Join the "Virtualman" Olympic Triathlon Challenge

OK, check it out.  I'm hosting a contest in the form of a virtual Olympic distance triathlon that can be put together by adding up parts of your weekly training schedule.  Here's how it's going to work:

1) All entrants must complete the following distances within any continuous 7 day period:

- 1500 meters of swimming
- 40 kilometers of cycling
- 10 kilometers of running

2) The discipline(s) do not have to be done in the traditional order, nor do they have to be done all at once.  Rather, you will submit your cumulative time "up to" the required distance, using a "first distance done" basis in each discipline.  Here's an example:

Monday (Start):  Swim 1000 meters (30 minutes)
Tuesday:  Bike 30 kilometers (1 hour, 10 minutes)
Wednesday:  Off
Thursday:  Swim 1000 meters (30 minutes, but the first 500 meters take 15 minutes)
Friday:  Run 10 kilometers (55 minutes)
Saturday: Off
Sunday (Finish): Bike 20 kilometers (50 minutes, but the first 10 kilometers take 25 minutes)

Based on these 7 days, the race time would be:

Swim - 45 minutes (All of Monday + the first 500 meters from Thursday)
Bike - 1 hour, 35 minutes (All of Tuesday + the first 10 kilometers from Saturday
Run -  55 minutes (Completed all on Friday)

TOTAL RACE TIME = 3 hours, 15 minutes.

3) There are no transition times

4) The race will start September 1st and must be completed by September 30th.

5) There are two divisions - Male & Female

6) The race assumes a flat course. There's no point for someone who lives in Colorado to go climb a 6000 foot mountain pass while people in Texas will be screaming down flat, straight roads.

7)  I'm allowed to participate but I can't win (not that I would anyway).

There will be 3 winners in each division based on the best 3 times in each division.  The prizes are as follows:

First Place/Grand Prize - I will come to your house and cook you dinner before October 1st, 2011**

Second Place - One container of Fluid Recovery Drink (your choice of flavor)

Third Place - A $20 gift certificate to your favorite multisport store or website.

** If for some reason there is no way I can make it to where you live and/or you think it's creepy that I just invited myself to your house, I will pick up dinner for you and your family or a couple friends at a restaurant near you.

The race will start September 1st.  If you are interested in participating let me know by commenting on this post and emailing me at 17281posse (at) gmail.com.  I will then email you an excel time sheet for you to fill out during your race week.  Once you have completed the time sheet, please email it back.

If you have any questions, please ask them in the form of a comment on this post or email me.

I hope some of you participate and good luck!!!

Solana Beach triathlon predictions

Yep, my first anniversary for triathlon is coming up on the 26th.  That was the date of the 2009 Solana Beach Triathlon.  However, through the magical mysteries of calendar math (a concept I understand but am too tired to contemplate at the moment), this year the race falls on the 25th.

First off, the hotels in the Encinatis/Solana Beach/Del Mar area are expensive this weekend.  I ended up finding a Marriott for $199, but this was a fluke, because even the Days Inn was north of $200.  I have to start booking this stuff earlier, because I reckon this should have been around $89.  Ouch.

With a year under my belt, I must admit I'm approaching this race with a bit of swagger, though I know this is a mistake and I could pay dearly for this infraction against my normally balanced persona.  But even if I manage to slow the ego roll between now and Sunday, my plan is to "hold-nothing-back-and-go-all-out" for this one.

Solana Beach is a short race - 1/4 mile swim, 9 mile bike and a 3 mile run.  With the exception of a steep run up the bluff from the swim to transition, Solana is a flat and compact course.  If conditions are right (e.g. smallish surf on the swim and minimal wind on the bike course), in THEORY I can do this in under an hour.  I'll just have to string together a series of strong but previously achieved performances for each discipline.  That said, I'll probably find a way to screw this up.  My best guess is that I will finish somewhere in the 1:03-1:05 range.

 Hardest part of the course.  It's steeper than it looks...

Last year my time was 1:21.  This was slow, and I placed low.  But it didn't matter, because as I've mentioned before this was the race that got me hopelessly hooked.  On the drive home last year I may have been happy enough to (hypothetically speaking) sing along to a Michael Jackson song.  But if this (again, hypothetically speaking) happened, it would have been something cool like "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" from Off The Wall.

Race report Sunday...

The unknown (but welcome) consequences of well intentioned ideas

 The 405 Freeway, today at 6:30.  On the way to swim coaching...

If you're like me, the decision to try a triathlon was pretty simply motivated.  Maybe it just sounded fun.  Maybe it was a way to put yourself to the test.  Maybe it was a dare.

And if you're like me, it didn't take long before the motivation became a little more complex.  By many measures, my first race was a disaster.  Except it wasn't, because I finished.  And by finishing, a switch went off inside me.  For the first time in a long time, I started down a very significant new road.

Many years ago someone told me to stop worrying all the time, because things have a way of working themselves out.  I liked the sentiment, but didn't trust the source.  This "sage" man was a guy who would go to the swap meet to buy a book, and pick a Danielle Steel novel over a Robert Ludlum novel just because it was a nickel cheaper.  There is no problem with being frugal, but this struck struck me as a little weird.  So I took his advice with a grain of salt.  More importantly, I wasn't ready listen.

But it turns out he was right.  Like how I now try to approach most things, I approach triathlon with an active passiveness.  Though I tend to be meticulous in training and educating myself about the sport, I also realize that life works best when I'm a leaf floating down a stream - I'm going somewhere, but I'm not sure where.  I'm just happy to be floating along.

The stream is getting wider.  I'm constantly amazed, perhaps daily, what a positive impact triathlon has.  It's easy to measure the direct impact that the 1, 2 or more hours we all train everyday.  Mileage increases.  Speed increases.  Fitness increases.  But what about the other 22 hours of the day?

Training logs don't address these hours.  But I would guess all of us have experienced benefits from this lifestyle that where never contemplated at the beginning of the journey.  For me it's being more engaged.  I'm excited about things again.  And if you don't mind me saying, I'm pretty darn proud of myself for getting my health back.  The best part?  I made out like a bandit, because it was fun.  Globally, the benefits are endless.  I think this is a sport where anyone can find what they are looking for if they work at it.

