I have had a lot of people requesting that I post a blog about my race at the Silverman Triathlon in Henderson, NV this past November. Well… here you go…

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE GET IN TOUCH WITH ME

Kimberley Teh 09178440221

kimteh.ayalalandpremier@gmail.com

Club president Sean Rubino and vice president Stephen Morse kicked off the 2009-2010 Golden Eagle tri season at the University of Redlands Bulldog Triathlon.

[Description of the course]

[Description of the competition]

[Placings and times]

[Calendar of Events]

Na minha opinião, se existe alguma dica ou opinião/orientação de como fazer provas de endurance, seria de forma consistente. Você diria, como assim??? Veja bem, estou falando de como fazer, ou seja, tática de prova, e não de como treinar para uma prova, isso seria outro assunto. CONSISTÊNCIA, brother. Não adianta fazer pico se depois vem um vale. O negócio é a média alta,ainda que num primeiro momento ela pareça menor se comparado a dos outros, mas espere um pouquinho e verá que estará na frente. Quem já não viu o pessoal que “voa” no ciclismo, faz um excelente tempo e quando entrega a bike já sai quase andando? De que adiantou?  NADA!

Todo triatleta que se precie, debe tener lo que se denomina en el argot del gremio una “cabra”, que no es otra cosa que una bicicleta de carretera con una geometría más agresiva.  Dicha geometría adelanta la posición del ciclista y lo vuelca sobre el manillar, permitiendo una posición más aerodinámica.

Foto: www.xtri.com

Para contribuir a esta posición  “aero”, en las disciplinas de larga distancia el manillar convencional se suele sustituir por uno específico con aspecto de nave espacial del Retorno del Jedi (Una especie de “W”). Por último y sobre este van los “acoples”, que son dos barras paralelas que parten de ambos lados de la potencia del manillar. Sobre estas se apoyarán las manos y  disponen de unas almohadillas sobre las que reposarán los codos. Estos acoples, son los que dan el sobrenombre de “cabras” a estas bicis. En la punta de las barras, estarán ubicadas las palancas de cambio.

Estas “cabras” tienen el inconveniente de tener precios prohibitivos y más teniendo en cuenta su escasa versatilidad. Prácticamente todas las marcas incluyen alguna en su catálogo, pero algunas solo aceptan pedidos por encargo, lo que les confiere aun mayor exclusividad.
Todas son muy llamativas y hoy en día se fabrican íntegramente en carbono, salvo contadas excepciones.
Las bicis de triathlon, son similares a las que habitualmente vemos en las contrarelojes de competiciones populares como el Tour de Francia.  Supongo que todos os acordaréis de Indurain y su “Flecha”.

Las bicis de triathlon suelen tener algunas particularidades más, siempre enfocadas a la aerodinámica, como un cuadro con perfil más plano, tijas integradas (barra que sube hasta el sillín), cableado interno y además suelen acompañarse de ruedas con perfil, de palos, o incluso lenticulares. Las ruedas juegan un papel fundamental en la aerodinámica.

¿Para qué le pueden servir estas bicis a un triatleta popular? ¿Realmente vas más rápido? ¿Son incómodas?  Pues para que os voy a contar historias… Estas bicis no andan solas y la ganancia para alguien del montón como nosotros, es escasa.  La aerodinámica se nota, sin duda alguna, pero pierde eficacia en puertos de montaña y te permite ganar en llano, bajadas y subidas no muy pronunciadas. En función de la talla que escojas y el juego que hagas con la posición del sillín y longitud de la potencia del manillar, podrás obtener un equilibrio razonable entre incomodidad (aerodinámica) y comodidad (pérdida de eficacia)
Probablemente y según artículos que he leído y que no pienso buscar de nuevo, te permite ganar entorno a 2km de cada 100. Puede parecer poco, pero en el caso de un Ironman quitarte esos minutos a base de entrenamiento, supone un trabajo realmente duro. De modo que bienvenidos sean!

Realmente hay otra motivación para adquirir una de estas y no todo el mundo lo reconoce… y es la psicológica! Estas bicis son preciosas y tienen un aspecto de misil que asusta. Siempre miras con admiración al que te pasa al lado con una cabra ultrafashion y quieras que no, pasas muchas horas encima de la bici. De modo que ¿por qué no? Para mí es una motivación importante. Siempre hace más ilusión ir montado en un Ferrari que en un Seat, aunque no puedas pasar de 120km/h.
Desde luego no hay que comerse la cabeza con este asunto, pero si te lo puedes permitir sin tener que vender a tu familia, son todo ventajas.

