will be earlier in the season and hopefully on the national cycling calendar. With the positive support and great organization of this year’s inaugural event, there’s little doubt this can grow bigger and better, showcasing the renewal of our great city.

The post Detroit Cycling Championship Team Recap appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

The post My Kona Journey: Part 2 appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

–By Elaine Sheikh

“When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful!” – Eric Thomas, in his Secrets to Success speech at Michigan State University.

This has been my MO for years.  To paraphrase what Thomas said about NFL players, I agree that all athletes are created equal – but some work harder in the off season.  I’ve never had the athletic background some athletes have.  I didn’t run in high school.  The only swim stroke I knew when I started triathlon in 2013 was the doggie paddle.  My idea of a bicycle was my $175 Huffy from Wal-Mart.  I started at the bottom and soon triathlon was quite truly the air I breathed.  I fought for every success, every win, every pr.  I collapsed after workouts, too fatigued to unlock my front door.  I woke up at 4:00 am to train before work and get in a second workout after a 14 hour work day.  Every workout felt like it was a performance.  Every workout was make or break.  Can you relate?

Triathlon attracts type-A, success-driven people.  I’ve written in the past about balance in sport and balance in life.  If you’re a faithful blog reader, you’ll remember that I firmly supported (and still support) living a life of overall balance, but with periodic imbalance to achieve your full potential.  But sometimes, hard work doesn’t pay off in the ways you would expect.  Sometimes, it pays off for what seems like everyone around you, and it seems like you’re an anomaly.  Is this you right now?

Sometimes, it’s ok to stop.  It’s ok to rest.  I feel that now more than ever, there is pressure to avoid being labeled a “quitter.”  Pain is weakness leaving the body, right?  True, this sport is about natural selection, with many people coming and going and the strongest enduring year after year.  But sometimes, you have to respect yourself enough to take a break.  Before you drive yourself to the breaking point, through adrenal fatigue, through countless injuries, take a step back to rest and re-evaluate.  If I had stopped sooner, if I had not tried to push through the pain, if I had not tried to come back for the end of the season – maybe, just maybe, I could still be part of this sport.  Don’t be me.  We are coming up to the offseason, and if you feel the symptoms of burnout, please, make sure to practice self-care.  Success is an elusive, ever changing, ever moving target. Don’t let that target put your blinders on and distract you from the rest of your life.  If you need help planning an offseason, I’ve found that having a coach is invaluable and I highly recommend the team at Athletic Mentors for year-round individual coaching.

During this early part of my triathlon hiatus/retirement, I’ve listened to many podcasts from injured professional athletes.  Again and again, I hear the same theme that took place in my life. The constant push against your body’s limits will eventually lead to a breakdown.  And one injury leads to another.  It’s a vicious cycle.  The only way to break it is to stop.  Reset.  Start from the ground up once again.  That drive for success will never really go away, and your success may be just around the corner.  Remember that progress is not linear!

Respect your off-season.  Respect yourself.

The post Respect Your Off-Season appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

-By Terry Ritter

Back on May 13^th of this year, during the first lap of the inaugural Port City Criterium, I took off after a break and rolled my tire in the fast downhill corner. I was able to scrub off some speed but this tumble at 30 mph left me with a hairline fracture in my left scapula and a right one in four pieces. For good measure, I also compressed three vertebrae and broke two ribs. Though not needing surgery was a good outcome, I was worried right away that I might not be ready for my favorite mountain bike race, Ore to Shore. I’ve faithfully competed in 17 of the 19 editions.

My shoulders have been deteriorating for years and I have been less than optimal on keeping up on the exercises needed so they stay MTB functional. That meant in the 2016 O2S my shoulders got the best of me and I completely came apart with ten miles to go, getting dropped from my group in a new single track section. I feared the same thing for this season. However, I was diligent with my recovery and physical therapy, pushed myself to get back on the bike and race as soon as I could (week 6 post crash), and hoped for the best.

One thing that didn’t need more confirmation was how switching to a lower carbohydrate diet had left me less need to consume nutrients during an event or ride. Two winters ago I did an experiment with Cricket and Mark of Athletic Mentors, doing metabolic testing (VO2 Max and Aerobic Threshold) work to see how doing a ketogenic diet (very low-carb) would impact my cycling. More specifically, I wondered how it would increase my fat burning, which it improved greatly. However, at least in the 4 month experiment we used, I lost a significant enough ability to do work anaerobically (short term power) that I had to bring some sugars back into my diet to be effective with a number plate on my bike.