All of us come from different backgrounds and athletic abilities.  By reading your blogs, it's clear that many of your are much more gifted athletes that I am.  But hardly any of the blogs focus solely on training or racing.  Training and racing may be a key component, but it's always reported with a lot of depth.  I learn from that.  Also, we all share parts from the other "22 hours" of our day.  I learn even more from that.  In fact, I would suggest that this part of the equation is the great equalizer that makes this community so vibrant.

I welcome the opportunity to be in this community.  Never in my wildest dreams did I expect that such a support system came standard with this lifestyle.  And it goes beyond the blogs - it's pretty much everywhere.  People helping people simply because we all know we are involved in something special.

I bought some swim goggles, a bike and a pair of running shoes because I thought it sounded pretty cool to see what it would be like to swim a quarter mile, bike 9 miles and run 3.  That was a well intentioned idea.  I had no idea how great the consequences would be.

A Triathlon Of Movies

Ian was a little restless at bedtime last night, so I laid with him in hopes of getting him to fall asleep. I didn't go so well - we ended up playing "eyes open-eyes closed" for a good 10 minutes, and this actually had the opposite of the desired effect. He was no even more awake. The only move left was to pretend I was asleep so he'd (hopefully) get the hint. So I closed my eyes and feigned light snoring.

For awhile Ian kept repeating "daddy, daddy" and poking me in the ribs, unwilling to believe that I was truly out. But after about 5 minutes of this, he was bored. I could tell he was ready to sleep, but only by default due to the lack of any other options.

I had to keep the ruse up until he was sound asleep. So, as I normally due, I started to think about triathlon. Then I started to think about movies. I realized that outside of documentaries, there are no movies about triathlon, at least that I know about. But there are movies about swimming, biking, and running. For better or for worse, here are the 3 I thought of.

SWIMMING - "On A Clear Day" (2005)

Plot summary from Wikipedia:

The story is set in present day Glasgow near the banks of the River Clyde. Frank Redmond and a few of his co-workers are laid off from the shipyards after 36 years service. This, along with his grief still suffered over the loss of one of his sons many years ago, plummets Frank into a deep depression. He gets on well with his wife, Joan; however, their relationship is distant. His son, Rob (Jamie Sives), is a devoted house husband who looks after his twin sons, while his wife, Angela works full time at the local Jobcentre.

After a violent panic attack, Frank realises that he needs some focus in his life, and, after a booze cruise along the English chennel, decides to focus his efforts on swimming across it. Frank trains with the help of friend and local chip shop owner Chan and former co-workers Danny, Eddie and Norman until he feels he is fit and ready for the attempt.

I saw this a couple years ago. I think I was on a plane coming back from London. I thought it was pretty good, except for to this day I have trouble seeing Billy Boyd, who plays Frank's friend Danny, as anyone other than Perigen Took from "Lord Of The Rings".

BIKING - "Breaking Away" (1979)

Plot Summary from Wikipedia:

Dave, Mike, Cyril and Moocher are four working-class friends who have recently graduated from high school and are not sure what to do next. They often clash with the more affluent Indiana University students in their hometown of Bloomington.

Dave is obsessed with bicycle racing. His down-to-earth, blue-collar father Ray is puzzled and exasperated by his son's love of Italian music and culture, which Dave associates with bicycling, and his precious Italian Masi road racing bicycle. However, his mother Evelyn is more understanding. Dave masquerades as an Italian exchange student to romance a university student, even serenading her one evening outside her sorority house window.

When a professional Italian bicycling team comes to town for a race, Dave is thrilled to be competing with them. However, the Italians become irked when Dave is able to keep up with and even talk to them during the race. One of them jams a bike pump in Dave's wheel, causing him to crash. This leaves him disillusioned and depressed.

Dave's friends soon persuade him to form a cycling team for the annual Indiana University Little 500 bicycle race. They race under the name "Cutters" (a euphemism for "stoners", the industrial stonecutters who worked the Indiana Limestone quarries of southern Indiana) against university intramural teams. Dave is so much better than the other competitors, he rides without a break and builds up a large lead, while the other teams have to switch cyclists every few laps. However, he is injured and has to stop. After some hesitation, Moocher, Cyril and Mike take turns pedaling, but soon their lead evaporates. Finally, Dave has his feet taped to the bike pedals and starts making up lost ground; he overtakes the leader on the last lap and wins. Dave's father is immensely proud of his accomplishment. Dave later enrolls at the university himself.

I saw this so long ago, but I remember being impressed by a scene where they where diving into an abandoned quarry filled with water and when Dave had his feet taped to the pedals. This was also Dennis Quaid's first movie. Who knew?

RUNNING - "Chariots Of Fire" (1981)

Plot Summary from IMDB:

The true story of two British track athletes competing in the 1924 Summer Olympics. One is a devout Scottish missionary who runs for God, the other is a Jewish student at Cambridge who runs for fame and to escape prejudice.

The story, told in flashback, of two young British sprinters competing for fame in the 1924 Olympics. Eric, a devout Scottish missionary runs because he knows it must please God. Harold, the son of a newly rich Jew runs to prove his place in Cambridge society. In a warmup 100 meter race, Eric defeats Harold, who hires a pro trainer to prepare him. Eric, whose qualifying heat is scheduled for a Sunday, refuses to run despite pressure from the Olympic committee. A compromise is reached when a nobleman allows Eric to compete in his 400 meter slot. Eric and Harold win their respective races and go on to achieve fame as missionary and businessman/athletic advocate, respectively.

Again, this is another movie I say ages ago, probably when it came out. So I was 11 or 12, and at the time had interest in running nor any understanding of the social subtext that was in play. I also remember the title music annoyed the heck out of me. I should probably watch this again, though.

Can anyone think of other swim/bike/run movies?

