Black Bear Triathlon

Last weekend's Black Bear Triathlon provided a great opportunity to get back to my roots and support the Mid-Atlantic triathlon community. While my ambitions as a triathlete necessitate a nomadic lifestyle, I still like to think of myself as a hometown-kind of guy. No amount of travel or experience can replace the feelings of being surrounded by family and friends.

I flew from San Diego to Philadelphia on Wednesday--you can't beat the cheap mid-week airfares!--and stayed in Philadelphia with some of my closest friends. With pre-race preparation including a pilgrimage to the "Rocky" statue and a homecoming tour through many of my favorite Manayunk stomping grounds, I was excited for the Sunday morning race.

The car ride to the race was interesting, to say the least. I was traveling with my brother and my dad, two bikes, three sets of wheels, clothing for three, and a trash bag full of drinks and pb&js (duh, you can't have a proper road trip with out gas for both car and passengers). We stuffed ALL of this into a Toyota Corolla.

While I cursed our situation and dreamt of a U-Haul sponsorship, my brother John was determined to make everything work. Somehow, he managed to fit the three of us, along with most of our essential gear, into the car. (Jack, Jeff, Alyssa, and Pete--whats left is still at the 305. One of these days I'll actually move all my stuff out of that place.) A U-Haul may have made for a more comfortable ride, but we did end up getting better gas mileage in the Corolla.

Race morning served a dose of typical spring weather in the mountains--high fifties with a sky that couldn't decide whether it wanted to spit rain or just be foggy. We ended up with a chilly combination of the two. After spending the preceding 5 months in Southern California, I told my brother and dad on the ride to the race, "I forgot weather even did this."

John and I went through our pre-race preparations together-- it's become a ritual for us. We've been warming up and racing together for as long as I can remember. First as age-group swimmers, then through high school in both cross country and swimming meets, in the Plex at Boston College, on the Jersey Shore for lifeguard races, and now for triathlons. Wile the actual routines for the different races were all a bit different (with the lifeguard races maybe including sips from a certain tupperware jug), the magic is in the preparation. There is something about those moments I can't quite put into words--something that says, "Hey, I'm in this with you. We're going to do this together." I'm not sure how you warm-up for being a lawyer in a courtroom, but when the time comes I'll find a way to do that with John, too.

The race setting was stunning--a cool (but not frigid) lake tucked between green mountains, a hilly bike through country roads, and a trail run. Team Philly Pro Tri director Brett Jenner, who seems to have a solutions to every problem I throw his way, lent me a jacket to keep warm in the conditions.

I raced hard from the start and opened a pretty large gap on the field through the 1500m swim. I was racing for the win, and I did not want to beat myself by doing anything stupid. I was conservative on the bike with the slick roads, and then I used my running strength to hold off the rest of the field.

It felt great to give Brett a high-five as I headed down the finish chute, pick-up 100 points for Team Philly Pro Tri in the Team Challenge, and celebrate with my family that evening back in Wildwood Crest.

Mid-Week Super Sprint

On the heels of the San Diego WTS race, local race director Lars Finanger organized a "Super Sprint" triathlon this past Wednesday, April 24.  

The race format was: (1 loop 375m swim, 5-loop 6K Bike, 2-loop 1.5K run)--all twice through.  The whole race was set up in a large parking lot directly across from Fiesta Island (an island park in San Diego where the first-ever triathlon was held).   The motivation behind organizing a super-sprint triathlon was two-fold:

(1) To give triathletes a chance to develop the technical skills which are critical in world-class triathlon events

(2) To give spectators a chance to actually watch the excitement and speed of a short-course, draft-legal triathlon 

Now for a quick side note--I'm uniquely qualified to discuss the importance of these technical skills.  When I first started in triathlons a few years ago I dismissed the technical elements of the sport--including transitions and bike skills--as unimportant.  I saw the sport as a challenge to go as hard as I could, and I was successful with this approach.  It wasn't until last year that I was racing at such a high level that these weaknesses were exposed.  I love focusing on pushing myself, but I love winning even more.  Last year my transitions and technical skills were so bad that I wasn't putting myself in a position to win my races.  