What else was it like being a ketogenic athlete (also called “fat adapted”)? Well, our bodies burn glucose if it’s in our diet significantly, and that’s the case for most. For this reason, the brain and nerves are committed to using glucose. When it’s too low, we bonk. But, the hallmark of a ketogenic adaptation is to give the brain and nerves another fuel, one the muscles and other organs happily burn as well: ketone bodies. And the liver can make these all day from our own fat stores. This allowed me, at least for those 4 months, to totally disconnect my eating and working out. I did 1800-2000 kcal workouts and hadn’t eaten in 6-8 hours, something I could never have dreamed of in my past high carb. life.

When I did reintroduce carbs. during the race season,  I cut them back significantly from the “aerobic athletes needs carbs. for fuel” mantra I’d heard for decades. And, my power came back. However, I also noticed a significant reduction in what I needed to take in to race well during an event. My daily dietary carbs. through the season typically run 200g or less, depending on training days, many days 100 or less.

How does this math workout in a race? A calorie is just another unit of work, so a power meter, which measures kilojoules very accurately, can determine this value within a few percentage points. The 91 mile Cherry Roubaix took about 3100 kcals to complete. I did have a reasonable breakfast, but only had to take about 600 kcals in during the ride. The Ore to Shore was likely in the 2500 kcal range for work, but I only consumed about 400 kcals during the event…and didn’t finish either effort with any signs of hunger.

The net result is I have learned I don’t need to consume what now looks to be ridiculous levels of carbohydrates to able to perform well. Going this route has enhanced my fat burning ability, meaning I can use my own body stores, a good thing for other reasons besides athletic performance. And, though this is an entirely different topic, I believe it’s much healthier to consume fewer carbs., likely as little as we can. So, this bodes well with where I want my health to go.

The futile attempt to remove the special “mud” that exists at times in the Marquette area. We had some pretty substantial water on the course this year, creating rust colored puddles filled with iron particles. I have to give it a try, though, and now this kit will serve as attire for all O2S races in the near future.

Oh, and how’d the Ore to Shore end up? Well, I was just hoping to get to that place 10 miles before the finish still able to race the race. Darn if all that physical therapy didn’t do the trick and I was able to hang with the top 3 guys (and gal, as the lead women raced with us) as they attacked our group of 15 and made a separation. I was able to push all the way to the finish. This was good enough to squeak in 54th overall. Now, all I have to do is find the motivation to keep these shoulders stronger without rolling around on the pavement as motivation.

The post Comebacks, Low-Carb, and that Little Race Up North appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

–By Bobby Munro

Road bike racing is a dangerous activity. It is arguably the most dangerous type of bike racing—except for maybe our distant cousin, downhill mountain bike. Below is four things to do at your local race to make sure the pack stays safe. Admittedly, this list primarily helps to keep others safe. But, if everyone can abide by a code of conduct then we will all benefit.

1. Practice contact

Coming in contact with other racers will happen. When it does, DO NOT PANIC! Hold your line, avoid the brakes, and counter the force if need be. Leaning into the other person is a skill and it must be practiced. Don’t wait until you are going 25mph to practice it. Find a friend and practice while going slow (I’m talking 5mph, granny gear slow). Just a little practice every few weeks or so can turn you into a pro.

2. Hold your line in corners

We have heard it a million times to “hold your line.” I trust that if you are reading this you know what that means. That being said, I think we could all use a reminder on what your line actually is in a corner. Your “straight line” in a race will seldom have you riding parallel to the curve. Try to follow the line that the rider in front of you took. When you deviate from that line then you cause others behind you to change course as well. This causes a snowball effect that can lead to someone being pinched on the outside or the inside. Also keep in mind the riders to your side. Try to keep them at the same distance they were going into the corner. The natural tendency is to fan out.

Dive bombing corners is not ok. Don’t be that guy. This tactic can be effective but it can be a dangerous one. If you are passing on the inside of a corner then it your responsibility to observe the pack first. In particular, try to predict the line that the person you are looking to pass will take. If there will be a gap, go for it! But if it is going to be tight then it is best to play it safe. The best way to predict what line someone will take is to look at the person who they are drafting (you may need to look a few riders up). If they are following the line of the person ahead of them, then it should be a good predictor of where they will go.

3. You should (almost) never cross wheels

Another basic of group riding etiquette. The problem is, this is not a group ride, and this is a race. There are literally tens of dollars on the line! When the bunch slows down it can be easier to avoid the brakes a little and cross wheels. This is completely understandable. Just do so at your own peril (and the peril of those behind). If the rider ahead looks unstable or if he looks like he may dart outside to go for an attack, be weary. However, if you are crossing wheels of someone who has a rider on either shoulder, you are probably safe. At the end of the day, it’s your front wheel, so protect it.

