How You Train Makes the Difference!!!!!

Ironman World Championships 2010

2010-10-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

Ford Ironman 2010 Ironman World Championships is in the books. Following is my perspective of the event.

This was my 4th trip to Kona, 2004 and 2006 to watch Kathy race and 2009 to sherpa for Julia and also watch Sydney race. This year, MHM would be represented by four athletes we coach and one of our coaches. Kathy (Ironman #8 and 3rd time to Kona) Julia Rossi (I.M #3 and 2nd time in Kona), Sydney Cornell (I.M. #3 and 2nd time in Kona), Lauren Rinck (1st I.M.) and Clay Taulman (1st I.M). Sydney is coached by someone else but I was responsible for the other four. To make matters interesting, Clay had meniscus repair surgery 10 weeks prior to the race and Julia had a stress fracture which would keep her in a walking boot until the Monday of race week. I had my work cut out for me in preparing everyone for the race.
As I always do, I met with each athlete in the week before they left for Hawaii. Because of the kids school schedule, we (the Kids and I, Kathy went on Tuesday) would not be arriving in Kona until Thursday afternoon. We missed the underpants run and most of the vibe that goes on pre week but we also missed being around athletes who were tapering :). Kathy and Julia picked us up at the airport and the first thing we did was visit Glenn Hyman at the ART tent. Glenn is a ART Dr. from Denver who has played a key role in getting Kathy ready for race day. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the folks at the Whole Health center in Highlands Ranch or Keegan from Massage Envy who also were instrumental in assisting Kathy. Without out them, this day would have never taken place. I had some major back issues and Glenn graciously waited for me.

Glenn Hyman woks on Kathy pre race

The day before the race, the crew all met down at the pier for a last minute swim and some photos. We visited the ART tent again and then I had last minute meetings with Clay, Lauren and Julia. My job for the remainder of the day was to keep the kids busy and allow the girls (Julia and Kathy) to get some rest. It was the calmest I had seen the two of them before any Ironman race and I began to sense that race day may bring something special. Julia was going to do the swim and the bike and would implement one of several race strategies we discussed on the run OR drop out if her foot hurt.
Race morning arrived, I wished Kathy a Happy 50th birthday, good luck and then I told her "I hope whatever you are searching for out there today, you find". In 2004, Kathy did this race 7 weeks post qualifying, the race itself was just a celebration. In 2006, she ended up 15th in the world but wasn't satisfied. She knew she had a faster race in her and I could tell over the years she needed/wanted to redeem herself. Personally, I thought to myself, damn 15th in the world, that is pretty damn good and let's stop this Ironman training and go on a vacation, but she felt differently. I wished Julia good luck, told her I would see her at the 2 mile mark of the run and we could decide at that time what she would do (although I know her well enough that she would just walk the entire thing if she had to). Sydney stopped by to pick up the girls and take them to the start line and they were gone.

Lauren and Nick Alfino

The kids and I went down to the swim start and had some difficulty finding a good spot to view the swim. The atmosphere was off the hook, helicopters flying over head, parachuters, Mike Reilly informing the crowd that Chrissie had withdrawn from the race over the loud speaker, thousands of people trying to get a view of the start. The buildings across the street had viewing party's with breakfast and drinks (imagine the buildings across from Wrigley field). The "National Anthem played, the helicopters started flying lower and came around more frequently. The paddle boarders and kayaks started moving into position and the buzz amongst the crowd grew louder. The kids and I were standing with Brandon Barnett, a MHM athlete and Lauren Rinck's boyfriend and Lauren's family. Suddenly the cannon sounds and 1900 athletes start moving forward. It sounded like a swarm of bee's.

We decided to move to position #2 along the hot corner where we could see everyone several times on the bike before they moved onto the Queen K. We found Corey and Paige Lear-Kaul and just hung out. Crowie's wife and support crew took up camp right in front of us and it was fun to listen to their chatter until the pros came by. The pro's came and went and the buzz on Palini Drive grew. The kids were checking the internet and soon reported that Mom, Julia and Lauren were all out of the water within a minute of each other and we should see them soon. All three girls came flying down Palini within seconds of each other. We missed Julia heading up Palini but Kathy and Lauren came by together. I yelled to Kathy she was in first out of the water and she gave me a little head nod that she understood. Sydney came by with her trademark big smile and a bit later Clay emerged. So far, so good, all five out of the water and on the bike. At this point, we were on our own for the next 5+hours. We went out for breakfast, checked bike splits for everyone. Back to the condo which was right at the two mile mark of the run for a little rest.

I set up shop on the side of the road, camera, lap top and phone. I was now prepared to be dialed in to the race. We watched the race results and chatted with others who were anxiously checking on the status of loved ones. After a few hours the pros came flying by. From this point forward, there would be a steady stream of racers to keep us entertained. Kathy was holding 1st place on the bike through the 90 mile mark, Julia, Sydney and Lauren were riding strong and Clay was maintaining a great pace. With Clay's surgery, limited training and military obligations we knew he needed to swim/bike and run a steady pace if he was to finish within the allotted time.

Kathy came by and I had the crowd sing Happy Birthday. She had a big grin on her face and blew us a kiss. I told her she was in first and had a 14 or 15 minute lead. Sydney, Lauren and Julia all ran by. Julia told me her foot hurt and that she would make a decision when we saw her again in 6 miles (they would come back by this exact spot).

Sydney Cornell

Julia Rossi

Lauren Rinck

Everyone was in good spirits and doing well. We saw a number of other local athletes from the Denver area and cheered them on as we waited for everyone to come back on their way out of town. Clay was still on the bike and I worried he may not make it.
Kathy came by and I told her that two girls were running hard behind here "they're coming!!". She nodded, the grin on her face was gone and she looked like she was racing. We knew Ellen Hart, a local Denver gal and Teresa Rider, an Aussie who lives in Boulder were better runners then her. Could her lead hold up? Based on the way Ellen was running, not for long.
Lauren came by and she looked good. Sydney came running by and she was flying, moving up the field. Julia came by and said her foot felt fine, that she had settled into a run 6 walk 4 pattern and it was working for her. She had come off the bike in 9th place but knew she had no podium shot this year because of her injury.

Clay Taulman

As we waited for Clay, we were entertained by some of the characters that come out on race day. We also saw a triple amputee competitor who would later go on to finish the race!! We went in for lunch and followed his progress until he was finally off the bike. I went back out and waited for him. He came walking by, said he was good, that he needed to get settled in and get some food in him before he started running. He looked and sounded good and I knew then he would finish. We decided to head to the finish line area to wait for the girls who were getting close to mile 15. Kathy had been passed and was now sitting in third. She was running strong and we waited to see if she could hold on.
The kids wanted a shake and as we waited for our order we saw Sydney (10:56) coming to the finish line. She had worked her way up to 14th place and would drop about 20 minutes from her previous time in Kona. She would later tell me, that she knows she has a better race in her.. hmmmm.. sounds familiar..

About twelve minutes after Syd ran by, Kathy followed (11:08) securing her third place finish and a spot on the podium. Ellen ran a 3:24 marathon to win!! at age 52!! Lauren Rinck followed 3 minutes later and finished her first Ironman on the Worlds Biggest Stage in an incredible time of 11:11. Great job by both ladies and the smiles on their faces proved the day was a huge success.

Kathy running towards the finishers chute on Alii Drive

Lauren Rinck.. YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!!

The kids and I ran towards the finishers area and heard both girls getting announced for finishing by Mike Reilly. I was a little disappointed he didn't mention Kathy was racing on her 50th birthday or this was her third Ironman. We found the girls and Kathy gave me a big hug and we cried. The kids hugged their mom and told her how proud they were of her. We met up with Lauren, more hugs, more joy and then we took some photos.

The Alfino Family

Kathy Alfino & Sydney Cornell

Sydney, Kathy, Lauren Rinck


Kathy & Ellen Hart

As we were exiting the finish line area they announced Julia finishing in 12:01. She had beat her time from the year before by 23 minute. I have to admit, I didn't expect that but was pleasantly surprised. My daughter Lauren and I went back to find Julia and Kathy and our son Nick left the transition area. A hug with Julia followed by some photos and we were off to have dinner and wait for Clay.

Julia Rossi

We had dinner and Kathy, Lauren and Julia headed home. Nick and I waited for Clay. We had no idea where he was on the course nor how long we would wait. We saw the triple amputee finish which was amazing. We saw tears of joy, athletes staggering to the finish and those running hand in hand who had formed a bond on the road at some point in time We sat and waited for about 30 minutes and Nick says "there he is". Clay came by, high fived me, said he had a great day and away he went. He later told me the finish line announcement from Mike Reilly was awesome " From Parker Colorado, a two time combat veteran......." and the place went nuts.. "Clay Taulman, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN"

When we began MHM in 2004 I never dreamed we would have five people racing in Kona on the same day. We are a small operation as coaching services go. We are extremely blessed to have a dedicated staff of coaches and athletes who maximize their true potential in the sport.
The following evening we went to the awards ceremony. Kathy received her award for third place and there was a huge applause. Bob Babbitt paused after hearing the cheers and said "The Alfino family has it going on tonight".

Kathy and I met the night before my second triathlon back in 1989. That year she finished a half ironman in 5:20 with one, two hour trainer ride completed a week before the race. I knew she had the ability to do great things in this sport but the sport was VERY different back then. She never wanted to do one Ironman and in 2000 I told her she could sign herself up for one or I would do it for her. Now she is a eight time Ironman finishers, three times to Kona and on top of that THIRD in the world. As her husband and coach I couldn't be prouder.
I reflect on this season and I couldn't be more pleased. Sydney had a great top 15 showing, she will be back. Lauren rocked the house with her 11:11 performance. If she wants to, she will be back. Julia and Clay turned in gusty performances. For Clay to finish on the amount of training he did was insane. When Julia told me she had a stress fracture 6 weeks out, I thought to myself "no way". Her father didn't even want her to go to the race and I told him "she earned the right to be there, she should at least go swim and bike". It was a magical day and one I will always remember fondly.

Photos from the Ironman World Championships 2010

2010-10-26T09:31:00.000-07:00

Kathy Alfino 3rd place W 50-54

The Swim Start

I had the people watching the race sing Kathy Happy Birthday

Lauren Rinck (ALWAYS smiling)

Julia Rossi (nice banner)

Sydney Cornell about to break 11 hours

The Alfino Family

Sydney Cornell, Kathy Alfino, Lauren Rinck

Kathy being interviewed the day after the awards ceremony

Nick Alfino cliff jumping

Clay Taulman at Dig Me beach

Boulder 70.3, MHM has 18 athletes compete!!!!

2010-08-09T13:40:00.000-07:00

Pictures:

John McGrath, Lauren Rinck, John Herring, Jackie Nunes and Coach Kathy Alfino, John Herring, Coach Kathy and Julia Rossi,

CONGRATULATIONS to all 17 Mile High Multisport athletes who competed at the Boulder 70.3 race yesterday. It was great seeing you all in one venue and the MHM presence was noticed throughout the day!! A great job by our first time 70.3 finishers, those who set personal bests and those who finished in the top ten in your age group. Any time you get top ten in Boudler, you have had a solid day of racing.

All MHM athlete results can be found by clicking here.

Boulder Peak - Swim-Bike-Run-Wed

2010-07-13T02:35:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Coach Max Spradley and Molly Jokerst on their wedding July 11. Max and Molly started the day by finishing the Boulder Peak triathlon and completed the day by becoming husband and wife. On behalf of the whole MHM family we wish you much health, happiness and personal bests every race!!

It was a great day to race in Boulder. Typically this race draws some hot conditions but not this year. Racers reported perfect conditions and the blue skies and flat irons in the back reminded everyone why boulder is such a beautiful place to live, train and race.
It was great seeing everyone out on the course today. We had some personal bests and it was great chatting with everyone post race at the MHM tent pre and post race.

2010-06-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

WEEKEND RESULTS: LOVELAND AND IRONMAN

Another great weekend of racing for MHM athletes locally and throughout the country.

Loveland Lake to Lake:

It was great seeing so many of you in Loveland. This has always been one of my favorite local races and Peggy always puts on a great race in a great venue. Sydney, Max, Jeff, Michelle, Angela, Krista, Megan, Sean, Brent and Chuck had great races on a perfect weather day.
Sydney was 1st in her age group, 1st overall masters and 4th women overall!! Not bad for someone who entered the night before the race. Max and Jeff took 3rd in their respective divisions and Michelle took 2nd in her age group while completing her first Olympic distance race (she has only finished 14 Ironman's but never an Olympic?).

IRONMAN

MHM athletes/coaches Kathy Alfino and Julia Rossi had great days at IMCDA. Kathy was completing her 7th Ironman and Julia her 2nd. The two trained together, along with Kelli Lear-Kaul (who is not an MHM client) and had high expectations going into the event. Kathy was aiming to qualify for kona for the third time and this years event falls on her 50th birthday. Julia, who had already qualified for the Ironman World Championships back in May was looking to hit the Ironman podium for the first time.

I'm happy to report that all three ladies had outstanding days. Kathy won her age group and set the tone with a blistering 5:37 bike split. Julia took third in her age group and was only slightly deterred by a bike accident which sliced open her calf requiring stitches post race. With Kathy earning her Kona slot, this brings three MHM athletes (Sydney Cornell) heading to the Big Island in October.

Honu 70.3, Kansas 70.3, Metro Brokers, Boulder Sunrise and HRCA Tune Up triathlon

2010-06-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

Photo: Paul Fitzgerald

Congratulations to MHM athletes who raced this weekend in Kona, Boulder, Highlands Ranch and in Kansas. John McGrath set a 40 minute Personal Best at Honu 70.3 despite some nasty blisters (I unfortunately got the photos, Thanks John). Dave Evnas, completed his first 70.3 in Honu as well. John Mix and Paul Fitzgerald set personal bests at Kansas 70.3 while Donnie Spurgin completed his first half. . Cindy Beyer dropped 12 minutes at the HRCA Tune Up Tri and John Herring took off 10 minutes. . Julia Rossi won her age group and was the second women overall (she then went on to bike 5 hours in preparation for IMCDA). Liz Whitfield set a personal best and won her age group (6th overall) at the Boulder Sunrise triathlon. I know I missed a few other folks who raced this weekend and I apologize if I omitted your name.

MHM Youth Triathletes Shine (HRCA Kids Triathlon, Longmont Yout Tri)

2010-06-07T12:46:00.000-07:00

HRCA Kids Triathlon/Longmont Youth Triathlon:

Congratulations to our Youth Triathletes who competed at both the HRCA and Longmont triathlons this past weekend. In total, we had 9 kids participate with two special needs kids finishing as well. Special thanks to coach Julia and Lauren for assisting in getting the kids prepared.

Ironman Florida 70.3

2010-05-29T15:18:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to John Herring on the completion of his first 70.3 race in Florida!! Next year you double the distance and double the fun (pain). Nice work to John and Coach Scoty Graber.

