2013 Race Schedule

Planning my race schedule for this calendar year was a lot more difficult than in years past.  Previously, I would pick races, train for them and just go and race.  For the past 3 years I have been planning races with my best friend Leo (more about him in later posts).  Most of the time, I would pick a bunch of races, run them by him and he would give me the ok for us to sign up.  Out of the 2 of us, Im the big planner. I do all the research for the races we do.  I'm obsessive about it.  I go over every little detail from race location, typical weather averages, course elevation profiles, drive time, hotels around the race, and sometimes even race swag.  Come on, we all love the free goods.  So often its me deciding what races I want to do and then I convince Leo to do them with me.

Where the challenge sometimes came up is from my wife.  As many of us in a couple know, sometimes your spouse doesnt really see eye to eye with your race schedule.  My wife would always ask me "why do you have to go away", "why do you have to go away with Leo", and more importantly, "where are the races that I can come to where I can enjoy the location".  I completely understand where she is coming from.  Not being a racer, she doesnt understand why I want to do sooooo many races every year.  And she never understands why I dont pick locations that she can come to and she can sit on a beach and ordering a strawberry daiquiri.  Her list of races she wants me to do include Kona, Miami, California, Costa Rica, Cozumel, and then some.  Can you see a trend?  They all include places where we can vacation there before or after the race.  As of now, I haven't indulged my wife in doing any of these races.  But, I promise, in the near future, we will.

When we found out that we were pregnant, I knew I couldnt pick so many races for 2013.  I was going to have to adjust to being a dad, my training might start to slack a little, and life was about to different.  I only had one definite race scheduled for 2013, and needed to plan for the rest of the year.  I qualified for the Boston Marathon in April, so we knew that was on the books, but here is what I'm planning to do in 2013.

Boston Marathon- April 15th, 2013- "A" race
Boston Marathon

Every runner wants one of these

  I believe Boston is bucket list races for all marathoners.  Its the holy grail of marathons and one of the hardest to get into.  I qualified in Philly 2011 with a time of 2:53:08 which allowed me to sign up on the day of qualifying time-10 minutes, which all but guaranteed my entry.  Even though I knew I was pretty much in, there is nothing like getting that postcard in the mail.  It's a feeling of "I made it!!" 

  I'm torn about how I want to run this race.  I know this is going to be my only Boston Marathon, so do I take the race as a fun run and enjoy it?  Or do I try to BQ again, because everyone knows that we all strive for PR's and BQ races.  I think the plan is to run for a BQ and then analyze and reevaluate halfway through the race and then again at mile 20, right after Heartbreak Hill.  
 
Either way, I cant wait for Boston and know that this is my A marathon for the year and Im going to enjoy it, BQ or not.

Red Bank Sprint Triathlon- May 19th, 2013, Red Bank, NJ
Red Bank Sprint
  I believe that for every A race triathlon, everyone should do at least 2 prep races for it.  Count them as a B or C race, or count them as a prep race.  Either way, they should be a lot shorter and build distances closer to your "A" race.  In this case, my "A" triathlon is in August, so I need to start building my base after Boston.  Since this race is only a month after Boston, it should serve as a nice eye opener for me on what I need to work on for August. 
  Distance- 1/3 mile swim, 15 mile bike, 5k run. 
The run part should be easy for me so I'll look to push it during the run, but I want to see where my swim, and bike is at this point.  And more importantly, work on my transitions with the Flying mount on my bike.

Let's hope I dont eat it!!

 
Another reason I chose this race is because the area was devastated by Hurricane Sandy, and I know they can use all the support they can get.  I ran the Long Branch Triathlon a few years ago and the course was great.  I can only expect the same thing from this race.

KIC Triathlon- Olympic Distance- June 29th, 2013, Stamford, CT
http://kicittriathlon.com/
 This one was fairly easy to choose.  The race itself is 20 minutes from where I grew up, pretty close to where I live now, so it wont require any overnight travel.  I can always stay at my parents house so I can keep cost down, which is really nice.  I wont feel bad leaving my wife and baby since they will be with me and can come to support me during the race.  If not, Riley can always visit Grandma and Grandpa for the day.
Distance- .9 mile swim, 24.8 mile bike, 6.2 mile run
  As you can see, my distances are starting to get longer and stretch me out. 
This race also serves a great cause.  It raises money for children struggling with abuse and neglect.  No child should ever have to go through that, so anything that I can do to support the cause, I will. 

Rev 3 Maine Half Iron Triathlon- August 25th, 2013, Old Orchard Beach, ME- "A" Triathlon
Rev3 Maine
  Here's the race I really wanted to do all year.  I wanted to build up to the Iron distance for 2014, so I figured let 2013 be the year for the Half Iron distance.  Rev3 has received a lot of great reviews over the past year due to their dedication to the sport.  While we all know the brand Ironman, other race organizations have come on the scene and done great things.  Rev3 brings it back to the basics.  They put on a great race, and allow the races and families to enjoy the events, and they actually care about the people.  This is a far cry from some race organizations that just put on a race to make money. 

How can you not want to save this medal?

  My entire family will also be able to come up and watch me race here.  My parents have long wanted to rent a summer house and bring my family away for a week.  With the summer months and vacations, this will be the year.  My sister will fly in from Toronto, and my wife and Riley will make the trip as well, and we'll come up a few days before the race and stay a few days after making it a nice relaxing vacation.  Plus, this is one race where they allow you to cross the finish line with your children.  So expect to see Riley in my arms while I come through the finishers chute.  Its something I have always wanted to do, and cant wait to make it happen
And not, to mention, this race has an awesome finishers medal and great swag.  great swag
Distance- 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run

Still looking for any Fall or Winter races- suggestions definitely welcome.  Maybe a half marathon, another Olympic triathlon? 

So there it is.  A little long winded, but I had to think about this year's races more than years past, so I wanted to go through my thought process as to why I chose these races.