Life Is A Tri

Two Very Simple Words

2009-11-09T08:48:00.006-06:00

The words in question? "Thank you!"

Triathlons would not happen without armies of selfless volunteers, as Brandon Sneed's article in the Star News Online makes clear:

"Months of planning and effort go into enlisting the small army of volunteers required to make possible a streamlined Beach2Battleship Iron Distance Triathlon. So overwhelming was the task last year, volunteer coordinator Mary Toffolon swore she'd never do it again.
“'I was exhausted,' said Toffolon, who also runs the triathlon club at the Wilmington YMCA. “I thought to myself, ‘I can't do this again.' It was fun, but … it just consumed my life for months.”

But after recuperating, Toffolon read triathlon forums on the Internet. “After reading them, I thought, ‘I can't not be involved',” said Toffolon. “It was so clear how involved the volunteers were. It can be a make-or-break situation if the volunteers are good or not.”'

Volunteers aren't out there for the challenge of racing or a finishers' medal. Civic pride and some free coffee seem to be enough. But adding your heartfelt 'thanks' for their assistance increases the likelihood they'll come back next year and bring along some friends. Two very simple words. How hard can that be?

Words To Live By

2009-11-04T09:47:00.001-06:00

"Most people can look back over the years and identify a time and place at which their lives changed significantly. Whether by accident or design, these are the moments when, because of a readiness within us and a collaboration with events occurring around us, we are forced to seriously reappraise ourselves and the conditions under which we live and to make certain choices that will affect the rest of our lives." (FREDERICK F. FLACK)

We're Built To Go the Distance

2009-10-27T11:53:00.004-05:00

Humans are built for distance running says the NY Times, reporting on author Christopher McDougall's new book "Born To Run."

McDougall offers his prescription for taking advantage of those innate abilities while avoiding injury:

"...slower, easier training over a long period would most likely help; so would brief walk breaks, which mimic the behavior of the persistence hunter. And running on a variety of surfaces and in simpler shoes with less cushioning can restore natural running form."

Friday's Triathlon Mashup

2009-10-23T10:47:00.004-05:00

A very idiosyncratic triathlon news summary:

From trifuel.com, here are 8 tips to qualify for Kona. Tip #1: decide! Tips #2-8 involve slightly more work.

From Tulsaworld.com, three steps to better triathlon swimming. Step #3: stop kicking so hard! Remember, you'll need those legs for biking and running. So relax.

Finally, from Everydaychristian.com, Gary Brasher plans to do three triathlons in three days, ending with Ironman Arizona. I'm not sure whether to admire his commitment or reconsider everything I know about tapering. I guess I'll wish him good luck either way.

Lost Your Mojo? Here's How To Get It Back

2009-10-13T10:21:00.004-05:00

At last, a scientific explanation for avoiding exercise! Apparently, willpower only goes so far and using it up on Task A (regulating your emotions, say) depletes your ability to also complete Task B (exercise, say.) LiveScience.com (via Yahoo News) reports on the research:

"Cognitive tasks, as well as emotional tasks such as regulating your emotions, can deplete your self-regulatory capacity to exercise," said study leader Kathleen Martin Ginis, associate professor of kinesiology at McMaster University."

Work on it by strengthening that 'ol "willpower muscle." Listening to music helps. So does making specific plans to exercise and sticking to the plan (ah, there's the rub!) And get some sleep.

Daily Triathlon News Mashup

2009-10-12T10:38:00.002-05:00

Another IM Florida death...another lawsuit.

Ironman...no longer for youngsters. 30 over 70 at Kona, according to the Wall Street Journal.

On-line registration is open for 2010 Whirlpool Ironman 70.3 Steelhead triathlon.

Triathlon Market Trends and Demographics

2009-10-09T15:38:00.004-05:00

Great data on triathletes and the sport of triathlon, from USA Triathlon. Among other things,

"Triathlon participation in the United States is at an all-time high, following unprecedented growth over the past 10 years. USA Triathlon can easily track the surge through its membership numbers, which surpassed 115,000 annual members in early 2009. To put that into perspective, annual membership hovered between 15,000 and 21,000 from 1993 to 2000."

Meanwhile, the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA) reports that 921,000 Americans participated in at least one triathlon in 2006, and that number climbed to 1.1 million in 2007. The number of so-called "core participants" (those competing in two or more events) increased to 746,000 in 2007, an increase of 35.6 percent over 2006.

And, download an executive summary of USAT's "The Mind of the Triathlete" market research report, here. The study grouped participants into seven distinct segments according to similarities in their demographics, psychographics and involvement in the sport.