Swim Clinic

2010-05-26T12:32:00.000-07:00

Photos: Matt Beck top, Below, Tara Riggs and Kristine Rauerhorst (Ironman Canada 2010 entrants)

On May 21, Matt Beck, six time All American from the University of Texas swim team and Mile High Multisport swim consultant, conducted a swim clinic for MHM athletes. Matt covered the basic of swimming more efficiently in the water covering topics related to body positioning, front quadrant pulling, catch/release, hand entry/exit and proper breathing techniques. All who participated gained valuable information they can use during pool and open water swimming. Thanks Matt for donating your time.

Youth Triathlon Race season is under way

2010-05-25T07:21:00.000-07:00

This year, MHM has become more involved in youth triathlon groups and coaching. With a mission to increase youth participation and knowledge we have developed our own Youth Elite team and created training camps. We have also partnered with the HRCA to coach kids camps geared primarily to the Highlands Ranch Triathlon series. In addition to the Highlands Ranch series, our kids are preparing for Iron Kinds races in Boulder and Avon, Tri The Rock, Longmont youth triathlon and the Fall Frenzy Youth race.

To find out more about our youth training programs click here.

Ironman Saint George/Ironman 70.3 Galveston/Ironman 70.3 St. Croix

2010-05-06T16:28:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Mike "Veto" Vetowich on completing Ironman St. George this past weekend. Veto finished his first Ironman and was coached by Sydney Cornell.

Also pictured above is Mile High Multisport coach Kathy Alfino. Kathy won her age group at Galveston 70.3 a few weeks back. Next stop for Kathy, Julia Rossi and Jackie Nunes is Ironman Couer d' Alene in June.

Mile High Multisport would also like to congratulate Liz Whitfield on setting a personal best at the St. Croix 70.3 this past weekend.

We have hired some new coaches. If any of you know of anyone looking for triathlon, running or cycling training plans, please have them contact Pete Alfino

Improve Your Running: Simple changes will yield big results (part I of II)

2010-04-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Improve Your Running

Simple changes that will yield big results

By Peter S. Alfino

http://www.milehighmultisport.com/

Part I of II

Improving your running form and increasing your speed can be accomplished with a few simple changes to your training plan and your mental approach to who you are as a runner. I hear all the time “I can’t run because it beats up my body”. Running doesn’t beat up your body, poor form and instabilities beat up your body. By improving your core strength and hip stabilization with functional training your will improve your body’s ability to load and unload as you run. Additionally, simple changes to the way in which you carry your arms, lean your body and foot strike can make a big difference in your performance. The last component to running fast is your mind. Running is a state of mind, think you are slow runner and you will be slow.

Functional Training to improve your body’s ability to handle stress

Think about the force which moves through your body with each stride you take. Your body’s weight is supported on one foot while in motion. Running is a horizontal transfer of body weight and a number of muscles are recruited during this process, a few are listed below:

Quadricep (which are made up of 4 muscles and are involved in hip flexion and knee extension)

Hamstring and Buttocks (again 4 major muscles which also move 2 joins, hip extension and knee flexion)

Gastrocnemius and Soleus (which are involved in the movement of the knee and the ankle).

Core: Includes muscles of the torso with back, and abdominal muscles, (Rectus Abdominis, External Abdominal Oblique, Internal Abdominal Oblique and Transversus Abdominis) the hip and thing muscles. It goes without saying that these muscles are important as a structural foundation for the movement of the body when running.

Basically put, we need to strengthen the muscles mentioned above in order to become more stabile when we run. One of the most common faults I see when watching runners is “dropped hip”. The supporting muscles are not strong enough to place the body in proper position and the hip drops causing misalignments and causes stress. Eventually, something wears down from always having to compensate and injury occurs.

By improving core strength and incorporating exercises with movements which always connect one body part to another (another reason I am a big advocate of the TRX (http://www.fitnessanywhere.com/sfnt?AFFIL=yio8dP38) we improve our bodies coordination and ability to handle the stresses placed on it while running. For our clients who don’t use the TRX, I have them complete a simple routine which emphasizes core and hip stabilization. In addition to the functional strength and stabilization work, incorporate running drills and have your running form analyzed by your coach and in a short period of time you will notice improvements in your running form and post run fatigue.

Body Positioning:

I’ve analyzed a number of runners over the years and without question, very few people think about the way they carry their arms, lean their body or how their foot strikes the ground, recovery or where they look. Some of these are quick fixes, while other require changing muscle memory patterns. Through video and still picture photos you can get a good idea of what you look like when you run (contact me if you are interested in having your running analyzed). Running drills can change the way in which you run and should be incorporated into your training as part of your warm up and as standalone workouts. If you do not have a standard warm up which includes muscle activation and running drills you aren’t assisting yourself in becoming a more efficient runner and are increasing your risk of injury.

Some points to keep in mind when you run:

• Lean from your ankles, don’t bend at your hip. Your vertical lean should be 10% (think falling forward)

• Arms are held at 90’s and the elbow move straight back and forth. Your arms provide balance and should be relaxed (same thing with your hands)

• Your gaze is 10-12 yards ahead (not at your feet and not at the horizon)

• Shoulders remain relaxed and don’t rotate while you run

• Land mid foot (I will cover the foot strike in Part II of this article)

For the Mile High Multisport athletes reading this article, the coaches tips section in your workout log account covers specific core work (including pictures and descriptions), a running stabilization routine (pictures and explanation as well), muscle activation and a proper warm up routine. Spend more time “thinking” about your running as opposed to just doing. It will take time to change muscle memory, but with some dedication and a willingness to change, anything is possible.

In Part II of this article, I will go into more detail on foot strike/recovery, pacing strategies and having the proper mind set to become a faster runner.

Pete Alfino is a level II certified triathlon coach and the founder of Mile High Multisport, LLC. Pete and his coaching staff provided individualized training plans for triathletes from beginners to novice. Pete also conducts private swim ad run analysis. Contact Pete Alfino

Congratulation Mile High Multisport All Americans for 2009

2010-04-08T22:10:00.000-07:00

Photos: - Jeremy Anderson Sydney Cornell - Julie Thelen Hsu Kathy Alfino Daniel Madruga

Mile High Multisport would like to congratulate our athletes who received All American status for 2009.

Jeremy Anderson from Chicago highlighted his season by being the 2nd American in his age group at Olympic worlds held in Australia. His time of 2:02 was a personal best. This was Jeremy's third season in a row of achieving All American status.

Coach Sydney Cornell had a banner season with highlights coming at buffalo Springs 70.3 where she won her age group and qualified for the Ironman World Championships. She had a second place age group finsih at Steelhead 70.3, 19th place finish in her first Ironman in Kona and then was 5th overall female and 2nd in her age group at Ironman Arizona.

Julie Thelen Hsu highlighted her year by being the female overall winner at the Rattlesnake Sprint and also had a podium finish at the 5430 sprint. Congratulations Julie!!

Coach Kathy earned her third straight All American honors with podium finishes in every race she entered last year. She started the year at Rage in the Sage by taking 3rd, then won her age group at Loveland, Boulder Peak (by 5 minutes) and Rattlesnake. She ended the year with a second place finsih at the Wild on Windsor race.

Daniel Madruga achieved Honorable Mention status. Considering, Daniel spent the better part of last fall/winter recovering from a serious bike accident, this was a tremendous accomplishment.

In addition to our All Americans, Julia Rossi, and Katey Morris missed Honorable Mention rankings by less than 10 place.

USAT Rankings for 2009 click here

Overall, it was another great season by all our athletes. We look forward to everyone achieving success in 2010.

2010... Some points to ponder

2010-01-05T12:42:00.000-08:00

New Years has come and gone and I'm sure that most of you have formulated some type of resolution for the upcoming year. Resolutions take on different faces and I'm confident most people don't follow through on their commitments or put much thought into meaningful goals and objectives for the following year. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. How much time did you really put into your resolutions for this year and how will you hold yourself accountable. For 2010, I contacted another small business owner (outside of the triathlon world) and asked her if I could share with her my business plan/monthly objectives and if she wouldn't mind having a monthly conference call to discuss my progress each month. I purposely selected someone who I know will hold me accountable should I stray. I also established different goals for my business and personal life. Self Discipline and motivation will be the foundation of my success in achieving success in 2010. I plan to stretch myself beyond my comfort zone and although failure is a possibility, I know that we learn more in our defeats than our victories.
As I was sharing some of the motivational articles, which tend to float around at this time of year, with others, I received one back which I felt all athletes could benefit from. The speech from Tony Blair, the former Prime Minister of The United Kingdom was given during the Olympics. As I read his speech (which I've included below) and reflected about the athletes I've interacted with over the years there are many similarities between those who have achieved great things and those who do not. If you spend time listening to those who have done well in relation to their circumstances (note that doesn't mean winning) there are a lot of similar qualities. Although all of his points hit home, as a coach the biggest obstacle I see athletes dealing with is is not being afraid to fail. Too often, athletes go into races worried about falling apart instead of laying it on the line and accepting the outcome. If you have done the work up front, don't throw it all away because you are afraid to say I tried my best and came up short. Take some time to reflect on the following points and do some reflection. Ask a friend, coach or a family member to read the article and to give you some feedback on what they hear and see in you.

7 Characteristics of a Champion

1. Success comes to those who strive. Striving is a better concept than merely being competitive. Striving is more than wanting to be the best. It means even if you are the best, you are striving to be better. It is the product of a spirit that is restless for still greater things. It can mean a state of perpetual dissatisfaction, certainly with yourself.
Of course, it shows up in a strong competitive streak when in a race. But it is also an attitude that illustrates that the competitor is as much competing with himself as with others in the same race.
2. Champions are creative people. They are innovative. They are always pushing to the new frontier. They don't accept the "givens" of any field of endeavor. They challenge them. They are non-conventional people. Creative people challenge the parameters. They go back to the first principles of a subject. They ask not the superficial but the profound questions.
3. Champions are endlessly inquisitive. They are always searching for new insights, for original thinking, for something that makes me think anew and afresh. This also means knowing you can be wrong. You may have to re-think, and possibly radically. The characteristic of a champion is that they are prepared to do so.
All of this takes application and hard work.
4. The fourth quality is therefore self-discipline. That is more than just the hours you put in. But it is the discipline to lay aside other pleasures and concentrate hard on your own development. It is about focus and single mindedness. It is not just about deciding to work rather than spend an extra hour in the bar. It is about absorption in your task, about deep not shallow thought, about getting down to the core of what you are trying to achieve. It is about not accepting second best; about knowing in your heart, when something is not good enough and can and should be better. Notice that this is self- discipline. Past a certain point, you and only you can provide that intensity of will.
5. The fifth quality is courage. No champion is without courage. It may be physical, it may be intellectual. It may be of mind or body.
Courage is invariably found in a champion. Inevitably a champion is out in front. Championship is like leadership. When things are in the balance, when you cannot be sure, when others are uncertain or hesitate, when the very point is that the outcome is in doubt; that is when a leader steps forward. The courage lies not in acting without fear; but in acting despite fear.
Such people are the people who are prepared just to go for it; to back their instinct when their instinct is all the certainty they are going to get. Taking the uncalculated risk is just foolhardy. But a calculated risk is still a risk. Calculate too much and you miscalculate. You wait for the perfect moment when such moments rarely if ever exist. At a certain point you have to step forward, with an insecure terrain beneath your feet.
6. What this means is that you must also be prepared to fail. This is the sixth and possibly the toughest quality of all. The strange irony of the champion is that the champion must be able to live with failure as well as enjoy success. The very act of courage, of leadership that sees you step out into the unknowable, carries with it the possibility of defeat. You must be willing to be humbled as well as exalted. You must accept that the risk, however calculated, may not pay off.
One of the most common reasons why people don't strive is the fear of failure. Yet virtually no one I have ever met who has succeeded, has not failed first. The question is what you learn from the experience, what you learn not just about the process of competing, but about yourself, the strengths you should exploit, the weaknesses you must eliminate.
7. If you are to be a true champion, you must be motivated by more that "you". If the striving is purely selfish, if the love of personal achievement is purely the personal glory, something is missing; some aspect of championship that is elusive in definition but critical in action, Some people may see this in spiritual terms; that is one way of looking at it. Another way is simply a belief that to achieve to the highest level and beyond, to extend the frontiers of human knowledge or activity, is in and of itself, something good or worthy, noble even; that fulfils a purpose beyond your own recognition of your own self worth.
The true champion is not just a winner. He or she is a person of compassion, of humanity, motivated by a sense of obligation to others as strong as the will to succeed for themselves.

Ironman Arizona Race

2009-11-24T06:45:00.001-08:00

Photo: Sydney Cornell and Brent Morris on the bike lap 1, Ruben Diaz and Sydney Cornell finish line photos, Coaches Pete and Scoty with Suzy and Mary post race

Ironman Arizona Race Update:

And with the finish of Ironman Arizona, another triathlon race season comes to an end. This past weekend I traveled to Arizona with coach Scoty and Coach Julia to watch 7 MHM athletes and Coach Sydney compete in IMAZ. And Compete they did!!! Congratulations to all of you on your accomplishments.

With 6 of the 8 participating in their first Ironman, the weekend proved to be emotional on many different levels for both athletes and families. Coach Sydney had boldly predicted she would redeem herself from Kona and was gong for a top three age group finish and a return trip to the big Island. Katey, Mary, Suzy, Austin, Brandy and Ruben were all tackling the distance for the first time. Brent Morris set out to improve his overall Ironman time.

I skipped the swim start this year (honestly, I've seen enough and thought I would sleep in and conserve some energy for later). I should up as most of the MHM athletes were about to start loop three of the bike. I saw Brent, Austin, Katey and Mary. I then positioned myself where I could see both the bike finish and the run 3.5 mile mark. After everyone was in I focused on getting to a good spectating spot for the run. When ever I spectate an Ironman race, I try to go as far away from the crowds as possible. I'm not being anti social. I just don't believe I provide any motivation if I'm one of hundreds. Being further out on the course gives me an opportunity to evaluate the athletes easier and have a chance to have uninterrupted conversation as they run by. I walked out with a group to the 9.5 mile mark and begun the process of trying to pick the MHM athletes out of the crowd. Sydney was engaged in a great race with Wendy Mader who was the overall amateur winner in Kona two years ago and we were giving her time gap splits all day long. She was running strong and confident but couldn't make up the gap Wendy had earned in the water (almost 9 minutes) and ended up taking 2nd in her age group and was the 5th overall amateur female to cross the line. With a time of 10:05 she easily earned her Kona slot for 2010. Congratulations Coach Sydney!!

The rest of the Mile High athletes all finished and with faster than anticipated times. Brent Morris had a 1 hour personal best. Katey Morris ended up 13th in her age group, Austin broke 11:30 and Suzy, Mary, Brandy and Ruben all enjoyed the wonderful thrill of crossing the Ironman finish line and joined the brother/sister hood of Ironman finishers.

