Taking a Bath at Dallas ITU

The Pan-American Cup in Dallas takes place this weekend and it looks to be my lone ITU race of the season. I love ITU-style racing-- the competitiveness, the strategy, the international camaraderie. This year however, I've chosen to focus on the 5i50 Race Series and really prepare for next year's ITU season. Again, I love ITU-style racing and couldn't give it ALL up! Besides, a new event in Dallas will be fun and hopefully it sticks, for the sake of the American ITU circuit-- few and far between!

Strong field in Dallas: comprised mostly of Americans, Canadians and Mexicans. It will be a true clash of the Pan-America’s! Straight forward course-- 2-lap swim, 8-lap bike, and 4-lap run. The only variables I see are the expected 95 degrees on Saturday and to add insult to injury, a 2:30pm race start! Also, the water temp is a cool 84…like swimming in a bath! Wish I could don an old skool speedo for this one, much like my pal and first running coach, Kiet Tran, did in Morgan Hill a few weeks back!

Course inspection tomorrow. A full recap will follow Saturday’s race.

Thanks for checking, let’s get into it!

Talk soon.

-HH

GoHHGo

14th at Stacked 5i50 Columbia Tri

My 2012 season continued earlier today (very early today) at the 29th Columbia Triathlon. This race is particularly special, 1 because this triathlon gives 100% of its proceeds to charity, 2 because it’s regarded as one of the toughest triathlons in the United States, and 3 because it’s the next stop in the 5i50 series with critical points on the line!

The latter was cause for another stacked field and thus an up-hill battle (literally and figuratively) to grab those valuable points. Side note—points are valuable and needed to qualify for the HyVee Finale in September that boasts a $1,000,000+ prize purse!

The conditions were ideal, and the day started off with a non-wetsuit swim. Too bad, because I was really looking forward to rocking my new Xterra Vendetta wetsuit! No worries – I got to wear Xterra’s Velocity-M Speedsuit instead and it worked great! I found the feet of friend and training partner, Chris Foster and was able to exit the water in a solid position.

It took a bit for me to get my riding legs under me and frankly, it kind of felt like that for the remainder of the 40k+ bike course. There were so many Ups and Downs on that course I was never really able to get into a good rhythm. What I do know though, was that my new Kask K.31 Crono TT helmet really allowed me to take advantage of the fast descents.

The run was much of the same as the bike—lots of hills without finding that rhythm. Nonetheless, I was able to overtake a handful of guys and cross the tape, 14th in 2:03:51. Despite no rhythm, my Skechers Go Run felt fantastic and I’m really looking forward to seeing what these babies can do as I begin to find my running legs this season! All things considered, I’m glad I secured some valuable 5i50 points and it’s another step forward as I iron out the kinks and continue on my 2012 journey!

Up next will probably be my one and only ITU race of the season in Dallas on June 2nd, closely followed by my favorite-- Escape From Alcatraz!! As usual… Let’s Get Into It!

A big shout out to the rest of my sponsors who never let me down, EVER!! Zico Coconut Water, Champion Systems, Evolution Physical Therapy, and Gu Energy Labs!

Thanks for checking in. Talk soon!

-HH

5i50 Round 2 and Something New!

Getting ready for another 5i50-- Columbia (Maryland) to be exact! Another VERY stacked field and another early season race to iron out the kinks.

Speaking of kinks (not really), I’ve had some very recent changes to my coaching! I’m super excited to announce that I’ve decided to join the Sirius Athletes squad under the guidance of none other than Siri Lindley!! I felt I was at a turning point in my career, particularly before I start business school in the fall, and if I wanted to take my career to the next level then I felt Siri & Co. would be who to do it! It’s only been 1 week and there is definitely a transitional period from what I was doing to what I am and will be doing, but I already feel right at home.

I love the hands-on coaching I get from Siri, not to mention enough 7am-energy to power a city block! I’ve also realized in this short week that my training intensity has paled in comparison in the past. I think that’s both good and bad. Bad, because this transitional period is going to be a lot tougher than previously thought! Good, because it will really bring out the best in me. Being able to chase athletes around like Chris Foster and Leanda Cave, to name a few, is exactly what I need in order to bend my boundaries.

The camaraderie and dedication within her group is immense and I’m really excited to see where this takes me!!

I’m boarding now, so I’ll check back in with all of you in Maryland! Let’s get into it!

Talk soon.

-HH