Athlete Profile: "Big Daddy" Riley

"Big Daddy" Riley - His other ride is a Specialized Allez Comp

Meet my friend "Big Daddy" Riley. Ours is a classic post web 2.0 friendship - we've never actually met. Both of us work in the apparel business and where introduced by a mutual colleague who thought we could "do some business" together. We are working on some things, but I've recently realized that most of our conversations, emails, or Facebook messages revolve around triathlon instead.

I don't remember how we found out that the other was into triathlon, it was probably through a Facebook post one of us made. Originally, I was expecting him to call me for opinions about artwork and retailing, not the merits of 2 piece tri-suits. But that's OK. The truth is, it's actually a more interesting subject.

Like me, Riley is 40. Unlike me, he is a natural built endurance athlete, 6'3, 175 lbs, currently with 9% body fat. Tall and lean.

He was going to do his first race - a 70.3 - on May 8th. But some knee problems sidelined him. In retrospect, I think he's glad. Because once he started training he realized how important training really is. Which is cool, because this is all one big learning process. Everything happens for a reason and injury aside, I think he welcomed the delay. Now his first triathlon is in July in New Jersey. He's also doing a time trial in Philadelphia next week. So his season is about to kick off.

Riley, correct me if I'm wrong, but you where going on about how you only wore black. Isn't there some red and white in that jersey? What's up with that?

Riley has got style. He's Johnny Cash with tons of tattoos and a sick bike. He was telling me today that when he showed up for his first ride with a local bicycling club, he was the only one driving an old hearse with flames painted on the side. It made for some awkward moments in the parking lot, but he quickly earned the respect in the peloton. And apparently he's dropping everyone on the hills now. Well played if you ask me.

When he's not sleeping, training, or eating way healthier than I do, Riley is the owner of Evil Brand Clothes. I like his stuff. Other fashion trends come and go, but the hot rodding & rockabilly scene will never go away.

Riley and the legendary Alice Cooper

We have a lot in common. We both came into the sport at about the same time. We both have wives that are non-participating but very supportive, and we both agree that triathlon is one of the most important things that has happened to us in our adult lives. We also both come from climbing backgrounds. And we both like to rock. I noticed he referenced an AC/DC song on Facebook today. I did the same thing about a month ago.

The coolest thing Riley told me today was how training has had such a positive impact on him mentally. He says that in the past winters where always tough. Before he started Evil Brand he was a freelance photographer and there just wasn't much work around at that time of year. Plus the weather didn't help. As a result he would get depressed. But this last winter, the training kept him occupied and his mind and body fit. I can completely relate.

Inevitably, I'll meet Riley in person soon, though I don't know if it will be at a business function or at a race. But until then, we'll have plenty to talk about.

http://www.facebook.com/bigdaddyriley

Innovation

If you haven't already, check out yesterday's post on Midwest Triathlon Life. Kovas talks about a feature on the Bigfoot Triathlon website that allows you to enter your bib number and watch an animation of your performance. It's basically an interactive Map My Run, and they are taking the viewing of your race results to a visual level.

When there is innovation going on, things tend to get interesting.

Let's use popular music as a example. Elvis and Chuck Berry invented rock and roll. When The Beach Boys released Pet Sounds in 1966, artists ranging from The Beatles to The Kinks answered by putting out some of their best work. The Ramones, The Clash, and The Sex Pistols turned music on it's head in the late '70's. And then in the early '90's Nirvana killed off the '80's hair metal bands that had become bloated and ridiculous with excess.

If you don't have this album, you should. Amazing.

It would take a book (and it's already been written anyway) to examine why what happened in music did when it did. That said, it always comes down to a combination of two things - social conditions and business conditions.

I think multi-sport is in a similar position. But the circumstances are different, because I don't think innovation in the sport is being fueled by social or economic upheaval. Rather it's being fueled by passion.

Because I was swept up in the punk movement as a kid, my skepticism about certain things has never gone away. I am still wary of "big", as in big corporations, big media, and big box retailing. It's not about rebelling, at least not any more. It's just that I feel that a lower common denominator means less overall quality of product and/or experience. By the way, "big" and "successful" are mutually exclusive.

So it pleases me to see companies like Newton, Zoot, DeSoto, and Sugoi enjoy success by releasing high quality products while staying true to their roots. The same can be said about Road ID - it's one of those "why didn't I think of this?" products. They continue to improve their line. Have you seen the new interactive bracelets yet? Awesome.

I'm especially glad that a Nike or an Adidas has not made a move to dominate the sport. It's not that either company makes bad products, it's that they have the muscle to shove the products down our collective throats regardless of the quality. As the market sits now, you have to earn your place on the retail shelves. It's a competitive marketplace, where quality and innovation trumps marketing muscle. And the consumers are the winners.

As Kovas's post shows, it's happening at all level of the sport. And why shouldn't it? The cost of entry into innovation, especially on the online/interactive side, is low these days. All that's needed is an idea and the passion to see it through.

I'm not sure what the next "big thing" in our sport is but I am sure it's going to be awesome. I can't wait to see. I might have a few ideas of my own as well....

To Gym Or Not To Gym

In my current training schedule, I'm supposed to go to the gym twice a week - Monday & Wednesday evenings. But this past Monday, I had the chance to work with a swim instructor, which I did in lieu of the gym. And one of the things about my training schedule I'd like to change is adding a longer bike ride. I need to put a 2 hour/35-40 mile ride in there somewhere.

Overall, I have the time. It's just that it tends to come in one hour blocks. But still, I could probably figure a way to do that longer ride, say on Wednesday. But I'd have to cut out the gym.

But I like the gym. And I feel some loyalty to it. The gym is what got me down from 280 to 250 pounds. And since I live and Huntington Beach and am a fan of random and awkward moments, you can only imagine what a goldmine the gym can be in terms of people watching. California girls and mixed martial arts wannabees - it's an incredible combination.

I think that weight training is an important part of multi-sport training. There is a somewhat dated argument that endurance athletes should not supplement their training in the weight room. But I personally think that if done right, weight training not only helps with weight control but also gives you the opportunity to strengthen parts of your body not engaged when swimming, biking, and running.