I've seen my fare share of Ironman races as both a participant and a spectator. I love sitting in the stands at the finish line and watching the jubilation on the athletes faces as they are announced "Ironman finishers" and enjoy accolades from the fans as they run down the carpet and thrust their arms in the air as they cross under the finishers arch.

The Ironman defines who you are as a person. There are many parallels between the Ironman preparation and how you handle life. As with life, Ironman training presents many different trials and tribulations. Will you quit when things get difficult or will you forge ahead? The easy thing to do in life is to quit and look for a different adventure? We see it happen all the time in work, in relationships and with training. The journey to the start line is the most difficult part. The race itself is the celebration of the perseverance and dedication that you have shown during your training. As a coach, I hold myself accountable to getting the athlete to the start line and then I let go. It is up to the athlete to execute what they have learned during the long hours of training. It is my hope that everyone learned a little more about themselves during this journey and that they realize that the Ironman is more than about just crossing the finishing line.

Without hesitation, my favorite part of an Ironman race occurs after the race is over. When the athlete and family come together for the first time. Although all the focus and attention is on the person racing, this journey would have never been accomplished without a strong support group behind the scenes. It may be a spouse, parent, employer or significant other but some where there is a support system. The real sacrifice comes from this group of people, yet the glory and accolades go to the athlete.

Earlier this year, I spoke to the Parker Triathlon Club about balancing hobby and sport. Two ladies (Mary Kasal, Suzy Pendergraft) sat attentively in the front row and I later found out they were athletes of Coach Scoty who were scheduled to compete in Ironman Arizona. Post presentation they both thanked me and shared with me that there concern about taking on the Ironman wasn't about going the distance or the training but their husbands and families. They both wanted to make sure that this race wouldn't impact what was going on at home. We spoke a little more about how to balance work/hobby/home and I told them to follow Scoty's plan and they would be just fine.

Post race this year I was fortunate enough to be standing in close proximity to Mary's husband after she finished. There is always a throng of followers as well as fence that separates family form competitors. I watched as his eyes darted back and forth trying to get a view of Mary. He held his camera over head and snapped picture after picture and I'm not even sure he was taking photos of Mary. His face BEAMED with joy and excitement and he started hugging people, anyone who was around received a hug. Suzy finished and the same scene took place with her family and that scenario repeated itself throughout the night. To me, those moments are more precious than anything I've ever witnessed at a race.

Amongst all the confusion post race (Ironman Arizona is hands down the worst venue for finding athletes post race) we managed to find the majority of our athletes and snapped some photos and talked about the days events. The coaches and a few athletes headed over to Monti's for a quick night cap and then headed home knowing our missions had been accomplished.

Mile high Multisport is currently accepting athletes for the 2010 season. Please contact Pete Alfino if you would like to learn more about Mile High Mulstiport and how we can assist you in accomplishing your triathlon goals.

Ironman Arizona Results for MHM athletes and Coaches:

Sydney Cornell: 10:05.24 2nd age group, 5th amateur O.A.(KONA Qualifier)
Brent Morris: 10:48.29 1 hour Personal Best
Katey Morris: 11:07.08 1st Ironman 13th age group
Austin Parker: 11:26.00 1st Ironman
Mary Kasal: 13.29.27 1st Ironman
Ruben Diaz: 13.55.22 1st Ironman
Brandy Cohen: 14.25.35 1st Ironman
Suzy Pendergraft: 14.31.26 1st Ironman

Ironman World Championships 2009

2009-10-12T01:20:00.000-07:00

As a coach, I'm blessed to be able to accompany and watch athletes compete at races. In 2004 and 2006 I was in Hawaii and watched Kathy compete in the Ironman World Championships. It was truly an amazing experience to witness the sports most recognizable event live and in person. I've been watching this event on t.v. since the mid 1980's and actually standing on Alii drive, going to Dig Me Beach and seeing the pros in person is surreal.. Watching Julie Moss crawl over the finish line inspired me to get involved in triathlons. Little did I know, I would eventually turn the sport into my profession.
This year, I accompanied MHM athlete/Coach, Julia Rossi and MHM coach Sydney Cornell to Hawaii. Both ladies had qualified at 70.3 races and this would be their first full Ironman on arguably the toughest Ironman course under brutal conditions.

Preparing an athlete for Kona requires extra preparation by both athlete and coach. The caliber of athletes, the international field, the heat/humidity and self imposed pressures to do well require an athlete to be in top physical and mental condition. Many people often tell me they want to qualify for Kona but I don't think they have a realistic picture of what they are getting into. Be careful what you ask for, you may just get it. The mind games start from the minute you walk onto the plane and continue throughout the week. Past finishers tell war stories of wicked winds and high heat. Athletes being blown into the lava fields and the intense Kona heat reducing the worlds best athletes to a crawl. Nothing can prepare you for the conditions you will face come race week.

Julia and I arrived on Monday and by Tuesday morning she already began to question why she was here, if she had prepared enough and openly displayed her fear of not finishing. She couldn't sleep, wouldn't eat and looked exhausted. We spoke at length about her preparation for the event and how the only goal was to cross the finish line yet her worries persisted. By mid week, I was generally concerned that she had self destructed and may not even get to the start line.

In contrast, Sydney rolled into town, relaxed, like she had been doing this for years. As Julia turned inwards, Sydney was a ball of energy, singing and dancing. Sydney shared concerns over what race day may bring, but her energy and her confidence in her abilities remained high. Everyone shows nerves before a race in different ways. If there were ever polar opposite athletes, these two were it.

We went downtown to the infamous "under pants run", went to the Lava Java once and did some practice swims at Dig Me Beach. I tried to limit Julia from being down town too much to calm her nerves. We drove the bike course, went to the Kona Aquatic center (saw Chrissie Wellington) and did a short snorkeling adventure but generally tried to say away from the "scene".

Saturday afternoon, Julia and I went over her final race strategy and preparation. I told her that on Saturday she would mature and find out more about herself and her heart than she had in the previous 23 years of her young life. I told her that she would "grow up" a lot in one day. Saturday evening, post meal the two of them started to talk more about the day which would follow. I countered with having them watch "old school" and nerves turned into laughter. Off to bed for both by 9 p.m. and up at 3:30 a.m.. Pre race meal, final words of wisdom and off they went to body marking.

Trish (Trish Taylor joined us as Sydney's main Sherpa of the week) and I took up a spot on the Sea Wall and waited for the start of the race. We preceded to the Hot Corner and saw both girls three times in a short period of time before they headed out to the Queen K. We walked the 4 miles back to our house, rested and then headed out to Alii drive in time to see the lead men come by. We were bombarded by folks at home wanting to know how they were doing. Truth be told, they probably had a better clue than we did since race updates were being posted on the Internet. Sydney came by smiling as usual and telling us that "this is hard". I told her she was in 12th place in her age group off the bike and away she went. Julia came by a bit later, she didn't speak to me but had a look of determination in her eyes. Although I could tell she was suffering, it was the first time all week I stopped worrying about her. I told her she was in 5th place, 9 minutes down form 4th. Running isn't her strong suit and I had a pretty good idea she would be caught (top 5 get on the podium in Kona) but this is the Ironman and you never know what will happen. Trish and I headed back to the house, had some lunch and then walked the 4 miles back to the start/finish line.

We were following the girls progress on our phones and trying to calculate when they would come by. The joy and excitement around the Ironman finish line is indescribable. This day has been on the athletes minds for what seems an eternity. We stood in a spot where the athletes could see the finish line for the first time. You could see the pain escape their bodies and expressions of joy and accomplishment take over. There were a few who came in with looks of disappointment and one could only hope that some day they could see the beauty in finishing as opposed to linking success to a time clock.

Sydney came by and finished in 11:08 which was good enough for 19th in her age division. A great time for her first Ironman. I have no doubt that as she continues to race this distance she will be in contention for a podium position one day.

Julia finished in 12:24 which was good enough for a 9th place age group finish. When I saw her post race I gave her a big hug and asked her "who belongs here" she replied "I do" and tears rolled down her face. Next year, she plans to return and make a run for the top 5. In fact, she is already bugging me to start training again!! To read Julia's account of the week go to her blog by clicking here.

McGrath/Binzer set Ironman P.B.'s., Thelen Wins again!!

2009-08-31T08:45:00.000-07:00

Photos: Jeremy Anderson at Nationals in 2009, Coach Kathy on the bike
Happy Monday!!

Another Great weekend of training for MHM athletes around the globe.

Chicago Triathlon:

Jeremy Anderson, who is on his way to worlds in one week, set a P.B (2:05.53). at the Chicago Triathlon yesterday. Racing in the amateur elite classification he took 25th overall and 5th in his age classification. Can't wait to see what he does on a full taper.

Austin Parker took 4th in his age group at the Steam Boat tri i a time of 1:46.25.

Julie Thelen was the 9th female overall, won her age group (again) and set a 10 minute Olympic distance PB (2:21.30) at the Wild on Windsor Race.

Kathy Alfino, took 2nd in her age group, 12 female overall in a time of 2:26.17 (one of her fastest Olympic distance times in recent years)

IRONMAN FINISHERS

John McGrath rocked the Ironman Louisville course in a time of 12:25.29 which is 1 hour 50 minutes faster than last year. He negative split both the run and the bike. For those of you who like to alter your intensities and training plans, John is the reason why you stick to the plan. Perfect execution of his race day strategy, nutrition and mind!! Congratulations John!!

Kelli Binzer went 12:16 at Ironman Canada and set a personal best by 23 minutes. This is Kelli's 6th or 7th Ironman (I lose track) but what makes this one important is she completed it post child and post traumatic bike accident mid summer. Very nice Kelli, you owe me sushi....

For those of you who are interested, we are hosting a fund raising event at the lake this weekend for two local triathletes involved in a serious bike accident a few weeks ago (they are not MHM athletes). A fund raising swim starts at 8 a.m with registration at 7. We are also auctioning off a lot of items which have been donated by the triathlon community.

MHM Ladies dominate at Rattlesnake

2009-08-17T16:23:00.000-07:00

Photos:

Denver's favorite sports anchor Susie Wargin setting an Olympic distance personal best at the Rattlesnake Triathlon.
Olympic Distance winner Sydney Cornell on her way to T1
Sprint Overall champion flanked by age group champions Leslie Lobojko and Kathy Alfino.

Results:

Congratulations to the ladies of Mile High Mulstisport who dominated the podium at the Rattlesnake events over the weekend. On Saturday, Sydney Cornell was the first female amateur (2nd female overall behind Olympian Susan Williams), Susie Wargin set a personal best and Barb Esses had another great showing.

On Saturday, Julie Thelen took the overall female award and was the 11th athlete across the line both male and female!! Leslie Lobojko set a personal best and won her age group by 5 minutes (she was the 8th female overall). Last years Overall winner, Kathy Alfino won her age group and was the 4th female overall.

Nice job ladies!!! That is four overall victories for you this season!!!

Open Water Swimming

2009-08-17T06:57:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for information on open water swimming the site was hacked and the information is gone. We are closing on September 6th for the season. All information for next year will be located on the Mile High Multisport web page by December. Thank you for a great season and we look forward to seeing you next season.

Weekend race Results/Photos 5430 Long Course/ Splash/Mash and Dash

2009-08-10T07:27:00.000-07:00

Photos: Top to Bottom. click on photo to enlarge
Cindy Beyer with her 3rd place trophy at the Splash/Mash and Dash
Mary and Suzy pre race 5430 long course
Brent/Katey Morris post race 5430
Brandi and Marci pre race 5430
Liz Whitfield and her relay partner on stage 5430
Julia 5430 Long Course
Paul Fitzgerald showing his hardware at the Long Course
Brent Morris finishing stretch of the long course
Chrissie Wellington visiting the Mile High Multisport tent
Leslie Lobojoko and coach Kathy showing off Leslie's overall female title trophy

Results:

Mary Kasal - 6:04:14 - First 70.3 race ever
Ruben Diaz - 6:30:34 - 30:00 PR over last 70.3
Laura Graber - 6:56:23 - 41:00 PR over last years 5430 Long Course
Suzy Pendergraft - 6:59:07 - 1st 70.3 race ever
Brent Morris 4:45 11 min P.B.
Katie Morris 5:12 13 min. P.B.
Julia Rossi 5:13 2nd A.G. 23 min P.B.
Austin Parker 5:20
Paul Fitzgerald 5:37 3rd Clydesdale
Marci Madruga 5:54 16 min P.B.
Brandy Cohen 6:30 1st 70.3 distance event
Liz Whitfield Female relay team winner

Weekend Update/5430 Long Course

2009-08-03T12:50:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend. Results are posted below.

This weekend we have a lot of athletes competing in the 5430 Long Course. Preliminary forecast for this weekend is.....
Saturday: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a high near 87.

Saturday Night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 58.

Sunday: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a high near 86.

It is important that you are well rested, nourished and hydrated this week. your focus should be on race preparation and race strategy. Make a phone call to your coach early this week to discuss these areas. Our goal on race day is to race with a quiet mind. do not judge while in the middle of your performance. Keep your mind quiet and still.

We will have the Mile High Multisport Tent up on race day. Please feel free to drop your post race bag in the tent pre race. Remember, the transition does not open for a long time post race. Look for us directly across from the transition area. We may place a second tent by the beer garden.

Volunteer Opportunity:

I think it is important that each of you give back to the sport. This weekend, Mile High Multisport will be hosting the water station at the Splash/Mash and Dash race in Highlands Ranch (on Saturday). We need some volunteers to help hand out water. If you are racing Sunday, I don't want you there on Saturday. Contact Coach Pete if you can help out.

Athlete Event Distance Result Place Personal Best
Cindy Beyer MHM Open Water Swim .5 miles 26.18
Gina Graves Brewhouse Triathlon (MN) International 2:08:52 4th A.G. 14th O.A.
Katy Kristoferrson Arts 5k run 5k 31:00
Cody Hanson Socorro Chili Fest Sprint 1:10:02 1st Clydesdale P.B. 15 minutes
Coach Sydney Steelhead 70.3 Half Ironman 4:55 2nd A.G. 8th Amateur O.A.
Kristi Fitzgerald Anthem Sprint Tri Sprint 1:16.17 1st A.G.
Karen Bird Tri for The Cure 1:23. 1st place Survivor division

Boulder Peak, HRCA Tune Up, Door County Tri and more!!

2009-07-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

Photos: (from Bottom to Top)

Lori, Jeff and Gabi Liedy HRCA Tri N July Co ed relay winners
Leslie Lobojko, Julia Rossi, Andrea Mueller (2nd, 3rd, 4th place over all Tr N July, Each won their age division)
Katey Morris at the Boulder Peak
Savanna Liedy prior to the kids tri
Katey Morris on the run at the Peak
Julie Thelen on the stage in Boulder

Race updates:

Boulder Peak:

An impressive showing by the MHM athletes in Boulder. All results can be found on the results page. Some high lights were personal bests from Brent Morris (4 minutes), Julie Thelen (14 minutes)and Coach Kathy winning her age group by 5 minutes. Thanks to all who stopped by the MHM tent, pre and post race. Reigning Ironman World Champion, Craig Alexander spent 30 minutes in the tent talking to the athletes which was quite a thrill.