En mi caso y siempre recurriendo a material de segunda mano, exposición, liquidaciones de años anteriores, etc… He conseguido montar una BH Aero como la que lució el famoso triatleta español Eneko Llanos en Kona (campeonato del mundo de larga distancia).

Los componentes a grandes rasgos, son:

• Cuadro BH Aero 2009
• Manillar, acoples y manetas Vision Full Carbon
• Sillín Profile
• Grupo completo Dura-Ace 7800
• Frenos Dura-Ace
• Ruedas Hed 60
• Portabidones + inflator XLabs

De momento no he competido con ella, pero estoy realmente contento e ilusionado. Va muy muy suave, la postura es cómoda y será la que me lleve directamente a la meta en el Ironman de Niza en 2010.

As you know, I’m in “training” (AKA: deluding myself) for a triathlon (The Spudman) on July 31, 2010 . I do not look like a porn star nor do I resemble an athlete. As a 5 year-old, however, everyone always told me I looked like Gretel from The Sound of Music… but that’s neither here nor there and doesn’t help in the fitness department.

Last Friday A, my trainer, suggested I run in Alexandria’s annual Turkey Trot — a 5 miler through parts of the city. Of course since the “new math” concept never really sunk in with my generation (which might be why we purchase milk and gas in gallons but soda in liters), I assumed 5 miles was 5 kilometers (3.1 miles). Not so. 5 miles. Ugh. And the worst part? I’ve only worked out once in the last 2 weeks… so I was in no way prepared to do anything. Oh well.

By mile 2, need to pee permeated my thoughts. Blisters, lots of dogs to avoid, and misty rain joined me on my journey (I left visiting family behind). But wait. It’s all good news: No asthma attacks! I didn’t wet myself! And the biggest accomplishment… I ran all 5 miles without stopping!!!

I know there are scores of real runners out there who are no doubt harrumphing my “triumph.” I don’t care. It was my first real race and while I can’t feel my legs right now, I finished. Imagine what I could have done if I’d actually prepared for it! OK, I realize that’s a stretch but maybe I could have shaved a minute off time. I’m not looking for miracles here.

I think there are a few 5K races I’ll do next month. Maybe (hopefully) I can improve my run time but if not, at least I know I can finish. Next stop… Burley, Idaho!

I’m republishing my post from last year. Because it’s still true. Don’t know if that makes me boring or lucky.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

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Thanksgiving 2008

Recently my blogging buddies have been sharing what they’re thankful for and it got me thinking…and then of course I do my best thinking while writing…so you get to share in my thoughts. Lucky you.

Bert. I’d write all about what an amazing person he is but that would take pages and pages (really more along the lines of War and Peace) so I’m just going to say that I’m thankful we’re together. I’m always bubbling over with pride at his amazing photos so I gotta share them with you too…The Bert V Jensen website and at Flickr.

Now Voyager. Best horse a girl could ever have. Thank you Bev (from the bottom of my heart every single moment of every day) for the gift of this amazing creature. It’s like I was living in a black and white world – happy enough but horse free. And then Now Voyager arrived and my days became technicolor and rich and right. After a 15 year hiatus I became a horse-crazy girl once again.

Here’s a super cool shot Bert took of me cuddling with Now Voyager:

Zinger the super cat. I don’t have kids so yes, I pour all the love and hugs and kisses I would shower on my children right into my cat. And he just soaks it up. Thanks Zinger for putting up with us.

Blogging. I took a writing class a year ago from Jon Carroll, a favorite columnist of mine at the SF Chronicle. I’ve been reading his column for years and it was a real treat to learn from the master of the personal essay. Jon shared much advice that day but the thing he repeated A LOT was “writers write.” Blogging started me writing daily. And I’m loving it.

Health. I am so deeply thankful that I am physically strong and healthy and becoming more so each and every day. Discovering the sport of triathlon has this amazing side benefit too…a host of fun loving, supportive and entertaining triathlon bloggers who’ve kindly allowed me join their club and play along.

happy thanksgiving everyone!
Kathleen

Michelle, Caroline and Phil preparing for Lake Hood

This Saturday many of Marlborough’s triathletes will be competing in the South Island Half Ironman Champs in Lake Hood near Ashburton.  Martyn Crossley, Rachel Monk, Michelle Catterick, Sharon de Castro, Leonie van den Bergh  and Marg McKendry are having their first crack at this event.  Steve Smith, Almuth Waechter, Yasmin Gee, and Lynne Haines all competed last year and are having another go. For local veteran Phil – the blokes lane was full – Binnie, it will be his third year in a row at the event.