"On average, triathletes are from high socio-economic backgrounds with median incomes of $126,000, however, their motivators and mindset are different, creating a significant opportunity for the triathlon community to serve them better and in more targeted ways. Unlike many consumers, they are spending cautiously but on average intend to spend as much in 2009 as they did in 2008. In fact, 45 percent would rather spend discretionary income on triathlon with three of seven segments exceeding 65 percent and one nearly 80 percent."

"In general,

Older athletes do more races.
95% participate for the personal challenge.
87% participate to stay in shape.
On average, they participated in 4.2 triathlons during the previous 12 months.
86% plan to do longer races in the future.
Sprint triathlon remains the most popular, with those events attracting participation of more than three quarters of respondents."

Good stuff. I guess it's true. Life really IS a tri. Gee, where have I heard that before?

Triathlon Comes To Omaha, August 2010

2009-10-08T14:16:00.004-05:00

From the Omaha World-Herald: Omaha announces an August 2010 Olympic-distance triathlon. Though I'm not sure about the Carter Lake swim, the bike route goes RIGHT BY my loft. I've ridden the so-called 'airport loop' so many times I could ride it in my sleep...and probably have.

I'll probably be doing Steelhead and Chicago next August, but a side trip to Omaha and a post-race dinner at la Buvette might be a nice "recovery" weekend.

More here from WOWT-TV.

Xtri Chats With Coach Luis Vargas

2009-10-04T10:40:00.004-05:00

Here's a link to Betsy Delcour's Xtri interview with triathlon coach Luis Vargas. Interestingly, "...training too hard" is the most common mistake he sees among the age grouper set.

Alrighty then. I'm doing it correctly.

Blame It On Rio: Chicago-Area Triathletes Express Disappointment

2009-10-04T10:22:00.002-05:00

Several young Chicago-area triathletes express disappointment over the IOC's choice of Rio de Janeiro as host city for the 2016 Olympics. They aren't the only ones.

An iPhone App from Ironman Craig Alexander

2009-10-04T10:07:00.004-05:00

Ironman champion Craig 'Crowie' Alexander uses his iPhone to give fans unusual "spur of the moment" access to a professional triathlete's life. Described as "Twitter meets reality TV", Crowie's Backstage app (available free from iTunes) delivers training secrets, race preparation, travels and even family time.

So tune in and watch him prepare to defend his Ironman championship on October 10th.

And those of you carrying some other manufacturer's hardware in your pocket? Suckers!

A Better Bike Fit Using Your iPhone

2009-09-25T13:34:00.006-05:00

Yes, I drink Apple's Kool-Aid and consider my new iPhone about the coolest device EVAH!

Now, from the Interbike Blog (interbiketimes.com) comes word of a bike-fitting application for the iPhone:

"Testrides, developed by a company called Wildlab in Japan, uses the phone’s built-in camera to snap a profile photo of the cyclist’s body. With the photo on the screen, the user taps on the touch-screen to specify their body’s joint positions. The cyclist then can input the geometry specs of a particular bike from either a catalog or the manufacturer’s website to “model” it. The app puts the two together so that you can examine a “virtual fitting” to decide whether a particular bike, geometry or size works for you."

Eat your hearts out, all you Crackberry-heads! I'll post a review once I've tried it out, though I'm sure it'll tell me my current bike is all wrong. Ah well. I kinda knew that.

Lawyers. Kill. All.

2009-09-11T15:36:00.008-05:00

"The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers." (William Shakespeare, Henry VI (Part 2))

Seldom have wiser words been spoken, though I might settle for closing 80% of the nation's law schools.

Not so long ago I posted an update on a Florida trial determining whether triathlon organizers were liable for an Ironman swimmer's death (the court said they weren't.)

But now, as I watch my server logs for search phrases directing visitors to Life Is A Tri, I see searches like "how many ironman triathlon deaths." Someone's building a case for something. And as I observe the domains behind the searches, I see a bunch of damn law firms.

True, they could be working for the defense, but I doubt it. More likely they're plaintiff's attorneys preparing additional suits against triathlon organizers and everybody else in sight.

I've met The Nanny State and her initials are J.D. - Juris Doctor.

If you as a triathlete aren't bothered by this trend, you haven't observed first-hand what malpractice suits and trial lawyers are doing to other industries like health care. Let's speculate a moment, shall we?

Expect to see race entrance fees triple.

Expect to sign 10 page-long liability waivers filled with impenetrable legalese. Buried in there will be subtle language adding YOU, dear racer, to the list of possible defendants.

"Let's see Mr. Vertical Man. Can you PROVE that you weren't in close proximity to the struggling swimmer? Can you PROVE you didn't cause his panic attack leading to his stroke? Umm-hmm, I thought not! Pay up, bucko!"

Expect to be required to submit a physician's clearance to race, not to hold harmless the race organizers, but to give the trial lawyers someone else to sue - your physician.

