My 2011 Race Season is Finally Here!

Hi Everyone,

I hope everyone had a great weekend!  The weather here in Atlanta was great, and evidenced by the numerous people out and about trying to escape the cabin fever that was this past winter.  I did just over 10 miles on Saturday for my last long run before the Publix Georgia Half Marathon this coming weekend, and then on Sunday I did a bit over 26 miles on the new bike (Silver Comet Trail).  I need to figure out a way to get my RunningAhead Training Log to post to my Facebook page.  Anyone know how to do that?  I am gonna eventually have my training log on one of the static page links at the top of my blog.  Speaking of which.... I guess you guys/gals have seen my new blog static pages that I have started :)  Still slower than I would have liked, but that is also due to grad school (stupid grad school!!!!)

The "About Me" page has the ABC's of me listed, so if you want to jump on that bandwagon just click on the link and read (there is also a Fresh Prince of Bel Air reference at the top of the page).

 

Speaking of the Publix Georgia Half Marathon, Wes giving a lot of smack talk, at least is backing it up by kickin my ass this weekend ;)  Here's to your PR buddy!  Also my friend Tommy will be in the event as well, as he graciously has taken his sister's race number since she will not be able to participate in the event this year.  Kinda want to drive the course again to see where all the elevation changes are.  I might do that on Saturday when the traffic is not bad.  Actually, now that I am looking at the course map online, I might not need to.  I know where all the elevation gains are at. 

So I have to take my girlfriend into the shop (most likely tomorrow) for her new ride tune up.  Of course all wrench heads will tell you after you get that new bike that after you ride it some, the cables will loosen/tighten, etc and you will need to bring it in one more time to make sure that it gets really dialed in to where it needs to be.  Well that happened to me over the weekend.  at 1/2 way through the ride, I could no longer go into the large chain ring.  Not only that, but when I stopped and physically moved it up to the new chain ring, it moved itself back down as to say, "nope, have fun with this one all the way home." As for the rear cassette, I am having shifting issues through the middle of the cassette, which should just be an adjustment issue.  The other problem is about 4 miles from home, I see that the reverse bolt that holds everything together up front (crank arms, bottom bracket, chainrings, etc) is about to come completely out.  Also I screwed it in, but not tight enough because that is the one where you need to use a torque wrench, and I don't have a torque wrench.  No good.  Otherwise the ride was nice :)

The only other thing that I wanted to bring up was a USAT provision that I thought was a rule. Kinda peeved about it.  Here is the skinny!

There was a race I participated in last season (I will have to go back and check my notes) where I was trying to put in some fast times, especially in transition, so I decided that I would go back to the old school clipping your shoes onto your bike and setting that up for a fast T1.  I got there early and got everything set up, and left to use the restroom.  I heard my number getting called over the loudspeaker, and I went to my transition rack with a USAT referee there.  He stated that AG'ers were not allowed to have their shoes clipped in during T1.  I politely told him that I have actually read the rules and I do not remember this being listed anywhere.  He replied that this was the rule and if I did not comply I would be penalized for it.  At this point we have about 20 min till transition closes, and even though there was time, I was kinda pissed.  I have now done this about 6 times and I have never had that problem before.  So I fixed everything and then went on with my race.  For the rest of the season I repeated this process so as not to get in trouble. 

Recently I heard on the IMTalk podcast that john was talking about fast transitions and that a person had emailed in from the states that USAT does not allow AG'ers to put on shoes on their bikes for T1.  This got the blood boiling again, and so I actually went and read the rules yesterday.  Went through every damn page.  Guess what was NOT there!  ANY RULE PREVENTING AG'ers PUTTING SHOES ON THEIR BIKE FOR T1!  So I go onto the Facebook page of USATriathlon yesterday, and ask this question.  Their response...

"Hi Andy: this actually has never been a rule. In USAT-sanctioned events (unless the RD files for an exemption) you are allowed to attach your shoes to your bike if you wish."

I have asked a number of triathletes in the past, and there is an increasing number that say they have encountered this at races.  So either there are a lot more RD's filing exemptions, or the RD's are not wanting the risk of injury to an average AG'er trying to execute a mount and ride with their shoes on their bike.  So they just tell them they are not allowed to do it.  That is my guess.  And please note that I am not knocking the USAT, I just think that if there is OR is not a policy in place, that the officials need to adhere to that policy and if there are exemptions filed, then they need to have make that known in the race packet, pre-race meeting, and/or announcements before the race while people are in transition.  That's all I want, adherence and transparency.

USAT has gotten back to me before I finished this post and told me that the Commissioner of Officials will allow people to inquire about specific races to see if that race has any exemptions filed for it.  I thought that was very helpful to know!  Thanks USAT (more specifically whomever is in charge of their Facebook page)!!!

Have a good week, I will speak to y'all on Friday!

The Friday Review!!! March 4th, 2011

Good Morning Everyone!  Happy Friday!

I hope everyone had a good week this week!  I think the weather was nice for most of us, and with spring rearing its two heads (lovely weather and allergy season for all of you that suffer), I think the 2011 triathlon season is in order :)  I was up late last night on the phone, so I skipped my swim workout this morning (again), but never fear!  I put everything in the car so when I head home, I can stop by LA Fitness and get some laps in before the weekend.  Now onto some good (and unfortunately bad) stuff that has/is going on this week.

Brazil Critical Mass Incident  (news from Everyman Triathlon)

We will start with the bad news first.  Last weekend, there was a critical mass ride going on in Brazil this past weekend.  Apparently there was a motorist in a WV that had been following the group for a number of minutes and wanted to pass through the cycling group that was going in the same direction as him.  The driver got more and more irate as he could not pass the hundreds of riders filling up the street.  Finally he decided to run a red light and DRIVE THROUGH THE ENTIRE CRITICAL MASS GROUP!

25 people were injured, 30 bikes were totalled.  More than 11 of those people went to the hospital, and two were seriously injured.  The driver of the car sped off and fled the scene.  He did not return home, and furthermore abandoned his car.  I don't know if he turned himself in, or if someone found him, but the police apprehended him the middle of the week.  Here are the links of what transpired via video.

Brazil Critical Mass Incident
(you will have to sign in as a user for this video it has been flagged with footage that may be considered inappropriate for some viewers)


Ironman New Zealand/Earthquake/Scammers/!

Kind of like Jimmy Buffett's famous line, "It's five o'clock somewhere," It is always summer somewhere in the world.  And it seems to be coming towards the end of the tri season in the southern hemisphere (kind of our September in the Northern Hemisphere).  Ironman New Zealand is race number 2 of 4  down under (not counting Brazil because it is much closer to the Equator) and there are some big names showing up for the event.  Cameron Brown will be attempting to WIN THIS EVENT FOR THE 10th TIME.  I mean, he has already won the damn thing 9 times, I don't know if I would show up if I was trying to compete ;) "What Cameron is competing again this year, well damn it, I guess I am not winning..." Under the new points system that the WTC instituted for 2011 and going forward, some pros are lined up at the event trying to get a head start on the 2011 season.  While Macca and Rinny need to just show up and participate in an Iron-distance event this year, the rest of the pro field has their work cut our for them.  I attempted to get a pro-athlete list before the race (which begins at 12:00pm EST TODAY!!!)  I will have some sort of results posted for you guys over the weekend.

Most of you by now have heard about the horrific earthquake that occurred on February 22nd in Christchurch, New Zealand.  Some of these survivors of the event are participating in this weekend's Ironman in about an hour and a half.  After going through months of training and prepping for this race, their lives have been upturned with something that is beyond their control to handle.  However, they are coping, picking up the pieces, moving forward, and finding a way to compete in the event this weekend.  The WTC will be issuing special race numbers to them for the event, and hopefully there will be some extra cheering from the crowds when they complete the race this year.

