Well, the American Cycling road racing season got underway with Dalford England travelling down to Gainesville, Florida and competing in a series of three (2  Collegiate “A” races and a Pro1/2 ) race. Despite not doing any specific bike training, he had a great weekend of good results which left him questioning whether to get in to cycling on a more full time basis or continue in his quest for National Triathlon stardom.

He has some big goals in Triathlon this year, so he is going to stay concentrating on that. However, the bike racing only adds to his strengths. It works on his reflexes when he is in the pack, strategy when making race moves and works on his overall ability to suffer. Cause when you are up the road in a small break and the group is bearing down hard, staying off the front can be very painful. He also has gained respect in the bike racing community who sometimes have a negative thing or two to say about triathletes.

It was the day of the Big blokes on for this inaugural race in country Australia. Elite Energy put another race in their Long Distance qualifying series. The Wagga “Ultimate” promised to be a tough day as for the two days prior, the rain was coming down in buckets and the temperature dropped to the low teens (Celsius) just as athletes were starting to acclimate to the heat, Mother Nature pulls another one of her change ups. (Typical Female).

However, as race day dawned the sun was shining but with a howling wind to let us know who really is in charge. As I made my way down to what was my first race (long course) in two years, I eyed the beautiful chocolately milky lake that had a serious chop to it. I saw some old mates and was also there with some other athletes that I work with. The Cannibal (Clint A.) brought  his usual can of whoop a$$, new sign on Nathan Dunkley was eager to chase down T. Berkel and none other than “terminator” Nathan Wood was there I think just to tease and taunt me to add to my upcoming pain.

After waiting over an hour for the gun due to a course muck up to get straight, we got started. My lack of swim training and fitness showed straight away as the front pack dropped me. The good point was I kept good sighting and stayed hydrated by swallowing the bits and pieces of beautiful Lake Albert. At least when I got out of the water, there were still a few bikes on the racks.

On to the bike and it seemed like a tug of war was happening just trying to stay upright on the bike. This was to be a day where being a Semi-Clydesdale would prove beneficial due to the wind not blowing them around like it was everybody else. As I made my way through the field, my good mate Troy Pietsch was kindly working the water feed zone and started to give me time checks on where Woodsy was up the road. I told myself I was not going to get drawn into that battle, but on each go round, the time started to drop, (6 min./4 min/2 min.)my God I thought, did he have that big of a gap on the swim? so I thought maybe I can have a go at the big Diesel. I caught him just before transition and we headed out on the run together. This was an unexpected surprise and I felt good so far. As I was running out, coming in on the return was Nat “Ned Kelly” Dunkley (another biggie) who seemed to be in the top ten and looking smooth as butter. Nat would eventually finish 5^TH OVERALL and win his age group!!

That is until about 10k to go in the run. It seems (although I am not sure) that my stomach started getting some bad cramps and felt really bloated. I was not sure, but think because I am lactose intolerant and drinking the chocolate milk lake water eventually did me in. It was this point that I found out Woodsy was gaining on me and said a hearty “G’day” as he floated by. After what seemed like an eternity of walking and running, I caught whiff (or rather he smelled blood) of Clint “Cannibal” Arizmendi. He was coming on strong for the kill. Fortunately for me, the finish was just ahead and I struggled in just ahead of him.

Wow, despite getting a bit sick, what a great day and better yet a great feeling to be out there again celebrating a day of good health. We take times, wattages, etc. for granted but at the end of the day, we are very fortunate to be out there having a go of it. Till next blog….

As warmer weather approaches, the internal mechanisms in our bodies start to crave lighter, less dense foods than what we were eating in the winter. This can be good or bad depending on your diet during the winter. It is sometimes harder mentally to just eat a “salad” when it is cold outside when we crave a big piece of meat with some potatoes and cheese. Warmer climates naturally bring our bodies to a better nutritional place with the sunshine and heat that accompanies it. There are plenty of nutrient dense foods that are light on the palate. And the best part is these are what we should be eating year round anyways.

If you have not yet, go ahead and start planting some veggies in your garden. If you don’t have one, make one. It doesn’t have to be big or fancy. You can even have some plants in your house by an open window that gets good sunlight. The bottom line is that you are eating good, whole foods that you added a “personal” touch to. Some easy going veggie/herbs to grow are tomatoes, peppers, basil, oregano, eggplant, etc.  Add some chicken, fish, or roo (Buffalo in America) and you are primed to go hard!! Don’t forget the krill oil!

In terms of hydration, drink lots of water (filtered if possible). I know this is old news, but when you start to get busy at work or are out there flogging away on a training session, it's all too easy to skip drinking. Before you know it, performance starts to decline and that's all she wrote. Get in to the habit of regular fluid intake and you'll recover and feel better at the end of the day.

As the American season winds down, all the good (or bad) food starts to tempt. Again, self control and reasonable thinking will guide you. It's ok to delve off a good diet and eat some tasty treats (on occasion), just use common sense and self control by limiting the input. Putting on extra weight requires extra work to take it off, so instead of that extra helping of cheesy, buttery, creamy whatever, use the discipline you have learned and just say no thanks.

