A Bump in the Road.

Every February, pretty much after I've conquered the January "Why-in-the-Hell-am-I-doing-this" blahs, I get either a sinus infection or the flu.  For the 2nd year, it was a pretty gnarly bacterial variety and for the most part the flu has been sequestered to the kids.  My wife and I figure that if we can make it to the weekend, we'll be just fine.  My family Doctor, who reminds me of my mother, only in male form, pretty much told me that snorting chlorine from the pool won't kill the bacteria and that there really was nothing, other than saline solution to really prevent it.  It was worth a try anyway.

I've taken a step back from the psychological analysis business since I've mainly not been swimming, running, sitting on the exercise bike, or walking the dog, and that's where most of my deep thoughts start to form and ideas come about.  As I promised the wife, (and she loves being called "the wife,") I've been taking care of the household projects like drywalling and replacement of bedroom doorways.  Drywall finishing sucks period, but it takes on a whole different meaning when your head is full of snot.  When putting in the multiple 60-80 mile rides training for Louisville, I noticed that coming up with hard hitting questions and answers took my mind away from the bike computer and screaming quads.  We're talking questions like:  What is the difference between a liberal and conservative?  Why are people so ignorant on capitalism?  and the one I'm still bend my mind around, Why haven't I been able to solve the Rubik's Cube since 1985?  Other than I suck at it anyway.

Illness and injury have never really stopped me from training or racing before, and sometimes it has created some problems.  In high school, I developed an awesome case of pnuemonia and stopped pretty much after the same aforementioned Dr said that he'd admit me into the hospital if I didn't take the next few days off.  So my mother took my swim bag and running shoes and I sat in an antibiotic coma for a couple days.  Point is, my track times that year were better regardless of the fact that I had to take a few days off.  Because I was stupid then, has kind of turned into a detriment later on down the road.  Since then, I've had a few battles with bronchitis and worse, so I'm pretty careful when the breathing gets uncomfortable.  The key with me, and I imagine most people, is your fine if you have just a head cold, but if it's in the chest and you have that hacking-up-a-lung cough, it might be time to take a day or two to let the body recover.  Trust me, your body will recover and your times won't suffer.

Stretching is pretty much in that same boat.  During my scholastic and early Navy days, I would stretch for about a minute, maybe two if I was feeling generous, and then off for the scheduled run.  I missed a kickass triathlon in San Diego because of a misdiagnosed IT band issue.  Seems that Navy Corpsman and Doctors just assume that it's an MCL and not a poor stretching regimine. There are some real good military doctors, those that attended to me just weren't oriented toward sports medicine.  Since then, and early on into the Ironman training, I went to the Saint Vincent Sports Medicine folks and learned an array of stretches that have kept me "in the game" and actually feeling a little more limber than in years past.  Of course, it takes a good 20 minutes a day to go through the routine, but that's the price you pay when you don't pay attention to your coaches in high school.  It also something that I try to incorporate with my soccer and floor hockey teams at the YMCA, but falls mostly on deaf ears.  Go figure.  I'll post some of my "favorites" in future posts just as a favor to those suffer from the infamous Planter Fasciitis and IT Band problems.  The recent take that it is bad running form is garbage, but I'm willing to take their ideas and thoughts into account.

Hm, this post was a little longer than I thought it would be.

On-On.

Amateur PsychoAnalysis Part 1 - Myself, the Athlete.

During my training for the Ironman, I spent a lot of time by myself.  Lots of time in the pool swimming lap after lap after lap,  lots of mileage in the wee hours of the morning chugging out miles runnings, and even more mileage on the bike just watching the scenery go by and avoiding traffic and potholes.  Occasionally I would catch up with a fellow rider and bullshit the miles away, but those times were far and few in between.  Other than normal mundane thoughts of work and the kid's social calenders, I would sometimes get these questions in my head, and not just things like "How did that pair of shoes get on the power line?" or "If the drain in this pool broke, how fast would I get flushed into the sewage system?"  Most of the time, it was:  Why?  As in, why am I doing this? Why do I keep forking over hundreds of dollars a year and hundreds more on a sport where there is no "real" return on investment?  And finally, I had an answer, or something fairly close to one.