GO KEEGAN!!!
Race Coverage for Ironman New Zealand

Where to donate to assist the people of Christchurch

Tri Season Beginning in GA!  (news via Georgia Triathlete)

SEE ME 2011 has come and gone and now our first triathlon in GA of the season (outdoors) in Savannah.  I am so happy about this.  For those of you who read and don't compete, you can maybe liken this to college football fans.  They pretty much mourn not being able to do anything from mid January through August, and then are so excited when fall comes.  Same goes here.    I think the race is kinda pricey myself, but I am sure there will be a field there nonetheless. 

New Bike!

So I have kinda been holding out on you guys and gals. Well, Wes knew, but I was trying to keep it quiet till the first race of the season.  Then my training buddy had to go out and get a Trek 7.0 Speed Concept.  So I could not keep it quiet any longer.  Yes I did honestly get my parts for my bike (pictures are in my older posts) and those are going on the Roadie on Sunday.  However, this year will be my 7th season in the sport, so I decided to treat myself.  Here she is!

Ain't she a beaut?

I still need to name her... any ideas???

Training and Misc (e.g. What in the heck I have been up to!) 

I am about 25% of the way done with my static pages for my blog.  I just read the fine print on how I am gonna get this Charity fundraiser thing to work.  I think it will be a bit tricky, however I think I can pull it off.  I am proud of myself, I have worked out every day this week without fail, and when I hit up my swim this afternoon, 5 days in a row!  Plus I have riding plans with some of my friends over the weekend, including during the rain.  Gotta do it!  Only other thing that is planned is the Sham Rock Fest in Atlanta for St. Patrick's Day on Saturday.  Oh and Studying.  Advanced accounting is such a bear right now.

Bib # 8668



Probably butchering this phrase, but it looks like a numerical palindrome :)  15 days and change.  I am ready.  To finish that is.  I just want to be able to cover the distance running.  I don't care what my time is, although I would love to finish sub two hours.  We shall see.

I hope all of you have a great weekend!

No Prinicipal Richards, its ok! I have a "Hall Pass!"

Sooo, I was gonna tell a real quick story about the skinny on what transpired this past weekend (and I wanted to somehow get the new "Hall Pass" movie into my title as well :).

Friday I was supposed to get my bike fitting for my road bike.  That got cancelled because All3Sports was gonna have a number of their employees down in Costa Rica for the Rev3 Tri Olympic and Half Rev races this past weekend.  So there went that for the weekend.  Then my buddy Mitchel who works for LifeTime Fitness told me that he had scheduled a metabolic test and a VO2 Max test for 1pm on Saturday.  He tells me this Friday afternoon, and then proceeds to give me a laundry list of things I can/can not do between Friday evening and Saturday @ 1pm.  One of these things was that I was not allowed to work out.

I get a "Hall Pass!"

The Friday evening not working out kinda pissed me off because I slept in Friday morning and was planning on doing a brick in the evening to make up for it.  So there goes two workouts.  Then I had two workouts planned for Saturday, one being in the morning, and he then tells me that I cannot do the morning workout either.  Oh and I have to go to bed early, and I cannot drink the night before either, and I have to have my last meal by 9pm and can only have a small snack for breakfast. 

Saturday morning comes and around 10am I get a text from Mitchel.  I had already made other plans for the morning and was currently out and about, and he says, "Just found out that the equipment is not working, so I have to cancel the tests, sorry bud."  Well crap!

I did get my rest of the workouts in though through the weekend, and I did find time to go out on Satuday night, and I also tackled some studying for a final exam I have this coming Thursday night (Federal Tax Accounting). 

In other news, my road bike parts should be here sometime this week.  I purchased them last thu from a guy in Washington State, and he shipped them out Friday.  It was an ebay auction, however, he ended it early since I made him an offer rather than bidding on the item.  I got a 2010 Shimano 105 groupset, and then he threw in some Mavic Kysium's for an additional $175, plus the tubes and tires.  Total out the door with all of that was $520.  Pretty good considering the average retail price of that 2010 groupset alone is around $650-700.

Here are some pics.  I did have a pic of the wheels, but I lost it, so I will get that to you when I receive the items in the mail. 

I will have a post on my rescheduled bike fit and other things in the Friday review, since I am now going to go into hiding until after my exam on Thursday night!  Have a great week!

The meaning of Ironman vs. the Ironman brand (Part 2: From a Pro's Perspective)

Hey Everyone!

I got a bit inspired this morning from one of our local pro triathletes here in Atlanta, so I wanted to get this on the blog today!  April Gellatly-Burkey resides in Atlanta and has been a pro for a number of years now, while also coaching on some of the local triathlon teams, private training sessions, and consulting with local news media on all things triathlon.  I have been to a few of her open swim sessions with Tri-PTC, and have seen her at the Southeastern Multi-sport Expo, as well as a few other places.  She is a great person, and a great representation of our sport.  Here is a photo of her from Rev3 Cedar Point.

In December 2010 I posted a blog titled: "What's your Opinion? The meaning of Ironman vs. the Ironman brand" (click on the link to read)

Today April was inspired by a blogger talking about "Fighting the Good Fight" and is trying to apply it to her endeavours of furthering her career in triathlon both on the WTC circuit as well as other national triathlon circuits.  All coming from the perspective of a pro-triathlete.  I think you will like both her post and the post that inspired her.  I like it when people think with the glass half full :)

AprilGellatly.com: We Must Never Stop Dreaming


Paul Coelho's Blog:  The Good Fight


Enjoy!!!

Listening to the body...

So I have a history of not listening to my body.  This has led to numerous injuries some including ITB Syndrome, Plantar Fasciitis, Osgood's Schlatter, and more. With respect to this year it has been trying to stage a revolt on the scale of Egypt with President Mubarak.  I was sick for the better part of the month with a sinus infection I could not shake, I had food poisoning, and this past week my ITB band and my calves have been kind of messed up from running (precursors to former leg injuries I do not wish to repeat), and the doctor told me I am overweight and need to lose weight.  It I am usually never sick and the only time I have had sustained injuries is when I did something stupid with respect to training.  Weight has been due to my lazy ass ONCE AGAIN this off season combined with my food intake.  Crap, crap and more crap. 

Those of you who are linked to me on facebook saw my post this morning about how Bloomberg News reported McDonald's January same store sales were up 5.3% beating estimates.  I commented on I ate so many times at McDonald's in January (more than I think I ever have in my life), that I probably helped them beat analysts estimates (a funny business joke, but not funny when it comes to nutrition). 

I think I came to this epiphany last night when I was running my Chastain Extended Loop.  as I approached about 1 mile on the run, my calves really started to hurt.  I was running uphill at the time, so I thought nothing of it.  As I crested the hill to go down hill for the next half mile, my calves were locking up.  I had to eventually quit when I hit this particular intersection that would let me cut back to my car.  I walked/jogged back to my car in considerable pain.  I also had problems driving home in my car, because i have a stick shift.  I went home and stretched and put on the compression calf sleeves.  sleeves helped some.  Today I am going to stretch and roll the calves out before I go on the run to see what happens.  I wonder if it was the 2nd day soreness from Saturday's run.  I know that I did not run very long on Saturday, but I am still recovering my mileage from my lost January, where I was pretty much beginning anyways. 

I am behind the 8 ball for the Half Marathon, but I am going to take it in stride.  If I can complete a Half Ironman with virtually no training, then getting the training that I am going to get over the next 6 full weeks will be a huge step up from that.  Also the half mary is not an A race for me, it was just something for me to work up to so I know I would be ahead of the curve when it came to my Ironman training.  If I was putting in good mileage for the half mary towards the end of March, I would be in good shape coming up to the summer and for Ironman.

