"Columbia Race Report"

The 2012 Columbia Triathlon was a great kick-off to my season.  Hats-off once again to the people at Tricolumbia who put on a wonderful weekend of triathlon.  For me, this weekend was a chance to put all the winter training to the test on one of the most challenging Olympic courses in the country.  Furthermore, it was my official race debut as a member of the Ballou Skies Triathlon Team.

Saturday morning started early as I left my house at 4:26 to start the drive down to Columbia.  I was looking forward to meeting up with Chad and a few others to ride the bike course.  Driving before sunrise is the best!  First, NO TRAFFIC.  Second, it's cool.  Not hip or popular, but temperature cool.  Third, by the time the sun rises, it's like your trip has just started and its that much shorter.  I'm sure some people would disagree with me on this, but that's how I see it. :)  I arrived at Centennial Park about 8:30 and met up with Chad, Brandon, Eric, and Darren (who was doing his very first triathlon).  Chad and I ended up riding for a little over 2 hrs.  I was happy to get a longer pre-race ride because most of my rides this spring have been on the trainer due to a busy track coaching schedule (riding on the trainer is efficient and can be done in the dark at 4 am).  We followed the ride up with lunch at Noodles & Co.  I got the chance to formally congratulate Chad and Jen on their first pregnancy.  I felt very useful as I answered their questions with my abundance of parenting experience (almost 13 months and counting).  I know the challenges of finding the time and energy to fulfill work, family, and triathlon responsibilities.  I know Chad and Jen will be great parents.  My best advice to them was, "change them, feed them, and love them and you're doing a good job."  After lunch it was race registration, drop the bike off at transition and check-in to the hotel for an afternoon nap. zzzzzzzzzzzz... :)

Race Morning:
Of course I awoke 10 minutes before my alarm went off.  I swear alarm clocks (or alarms on your phone if you're like me) are overrated.  All you really need is a young child (Luke) or a dog (Porter) and you're body will know exactly when to wake up each morning.  The morning race preparations went according to plan and it's always nice to walk to transition with Beth and Oscar.  Since I was racing in the elite amateur division, I didn't have to wait long start racing.



Eric, pull up your wetsuit for goodness sake!

 Swim:
As many of you know, the swim is usually my weakest of the three disciplines.  It was no different on this day.  However, I'm going to blame it more on a tactical error than a poor performance.  I have worked hard over the winter to improve my swimming, but I know I cannot keep up with the better swimmers, especially in the elite division.  Well, I tried to...  After just a couple minutes, I found my self on the verge of hyper-ventilating and had to revert to the breast stroke for several minutes until I could catch my breath and find a rythm I was more accostumed to swimming.  I'm sure I cost myself several minutes, but did feel good once I found my rythm.  Believe it or not, I swam slightly faster than last year.  Perhaps the winter swim workouts have paid off!


Elite Division entering the water for the swim start.

 Bike:
I love the bike leg of a triathlon!  Especially at Columbia, with all the hills.  It plays to my strength and power on the bike.  I rode most the way by myself this year since the elite division starts earlier, you don't have to contend with all the other age groups before you.  It's the other elite athletes and the pros.  So if you're catching someone on the bike, you are moving.  I passed several of the female elites, but didn't manage to pass any males.  This didn't bother me.  It was my own little time-trial.  I finished the bike with a split of 1:05:38.  A rate of 23.3 mph.  I'll take it!

Run:
The Columbia run course is tough!  Lots of hills.  It is a nice course through Centennial Park and the nearby residential area, but there really is no flats for any relief.  Again, I ran the course alone.  No one up ahead and no one behind.  I tried to stay as comfortable as possible on the uphills and as relaxed and smooth as possible on the downhills.  When it was all said and done, I finished about two minutes faster than last year with a split of 40:54 (6:36 pace).  I am very pleased with this considering the challenging course.