4. Sprint responsibly

The final sprint will be hectic. It your responsibility to be safe during the final meters of the race. The biggest thing to remember is to not make wild movements to the side. Be predictable! Once you have a clear sight at the line, hold your direction. This is not a professional race and we should not be blocking. End of story. If you can’t fend off an approaching rider then you need to improve your sprint, not put another person’s life in danger.

The post Four Tips to Safer Road Racing appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

–By Kathy Braginton

In search of something new and adventurous, I headed to the center of the universe for the Ann Arbor Tri presented by Epic Races. This race says it is a triathlon that is as tough as you are and I found out what tough really was.

Centered around Halfmoon Lake in the Pinckney State Recreation Area, you’ll swim the open waters of Halfmoon lake, bike the rolling country roads of the surrounding rural area, then run the Poto Trail.   The event featured 5 different races/distances (Sprint, Mini Sprint, Duathlon, Aquabike, and Sprint Relay), as well as, the Wolverine Collegiate Conference race.

The 800 meter swim was an out and back rectangle.  The lake was fairly clean with only a few patchy weed sections.  The female sprint wave was fairly large, so to avoid the masses, I chose the weeds at the start.  It turned out to be a very thick section and they were even getting caught around my neck!  Luckily, I was able to swim out of it fairly quick and get into clean water.  The out and back was West to East, so the return trip was blinding.  I was unable to see any buoys or any of the sighting objects on shore that I had made note of before the race.  I had to just swim towards the sun and actually stop several times to try and get my bearings.

The female wave was the last wave for the sprint race and was followed by the mini sprint wave.  The mini sprint was half the swim distance as the sprint, so we all converged around the same time into transition and onto the bike. This made for a very crowded bike leg for about the first 4 miles.  The road was also open to traffic, so we got caught up behind cars that were waiting to pass a few times.  The bike is described as rolling country roads.  I would describe it as large rollers and lots of them.  There were 2 in the last few miles that were out of the saddle worthy.  As most races go, what was listed as a 14 mile bike, was actually 14.6 according to my Garmin.

I came into this race ill prepared for what was really in store on the run.  I knew it was a 5 mile trail run, but really didn’t pay attention to the specific trail.  I heard the word brutal used several times before the start of the race.  Then, I realized where we were and that the trail run was the Potawatomi Mountain Biking Trail.  The Poto website lists the trail as fast and flowy trail to steep, technical climbs, to brain-rattling descents.  I’m actually glad I did not read that prior to the race.  Not knowing what was in store around the next corner,  made for more of the adventure.  I found myself several times wishing I was on my Fatty winding my way through the trails.  The run only had 2 half mile sections of paved road and both of those were uphill.  I found myself hoping the run that was listed as 5 miles would actually be short.  Unfortunately, that was not my luck and it turned out to be a painful 5.2!  I came in 7^th overall with a 1^st age group finish after being caught by 3 women on the run.  I’m still in awe at how fast they were able to move on those trails.

The post-race awards were listed as Grab-and-Go Awards.  This seemed unusual to me and I’m still up in the air about it.  Instead of waiting around to receive awards, you could simply report to the awards table to claim your prize.  While this method claims to get you home sooner, it is based off unofficial results as they are being posted.  The initial Female Masters winner that was listed turned out to be someone different and the actual winner had already left.

The race did offer a pretty cool finishers medal, super-soft Michigan race tee (Go Blue!), Free professional race photos, and FREE beer!  What more could you ask for?  It was definitely worth the adventure.

The post New Adventures at the Ann Arbor Tri appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

–By Kathy Braginton

In it’s 33^rd year running, the Clark Lake Triathlon, was boasted as being revitalized.  Under new race management, I was anxious to see the changes Run Toledo would bring to the event.

Some of the fun the new offerings were race number tattoos and nice number decals for your bike and helmet.  I’ve only seen these used at ½ iron distances or longer.  On the downside though, everyone trying to apply the tattoos in transition on race day, is much more time consuming than a Sharpie!  I also really liked the unique, wooden finishers medals.