I've got a training plan for February.  I have been sticking to it, even if the workouts were not on the exact days that I am used to.  I am working on a nutrition plan, and hope to have that finalized in the next couple of weeks.  In the next two weeks or so I will decide how I want to tackle the main part of my season, and how to break it down with regards to building up my base, tackling a few races I have put in my season, AND Ironman specific training.  I have also been toying with the idea of joining a group or getting "informal" coaching.  I say informal coaching because I cannot afford to have the coaching I want to have (i.e. $100+ a month for personalized service). 

On that note I have been bike shopping again... More like bike Internet shopping.  Things I cannot afford :(  But I am going to try really hard to upgrade parts to my bike this year.  Main items on the list include (and will finish off this bike permanently), new wheel set, new group set, and new handlebars/aero clip-ons.  I would also like to get a bike fit for all of this.  I have a coupon for all3sports to get fit on the bike, but I want to wait until I get all the parts (except maybe the wheels) so that when I get fitted, everything will be ready to go.  I am going to go ahead and take measurements this weekend so I have something to take into the bike shop, even though they are going to measure me again and tool around with the bike.  I did get my ISM saddle, and I have not yet put it on the bike, but I am excited that I got it. 

I kinda feel like the purchase list is going to get longer this year.  Most everything I own that is triathlon related was purchased (with the exception of clothing) in 2005.  Helmet, Bike Shoes, Bike and 90% of components, etc.  Why did I have to choose such an expensive sport??? I mean a drug habit would be cheaper than all of this ;)  That is a running joke (no pun intended) I use quite frequently, some people laugh, some don't.  I guess if I joined a club of some sort I could get some discounts, but it is going to take more than that to help me out :)  I am not asking for a full ride sponsorship or a brand new bike to be purchased for me (although that would be nice), but somethings gotta give.  If I convert this to a real world experience (because triathlon is a hobby, not the real world,  unless you are a pro, hope I don't offend) it would be like having to repair your transmission, your car insurance is due and you found out that you owe taxes to the state AND federal government. 

The other issue is getting hassled by bike shops.  They never want to install parts that you purchased yourself, they only want to install parts that you purchased through them.  Something about liability or some crap.  Hey, if I buy some parts of the Net or through another 3rd party and I give them to you, and one or all of the parts are actual crap, then that is my damn fault for buying them.  I am PAYING for you to install the parts I purchased.  You are still making money by charging me labor for the install, why are you trying to screw me for not wanting to pay double for parts at your shop when I can get them for 50% off somewhere else???  Sorry I will get off of my bike box.

Speaking of which, if you live in the Atlanta area and need a full size hard case bike box with wheels and a handle for pulling while you are traveling, I will rent you mine for $25.00.  I paid $450 for mine plus shipping to my house and I have only used it once, and I have rented it to a friend one time.  Otherwise it just sits around collecting dust until my next traveling event or I have to move a body :)

This week I am getting the swim and bike back into my workouts, but still mostly run focused.  So that this point for the next few weeks (and because school is still crazy) I will have a couple swims and a couple of bike rides/spin classes a week to get back into the swing of things.  By the end of February I will have gotten my feet week and some miles under my bike and I will kick it up a notch in March.  April will be a great month because I have three weeks off from school, and then I will be MIA socially May-2nd week of August because of Grad school + training.  Then I will be done with school and can peak in August and September with my training, taper October, and BAM!  Race day will be upon me!

So I have gotten way off track on this post.... where was I?  Oh yes listening to my body!  Well I just need to spend more time listening to it and less time in my head ignoring it and telling my body what I think it should do regardless of its state. 

Have any of you forgotten to listen to your body?  What happened?

Have a great week!

The Friday Review...

Hi Everyone,

    Hope all of your training and everything else going on in your life is great.  I have decided that I am going to make my Fridays the end of my blogging and training weeks.  I thought this a good idea for two reasons.  One, my day off usually is Friday for many reasons, and two, I treat my Saturday's and Sunday's like the beginning of my work week, so I figured having Friday as a review/last day of the week would work out well.

     I ran Sun/Mon/Tue and it was friggin cold every night, and it rained on Tuesday night, so that is another one in the IM bank for me.  IM Florida was damn cold this past year, and while things may change for this coming year's event, I want to have every miserable training experience imaginable so that when race day comes, I am either prepared or pleasently suprised.  Wedesday night I opted not to workout in favor of cramming for my exam on Thu night.  I got a bit of food poisoning from Willy's Wed night so I stayed at home pretty much all day Thursday except to take my exam, and then went straight home.  I talked to one of my classmates this morning, and she told me that class was really hard after the exam.  I don't know if that is a product of having your brain fried with an exam and then more class or just the material was hard, however, not something to look forward to. 

     I plan on running after work today to try and make up for wed/thu.  I know you cannot make up days, however, I can work out on my day off to make up for a missed workout during my training week.  About 8 weeks and change till the Publix Georgia Half Marthon, and Wes is already talking smack about whipping my butt on the course.  He actually may very well do so, but I will accept his challenge nonetheless.  It's on like Donkey Kong!!!

     I will be up in Raleigh this weekend and I am taking the running shoes with me.  The weather is supposed to be great, and I don't wanna miss out on that.  Weather has been too crappy lately, although I have been a good sport and participated in it anyways.  I need to break in my new pair of shoes I got for Christmas, ASICS GT-2150.  I will have some sort of shoe review after I use them for a week or two.

Get out there and have a good time this weekend, whatever you do!

Murtha...

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Hi Everyone!  Happy Monday.

I hope that everyone is enjoying their new year.  I know I have, for the most part.  The holidays were great and I got to see all of my family at the same time for the first time in 3 and a half years.  Gets a bit harder when you are spread out all over the US.  Just after New Year's I came down with a really bad case of sinusitis, and it is still holding on just a bit, even after taking Levaquin for a week straight.  Ever since I had my acute episode in college, it seems it hits me once a year, and it is getting harder and harder to shake each time.  That coupled with the Snowpocalypse in Atlanta two weeks ago, and my training took a serious punch to the gut.

Fortunately my "A" race is in November so I am not too worried about that, however, I am participating in the Publix Georiga Half Marathon at the end of March, so I need to get up to speed with that.  Otherwise besides getting back into training, I have just been working and schooling.  I graduate in August, and then I have to take the CPA exam.  Woohoo!  More money to shell out and testing!

Doctor also said I have gained quite a bit of weight. Great, so now I am a fat ass.  Hopefully my training will help me to alleviate that.  Most of my training before the holidays and this past week has been run focused due to the immediate half marathon coming up.

Family definitely came through for the holidays though.  Patsy got me a new Xterra Wetsuit, parents got me the new Asics GT-2150's, and the family got me about $150 in All3Sports gift certificates that are burning a hole in my pocket.  Need to do some upgrades to my bike.....

Lots of running coming up this week, need to get my 2011 schedule on the site and do some other various upgrades to the site.  Technology changes so fast and if you don't keep up then your blog ends up without all the cool new blog gadgets that one NEEDS ;)  However, posting does take precedence. 

Hope all of you have a great week in general and with your training.  Keep it up!

Murtha...

What's your Opinion? The meaning of Ironman vs. the Ironman brand

Good Morning!

So I have missed some workouts this week, and I am sure I will miss a few more between now and next Thursday.  Reason?  I have two finals next week, Tuesday and Thursday, and I had some quizzes and a paper due last night as well.  Starting next Friday (for me) is winter break, and that lasts until January 4th.  I should be able to really ramp it up during those three and a half weeks.  Always trying to be the glass is half full type of guy :)  Not much else to talk about in my life (tri life as well), so let's move onto the topic I really wanted to talk about!

On Wednesday this week, Bloomberg's "Taking Stock" show hosted the CEO of the World Triathlon Corporation, Ben Fertic.  Ben was on to not only talk about the sport of triathlon and its strong long term growth, but the World Triathlon Corporation's brands.  These include Ironman, Ironman 70.3, and the 5150 triathlon series.  In short summary, this interview was really great and informative, and Ben was also to give us a backdrop about how triathlon formed (for those of us who don't know) and also how the Ironman really got ramped up from 15 crazy guys racing to the hallowed world championship event that it is today.