Expect to be required to submit a "bike safety certificate" to race, not to hold harmless the race organizers but, again, to give the trial lawyers someone else to sue - your bike shop.

Expect to be required to submit indemnification documents from ALL your gear manufacturers - bike wheels, wetsuits, running shoes, water bottles, just in case one of them might, seemingly, allegedly, someday play some inconsequential role in an accident...someone else to sue. Get the picture yet?

Expect your favorite race's host community to withdraw the welcome mat as legal burdens skyrocket and the tourism benefits are overwhelmed by insurance and legal costs. Just like many communities have closed playgrounds and pools deemed as too risky.

Ol' Billy Boy Bard had it right.

Just One Dratted Thing After Another

2009-09-08T13:26:00.006-05:00

Some good news today: As the proud owner of a brand new iPhone, I'm saying 'ta-ta' to Verizon's crappy service. It feels weird, this having fewer rant-worthy things in my life.

Of course, with the good news comes some bad (so maybe I'm at status quo in the rant category.) I'm now stuck trying to get 130 pictures off my old phone - pix of my Omaha loft, various vacations, friends and family. Best Buy recommended a Sandisk "microSD" card which, seemingly, neither fit nor worked. Back to BB I went, fuming all the way. There, in the hands of a callow, pimply-faced youth, the card fit AND worked like a charm. Figures.

One of the great mysteries of life, I guess. Like that funny noise under your car's hood that disappears the moment you turn the darn thing over to your mechanic for diagnosis. Like why there's never a teenager around when you need one, and always several lurking nearby when you don't.

"It's a strange sport this. In no other sport is taking your clothes off part of the official race."

2009-09-05T08:41:00.005-05:00

Writing for couriermail.com.au, Kathleen Noonan pens a great article on triathlon and triathletes. I don't usually reproduce long passages of other people's writing, but I love this:

"Of course, we worship sportspeople far too much in this country . . . yet

"it's hard to look past these beautiful striding statues.
"In the creamy September daylight, their honest sweat makes them more beautiful. They look clean and healthy, as if a thousand training sessions have purged them of doubt and excuses and uncertainty.
"Their backs are tan maps of muscles, their stomachs hard workbenches. Catwalk models look soft and useless in comparison. In a flabby world filled with worry about obesity, computer addiction and disease, you gaze on them and think surely this is what the human body was made for – hard, graceful work. (Emphasis mine.)
"Emma Moffat, the Olympic bronze medallist, now in first place in the women's category, who turns 25 on Tuesday, knows only one way to win: with hard work. The day we talk, Moffat, who is nursing a torn plantar fascia (the fibrous sheath in the sole of the foot), has already swum 6km at dawn and is heading out on a 3½ hour bike ride. Apart from the hard training, she says controlling your nerves is essential.
"The moment of doubt for many crystallises at the swim start.
"'Standing on the beach or jetty," says former detective Rod, "everyone else looks fitter and stronger."
"You look down at the dark, cold water and all your demons stare back.
"'It's like wild horses racing in your chest. This may sound crazy but it's like the panic when my marriage went belly-up."
"Now he knows he's got to catch them, harness them and let them take him.
"Usually the race is not perfect. The swim pushes through big dumpy waves, there's a flat tyre on the ride and the run grinds up hot hills. Being a triathlete means there are three times as many ways to learn about despair, disappointment, humility and defeat – all the things we try to banish from our modern easy lives.
"Yet these mad bastards go searching for them, embracing them.
"Go figure."

Those mad bastards, indeed! She gets it.

"Contrary To Popular Belief, Running More Will Not Make You Faster."

2009-09-05T08:32:00.004-05:00

Improving your triathlon run splits, from Christine Kwok at examiner.com.

The basics of running faster? Technique, strength, stretching, hills, varied terrain, intervals, bricks and rest. Nothing in there about pounding your joints into mush with lots of over-distance training.

One More Hazard Of Open-Water Swimming: "Ferocious Otters."

2009-09-04T07:19:00.002-05:00

From Claire Lunardoni at examiner.com, here's a headline you don't see every day: "Ferocious otter attacks triathlon swimmer."

Olympics In Chicago? Well, Maybe Not!

2009-09-03T17:00:00.002-05:00

Support dwindling for Chicago's Olympics 2016 bid. Hizzoner may not need to re-pave LSD after all. If the bid proceeds, I'll rent ya a really cool house.

Triathlons Are Easy!*

2009-09-03T09:27:00.003-05:00

*NOT!

Nicole Miller, Steamboat Pilot & Today's assistant news editor, covers the Steamboat (Springs) Triathlon from the inside - as a first-time triathlon participant. I love it when a story begins...

"...that was less than two months ago.