  

My race provided a good opportunity to chart my growth over the past winter.  I've been working on both my transitions and my bike handling, so I was excited to see how it translated to a technical race.  Plus, how often is it that you get to run and dive into the water for a second swim?  The format reminded me of a lifeguard race back on the Jersey Shore.  

There was also some good media coverage there.  Here are links to photo galleries and articles from both Slowtwitch and Triathlete Magazine:  

http://triathlon.competitor.com/2013/04/news/groff-royle-win-fearless-pro-super-sprint_74488

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Features/2013_Mission_Bay_Super_Sprint_3561.html

Enjoy the race as it unfolded:

Race Start- 18 men qualified for the 6:30pm final

Exit from Swim #1

Working the turn on Bike #1

Run #1 was a critical point in the race--Royle, Vidal, Ivan Vasiliev, and I opened a gap on the rest of the field 

Love this picture of the afternoon sky as I dive in for the second swim.  Just ahead of me are Aaron Royle (Australia) and Laurent Vidal (France)

Exiting up the boat ramp after the second 375m swim

Our group worked together on the second bike to go into the second bike-run transition with a large gap (25-30seconds) on the rest of the field

I took the final run out hard to try to drop Ivan Vasiliev and catch Vidal (who was just ahead).  My heart was willing, but my legs didn't quite follow.  I ended up getting out-sprinted for 3rd place.  I was disappointed to miss the podium by 2 seconds, but I was happy with my race as a whole.  I also received some nice compliments from a few people spectating.  Race announcer and former Ironman World Champion Greg Welch told me he "loved how hard I raced."  

Finally, below is a photo showing a nice compliment from Triathlete Magazine's Aaron Hersh.  He wrote a caption, "While he seemed a bit disappointed to have finished the final run last of the four leaders, Maloy raced brilliantly to make the elite selection and showed a lot of promise."

Radio Show

After the San Diego World Triathlon last weekend, Bob Babbitt and Paul Huddle from Competitor Radio wanted some high profile guests for their Sunday night radio show.

Since all of the big names were booked, they ended up with Tommy Zaferes and me.  We had a blast discussing everything from the race to our different backgrounds as competitive swimmers.

Here's a link to the show:

http://competitorradio.competitor.com/2013/04/tommy-zaferes-and-joe-maloy/

Bob Babbitt described the broadcast room as "the ultimate man cave."  I didn't disagree!  We listened to the Phillies/Braves game on the radio while watching baseball and hockey games on 6 different televisions before going on-air.

San Diego World Triathlon

Life is full of ironies.  I started my 2013 race season just over a month ago, and already I've traveled over 10,000 miles to and from competitions.  If that sounds like a lot to you, let me take this moment to remind you the moon is 238,900 miles from Earth--and you can see that on most clear nights.  Even though you can't see Miami from San Diego, it's still much closer!  Anyway, before I get too off-subject, here's the ironic part...the biggest race of my season (so far!) was only 24.8 miles from my condo in Poway, CA.

A couple of my friends asked before the race, "Joe, are you nervous?"  I responded, "Of course not!  Would you be nervous racing 60 of the world's fastest triathletes on live tv?"

My coach, Paulo Sousa, was incredibly supportive leading up to the race.  He was available whenever I needed him, but he didn't smother me.  This approach seemed to suggest, "Look--I'm here for anything you need, but out on the race course you're on your own.  That's when it's time to execute your training."

I approached the race in a step-by-step manner, focusing only on the task immediately before me.  Like one of those old school "connect-the-dots" pictures, I was confident that stringing together enough of the dots would produce a good result.  This metaphor, too, is from Paulo.  Come on, you don't think I came up with something like that on my own, do you? 

The race didn't start until 4:00pm, so I had a day where I could either worry about the challenge awaiting or enjoy a bit of down time.  I chose the latter option.  As time so often does, my day actually went by pretty quickly.  

Before I knew it, I was standing in a long line nervously waiting to select a starting position for the swim.  Positions are assigned based on an athlete's current world ranking, and I was #49 in the field.  

No matter one's ranking or nationality, once the race began everyone was equal.  This is one of the things I love about racing.  There is no prejudice, and the clock ticks the same for everyone.  I'm not sure the same can be said for other professions.  

Anyway, the race became a game of executing the tasks I've learned and practiced over the past few years.  I focused on staying within myself and racing my best possible race.  