The part of the interview that really hit me was the branding of these events.  We all talk about Ironman, whether you have done one, you are going to do one, or just throw it around in casual conversation with your tri (or non tri) buddies.  I guess what is really obvious, Ironman as a brand, is also really elusive.  Although Ironman is not technically a monopoly in the Ironman market (Beach 2 Battleship, Rev3 Long Course, Silverman, etc), the long (or ultra long) triathlon distance is akin to monopolistic competition.  I guess the best analogy is Microsoft.  Sure there are other OS software systems (Apple's Mac OS, Unix, Linux, etc), but Microsoft dominates the market by a very large margin, hence monopolistic competition. 

Another way to look at this issue.  What do you call a short sleeved 2 or 3 button cotton shirt with a collar? (No I am not gonna hit enter 500 times and make you forward this to 10 friends to find out the answer).  Polo shirt.  While everyone makes this type of shirt, the phrase "Polo Shirt" has successfully been in our vernacular for years.  Another one.... Tissue that you blow your nose with?  Kleenex!  You don't ask for a tissue, OK I guess a few people do, but most people I know ask for a Kleenex.

So bringing this back to triathlon.  I have been thinking of getting a new tattoo.  My first tattoo is my fraternity letters and my badge number from the chapter I was initiated at.    This is located on my right shoulder blade, and was crudely done on purpose because I wanted to make it look natural and like it was hand done, not with some fancy font template.  My fraternity is really important to me, and I am still really involved over ten and a half years after I was initiated. 

On a side note, for those of you who say you "were" in a Greek organization, you signed up and took an oath to be a member for like, so quit saying when you "were" in a fraternity/sorority.  And go back and say hey to the new guys/girls that are there now, or whichever university is closest to you, they will appreciate it.

Back on Track.... Triathlon has been really important in my life as well.  I have finished my 6th full season (since 2005) and I don't plan on stopping.  I also completed my first Ironman in 2009.  At that point I felt that was important point in my life (re: triathlon) and wanted to mark it with something memorable.  I thought I would get a "m-dot" tattoo on my left shoulder blade to mark the completion with my Ironman.  Just like my first tattoo, I have sat on the issue for a really long time to make sure it was I really wanted.  Yes I know there is technology to remove tattoos now, but for all intensive purposes it is permanent. 

After listening to this interview, I now don't think I want to get one.  It would be similar to getting a Delta tattoo because I love to fly delta, or a Zaxby's tattoo because I really love their chicken finger plate.  Instead I think I would get a tattoo similar to one of those car stickers that just says "140.6" or 70.3" (half iron distance).  I want to mark and commemorate the event that was completing a triathlon of that distance, however I don't want that necessarily to be related to a brand.

The problem is that Ironman has become synonymous with long distance triathlon.  If one is trying to describe a ultra long or long distance course to a newbie triathlete or someone who does not know what triathlon is then you will almost always reference "iron distance" or "half iron distance" race.  Or if you are having trouble explaining the race, you might throw up your hands and say it is an "Ironman" or "Half Ironman."

On the other hand, the Ironman brand is a great brand.  Expensive as it may be, I have never had a complaint regarding a race when I have completed an Ironman or Ironman 70.3 3event.  Ok I did just think of one... And WTC I hope you are taking notes :)  There was nowhere in the race info packet about having reflective material on your running gear, and then on Friday evening (race was on Sunday) they say this in the meeting.  Thank goodness there was a Sports Authority nearby.  I grabbed the next to the last pack of reflective stickers and the cashier made a point of saying that happened to be a popular item that day. I cannot say the same thing for other races that I have completed.  The Peachtree City Tri Club puts on a world class show just south of Atlanta, but MANY of the other race companies leave MUCH to be desired. 

That being said, I think that the WTC needs to be careful.  Like Microsoft, straying away from what the public really wants, at the price they want it at, can create great unrest and fierce competition.  Hence events such as Beach2Battleship, Rev3 Long Course, Silverman, Great Floridian, etc...  I think though there is going to have to be someone with a vision like the WTC to create a competitive brand that can compete with the WTC.  Also I think this will drive better quality races out of the WTC and the competing firms, as well as keep the prices down. 

Other than inflation increases, I don't think that WTC can raise its prices too much higher or it will have a great amount of falloff from the general age group athletes.  Many of these Iron-Distance events can be at least $100-200 cheaper than the Ironman Branded races.  I have heard that Silverman is a top notch event, it is close to my parents in Nevada, and it is $200 cheaper if I pay early.  With my service fee through Active.com, I paid $603.75 for Ironman Florida 2011, $575 of which was the actual entry fee.  When I think about what I receive over the 4 day weekend when I am there, I can directly attribute about $200 of that to what I can see and experience, and the other $375 I don't really see or I am not aware of (obviously some of this portion is for staff salaries, website maintenance, building rent for HQ, renting police for the bike course, etc...). 

However, with all of the volunteers that participate, I wonder how much they could drive their costs down if they better managed the volunteer process.  I volunteered at Ironman Florida '10, and while I had a great time and WILL volunteer again, I was less than impressed with the management of the Volunteer process.  Volunteers not knowing what to do, where to go, too many volunteers in some areas and not enough in other areas.  I think if they spent a small amount of human investment in better training and organization of the volunteers, then they would yield much better results on pre race/race/post race events.  That and they could afford to allocate resources to more important areas thus saving both human and investment capital.  They could then pass this as savings back to the age groupers that sign up in long lines to compete in their events.  If you look at the competitors to Ironman, there is a $200 or more price discrepancy.  Maybe then again, Ironman is the Louis Vuitton of ultra long triathlons, and events such as Silverman are the Target of ultra long triathlons (not a knock on Silverman, I love Target and I love Silverman).

This is also not a knock on the WTC or the Ironman brand, just my thoughts on the topic.  I will say though, as a free market economist, if someone comes up with as good as or better brand than the WTC for cheaper, then I will be the first in line.  However, I am still waiting... and so is the tattoo.


Have a great weekend!  Train hard, train smart,


Murtha...

Taking the Thanksgiving holiday in stride

First off, I hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving holiday.

I see Thanksgiving (from a triathlon perspective) as the beginning of a season where there is lots of partying, eating, staying up late night, couch surfing, tons of football (for you football fanatics), traveling, family/friend/significant other obligations... In short, lots of stuff to distract you from your off season training.  As for my training, I definitely missed some workouts over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, but I don't really mind.  I know that this is going to happen throughout this holiday season, so I am just going to do my best to stay the course and if I miss or need to move a workout here and there due to some sort of holiday season shenanigans, then so be it.  No need to stress out about missing a work out here or there for an event that is almost a year away.   :)

I feel that taking this attitude takes away most of the stress of training during this time of year, and lets you focus on the more important things in life.

Back to a normal week this week.  Tonight I have my short run of the week, and then tomorrow it is a 2x day of swimming and cycling.  I am trying to get back into the spin class gig, but since I don't have a LAFitness right next to me anymore, I have lost the motivation to go.  Same goes for swimming as well, since that is also the place where I do my laps at.

I also want to get some strength training in this winter.  This will help with my weight management, as well as overall interval training.  That's pretty much it for today, short and sweet.  Will have more for all of you later this week!


Murtha...

10,000 unique viewers, and other news!

Hello Everyone!