Door County Triathlon:

CONGRATULATIONS TO Katey and Brent Morris on their finishes at the Door County Triathlon in Wisconsin. Katey was the overall female winner and Brent was the 3rd male over all.

HRCA Tri N July:

Another impressive showing by Mile High Multisport athletes!! Leslie Lobojko, Andrea Mueller and Julia Rossi each won their age group and finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th overall. The Liedy family won the co ed relay division. Cindy Beyer and Savanna Liedy also had great days.

Cabbage Head Duathlon!!

Julie Thelen wrapped up the series by taking 7th overall and 2nd in her age category. Overall she took 2nd in her category for the series!! Way to go Julie!!

Mile High Multisport Open Water Swim Series:

Congratulations to Marci Madruga, Kathy Alfino and Brandy Cohen on their respective finishes yesterday. Our next race is August 1st!!

All results and times came be found on the Mile High Multisport Web page in the results section or by clicking here.

MHM Athletes Rock Loveland & Boulder

2009-06-21T09:47:00.001-07:00

Photos (top to bottom): Ruben Diaz on the run at the 5430 Sprint. Mary Kasal and Suzy Pendergraft pre race Boulder 5430. Coach Kathy, Marci Madruga, Julia Rossi and all three ladies post race with their glassware!!

Congratulations to everyone who raced Loveland Lake to Lake on June 20th and the Boulder Sprint on the 21st. It was great to see all the MHM shirts post race. MHM was well represented on the podium this weekend and had a number of top ten age group finishes.

LOVELAND

Marci Madruga won the Aqua Bike in a time of 1:59.05 and was 3rd overall male and female competitors.
Susan Brashear did the Aqua Bike as well in a time of 2:26.46 and took 10th in her division

Daniel Madruga set a 15 minute course Personal Best today in a time of 2:29.18, was 39th overall and 7th in his age group.
Leslie Lobojoko had a 3 minute personal best, took 5th in her age group (2:49.59)
Julia Rossi,from off her Kona qualifying performance at Honu 70.3 was 2nd in her age group in a time of 2:45.27
Coach Kathy, despite suffering from food poisoning and limited training avenged an earlier loss and won her age group in a time of 2:40.30

BOULDER

Mary Kasal - 1:41:47
Suzy Pendergraft - 1:50:53
Laura Graber - 1:54:13
Ruben Diaz - 1:55:37
Melissa Golan 2:05.09 1st triathlon
Julie Thelen 1:23.28 3rd A.G. 4 min. P.B.
David Reed 1:20.06 4th A.G.
Austin Parker 1:24.52
Katey Morris 1:26.46
Marci Madruga 1:33.17 2 min. P.B.
Brent Morris 1:16.43 7th A.G. 20th O.A.
Paul Fitzgerald 1:31.37 7th Clydesdale

Race update weekend of 6/6

2009-06-09T14:34:00.001-07:00

Photos: Jenny Thorpe on the bike and at the finish line of the Oliver Half Ironman in Canada. Coach Pete and his faithful companion Sampson await the arrival of MHM cyclists. The relay team of Gabi Liedy, Kathy and Nick Alfino (1st place), Paul Fitzgerald (1st place) and Daniel Madruga (3rd place) show off some bling. Nick Alfino and Daniel Madruga on the run course and Proud Mom Lori Liedy coming back from T1 one with Gabi.

It was a great weekend overall for those who raced. Besides the Highlands Ranch Spring Tune up. Karen Bird finished 2nd in her age group at the Boulder Sunrise Triathlon and Cody Hanson continued his assault on the podium with a 3rd place Clydesdale finish at the Milkman triathlon.

Nice job by everyone. good luck to all of you racing at Kansas 70.3 this weekend.

Congratulations Julia on your Kona Qualification at Honu 70.3

2009-06-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Julia Rossi (Coach Allen) on her 2nd place age group finish at the Honu 70.3 race. With her finish, Julia qualified and will be racing at the Ironman World Championships in October

MHM athlete Doug Cronin plays 100 holes of golf/runs a marathon for Charity!!

2009-05-15T07:04:00.001-07:00

Ironman takes swings at marathon golf event
Posted by Chris Wagner / The Post-Standard May 13, 2009 6:41PM
Li-Hua Lan / The Post-StandardDoug Cronin, of Manlius, will attempt a novel biathlon on Monday when he runs a marathon while playing more than 100 holes of golf. Cronin has completed two ironamn competitions and four marathons.

Doug Cronin has completed two ironman triathlons. He's finished four marathons. And he's competed in numerous endurance competitions.

But he's never done anything like what he plans Monday.

On that day he will create a novel biathlon by running a 26.2-mile marathon while playing more than 100 holes of golf at Skaneateles Country Club.

"Yeah, it's a little wacky, but I'm doing it to raise awareness -- and hopefully some money -- for the McMahon-Ryan Child-Advocacy Site," said Cronin, 30, of Manlius.

Although he has completed triathlons that involve swimming 2.4 miles, bicycling 112 miles and running 26.2 miles, he expects this event to offer it's own particular challenge.

"To be honest, I don't know how this will turn out," said Cronin, co-owner of Crown Risk Management. "It looks like the weather is going to be good, so I think I'll make it through. But it's going to be a long day."

To complete his goal of 100 holes would require playing five full rounds plus 10 additional holes. However, to travel the official marathon distance at Skaneateles CC -- a course that measures 6,422 yards -- he would have to play just over seven rounds, or 127 holes.

"If you want to be official, that's probably it, but I don't necessarily hit it that straight," laughed Cronin, a former scratch golfer in college who now holds a 3-handicap at Onondaga Golf & Country Club. "A little Army golf will add into my yardage. But I'll keep going for the official marathon distance. I'm trying to get a GPS hooked up to me so I can figure out exactly how far I've gone."

Cronin said he came up with the idea for the running-golf test after playing in the McMahon-Ryan 100 Holes 4 Kids charity tournament the past two years. The event generates revenue to help local child victims of physical and sexual abuse.

"This year, with the economy with the way that it is, it's been tough on charities trying to raise money," he said. "I wanted to bring as much awareness to McMahon-Ryan as I could and thought that maybe I could do that by making it just a little bit harder on myself."

Cronin offered these observations on the event:

What have you done to prepare for the event?

It's kind of hard to train for it. But I've done a lot of things where I've run four minutes, walked one minute, run four minutes, walked one minute. In endurance training, you need that walking because you have to change up the muscle groups you're using.

Does adding a dynamic movement, like swinging a golf club throughout a 12-hour day, add certain stresses to a body used to repetitive motions like running, swimming and biking?

Yes, it does. With the other things, you just put your head down and go. But I figure I'll be taking 250 to 300 full swings during the day.

You've played the 100 Holes 4 Kids twice before -- but while riding in a cart. How did you feel after those events?

Dog tired -- and I was in good shape. The biggest part that really gets sore is my lower back. That's what I'm most concerned about on Monday, so I've done a lot of core work leading up to this because I need my back and stomach to be strong.

What's your biggest obstacle?

The weather is the real determinant. If it's too hot, that's bad for me. Or, it could get so cold to the point where I couldn't hold onto the club. Rain wouldn't be great to try to keep dry and be able to swing. But a little mist and around 60 degrees is A-OK for me. I just need a good Syracuse spring day. (The forecast is for 63 degrees and partly sunny.)

How much have you raised in pledges?

I don't know, I've been on the road a lot lately and haven't checked. But our goal is to raise about $3,000 per golfer. I'd like to be around that spot.

How can you donate?

Just go to the McMahon-Ryan Web site (www.mcmahonryan.org). All the golfers (22 total) are listed there. Just click on the one you want to donate to. No donation is too small.

Rage in The Sage Triathlon

2009-04-21T12:44:00.000-07:00

RAGE IN THE SAGE UPDATE:

The initial Mile High Multisport destination trip was a tremendous success. The Rage in The Sage Triathlon was held in beautiful Lake Mead on April 19th, The race off erred Sprint, Olympic and Half Ironman Distance options on what proved to be a very challenging course. With a water temperature of 58 degrees, a hilly/windy bike course and a run in the desert, this early season race tested early season fitness.

Leading the way for the MHM athletes was Marci Madruga with a 1st place age group finish and 5th place over all. Kristi Fitzgerald was the next MHM finisher, capturing 10th over all and 3rd in her age group.

Daniel Madruga, who is less than 6 moves removed from his horrific bicycle accident, which had him hospitalized for over a week, took 4th in his age group and 18th over all. Daniel reeled off one of the fastest bikes splits of the day and proved he is fully recovered. Coach Kathy, took 10th overall and finished 3rd in her age group. Steve Uccello, who did a 4 hour training ride the day before the race, and who vehemently denies he was sitting a poker table until the wee hours of the morning, finished out the MHH participants. With three podium spots and a fourth place finish, the overall trip was a huge success.

The rest of the trip consisted of booze, gambling and a trip to Hoover Dam. Discussions are already underway for our our next destination trip. Feel free to make suggestions!!

The Race Season is Officially Underway !!!

2009-04-07T13:16:00.001-07:00

Picture:

Scott Scott heading out on the run and Coach Scoty with Aaron & Scott

Many of you have already raced this year or are about to complete your first events of the season. Based on the number of "I'm tired of my trainer" comments we must be fast approaching better weather and the enjoyment that training out doors brings. Congratulations to Coach Scoty on getting Aaron Deboer (5:23) and Scott Scott (6:51) through their first 70.3 races in California last weekend. Marci Madruga set personal records in the 500, 100 & 1650 at the Colorado State Swimming championships last weekend and now has her sites set on nationals.

This upcoming weekend has a few of you running 5 and 10ks with the MHM destination race in Las Vegas (Rage in The Sage)the weekend of April 19. We have at least one athlete competing in each of the three distances offered that weekend. Of course there is sure to be some post race festivities which will never make this page.

Mile High Multisport is pleased to announce a three race swim series to be held at Grant Ranch. See the open water swimming blog for more information.

The New Podium shirts are in and we will be distributing them to each our current athletes shortly. If anyone else in interested in purchasing a shirt please contact Pete Alfino

The Coach Athlete Relationship

2009-02-05T08:55:00.000-08:00

following is an article I wrote for Triathlon Life Magazine which should be published in the next issue. I plan to follow up this article with a shorter article on logging your workouts and what information is helpful for your coach to gauge your progress.

The Coach/Athlete Relationship
How to get the most out of your coach

Whether you have already hired a coach or are thinking of hiring a coach there are certain steps you can take to foster the Coach/Athlete relationship. Each coach has their own style and philosophies, but there are certain expectations an athlete should have when they hire a coach. Setting your expectations upfront is crucial in establishing a mutually beneficial working relationship.

At minimum you should ask the following questions during the selection process. How and when will my training plan be provided? What type of review process do you have in place? If I need to ask you a question what is the best manner in which to reach you? What are your pre and post race notification requirements? A good coach will explain their processes up front but this doesn’t exclude you from communicating your preferences. Following are some suggestions on how to make the most of your relationship with your coach.

Goals:

Establish goals and benchmark sessions to measure progress along the way. This is a “given” and I won’t spend a lot of time on goal establishment. Discuss your race plan and ask for your coaches input. Ask what tests and criteria they use to establish fitness gains. At the end of the season how will you and your coach evaluate progress and success?

Timely and Open Communication:
The cooperation of both the athlete and coach is required if there is to be effective communication.

Coaches should provide workouts that are clear and concise. What are the duration, intensity, terrain and desired outcomes of your workout? What phase of training are you in and what purpose does your current block of training play in the annual training plan? How will you receive your workouts and when can you expect to have your plan for the upcoming week or months of training?

The athlete can foster the relationship by providing meaningful feedback on how they absorbed the workouts provided. In short, fill out your training logs in a timely manner and be thorough. “Completed” “done” “that was hard” tells your coach very little. Provide information on how you felt before, during and after the session. How did your body feel during the main set of the workout? What was your wattage? Heart rate? Pacing? What successes or obstacles did you encounter during the session? What was your mental state of mind? How did you sleep the night before? How has your diet been? The more relevant information you share, the easier it becomes for your coach to develop a plan with your fitness gains in mind.

The first step towards quality communication with your coach is to realize that you play a key role in fostering the relationship. Many times, important factors which influence performance are left unmentioned. Remember this is a business relationship. Coaches don’t want to play counselor. Share only information that impacts your training but don’t expect your coach to give you advice outside of the sport.

Trust:

When you make the decision to hire a coach you are putting your faith in their hands. There are different methods which lead to the finish line of any race. If you hire someone to drive “your bus” for the season then let them drive the bus. The internet, training partners and magazine articles can all provide distractions and plant a seed of doubt in your mind. Don’t give up on your training program before giving it adequate time to be evaluated. Don’t be afraid to ask your coach about different philosophies and methods. A good coach will be fair, firm and honest with you.

What to Expect from your Coach:

Realize that not every coach has all the answers. If they don’t have an answer then they should provide assistance on where to find the answer. Your coach has a life and don’t expect them to be available 365/24/7. Respect your coach’s time and ask them when it is acceptable to call for questions and what a reasonable response time should be when you contact them.

What can you do to foster the relationship?

If you don’t know something then ask? Coaches love to teach about the sport and like when athletes become life long students. Work hard and be consistent day in and day out. Coaches will work harder for athletes who work hard to achieve the goals established up front.

The dept of the coach/athlete relationship is formed when both parties have pre established goals and expectations and two way communication is established. Make the most of your coach by taking an active role.

Q&A:

Q: What is a reasonable time frame when asking a coach a question via e-mail or voice mail?
A: 24 hours unless another time frame is established up front?

Q: When should I expect to have my workouts for the following week?
A: set the tone during the initial meeting with your coach. Most athletes these days have busy personal schedules and can’t wait until the last minute. Let your coach know when you need your plan. Last minute schedules or schedules that are late are never acceptable.

Q: What is the one thing I can do to help foster the working relationship?
A: Communicate openly. The more information your coach has the better they can assist you.

Peter S. Alfino is the founder and President of Mile High Multisport and. USAT level II triathlon coach. He has raced triathlons since 1988. You can find more information about his coaching services at WWW.milehighmultisport.com. How You Train Makes The Difference!! Contact Pete at pete@milehighmultisport.com

Ironman Arizona Coaches report

2008-11-25T09:14:00.000-08:00

Just returned form Ironman Arizona where I was proud to watch three more Mile High Multisport athletes cross the Ironman Finish line. I've lost count of the number of athletes I've coached to Ironman finishes, but I can guarantee you that every time I watch an athlete complete the Ironman I get all warm and fuzzy inside. The Ironman takes tremendous dedication, perseverance and sacrifice from both athlete and their support system.

