Last year was incredible. I turned 40 and decided to race Ironman again after retirement as a Professional Triathlete and 6-year hiatus from the Ironman distance. The goal: Get back to Kona. I did exactly that: won my age group and signed my ticket back to the Big Island! I remember the week after Ironman Florida, driving to the pool and having that moment of realization that I had pulled off exactly what I had set out to do! It was a great feeling!
Fast forward to May of this year: I had been dealing with a bout of Plantar Fasciitis and went out for an easy 3-mile run, when I tore the plantar. I knew my Kona dream was over.
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I went to Dr. McGuiness (the best podiatrist on Long Island) and he put me in a boot, "I'd like to take you out of the boot after 4 weeks, but expect to be in it for 8 weeks".I asked him if Kona was still a possibility and he replied, "No." and then said, "could you do it? Maybe but it would be ugly." So that was it for me. I was super disappointed.Then I started getting some other opinions, "you can recover from that and still race!", so that's what I set out to do: train on the swim and bike as if I were doing Kona. I made a deal with myself: if it healed and the foot was good and healthy to run I would still do the race, undertrained in the run, but able to pull off a good race. If it were not good to run, I was out.
Well, I just made the decision that it is not well enough to run. I healed quickly (I was out of the boot in 4 weeks), I got the OK to start jogging at 6 weeks, but the truth is that the foot is not ready to run 26.2 miles down Alii Drive and the Queen K. Again, I am disappointed I've worked SO hard the past 2 years, but I know it's the right thing to do!
So, here I am, my 20th year in a ROW racing triathlon, but it hit me the other day that the streak is broken! It's actually 20 years with 19 years in a row racing triathlon! This year breaks my streak of racing a triathlon every year for 20 years straight. So, again I am disappointed, but I believe there is a saying that streaks are made to be broken, right? 😉
On another note, have I mentioned what an incredible group of athletes I have? Well they are fantastic in so many ways. I am SO fortunate to have the group that I do. They are supportive of one-another and wonderful to work with. I feel so lucky! Without further ado, here is the summer (July and August) recap for each of them:
Shelley Bache: Shelley lives in PA. She has raced Ironman and is focusing on Olympics and 70.3's this season. She completed the NYC triathlon in the exact goal time that she wanted, then she raced a PR in Rev3 Poconos and raced a sprint with her daughter Caroline the following weekend. Caroline placed 2nd in her age group in her first triathlon!
Laura Giardino: What a summer! She started with an age group win at the Roosevelt island 10K, then she completed the 400-meter west neck swim (it was a rough day and Laura has been working on her open water swim so this was a huge accomplishment!). The following weekend was an age group win at Smith Point triathlon and the weekend after that was an age group win at the Whisper 10K!
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Scott Janicola: Scott is training for Ironman Italy and is as fit as I have ever seen him! He placed 2nd in his age group at Rev 3 Williamsburg! I should also mention that Scott had a PR day with a 5:01 and a PR run! Scott is one of the most dedicated athletes I know and the PR's are proof of that. I can't wait to see what he does in Italy!
Kurt LaForest got married this summer! Here is a pic of Kurt and his lovely bride, Suzanne...oh, and he raced a 5K the morning of the wedding!
Irene Lam did an awesome job at the Rev 3 Williamsburg Aquabike and then got 3rd in her age group in the West Neck swim! Her swimming has come a long way due to her hard work!
Gordon Lewis has also had an incredible winning streak this season: 1st in his age group at the Carl Hart Duathlon with a PR, 4th overall in the Jamesport Aquabike and then an age group win and PR at Smith Point! I should also mention that Gordon is setting these PR's at the age of 63!
Shayne Lewis had a great race at the Pat Griskus Tri placing 1st in his age group. He raced Jamesport sprint the next weekend. He has been training really hard and focusing for IM Maine 70.3. I will update his fantastic results on the next blog! There he is in the pink!