     I hope that everyone is having a great Turkey week!  Mine started on Friday evening when I began preparing for our annual "Friendsgiving", which my roommates and I were hosting this year.  Between the setup, breakdown and cleanup (on Sunday) and the actual event on Saturday night, there was not much training to be had.  Ergo, no training at all.  Oh and there was the alcohol.  Holy crap can my crew ( of 55 pepole) drink some alcohol.  That goes for me as well.  Although I did not have an official hangover on Sunday, I did feel a bit off, and we still have a keg to finish (people brought way too much alcohol anyways), so I have been downing about 4 pints a night.  Not that healthy, but you gotta do what you gotta do. Thankfully my roommates are helping me, so we are taking out about a 12 pack a night on the keg.  When I get home tonight I will be getting back on the horse and running, in the rain.  Yup.  Memories of CDA will come back to haunt me... just kidding, I can use the motivation of how I bested the course in the crappy wind, rain, and cold to get me through a measly 40 minutes around the park.

     So I am really excited that about two weeks ago, I hit 10,000 unique views to my blog!  Yeah, it took me 4 and a half years to get there, but it has been a journey.  I have met many new friends in the blogosphere as well as in person.  Some have come and gone, moving on to other things in their lives.  But I have had great experiences with all of them, and all of you who are still here with me.  I need to do another semi-annual review of all the blogs I follow, as a few people have fallen off the radar, and I have a few new people to add! 

     I will also be adding my posts on a regular basis to Facebook as well, so for you who are linked to me via facebook, you will be able to see my new posts in you live feed on your home page.  I am going to get this RSS thing figured out as well, so I am not actually having to go to 50 different sites everyday to read people's blogs, I will have those 50 different sites push the content to me instead :)  I am also officially commenting on BeginnerTriathlete.com now so you may see me in the threads from time to time.

I have gotten the calendar together for 2011, I just have not decided on which races (except IMFL) that I will be competing in.  I also have my training calendar template figured out for the next 12 months, and I have through new year's already planned out.  Should be exciting.  I hope all of you have a delightful Thanksgiving holiday, whatever your plans. 

Train hard, train smart, race excellent,

Murtha...

The end of one season, and looking to the beginning of the next...

Good Morning Everyone!

     The first thing I did this morning was go to my blog, and noticed that the last post that I put up was on May 12th, 2010.  Wow, what happened to all those asiprations of going to back to the old days of blogging, reporting, and changing?  Life, I supppose, is the easiest and most accurate answer.  Between losing my job Memorial Day weekend and coming to where I am now in my career, beginning an accelerated graduate school program in accounting so I can take the CPA next year, girlfriend moving away and doing the long distance thing, triathlon definately took a back seat.  This was somewhat disheartening since I was committed to get back into the sport, give to the sport, do some charitable activites while I was at it, and tell my story just like I have always had.  It got so bad that I have now successfully completed a sprint, olympic, and now half iron distance event without any training.  I don't think I am going to try to catch up on any blog posts, except I may do the race reports for Chattanooga, Peachtree City, and Augusta, just so that I have them logged on my blog for my records. 

     However, there is always a new day, and a reason to begin anew.  The year is fast coming to and end, and one looks to the future to see what is in store for them.  I have a "golden ticket" for Ironman Florida next year via volunteering with my friend Mike this year.  This was also my first time really spectating at an event as well as volunteering as a wetsuit stripper.  For those of you who have been on this side of the fence (outside looking in), as well as triathletes that have sat on the sidelines for one reason or another, I have a complete new respect for this perspective.  I just plod along in my races, maybe have had a few GI issues and cramping, but no problems with my equipment, no injuries, no potential death.  I witnessed all of this and more while spectating the event this past Saturday. I saw the full range of emotions that occur during this race, and then thinking myself of when and where I was when those emotions overcame me while racing.

     I spent the weekend (when I got home) sleeping and reflecting on my triathlon career.  I mean, I am not making any money off of it, but it is the longest standing activity that I have undertaken (and plan to continue).  Longer than any job I have had, relationship I have been in, and has been about a 1/5th of my life.  It has been my drug, my therapy, my escape, my joy, my sorrow, in essence, the sport has in one way or another embodied me.  Few other people and things have affected me in this way, and I am thankful for all of them.  I mean taking the two weeks up to November 6th, I was actually sleeping in the evenings so that I could pull all nighters for grad school to complete 2 exams, 1 final exam, a paper, and a project, and then head straight to Panama City on 3 hours of sleep so that I could be at a mandatory meeting for volunteers. Yet.............. that damn stupid grin reared up and showed itself on my hotel room  balcony Friday night and followed me through the rest of the weekend.  All of you know this grin.  It's unexplainable, yet makes complete sense when it comes out from hiding.  This is why I am here, and this is why I love doing what I do.

     Looking forward to 2011 brings me lots of opportunities.  Graduating with a Master's Degree, hopefully having a job in accounting, taking the CPA exam, potentially living in a new city and state, and what I would like to accomplish as a triathlete.  For a change I have begun winter base training/maintenance, something I have never done before.  I am also rekindling some old tri-friendships that I have let go astray, as well as foster new ones.  I hope all of you have had a great 2010 (and season), and I hope that all of your dreams, aspirations and visions for 2011 come to light! 

Murtha...

Race Week!

Hooray for race week!

I just re-upped my membership to USAT for 2010.  I guess that means I better be in at least 4 events this year.  Rev3 sent out their race packet info yesterday, and I have already poured through it.  I am planning on getting there early enough to do the group swim at 10am on Saturday morning (hopefully I will see Sarah!), then going to meet up with Mike and his fiance around 12pm.  Do one of the afternoon athlete meetings, pick up my race packet, drive the course, rack my bike, then screw around for the rest of the evening and enjoy being out of Atlanta for a change.  Hopefully I will get to see a bit of Wes as well outside of racing, but if not, I will be at the finish line waiting for him and Sarah!  Wes and Sarah are doing the half, while Mike and I are doing the Olympic distance.

The nerves and excitement of the first race of the year always get to me.  Not that I am nervous, I just have all this energy I need to direct somewhere.  I cannot believe it is already May.  I will sign up for the VA Highlands SummerFest 5K with Patsy next weekend when I get paid, and then it will be crunch time to sign up for some of the rest of my races for the remainder of the year.  Some of them now are selling out due to popularity, and it gets kinda frustrating for people trying to make ends meet, and pay for race fees without putting them on credit cards and the like.  Ironman was an exception, and I will never regret that, but some of these local races..... :)  Maybe I just need to find some new ones that are under the radar! 

As for the 5K  I am happy that I get to coach Patsy through her first 5K that she is going to run in.  She has done some before, but they were more just for participaing in, and she walked the entire course.  I told her that I would be running her pace throughout the entire event.  This is her race, not mine :)

Weekend workouts went great!  My favorite was the OWS at Lake Allatoona on Saturday morning.  Wes turned me onto it (it is orgainzed by the Concourse Tri Club in Atlanta).  I think there were around 20+ people that showed up and there was support (people in kayaks) and they were very focused on the buddy system, which I thought was pretty cool.  I did just under a mile (probably around 1500M) in just under 29 minutes... I am sure my wetsuit had something to do with that... now if I can just get it off in less than 7 minutes I will beat my only other olympic tri swim time when I did not wear a wetsuit.  Oh and did I mention that 3/4 of the swim in Knoxville is downstream?  Sweet.

I think I have may put down West Pointe on the schedule, but I might X that and then juggle my schedule around for the rest of the season.  I just have a lot of stuff going on right now outside of triathlon, and it is making things diffucult (don't people realize that triathlon is a priority, jusk kidding :).  Either that or I will just scale back and find a sprint that weekend rather than doing another olympic before Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon.

Got the speed laces on my Asics GT-2140's and I have run in my shoes barefoot, a little bit... I am going to get a few more barefoot runs in my shoes before the weekend so my feet are ready for the no socks on bike+no socks on run = janked up feet!!!!!  Probably practice taking off my wetsuit a few times, or make sure there is some COPIOUS amounts of lube on my ankles before the race.

Have any of you guys suffered from pre-race jitters on  your first race of the season?  Let me know!