Race day turned out to be absolutely phenomenal in terms of weather conditions. The water was a little balmy at 63 degrees but the temperatures were high 70's most of the day and very little wind. This was the day which we all dream of.

Brian lead the MHM assault out of the water with a 1:17 swim, followed by Cody in 1:27 and Courtney in 2:03. Of all the MHM athletes I coach, this threesome loathes the water more than anyone else. Kudos to Brian for a great swim despite all the bitching and moaning over the year. His 1:17 swim was much faster than I expected and was a direct result of the time he put in the water. I can still remember him struggling to finish 100 yards earlier in the year. I missed Cody coming out of transition but Courtney let me know how much she loved the water on her way out of town.
Thanks to MHM athlete, Daunae Newton we had posh digs in which to watch the race. Big D hooked up with some fellow bloggers at the bike turn and we were treated to a luxury motor home complete with A/C, T.V. to watch football, beer, water, chips, burgers, brats and the works. The road side crew didn't match the enthusiasm of the Gentine family from Ironman Wisconsin but I must admit, have the motor home versus the corn fields to relieve myself was welcomed.
With the lack of wind the flat bike course lead to some very fast bike splits. Brian and Courtney experienced flat tires but still had great bike splits. Cody was consistent all afternoon long and every time I saw him he had a big smile on his face. As I watched the tail end of the bikers approach the bike cut off deadline I couldn't help but notice that there are a lot of people who race with $6,000 bikes, $150 tear drop helmets and $80 compression socks who are slow. The night before the race, Brian Henden asked me why everyone walking around Ironman Village looked like they were 10 hour Ironman finishers. My response "well they're not". It never seems to amaze me that so many people spend some much money looking fast and riding slow. NOTHING beats putting the time into training.
I set up on top the bridge for the run. Thiswas the 3/12/21 mile mark and I was able to see everyone on each lap as they came by. Being a spectator veteran I am able to gauge the overall satisfaction of the athletes by the expressions on their faces as they go by and how many of them are running/walking. I saw very few people walking on this race day and most athletes on the first two laps were enjoying the day to the fullest. As I sat out on the bridge around the 13:30 mark the throng of fans had dwindled. In fat there were about 5 of us and eventually I was up there by myself. I was getting tired and my enthusiasm had waned to the point where I wasn't acknowledging everyone with the same enthusiasm I had earlier in the day. As one gentlemen ran by I acknowledged him with a head dip but didn't clap or offer encouragement. He was running fairly well and I opted to save my energy for the folks who looked like they were in trouble and needed encouragement. As he ran by he slowed a bit, pointed and me and yelled "FIRST TIME FINISHER MAN, COME ON MAN GIVE ME SOMETHING!!" Out on a bridge, in the dark, by himself and he captured the true essence of what this event is all about. It's not about what time you finish, it's about crossing the line and being happy with he fact that you crossed the line.

As I sat and watch everyone go by I couldn't help but think of all the different walks of life which enter Ironman races. Different races, gender, age, height, weight, disabled..you name it. But on this particular day they all had the same goal.

Brian was the first MHM athlete across the line just over the 11 hour mark. He was met in the finishers shoot by his father Arnie. Back in 1987 I went on my first group bike ride with a some co workers back in Chicago. I was a young punk who showed up with a Schwin World bike, no bike helmet, 12 ounces of water, reflectors, kick stand and no food for a 50 mile ride. At the end of the day I was told to ditch the kick stand, get a helmet and to show up next week with more water and food. Arnie was part of the group who got me involved in this sport. I couldn't help but get a little choked up after having just coached his son to his first Ironman finish.

Next up was Cody, and as is typical with Cody, the smile on his face could be matched by no other. This was Cody's third attempt at an Ironman. He never made it to the start line of his first race due to a broken collar bone. race number two resulted in a DNF when he was pulled off the bike course for failing to meet the Silverman bike cut off at mile 85. They say the third time is the charm and I'm proud Cody perserved and finally fulfilled his dream.

Just past the 15 hour mark, Courtney came running down the shoot with the youngest of her three children. A mother of three, a top sales representative with her company, a very supportive husband and now a two time Ironman. If you don't know Courtney she completes Ironman for different reasons than the rest of us. Most people who race Ironman are trying to prove something to themselves or are running away from something in their lives. Courtney completes Ironmans because everything else in her life runs smoothly and she needs a challenge to make life complete. Post race she promptly fired me and told me "no more" but my money is she will return one day.

Ironman reflects who we are as people and how we deal with life. Training and racing mimic life. When life throws us curves do we quit or move forward?

This race marked the end of a long year of racing for MHM athletes. It seems like yesterday when Jonathan Nixon finsihed Ironman South Africa. In between that time we have had athletes race all of the US and over seas. It's been a great year and as we approach 2009 I can't wait to be sitting on a bridge, by myself, in the dark waiting for a lone figure to come out of the shadows. The smile I get when they see me, the determination in their face and the end result of many months of sacrifice which resulted in the only goal we should all strive for on any race day.. JUST CROSS THE LINE.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM ALL THE COACHES AT MILEHIGH MULTISPORT.

Ironman Arizona Photos

2008-11-25T09:00:00.001-08:00

Photos:
1. Coach Pete and Courtney Ring post race
2. Brian Henden
3. Cody Hanson
4. Cody H. and Family
5. Courtney and Sherpa Sean
6. Duane Newton and Cody
7. Courtney
8. Cody on his way into changing tent
9. Brian
10. Brian H. and his father Arnie

Sammons at 70.3 World Championships/Ironman Arizona up next

2008-11-12T05:36:00.000-08:00

70.3 World Championships

Congratulations to Mike Sammons on his performance at 70.3 Championships in Clearwater, Florida last weekend. At the seven mile mark of the run, Mike was in 2nd place when you he tore his calf muscle. He limped/walked the rest of the way home and still managed to finish in 4:26!!! Mike vows to get healthy and return in 2009!!

Ironman Arizona:

Cody Hanson, Brian Henden and Courtney Ring are in the midst of their final phases of their Ironman taper. This will be the first running of the fall Arizona race and all three are prepared for race day. Coach Pete will make the trip to Arizona to observe all three as they persue their Ironman goals. Follow everyone on the 23rd at Ironman Live.

Miscellaneous:

The Mile High Multisport wind breakers are set to arrive this week. If you ordered a jacket you will be notified shortly.

New Skull Caps and Visors (embroidered) have been ordered through Head Sweats and will be available for purchase soon. If you are interested in obtaining either a wind breaker ( I will have some extras) or a skull cap and or visor please let me know in advance. I also have extra silicone ($10) or latex ($5) MHM caps for sale.

As many of you know, Kathy's mom passed away last week. We have been in central Pennsylvania since last weekend attending to family affairs. During our time away I had an opportunity to read a book that has been sitting on my shelf for some time. They Don't Play Hockey in Heaven is a motivational sotry about a former college goal tender who stopped playing the game after college, found out he had a tumor on his brain in his mid 20's and then made a successful comeback in his early 30's to the sport he loved as a youth. Throughout the book there are many parrallels and lesson which we all go through in life. From the minute I read the opening page I was riveted to this book. In the first few pages Ken Baker shares nuggets that each of us can relate to...

We lie to others and to ourselves.
We let love slip away.
We sacrifice long-term health for short-term happiness.
We don't say what we mean.
We practice selfishness even though selflessness feels better.
We don't listen to our bodies.
We recognize greatness in others but not ourselves.
We accept things as they are rather than make them what they could be.
We allow fear to keep us from embarking on journeys.
We let dreams die on our pillows.

As we approach the holiday season, take the appropriate time to spend with family and make emotional deposits in your loved ones banks. In the summer you will typically make more withdrawals than deposits. In short, a missed workout is just that, If you've worked hard the rest of the year than a missed workout or two isn't going to set you back. Work to be consistant and have fun while focusing on your limiters.

Ironman 70.3 Austin/Year End Party

2008-10-06T06:50:00.000-07:00

Austin 70.3:

Congratulations to Paul and Kristi Fitzgerald on completing the 70.3 Austin race on Sunday. It was the first half for both of them and despite hot/humid conditions they both fared very well!!!

Year End Party/Kona Send Off (picture above, Coach Kathy with defending age group champion Kelly Lear-Kaul.

This was year number three of the combined party celebrating our birthdays, thanking our clients for a wonderful year and sending the local Kona qualifiers off to Hawaii. About 95% of those in attendance had wrapped up their seasons. A combination of plenty of alcohol, great food (thanks to everyone for helping) and lack of key races to the end of the year made for a very good time. Many have inquired about what occurred after they left.......Fortunately I have adopted the "what happens here stays here" policy. There were some photos but they are already destroyed. Once again, thanks to everyone for your confidence in the Mile High coaching staff. Good luck to Kelly Lear-Kaul, Tim Hola and Michelle Thayer in Kona.

USAT Nationals (Anderson qualifies for worlds), Crescent Moon Results

2008-09-21T09:12:00.000-07:00

USAT NATIONALS

Jeremy Anderson (coach Pete, Chicago, Il) and Susan Johnson (coach Pete, Colorado) headed west this weekend for USAT Nationals at Hagg Lake in Oregon. Susan finished 44th in her age group and reports, although she felt fine, it wasn't a good race. Jeremy, coming off 7th place over all finishes at Life Time Fitness and Chicago Accenture was cautiously optimistic as he was coming off a bad bike accident and had some old leg injuries flare up recently. As we approached the race we wondered how he would transition going from the Midwest and relatively flat courses to a course with rolling hills on both the bike and run. Jeremy set a personal best Olympic distance time in going 2:05.13 (11th age group) and qualified for the world championships next year in Australia. CONGRATULATIONS JEREMY!!!

CRESCENT MOON:

In one of the last local sprint races of the season, Jeff Liedy, Kevin Stoddard and Coach Kathy competed at the Crescent Moon at Cherry Creek reservoir. Kevin, who is a sophomore in high school and swims on a senior nationals team (he swims two times a day and has little time to devote to running and bike) took 4th in the 0-19 age group. Jeff Liedy, in his first full year of racing, came home in 1:12.12 to set a sprint distance personal best and a 12th place age group finish. Coach Kathy took home the over all female masters crown and was the 6th place women overall.

On a side note, Coach Kathy and Jeff have been trash talking each other for the past few weeks. Wagers were placed on foot massages, dinner etc. Liedy claimed victory with a 1 second victory and graciously picked up the dinner tab last evening with Kathy claiming "The winner buys dinner". Jeff has bragging rights for the rest of the winter and Kathy was last heard mumbling about taking a wrong turn on the run course...starting in a later wave and the "wind must have picked up"......Liedy just grinned and took another sip of wine. It may be a long winter for Coach Kathy...

Congrats to all who raced this weekend. Clay is in Cancun for the 70.3 half but no results have been posted as of this writing. Clay reported in briefly on Monday morning. Heat index over 100 with 70% humidity!! He finished in 6:28 and was proud that he "stuck it out" as many others dropped. Nice work Major Taulman!!

Ironman Wisconsin/Fall Frenzy

2008-09-11T07:50:00.001-07:00

Photographs above are of the swim start, Mike Alfino and Jon Gentine in front of the Capital building, Jon Gentine on the run, Michelle and Eric Plantenberg, the "CRAZY" Gentine fan club which kept me entertained all day long and Coach Pete's brother Mike, post Ironman Wisconsin finish. (click on the photos to enlarge)

Weekend Re-Cap:

This was my 3rd year in a row spectating the Wisconsin race. After completing the race in 2002 and 2003 I know this course and town better than any other on the Ironman circuit. The whole vibe around Madison and the surrounding communities is incredible. Each year I go out to the same spot on the course and cheer. This year I was joined by Jon Gentine's extended family and friends. To say a party was going on out on the course may not give it justice. Thank you to all of you for making my trip even more special..

Now about the race.... Perfect weather, perfect conditions and tremendous support. Jon lead the MHM team out of the water with a 1:03 and Eric followed in 1:07, Mike broke 1:30 and even secured a spot on the post race DVD coming up the helix.
Eveyone endured the challenging bike course where the winds picked up a little but the temperatures were ideal.

Eric lead everone home with a 22 minute personal best and Jon followed with his first Ironman finish. My brother finished with 44 minutes to spare before midnight and thus became the 4th Alfino family memeber to compelete an Ironman (besides Kathy and myself, Cousin Tony in San Diego has completed two)

Look for more pictures from the event to follow in the next few days.

Fall Frenzy:

Clay Taulman and Kelli Binzer represented MHM at the fall frenzy. Kelli, who just gave birth to her first child earlier in the year took 6th place over all amongst the women AND WON HER AGE GROUP!!!! Clay set a 9 minute personal best and took 7th in his age group!!!

Julia Rossi, one of MHM newest athletes who is coached by Allen Gilchrest took first place overall at a sprint race in Cleveland last weekend. Congratulations Julia!!!!

This weekend is the Harvest Moon Aqua Bike and Half Ironman. A number of MHM athletes will be participating and I plan to be at the venue later in the morning with the MHM tent. Good luck to everyone!!

Ironman Kentucky

2008-09-02T06:45:00.001-07:00

Photographs: A lone swimmer in the Ohio river at Ironman Kentucky and Scott Binzer on the bike course.

Ironman Kentucky: A great weekend of racing in Louisville for Mile High multisport athletes Scott Binzer, Kim Katz and John McGrath. Despite temperatures in the 90's, high humidity and wind both Scott and Kim set personal bests and John, despite a broken spoke completed his first race. All three athletes have families and careers and their accomplishments were nothing short of spectacular. Congratulations to all three of you!!

All results are posted on the MHM web page in the results section.

Steamboat and Chicago Accenture

2008-08-24T19:24:00.001-07:00

Photos: I know I'm reaching here but Fish Creek Falls in Steam Boat and The Chicago Skyline.

Another busy weekend of racing for Mile High Multisport athletes. Before I get into the race results, MHM athlete Daniel Madruga was involved in a pretty serious bike accident today during a criterium race (I'm officially going on record as saying I hate skiing and crit races for my athletes!!. He is in Littleton Adventist hospital with a fractured collar bone, radial head, contusion to his head and a punctured lung. I spoke with his wife Marci earlier tonight and she said he will be in the hospital at least 48 hours. Our thoughts are with both Daniel and Marci at this time.

Jeremy Anderson, Oak Park Il. smoked the Chicago Accenture course today in a time of 2:07.24. He took 2nd in his age group and 7th over all. Next up for Jeremy is Nationals.

David Reed, Susie Wargin and Susan Brashear head to Steam Boat for the sprint race. David Reed, 1:41.25 found the podium with a 2nd place age group finish. Susie Wargin shaved 11 minutes off of last years time with a 1:58.13 (6th place age group) and Susan Brashear posted a 2:24.16 time and reported she had "a blast".