On the other hand, I think there is a good argument for getting as much volume as you can manage into the the actual disciplines. And if time is limited, I wouldn't fault anyone for trading a weight bench for an extra half hour on the bike.

I'd hesitate to try and solve my schedule issues by simply adding more hours to my week. That's not to say that when I start training for a HIM next year or someday decide to go all in for a full, that I wouldn't make a further time commitment. But that would be planned, and my family and work commitments would have to be considered.

Because here's the thing. Though participating in triathlon has shown me how much I love swimming, biking, and running, it's taught me even more about life balance. As counter-intuitive as this may sound, I think increasing my training time right now would cause diminishing returns. Not in a physical sense, but in a life balance sense. I don't want to ignore the most important things triathlon has taught me by doing more to get prepared for triathlons.

This season it's all about getting out there every 4-5 weeks and competing in sprint and Olympic distance races. It's about experiencing everything I can and learning from it. It's about experimentation. And I believe that this schedule is exactly where it needs to be at the moment.

Does the above make sense? Maybe it would be easier if I just said that I'm in a bit of a catch-22 here.

Kovas Palubinskas wrote a great post today over at Midwest Triathlon Life where he asked his readers "What’s your Simple Thing? What could you do to improve performance?". I thought it was a fantastic question. Check it out and leave a comment if you haven't.

Hopefully, Kovas won't mind if I borrow the idea and ask what you all do in terms of weight training in relation to the core sport(s) you participate in. Do you go to the gym or not go to the gym? Do you go to the gym but never at the expense of the rest of your training schedule, or are you in the gym all the time? Maybe you do something else entirely?

I'd love to know. Thanks in advance.

Training Schedule

Since I log my training at begginertriathlete.com, my training weeks run Sunday-Saturday. Which I guess makes sense since weeks run Sunday-Saturday. Did you ever wonder why that is? I never did until 2 seconds ago. This article sheds some light on the answer, but it's honestly more than I was asking for. You've been warned.

Wikipedia

Anyways, I think I've finally found a training schedule that not only addresses my volume/recovery requirements, but manages to make the family and the boss happy. The only thing I'm going to need to work on is finding some more time for the Sunday long bike ride (need to get that up distance-wise). That will inevitably be a case of me getting my lazy butt out of bed earlier.

Sunday: (Morning) 1:30 Bike (25 Miles); Sunday (Evening) :40 Short Run (4-5 Miles)

Monday: (Lunch) 1:00 Bike (18 Miles); Monday (Evening) Weight Training

Tuesday: (Late Afternoon) 1:00 Medium Run (7 Miles)

Wednesday: (Lunch) 1:00 Bike (18 Miles); Monday (Evening) Weight Training

Thursday: (Late Afternoon) 1:00 Swim

Friday: (Late Afternoon) 1:20 Long Run (10 miles)

Saturday: (Morning) 1:00 Swim

I don't schedule days off. I'll take one if I need to, but with my swimming being the only thing I do on those particular days, it seems to work pretty well as active recovery. And I usually need to take a quick trip somewhere for work that by default gives me 2-3 days off a month.

I work at home, so the prep time for a run or bike is minimal. And the deal I cut with my boss is that I can either do a "lunch" or cut out a little early. It's good to have the support of your job to stay in shape. It must be because they are Canadian - this seems to rarely be the norm here in the US.

My family is happy, because except for the weight training sessions, I'm finished up by 5:30 or 6. So we have plenty of evenings together.

So there you go, it may not sound like a super huge deal, but I'm pretty stoked on it.

One Year Down

My feet ready to run as I finished up the last business call of the day.

Yesterday I got an e-mail from KOZ Enterprises, an event management company that puts on a bunch of races every year down in San Diego. The e-mail was related to the Solana Beach Sprint Tri on July 25th. It was one of those urgent "register NOW - we're filling up fast" emails that I always fall for. So I basically dropped everything and registered so quickly that whoever is doing the marketing over at KOZ will probably get a promotion for stellar engagement and conversion metrics.

The truth is, I'm pretty pumped on this race. Last year's race was my first triathlon ever and the first race I will do for a second time.

I don't remember the "official" first date of my triathlon training. I'd been running for about a year as of last Spring. But my credit card statement shows that I bought a bike on May 10th of last year, and buying the bike was so I could get ready for the Solana Beach race.

I ended up doing the 1/4 mile swim in 13:39, the 9 mile bike in 40:19, and the 3 mile run in 26:28 for a 1:20:26 finish. I finished 781 out of 1071. But never once did my results (or lack thereof) cross my mind. Running the last 100 yards down the finish chute ranks as one of my top 10 all time epic life experiences. I was hooked. Actually, I remember thinking to myself that I was hooked as I came out of the water, because there was a (pretty big) part of me that thought my race would begin and end with the swim.

Finishing that race was a gift that keeps on giving to this day. It's been like that sweet remote control car I got for Christmas when I was 12, but it's never run out of batteries. In the time since, I can count on one hand the times when I lacked the motivation to go out and train. Triathlon is truly a part of my life.

And it couldn't have come at a better time. For that I am thankful.

I can sit here all day and run the math. I've knocked at least 1:20 off of my running pace. On similar courses, I've ridden my bike an average of 9 miles an hour faster than I did at Solana. The swim? Well, that needs some work, but it's better too.

All of this is well and good, but the reason I am pumped is because I can go do this race and see what I've REALLY got as compared to last year. Forget the stats, this is a rematch. I'm really looking forward to that.

I celebrated my 1st triathlon training anniversary with a 10 mile run this afternoon. It was one of those typical California Friday afternoons - warm but not hot, and plenty of others out and about getting a few hours jump on the weekend. It was a great run and I'm feeling pretty strong. And there was no way in hell I was running 10 miles a year ago. So bring it, Solana Beach.

Need A New T-Shirt??

Last year I almost started a multi-sport clothing company. That was until my current boss convinced me to stay on the music side of the apparel business and recruited me to join him. Ironically, he used to run the Avia running shoe company. Funny how things work out.

