Race Report: Christiana goes 10:39 at Roth...

Christiana is one of my Ironman coaching clients who I've worked with since 2007. She had qualified and competed in Ironman Hawaii in 2006, incredibly finishing the race while running with a stress fracture. Rather than have me tell her story about her recent 10:39 PR at the Quelle Challenge Ironman in Roth Germany on July 12th, I'd like to share her race write up. If you're even thinking about doing an...

Practicing a triathlon mass swim start...

Practicing a mass swim start in the pool is a great drill to practice if you have any race day anxiety about mass swim starts. How to do it? Simple: find a few friends, clear a few lanes and go! Check out the ladies of the April 2009 She Does Tri Camp at the Warrenton Aquatics and Recreation Facility in Warrenton, VA: By practicing close up swimming in the safe environment of the pool, you will become more comfortable...

Follow up to the Quelle Challenge: Crossing the Fi...

Yep, that’s me traipsing through the finish line at the Quelle Challenge in Roth, Germany a few days before the actual race. Note the lack of cheering fans and the obvious fact that I’m wearing jeans. As planned, I completed only the swim and bike on race day then stopped in T2. My own unofficial aqua bike race with me as the only participant. I had mixed feelings about doing an event that I knew that...

Quelle Challenge #4: Racing for Other Than a Fast ...

I’ll be racing at the Quelle Challenge in Roth tomorrow morning for the fourth year in a row. When I first came to Roth in 2005, I came to experience the legendary atmosphere of what is the largest Ironman-distance field in the world with more than 2,500 individuals and 500 relays competing and more than 100,000 spectators cheering. I was not disappointed in the experience. I also came to break nine hours again...

Quelle Challenge: Das beste Rennen auf der ganzen ...

“Das beste Rennen auf der ganzen Welt.” - German translation of winner Chris McCormack’s quote, “This is the best race in the whole world.” Photo: Me with Felix (Race Director) and V at the “Nudel Party” My Overall Finish Time: 08:51:41 Photo: My cheering sign! Summary I am a happy man. I wanted a personal best time (PR) and I achieved it. My dream goal for this year was to go under 8:30. I...

Race Report: The Magic of Roth...

The Magic of Roth Photo: David with Annette and Annika Spiegl after the race Q: What is Roth? Roth, the name of a town and the surrounding county in the Bavarian region of southern Germany, is the location of the Quelle Challenge – an Iron-distance triathlon that recently attracted 2,700 individual entries and 1,700 athletes in relay teams from more than 40 countries on July 2, 2006. The Quelle Challenge, formerly...

Quelle Challenge: In Germany before the race…...

David mimicking a statue in Roth Well, it’s now only two days before my key race this year, the Quelle Challenge in Roth, Germany. Laura and I arrived on Sunday morning (June 25) a full week before the race instead of arriving two days before the race like last year. The week has been good as it has given me time to adjust to the +6 hours time zone plus just relax. Last zear was so rushed and stressful –...