All results are posted on the MHM results page.

It's been a STRANGE race season

2008-08-18T09:41:00.000-07:00

Top Photographs are Ross at IMLP 2008. bottom photos are Jeff Liedy Rattlesnake Olmpic

It's been a strange year for racing. As I sat in a lightening/driving rain storm on Saturday at the Rattlesnake Olympic race I reflected on this season. Susan Brahsear is 400 yards into the Swim around Lady Liberty and the race is cancelled due to weather. Doug Beeman and team Iron Fish are half way across the Long Island Sound when they are pulled from the race due to weather. Mike Sammons, Brian Henden, Mike Ceismier have the Steelhead Half swim cancelled and turned into a duathlon becuase of weather. Ross Hauser completes Ironman Lake Placid in a driving rain storm (think Ironman Wisconsin 2005). Saturdays Rattlesnake is cancelled in the middle of the bike as lightening started to pelt the area. Jeff Liedy, Marci and Daniel Madruga, Kelli Binzer all told the race was over while they were on the bike and had to ride into a transition area which looked like a swollen river bed. Kathy commented to me on Saturday night that in 26 years of racing and averaging 10 races a year she has NEVER had a race cancelled or cut short due to weather. In adverse times, each of you has persevered and accepted the outcome of the day. It is a true testament to the mental strength you bring to racing. Each of you should be proud...I know I am.

Despite the weather of Saturday, some MHM athletes did manage to complete some races around the country and locally on Sunday.

Ross Hauser started us off on Saturday by taking 10th in his age group at the Twin Rivers Olympic Distance triathlon. Ross posted a Personal Best of 2:32.32.

Eric Platenberg, a few weeks out from Ironman Wisconsin completed the Pig Man Half in a time of 5:58.18 AND THEN PROCEEDED TO SCORE A SET OF ZIPP 808's IN THE RAFFLE!!

Locally, Coach Kathy, Julia Ross, Kevin Stoddard and Marci Madruga raced the Rattlesnake Sprint. Coach Kathy was the overall female winner (score one for the over 45 crowd!!). Julia won her age group and was 9th overall. Marci dried off from Saturdays down pour to take 5th in her age group. Kevin Stoddard took 2nd in his age group.

All times and results can be found on the Mile High Multisport web page.

Photographs from 5430 long course/Mash- Splash and Dash

2008-08-11T05:12:00.000-07:00

Weekend Review:

What a busy weekend for MHM coaches and athletes. After manning an aide station on Saturday (Thank you Mike Nims, Steve Uccello and the Alfino children) for 4.5 hours then standing on my feet at the long course on Sunday I'm exhausted and I didn't even race!!!

MAD SPLASH AND DASH:

The weekend began with Coach Kathy, Leslie Lobojko and Jeff Liedy taking part in the home town race, Mash-Splash and Dash. Jeff's daughter Savanna also took place in the youth event and her finish line photo above tells me we have a future star in the making!!! Once again MHM was well represented with both Kathy and Leslie taking 1st place age group finishes while placing 3rd and 4th overall. Jeff took another 4th place finish, by seconds, and at last report, his wife has removed all sharp objects from the home. Next week he graduates to his first Olympic Race and open water swim.

5430 LONG COURSE:

What a day for racing in Boulder!! With over cast skies for most of the day and temperatures in the mid 70's the day had Personal Record or as Susie's husband educated me on yesterday Personal Best (Personally I think it has something to do with his last name being Best and nothing else but I digress). Mile High was represented by Steve Uccello, Susie Wargin (1st half), Clay Taulman,, Susan Johnson (1st half), Cody Hanson (HUGE PR yesterday!!), Courtney Ring, Dawn Leget (1st half) and Barb Esses (1st half). Some food and beverage was consumed post race in the MHM tent and it was great to see everyone interacting.

USAT Youth Nationals............

Congratulations to Clay and Angie Taulman's daugther Mady who had a top 10 age group finish at youth nationals on Saturday.

USAT Youth Nationals 08'
Mady Taulman 9th placed) (top 10 racers placed). 9-10 Yr Old Girls. Only girl from Colorado to place in her age catagory

Results from both races can be found on MHM web page in the results section.

Steel Head 1/2, Tri for the Cure and more...

2008-08-03T17:56:00.001-07:00

Photographs: Doug Beeman in the 2007 Swim Across the Sound and the lining up of the boats for the beginning of the race.

Crested Butte Xterra

Congratulations to all who raced this weekend. Last week I failed to note that Chris Juels placed 4th in his age group at the Crested Butte Xterra race while setting a course personal record. Nice work Chris and my apologies for omitting this result.

Steel Head 1/2 Ironman:

Mike Sammons, Brian Henden and Mike Ceismeir traveled to Michigan over the weekend to participate in Ironman 70.3 Steelhead 1/2 marathon. Poor water conditions caused serious chop and the swim was canceled and replaced with a 2 mile run. Mike Sammons continued followed up his Masters age group win from Loveland with a 36th over all place and a 3rd place age group finish. Mikes time of 3:58 qualified him for the 70.3 world championship race in Clearwater, Florida.
Brian Henden followed with a 4:26.22 which had him on pace to set a 1/2 Ironman personal record. Brian placed 38th in his age group. Mike Ceismeir, an old college drinking partner of coach Pete finish his first half in 4:40.46. Mike didn't even decide to do the race or even begin training for a half until May. A fine representation of MHM in the state of Michigan.

Susan Brasher completed the Tri for the Cure race in 1:36.22 and Susan Johnson took 3rd place in her age group at the Indian Peaks trail race. All results are posted on the Mile High Multisport web page.

Doug Beeman and Team Ironfish headed east for the second year to complete in the Swim Across the Sound, a 15.5 mile open water swim from Port Jefferson, New York to Bridgeport, Connecticut. Conditions before the race called for heavy Jelly Fish this year and Doug reports being stung often in the face during the race. Unfortunately poor weather moved in and the race was cancelled just 6 miles into the swim. The team was obviously disappointed.

Next weekend has many of you racing at the 5430 Long Course and Mad Splash and Dash in Highlands Ranch. The MHM tent WILL BE AT BOTH EVENTS. On Saturday we will be handing out water at the one mile mark of the run of the M.S.D and Sunday we will be in Boulder. Look for the tent pre race on Sunday and feel free to place your post race attire with us. We plan to have some food and beverages in the tent with us.

Tri-N-July, Boulder Peak, Spirit of Racine & Ironman Lake Placid

2008-07-21T07:22:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend. Another fine job by everyone in some less than ideal conditions across the country.

IMLP
Ross Hauser, Oak Park, Illinois (pictured above on a training ride in Cape Cod)complete Ironman Lake Placid in 13 hours 10 minutes. I haven't spoken with Ross yet but reports from his wife and viewing Ironman Live show that it was a torrential down pour all day long. Most of you don't know Ross had some major physical ailments to over come on his way to his 5th Ironman finish. Congratulations to Ross for overcoming the obstacles, it would have been very easy for him to say, I've done these before so I'll just miss this one.

Tri-N-July

Leslie Lobojko and Jeff Liedy had outstanding races on Saturday. Leslie was the 3rd women overall and won her age group. Jeff took 4th in his age group with a 10 minute personal best. He came within seconds of finding the podium.

Boulder Peak

The word of the day was HOT in Boulder. MHM was well represented and everyone crossed the finish line. Results varied amongst everyone with some achieving personal bests while others had less than stellar days. Remember, we learn more in our defeats than in our victories. Thanks to Coach Steve for setting up the MHM tent for everyone to enjoy some shade post race.

Spirit of Racine Half Ironman:

Kim Katz, Oak Park, Illinois completed the Spirit of Racine Half in 5:50. The day began with a brisk swim in the 57 degree waters of Lake Michigan. Kim used this race as a long training day as she prepares for Ironman, Kentucky. Kathy and I along with Jon Gentine were supposed to join Kim on Wisconsin ( I did my very first tri in Racine in August of 1988) but couldn't make the trip for various reasons.

Keep working hard everyone you are all doing great!!

WEEKEND RESULTS!!

2008-07-13T12:35:00.000-07:00

This past weekend found Mile High Multisport athletes racing in Colorado, Minnesota and South Dakota. Additionally, we had a couple athletes complete the Triple Bypass Cycling event(120 miles, 14,000 feet of climbing)on a picture perfect day in Colorado.

Life Time Fitness:

Jeremy Anderson (Chicago, Illinois - Coach Pete) ventured to Minnesota to compete in the Life Time Fitness Olympic Distance triathlon. Jeremy suffered an injury at the Memphis in May triathlon and just began running last week. Using his swimming and cycling strengths he cruised to a 2:10.27 time which placed him 7th overall and 3rd in his age group.

South Dakota Xterra:

Chris Juels (Evergreen, Colorado - Coach Pete) headed to South Dakota for his 3rd Xterra race of the year. Chris ripped apart his competition with a 17 minute age group victory (2:24.33) and a 16th over all finish.

Mile High Duathlon Series:

Coach Kathy along with Susie Wargin (Lone Tree, Colorado - Coach Kathy) and Susan Johnson (Lakewood, Colorado - Coach Pete) made the long drive to Wiggins, Colorado to participate in the Cabbage Head duathlon (5k run, 30k bike, 5k run). The ladies of Mile High did not disappoint as all three reached the podium. Susan (1:36.39) and Kathy (1:35.46)won their divisions and Susie (1:37.39) took third. After the race, both Susan and Kathy received trophies for winning their age groups in the series. Susie took 3rd in her age group for the division.

Congratulations to David Reed and Sean Reilly for completing the Triple Bypass.

Sean Reilly Ironman Report

2008-07-11T09:06:00.000-07:00

Ironman (Prelude)

So...I just completed my first Ironman Triathlon last June 20th (2008) in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. In fact, it was my first triathlon ever....

I can remember being a kid and for whatever reason I would always catch the Ironman Hawaii on the television. I would sit down some random Saturday to watch Wide World of Sports (the one w/ the ski jumper) and for whatever reason, the hour or hour and 1/2 broadcast of Ironman Hawaii would be on and I remember saying to myself how cool it would be to do that one day. Well, one day turned out to be 28 years later, and Hawaii turned out to be Idaho, but the distance was the same and the feeling of accomplishment was second to none.

I have a few friends who participate in triathlons regularly and whenever the subject of triathlons would come up, I would half jokingly say that when you are ready to do an Ironman, give me a call and I'll do it with you. Well, my bluff got called in June of 2007 - my friend Teresa gave me a call and told me that she would be up for doing the Ironman in Coeur d'Alene and wanted to see if I still had interest? She continued by saying that Ironman events sold out quickly and that we would have to sign up about 1 year in advance to assure that we could participate. This was on a Friday and she said we had to sign up around 11 am the next Monday. Even though the event was a year out, it might have been the next day because the nerves that I was feeling were as real as ever - truly, who was I kidding by attempting one of these - I hadn't swam since I was a kid, I knew I could do the bike, and my only marathon attempt was an agonizing 4:45 in San Diego, and it was agonizing (I had to use the handrails on stairs for 4 days after the race and every step I took was painful).

Monday came and I felt like a high school kid trying to call a girl for the first time - I had all the information filled out, but I just couldn't click on the submit button. I was on the phone w/ Teresa and she finally hit submit, and I followed suit - holy shit - what did I just commit to?

Now it was real - 1 year out and I had a lot to learn, let alone train for. I was in the process of training for the Triple Bypass (120 miles from Evergreen to Avon, Colorado over 3 mountain passes) which was about 3 weeks out. I felt good about my ability to get into shape for the bike. I had the Denver Marathon in October '07 which I had not started or even thought about training for, and I had not been in a pool in about 20 years (other than on vacation, etc...)

The Triple Bypass comes and goes - 9 Hours and 42 Miutes of riding and I felt pretty good at the finish, but the question that I ask myself as I finish is - can I run a marathon? The answer was "No".

Fast forward a month and now I'm 45 days or so out from the Denver Marathon. As always, I have grandiose plans of how I am going to train like an animal for these events and voila, I'm close to the race wondering if I am going to be able to make it. I'm doing the Ironman w/ my friend Teresa who is also a coach for CWW, so I ask her to tell me what to do and I promise to do it. For my previous marathon, I ran 15 miles once and that was the only time I ran over 10 - most of my training runs were 9.5 miles and that was it. Now, I was told that I would have to run 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, and then 12 again before the marathon. Painful as it sounded, I agreed to it. Also, she would have me do 9 / 1 (9 miunutes running, followed by 1 minute of walking) - fair enough even though I thought it was a cop out. Running a marathon is supposed to be just that running, not walking, but I promised to follow the plan. So, all the runs hurt, especially the extra 2 miles that was tacked on to each run until I got back to the 12 - I flew (for me) on this run and actually turned it into a 1/2 marathon which I did in just about 2 hours - wow this marathon things could be pretty cool.

Race day comes and it's mid 40's and rainy and windy. Do I stay in shorts, or opt for something longer? Jacket or not? Yikes, it's friggin cold out. I opted for shorts and even though, by mile 18, I was having a tough time opening gels due to numbness in my hands, I persevere. By Mile 20, I see the clock at 3:20 and think to myself that all I have to do is run the next 6 in an hour and I will have destroyed my previous marathon time. Sure enough, I cross the line in 4:20 and change and set a pr for myself. There is something to this following a plan thing. As much as I was against the 9/1 run, it worked wonders for me - I was still in some pain, but I did manage a sprint to the finish which was not available to me in San Diego.

So, here we are in mid-October and I feel good about my biking and just set a marathon pr, but have yet to get into the pool. Oddly, enough, even though I am psyched about the marathon, I just can't get out and run - I think I ran once between October and the end of December. I biked a few times, but I am just burnt and with the Ironman looming, I just don't have it in me to train.

Around Christmas, I ask Teresa to give me plan for the Ironman - you gave me a great plan for that marathon, so give me something that will work for the Ironman, please. I am still dumbfounded that I just can't motivate to train - I'm in the ballpark of 6 months out till the Ironman - who am I trying to kid - if I don't get started soon, there will be absolutely no way that I am going to finish this race - I still haven't even swam in the pool, let alone open water.

So, Teresa gets back to me and tells me that the Ironman training is a little out of her league, but gives me the names of Pete and Kathy Alfino w/ Mile High Multi Sport ( www.milehighmultisport.com ). she tells me to give them a call and then to tell her what they say. Both Pete and Kathy have completed several Ironmans, so who better to coach you. So, how many triathlons have your done - um, none. How's your swimming? I was on swim team when I was 11 & 12. How much have you swam? Maybe 10 lengths total. Looking back, I can't believe that Kathy was willing to even coach me. She went on to tell me how she qualified for Kona and I could just see how tenacious this woman was. Done, train me. Sure enough, she wanted me to workout on January 01 - with a name like Sean Patrick Reilly, I am used to taking many January 1st's off, but this one I did not - I think I hit the treadmill for an hour or so. Workout 1 down, only who knows how many left. I was so impressed with Kathy that Teresa decided to sign up w/ Kathy as well.