The Columbia Triathlon has once again kicked off the triathlon season.  Overall, it was an enjoyable race that provided a lot of feedback for what's next.  It is an Olympic distance that served as a good reminder of how physically hard it is to go fast and the training that is necessary to keep up with the elite amateurs in the field.  Next up is Eagleman and some unfinished business with that course.  More about that later...

"It's Actually Hot."

Is it official?  If it's not, let me be the first to jinx it.  WINTER IS OVER!  The high temperature predicted for today, March 19th, is 76 degrees.  Students are wearing shorts, tank tops, and sandals, and we're all fighting the anticipation of summer that usually comes in May, not March.  Track season has started and I'm coaching the sprinters and hurdlers once again.  We have our second scrimmage today and are continuing to take advantage of the warm weather.  It sure beats doing stair workouts in the stairwells of the high school because of 30 degree temperatures and snow on the ground.  I mowed the lawn for the first time this weekend and Laura went to the mall to get Luke some shorts and short-sleeved shirts.  As my dad would say, "This is Hilton Head weather."  In case you're not familiar with the Erdeljacs, Hilton Head is the destination of our annual summer family vacation.  Yes, we're kind of like the Griswald's.  Every year we pack-up our cars and caravan to H.H.I. for a week.

Like all Pittsburgh Triathletes, I abondoned my bike trainer this weekend and took to the roads on Sunday.  More about that in a minute.  After a Saturday morning track practice and lunch with Luke, I got outside for an afternoon run of just over an hour and a half.  No hat or gloves needed.  It was actually hot!  Porter accompanied me for the first 30 minutes, but was happy to take a spot on the kitchen floor, while I finished.  It was good to train in some heat, but there's no doubt things felt a little more sore than usual.  My body definitely needs to get used to the higher temperatures. 

Despite sore legs, I took to the roads Sunday morning.  After putting new tires on my Cervelo P3 and running through the checklist of essentials in my head, I was ready for my first ride outside since last fall.  Traffic was light, and it felt good to use all my gears as I tackled the Pittsburgh terrain of hills and flats.  I went on my normal 3 hour venture down to Oakmont and back via North Park.  By the time I returned to North Park I had time for one lap around the lake (5 miles) before the 15 minute ride home.  North Park was hoppin' with cyclists, joggers, and walkers.  Everybody shaking off the cabin fever.  I exchanged shout outs with Matt Crummy as I passed him.  He was in the middle of a training run, and it reminded me of the triathlete community that is looking forward to the challenges and successes the upcoming season will bring.

Let the Racing Begin

The racing season has begun!  Well, not triathlon yet.  The 37th Annual Spring Thaw run at North Park was this past Saturday.  There was a record turnout, and despite the mild winter we've been having, it snowed!!!  Several Lebo teachers laced up their running shoes.  Heather, Oscar, Veronica and I weathered the snow and wind and each turned in fantastic performances.  Heather did an easy 10 miles mentoring a few runners from her running group, while Oscar, Veronica, and I each managed 20 miles.  I was very happy with a finishing time of 2:32.  More importantly, this was a significant step in my preparation for September's FullREV ironman.  Prior to Saturday's run, I had never gone over 15 miles in one clip.  This 20 miler posed a physical and mental milestone.  I told Oscar afterward, "I could have gone another six if I had too, but I'm glad I'm not."  The other six being the six more miles to complete the marathon that concludes an ironman triathlon.  Of course, I'm disregarding the 112 mile bike ride that precedes the run.  Oh, and the 2.4 mile swim that precedes the bike.  Oh well, we'll save those struggles for another day.

Oscar and I in the cabin after our 20 mile run.

Saturday night had more triathlon in store as I participated in my first BallouSkies photo shoot.  It was a lot of fun to be together as a team for the first time in 2012.  I must thank Ryan Ballou and his father, Ty, once again for inviting me to be a part of the team.  It is a pleasure and an honor to be part of such an important cause as raising awareness and money for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) research.  Ty's enthusiasm is contagious, and I will wear the BallouSkies uniform with a lot of pride this season.  As for my teammates, they provide plenty of motivation to live up to their tremendous accomplishments.  What a great group.