Jackie Lott set a PR at the Williamsburg Olympic! Jackie is a great example of someone who would not let a diagnosis of RA get in the way of her life. Instead of feeling sorry for herself Jackie decided to fight and set major goals. She has worked so hard and I am really proud of her. Here we are after practicing entries and exits in the ocean in prep for Ironman Maine 70.3!! #SUCKITRA
Michael Mancini (A.K.A. Tool Box) has made huge gains in the sport in just one year! He raced Rev 3 Williamsburg and PR'd by over 1 hour in the 70.3 distance! Mike has worked hard and t has really paid off! Only time will tell just how fast Mike is actually capable of!
Amanda Mancuso is another athlete who has made huge gains! She started out this winter as a beginner. She wasnt biking at all, wasnt running at all and had to take breaks after each lap in the pool. Well, she made a huge transformation. She is getting stronger each day and has completed a major training block for the Ironman Lake Placid 70.3 in September, and she is going to do great! She had a rocking race in Jamesport and she will do the same in lake placid!
Barbara McCoy has had quite a season raising money in her mother's name and working towards the goal of racing a triathlon in every state She placed 2nd in her age group at the Hayden Sprint Tri in Idaho and then she crossed the state border and placed 3rd in her age group at the Spokane Washington sprint triathlon THE NEXT DAY! Her journey sounded incredible!
Erin Miller, my close friend and fellow swim teammate from college also raced Rev 3 Williamsburg. She had an awesome race and is on her way to race her first Ironman in Chattanooga in a few weeks! I'll be there to cheer her on and I can't wait!
Nadine Moores and I have been friends for 15 years, we raced Kona together twice. I was honored to coach her for her Ironman comeback this season! Nadine took 10 years off from racing Ironman to start a family. She has two beautiful daughters. Nadine is stronger than ever and PR'd by 11 minutes in Ironman Lake Placid! She posted a 10:55 and placed 6th in her Age Group!
Jeffrey Reynolds has had a PR season! A PR in Eagleman 70.3, then a PR at Town of Huntington triathlon and then another PR at Smith Point! I can't wait to see what he does at IM Atlantic City 70.3!
Darlene Scilingo is another athlete who makes huge gains almost daily! Darlene is a fantastic runner but was a newbie biker and swimmer. Darlene has been training for Ironman Lake Placid 70.3 and has made a transformation from "runner" to "runner and triathlete" She rocked every event she entered this season including the Jamesport Sprint Tri and Smith Point in preparation for her debut 70.3 race in a few weeks! I am so psyched to see what she can do! *Darlene pictured far left
Sal Scilingo (pictured far right), Darlene's husband, is also racing Ironman Lake Placid 70.3 and has also made big gains over the course of his training. Sal came back from a major injury last year with the realization that he may have to just do the swim and bike in IMLP 70.3, but I am happy to say that he has progressed tremendously and finish the entire event! He also raced Jamesport and Smith Point and is ready to rock IMLP70.3 with Darlene!
Hilary Topper has been leading the way for her tri group WeRTriathletes as well as her run group using the Galloway method. She is an inspiration to so many and it is so wonderful to see her blossom from newbie to one who leads! Hilary focused mostly on running in the beginning of the summer, completing the Ice Cream run 10K with a PR along with her Galloway group and then she did her first triathlon of the season at Smith point with a PR! Check out her race report on her AWARD-WINNING BLOG HERE. Hilary will be racing Mighty Hamptons and Miamiman Olympic triathlons this fall! Along with Hilary's race pics from Smith point I included a great shot of her, Jackie and Laura at Bryan Krut of OWS open water swim at the lighthouse.
Rafael Tovar seems to set a new threshold record with every workout he downloads into training peaks! He is another one who has really come into his own and gets stronger every day! Rafael had a strong race at the Town of Huntington triathlon and will have a strong race in his 70.3 debut up in Lake Placid in a few weeks!
We have a lot more racing to come (including ROCKING results from this past weekend) as well as an update to come on our 1st Annual Unofficial IFE World Championship triathlon that we had in August!
Happy Training and racing!
Dee