But before I put the project aside, I had some promo tees printed up:


I thought of the saying "Free Yourself" in traffic on the freeway one afternoon. Shocking, huh? That said, people ask me where I got the shirt all the time. I have unisex sizes XS-XL. They are 100% cotton 30/1 fabric (that means probably a little nicer than the shirt you got at your last race). The shirts where printed at my friends shop around the corner.

Want one? Well all you have to do is leave 5 really nice comments on my blog between now and whenever you can think of 5 really nice things to say. Only 1 comment per post will count. I can't 100% guarantee I'll have your size, but we'll work something out if not.

If I get a message from someone I don't know who said that you told them my blog was rad and that they should follow it, you only have to leave 2 comments to get a shirt.

I'll cover the shipping, and I don't care where you live. When I run out of tees, it's over.

I love going to the post office to mail stuff so let the games begin...

Join Your Place In The Foodchain

I got this comment from Kovas Palubinskas regarding my Doping post last night.

"Patrick, I hate to say it but the article is probably dead on. As long as there is competition, there will be folks who will cheat to win/place. Seems like it might be more prevalent in cycling, but I know USAT has mentioned it as a possible concern in triathlon as well. Bummer for all of us who don't, won't cheat."

He's right. But I just don't understand the logic when it comes to the masses. I guess it must be ego or insecurity. Because there is no rational explanation that I can think of nor is there a single pro-doping argument that the average age grouper could ever attempt to make.

And as to do it to win, I just can't relate. I win every time as far as I'm concerned. Another day, another workout, another fun experience for the memory banks. My ascension up the ranks of faster finishers, though a morale boost, is simply a by-product of hard work. My participation in Triathlon is a work in progress and that is the long term appeal of the sport for me. At some point I'll stop getting faster. And that's going to have to be OK.

I know a guy from years ago. He loved Charles Bukowski and wanted to be just like him. But (God love him), he could barely spell "cat". However, he could drink like Bukowski and even upped the anti with smack. Luckily he's cleaned up, but those were some scary times. And his writing career as you would expect went nowhere.

In yesterday's post, I'm not sure I clearly made the point I was try to make by telling that story about London. It may come across as romanticizing a crazy night. That was not my intention at all. Rather:

1) Nothing "cool" or "fun" or "good" lasts under false pretenses. It's a funny story, but was not worth the price.
2) I was absolutely under no pressure or obligation to act like a complete idiot. That was all me.
3) Because of my behavior, I screwed up and failed to deliver on why I was actually in London in the first place. This was very shameful.

Change the context of the above. It works with virtually any combination of goals and temptation you can think of.

Like I said I don't condone doping in the professional ranks but I get why it happens. Everyone else? Join your place in the food chain. Pros have had their careers destroyed (or died in the case of miss-use) by taking the drugs or their refusal to partake. AG's don't have that problem, so let's not make it one.

I'm going to have to let this subject go after this post. So I'll end it with this - I was looking at WADA's list of banned substances earlier today. I tend to do a lot of research when I have a stick up my a** about something. In an ironic twist, I am in violation of the guidelines. I take a beta blocker. These are banned during competition for sports like Biathlon and other shooting sports where a lower heart rate would be an advantage. So not only am I against doping, I have it all backwards anyway.

Doping

I read a book last week entitled "From Lance To Landis: Inside The American Doping Controversy At The Tour de France" by David Walsh. It's an investigative journalism piece about the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs in professional cycling. It's a biased view - there is no doubt that Walsh has it in for Lance Armstrong. This may be a well founded opinion, but it bothers me a bit. I believe in due process. But overall, it was an informative read.


Friday night I watched a documentary called "Blood Sweat + Gears". The movie follows the newly formed US based Chipotle/Slipstream team (now Garmin/Transitions) through their 2008 season. The team proclaimed themselves the "clean team" and had a zero tolerance policy against any performance enhancing drugs. The team was built around David Millar, an English cyclist who had just come off a 2 year suspension for doping, and who was committed to a new start. Though it was pretty standard fare as for as documentaries go, it was a cool subject and definitely impressive to see the team end up being so strong so early. And since 2008, the team has gotten even better.


I'm obviously against doping. But at the pro level I certainly understand the temptation and get why someone would ultimately chose to do so. It all comes down to money. Sponsors want speed. Sponsors want wins. The pressure on the teams must be incredible. And it only takes one to start to make everyone else feel like they have to as well to stay competitive.

When the baseball doping scandals broke, I didn't really care. I was disappointed, but I'm not that bought into the sport. With cycling, it's different. For one, I ride myself. For another, it's very frustrating. I'm actually watching the Tour of Romandie on TV now. Though I enjoy watching the coverage, I watch with suspicion. There is no doubt that these guys are awe inspiring athletes. I'd love it if this was solely the result of natural talent and incredibly hard work. But I'm not sure. They say it's getting better, the drug use in cycling. But what's better? There are still riders under investigation and/or suspension all the time.

But what really got me was an article in the new issue of Bicycling magazine. The article's author Ian Dille suggests that there is more doping in the amateur ranks than previously thought and that everyday cyclists are putting their health at risk for a "pair of socks or coffee", which were in the prize pool for one particular race.

This is just wrong. And I have some experience in this.

Go back and read some of my blog posts. The real me is sort of dorky, wide eyed, excitable, somewhat irreverent, and somewhat contrary. This is me and I'm at an age and a place in my life where I just don't care about the things I am not. Life is good. It's easier to take things in their own context and enjoy little "victories" every day. It's not settling for less, it's accepting what life is and making it great.

I've not always been like this. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was telling me back a story that I told him from a night out in London 5 years ago. I had completely forgotten about it. I'll admit that on the surface the story is kind of funny. So I'll try to tell it in a funny way. It also has undertones of dorkiness, being wide eyed, being excitable, being irreverent, and being contrary. But this isn't me, and it never was. All I was doing was taking risks to find an adventure that I didn't really care about.

I was on London with a friend/colleague on business. One night we had dinner plans with some people we did work with. About an hour before dinner, we hit our hotel bar and got drunk. At dinner we got drunker. We then parted ways with our dinner party and headed over to the bar at St Martins Lane, which is a super trendy (and thus expensive and filled with potential trouble) hotel.