Weekend Shenanigans and Athens Twilight Criterium

Hello Everyone!

I hope that everyone was able to enjoy a weekend of training as well as any other fun things you might have been able to accomplish over those two glorious days (wait, there is something other than training to do on the weekends???). 

The weekend started Friday evening with Patsy and I heading to a dual birthday party hosted by our friend.  We got there after everyone arrived from dinner.  This portion of the evening was to be the pre-party event before everyone headed to the highlands in Atlanta.  I told myself that I had to be at Mike's condo by 8am to pick him up and take us to lake Allatoona for our first OWS of the year.  Ha - side note - first tri of the year is in 12 days and I am trying to do my first OWS two weeks before the event.  Oh well who needs sighting anyways :) ?  Back to the story... We somehow got out of there by 12-12:30am when they finally caught their cabs.  People think I am lame and just don't understand why someone like me would want to wake up at 7am on a Saturday morning to go swim ;) 

Fast forward to the morning and it is storming... I was kinda pissed.  I will swim in the rain until the cows come home.  But lightning?  Heck no!  So Mike and I changed our plans and we hit up LA Fitness for an hour under his guidance (he is the better swimmer, swam in high school).  He wore me out, and then dropped me off, telling me he would be back to pick me up around 1pm so we could go to Athens.

Ahhh.... Athens.  Home of my Alma Mater.  We got there arond 2:30pm and checked into the hotel.  We had missed all the morning qualifying runs, but the main events began around 5:45pm, with the men's race beginning around 8:45-9:00p, so we were not too worried.  This just means an excuse to walk around downtown Athens and drink/eat bad food.  Also one of my fraternity brothers, Jay Lowe, and his band, Argus, were playing at Tasty World so we stopped by there for about half an hour to watch the band play before leaving and meeting up for dinner.  Dinner was at Doc Chey's.  Man that Siracha sauce is damn hot, but I love it!  The women't pro event was in its final laps as we finished dinner, so we then hit up one of the beer gardens outside to watch the finish of the race, and then get some primo standing room for the men's event. 

The men's pro event started a few minutes late, and the rain was beginning to pick up (for those of you who heard about tornadoes and such passing through Mississippi and Alabama on Friday night/Saturday morning, that hit Athens on Saturday night.  Definately rain, and some lightning, but the race must go on!  This is a 1km course in downtown Athens, and the field must complete 80 laps.  I don't know how many laps into the race the referee quit cutting people who were lapped, but by about 25 laps in, half the men's field had been cut out of the race!  It kept raining on and off (pretty heavily I might add) and so it was back and forth between the tent and the fence separating us from people riding 25mph+ on their bikes.  As the race got closer to the finish, we moved across the course and down to about 30-40 feet from the finish line.  The funny thing is that from my perception, the lead riders (6 in the lead group, had about 40 seconds on the pack by the end of the race) went faster on the bell lap than they did on the final lap.  Or maybe that was because 4 out of the 6 riders whizzed by my face (literally, 8-12 inches away).  All in all, good times.  Sunday was a rest day.

Rev3 is not an "A" race for me, so while I will tone down the training volume next week, there will really be no taper for this coming race, more of modifying my training so that there is a rest day or two before the event.  The week after will be a light week and then right back into training.  Patsy and I may do the VA Highlands 5K on June 5th, and then I have the Peachtree Road Race on the 4th of July (10K).  Still have not signed up for the Chattahooche Waterfront Tri yet, but that is on my radar for July as well.  I really want to see how I do in Rev3, because I would like to qualify for Age Group Nationals at Myrtle Beach if I can.  After that it is Good Old Peachtree City Triathlon in August (an annual mandatory event since that was the first triathlon I have ever done), and then we shall see how the rest of the year pans out.... I am trying to get something together that will hopefully make the rest of this year and years to come pretty exciting!!!!  Will know soon (within the next month).

Anyways, this post spans two days (I was too lazy to finish yesterday), so I am going to close saying have a good rest of the week and I will find something else tri-related to blog about soon enough :)

Murtha...

F#@&ing Bike Gremlins :)

You didn't know about bike gremlins???

Are you serious???

And you always wondered why in the hell things with your bike all seem to happen around the same time.  The bike gremlin, as shown below, is a small creature that roams our lands in search of dedicated cyclists and triathletes who are serious about their cycling.  Once they find one, they blend into our natural surroudings and wait for an opportune moment to strike.  This usually results in flat tires, improperly functioning shifting, wheel spokes snapping, front and or rear derialleurs not working properly, bottom bracket creaking, etc...

There you go!  Damned Gremlins!  If you see one of these buggers, make sure you take it out! 

So this week's workout schedule is getting filled out fairly well.  I have hit all but one workout this week.  As for the gremlins I posted about, It all started last week with a flat, and then another flat on Wed night before the Atlanta Cycling ride.  It was the front wheel, and as I took it off, I saw that the puncture/rip on the tube was at the stem again.  I looked at the rim, and I realized that the rim tape around the valve stem hole had worn down so much there was metal visible.  I took the wheel into the shop and they put on new rim tape, and also showed me a neat trick.  You take an old tube, cut a small square piece, and then poke a hole big enough for the valve stem.  put the piece of tube around the valve stem, and BAM! you have extra protection for you tube around the base of the valve stem.  You learn something new every day.  Second, I have had problems with shifting and the rear derailleur for the past two weeks.  Shifting has been horrible.  I know it has something to do with adjusting those screws in the back, but I still have not tinkered with the gearing enough (yet) to be comfortable with it. 

And then there was the Buckhead Bellyache last night.  Oh yes I was going to go back to back 20+ mile nights during my training (for some of you laughing right now, that is a lot for me based on my training volume at this time).  I was going up a hill about 3 miles and change into the ride and... SNAP!  Spoke on the front wheel broke off the hub.  Damned bike gremlins!  I got about 6.5 miles out of the whole deal after I slowly rode back to the Cathedral.  I then decided I might as well do a brick workout and go over to Atlanta Memorial Park.  I did one lap.  I completely forgot to bring my watch and/or Garmin for the ride, so I just looked at my cellphone when I left my car and when I got back.  About 14 min for the 1.8mi loop.  Did not pay attention to how long the short ride took, considering that I had to go slow on the way back.

Going to take the bike today during lunch and get it fixed.  Got a run tonight, and then an open water swim tomorrow morning before I head up to Athens for the Twilight Crit.  One of my fraternity brothers, Mark Babcock, is racing in the pro event tomorrow evening, so if you are going to be there, please cheer him on!  Sunday I will get in a run (and a ride if I can get my bike back before then, my shop is closed on Sundays).

Just under 16 days until race day!  I don't expect to have a good finishing time.  I don't even think I am going to sub-3 hour the event.  But you know what?  I am damn excited for this season to be here, and I am damn excited for my first race of the year!  You guys work hard, party harder, and train like crazy!  Be safe, and have a good weekend! 

"What's that coming down the track...?"

No,

I am not going to finish this with the rest of a UGA fight song.  I was more referring to the fact that I was going to my blog today to click on all my friends links to read thier blogs.  I then saw my countdown clocks (one that needs to be updated - the running one) and the other is telling me that I have 4 weeks and two days left until Rev3 Knoxville. 

This will be my first tri event of the year, and I am very excitied about it!  I am not expecting too much from this race, since my training this year has been at best, erratic.  I just want to get out there again and race!  The best part is that I am going to have some of my friends there with me racing!  Mike is doing the Olympic Distance with me, and then Wes and Sarah are doing the Half-Iron distance even the same day.  Furthermore, Patsy and Melissa are coming along as the cheering section for Mike and I, and then I think that we will stay for Wes and Sarah to finish (no I have not told the rest of our group that, but I would hate for their not to be a cheering section for them as well!!!)