This year 115 individuals and 30 teams have entered in the Half Ironman with more attempting shorter distance triathlons and another 100 runners have entered the Half Marathon being staged at the same time. The swim leg is a two lap course in the lake for a total of 1.9 km, followed by a two circuit bike ride which is 90 km in total and lastly the competitors return to the lake and run around it three times to complete the last 21 km run leg.  The race starts at 8am on 28 November. Race report to follow.

First off – my apologies for my long awaited return – and whatever happened to my last blog in September! It went awol. I meant to re-type it but there’s been a lot going on in my life and the desire to write just fell by the wayside. I did re-type it. It was basically all about my new coach’s training plan.

Okay – onward. September was tough. Work was tough – trying to figure out “tri language” from the new coach was tough. Getting back into a work out routine was tough.

I did get into it though by the beginning of October. I bought a book about triathlon for women. It’s a great reference book and half way through it, I realize in terms of equipment, I’m pretty prepared. I do still need to learn how to change a bike tire though before outdoor training! The plyometrics are definitely working. My muscles are firing quicker – and my legs got bigger! Putting on skinny jeans now is like putting on tights.

We advanced to two runs, a long run and a swim and increased difficulty on the core workouts and plyometrics. Unfortunately, I went away on holidays at the beginning of November for a week back to Palm Springs with my mom right when the bike workouts started. I had forgotten what it was like to not be on a schedule and loved it – maybe too much.

Now that I’m back, it’s been hard to get into routine. Last night I was cranky. The thought of sitting on a windtrainer indoors for a half hour or doing burpees because I have to was making me angry. I compare biking on a windtrainer to running on a treadmill. I suddenly detested living in this cold climate. I told Marc last night that maybe I’m feeling a bit of burn out. He suggested working out for the fun of it. Don’t do what I was scheduled to do – just do any kind of work out I want. So I was on the eliptical for 20 minutes and ran for 10. Did I enjoy myself? Yes.

Don’t get me wrong. I like to swim, bike and run. I see the purpose to plyometrics but mentally, I find it boring. I like weights but doing 4 sets of a lot of different weights is time consuming. I look forward to training outside again. It’s going to be a long winter.

Maybe I could deal with this more if work was a little less stressful. We had to apply for a Work Share program (the business reduces employees’ work hours to save money and in turn, employees are allowed to collect EI). It’s a good program but it’s a sign of the times. My boss isn’t sure if things are going to turn around for her business and it might mean the end if we don’t get out of this in a year. I’ll survive – my skills are easily transferrable – but the rest of the staff are professionals with Masters Degrees in a field where there isn’t a lot of jobs. It’s been tough on everyone and contracts are being put on hold “until next year” or so our clients say. They’re suffering too with budget cuts.

But I digress. I need to get focused. Following Marc’s suggestion is a good start. Enjoy working out and don’t look at it as training just yet – just maintenance. Oh, I got my Alberta Triathlon Association membership, registered for the Calgary marathon and I have two 1/2 Ironman races that I have in mind to do next year. If I can make it through Christmas and avoid the excessive drinking and eating, stay focused, I’ll get back on track. Just need to stay positive and have faith.

Anyway, I’m back. I’ll keep you posted on my progress!

Det er selvfølgelig svært at gætte på – men man kan jo altid præge det som kommer til at ske. Som altid vil udgangspunktet være, at have det sjovt og være glad Som det ser ud lige nu, har jeg tre forskellige projekter som jeg tror bliver rigtige sjove. De er alle lidt ’sports’ inspireret – men det er jo også dejligt at bruge sin krop!

Copenhagen Marathon – 23 Maj 2010
Jeg har fået den mærkelige ide, at det kunne være sjovt at løbe en marathon. Jeg kan ikke helt forklare hvad det er som gør, at dette kunne være sjovt – og må vel indrømme at jeg mere tror det er udfordringen ved marathon som gør det sjovt. Og for at det, som så mange andre gange, ikke bare skal blive ved ideen har jeg allerede købt et startnummer… Det hjælper også lidt på motivationen. Spændende bliver det i hvert fald… og jeg GLÆDER mig til at se skiltet og få medaljen om halsen.