Once we got into the bar, I started buying rounds for everyone in the bar. I think it was 2-3 rounds in total. We got even drunker.

At one point I saw one of the guys in the band Good Charlotte. Knowing that we had a mutual acquaintance that I didn't like, it made sense to go over and introduce myself and tell him how much of a d*ck I though this person was.

The next thing I know I see my friend running towards me. He grabs me by the jacket and drags me out. What I am not seeing is the Good Charlotte bodyguards coming towards me to presumably do the same thing. My credit card, which was behind the bar, stayed behind the bar. I don't think it got charged again, but I never got it back.

Outside the hotel we jump into a mini cab. I don't think the driver even had a chance to step on the gas before I launch into the "Hey man, I'm from America...where are you from?" conversation.

It turns out he's from Somalia. I'm impressed by this and ask him if he has any khat, which is a plant that by chewing the flowers you get stimulation similar to amphetamines. I knew about khat from reading the book "Black Hawk Down". The book describes khat as "seemingly used by every Somali man in Mogadishu". How this little factoid popped into my head while I was hopelessly drunk and sitting in a cab driven by a Somali guy, I'll never know. But it did.

He had some. So the next thing I know, we are all chewing fresh khat leaves and making this guy drive around in circles all around Westminster (Big Ben! Parliament!).

After an hour scab ride to go 3 miles, we hit our hotel room. There is an Angels/Red Sox game on Sky Sports at 4 in the morning. Clearly no one cares about baseball in the UK. Still wasted, we laughed at the guy with the funny British accent calling a baseball game.

When I finally passed out, I don't get out of bed for 24 hours. And I lost the deal I was in the UK for to begin with. Fun night out, yeah? Well the laughs and giggles don't last forever.

I finally quit drinking in late 2007. Amongst (many) other things, I realize now there are much better ways to express myself.

I am not righteous about my sobriety. But I am a lot more aware of the issues of substances and the potential for abuse. I look to Triathlon as an alternative lifestyle. It's saved me to some degree.

So it comes down to a super simple question - I wonder if some of the people I am racing with are doping? It wouldn't alienate me from the sport, but it would be incredibly sad. We are competing in an amateur sport that seems tailor built for people who live full lives with families and jobs and other pursuits. These races are chances to show off all the hard work we have been doing week in and week out. These races are not commercial plays or giant money makers. What are the stakes - USAT rankings? $250 to the AG winners?

I came to this sport to get away from something else. And I would like to think I made a great choice.

As much as I appreciate the article in Bicycling, I hope it's wrong.

Ready To Head Back West

Yep, I'm ready to go home.

I've been traveling since Sunday - Vancouver, now Boston. Though it will be nice to see some family tomorrow, I'm ready for that 6:45 AM flight home Saturday morning.

That said, do you find that you are quite aggressive with your flight scheduling when it's 2 weeks out? Much to my chagrin, I do. Because when I press "purchase" on that super early flight itinerary weeks before I actually have to get my a** out of bed and to the airport I'm much more optimistic about such things than I am 36 hours out.

So I'm ready to go home, but a 9:45 AM flight Saturday would have been fine too.

In my other life, I am half in the entertainment business and half in the clothing business. That means I make clothing for bands that are sold at concerts, online, or retailers like Hot Topic. The even shorter version is that "I make t-shirts". I've been doing it forever - 18 years in fact. I've tried to get out a few times to do something else but always get pulled back in. Oh well.

I shouldn't complain, because I get to work with some very nice people. But triathlon and entertainment people seem to be mutually exclusive. Actually that's not really fair - with exceptions, the entertainment people usually can't conceive why I do what I do in my off time (and to be fair, can you completely blame them?). The triathlon people are far more understanding as to the job.

I was in Vancouver at the home office for the various monthly meetings. Now I'm in Boston for the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival. The festival is 2 solid days of really loud bands. It's a good time, actually. My friends from Crimson Management put the show on. I really enjoy coming out east to hang with them. And I'll see a bunch of other people tomorrow I'm sure. I actually ran into an old friend tonight....

That's me (left) and Mike Gitter, A&R guy extraordinaire for Century Media Records, rocking out to the band White Chapel. I've known Mike for over 20 years. Note that I have my Specialized Bicycles cap on. I'm pretty certain I'm the only one sporting one of these at the show.

But I miss Ian. I miss Mary. I miss the dogs. I miss home in general. Admittedly, I also miss my bike.

Not to say that I wasn't able to substitute in some good running in Vancouver and Boston. I ran along the Charles River today and in Vancouver I did the Stanley Park Sea Wall route, which is a truly beautiful and spectacular gift for runners. But I could use a bike ride right now. I hope my bike feels the same. Don't worry bike, I will be home Saturday.

But I'll be spend some time with Ian and Mary first. It will be great to be home.

It wasn't always like this. I used to spend months away touring with my band and then later touring as a crew member on bigger tours. I loved the travel, the tour bus, the hotels, and basically being everywhere except home. Of course in those days, even the 3'x3'x8' bunk on the bus was nicer than the crappy apartment I shared with 3 other guys. But beyond that, not being attached to any one place was liberating. Funny how things change. I like routine now. Like eating granola in the morning. Like dropping Ian off at school. Like watching Sports Center at 10. And like training. Could it be that I am (gasp!) boring? I don't think so. Or at least I hope not. Nothing lasts forever. And would you have ever thought the guy playing guitar on the right was a future triathlete? Doubtful.

Video From The Old Days

In other news I have a 5K trail race this Sunday. It was supposed to happen last December, but it's been rained out 3 times due to trail sensitivity in wet weather. Can you believe it? In California.

70.3 = 2011

I guess it was kind of inevitable.

I'm going to start planning to do a half Ironman next year. Thinking about it, it only made sense. Despite my occasional (and feeble) attempts at denying it, I am hooked on this stuff. The Sprint triathlons have been (and will continue to be) fun, but I know that there is no way that I will ever talk myself out of pushing it further. And as I've mentioned before, I think the half distance is ultimately the good compromise - a tough enough endeavor for long term bragging rights, but still relatively manageable in terms of training and preparation.