The 2012 Ballou Skies Tri Team (minus Kim) 

Ballou Skies HOPE.  I'm the post in the "P."

"Back at It"

My contract with Ballou Skies has been signed, sealed, and delivered.  It's amazing how just being part of a team that works toward a good cause provides extra motivation.  There is a bigger purpose and that's exactly what I was hoping for.  I got some extra motivation this morning as I returned to swimming with my co-workers at school.  There is a group of teachers at Mount Lebanon that swim in the mornings twice a week.  I haven't been able to join them because I've been on morning Luke duty, but Laura and I worked out a new schedule that will allow me to swim in the mornings twice a week again.  My friend and fellow triathlete, Jon Ptachcinski, coaches for the Lebo swim team and was a competitive swimmer himself.  He provides the extra motivation for me each time I see him swim by me like I'm treading water.  It's good to be pushed again.

I have set my race schedule for this season with still the possibility of signing-up for two more races.

• The Columbia Triathlon, Columbia MD - May 20th
• Ironman 70.3 Eagleman, Cambridge, MD - June 10th
• Giant Eagle Triathlon, Columbus, OH - July 29th
• Rev 3 Full Rev Cedar Point, Sandusky, OH - September 9th
• Ironman 70.3 Steelhead, Benton Harbor, MI - August 19th (TBD)
• Ironman 70.3 Pocono Mountains, Stroudsburg, PA - September 30th (TBD)

The climax of my season will be my first full ironman distance triathlon at the Rev 3 Full Rev Cedar Point on September 9th.  There is a lot of work to do between now and then.  I'm very excited and feeling good about the training and racing ahead of me.

2012!!!

Happy New Year to everyone!  I know we're more than halfway through January, but since this is my first post of 2012, I'll extend my good wishes for a safe, happy, and successful 2012.

My 2012 has gotten off to a precarious start.  My general training plan was to start "training" for the upcoming season after the New Year's Holiday.  However, the winter cold season has targeted the Erdeljac household.  Actually, we've probably been targeted ever since Luke started daycare back in the fall.  Many people have told us that daycare can be the root of all sickness.  Oh well, still love the little guy to death.  He's now almost 9 months old and army crawling all over the house.


Luke and his first pair of Nikes.

My cold season has consisted of pink-eye, which I haven't had since I was a kid, a sinus infection, which I've never had, and an ear infection, which I've never had.  Oh, not to mention the ever present sinus and chest congestion.  Usually I'm the kind of person that trains right through sickness, but since my parental responsibilities have limited the number of hours of sleep I get each night, I've had to focus on getting healthy before asking my body to withstand the rigors of training.

In my last post prior to the Holidays, I wrote about three possible opportunities I was looking into for the upcoming season.  Unfortunately, I was not chosen to receive the free year of coaching that Jen Harrison offers as part of her "Pay It Forward" initiative.  I am still waiting to hear from PowerBar about their sponsorship.  Finally, I am very happy to report that I have been selected to be part of the 2012 Ballou Skies Triathlon Team.

Ballou Skies Logo

2011 Ballou Skies Kona Qualifiers

 The Ballou Skies Triathlon Team was started by Ty Ballou and his son Ryan to help raise money and awareness for Muscular Dystrophy.  Ryan has lived his life with Duchenne Muscular Dystophy (DMD), a degenerative muscle disorder that affects all muscles within the body.  With the treatment from the heart clinic at Ohio State University, Ryan continues to beat the odds currently in his twenties and living and working independently.  Ryan and the entire Ballou Skies Team have a tremendous story that you can check-out at http://ballouskies.com/ and look for me in Ballou Skies Blue this year at my races.