Sitting at a dinner the other day and a friend asked if I was planning on doing another Ironman.  I told her probably in a couple of years, maybe 3-5.  My wife and brother heard the exchange and threw back my words from the finishing chute in Louisville, "Never Again...."  My wife told me later that she understood that it was like any other addiction, and not as bad as some.  She was right.  Of all the activities that I have in my life, and all the things that I could blog about, I choose to focus on a sport.  I tend to morph my calender around what the kids are doing and not around what races I have scheduled for the year.  Don't get me wrong, I don't let my family come in second place to athletic endeavours, at least not anymore, but I have been there before.  Back in the competitive running days, when I actually won a few 5 and 10K races, I would feel like my day was ruined if I didn't put at least 6 miles in.  Nowadays, I don't feel defined as a triathlete or an Ironman, or really much of anything.  I'm sure if you asked my family, co-workers, and friends they'd have some choice definitions.  As I've stated before, training for an Ironman, takes a lot of time, and well, when I'm by myself for that long, I tend to start mental writing projects.  Which is why I always get taken in by Nanowrimo every November.

My next post, I will continue on to the generic triathlete.  I've been reading quite a few blogs in the past couple years and pretty much enjoy them all.  Some are more nuerotic nerfbags than myself, and some seem to be like me in that this is just a fun sport and great lifestyle.  I tend to follow blogs anonymously, it's just how I am, and I really figured no one would ever read my drivel.  I've tried to make it somewhat interesting and am always looking for newer ways to make it better.  But I actually have a follower and in appreciation that he is the first one, and probably only one, I'd like to thank Big Daddy Diesel for taking an interest.

On On...

Back At It Again...

When I last put up a post, I added a couple of pictures and mentioned that it was supposed to snow until 7:00 PM the following day.  Well, the winter storm warning was extended twice more and almost 50" of the white crap fell total.  I expect it to snow, and do some weird crazy stuff in the winter, and to be cold, and to be miserable, and to actually train my thoughts to tell me that the shoveling is a good substitute for weights.  After 9 years of "expectations" and lifting the wet, salt enriched mounds, thanks Penn DOT (add expletive here,) I finally went and bought a snow blower.  I got to use it, and laughed for the entire time.  No regrets for not having pulled the trigger and bought one earlier, but happy that I have a mean, kick-ass machine that has made life that much easier.  Kind of like switching from my 45 lb bike to the 23 lb version in 1987 when I was just starting triathlons as a teenager.  I've told my wife that if I never used it again this winter and not have to use it for another three years, then I'll still feel as if it were worth every penny. I might even be nice to college students in the near vicinity and clear a path for them.  I might.  And to add my thoughts on the California rain...suck it.

However, when it snows, running in it really starts to suck.  Not because the shoes get wet, or that the odds of getting hit by a vehicle increase, since there are no berms and you're forced to run a little more in the streets, but mainly since it takes that much longer to get done.  And with shoes, it does eventually start to suck.  I'm happy to be running, but the motivation to actually get out the door is where the problems are starting to lie.

Since the retirement last week of a co-worker and the continued absence of another one due to a knee replacement, it has been pretty busy at work.  Equipment never breaks in 70 degree weather on a spring or summer day, only in the late fall and winter when there is 3 feet of snow and the temps are hovering in the teens.  Even though I'm healthy, it still takes a lot out of you, and sleeping in is almost mandatory to feel at least partially human.  Add coaching two floor hockey teams at the Y and there just doesn't seem to be  enough time to do much of anything else.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, I'm happy to be employed and have active kids, it's just a statement that sometimes, and here comes a statement that I'm starting to hate, life happens.  I've also taken the time to start the finish work on some new drywall on the stairwell.  It's coming along swimmingly, but all I have to say is that I'm happy that new carpeting was in my wife's overall renovation planning.