Good results do not just "happen."  I've had a solid month with a 3rd in the Nautica South Beach Triathlon backed-up with a 20th here in the Omegawave San Diego World Triathlon.  Since the race was also designated as the USA Triathlon Elite National Championships, I was also racing the other Americans in the field.  For this "race within the race," I finished second, just 13 seconds behind 2013 National Champion Matt Charbot.  Four-time US Olympian Hunter Kemper rounded out the US podium.  

I'm pleased with result so far as it's an indicator that I'm moving in the right direction.  The feeling is made a bit sweeter knowing I share the credit and joy with so many of you reading this right now.  

Below is a photo journey through my race:

Swim start...the next 5 minutes included a kick to the face and a bit of jostling for position

Transition...the carpet was sooooo comfortable!

The bike became a big game of "follow the leader"

Sharing a moment at the front of the race with the 2012 Olympic Champ

Working towards that finish line!

Coach Paulo Sousa--the brains behind the operation!

Welcome to Miami II

As promised...here's the link to my first rap video since 2007. Next time I make one of these bets, I'm going to have to win :)

Until then...

http://youtu.be/9B0frSqaZA0

Welcome to Miami

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Miami, uh, uh
South beach, bringin' the heat, uh
Ha, ha, can y'all feel that, can y'all feel that?
Jig it out, uh

Here I am, in the race where I come to win
Miami, 14th Street, it's where the race begins
Every buoy lined up, just bobbin' in the sea
Gonna swim South, headed toward the Keys.

So we sip a little something, maybe take a salt pill
Me an' Kemper in the pack, workin' that skill
Its just pure will when we go up the hill
Spectators screaming (Joe's goinn to Brazil!)

Can y'all feel me? All ages and races, rockin' Dura Aces
Triathletes from e'ry different nation, we came to race
I'm gonna race smart, yea no mistakes,
My race a report card with nothin but A's
Miami, the city that keeps the roof blazing

Riding in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the run course I'll be gone.
Welcome to Miami
(Bienvenido a Miami)

Running in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the boardwalk I'll be gone.
I'm gonna win Miami
(¡Ganaré a Miami!)

Yo, I heard the competitors ain't nothin' to mess with
But Im not worried a bit, see this ChampSys kit? I'm legit
Ladies half dressed, fully equipped
And they be screaming out
(Joe, we wanna swap spit!)

Coach Paulo's had me workin' a lot
Always implorin' to give all that I've got
Best coach in the world, the guy can teach!
I'm talkin' bout faith, yea take the leap
Ya gotta believe! (TRI SQUAD WHAT UP?!)

Officials from USAT wearin' dungarees and polo T's
"No draft zone!" (it's a bike length x 3)
Every time I ride by they be spotting me
Ain't no stopping me, I race legally

So, set your clocks
And wear your lucky socks
Cause 6:50am, that's time to rock
Yo ain't no feeling in the world like this
No Pete Sagan, I'll settle for a podium kiss

Riding in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the run course I'll be gone.
Welcome to Miami
(Bienvenido a Miami)

Running in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the boardwalk I'll be gone.
I'm gonna win Miami
(¡Ganaré a Miami!)

Don't get me wrong, Ben Collins got it going on
Hunter Kemper is an all-time champ
And we all know that Dye and Murray stay jiggy
But on the sneak, Maloy's bringing heat for real

Y'all don't understand
I never seen so many swimmin women
Drinkin ZICO cans. Ok this is the plan
I'm settin my alarm for 4:15am
Thats my plan--Damn, that's early.

Let's go to Mariott on the boulevard
I hope gettin there with traffic isn't too hard
'Cause you gotta have sleep
If you wanna achieve in South Beach.

Water so clear, you can see to the bottom
Ten thousand dollar bikes, everybody got 'em
Ain't no surprise to see me in the zone
Miami, this chance will not be blown.

Riding in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the run course I'll be gone.
Welcome to Miami
(Bienvenido a Miami)

Running in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the boardwalk I'll be gone.
I'm gonna win Miami
(¡Ganaré a Miami!)

Riding in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the run course I'll be gone.
Welcome to Miami
(Bienvenido a Miami)

Running in the city where the race is on
Once I hit the boardwalk I'll be gone.
I'm gonna win Miami
(¡Ganaré a Miami!)