My first swim was that Friday and Pete and Kathy were going to assess where I was at. Needless to say, I was quite nervous about this. I really did not want to hear that I was not going to be able to do this based off a swim. I ended up getting a lot of good pointers, was taught some invauable drills, and was given my first workout - 10 x 25 yards (25 yards is one lenght of the pool - I think I was going to have to do 174 lengths to get to the 2.4 miles necessary), 10 x 50 yards, and another 10 x 25 yards as a cool down.

So, here we go - 30 of 31 days in January I am working out 1-2 times per day, and I am not hating it. I am scheduling my real estate work around my work out schedule and while it's tiring, it is going well. I can now swim 8 lengths in the pool without stopping and have been running on the treadmill and riding the stationary bike.

February, March come and go - things are ramping up and I am seeing progress everywhere. I am so much stronger in the pool, runs are still fairly short, but don't seem tough and I am itching for warmer weather to really be able to bike outside on a regular basis.

April comes and so do the workouts. Here is where it was awesome to have a training partner. Rides were getting to be 5 hours w/ 45 minute runs right after and runs were getting in excess of 2 hours, so it was just nice to be able to do this w/ someone else.

May comes and one day I get out of bed and bam - holy shit am I in phenomenal shape - bring this Ironman on - I am ready. Mind you, I still have not swam in open water, but I was having some seriously good pool workouts. And then, mid May comes and I have a long, but terrible ride and I'm like there is no way that I am going to be able to do this. Then the next week it's back to bring it on and so on and so forth.

About the end of May was the first time I got to swim open water. I bought my first wet-suit ever and was ready to take my pool skills to the Chatfield gravel pond and bring it. I did for the first 1 minute and then I was out of breath and freaking out - this wet-suit was so constrictive, I could not breath. I've got to stop - how far have I gone - there is no way I am going to finish the swim. Teresa is swimming with me and she stops an smiles - you'll get used to it - the first time is the hardest. And, I'm thinking about all the miles on the bike and run and the endless laps in the pool and here I am 1 minute into a swim and I am toast. Take it slow is what Teresa tells me and I start again - slowly. I stop a minute later and float on my back - another minute of swimming and it is starting to get a little better. I think we end up doing about 1/2 mile that Satuday morning and I am back to how in the hell am I going to be an Ironman if I can't swim.

Now I am pissed - I have put all this work into getting ready and I am less than 1 month out and I can't hardly swim open water - what is the cut-off - 2:20 for the swim - I might be able to make that, but I feel like I deserve a better time because I've worked so friggin hard at the swim. Okay, I've got a month - get in open water whenever you can and just work on it. Chatfield is open on Monday afternoon and I go for it again w/ similar results - damn. Tuesday night, Pete Alfino and a buddy of his Matt have the Grant Ranch Lake open ( www.openwatercolorado.blogspot.com - awesome course ) - I go there and I am as far away from shore as possible and I freak out big time. I am totally alone out there and can see shore, but there is no way to get their attention. Every time I put my head in the water, I think I see sharks, alligators, beavers - you name it, I think I've seen it. I roll on my back and start trying to catch my breath. Why are you on your back - if a shark is in the water, you are toast. How am I going to make it back to shore? I was freaked and yes, I was in a lake in Colorado (not even 1 mile long or 1/2 mile wide). So I just start kicking and tell myself - just get to shore - slowly. I putter along and get to shore and share my story - I remember 2 kids being at the beach area who just start laughing their heads off. I guess this happens - Pete gives me a couple pointers and I head back out to do another lap. This time I am more relaxed and comfortable - I stop a few times, but get 1/2 mile done in a decent amount of time. Progress.

My last open water swim was the Tuesday before the Ironman - I only swam 1.5 miles, but I kept increasing the pace and basically sprinted the last 500 meters. I am ready.

I leave Thursday morning w/ Teresa and another friend doing Coeur d'Alene - Trish. We land in Spokane, get our rental car and head to Coeur d'Alene where we find out rental home (thanks Char). It's about 15 blocks to Ironman Beach - we walk down there after getting settled, get registered and do some shopping. The only thing I really want from the event is a round 140.6 sticker to put on the car, but I am superstitious and won't touch the sticker till I am done. I do get a hat and a couple coffe mugs, though.

After that, we head back to the houe where we meet up w/ Steve (another coach w/ Mile High Multi Sport) - he had driven our bikes from Denver to Idaho and tuned them as well. That done, we nap, head to the supermarket and start getting our transition bags ready. It's Teresa's birthday, so we head to Outback for some steaks only to find out that the manager had a medical emergency which left 2 rookie chefs in the kitchen. Steaks were 45 minutes late and way overdone, but the Hot Fudge sunday for dessert was perfect.

Friday was a day to get acclimated - we headed to the swim beach to test the water. Due to the heavy snows in the Bitterroot Mountains, snow pack levels were at an almost all time high - water temps in the lake were in the low to mid 50's all of June. This was our chance to see how truly cold the lake was. Indeed, it was chilly - I ended up doing 1 lap (1.2 miles) and was surprised how numb my hands and feet were. I opted not to wear the neoprene cap and booties they recommended, so I was a little concerned, but I figured the adrenaline of the day would offset any numbness. The race officials had rented 3 hot tubs in the transition area for anyone who needed after the swim. I didn't want to waste time in a hot tub, but I knew it was there if needed.

We got out of the water and I have to give a nod to Gatorade here - they had an area where we could store our stuff while swimming and retrieve it when we were done - no charge and they gave us a bottle of gatorade after pick up. Thanks Gatorade - a class act - one of many at the Ironman.

We hit Ironman village again, then headed home to drive the bike course w/ Steve. Steve suggested we drive 40 miles of it and ride the first 16 which we were all for. The course is 2 - 56 mile loops, so what we drove, we would ride twice. I'm guessing about the first 10 - 15 miles were awesome - flat and easy, the next 25 were beautiful, but hilly - nothing huge, but consistent rollers. That done, I felt pretty good about the biking portion. We jumped on our bikes for the first 16 - a nice spin around Lake Coeur d'Alene w/one hill. Dinner and more preparation for Sunday and bed.

Saturday, we finished packing our transition bags, our special needs bags, and brought the bikes to the transition area. It was now getting real - 6 months ago, I was nervous, and now I was one day out - nervous, but eerily calm - I really can't explain that. With the bikes safely in the transition area, we were basically done. I was told to just sit around all day which is what I did. We went to dinner at Tito Maccaroni's - I had spaghetti bolognese and a glass of wine and felt good to go. Went to bed around 9 in anticipation of getting up at 3:30 am. I woke about 1 to some powerful thunderstorms and pouring rain - I remember thinking how cool would it be if they cancelled the race. Trish forgot to reset her watch off of Denver time, so she was up at 2:30 - I figured what the hell - I'll get up and get an early start. That is, till Teresa came out of her room and made everyone go back to bed for an hour. I slept and I didn't - in and out trying to visualize the race and transition areas. Now it was 3:30 and I was up - big doing for breakfast as I was going to do eggs, bacon, hash browns - the whole 9 yards. Steve told us to get about 1000 calories in our systems before the swim, so I planned on pigging out. I don't know if it was the nerves, but I sucked at cooking breakfast - I burned the bacon, almost set the house on fire by putting the oil in the pan too late - breakfast was cooked and ate, but it was not my best work.

Now it's 4:45 and time to go - all the pacing back and forth and trying to remember if I had everything was over. Also over was heading into the bathroom every 5 minutes - Steve kept reminding us - poop twice, poop twice.

We got to the beach around 5 am and it was quite light out - thanks summer solstice. We got marked, headed to drop off a couple bags, pose for a couple of pictures and then around 6:15, we started getting the wet-suits put on, the body glide, the ankle chip, the goggles, etc.... Off to the beach for more pics and then to wait for the start. I remember seeing the hordes of people and just being astonished at how many people were doing this race. Listening to Mike Reilly over the p.a. system, though I don't remember hearing what he was saying, listening to the national anthem, and hearing Bitterweet Symphony being played. There was no countdown that I was aware of - then, bang went the cannon signaling the start of Ironman Coeur d'Alene 2008. I hugged Teresa and Trish, wished them well and started strolling to the water....

Here I was getting into the water for the first time in a triathlon - I knew what to expect, but I had never experienced it before. I felt like I could swim quite well thanks to my training, so I started swimming and made it about 100 yards and ran into a wall of people - where could I go? - there were just a bunch of bodies in front of me and no where to go and they were treading water - I want to friggin swim - move - I couldn't find any open water and I started to panic. The water was relatively calm, but it was still splashing into my face while I was treading, and getting into my lungs. How could I be out of breath at the Ironman and only 2 minutes into the race? I did what I had learned and rolled on my back an relaxed myself. There were people behind me, but they were not pressuring me. I laid there for about 30 seconds and got my composure. Steve (the coach staying with us) had been saying all weekend -KEEP MOVING FORWARD, so I rolled over, saw a little daylight and started slowly. Rather than sight for the buoys, I sighted for open water feeling like a running back trying to shoot the gaps. Soon there was a decent amount of room and I headed for the 1/2 way point of the 1st lap. Thinking I had this figured out, I cut the first turn as close as I could and ran into a cluster of people - no way out of this one, I just treaded water toward the return buoy and was pulled along. I did not swim, but was dragged by the masses to the other turn buoy that would put me on course back to the beach and the turnaround for the 2nd lap. I went wide on the turn and started for the beach. This is where is hit me for the first time of the day - I am doing an Ironman and I started to choke up - the reason I am doing this is because I was able to follow Kathy's plan for me - in my mind I was already an Ironman for sticking so closely to the workout and this event was just the icing on the cake.

Lap 1 almost done. I distinctly remember as I neared shore, hearing Mike Reilly's voice over the PA - I had no idea of what he was saying, but I knew I was getting close. I continued my sighting for open water and was still hit by a few people, but now had built the confidence that I could swim with these people. I hit the beach on the first loop and remember hearing my name over the PA - "Sean Reilly from Littleton, Colorado" and I pumped my fist as I headed out for the 2nd lap. You have a lot of time to think in the water and my strategy for loop 2 was to go wide and try to stay in open water so I wouldn't have to stop. I proabably swam and extra .2 or .3 of a mile, but it was worth it to be able to swim basically uninterrupted. Every once in a while, someone would swim in my path, but it was bearable. I went wide on the turn to avoid the cluster and then I was on the return path - time to start thinking about the bike. I am not cold - the water felt warmer today - no need for the hot tub - just get my shit and go. Closer and closer to the beach until I was standing and walking towards the transition area. Fans lined the beach and the chute to the transition - they were screaming and yelling - it was awesome. 1 Hour 18 Minutes - I beat the cut off by over an hour.

I ran to get my wet-suit stripped. Volunteers were awesome and had me out of the suit in seconds. I ran to get my t-1 bag and they yelled my number and someone had my bag for me - volunteers were just phenomenal. I ran to the tent and sat down to get ready. A volunteer came right over and poured my stuff out - what do you want. Since I had just pulled my tri-suit off and was totally naked, I went with the bike pants first, then chamois butter, shirt, etc.... I was good to go All the while that I was getting dressed, the volunteer was packing my wet-suit and swim stuff - volunteers were unreal. A quick stop at a portable urinal in the tent, then to get the bike. A volunteer spotted me and ran me to my bike and I was off. I had put on my Garmin for heart rate purposes and had an issue w/ the watch getting to the right satellites for the first 8 miles, but after that was handled, I was off...the first 30-35 miles were awesome - the crowds screaming, the seamless aid stations, the beauty of the lake. Then, into the rollers and I felt strong, after all, I had trained in the foothills of the Rockies - I was going strong and passing a lot of people. I was also being passed, but I felt like I was passing a lot more people than I was being passed by. I remember the first loop, there was a guy with a tray of shots of beer - I thought about it, but opted against it. I was feeling great and kept motoring on. The only thing that was concerning me was that I was peeing at nearly every aid station - I was feeling good, so I let it slide. I hit the turnaround and saw Teresa about 3 minutes later - she was hauling ass - since we had trained together, I knew what she was capable of and I honestly thought I would have had a better lead at that point. I am a competitive person and always strive to win, but it was funny here because I really wanted to beat Teresa. After I saw how close she was, I started thinking about how I was going to explain to my friends how I got beat by a girl (which I got beat by a lot of them that day), and then I thought how am I going to talk her into doing another Ironman, so I can beat her that day. Anyway, that is exactly what went through my mind at that point. And, if she did beat me, I would have been fine with it, I just try and find ways to motivate myself. I've been competitive my whole life and I have learned to get beat - it happens to everyone.

Lap 1 rocked, but I kept peeing - about 4 times now in 60 miles. Now I'm 70 or so miles into the race and entering the hills again around Hayden Lake (beautiful, as well). My legs are not responding as well on the hills and I am not passing as many people as before...in fact, my legs are feeling dead on some hills. What the hell is going on? Hills are my bread and butter. Another hill and the same deal - now I'm 80 miles and not feeling well. Where are my legs? What the hell is going to happen on the marathon? Shit!!!! I keep peeing and drinking and peeing - mile 90, I puke. What in the hell is going on? I puked in my mouth, spit it out and keep going. There is no fucking way that I am going to stop!!! Then, it dawns on me - I have not been taking my salt tablets - could that be the reason? I started taking enduorlytes from Hammer to deal w/ the heat of running in Colorado. Water seems to just pass through my system, but when I am taking salt, my body retains the water and it keeps me cooler - thanks Kathy. So, I had put a bunch of enduorlytes in my Perpeteum drink, but it was not enough. Thankfully, I have a nice slow downhill, fish the tablets out of my jersey, and start opening them into my water reservoir. Some girl passes me and says something, but I can't hear her. Three tablets later, I take a drink and game on again. Literally, that fast. I am far from perfect, but I feel better. And, now I am out of the hills w/ 15 miles to the finish which is flat / downhill. I pour it on and I am not passed the last 15 miles - in fact I pass 20 - 30 people in this stretch - bike down, marathon to go. The 6:04 on the bike feels like less than 3 hours - I can't explain - the event was surreal. 8 minutes in transition w/ awesome volunteers, a minute getting lathered sunscreen by more awesome volunteers and I go under the RUN START sign.

