Oil Man - post race listicle!

Four days - and counting - of non-exercise has sapped my creative juices so to get over this severe case of writer’s block, I’m going to opt for the used-and-abused listicle to share my post race thoughts from Sunday’s Oil Man.

Seven ‘Hell Yeah’s’

7) Avoided DQ’s. Walked my bike from parking lot to transition area this year therefor avoided a DQ. Before the race even started it was a success! #winning

6) Be patient. There might be something to this whole being patient in long distance racing thing after all. With the exception of the swim leg, my plan heading into the race was to hold back during the first half of both bike and run legs to make sure there was enough left in the tank to make it to the end. I stuck to my guns and felt solid the back half of the race. The swim was a bit different as I wanted to get separation from the pack if possible so I could navigate through the barrage of bodies without someone constantly grabbing my legs.

5) Swim in Lake Conroe. Not going to lie, I was a bit of a pool rat starting in July to recover from back surgery and to get the body back into shape. The consistency in the pool these past few months paid off despite the idiot operator who decided to wear a sleeved skin suit on race morning.

4) Dangle a carrot. Most impressive race of the day in my mind was the female winner Ashley Johnson from Dallas area. As lead person out on the course, she had the motorcycle escort on the bike and the bike escort on the run. She showed no weakness. I got to within 15 seconds of her by the end of the second lap but then she turned on the after burners on the third lap leaving me to lick my wounds to cross the finish line first. Bravo and well earned!

3) Wolf it down. In the past, I neglected to eat and drink as diligently as I should have being too focused on staying in an aero tuck putting up the fastest bike split possible. I checked my ego at the door on Sunday, ate plenty of bars and gels, drank three bottles of drink mix and felt sufficiently full by the time the buffet-style bike ended.

2) Red Bull on the run. The first mile out of T2 can often be a bit rough but gulping down one of their yellow edition cans provided the boost I was looking for out there. The miles weren’t ticking by all that quickly, but I was alert enough to balance my footing on the slanted cart paths and avoid the mud puddles.

1) Houston Honey Badgers. A couple of different scenarios may have led to the large and maniacal crowds pumping life into the race: 1) many athletes already put an end to their racing season but still have the tri spirit running through their veins 2) many athletes were in taper mode with their races taking place this weekend at 70.3 Austin or Ironman Florida (or IMAZ in two weeks) or 3) the crappier the weather, the more the Houston honey badgers seemingly come out to support. Regardless, those cheering on Sunday were awesome, especially TJ Fry viciously shaking that bell. Couldn’t get away from him fast enough! The multiple lap course with the added smaller loops made it fun to see Emily and the girls a few times too which is always inspiring.

Seven ‘Oh No’s’ 

7) Jet Skis. What is it about jet skis and Texas long distance races! Not quite as problematic as the jet ski that obstructed the path of the pros at Ironman Texas in May, but the decision to tear through the middle of the swim pack on Sunday seemed over the top. Yikes! Hope Mr/Mrs Jet Skier successfully saved whoever they were zooming towards. From what I could tell no one got taken out but everyone in the vicinity got to gulp down a few mouthfuls of gasoline.

6) Rain Dance. Steve Elliott from VR Cycling Studio must have been doing the rain dance with how persistent it came down all weekend. The Texas Kangaroo created this dancing spell for the folks who still believe indoor cycling should only be done during bad weather spells. To drive them indoors. It was in full effect this past weekend. Hey people, get with the times and add indoor trainer work year round. It works.

5) Cramps while doing what?! Looked like a newborn giraffe every few miles reaching behind the saddle to get fluids from my rear hydration bottle set-up. It was a set-up I hadn’t tested before so I cinched the bottle holders extra tight to avoid any bottle launches on Grimes County’s rough roads and over the Richards and Johnson Rd railroad crossings. This meant I had to summon up gorilla-like strength (harder said than done for us wimpy endurance athletes) to pull the bottles out and force them back into their cages. A few times my chest and stomach muscles ceased up in cramps. I just had to laugh it off.

4) Bonehead moves on race day. Tried too many new things on race day that hadn’t been practiced during training. Small hiccups and annoyances but luckily no game changers. A few included:

Swimming with a sleeved skin suit. Initially I thought about keeping the top rolled down around my waist and putting on once swim was over but opted to swim with the top on instead. With wetsuit on I jumped into the lake to find out I was annoyed with the water collecting in the arms. Oh well, good practice for OtillO.

Cycling with a new power meter and computer set-up to gauge effort on bike. Computer set up disengaged from it’s configuration and dangling from the cockpit within the first 400 meters. By the time I reached the exit of La Toretta onto Walden Rd I had yanked the whole configuration off the stem and stuffed it into my back pocket. So I spent the next 55-miles having to tune in and listen to my body. A scary proposition to be sure.

3) Did the hills turn into mountains? When Emily and I first raced Oil Man in 2007 we were living in Colorado. The hills in the Sam Houston National Forest weren’t back breakers for us as we spent most of our time riding in the Rocky Mountains. Of course this could be a fishing tale as my memory has faded but I don’t remember getting out of the aerobars back then. On Sunday, I couldn’t wait to get out of the aerobars and onto the hoods, give my body a change of position and, gulp, shlep my ass up to the top of those mountains, err, hills!

2) Losing eyesight and focus with age. Not paying enough attention to the wave starts and realizing the youngsters wave was last with the relays. Even after the race I still assumed our 30-39 age group was the last individual wave to go off as was the case last year. One athlete in particular, Mark Simmons, had a great swim bike combo and was the virtual men’s race leader heading out onto the run. In his first attempt at the half distance he came up a bit short this time around but I have my work cut out and will have to be far more aggressive and attentive next year as this guy, and others (ahem Michael Ashrita and Scott Wilkinson) only continue to get better.

1) Run like a Girl! I sit firmly in the camp with families and fathers who enjoy running down the finishing chute with their children. I won’t apologize if it ruins anyone’s finishing photo and the practice of it being banned from some organizations is one reason why I’d prefer to support local races who understand how special the memories are to share with family. It meant the world to me to have Emily and my daughters at the race. They are troopers as everyone knows it sucks to stand around in the rain! With that said, my five year-old daughter totally kick my ass sprinting down the chute (proof below the run isn't even where her true talents lie!). Win a race, lose a race, balance in the world was restored. I need to learn how to run like a girl this off-season!

High five to Bryan Alsdorf for snapping, and sharing, some great photos from the day!