"I didn't know much about triathlons. I knew they involved three sports, none of which I was particularly skilled at."

But she finished, vertically, (unlike the previous year's last place finisher) and plans to be back next year.

Sounds like a cool race. Let's see...Steamboat for Christmas AND the summer triathlon season? Hmmm. I'll bet biking up Rabbit Ears Pass would kick my butt.

Images From The Chicago Triathlon, 2009

2009-09-03T09:08:00.006-05:00

Some great shots of last Sunday's Chicago Triathlon, from David Wallach, blogging at Chicago Now's "Pace of Chicago - An Endurance Sports Blog"

It's a fun race. If you've done it, you know. If you haven't done it, you should. I'll see you (and 7,999 others) at the starting line in 2010!

More on the Chicago Triathlon here, from the Chicago Tribune. Contenders Julie Dibens and Andy Potts crashed after tangling with inattentive age-groupers. And finally SOMEONE besides me is talking about Lake Shore Drive's extreme bumpiness. Hizzoner da Mayor may want to address that before the 2016 Olympics come to town.

Older, Wiser, Slower...

2009-09-02T10:21:00.003-05:00

...says the Wall Street Journal's headline. Kevin Helliker blogs in the WSJ's Health Journal about finishing the Chicago Triathlon while keeping heart rate and perceived effort under firm control.

Tri-Coach Mark Allen adds "If you can't let up on the competitive part of it, if you have to go as fast at 50 as you did at 20, you will grind yourself into the ground and become stressed out, bitter and unhealthy."

"...athletes struggling against declining performance are prone to excess training, which can hurt the immune system and raise levels of the stress hormone, cortisol. A number of medical experts, including Kenneth Cooper, the physician long ago credited with founding the aerobics movement, now believe that extreme exercise can increase the body's vulnerability to disease like cancer.

"For aging athletes, it is loss of prowess that can lead either to abandoning exercise or to a health-endangering doubling up of it, "in pursuit of what can't be recaptured," as Mr. Allen puts it."

Maybe I'll join The Old Farts Running Club. Sounds like my kinda crowd.

(Photo courtesy of The Old Farts Running Club.)

The 20 Coolest Bike Designs, from Business Week Magazine

2009-08-30T11:43:00.005-05:00

From Business Week magazine, here's their list of the "20 Coolest Bike Designs." Not much there to interest triathletes however, unless you're sufficiently well-heeled to bid on Shepard Fairey's custom Trek Madone, ridden by Lance Armstrong in the 2009 Giro d'Italia.

I dunno. The graphics on that bike give me a headache.

(Photo: Trek Bikes.)

Utah Passes Tough New Law On Texting and Driving

2009-08-29T13:47:00.007-05:00

Utah's bike riders are a little safer today, thanks to a new law - the nation's toughest - cracking down on texting and driving. Offenders now face up to 15 years in prison.

According to the New York Times,

"The new law, which took effect in May, penalizes a texting driver who causes a fatality as harshly as a drunken driver who kills someone. In effect, a crash caused by such a multitasking motorist is no longer considered an “accident” like one caused by a driver who, say, runs into another car because he nodded off at the wheel. Instead, such a crash would now be considered inherently reckless. (emphasis mine.)

“'It’s a willful act,” said Lyle Hillyard, a Republican state senator and a big supporter of the new measure. “If you choose to drink and drive or if you choose to text and drive, you’re assuming the same risk.”'

The deaths of two promising scientists forced the issue onto Utah's legislative agenda - further proof, I guess, that tragedy is a depressingly frequent precursor to sensible action.

(Photo: Sanpete Classic Bike Race)

Ironman Louisville

2009-08-29T10:08:00.004-05:00

Tri-Brother is racing IM-Louisville this weekend. Rock on bro!

He's lobbying for me to jump in the IM pool next year. I'm squeamish about an Ohio River swim and DEFINITELY unsure (does that make sense? Can one be "definite" about being unsure? But I digress...) about a 2010 IM. Maybe Steelhead in 2010 and a full IM in 2011. Meanwhile, I'll lobby him to write a race report.

By the way, what happened to summer in these parts anyway? We're supposed to have lows in the 40s this weekend and it ain't even Labor Day yet. I've gotta talk to the Goracle...

(Photo courtesy of louisvillevolunteer.com)

Sometimes Life Isn't Fair

2009-08-19T16:51:00.007-05:00

Tri-Daughter #3 leaves tomorrow on a 10-day jaunt through Nice and other nice parts of France's Provencal region. Attending a friend's wedding, I'm told. Missing the first week of her last semester of college is more like it.

I'm left behind wondering why I didn't at least attempt cramming Camden the Wonder Dog's furry ass into her suitcase.

(Photo courtesy of PetWave.com.)