Race in the city where the heat is on.

Note to all: If I finish top-3 in tomorrow's race, I will film myself rapping this song and post it to this blog. So...you should cheer for me :)
Race start: 6:50am

Clermont ITU Continental Cup

This past weekend's Clermont Sprint (750m swim, 20K bike, 5K run) Continental Cup provided a good excuse to get back on the blog. Before we get to the racing, I'll briefly describe the weeks I spent preparing both physically and mentally for this event.

PART 1- The Preparation

My block of winter training with The Triathlon Squad has not been easy. Day in and day out, we work hard. I may be one of the only people in the country who looks forward to Monday--that's generally our recovery day. It entails a 40-50 minute morning run, a 5-6000yd swim, then another 40-50 minute run in the early evening. On Tuesday we get back to work.

What is the reason for all of this training? The answer is pretty simple, actually. I want to change, and change never comes easy. (Didn't Sir Issac Newton have a rule about that?) The world may want things to stay the way they are, but I'm not going to accept the status quo. I'm going to fight to change.

After a few consecutive 25-30 hour training weeks, I begin to feel tired. It's not an "I need a quick nap" tired, either. The feeling is more akin to having someone put an invisible weight vest on you every day. The vest doesn't weigh much, but then you put another one on each and every day--after a couple of weeks one begins to feel the weight. Simple tasks like cleaning the bathroom, emptying the dishwasher, and walking down the block to do laundry begin to seem monumental. Right about now my roommates are reading this and thinking, "Wait a minute, Joe never does that stuff." You see, roommates, I don't do those chores because I'm wearing so many invisible vests!

Another side effect of the training is I become even more forgetful than normal. I'll leave my wallet sitting on the counter at Starbucks (thanks to the honest people at the Poway Starbucks for not stealing anything), I'll lock my keys in my car (I keep a spare key in a VERY secret location), I'll forget my paddles on the deck of the swimming pool (thanks to Anna Battiata for returning them), I'll forget to put pants on in the morning (kidding, I usually remember this). Anyway, you get the idea.

Then, finally a race comes along and I have the opportunity to remind myself why I do this. Coach Paulo gives me a few days of rest. There's nothing like getting a taper week after a long block of training--I'll equate this feeling to the scene in Wizard of Oz when Dorothy lands after the tornado. The munchkins do their dance, and a world that used to be black and white is suddenly filled with all of these beautiful colors!

http://youtu.be/x6D8PAGelN8

PART 2- The Race

By the time Saturday morning rolled around, I was excited to race. I was excited for the opportunity to let all that hard work finally pay off. The setting was Lake Louisa State Park, and I was thrilled for the opportunity to compete against some of the world's best triathletes in an early season "hit-out."

My plan was to swim, bike, and run with the race leaders. Simple enough, right?

The swim started well, and exiting the swim to begin the long surf dash from the lake to the beginning of the bike course I began to strip off my wetsuit. One quick side note: Here I need to thank Anna again for overnight shipping my wetsuit so I'd have it for the race. Remember that part about me being forgetful? Yea... Anyway, lets get back to the action.

I entered the transition area with many of the race's top competitors, but they all didn't have the courtesy to wait for me as I took off my wetsuit. One of these races I plan on letting them know that I didn't appreciate their rushing off without me! While everyone else was slipping out of their rubber skins, my wetsuit felt like one of those Chinese finger traps on my legs. It seemed the harder I pulled my legs out of the suit, the harder the suit pulled back. I missed the first back on the bike, and I ended up with a group of 10 or so guys about 30 seconds back of the leaders. I did my best to work with the group to bridge the gap, but it was not enough this past Saturday.

It turned out to be too much time to make up against a talented group of guys. My group came off the bike about 35 seconds down of the leaders, and that is 1:35 more than I wanted to give up against runners like Mario Mola, Richard Murray, and Jarrod Shoemaker. I ended with a 16:24 5K which landed me in 12th place.

Success is said to be found in the details, and this past Saturday my attention to detail was not where it needed to be. I must learn from the experience and look forward to another opportunity to execute this coming Saturday in the Sarasota Continental Cup.