Et andet stort spørgsmål er  hvilken tid jeg kommer ind i. Jeg starter stille og roligt ud med at sige, at målet er at gennemfører… og så selv om jeg nok har lidt større ambitioner end bare at gennemfører, men dem kan jeg jo altid afsløre når løbet begynder at nærme sig.

Adventure Race
En af de andre ting jeg glæder mig til i 2010 er at – forhåbentlig – få lov til at lave nogle flere Adventure Races. Hvis der skulle være nogle, som ikke helt har styr på hvad Adventure Race er så foreslår jeg at kigge lidt nærmere på www.boostadventure.dk. Planen er at jeg kan få lov til at hjælpe/kører for et i forvejen etableret hold – må indrømme jeg ikke rigtig ved så frygtelig meget om det endnu… Men det bliver med garanti spændende og sjovt

Danmarks Smukkeste Triathlon
Til august løber Danmarks Smukkeste Triathlon afstablen i Silkeborg – og der har jeg også planer om at deltage. Distancen bliver en halv-ironman – og her bliver målet, ligesom med Copenhagen Marathon, at gennemfører…. Og det er selvfølgelig heller ikke helt rigtig. Man har vel altid lidt krav og mål man syntes man skal leve op til, og det samme gør sig gældende her

Svømningen foregår i Almindesø. Cyklingen i og omkring Silkeborg – og hvis Silkeborg og omegn har kunne opfostre et så stærk bjergged som Fuglsang, så er det nok ikke helt fladt…. Løbet er engang omkring Almindesø, og så man klappe sig selv på skulderen, være stolt over at have gennemført – og så selvfølgelig kigge frem mod en rigtig Ironman

One in a million
Jeg er så småt gået igang med at træne til de forskellige ting – og så alligevel ikke helt. Mest på hygge niveau. Jeg har aldrig haft ondt i mine ben af at løbe – og det er selvfølgelig en løgn. Men jeg har aldrig sådan haft ondt i andet end musklerne. Efter at jeg så har fået købt nogle ‘rigtige’ løbesko og som var neutrale som min løbestil, har jeg dog fået ondt i min svang. Det viser sig så, at jeg åbenbart løber neutralt, men har en høj svang og derfor ikke får noget støtte i neutrale sko… Hvilket åbenbart ikke er sådan skide normalt. Men i dag var jeg nede og få købt en ny sål som gerne skulle rette op på dette – så nu giver jeg foden endnu en uges ro og så prøver jeg starte op igen

Alt, alt for langt indlæg – jeg må hellere stoppe. Holm. Out!

I drank a lot of water leading up to the start. Extra water plus nerves equals needing to pee badly. No bathrooms? No problem, I’ll take care of business when I get in the river. We line up and head down the ramp to the Savannah river. I ease myself in and immediately become thankful that I have a wetsuit on. The water is cold. Much colder than expected (likely due to all of the recent rain). Despite the full bladder, nerves, and now the cold water, I cannot pee. I suppose it’s because I’m surrounded by people. I’ll have better luck once I get out in the open. I positioned myself on the outside. Despite being a strong swimmer, I don’t feel compelled to take a foot in the face to save a few seconds. I’ll take my time and find my own pace. The gun goes off and the arms and legs start flailing. I take my time, still trying to get used to the cold water. I have no need to fight to stay in the front pack so I just enjoy a nice swim. Don’t get me wrong, I was working but I have a long day ahead of me; I’m not killing myself in the first 30 minutes. And I can’t, for the life of me, pee while I’m swimming. I tried. I really did. I figured at some point my body would give in and let it go but nope, no such luck.

I exited the water and looked at my watch. It read something like 27 minutes. I was shocked. They said there was a slight current but I felt like I hadn’t pushed much at all and I’m finishing 10 minutes faster than in Muncie. I will take it.

I take it easy on the long run to transition and bypass the wetsuit strippers. 1. Wetsuits are not that hard to take off 2. Laying wet on grass and dirt equals mud and grass plastered all over you for the rest of the day. I sit down to put my socks and shoes on, grab the rest of my gear and take off. T1 finished in 3:40.

