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'Double Dip' to start off Triathlon Season!

4/29/2019

By Candice Taylor

April is my favorite month because the weather is nice and Triathlon season is finally here! I took on two events offered locally this past weekend, the Deluna's Beach Games Open water swim race and Pensacola triathlon. I was fortunate to have beautiful weather, good conditions, and great fun at both races.

DELUNA'S BEACH GAMES
Open water swim races are hard to find and I take advantage of it whenever I can. (Yes, I am one of those crazy triathletes who LOVES to swim). This was my 2nd year participating in the deLuna Beach Games Open water race. The event took place early Saturday morning behind Flounders in Pensacola Beach in the Bay. They offer a sprint distance (.6 miles), short swim (1.2 miles), and long swim (2.4 miles). I chose to race the long distance and my division started first. I zipped up my wetsuit, waded out in the water to the start, the cannon sounds and we are off. Slight headwind heading out, the water temp was just right and the warm sun felt great. The course was out and back and the third “pink Flamingo bouy” was our turn around point. With a Slight tailwind, I draft off a few other swimmers on the stretch back between. As we swim around the dock the water is shallow so we wade in the water to the finish. The event ends with a nice little after party at Flounders with food and beer. I highly recommend adding this event to your race calendar. The water is clean, with plenty of buoys and water support throughout the course.

PENSACOLA TRIATHLON
Sunday morning I woke up ready to roll! It’s the first triathlon of the season and I am stoked!

I arrive at the Pensacola Triathlon at the Martitime Park in downtown Pensacola around 5:15am. I pop in my headphones and listen to my raceday playlist as I walk to transition.

After battling windy conditions the past few weeks in training, I was happy to see the water is like glass and the temperatures were perfect with a very light wind. This year swim course was a quarter of a mile from transition so it was recommended to bring running shoes to run over the gravel to T1. It was organized with a spot to place your shoes for your race number. I warm up a few minutes in the water and line up for the start. It was a Time trial start so I line up towards the front (crazy swim chick) with teammates Jayme and Christine behind me. The swim was almost like swimming in a lake, smooth with little current, and great temps. As I exit the swim Jayme is right with me. We both find our shoes and step in the kiddie pools to wash off the feet. I decided to run with my wetsuit pulled to my waist to T1 and that was a little challenging.

The bike course has a little bit of everything with a few small hills, turns, curves, and some flat areas. My favorite part is riding by the water on Scenic Hwy. As I bike towards the turnaround I spot Jayme on the other side looking fearless and peddling strong. I felt good about my bike and was ready for the run. The run course is two loops in the downtown area, I ran out fast and tried to maintain the pace as long as I could.

The race ended with a nice after party on the water, and racers received a cool finishers medal and comfy race t-shirt. An awesome to kick off the Tri season. Thank you to all of our sponsors for their support and giving us the opportunity to race the multipart.

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A Family Affair - Mobile Infirmary Health Duathlon

4/7/2019

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By Jayme Bograd

On Saturday, April 6th I conquered my first team race with the Sister Chain Tri team. The two days prior to the race it had been raining buckets with severe thunderstorms, so I was afraid that the roads might be slick and wet for the bike. I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up on race day and it was a little foggy but no rain. We drove from Perdido Key to Mobile in about an hour and arrived at ProHealth Infirmary Health Center for check in. The race site was set up extremely well for a non-USAT course. The volunteers were fantastic, the bathrooms were clean and the course was marked well. My favorite parts of event were the spirit squads cheering in awesome costumes and Azalea Trail Maids. The Trail Maids are a prestigious group of high school seniors in Mobile that dress in beautiful trail maid dresses and welcome you to the south, you can find out more about them here.

Leading up to the race I was pretty nervous because, I had just come off my first team camp last week and knew that there would be strong competition on the run. Full disclosure is that this is the discipline that I am the weakest at. I have been really putting in efforts in running for the past 3 months, doing at least 2 interval runs a week,. I do one short interval run and one longer run and credit the Phat GirlZ and my friend Michelle for putting in the work with me. I knew I had to focus on myself and be happy with whatever the outcome was as long as I gave it my all.

The duathlon consisted of a 2 mile run, 10 mile bike, 2 mile run. I started with the race with my husband and twin 11 year old kids. I knew my son would take off right away because he is an excellent runner but I couldn’t get caught up in that. I ran my first mile in 7:15 and saw about 5 girls ahead of me, I knew I couldn’t run much faster or it would screw up the rest of my race so I had to continue to remind myself that this was a race against myself. The second mile I got my heart rate under control and ran into transition.