I have not even started researching the right race, but I think late summer/early fall will be best. Maybe Ironman 70.3 Austin? There are a few races to consider in that date range.

I'm going to have to dial in a specific training plan, but not until next year. For this year, I'm planning on racing in a number of regional sprint races. I'm also registered for an Olympic distance in June. Finally, there is an Olympic distance race up in Vancouver this September that I'd like to do.

Come this fall, I'll focus on 1/2 marathon training. My gut tells me I need to get a few 1/2 marathons under my belt before an attempt at a 70.3. I'll do the 1/2 marathons early next year. Then in March, I'll get back into triathlon base training so by May or June I can start on a proper 16-18 week half Ironman training plan.

Truth is, I'm not really worried about the individual events. I could go out tomorrow and pull off any of them individually. It may not be pretty, but I could do it. The challenge is going to be stringing them together and getting a respectable performance out of it.

The question I will have to answer sooner or later, though, is what is "respectable"? Today I'm not sure. My guess is that respectable is going to be somewhere between my current average paces for each discipline in the shorter races and the second to last finisher. Hopefully, I can end up closer to the former. But perhaps I am getting ahead of myself.

My biggest motivator is the progress I've made in getting back in shape. You'll see what I mean below....

Yep, that's me in the MIT t-shirt 3 years ago. You could argue that I'm riding on a tiny train with a two year old and as such, the perspective makes me look huge. That would be nice of you. But it also would not be true. It's me, so I can say this - I look f***in' gross.


Though I'll admit that I picked this comparison picture for it's relative bad-assedness (and have subsequently been over-using it lately), I would argue that there would have been no chance in hell that I could have even faked a photo like this 3 years ago.

...Enough said?

Well that's it for now. I've got to go out of town for a week to Vancouver and Boston. But I now have a 70.3 to plan which should help me get me through the brutally boring hotel gym workouts next week.

Newport Beach Sprint Tri (With Exclusive Video)

It's Sunday afternoon. I've got coverage of the Paris - Robiax bicycle race tuned in on Versus, so I figured I would multi-task and get my thoughts together about today's race.

PRE-RACE CHECK IN/EXPO

I headed over to the Irvine Crowne Plaza Hotel yesterday afternoon to pick up my bib, timing chip and "goodie bag". There was also a mandatory pre-race meeting to go over the race course, show your USAT card, and sign the liability waiver. Let's talk about the waiver. It was just a standard USAT waiver, but it seemed like the volunteers where taking this part a little more seriously than I've experienced in the past. Maybe it's because Kring & Chung, the race's named sponsor, is a law firm. Think about it. Litigating triathletes. I wouldn't want to have to mess with one of you guys, but I'd be stoked to have one of you as a friend. Send me an e-mail.

The free t-shirt, as usual, was lacking. If any race directors are reading this, hit me up. I'll make you some killer stuff.

RACE DAY

This race was a tremendous experience. It was nice to drive 20 minutes from the house and have Mary and Ian along. The course was great, the volunteers where great, and the mood amongst the competitors was fantastic. Some guy was telling jokes in the few minutes leading up to our swim start, and everyone around was laughing, seemingly relaxed and loose. I haven't really experienced a start quite like this before.

And it didn't hurt that the water was, I dare say, warm.

That said, after reviewing the goals I set for myself, I did end up falling a bit short. And I can't say that isn't a (tiny) bit disappointing. But, years ago when I tried to play golf (and sucked), someone said to me that "it doesn't matter how poor your golf game is, you'll always make that one shot every round that will get you back on the course next week".

I had one of those shots today, though it's not like I was in danger of quiting racing. It's just that when I came out of the water, I was pleased enough with the swim that even if my bike ending up bending in half or I ran into a tree while running, the swim was good enough to make it a great race regardless. More on that...

THE SWIM




Here is a video of my swim wave start as we approach the first buoy. I'm hard to pick out, but that's the point - I'm actually in the pack for the first time.

The last couple weeks of open water swim practice paid dividends this morning. This was because I was actually able to complete the swim comfortably and without any drama, self inflicted or otherwise. In fact, it was a whole new experience. Usually I get dropped immediately and as a result there is no one around me. Today I was in the pack for the entire half mile and it was full contact swimming the whole way. I even swam over someone for the first time, but felt bad because I know what it's like. Still, it's another point to check of my "to do while racing" checklist. I also got kicked in the face a couple of times. It was awesome, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Because it meant I was IN THE PACK!! Sure, I was towards the back of the middle, but I was in it.

The perception of time was different. In past races, I felt like I was in the water for hours, because I was miserable. So it was always a surprise to look at my watch and see my actual time. But today, the swim felt like it was over in seconds. So when I came out of the water I looked at my watch and had a different kind of surprise when I saw that I was in the water as long as I was. Of course, that's not really a great surprise. But it's way better than being miserable, that's for sure.

880 yards - 18:29 minutes - 2:10 mins per 100 yards

THE BIKE

I knew about the hill but I didn't KNOW about the hill. And that little SOB was steep. The course is two loops, so I had to go up it twice, once at about mile 4 and again at mile 11. The first time I had my gearing all wrong and had to stand up and power through it. At the top of the big grade, the course turns right on to a much smaller grade that still felt like a big grade to me because my legs where thrashed. So I figured this was good time to spin a bit easier and have a bit to drink.

The good news is that you also go back down the hill. So after the turn around I just hammered on the pedals and went way out of my comfort zone in terms of down hill speed. But I survived.

The second time I hit the hill I was more prepared gearing wise. But my legs still burned and my heart rate still shot up. And as I started to power the downhill again, I had to hit the brakes to avoid a crash. I hope the guy was OK.