Thanks,

Jake

Cool temps, sunshine and Byron Bay, Wow, what a day this turned out to be! About 4 weeks ago, I was talking to a mate of mine when the subject of this run came up. Mike is a martial artist who also occasionally will do the odd run. We decided to enter the run as the course looked not only beautiful, but challenging (and challenging it was). At the last minute, the race organizer had to do a small course change which gave new meaning to “sand running”. To summarise: we had to run about 1k before going down to the beach. We went through a tough stretch of loose sand then along the beach to bypass the road that was undergoing construction. (the road we to originally to run on), then up a small climb, (again hitting the sand) out to the tarmac and started the climb to the lighthouse. Between breaths as my heart was bursting, I glanced over to the side and saw the wonderful South Pacific and said to myself: “It does not get any better than this” Once there, we circled the lighthouse and started a very hard decent. Back again on the same stretch of beach we were just on, then across the street to another beach (Tallows) and guess what? More soft sand (again!) down to the shore, along for 1k to a turnaround back through and going up a small grade till the home stretch. I came in top 25 or so, got a small drink and went back to run Mike in. It did not take long for me to see him and was very happy to see him finish his first 10Krun. Not the best course for a first time run, but now when he gets smooth flat courses, it will seem like a cakewalk. As for me, I just finished 14 seconds off podium, but I used it as a training day to warm up for a hard bike ride after the run. What a great, glorious day!!!

Clint “the cannibal” Arizmendi came out firing on 7 of 8 cylinders to start the Aussie tri season for System Jake. An overcast, hilly and very windy day greeted triathletes to shake off the cobwebs for the Maitland tri (2k Swim 60k Bike and 15K run) as well as a 5 and 10k run and smaller tri. As Clint is in the middle of training for long course worlds, this would be a good gauge to see where he was at and a good chance to flex it for the Women. It was also a good chance to swim on the treadmill as the start was going into a tough river current. Despite just coming off a tough training cycle, he was able to snag a 6^th place age group in the largest AG for the day. Vegas is next for Cliff and he is set to have a great day there.

Incidentally, local Pro Tim Reed is back from his U.S. season and along w/ local Pro (Lennox Head) Joe Lampe, went 1-2 in the open division and was two of only three people to break 3 hrs. for the day.

http://www.maitlandtriathlon.net/

For her Husband Jerry, he has been a Vince Dooley groupie since his days on the field. Jerry found out he would be presenting awards that day, so the only way to meet him and shake his hand would be to get on the podium and get on the podium he did! He just missed out on 2nd, but copped a very strong 3rd place age group to add to the bling he has won this year. Oh yea, he got to shake hands w/Vince. Champions think alike.

July 31,  2011 : The dawn came early this hot day as Laura and Jerry Ackerman travelled to Blacksburg, South Carolina for the “Assault on Cherokee” Olympic Triathlon.  Jerry paced a good 3 disciplines to garner a 5^th overall and a 1^st place in his age group!! He rode a really strong bike and followed it up with a lightning fast hilly and hot run to smash the field to bits.

Laura Ackerman’s season has been slowly gaining momentum and as this was her 2^nd Olympic distance race ever, she had her eyes on the podium. However, a small mistake in course marking and recognition threw her off track for the run. She finished the race in a solid position also winning her age group. However as She reviewed her times for the day, she knew something was amiss. She then realized she took a wrong turn on the run and cut out part of the course. Before the awards ceremony, Laura graciously told the referee what had happened and relinquished her prize that day. Based on her times and fitness for the day however, I still think she would have scored a first or second place. Next time Laura.

July 2, 2011: Nathan “Woodsy” Wood and his lovely Wife Michelle made it up to the Gold Coast from Leeton for the World Class Gold Coast marathon. Woodsy’s training was going good for some time, yet a couple months before he was to make his marathon debut, injury beset him. As he was getting very frustrated by not training, I knew his mentality would take him through the day, however, I was a bit worried with his big chassis, he may reinjure himself. So with some top notch physio work and a couple of last minute 30K runs, it was do or die. The Sun rose on a beautiful day on the Gold Coast and over 5000 runners took off for the full Mary. Michelle quickly got a gap on her husband, but he was to have none of that and caught her and slowly drew away. His goal time of 3:30 was achieved with a 3:28 (on limited training at that!) as Michelle busted the 3:45 mark with a fine run for the day.

A great start for the season as Woodsy has a few big races planned this season and good on him and his Wife.

Well, the Mother of South-eastern ½ Ironman's did not disappoint. Macon, Georgia is host to the Rock and Roll man ½ Iron distance triathlon.This race is billed as one of the hardest 1/2 Irons in the country. Every year it seems to get hotter and more humid. This year was no different as the organizer decided to change race date to June 06!! I’ll tell you from personal experience that this is a very hard race that has a bit of everything for the punishment gluttons; hills, heat, more hills, more heat and to top it off, an unshaded run. There are athletes that return to this race every year and there are those that say ”never again”

Dalford England is one of those that returns year after year. This year he has been having some really good races and despite the conditions, he busted out a PR by over 30 minutes! We have been working on his execution (pacing) in regards to Long course racing and I think a combo of attention to that and his durability that he has gained over the last couple of seasons has really propelled him to the forefront.  He had a smooth swim to set up his day, a well paced and tough bike, and when the run came round, it was over 95F!!! (35C)Before the race we went over a run/walk protocol and stuffing ice down the jersey/shorts and under the hat to keep the core cooled off. This seemed to have worked out well for him and he wound up getting a 3^rd place overall and 1^st age group. Wow is all I can say. Good on ya Dalfreddo!!

I just had to share what I am up to recently.

So on to athlete updates.

The American Triathlon season is in full swing and the System Jake American contingent is full on at the moment.

Jerry Ackerman made it down to Jekyll Island, Ga. for the Turtle crawl Olympic distance Triathlon. However, two days before the race, he came down with a wicked sinus infection. Being the trooper and hard charger that he is, he toed the line anyway and had a great day coming in a quick 6th place for his age group and snuck into the top 25 overall.

His lovely Wife Laura is famous for starting the season a bit behind; however, she will train herself in to fine form for the last 2/3 of the season after she has lured her competition in to a false sense of security. She turned up to the Iron Girl sprint in Atlanta, Georgia shaking the cobwebs out w/ a good 28th out of 135 in her Age group to get the ball rolling.