My racing schedule for this year has pretty much taken shape for the year and I'm happy with it for the most part.  I have quite a few sprint triathlons in the forecast and would have added a couple of Olympics and most likely the Triple T Event in Ohio, except for one thing.  The races are on Sundays.  The Louisville Ironman has been the only exception to my rule of racing on the Lord's Day.  The first day of the week is reserved for God and for being in his house of worship.  In the last couple of years, I have entered events on Sundays, but in both cases, I have been able to make it to worship services both times.  There have been a lot of races that I would have loved to take part in, but they are scheduled on days that I choose not to race on.  I have no regrets and it's not a problem for me either.  Nor do I condemn those who do choose to race or play golf on those days, it's their choice.

I am trying to hold true to the updating the blog once a week, but well, It'll just have to happen as I can get to it.  My amateur psychoanalysis of the triathlete is still in the works and it amazes me how detailed that I have made it in my mind.  I am still planning on breaking it down into a small series, but just haven't figured it how.  I know that when I swim laps and start to let my mind wonder on the subject, I forget my lap count and everything goes to hell in a hand basket.

Until then...On On.

ERC New Years Day 5 Miler.

The view from the front porch and the fresh snow that had fallen since I shoveled it off 20 minutes before the picture was taken.

The view from the front porch looking down the street.  The picture was taken at 1:00 PM and snow was still falling.  In fact, it hasn't stopped and not really supposed to until 7:00 PM tomorrow. It's pretty much days like this that I ask myself why I still live here.  I amuse my wife by telling her it it's a rhetorical question, but with every passing year, it becomes less of one.

Most of the time, running in this isn't too bad, the roads are plowed and they aren't too icy, well not all the time anyway.  There are a lot of alternatives for training with this crap too.  Cross Country skiing is very popular, but surprisingly, it's sort of difficult to get the equipment without travelling to one of the ski resort areas in New York. If there is a place in PA, I haven't found it yet.  I take the kids sled riding up and down the hill, and after lugging the small one up a few dozen times, I get tired.  And cycling, well, good luck with that.  Several people I know like the cyclocross bikes, but after spending a five hours cleaning up the tri bikes and then the two mountain bikes, plus the two kids bikes, I just don't know how much fun it would be.  Usually by March, I get so bent out of shape from sitting in the basement on the stationary bike watching Netflix and sports, that I pretty much go stir crazy and give up and out comes the mountain bike for some snow riding.   Just that the snow in March isn't like this interminable crap.

For those blogs that I read where they're sitting in California and places south where this doesn't exist:  Bite it.  I'll still read your blogs, but I laugh at your stupid excuses that the weather was "too cold" or that it rained a little.

Anyway, on with the race report:

The Erie's Runner Club throws a nice little 5 miler at Presque Isle in Erie, for those of us that either a.) don't party, b.) have smaller kids that curtails the partying, or c.) still party, get drunk, but decided that since they pre-registered, they might as well get on out and sweat a little alchohol out of the system.  The race had 300 people, according to the timing company, competing in this excursion, and supposedly the temperature was 29 degs.  While that may be, I bet with the blowing wind off of Lake Erie, it was closer to 10, or I'll be generous and call it 15 degrees.  Either way, it was cold, and I had the tights and wind pants for the legs, and the compression shirt, sweatshirt and wind jacket for the torso with the prerequisite knit cap and gloves for the rest.  The amazing thing about winter running is this:  When running into the wind, you're glad you have all the gear on and when your running with the wind, it sucks knowing that taking any of the gear off will such even more when the turn to the finish means going back into the wind.