I took the first couple miles of the bike pretty easy, trying to find an open spot and get my legs warmed up. It didn’t take long though. I got in a good rhythm and was flying. It felt really good. Wind seemed calm and the roads were flat. I wasn’t hammering but pushing to keep the good momentum going. I still have to pee. I know some people can pee while they are on the bike but I couldn’t even let it go in the water, there is no way I could even imagine trying to pee on the bike. I make it to the first of 3 aid stations and decide I have to use the porta potty. Luckily it was open so I was in and out. Ahhhh, so much better. Now that my bladder is empty, I can really fly. I have a great time and I’m making awesome time. I’m surely going to crush my time from Muncie. But then all of the sudden, we started heading back. Unfortunately this wasn’t an out and back course but a loop. And the second half of the loop had a LOT of hills. I didn’t spend the time driving the course but looked at some pictures and over heard some talk of a few hills, etc. but I had no idea. I suck at hills and every time we went up I got crushed more and more. And to top it off, the wind picked up just after the last aid station and the last 10 miles seemed to be uphill with an open head wind. I also didn’t bring my 3bar on the bike opting, instead, for more gels. The combination of everything really made those last few miles of the bike truly torturous. My bike time wasn’t going to be as awesome as I thought but I still had a good chance of reaching my goal time so long as I have a good run. I try spinning in an easy gear and make my way back to transition. T2 in and out in 1:30. I use the time to mentally put the bike behind me and focus on the run.

Starting the run, I try to take it easy and build up. The first mile went well and the second mile felt good despite being a little slower. But by the third mile I was really starting to hurt. My stomach had that “I feel so empty I want to puke” feeling but I knew I couldn’t eat too much or I would actually start puking. I had a little Gatorade (which never tastes good on an empty stomach).  The sun is out now and it is a lot warmer than expected. I try to drink plenty of water and use sponges in my jersey to keep cool. As I pass the turn in point for the finish, the realization that my run is only half over is little tough to handle. What’s worse is that I had really put in a lot of work hoping my run would be a lot better. Fortunately, Tani was right there after the turn in and seeing her definitely boosted my spirits. As I neared the aid station at the start of the second lap, my legs started cramping pretty bad. I decided I had to walk. Walking in a race, to me, is just one step from quitting so it really hurts to do it but there is no way I can continue running. Thank god for whoever thought it would be a good idea to have real food at an aid station!  There, right before my eyes were oranges and bananas! I’m surprised I didn’t give the volunteers hugs. The banana tasted so good. I grabbed a bunch of water and sponges and took off again. The second half was still very tough but there were tons of spectators out there cheering everyone on so I just kept pushing through it. The realization that there was no way I would meet my run or overall goal anymore was tough but I kept reminding myself that this isn’t an easy sport. If it was easy, it wouldn’t mean as much to do a race like this. I could quit if I wanted to but why? What would that accomplish? Nothing at all. I crossed the finish line with a final time of 5:42:01. It may not have been the time I wanted but it is still a good time and, more importantly, I learned something. I know that next time, when times are tough and maybe things aren’t going the way I want, I know that I can push through it and come out on top.

If you are like me who works 8 hours plus a day, got a wife, kids plus other activities and hobbies but truly interested in joining next years Ironman 70.3 Philippines next year…you may want to check this out.

This program is based on my years of experience in the sport, and my life as an ordinary working-family man in consideration of the many responsibilities (personal and professional) that somehow, the need to accomplish a feat comes close to priority 1-must need to! Moreover, this is in response to the many emails and text messages from friends and readers of my site wanting to join IM Phil with little or no experience in triathlons. For the naysayers and dickheads, I would like to reiterate that I am no expert nor champion but merely an average age-grouper a few pounds overweight with blisters and corn in every crevice of my body.

For starters, I would like to emphasize that this program is meant for those who have a considerable amount of fitness. Meaning, those who can swim, bike and run (not consecutively) in a moderate manner. I highly suggest to consult your doctor or physician before getting into this program or any physical activity for that matter. I cannot guarantee that undergoing this program will give you “uber” supernatural strength and finish the race below cut off time.

As an average pinoy, my limited budget dictates that I do not have the luxury of a heart rate monitor, gps system or cyclometer with cadence. Hence, i am going old school with this training program like the early days of Dave Scott and Molina. If by chance that your are blessed with cash, do partake in proper equipment such as those mentioned earlier. Nothing beats technology nowadays.

