San Francisco Marathon

Finish Strong athlete, Roger Mercier, completed the hilly San Francisco marathon. He finished in 5:00:31 with an overall pace of 11:28. Roger came in 71 out of 111 in his age group. Kudos for finishing this long, difficult 26.2 mile race!

La Marque Du

Team FSR David Kayda enjoyed his 30-34 age group win at La Marque Du held on July 18. David came in 17th overall with a time of 1:00:49. David had the fastest splits in his age group. He ran 12:14 for the first run (6:07/mile pace); 33:13 for the bike (20.8mph pace); and 13:55 for the final run (6:58/mile pace).

Emily Roper who runs with the Finish Strong Tuesday Night Track group finished first in her 35-39 age group. Emily came in 36th overall with a finishing time of 1:07:39. Emily ran 13:55 (6:58/mile pace) for the first run; 36:11 (19.1 mph) for the bike; and 15:51 for the final run (7:56/mile pace).

Way to go!

RAGBRAI - The Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa

RAGBRAI®, The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa®, is an annual seven-day bicycle ride across the state. Heading into its 38th year, RAGBRAI is the oldest, largest and longest bicycle touring event in the world. TEAM FSR Cindy McManis took on the challenge. Cindy is pictured above at the end of the week long ride after surviving hundreds of miles of biking and climbing Potter's Hill at the end - a brutal 19% grade .8 mile. Way to go, Cindy!

Tri Waco

Michael Collins and Clint Bryant represented TEAM FSR at Tri Waco on Sunday, July 25. Both athletes competed in the Olympic distance triathlon featuring a 1500m swim, 40K bike and 10K run.

Michael took 5th in his 35-39 AG and 17th overall with an overall time of 2:22:36. Michael's splits were 33:03 swim, 1:02:05 bike (24.4 mph), and 43:15 for the final run (6.58/m pace). Great job!

Clint was in the same competitive 35-39 AG. He came in 11th in his AG and 53rd overall. Clint's splits were 31:32 swim, 1:05:42 bike (23.1 mph) and 51:06 final 10K run (8:14/m pace).

Finish Strong coached athlete Charlie McDougall also competed in the Olympic distance race. He finished the race overall in 2:26:52. 7th out of 26 in his age group, 30th overall out of about 500 finishers.

Congrats to all!

(Photos courtesy of Kristin Collins)

Heart of Triathlon #4

The Barron kids swept the Heart of Triathlon #4 race on July 11. All three won their age groups! Team FSR Lane and Hannah won their male and female 13 and under AG. Their older sister Katherine also won her 14-19 AG.

Lane Barron came in first in his age group and 18th overall in a time of 1:16:15. Hannah followed close behind finishing 19th overall and 3rd female with an overall time of 1:16:19.

Keep your eyes on the Barron kids as they will be competing in upcoming YMCA Kids Triathlon in The Woodlands.

Disco Tri

Team FSR Scott Peterson came in 12th overall and 2nd in his 25-29 AG at the Disco Tri (Olympic Distance)in Dallas, Texas on July 17. Scott had the third fastest swim in his age group finishing in 26:05. He biked the course in 1:06:41 at a brisk 21.2 mph pace. Scott had the fastest run in his age group finishing the final 10k run in 43:04 at a 6:47 per mile pace. His overall time was 2:18:54.

Way to go, Scott!

Draper Du Long Course National Championship

The Draper Du Long Course National Championship was held on Saturday, July 10 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The event was attended by participants from 22 states. Finish Strong Coach Dana Lyons came in third overall and won his 50-54 AG. Dana finished the race in 3:14:33.8. His splits were 39:48 for the first run, 1:49:53 bike, and 43:19 for the second run. The race was so hot that upon finishing Dana jumped into a water trough to cool down!

Mighty Mite Triathlon

Team FSR Rodrigo Abascal took on the Mighty Mite Triathlon, the Arkansas State Triathlon Championship on July 17 in Forrest City, Arkansas. Rodrigo placed third in his 16-19 AG. His splits were 8:12 swim, 38:54 bike (20.1 mph pace), and 20:20 run (6:47/mile pace).

This course features a very hilly bicycle course. Rodrigo says, "I enjoyed the race a lot and liked it because it was very different from what we are used to in Houston."

Rodrigo's dad, Manuel, also competed and finished in 1:20:42 placing 21st in his 40-44 AG.

Ironman Austria

Buck Snyder has a breakthrough race at Ironman Austria setting a new PR of 10:34:31! Buck's splits were 1:10:49 for the swim, 5:37:42 for the bike and a great 3:36:10 for the run.

Buck reports, "I was very happy with race result overall. I stuck with the pacing and nutrition plan on the bike and it paid off on the run... I was happy to get out of that water. Took at glance at the watch as was pleasantly surprised at the time - 1:10:49."

"I had a plan on the bike to watch my HR. The pace felt fairly comfortable and had to forget about all the people that were passing me on the bike - humbling. There was a two loop very, scenic bike course with great spectator and volunteer support. The first 30 K of the loop were really fast. The next 40 K or so had some good hills with two very significant climbs. The first one was short, but required low/low and was a challenge to stay seated for it. The second climb seemed really long 10-15 minutes in the lowest gear I had with some standing just to keep the pedals moving. Wasn't that bad on the first loop, but a killer on the second loop. The last 20K of the bike was pretty much downhill and fast. I finished the first loop around 2:45. Halfway through the second loop, a big T-storm let lose which made the climbs a little more challenging and really slowed things down on the fast downhill section. Felt good throughout the bike and kept up with the hydration/nutrition plan pretty well. Ended up with an average HR for the bike very close to the target."

"I felt awesome starting the run. Had to rein things in a bit after running a 7:15/mile first mile. Settled in around 7:40 or so and felt strong for the first 6-8 miles, but it was getting hot and much of the course had zero shade. Managed to keep running (albeit slowly at times) with the exception of the aid stations. Second half was much slower than the first half. I think the first half was in 1:41 (7:41/mi) which would make the second half around 1:55 (8:46/mi). Even though the pace slowed, I continued to pace people throughout. Only recall one or two amateurs passing me on the run. Around mile 24 or so, I had just enough to keep running all the way to the end. Felt great passing through the chute and crossing the line. Overall - 10:34:31 Surpassed my goal time for the race and things went well for the most part... I was happy with the entire day!"