By this point, there were only 4 ladies ahead of me that I knew of. I can’t get enough of the bike; I love Sirena, my Liv Advanced Pro. I knew if I wanted to make up anytime I would have to have a smooth bike so I took a few sips of my drink (Gatorade/water mix) and got in the groove. I was passing people left and right, and yes, I know I shouldn’t pass on that side, but people weren’t moving over. I managed to keep my speed around 23 mph for the 10 miles and passed all but one person, who happened to be my awesome teammate, Amy Stanfield.

It was back to transition to run the last two miles. I headed out on the second run, getting cheered by the Disco Spirit Sisters, and just put my head up and ran as fast as my legs could take me. At about 1 mile in I got passed by a woman like I was standing still, I looked at my watch and was averaging a 7:19 pace so there was nothing left in the tank to push any harder. I came in keeping a pace average of 7:23, which is really great for me, and I managed to take 3rd Overall Female at 55:32 well better than my goal of 59 minutes. I even earned a sweet check of $100 to pay for another future race.

I can’t do these races without the support of my family, all of which also put in some awesome efforts at the race. My husband, Ben, placed 2nd in his age group at 53:20, my 11 year old twins both placed 1st, well they were the only kids under 21! Asher, finished in 1:00:19 and Marin in 1:10.

My teammates did incredible as well. Mindi Straw took 2nd in her age group, Ashley Ladner and Palmer Waechter took 1st in their age group and of course Amy Stanfield crushed it and was the overall female clocking a time of 53:02. Thank you Chain Tri Sisters for allowing me to be a part of this community and can’t wait until we race again!

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Ready for 2019!!! CHAIN TRI TEAM CAMP

4/2/2019

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If you don’t read any farther, just know that the CHAIN TRI Team pre-season training camp was so much fun! There was no better way to start 2019 triathlon season with a weekend filled with endurance training, beautiful scenery, almost perfect weather, lots of good grub and team camaraderie. This year the SISTER CHAIN TRI team was invited to join the men for the weekend. Coach Allen Stanfield did a fabulous job with every detail of the weekend.

The setting for camp was Flint Creek Water Park in Wiggins, MS. If you haven’t been to this neck of the woods it is worth a visit. Beautiful rural community lined with rolling hills, pastures, and tree canopy lined roads. Our accommodations were the rustic cabins that was waterfront to Flint Creek– for some team members this was about as close to camping as they wanted to get – a few cockroaches, plastic lined twin beds and single shower for 4 to share. Definitely a team building adventure.

The training was 3 days – Friday, Saturday and Sunday – composed of all 3 elements of triathlon. LOTS of long distance training. Cycling 50-65 miles daily, run 5-10 miles daily and only a splash of swimming.

The cycling was filled with lots of speed and the challenging Mississippi hills. The Strava geeks were killing the segments and taking over KOM’s. A favorite segment – the Snow Booger Dash – which is a cute ice cream joint. Soon this iconic ice cream hut in the middle of rural Mississippi became the rendezvous spot for the group rides. But with a name like Snow Boogers no one could miss the opportunity to try out some of their mouth watering treats – more details later.

The run’s were challenging – HILLS galore. For us that don’t like running hills it was time to mentally embrace them and know “hills will only make you stronger.” The long runs consisted of 6-10 miles along the Flint Creek. A combination of hills, running atop a dam, and some trails made for a serene experience. The brick runs were 2-5 miles. It was a good chance to get the legs equipped to bike to run set up. Add some hills in the mix and my exact quote “hardest 5K ever” as I finished my transition run. I usually don’t run these distances over the course of a weekend but I attribute the air recovery boots and a cold beer to feeling relatively strong for each run.

Swimming – we had 2 swims scheduled. We set up for our first swim along the Flint Creek swim area. The water was brisk – my bet low 60’s and requiring a wetsuit. First time in a wetsuit for 2019…watching 10 people struggle to get that wetsuit on was comical in itself - the “why is my wetsuit soooo tight”…. was pretty much the concensus amongst all of us. I quickly realized I would not be doing any wetsuit legal races and cut short my swim. Our second swim was scheduled for Saturday afternoon but with all the talk of Snow Boogers we decided to do a team building trip to the pink ice cream hut in no-where Mississippi. They make some of the most decadant ice cream extravaganza’s and also serve Booger (snow cones). A good time was had by all as the joint is filled with southern charm – corn hole game, dirt slide, kickball, football and swing sets. We all left fueled and happy.

This endurance style triathlon camp meant lots of food was consumed and optimal recovery. Allen Stanfield is not only a fabulous athlete and coach but he can cook up some mean meals. He came prepared to feed the masses – homemade spaghetti sauce, roasted vegetables, sous-vide chicken, poached eggs adorned with smoked salmon and avocado and the list goes on. No one left hungry. Others brought their air recovery boots to share and of course a little hammock time is great for recovery. Good times were spent just reminiscing about the day’s events and catching up after a long winter. Lots of laughter and good times for all.

