ENJOY THIS CHRISTMAS AND HOLIDAY SEASON

From Kasia and Tomasz

SO FAR, SO GOOD. THE GRAND RAPIDS TRI 70.3

In front of the Amway Headquarters in Grand Rapids where the athlete registration and the Expo were held.

The 2014 tri racing season is in a full swing. Just returned from the Grand Rapids Triathlon, where I was fortunate to qualify for the June 2015 Long Distance World Championship in Matola, Sweden. It was a challenging day which started at 7:10 in the Thornapple River with a wetsuit-legal swim. Wearing the most comfortable BlueSeventy wetsuit, I swam the 1.2 miles in 36 min. Getting out of the water in 18th place and spending longer in the transition than planned I knew I had some work to do and time to make up.

Out of the water and on my way to T1. The rain continued falling for a little while longer.

The swim-to-run transition took almost twice as long as it should have but once on the bike there was no looking back. The 56 mile course was picturesque and, for the most part, flat. The bike "engine" was working well and help deliver negative bike splits for each of the two 28-mile segments, 1:15 and 1:13, respectively.

Onto the run after a 2 hr 28 min bike split with a chance to break 5 hours.

Things got a bit hairy in the middle of the course after loosing a few additional minutes due to a forced stop. My nutrition plan did work out to well on that day. In the end, however, I crossed the finish line in 4 hrs 58 min and secured a qualifying slot for a trip to Sweden.

TRIBIKE TRANSPORT IS HEADING TO NICE

Seven years ago I traveled to Nice, France to race in my first European Ironman. It was an awesome race which has gotten even better over the years. Back then, I had to endure the hassle of hauling my bike across the "Big Pond" and hoping it will arrive there in one piece and on time. I would not have to worry about it this year because TriBike Transport is heading that way. If you are racing Ironman France this month or know someone who does, I highly recommend this awesome service. How do I know that? I am a raving client and an Elite Team member.

I fondly remember the warm, turquoise-color water and the pebble beech of the Mediterranean Sea. 

REV3 KNOXVILLE AGE GROUP CHAMPIONSHIP

It turned out to be a beautiful day for the Rev3 Championship race last Sunday. I enjoyed being back in Knoxville and ready to have a much better race than a year ago. About 200 age-group triathletes have qualified for this championship event and started the deep-water swim in a 68F Tennessee River. The total distance of 50 miles comprised of a 1.2 mile swim, 40 mile bike ride, and 9.8 mile run. Rev3 Knoxville was also the final championship race that included professional triathletes.

On my way to the dock for the 1.2 mile swim. I am wearing my new Blue70 wetsuit which provided a lot of comfort during the 35 min swim. Lots of open-water and plenty of feet to catch.

A 150 m run to transition. Did not particularly like to see a yellow cap around me, which meant she swam faster than I did. The swim-to-bike transition took longer than I have planned due to cramping.

Six minutes later I was turning the big ring out of transition and on my way to a 40 mile bike ride through the picturesque Tennessee countryside. The city streets and country roads were virtually empty of vehicular traffic and the Police and volunteers were present at all intersections. The course offered plenty of challenging climbs and fast, technical descents. At mile 30 the Championship race merged with the Olympic-distance course for the final stretch to the transition. Unfortunately, this is when I made a tactical mistake and turned around thinking I took the wrong turn. That was a costly error which added about 7 min to my bike split bringing my total bike time to 2 hrs 6 min.

Transition to the run went much faster and my legs felt very light despite having endured plenty of climbing on the bike. Frequent brick training sessions have prepared me well for the rolling hills of the run course and allowed me to set into a comfortable pace. After a picturesque run through parks and residential neighborhoods I crossed the finish line in 4 hrs 8 min, that is, until I learned about having incurred a 4 min penalty for an "abandoned equipment." So, my official time was 4 hrs 12 min, still good enough for the 5th place in my AG.

In the finish chute

A solid day in Knoxville representing the TriBike Transport Team. Next stop, Grand Rapids, MI on June 8th for the long-distance national championship and a world championship qualifying race.

EARNING THE "ALL AMERICAN" DISTINCTION AGAIN

I was not sure what to expect of the 2013 racing season after the 2012 Kona accident, surgery, and rehab. Earning the "All American" distinction for the second year in the row would suggest, I had a strong year. With that in mind, I am looking forward to my first race of the season this Sunday (Rev3 Knoxville Championship), as a TriBike Transport Elite Team Member.

TriBike Transport is the Passport to race at home and abroad.

MY FIRST INDOOR TRIATHLON AT OSU

I was not quite sure what to expect from this race. Never before have I raced indoors and never before was I the oldest competitor in it. Yes, all other athletes were The Ohio State University's student athletes. So, how did I do in the 15 min track run, 15 min bike, and 10 min swim competition? Well, in this all out go-go-go race I covered 8.51 miles and tied for 11th in the overall male classification. The final tally 2.12/6.07/0.33 miles, respectively.

RACING WITH THE TRIBIKE TRANSPORT TEAM

I am very excited to have been selected to join the Elite TriBike Transport Team this year. TBT is a fabulous and a triathlete-centered bike transport company known to every triathlete in North America. I am honored to join such a  talented group of people and look forward to meeting them all during the 2014 racing season

www.tribiketransport.com

THE 2013 IRONMAN WORLD RANKINGS ARE OUT

It was so nice receiving this email from IRONMAN, yesterday. Ranked 98/7082 (1.3%) in combined AGR Ironman & Ironman 70.3. Also ranked #1 among Polish triathletes in AG50-54. A great motivator for training and racing hard in 2014. 

Congratulations to all my triathlete friends and colleagues on their achievements!!!! 

Congratulations Tomasz on becoming a Silver IRONMAN All World Athlete

Your race performance in 2013 earned you a place in the Top 5% in the world in your Age Group for Ironman Overall, Ironman, or Ironman 70.3

Again from all of us at IRONMAN, congratulations on your stellar performance in 2013. We look forward to seeing you at the races this year!