The rest of the course was pretty flat. As I had hoped, there wasn't too much wind. So I pedaled away, and managed to stay in aero position nearly the whole time. Aero is still new to me and is still a little uncomfortable, but I just sucked it up. Maybe like with other things, there is a "tipping point" and now that I have managed to pull off 15 miles more or less in aero, it just gets easier from here. We'll see this week in training, I guess.

15 miles - 46:59 minutes - 19.15 MPH

THE RUN



You guessed it, this is me coming out of transition and on to the run course. Mary told me there where a lot of bald guys in black, red and white tri suits today. That's why there is no video of me on the bike - she didn't know who was who.

The run was pretty routine. The initial results on the race's website showing me running it in 24:40, but I don't have a T2 transition time showing. So T2 is included in my run. I figure my transition was at least 2 minutes because I had trouble getting my Zoot TT Ultra 2.0 racing flats on. Which is funny, because they are designed to slip on to your feet super easy. I'm not sure where the disconnect between me and the shoe is. Oh well.

I would guess that my T2 time was about 2 minutes. That would give me a 22:40 running time, which would be about a 7:34 pace. That sounds about right. I was looking for 7:30. Good enough.

There was another hill just before the run turn around, but I've been doing a lot of trail running lately and I was able to power up really quickly.

At about 2 miles, I had a bit of a scare when a woman behind me starting howling and panting really loud with each step. My initial reaction was that she was in some serious distress so I slowed a little to turn and look. But as I turned, she blew by me. My initial thought was that she was just really getting into the run. But after she passed she quieted down. I guess she was just really in to passing me.

3 Miles - 24:40 - 8:13 pace (Including T2)

CONCLUSION

Adjusted to the relative distances of all my previous races, this was my fastest to date. Yet it was only good enough for 20 out of 44 in the Male 40-44 age group. This is a tough age group, but I'm OK with that. Because if guys my age are going faster, I can too.

Overall, it shows I came in 164th, but I can't quite figure out how many people raced. Maybe they will update the results.

It was a great race, I'll be doing it again next year.

Sunday Race Psych Up Post

Me, 10:53 PM, Tuesday, April 6th via web cam. I am wired on a bottle of S.Pellegrino sparkling water. And I may break out the Lemonade if this party keeps going. That said, I do have a good book about the first four women to swim across the English Channel in the 1920's on my Kindle. OK dogs, we can go to bed soon.

So I'm back on the blocks Sunday. I don't know if "blocks" is relevant in this context. Whatever, it's the first thing that popped into my mind. Maybe I am thinking about those things they use for track and field running events, those are called blocks are they not?

Anyway, the race is the Kring and Chung Newport Beach Triathlon.

I did another OWS today. My swim partner bfoyle from the OC Tri Club and BT.com swears I am getting faster. But he said this after he admitted he was getting to the buoy, turning around again to go back about 50 yards and then turning back to the buoy, still ahead of me.

There where dolphins swimming around. Spring is here, though the water is still on the cold side. It was a bit choppy today as well, but it's kind of fun to roll with it. Very zen.

If I can finish this swim off without any side stroke or a complete body shut down, I'll be ahead of the game. It's 1/2 mile this time. I'll be happy with 15-17 minutes and ecstatic with anything faster.

For the bike, I will be piloting my new Specialized Transition Comp for the first time in a race. I've been putting a lot of work into maintaining the aero position. I'm almost there, I think. It's a little tough on the neck, but my shoulders, back, and legs have adapted fine. It's a flat course, and I'm hoping for very little wind, being that the course seems to be mostly behind a bluff to the south and west. We'll see. I'm hoping for 21 MPH, but 20 MPH will do as I am looking for a 45 minute time. In fact, getting out on the run course an hour in to the race will be perfect.

Here is a little side story about the bike. When I first started riding on PCH, I would get passed all the time. Being both male and competitive, I'd be lying if I said that didn't feel a teeny bit shameful. Lately I've been passing riders all the time. Being modest, I'd be lying if I said this doesn't feel a teeny bit shameful. I will never win.

For the 3 mile run, this time I'm going all out. Last race I was running 7:50 miles but I know I have 7:30 in me. So let's call it 22 minutes assuming I can keep pace and then really go all out the last 1/2 mile. There is, afterall, pancakes waiting for me at the post race breakfast spot, which for some reason I can't recall the name of at the moment.

So that puts me at about 1:28 with transitions, probably. If I go by last years race results, that's about 200th of 750. Cool, plus or minus top 25% is my goal this year. I think this is a fair goal to go for.

Well that is it for the moment. I will check in after the race with the results or before that if something random happens between then and now.

My First Triathlon Dream

Here is a screen grab from my Subconscious Cam. Thats me to the far right as I realized there was no bike waiting for me in T1.

I had a triathlon dream last night. I think it was my first. And as far as I can remember, it went something like this:

I was driving to a race. I was running late, and I had trouble finding a space in the multi-level parking garage (it was an urban race setting), so I had to rush to get to the swim start.

I made it, but just barely.

My swim actually went well, to the point where I was really pumped as I came out of the water. But then I realized that in my rush to make the start I left my bike and everything else in my truck. Except I couldn't remember where I parked. So in a panic, I had to go looking.

After a few minutes of desperately searching for my truck, someone came up to me and said:

"I can see you forgot to bring your bike to the transition area. Don't worry, they are doing this race again tomorrow. The Race Director is at the swim start. Go find him and I'm sure you can work it out so you can try again tomorrow"

So I went to the swim start and found the Race Director. He looked quite a bit like Henry Winkler. I told him what had happened and asked if I could race tomorrow.

He said no.

From there I started arguing with him. I was saying stuff like that it was poor customer service on his part and I should be allowed to race again.**

The argument ended unresolved. The next thing I remember is sitting in a really nice hotel lobby with huge floor to ceiling windows over looking the run course. All these people where running by and when they saw me they stopped, knocked on the window and asking me why I was not racing.

"Forgot my bike" I said.

"There is always tomorrow" they said.

And that was the end.

** Note - As I write this fully awake and in the light of day, I realize my argument with the RD was incredibly weak. It was not a failure in customer service on the race's part at all. I forgot the bike, not them. I just wanted to set the record straight.