As all of us get excited for the 2019 triathlon season this weekend reminded of our connection as a CHAIN TRI TEAM. We as a team are connected to each other and connected to the triathlon community. Our CHAIN is connected as we support the multisport and healthy lifestyle. Our CHAIN is strong both on the course and off. Looking forward to a great 2019 and seeing everyone on the race course.

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My dance with IRONMAN Florida

11/10/2018

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By Candice Taylor

“Can't see nothing in front of me Can't see nothing coming up behind

I make my way through this darkness, I can't feel nothing but this chain that binds me

Lost track of how far I've gone, How far I've gone, how high I've climbed”

~Bruce Springsteen

Last year I had my first full Ironman experience in Panama City. It was a perfect day, the gulf was beautiful, the weather was great, and I had a good race. I signed up this year knowing that nothing would be close to that moment, but I wanted to race another Ironman and this one is close to home. I spent the whole year gearing up for another Ironman race.

On October 10th we all watched as Hurricane Micheal hit the Gulf Coast, only 3 hours away from home. The aftermath of the storm damage to Panama City was heartbreaking. I knew that there was no way a race was going to happen so I made alternate plans and set my goal for Ironman 2019.

The following Tuesday Ironman announced they were moving the race from Panama City to Haines City, Florida. You had a choice do the race on Nov. 4th in Haines City or defer your entry to Ironman Texas. I thought about it and with encouragement of my “Gulf Shores crew” I decided to continue on to Ironman Florida. This meant that I would be going by myself and I had to find accommodations quickly. There was a FB group for Ironman Florida and a fellow racer by the name Jim posted he had an extra room in a vacation home not far from the race site so I jumped on the opportunity. Plans were made and I was set to race.

I drove down on Thursday and immediately was blown away when I arrive in Haines City. This small town was so welcoming and Ironman had done a phenomenal job pulling off the impossible, changing locations, race course, and conditions within a few weeks of a full Ironman. It was very impressive how well everything was set up and ready to go for race day. I met my weekend housemates who all had unique Ironman stories of their own. I felt comfort in being in their presence race weekend.

Race morning, I dropped off my gear bags and headed to the Haines City Aquatic center to warm up for my swim, surprisingly barely any racers were there, so no bathroom lines and I had plenty of time and space to put on my wetsuit and get in A few laps. I felt very calm which never happens to me on ANY race morning. I walk down to the swim start, seed myself in the swim corral and the canon goes off here we go! The water felt great and the swim course had lots of turns, it even had a swim timing mat in the middle of the course. The first loop I had to do lots of sighting to figure out the course the second loop it was more familiar and I knew where I was going. I hit my finish time like I expected.

I headed to T1 which was a very long path. I got in and out of the change tent fast and ran to my bike (which was a long path as well). Hopped on and I was gone, started out at the pace I wanted and my legs felt great. I came up on the first aid station, grabbed a bottle and started to feel my bike wobble, uh oh this wasn’t good. I veered towards to the opposite side of the road and crashed in the grass. I got up, asked a volunteer if I was bleeding, and had no pain (thank goodness I didn’t take out another racer). I picked up my bike, adjusted the chain and in my head I heard my teammate Katie scream “Candice close the Gap” and I took off. I never looked back, I had to make up for lost time and that was all I focused on. The 2 loop bike course took you through orange groves, farm land and some hills at the end of the loop.

It was another long trail to T2 and I went through quickly. I started my run feeling good, it was hot, but I kept chugging along. The 3 loop run course took us through a few neighborhoods, a school, and several out and back turns with some hills to make the distance for 26.2.

As I turned to head down the finishers shoot I was running besides a gentleman from Colorado. I said go ahead have your moment first and he said no lady you earned this.... I head down the shoot look up at the timing clock and about lose it, I could not believe my finishing time! Every single emotion I had hit me all at once, it was as just as special hearing “Candice, you are an Ironman” as it was the first time.

This was definitely a unique race and I am glad I experienced it. I am still on a cloud today and I can’t wait to go back next November. Please keep our neighbors to the east in your thoughts and remember they have a lot of work ahead of them, they will need our help in the months to come.

Thank you to all of our sponsors that have made 2018 a great year!

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'Double Dip' to start off Triathlon Season!

A Family Affair - Mobile Infirmary Health Duathlon

Ready for 2019!!! CHAIN TRI TEAM CAMP

My dance with IRONMAN Florida

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