The first 1.5 miles was into the wind, the road was covered with crunchy ice and snow, but the footing was pretty decent. My truck key "popped" out of my arm pocket for the first time ever, and I profusely thanked the kind gentleman who picked it up and came sprinting after me.  I hoped it didn't screw his race up doing it either.  After that I got back into the groove, and at the downwind turn for the next 2.5 miles, I unzipped, but not too much, and started to pick people off a little more than in the previous race.  The footing was very consistant, sucked in the areas where cars had driven, but better just off to the side.  As we hit the final turn for the trip home the last mile, the footing got quite a bit worse and the stride a little more choppier.  I had been averaging about 7:30 a mile and I was plum tickled with that, but injuries suck, and a winter being laid up would suck even worse.  Although I could play a lot more Modern Warfare 2 and maybe get past the stupid boathouse scenario on Left4Dead.  Regardless, even though the last mile was a little tricky, I was quite pleased with the 38:29 finish.  Left me 59th overall and 8th of 20 in the age group.

The post race digs were sweet, lots of food, and hot drinks.  Even offered dogs and kraut for those so inclined.  I knew that I had some pork ready for later so I declined.  I give this race a big thumbs up and may do it again next year. Maybe.  I really hate the cold.

Happy New Year!

No, not the Scales.

For some reason, if I don't have a race, and we're talking one of substance and not the New Years 5 Miler, I just kind of go to hell in a handbasket for the Holiday season.  Knowing this is true, I just can't break the habit and adjust the eating or ramp up the training just a little bit.  So, in spite of all this knowledge, I still got on the scales and noted that I am back up to 180 lbs for the first time in 9 months.  I'm not worried about it much, mainly because I know that when January 2nd hits, I faithfully get an amazing rush of adrenaline to train for the upcoming year.

Musings:

The schedule has also been made a little more solid since I will be in Oklahoma City for a good part of June.  I've found two triathlons on succesive weekends for two of the three weeks I'll be there. This is all tentative, but I'm happy that I have a couple of races to ease the irritation that I'm feeling for not being able to race the hometown Edinboro Triathlon a course on which I train constantly.  Life goes on though and this crap happens.

The local newspaper had a front page article on Terry Fuller and his finish at Kona. He's a nice guy and after knowing that he grew up with heart issues and had a stroke in the not so distant past, makes me feel that much better for his accomplishment.  Being an Ironman is awesome, but to do it at the big enchilada makes it that much sweeter. 

I have decided that my next Ironman will be in Hawaii, just when depends on when lottery system draws my name.  I have time, and God willing, the health to wait it all out.  Right now, I'm happy to get back to seeing how the training works on sprint and olympic events.

Two months after the last real rides and I have yet to clean up the bikes. Seeing as though the four that I need to clean up are sitting/hanging right behind me, I can't claim that I don't know where they're at or can claim "out of sight out of mind" so I might need to turn off the Modern Warfare 2 or Left 4 Dead long enough to get it all done.  Something in my head says "Good luck with that."

Site News...Or People are actually reading this?!

A couple of years ago, my boss came back from a "management" course and came up with a rather craptaculer mission statement.  It reminded me of those Motivational posters that you see in Dentist Offices or in a college locker room somewhere.  Anyway, I came across this ultra cool website, Despair.com , and shortly after I decided use some thiers, the whole scheme died a quick merciful death.  We may still have the stupid Mission Statement, but the rest of the motivation died quickly. When I signed up for the Ironman, I wanted to keep a chronicle of what it was I was doing and keep track of my thoughts.  I read a lot of race reports on iamtri and the Beginner Triathlete websites, and then found some Blogs and decided that maybe I'd give it a go.  After Louisville, I thought of shutting it down and going on my merry way, but then realized that I could make it a little better and use it as a supplemetal.  I follow some blogs, from the backgound, and I read a lot of others.  I tried a couple pictures, and some neat little gadgets and decided it was just fine for me.  But then something interesting happened.  I noticed that there were some hits.  And that some people were actually at least looking at it.  So over the last couple days, and while watching part of the Ironman on NBC, I decided I would give it a go at being interesting.  Or it'll suck and I'll close it down in a few months.