I have been getting more consistent about working out, but I have gotten sick 3 times in the last two months, all of them sinus issues.  They really set me back.  I can technically work out with them, but my swimming suffers because of the pressure, and some nights when I get home from work I feel like absolute crap.  Two nights ago I got home and felt like I could barely make dinner, much less go for a run, and last night I came home with the worst headache, as if I was developing a case of sinusitus again.  I need to get over this ASAP!!!!   (Is there a doctor in the house???)

My birthday is this weekend.  I am officially in the Men's 30-34 AG now.  Technically by way of USAT that was January first, however, my first race of the year is not until after my birthday.  I think I am going from the 4th or 5th hardest AG up to the 3rd hardest AG.  So much for my long term plan of being awsome before I got into a harder AG ;)  My girlfriend planned an entire evening for me on Sat night, and then I will spend Sunday hungover on  my birthday watching the Masters on my couch :)  But not before I get some workouts in prior to the debauched evening that will occur on Satuday night.  Do I feel older?  Hell no!  But I am beginning to notice that I don't bounce back as quick as I used to when I get injured or sick.  Oh well, I will keep enjoying life and forget about the age factor.  It does not affect my outlook on life :) 

The following weekend is the Sweetwater420 Fest 5K.  The awsome thing about that is it starts around 11am, rather than 7:30-8:00a like most races.  While it will be hotter than normal due to the time of day, there will be beer at the finish line, and that makes me happy.  I have done a few interval runs around Atlanta Memorial Park (1.8mi loop) and I have been running those in the 13:30 range, which is about 7:30/mi pace.  I think I am going to head over to Chastain Park in the next few days (2.56 mi loop) and see if I can hold that pace over that distance.  Methinks no (unless I want to throw up afterwards, which is an option).

I successfully signed up for the Peachtree Road Race (World Largest 10K and host to this years US Men's 10K national championships) after the ING Georgia Marathon & Half Marathon.  I may have already told you guys that.  The ING is dropping Atlanta as one of the many marathons it sponsors.  Word on the street is that the new executive that they hired in charge of these events is not an avid runner like his predecessor.  Anyways, after Peachtree I don't have another road race until August which is a 5K and then September (US 10K Classic). 

Need to renew my USAT membership, it expires in May of this year.  Not that they need any more of my money :)  Just kidding, they are a great organization, I just wish that I could have a couple year's worth of entry fees back since I did fewer than 4 races in those years.  I do like how they show you your overall ranking once you have completed enough races for the year.  Not that I am going to come out on top, but I love stats and I like to see how I stand up to the field at the end of the year.

I hope everyone else's training is going well, and I will be trying to catch up with all of you guys and gals, as well as trying to update some more of my blog.

You know you are out of shape when...

Good Afternoon!

     I was very suprised at my ability to get up early most days this week and workout.  There have been a few days where I slept in that extra hour and change and went to the gym in the evening.  Man was that a mistake.  I put in two small pool workouts, however, with running, I did not even try to get on a treadmill on Wed (there were 12 people waiting in line and there must be about 25 treadmills at our gym) and Thu I just happened to get out of the pool and dried off at the right time to catch the one sole treadmill available.  Of course we are in the full swing of "New Year's Resolution" members, and it makes for a horrible experience for the rest of us.  Please do not get me wrong, I would love for everyone to have some sort of fitness goal AND see it through.  HOWEVER, year after year I watch as the first 6-8 weeks of the year show me nothing but horribly crowded gyms.  And then between mid-February and March, it just clears up, and you can finally again have little to no wait for a cardio or weight machine Mon-Wed.

     If you are going to do it, see it through!!!  I want you to meet all of your goals, but if you are not going to even going to make it through eight weeks, then don't waste the money or time.  Sorry, for some of you may feel that is a polarized view on this, but I feel strongly about it and find it to be one of my pet peeves. (Off the soapbox)

     So for some of you, there is a running backgroud that exists.  Others have a cycling background, and for ther rest of you, swimming.  I think the true test of fitness for people that are of the first two discliplines, jump in the pool!  My fitness background stems from running.  I could not run for months and get out there and complete a 5K or 10K.  I would not be breaking any world records, but I could do it.  On the flipside, I do know how to swim, but put me in a pool when I have not been in one in almost 7 months... I am outta shape!!!  Maybe this is something we can have a debate on, but I think out of the three sports, swimming is by far the hardest sport to master and one that you have to be in top shape to do reasonably well in.  I thought I was gonna die in the pool on Wednesday!!!  Kinda comical actually.

    This weekend is going to be busy.  Patsy and I are meeting some friends tonight at a new trendy pizza place that opened in Midtown (Atlanta) tonight.  The guy (Mike) is doing Rev3 in Knoxville with my friend James and myself this May.  Sat is early bike ride (if the weather holds up) and then flag football @ 12:30p.  Afternoon run afterwards, and then early run Sunday because I am in a poker tournament that begins @ 1:45p.  My plan is to add swimming and cycling back in a little each week while also adding to the distance in each workout!  Sounds like a good plan to me. 

     Just over two months until ING Georgia (half) Marathon.  I think I should be ready for it.  I am a bit behind in my training, but I would rather train up a mile or two short on mileage for the event rather than go all out and risk an injury.  I am confident I will be ready to go.  I am officially signed up for Rev3 now.  So that is good, and I am looking at the next 3-4 tris and road races to see when I need to sign up for them.  You guys all have a good weekend!  I will be catching up on blog reading and trying to finish up my blog editing.

Man Blogging can be a pain in the ass sometimes ;)

Hello Everyone and Happy New Year!

I decided today after playing some Wii Golf (I would play actual golf but it is 34 degrees outside!), I would get on the computer and take a look at my blog, and see about giving it a new look, looking at links that need to be updated/removed/added, etc.

I was very sad to see that I am going to have to get rid of about 14 links of people who no longer have active blogs or they have gone private! A few of the people that have gone private I still speak with and we are now facebook friends, so it won't be hard to get put back on those lists. For the rest of them, ttyl! I hope to hear from you again! It's kinda sad, really, that there are some people that I read their life stories and share mine with them. It is like a friend you kept in touch with for years, and then one day you quit talking to them. After awhile you try to contact them, but their phone number does not work, email address has been canceled and they are just gone.

Thankfully there are just as many people who are still around and kicking in the tri-blogging world! A few people even have their race schedules up and I am doing some of the same races as them! Exciting!

I think I am going to spend another half-hour or so today working on planning out my site redesign (listen to me like I am actually going to do web design) and what is/isn't going to be on there. I feel like this is going to be a Blog 2.0 revolution for myself! Happy New Year to all of you!!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Back to the grind officially next week.

The end of one chapter, the beginning of another (ringing in a new year, new decade, and most importantly new age group!).

Happy New Year's Eve!


I hope that everyone's 2009 was everything they hoped and more. Mine was and was not, for a variety of reasons. Thankfully there was much more good than bad, and that always leads to good things! I have been sitting here all day cleaning, watching football, playing the girlfriend's Wii, and thinking about 2009, and what 2010 might bring.

It's funny, I still get my weekly Site Meter updates, and I see that people do come by and visit, yet I have had nothing new to offer all of you. There was soo much that went on this year, that blogging (and at the end of the year triathlons) simply fell off the map. I put so much time, effort, money, etc, from June 22nd, 2008 - June 21st, 2009, that I got burned out. I did complete the Peachtree City Triathlon again... Kudos to Josh Nickell, he did great! I finished, which is all that really mattered. I planned to do one more race in Gainesville in September, but I injured my ankle about two days before the race. (Kudos to James!! Finished 2nd overall in Masters and 1st in his AG.)

I also miss all of you! Blogging, texting, chatting, participating in races with you, reading your blogs! There was a reason I got all of this started, and I hate to see all of it go to waste.

