Rise and Shout

The Time Has Come

2010-06-21T17:13:00.001-07:00

I hardly ever update this blog so I’m going to officially say “I’m done”. Which isn’t hard to say since I have not posted much in the last year. This blog started 6 years ago when blogging was the new and still misunderstand “cool” thing on the web. I’m not walking away from blogs or social media as it’s now called but don’t expect any new post on this site (for now).

I sill have my Rob’s View blog which is mostly photos but might get some text in the future. You can also follow me on Twitter (www.twitter.com\robelkins).

I realize that some people originally subscribed to this blog for info on ESRI. Make sure you checkout the new blogs on the ArcGIS Resource Center. I have been posting a lot there about the new ArcGIS 10 release.

Race Report - Ironman 70.3 Oceanside, CA

2010-03-30T08:34:00.001-07:00

Well, I finished my first Ironman 70.3 on Saturday and had a great time… I’m not saying it wasn’t hard but I felt prepared and really enjoyed myself. My total time was 5:23 which I feel really good about. When I signed up, I wanted to go under 6 hours and as I got training I thought maybe I could go 5:40 so 5:23 is great for me.

Swim 1.2 miles (39:17)
I’m not a strong open water swimmer so I was happy to be out of the water in 39:17. The start was a little rough but I think I did a lot better swimming straight and staying under control in the open cold water. I thought I did a better not drinking the ocean but when I got out of the water I had some stomach cramps so I most of drank some.

T1 (3:53)
The volunteers were a great help in helping me unzip my wetsuit. The run through the long transition was tough but at least I didn’t fall as 2 different guys in front of me both slipped and fell hard.

Bike 56 miles (2:54:34 and an average HR of 152)
When I got on the bike I was feeling all the salt water in my gut but I drank water and that helped and by mile 15 I was feeling better. I didn’t have a lot of power and speed the first 10 mile and a lot of guys passed me… I didn’t want to push it as I knew the hills were to come and wanted to stay under control. I think I did a good job drinking and ate a total of 3 gels on the bike. I started to pick up some speed miles 15 – 30 but there was a lot of traffic to work through. When the hills hit I felt good and worked through them without a big spike in my heart rate. There were a couple of descends with really bad cross winds so I slowed down as I didn’t want to crash. At mile 45 I was feeling good but my quads were getting tight and I knew that was going to be an issue on the run. I finished strong into the wind back to T2 feeling good about my bike time of 2:54.

T2 (2:06 and an average HR of 150)
I had a descent transition as I put on socks but I knew my quads were going to be an issue…

Run 13.1 miles (1:44:04 and an average HR of 164)
I started pretty good, my feet didn’t hurt as in previous races but my quads were cramping so I just told myself “just go for a run and don’t worry about things”. I did the first 2 miles in 15:05 and started to feel better but as soon as one part of my quads stopped hurting another section of the quads or the other leg would tighten up. I never wanted to walk and I’m glad I didn’t have too. I think I did the first 6 miles in 50 minutes. I grabbed water at one aid station then Gatorade at the next all the way but I didn’t want to walk so I didn’t really drink much out of the cups. I didn’t feel like eating so I keep on running. At mile 9 I tried to pick up the pace but a blister prevented me from going much faster. I did have a little sprint to the finishing line with a smile on my face. Many times during the run I wanted to go faster but was afraid my legs would totally lock up if lengthened my stride and picked up the pace. I saw a lot of people stopping and walking and I just wanted to keep running.

Overall I’m very happy with my time of 5:22! I wish my legs would have done better on the run as I feel like I could have run faster. Next day my hamstrings feel tight but overall I’m doing great just a little sore and dealing with a blister from the run.

Ironman put on a great event in Oceanside and I hope to return in 2011, you learn lot about yourself in these longer races. This was the first time for me at this distance but also the first time using heart rate based training and racing. I followed a program from Mark Allen Online and think it really helped me physical and mentally.

Next race is Big Rock Olympic distances at Lake Perris April 17^th.

Your health depends on where you live

2010-03-01T08:40:00.001-08:00

Help me raise money for the YMCA

2010-02-02T08:43:00.001-08:00

It’s easy and quick to give online and funds go to a great cause. The YMCA here in Redlands is a big part of my families life and I want to make sure others can enjoy the same benefits.

Thanks!

Winter in Redlands

2010-01-20T08:59:00.001-08:00

We are finally having some weather here in Redlands… Lots of rain and wind yesterday but beautiful and clear this morning as I headed in to work.

Quote of the Day:
It is a great thing to start life with a small number of really good books which are your very own.
--Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Avoid Mindless Holiday Munching

2009-12-14T09:03:00.001-08:00

'Tis the season for spending time with friends, coworkers, neighbors, and family–and, of course, "spending time" translates into eating food. A lot of it. But don't resign yourself to a winter of baggy sweatshirts, or wait until January 1 to worry about your newly acquired gut.