Ok here we go…

This training program begins December of this year, wherein this is called the Adaptation phase. Like any well written speech, this given you an eye opener what to expect in the next few months of training. The intensity is fairly low but some may find it a too strenuous to begin with. Ergo, go easy at first. Adpatation will last exactly 4 weeks before 2009 ends.

Guidelines

• PE or Perceived exertion, 1 little effort and 5 being 100% effort.
  
• Swim means pick any of the previous swim programs I have posted in the past.
• Don’t fret if you missed a workout. Its fine, we are human. Just go on and continue the next day
• Leave 1 day for total rest
• Speed is not as important as consistency.
  
• Easy workouts every 4th Week called active recovery
• Listen to your body, DO NOT OVERTRAIN – go easy if you have to.
• This is time based to prevent serious injuries.
• BRICK: Means bike and run immediately – dont forget your shoes
  

Adaptation Week 1-4 Dec 2009

Monday                       Easy Run 30min

Tuesday                       BRICK: Bike 60 min trainer w intervals. PE 4, BRICK: Run 20 min intense PE 4

Wednesday                 Swim, Bike: 60min steady. Light recovery High Cadence

Thursday                     Rest

Friday                           Swim, Run: Easy Run 30min PE 2-3

Saturday                      Bike: Long 90 min PE 3-4

Sunday                         Run: Long Run 60min PE 3

Be safe and train wisely. Next Build Phase.

Hope to get a laptop soon so I can blog when I am out of town.

Spinning class tonight trying to see if I can break through the achilles tendon soreness. Seem to do alright tonight and then some jacuzzi time for the achilles.

Hope to switch gears a bit after thanksgiving and hope to incorporate some yoga and weight lifting.

Happy Thanksgiving!

what was it you wanted – Dylan as covered by Willie Nelson

Every Sunday morning, I have my regular long run or run-bike training. During my runs, I started to have this habit of praying, day dreaming and practice-preaching.

Praying of course is great! I’m thankful that I’m able to spend time with God that way.

Day dreaming make me look like crazy especially when I smile or smirk while running.

Practice-preaching saves me time by helping me multi-task.  On the other hand, I look insane and like a lunatic when bit of gestures show up when the preaching flow is “on a roll” in my mind!

Last Sunday I was thinking of WORK as I was about to preach it that day. And here’s the thing I realized about it which was not part of the preaching…

PEOPLE RUN THE PROGRAMS, NOT PROGRAMS RUNNING THE PEOPLE

I am wired administratively, I like activating people to work and I think strategically.  I fully believe in systems, procedures, processes and policies. I breathe it.

But at end of the day, all these things are made possible by people.  Programs, processes, systems, procedures & policies should not dictate how “people” should do things , rather it should help them do greater things if they utilize it.  Programs for people not people for programs.

I’m nominating my wife Katie for TriWidow of the year. This is my first season doing Tris and I foolishly signed up for a 1/2 iron man. When I signed up I couldn’t swim or run. We discussed what it would mean, and decided that it was okay for me to go ahead and do it. For the past two years Katie’s done support for the TransNH bike ride, a 250 mile 3-day ride I participate in, so she was used to the "I’m going for a bike ride… see you in a few hours" and she’s used to having a tired husband.

I think my training was average for a 1/2 iron and Katie put up with it. She was okay with me getting up at 4am to go swim, and not being home till late due to runs and rides. It took some getting used to, but the new schedule mostly worked. We both made consentions on what we wanted to do. I’m so thankful Katie supported me during all those long days.

My first tri is probably the pinnacle of my wife’s understanding and support. The night before my first tri she had tickets to see Brad Paisley with her aunt in concert in Connecticut  I got up in the morning and drove down the hour to the olympic race. Katie, who’d been out WAY past her bed time and slept over in CT started the hour and a half trek (on less then 3 hours sleep) to Ashland to meet up and cheer me on. At this point I have to point out that it had been raining for about 24 hours and some people had started building arks. As I pulled on my wetsuit at the car to head down to the swim start, Katie showed up with her Aunt and Uncle to cheer me on. They sloshed through the mud (losing shoes) and down to the swim start to cheer me on(and laugh at me when I slipped on the mud). After a horrendous 45 minute swim, I was dead tired. But Katie was there yelling at me to hurry up from under her umbrella. I made it through T1 and on to my bike. The course was a 2 loop course so I would end up seeing Katie again and she was right on the road yelling at me to speed up!! I got back from the bike and switching into my running shoes. I ran out for my 10k to Katie cheering me on with her Aunt and Uncle. As I came into the finish Katie had remembered that she had poster board and markers in her trunk from work. So I came into the finish of my first Tri to a sign saying " Go Joe!!"