After that, I pretty much sat on my ass and gained weight (184lbs, about 20 above where I want my race weight to be and 14 from where I usually want to be), let the air slowly seep out of my bike tires, and I just checked the brake lines as of this post to make sure that they weren't rusted (my bike sits outside). Running shoes have been used a handful of times, thankfully all of those were runs. I did buy new speedos finally since my old ones were falling apart, however, the new ones have been used maybe three times. Not to mention that I just went from the 4th or 5th hardest age group to the 3rd, and it only gets worse until I am 50 yrs old!

So as I end this year and this decade, here are a few things that I would like to see (from a triathlon perspective) from 2010!

General Goals
1) Minimum of 5 Triathlons this year (1 half, 2 Olys, 2 Sprints)
2) Minimum of 1 Bike Race/Tour this year (at least a 50 miler)
3) Minimum of 6 Road Races this year (1 marathon, 1 half -mary, 2 10K's, and 2 5k's)
4) Get a team together formally in the Atlanta area, or bring everyone onto an existing team! (I have been talking about this for about 6 months now, and I know enough people to add a big chunk to an existing team, or completely start a new one with about 12 ppl minimum)
5)Blogging - More of it! I might even test some of these products that people are emailing me about, since they are going to send it to me for free, and I can test it for you guys! I will also figure out a way to UPGRADE my blog... I have fallen off the tech bandwagon in the past few years, but i think I can pick it back up!
6)Sign up for IMFL.... How will I do this??? You basically have to take vacation and volunteer! That and I don't want to have to go through the whole flying mess again.
7)Shoot for about 700 hours of actual training this year (does not include stretching/weights/cross training/yoga/etc) in primary activities.


More Specific Goals
1) Finish Marathon in sub 4 hrs (last marathon time was 4:20:18)
2) Finish Half Mary in sub 1 hrs 50 min (last half mary time was 1:53:18)
3) Finish Sprint Tri in sub 1 hr 15 min (PR: 1:16:49)
4) Finish Oly Tri in sub sub 2 hr 45 min (PR 2:56:05)
5) Finish Half Iron in sub 6 hrs (PR 7:25:55, did not train properly for race)
6) Finish 10K in sub 48 min (PR was around 48:46)
7) Finish 5K in sub 21 min (Dont remember what my best time ever was)

Races that I want to participate in/complete this year
Triathlons
1) Rev 3 Triathlon - Knoxville, TN (May 9, 2010) Oly
2) West Point Lake Triathlon - LaGrange, GA (June 13, 2010) Oly
3) Tri the Parks - Mistletoe State Park, Appling, GA (July 24th, 2010) Sprint
4) Peachtree City Sprint Triathlon (August 21st, 2010) Sprint
5) IM August 70.3 - Augusta, GA (September 26, 2010) Half - IM

Road Races
1) ING Georgia Half Marathon - Atlanta, GA (March 21, 2010) Half Mary
2) Sweetwater 420 Fest 5K - Atlanta, GA (April 17th, 2010) 5K
3) Peachtree Road Race - Atlanta, GA (July 4, 2010)
4) Atlanta's Finest 5K - Atlanta, GA (August 8, 2010) 5K
5) US 10K Classic - Smyrna, GA (September 6th, 2010) 10K
6) Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon - Chickamauga, GA (November 13, 2010) Marathon

Cycling Races/Tours
1) Jittery Joe's Fall Century Classic - Athens, GA (October, 2009) - Century Ride

I may have a few others that I slide in there (Christmas 5K race, a sprint tri in April, you know.... some extras), but I will let those be a suprise.

Well now I am off. Dinner calls, and then it is a party to ring in the New Year! I hope all of your are safe this evening! Happy New Year!

~Murtha...

Gearing up for my 2nd stress test (hopefully doing better than the banks)!

Well actually my bank (Regions Bank) is posting a suprise profit for the 1st quarter! So I think they are handling the stress test well. Now sponsor me damnit!

So I have the ING Georgia Marathon in the books. 26.2 miles in 4 hours and 20 minutes (~9:55/mi).

I have been swimming most of my workouts at 2.4 miles, (around 85 laps in my gym pool). I just need the water to warm up a bit more so that I can get out in lake Allatoona and log some miles in the lake. I was out there last weekend for half an hour (I think the water temp was 50 degrees) and I did swallow half the lake... have to get back into the habit of watching out for wakes when boats pass by!

Now the bike.... the problem is that this is the area I am lagging in, and I will spend the most time during the race in this event (I am looking to do this in about 7 hours or less, trying to be conservative). Soooo....... to solve this problem I have entered into a century ride with a friend on May 3rd in North Alabama. I am kinda excited actually, except for the small mountain (i did not want to insult anyone who is in the area to call it a hill) that you have to climb both ways (it is an out and back course). Oh well.... Make the event harder than the Ironman so the IM is a breeze.

Still have my checklist to check off. My bonus is not going to be as big as I thought (I am disputing it because the numbers tell me that my branch knocked the numbers off the charts, and the incentive division says we lost money??? WTF?) so I am really going to have to hunker down to pay for all this in cash..... I also paid my taxes in cash this year too, which I think is better than putting it on a credit card, but you know... you pay for one thing, which stops you from paying for something else. Supply and demand... I need more supply of dollars!!!

Weather is going to be beautiful on Saturday, so I am going to try and get 5 plus hours in of riding tomorrow. Sun it might rain, but I can always run inside as well as swim. Hope all of you will have a great weekend!

Murtha...

Trying something new...

How about bringing life back to your favorite sport?
How about reinvigorating your senses to what you enjoy?
How about just trying something different (and new)?

Wednesday was that day for me. Just as I tried sushi for the first time last year and LOVED it, this was to be the same experience, yet not so much food related (and sodium infused)!

Tuesday I worked both jobs, so I took the day off as my one day off for the week. Yesterday I had to help Patsy with car stuff right after work when I remembered that she had scheduled us to go to YOGA. So yes, I have been kind of apprehensive about going, and I have found some excuses for not going. But I also know that it is good for you. This particular firm, which I will post their link at the bottom and give them a shout out, Atlanta Hot Yoga, is awsome! It was bikram yoga I believe, and the session was 1.5 hours.

We got there and I got in the newbie line (which was only me) to get registered and get my name in the computer in case I sign up for any additional classes. After which I then went with Patsy into the Yoga room, which was 105 degrees with humidity. Kind of like Atlanta in August for those of you who get to visit us down there in the South.

Without delving into the details, THIS IS AWSOME!!! I had been walking like an old decrepit man for two days after my weekend workouts and Mon/Tuesday's workouts were suffering because of it. I felt like a new man afterwards. Went through about 40 oz of water as well during the class. I felt so good I went and did 7.5 miles right after work on the treadmill at the gym and kept the pace above 7.0 mph for most of the time.

Working both jobs tonight, but got the swim in. Starting tomorrow is double duty for the next three days, with respect to training, regardless of the weather. It is supposed to rain this weekend. But I can not stop training. If it rains at CDA I will have no choice. But then again, if I go out training in the "elements" it would not be the first time. : )

Flight is booked. Hotel from Jun 17th-20th in spokane is booked, and then Hotel on Sat and Sunday is booked (James booked it, I just have to pay him for his half). Just need hotel for one more day, a rental car for a day or two, and bike case. I am not sweating the small stuff, as my b day is coming up soon and I am asking for gift cards/certificates from

All 3 Sports (my favorite place!)

Unfortunately, I also have my tax bill to mail out by April 15th, and I have to pay for my car tags! Only in Georgia does it seem we pay this stupid ad valorem tax, and the $25 emission testing fee to boot! I mean my car just turned 4 (and under 70K miles) and I seriously doubt that it will fail the emissions test. Especially considering I had a 1988 buick skylark limited with 125K plus miles on it that passed emissions every year until it died.

The money thing will come. It better, or Uncle Visa will be helping me out!

That's all for now folks, I will keep you posted with more details later.