The swim waves were modified this year to be based on ability, rather than age.  There were 6 waves: Elite Men & Women, Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Clydesdale & Athena, and Beginner.  The swim course itself was still the same: a counter-clockwise triangle.  I liked the idea of the wave change and selected Wave 1 during the on-line race registration.  My reasoning for the selection was not based on my speed on the swim, but rather my speed on the bike.  I usually find myself in the last wave of a swim start based on age, so one of the advantages in being able to select wave 1 was less congestion on the bike course.  In 2015, they changed the bike course to a 2 loop course due to rough sections of road and that is still the case in 2017.  There were still quite a few pot holes and sections of rough road requiring you to stay alert, so position on the course was key.  Otherwise, the bike course was rolling and fast!  The run course was the same scenic route winding around portions of Clark Lake.  However, what I previously found as an advantage during the bike leg would become the downside on the run.  I found myself all alone for miles 2 and 3 making it tough to push the pace.

Clark Lake provides a great opportunity to race against some different, challenging competitors.  I found myself 6^th overall, 4^th Master, and 2^nd Age group.  I’m always fascinated to see the average age of these though competitors when you find 4 of the top 6 all over the age of 40!

The post Revitalized Clark Lake Triathlon after 33 Years appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.

By Brian Reynolds

“Every champion was once a contender who refused to give up.”
Sylvester Sallone

On September 12th, 2016 I was anxiously waiting in the Ironman World Championships slot allocation room at Ironman Wisconsin to find out how many slots would be given to my age group. When they posted the slot allocation sheet I saw that only two slots were given to my age group.  My heart sunk to the ground.  This meant that only two athletes would go to the Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. I finished 4th place in my age group.  The only way I could go to Kona is if the first and second place athletes did not accept their slot.  Unfortunately when they announced the 1st and 2nd place athletes both of them accepted their Kona slot.

I was very disappointed that I missed out on qualifying for Kona.  I remember feeling very confident that I would place in the top 2 in my age group considering how I felt going into the race. Note that this was my first Ironman race so I may have been a little naive:)   To quickly recap my race I started off with a great swim (58:20 swim time) and a fast T1.  I got off to a good start on the bike but was not able to keep that momentum going the entire ride.  I got passed by a lot of fast bikers but I kept a good attitude.  While on the bike I kept repeating to myself “once I get to the run I’ll run them down”.  When I got to the run I was in my comfortable zone since this was my strength.   I was able to make up a lot of places but the top two athletes in my age group were just too far ahead of me to rundown.  I ran a solid marathon time of 3:08 but would’ve needed to run a 2:58 to finish 2nd place which just wasn’t in the cards that day.

After my entire experience at Ironman Wisconsin it made me more determined and dedicated to qualify for Kona.  I also became more humble of the opportunity of qualifying.  I knew in order to qualify I would have to continue improving my Ironman fitness and I would have to choose a Ironman race that would give me the best shot of qualifying.

The big question I asked myself was “What should be my next Ironman race”.  I really wanted to qualify for the 2017 Ironman World Championships so I wanted to pick a race in the Spring.  Unfortunately there was only one Ironman race in North America during the Spring and that was Ironman Texas in mid April.  However, I thought Texas was not ideal considering I would not be acclimated to the extreme Texas heat since I would be training in the cool Michigan temperatures.  This meant I had to look international.  The international races I considered was Ironman Australia, South Africa, and Brazil.  After weighing the pros and cons of each race Ironman Brazil was the best choice.

Ironman Brazil would give me the absolute best shot to qualify for Kona in 2017 for many reasons.  The first reason is they’ve historically offered more qualifying slots for my age group (30-34) than any other race.  In 2016 they handed out 11 slots!   The second reason was the temperatures during late May were between the high 60s and low 70s.  These temperatures were very ideal for me to race and perform well in considering it would require little heat acclimation.  The third reason was the time zone difference.  The race would take place in Florianopolis, Brazil which is only one hour ahead of US eastern time so didn’t need to adjust my sleep pattern.  Finally, the fourth reason was that the course suited me well given my strengths and weaknesses.  For example, the swim was in the ocean and not in a river which meant there were no water currents to assist us.  Thus the swim would favor a stronger swimmer like myself.  In addition, the course did have a few long hills which was to my advantage since I’m a good climber.

There were a few risks and concerns that I had being in a foreign country.  For one I was not familiar with the area and the food.  I knew I had to be cautious about what I ate and drank (don’t drink the water!).  My worst case scenario was getting a stomach flu or something bad before the big race.  To mitigate my concerns I decided to use Endurance Sports Travel (EST) agency to take care of the lodging, transportation, language translation, and food.  EST is an official partner with Ironman and understand/cater to the needs of the Ironman athlete very well.  Finally this would be my first time visiting South America so I could check this one off the bucket list.

Now that I had my Ironman race picked out it was time to get training!

To be continued….

The post My Kona Journey: Part 1 appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.