So that alone should cinch the 2009 Tri Widow title for my wife, every tri widow puts up with the hours of training, the cranky tapers, and the families ‘where’s your spouse’? inquiries. But the first time Katie went to cheer me on for a Tri was on three hours sleep after a concert, during monsoon season here in New England!

That’s not enough? okay, then… How about the fact that I’m a card carrying member of the "just one more" club? When Katie and I first discussed my decision to Tri, it was a manageable schedule:

• Groton 10k
• Olympic Tri
• Harpoon B2B
• Trans NH Bike Ride
• Half Iron Tri

The schedule quickly grew:

• Groton 10k
• MS 100k Ride
• Olympic Tri
• Olympic Tri
• Harpoon B2B
• Trans NH Bike Ride
• Half Iron Tri
• Cigna 5k
• Mud Sweat N Gears Duathlon
• Manchester 1/2 Marathon
• 10k Turkey Trot

All through this Katie remained supportive, even if she was completely annoyed that I doubled the events we’d planned on.

After all the shirts I’ve earned this year, I think that Katie is a shoe in to win the TriWidow shirt for putting up with a husband who’s not quite right in his head!

Some people think outside the box. TEDxBrussels promised to burn the box but forgot to light it. Dan Martin intends to swim, cycle and run the box around the world. Seriously.

At high tide on May 8th 2010 I’ll dive in to the Hudson River from Battery Park in New York. I’ll swim down stream past the Statue of Liberty and across the Atlantic to Brest in France. I’ll be swimming eight hours a day, no wetsuit, no shark cage. When I touch the boat at night we will GPS mark the spot I finish and start from there the next day.

From Brest I’ll cycle east through Europe and across Russia. Pedalling through Siberia in winter and then crossing the Bering Straits when they’re (partially) frozen from Uelen to Cape Wales. The Bering Strait will be by far the most dangerous and challenging part of the trip. I’ll essentially be manhauling me and a floating sled across 50miles of slush ice and strong currents mainly in the dark.

From Cape Wales in Alaska I’ll run to New York finishing with a New York Marathon in November 2011.

What could possibly go wrong?

Dan, I wish you the best and will try to support you any way I can.

T2 was no problem…just had to remember to take off my helmet and grab my watch.  My legs definitely felt like jello as I set off on the run.  Ok, more like the jog.  I told myself just to keep my legs moving, I’d feel them eventually.  Most of the run was on a gravel trail through the park, parts of it running along a golf course.  It was a pretty nice area for a run so I tried to focus on the nice scenery instead of how tired I felt.  I had to stop for a minute near the beginning to tighten one of my shoelaces, it was driving me crazy.  That’s when I realized I was covered in grease from the bike chain.  My lovely white laces were no longer white.  The run, thankfully, had no dramatic moments like the bike.  I glanced at my watch as I passed the 1st mile marker and realized I had just run about a 10 minute mile.  I would consider this slow compared to my old 5k times, but I had just swam 300m, biked 20k, escaped a potential DNF, and hadn’t been able to run well in months–10 minutes was good!! I told myself to try to get to the next mile marker in another 10 minutes, and then do it again, and I pretty much did.

The end of the run was across an open field.  I always try to finish strong, and I can definitely say I did. I don’t know where it came from, but I sprinted across that finish line! It was hard to tell what my actual finish time was due to the staggered start (people had finished before I even got in the pool!), but I was pretty sure I’d beaten my goal of finishing in under two hours.

The husband greeted me at the finish line with a look of awe on his face.  He told me I crushed my goal. Bike mishap an all!

We looked around the post-race festivities as a cooled-down and re-hydrated.  I’d taken gatorade on the bike, but only drank about half my bottle.  The husband was quite excited about the post-race beers  I felt I had to have just because I could, but honestly I preferred the water and bagel  I bought myself a reward:

Not that the husband isn’t supportive or didn’t think I could do it, but he was seriously impressed and kept saying so the whole way home.  He caught my post-race fever  He even said in the car ride home he’d do it with me next year…that wore off by the time we got home- he said he’d rather play in a golf tournament. But I still appreciated the support  I was ravenous at this point so we stopped for some Subway, which I devoured.

Time to pick a race for next year!