The No. 1 mistake people make during the holidays is self-sabotage, according to Jim White, spokesman for the American Dietetic Association. "[Gyms nationwide] are slammed the whole month of January," White says. "If you can lose weight by January 1, you'll beat the crowds." Not to mention look good in all those holiday pictures.

Be merry this season with our 9 tips for smart holiday eating–and make it through the winter months without moving up a pant size.

Avoid Mindless Holiday Munching: Men's Health.com

ZoomIt – Great Tool for Presentations

2009-12-08T14:05:00.001-08:00

ZoomIt is screen zoom and annotation tool for technical presentations that include application demonstrations. ZoomIt runs quietly in the tray and activates with customizable hotkeys to zoom in on an area of the screen, move around while zoomed, and draw on the zoomed image

Free download - ZoomIt

Twitter

2009-12-08T10:47:00.001-08:00

I haven’t posted much on this blog lately so if you want updates I suggest my twitter account at http://twitter.com/robelkins.

I also try and share photos on my photo blog at http://robelkins.blogspot.com/. Checkout my photos from a recent trip to Berlin.

Quote of the Day:
Light travels faster than sound so some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
--Joe Messmore

Results will come

2009-10-30T14:42:00.001-07:00

I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come.

- Michael Jordan

New York – Before the City

2009-10-23T08:33:00.001-07:00

Eric Sanderson uses GIS for studying landscapes—past landscapes. Looks like he uses ArcGIS Desktop in the first part of this presentation.

Better than you think…

2009-10-23T08:27:00.001-07:00

You are better than you think you are and you can do more than you think you can

-Ken Chlouber

Get up

2009-09-18T08:21:00.001-07:00

It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up. - Vince Lombardi

Enthusiasm

2009-09-16T08:14:00.001-07:00

If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm. - Vince Lombardi

Camp Pendleton Triathlon Report

2009-08-25T08:36:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago the family and I packed up and went to Oceanside, CA for some beach time and the Camp Pendleton Triathlon. It’s a big race with over 1200 participates but what made it extra fun was that 6 other friends from Redlands joined me for the race along with many of our kids. Transition area is right at the edge of the sand so you start on the sand and fight your way through the waves for the swim. The swim is tough with the strong current and waves. Last year I nearly gave up as I was not ready for the the big waves. But I did a lot better this year and improved on my time and felt really good.

The bike is mostly flat with a few hills and going through Camp Pendleton. I felt good and reached my goal of doing the 2nd half of the bike leg fast then the 1st half. I stayed aero for most of the bike but did have some stomach cramping.

The run is boring and the only bad thing about this race as you are basically doing loops around parking lots. I did pretty good on the run but still need to work on my speed to make up for my slower swim.

Great day and a lot of fun with the family and friends. This is my 2nd time doing the race and really like it. Here is the group shot of all the families in our group from Redlands.

Almost over

2009-08-05T13:58:00.001-07:00

Summer is coming to an end soon… The ESRI UC is over, we’ve had a little family vacation and the kids go back to school next week. School starts early here in Redlands but they get extra time off at Thanksgiving, Christmas and the Spring. Life is going good as I’m still swimming, biking, and running.

Lots of really positive feedback on ArcGIS 9.4 at the conference last month but if could make it to San Diego, here are a few links to checkout.

What’s coming in ArcGIS 9.4
Video of Plenary Session featuring Jack Dangermond

Quote of the day:
Nothing is impossible. Some things are just less likely than others. - Jonathan Winters

Live in San Diego

2009-07-13T08:32:00.001-07:00

I’m in San Diego today for the ESRI User Conference and the plenary session is about to begin… Good music and a beautiful stage design welcomes over 11,000 GIS professionals from around the world to the opening session. I believe this is my 11th User Conference and I’m still excited to believe in this great city with so many GIS users.

Quote of the Day:
The person who is not hungry says that the coconut has a hard shell.
--African Tribal Saying

Photos from Channel Island Trip

2009-07-07T10:50:00.001-07:00

Have recently upload some photos from my trip last month to Santa Cruz Island – Channel Island National Park.

Quote of the Day:
Truth will always be truth, regardless of lack of understanding, disbelief or ignorance.
--W. Clement Stone

test

2009-07-07T10:44:00.001-07:00

Clean install of Vista

2009-06-24T15:47:00.001-07:00

For reason I don’t want to go into, I had to reformat my hard drive and get a clean install of Vista on my laptop. This is a test post wit the latest version of Windows Live Writer after reinstalling everything.