Starting in the new year, I will be doing something that has been on my mind since I've been doing midless laps in the pool and trying to formulate the 2010 race schedule. And after watching the Ironman on TV and the people around me, I will be doing a 4 part, yep, 4 part series of amatuer psychological profiles on the Triathlete and the athletes of the 3 sports that make it up. Seeing as 98% of all triathletes specialized in one of the three as some point prior to becoming triathletes, or multi-sport athletes as some in the Tri Club want it to be.  I got the original idea for doing this after reading several blogs of athletes and their endeavours to find "balance" in their lives.  I would like to update my thoughts, race reports, profiles, training tips, and what not at least once a week.  Sometimes life will get in the way, but with 3 kids and a wife, that is to be expected.

Ultimately, if no one likes my blog, I can live with that. But, it lets me play with some HTML programming and other geeky crap that makes up a small part of my universe.

Yet Another Race.

On occasion, I get a chance to look at the Tri Find, Active, and Slow Twitch websites to see if there are new races in the area to try out.  After the Turkey Trot, I decided to try a couple more of the Erie Runner's Club events to see if they were just as good.  There is a 5K this weekend, but my wife will be out in the woods looking for deer and I will be coaching my last soccer game, throwing some mud on the new drywall, and keeping the kids from destroying the rest of the house in the process.  When you have kids, the New Year's Eve events aren't as big a deal as they were during the single and without kids years, so I can probably get out of the house for a 10:00 AM race.  Maybe.  I used to be able to consume copious amounts of barley, hops, and grain related products, but now, lets just say that a case of beer lasts almost 2 years sitting on top of the basement fridge.   Needless to say, the ERC is putting on a 5 mile event and I plan on attending.

Even though I am still competitive, I'm not the world beater that I might have thought I was 13, 14 years ago.  Nowadays, I get interested in what kind of goody bag is available.  I still like the low entry fees and no frill events, where all you get is a bib number and a cup of water at the end.  But, if they are going to offer a long sleeve t-shirt, like the Turkey Trot, or a wind shirt, like this event is planning on giving away, then I'll fork over the $21 for the entry fee.  Should I win an award, which is not real likely, then so much the better.  I have two rubbermaid boxes filled with race shirts that I am one day planning on using for a quilt one day when I'm sitting in a rest house and freezing my ass off.  Pretty much the only things I keep are the bib numbers which, through no foresight of my own, have been marked with dates, times, and results on them.  Lately I've been putting them into a photo album as sort of race history.  Why?  So that I have something to read while freezing my ass off in the aforementioned rest home.

At the larger triathlons, namely the Muncie Endurathon and the Louisville Ironman, the swag bags were pretty decent, but with the large amount of entry fee money required, it was almost expected.  I guess the big dilemma is, would you rather pay more for some decent swag, or pay less and get less.  Based on the current economic state, I imagine the paying less and getting less, or as the Erie Runners club does, give an option of shirt or not, may become the norm.  However, if the costs keep rising and liability does as well, then it might simply become pay more and get less.  But, as I've noticed, there seems to be quite a few more people at races than there were just a year or so ago. With that thinking, there shouldn't be a rise in entry fees then. The garbage answer you get is that the more people who are racing, then the more the liability.

Either way, I'll be racing my way around Presque Isle again on New Years to kick off the new calender of racing.  I've been looking at some new ideas for some new blog ideas.  I've almost thought about some political entries, but realized that this just isn't the forum for it.  I guess some of the more humorous blogs I've been reading lately are about striking a balance or how to be less neurotic and self centered.  I've got some ideas on that.  I'm not blasting anyone I've read, I'm just surprised at how conflicted they seem to be.  I see the same types of people in my own tri club, so a point of view is not to hard to develop.  As for myself, I wouldn't even be doing a blog if I wasn't a nerfbag of some sort myself.

So be it.  On-On.