Big Rock Triathlon – Olympic Distance

2009-05-14T09:34:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday I completed my first official Olympic distance triathlon (1.5km Swim, 40km Bike, 10k Run) – the Big Rock Tri at Lake Perris. Here’s my report…

Great weather and the water was warmer then I expected. I still wore a wetsuit as I need all the help I can get in the swim. I started out wide of the main group and did pretty good staying on course and not getting kicked. My goal for the swim was to swim the whole way and not freak out. I met that goal but now I need to work on swimming faster. I wasn’t the last out of the water but I wasn’t in the main pack either. The run to the transition area was tough - it’s up hill and mostly on rough sand / rocks. But I did pretty good getting out of the wetsuit and on to the bike.

The bike course is 2 loops with a small hill at the start of the lap and a big hill at the end of each lap. I felt good on the 1st lap and it seemed like I was catching some guys in my age group. I took a gel and some cytomax on the 1st lap and powered up the big hill passing few bikers that decided to walk. My plan was to take another gel on the 2nd lap but I didn’t as my stomach felt a little funny. I probably drank too much lake water. I actually took my feet out of my shoes while still on the bike for the first time in a race and had a fast transition to the run.

Everyone I talked to said the run felt long and I agree. It was mostly flat but I had a hard time getting any speed till about the 2 mile mark. Then my legs started cramping so I had to slow down a little but kept going and finished strong. I finished 6th in my age group and faster then my personal goal so I’m happy but know I can do better.

Here are some things I’m going to work on….

Swimming faster
Keeping my bike cadence up during the 2nd half of the bike
Running faster off the bike
Really kicking-it at the end of the run

spring time – “cinco de mayo”

2009-05-05T14:16:00.001-07:00

It’s a beautiful spring day here in Redlands, CA and things are staying busy at work. ArcGIS 9.3.1 is now shipping but we are already deep into the development of the next release of ArcGIS.

Time is flying by and the User Conference will be here before we know it. Speaking of time flying by, it was 15 years ago this week that I started my 2 year mission for the LDS church in Guatemala. A lot happen in those 2 years of missionary service that still influences my life today.

Quote of the Day:
Truth will always be truth, regardless of lack of understanding, disbelief or ignorance.
--W. Clement Stone

ESRI Developer Summit 2009 Wrap-up

2009-04-17T14:06:00.001-07:00

As many of you know I’m involved in a lot of the planning leading up to the Dev Summit. I say that so you realized that I might be a little biased but I truly think the event last month was a huge success. The feedback from you the attendees has been very positive. The event was not perfect and there are things we can improve and luckily we’ll get that chance next March, when the Dev Summit turns 5 years old. Here is a photo of me being interviewed by the talented Megan Williams for an ESRI podcast about Dev Summit 2009.

Plus a a few other links you might be interested in

Slides, Video and maybe some code from all the sessions

Slides from Palm Springs

Code Challenge Winners

ESRI TV

2009-04-01T09:28:00.001-07:00

If you didn’t already know, ESRI is using YouTube. See www.youtube.com/esritv

Quote of the Day:
The degree of one's emotion varies inversely with one's knowledge of the facts - the less you know the hotter you get.
--Bertrand Russell

ESRI Dev Summit part 7

2009-03-24T11:43:00.001-07:00

My live notes…

Last section covered some new features coming to ArcGIS Server 9.4

Graphic Feature Editing Service
New Image Services based on enhancements to the current image catalog
New Tracking services

Then a demo of ArcGIS Mobile 9.4 by Mike S.

The ArcGIS Mobile SDK is a powerful environment to build and extend your mobile applications using .NET
The same COTS mobile application you use today on handheld devices will work on a Tablet PC
This touch screen application will support day/night operational modes
Extensible using .NET
Mobile Project Center - Centralized project management and deployment our your mobile applications
Easy to configure mobile applications for BOTH tablets and handheld devices
Project Center has Simplified Installation – which is Separate from ArcGIS Server

Good session!

Lunch time

ESRI Dev Summit part 6

2009-03-24T11:29:00.001-07:00

My live notes…

The focus is now going to be on some future projects that Development is working on…

Euan C. talks about ArcGIS Desktop 9.4 being a big project with lots of new stuff coming. More integration with python as it becomes part of ArcGIS at 94. Nathan back on stage to show the python window in ArcMap and map automation via python scripting.

Demos of the new dock-able windows in ArcMap and a new editing experience with a goal to simplify and streamline the ArcMap experience. The new UI is not just in ArcMap but also ArcScene and Globe as you can now edit in 3D. Demo from Doug and Nathan S.

More on 94 at the UC this summer but here are some of the projects Euan mentioned.

Catalog In ArcMap
Faster Map Drawing
Search
Imagery
Better Cartography
Charting and Reporting
3D GIS
Asynchronous Geoprocessing execution

Positive reaction from the crows when Euan talked about a managed code plug-in framework. And the fact that 94 can be installed on the same machine as 9.3.1.