The run - I thought I would hurt on the start which had been the case on all my bricks (long bike followed by run workout). Kathy (my coach) said I would be ready and I was. I started out and was going to run from aid station to aid station and walk thru the stations - a variation of the 9/1 that I had trained with. 9 minute mile 1 (for me that was great), and it continued. I posted a few solid miles in the beginning, but my puking kind of caught up with me. I get out of the first loop area and am working my way out of town when I hear someone yell my name - it's Steve and Rob (Teresa's husband) - seeing them was just what the doctor ordered. Rob was not going to be able to make it due to a new job, but found a way to fly in that morning and was in Coeur d'Alene by the bike - if you want to talk about a supportive husband, Rob is the man. Back to the run, I was now taking the salt regularly, but was worried about my stomach, so all I was eating were orange slices. I was afraid that I would not be able to hold anything down. Then I had to hit the porta-potty for some #2 business around mile 5. The run still felt good, but I was worried about eating. Keep Moving Forward kept ringing in my head and I did. Aid station after aid station passed, but I had to eat - i needed the calories, or else I would just bonk. I ran up the hill around the 7 mile mark - the biggest of the hills on the run and just continued to do what I was doing - get me to mile 16 and I will gut it out if I have to - I don't care - I've come this far. Then Teresa catching me creeped into my mind again - if she beats me, more power to her, she is the better athlete of the day. On my second lap of the bike, I did put a considerable amount of time on her and estimated that I had about 45 minutes at that point - it was more for motivation than anything. Okay, I'm about 5 miles to the half-way point - get there and we'll talk. I contiued on and took in water, gatorade, and 1 slice of orange at each aid station. Also, I would swallow a salt tab every other aid station. As I get close on my way back to town, I see Teresa with her head down, and shout for her to chunk it out. She looks beat and I'm worried - we had worked out for the last 6 months together and we had a vested interest in getting across the finish line. I think it was mile 11 where I was starting to come back into town to make the loop where they had the course split - if your are heading for your 2nd lap, stay right, if you are finishing, go left. Ouch, close, but no cigar yet.

I hit mile 13 and am making the loop when I hit a downstride and feel two blisters on my toes blow and the ensuing pain. I am in this race, I have choked up no less than 10 times at this point thinking - I am doing an Ironman - thank goodness I was wearing sunglasses - I can't imagine what people would have thought about a grown man riding and running while almost crying. And, I don't cry, except for the Adventures of Yellow Dog - he just had to make it after falling into the shaft.

So, I am in this race, I am vested and two of my toes just exploded. My first and only thought - there in no fucking way that I am not finishing this race, I don't give a shit if I have to run the next 12 miles in pain, there is no way that I am not fucking finishing. 1/2 mile later there was no pain. But, now I really needed to eat - I was hungry, and I still had about 11 or so miles to go. My coach Kathy told me early on about a girl she coached who was having digestive issues and all she did was drink the flat cola they served and drank the chicken broth. I went with the cola, and opted to start slamming power gels at each aid station. It was working - don't get me wrong, I was hurting, but I started feeling some strength. I started running a little faster - not much faster, but a little faster. My stomach felt good - I'd double up on the gels and double up on the soda - I hit the hill at the turn point and tried to run - I just didn't have it - I walked to the top and ran down which was painful itself. Mile 21 - only 5 left and I choked up again. Through the aid station with my new plan and back on the road. Mile 23 - I caught this guy and ran with him for a bit - I told him that I should have blown by him, but I didn't know where my breakaway speed went. Next aid station. I saw Teresa and this time she was in awesome spirits and I could tell by her body language, she was golden. Fear averted, she was going to make it. The last 3 hurt, actually, that last 10 really hurt. I finally saw Trish w/ about 2 to go and she was in good spirits - I knew she was going to make it. Mile 24 1/2, so damn close - why can't my legs move faster. I was running and walking and running and walking. Everyone on the sidewalks were screaming - it was awesome. Then, there was the left/right split and I got to go left this time. C'mon, I'm and Ironman - 1/2 mile left - I've travelled 140.1 of the total 140.6 - I'm there. After a couple of turns, I was on the main drag....I could see the finish....I could hear the screaming....and it was all downhill. The sidewalks were 10 deep on both sides...I couldn't help but run...it was effortless - there was no pain....it was surreal. I remembered what Kathy told me - take off your glasses and hat (I turned it backwards) and make sure you cross the finish line by yourself for the picture. 12 Hours 26 Minutes and 14 Seconds after I started, I crossed the finish line - holy fucking shit, I did it. And, I didn't cry - I definitely choked up, and that was it - I was an Ironman. And, I can say that this was one of the best experiences of my life - worth every ounce of effort and every dollar that I spent to get here.

Teresa ended up finishing in 13:38, and Trish knocked out her 4th Ironman in 14:12.

So, I get my picture taken as a finisher and find my way to the transition area to get my phone. I sit down and call Kathy (my coach) and thank her profusely. There is no way I could have trained myself for this event - it was a great race and the best thing is that I feel as good as one can who just completed and Ironman. I check texts and messages - lots' of people have been tracking me all day long on the computer and a few actually saw me cross the finish line. Every time I went over a timing mat, all I could think about was people back in Denver watching on-line. Hey everyone, I'm still alive and moving forward.

If you actually read this entire blog, thanks. I read a bunch before doing IM CDA '08 and hope this helps inspire you to just keep moving forward.

Jeff Spiegel IMCDA Race Report

2008-07-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

My IRONMAN CDA Race Report.
IM Coeur d’Alene, ID
June 22, 2008

I had heard it over and over in my head many times, Mike Reilly announcing “Jeff Spiegel YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!”, as if I had been knighted by the Queen of England. Though I really did savor the flavor of the race, and was able to enjoy the whole day, I have no recollection of Mike saying it as I crossed the finish line. My kids said they heard it. Maybe I was hypnotized by all the finish line energy, focused on finishing, finding my family etc. that I missed it. That is OK because I was able to have a great race all day and though I didn’t stop, I did smell the roses all along the way. I guess I have that luxury in the time range that I finish in. I don’t have to have my nose to the grindstone the whole day, pounding out every mile and using all my energy just to keep moving forward. I am not competing with anyone, I’m not qualifying for anything, and I’m simply looking to finish in good spirits. That I did, and I had a great day too!
The day really was perfect. Although I have no Ironman experience to compare to I do have plenty of race experience, most good but some not so good. Most everything that I could control I did: I didn’t forget or misplace any gear, I executed my nutrition well and my pacing went just as planned. My training was spot on! Thanks Coach Pete. The hills on the bike out there were no worse than what I trained on here in Colorado (work those hills east of Parker!). The run was fine, some hills out there- 2 or 3 real ones and the rest was pretty flat. The swim was everyone’s worry, how cold was it going to be? It was 48°F on May 29 and had only “warmed” up to 51.6°F on June 13. The official memo from NA Sports said wetsuits were now mandatory, booties for the feet would be allowed for this race and a neoprene cap was recommended due to the expected below average cold water temperatures. It is what it is, I can’t control this. My practice swims in the lake 2 and 3 days prior to race day were at 55°F and 56°F, better than 48 or 51 but still pretty nippy. Everything that was covered with neoprene was comfortable, so the hands and face had some getting used to the cold to do. As I said race day really was perfect, the water temp “warmed” up to 59.5°F, still cold but not as cold as it could have been.
I arrived in CDA 4 days prior to race day, by myself. My wife, 4 kids and a babysitter arrived 2 days later. The first couple of days alone were great, then it got busy as usual with the family – but man it was great to have them there race day! The course is designed to pass the transition/start/finish area 8 times before you cross the finish line. Between the crowds downtown at the transition/start/finish area, the “block parties” at the aid stations and the other unbelievably enthusiastic spectators along so much of the rest of the course, there was almost always somebody cheering for you as if they knew you personally. One house along the run course had music playing, as many did. The first time I passed it the theme from the Rocky movie was playing. A good song that I like. The next time I passed it was playing again. By the second or third time I passed it and it was playing yet again I realized it must have been on repeat play.
There was a sign making tent in the expo prior to the race for families to make signs, that would be placed out on the run course to be seen by the athletes, pretty cool. Two signs were memorable – “Honey I’m pregnant, see you at the finish line!” and “Note to self: FINISH!”
As I stood on the beach, somewhere to the outside in the middle of the pack, listening to the national anthem, my first Ironman race was about to begin. I had wanted to do an Ironman for about 20 years. I did the NYC Marathon in 1991, I was 25 years old. People have asked me if I would do another marathon, I’ve always said “only if it was part of an Ironman”, well I did another marathon this past weekend… and then some. As the anthem ended and the cannon was about to go off I think it all hit me that the year(s) of training for this were over and it was game time! For a few moments I shed a few tears, recomposed and hit the water. It is shear insanity, 2200 people entering the water at the same time trying to get to the same place. No less than 50 times was there contact with another swimmer. Most of the contact was minor except for a good kick to the calf and a swipe to the side of my head. I could hardly get into any sort of continuous rhythm of swimming without having to pause for a moment due to friendly fire out there. It was not until at least halfway through the first loop that I could get more than 100 yards swam without interruption, once the second loop began I could swim freely. Now I am a native New Yorker and I have ridden the subways many times and that swim definitely reminded me of rush hour on the #7 train without all the smells. There was some sense of calm despite all the chaos in the water. Every turn of my head into the water I could see swimmers around me but it was quiet and with every turn of my head out of the water to breathe I heard the crowds, the announcer, and the helicopter overhead. The crowds and announcer sounds got louder and softer depending on where along the loop I was. I could also see the sky, the sun, the clouds and the trees lining the shore. The skies at times were looking somewhat ominous, like it could rain. I was wondering if I made the right choice to leave my rain jacket out of my bags, it turned out I did. I finished the swim feeling good, cold in the upper body and fingers, but good. One leg done, albeit the shortest one, two to go.
Wetsuit strippers are cool! T1 went smoothly, there were warming tents and hot tubs to use, I did not. I did take the time I needed to dry off, warm my hands get changed and head out on the bike. Arm warmers and full fingered gloves from the start, still cool out there. I was looking for the family as soon as I exited the water and throughout the transition but did not find them. There were a lot of people in a relatively small area. With all the people, the transition area was always well organized and the athletes were always directed where to go by all the fantastic volunteers who were everywhere we needed them. So, off on a bike ride for the next 7 hours or so. I was pretty familiar with the course from driving it and studying a map with an elevation profile and comments by someone who rode the course. I knew where to expect the hills and where to expect the flats. The course was beautiful, and challenging but not brutal especially by Colorado standards. Three distinct sections: the downtown area, along the lake and out north in the country. The downtown and along the lake areas were relatively flat, a couple hills out along the lake. The majority of the real hills were out in the country between miles 22-42&78-98. They were rolling hills, most of them between 0.5 and 1 mile long with nice down hills on the backsides, some with some pretty sharp turns on the downhill (heed the slow down signs, I almost went off road on one turn). Once I got past that stretch it was easy street, mostly flat/downhill for the 14 miles back to the end of the loop. A nice way to finish, even though we did have some headwinds along that stretch. When I came back to the downtown area, through it and out on the second loop I felt like a rock star. The streets were lined with people, the sun was shining bright, the road was barricaded off with sponsor banners all along the barricades, and it was a fast part of the course. It was cool and definitely pumped me up. After the second stretch of hills and ticking off the century mark on the bike I knew this leg would be done shortly and then there was just one leg left. Even though the run is my weakest leg, the reality of completing this beast was coming more into focus even if it was still 5 long, late afternoon/evening, hours away. Not a done deal but the feeling of it being within reach was exciting and that excitement would continue as the miles ticked off on the marathon. I saw Ilana and the kids 3 times on the bike where I was expecting to see them, the kids jumping around holding their signs. They saw me once more, but I missed them. They were waiting in a place I did not expect and I was not looking for them there. Once again I thank them for all the support at the race and for all the times that I needed them while I was training. Oh yeah, let me thank Ilana once more for her tremendous support, flexibility and ability to allow me the time needed to train. I could not have done it without her, we make a good team!!
T2 came and went much quicker than the leisurely T1. Here is an example of the great volunteers. I entered the changing tent with my T2 bag. A volunteer came right over to me and dumped the bag out, organized my shoes in front of me, took my helmet and bike shoes put them back in the bag. Then he simply asked me what I wanted him to do next, did I need a drink, was I ready for my hat etc. Then he escorted me out of the tent, told me where the exit was, wished me a good run and certainly went back to help the next guy.
So the run leaves T2 and heads away from town for a one mile out, one mile back along the lake and quickly passes by the transition, start/finish area. There I saw Ilana and the kids again stopped for a quick chat, couple of hugs and high fives from the kids. Ilana gave me a heartfelt “I’m proud of you, you can do it” hand shake and kiss. One of those “just what I needed at that moment” things. Just as the pro men finished it was through town and out along the lake for a 10 mile loop, 5 miles out/5 miles back. At the end of the 5 mile leg there is a nice uphill for about 0.5 miles, not too long but a fairly steep grade that made me work for it on the first go round. I knew the second go round would be a killer, with a good chance I would not be running up it. I felt really great and strong for the first 10 miles, cruising along at a good speed, HR in zone 2 easily the whole time. The plan was to walk 10 minutes then run 1 minute, repeat. I went from aid station to aid station, making sure to walk through each one, eating some pretzels or a banana piece or an orange quarter or a cookie. The oatmeal ones were my favorite and I was disappointed when I did not see them anymore in the second half of the run. I tried a chocolate chip one but it just didn’t do it for me. I always drank some Gatorade and water. That was until I discovered the chicken broth ☺; ohhh did that hit the spot. Maybe it was the salt, maybe it was the chicken flavor but really, what good Jew turns down chicken broth? So my Ironman cocktail became 1 part chicken soup+1 part Gatorade + 1 part water.
Miles 10-20 quickly turned into the hardest part of the day for me. I had to slow it down. I am not sure exactly why they were like that, could it be that I was exercising for the last 13 hours? I was walking more than I expected to but that was fine, I was with my new walking friends. I remember Pete telling me “NO DEATH MARCHES”, walk with a purpose. My purpose was to walk until I could run again. That hill at the turnaround on the second loop was approaching, I ran to it but as I suspected I walked up it and made the final turn back to go home. I was still 5+ miles away but that meant less than an hour to go and only one more hill, not as tough as this one.
It was about 8:30pm now and I was on the home stretch, the sun was getting lower in the sky across the lake and soon it would merge with and drop down behind the trees in the distance across the lake, it was beautiful. The coolness of the evening was now more apparent and I was glad to have that dry long sleeve shirt from my special needs bag (thanks Courtney!). I think I had found my second wind with 5 miles to go. I was running more now, and walking less. I did walk up the very last hill as we approached the neighborhood. That same house, playing that same Rocky song, yet again. It was great. I could see Rocky Balboa pumping his two fists upward as he climbed the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum, would that be what I did as I crossed the line? It was getting dark and not as many people were out on the streets, but my energy was good and I was now able to get back to that run from aid station to aid station rhythm. I remember going out on the second loop at one point as the outgoing runners cross the incoming runners at a point that was pretty close to the final blocks of the run. There was a volunteer telling the incoming runners “Take a left, a right and another left, and its 6 blocks downhill to the finish”. It was hard to hear it on the way out knowing it was a few hours away, but how sweet it was when I heard it and it was meant for you. I said “it is time for a strong finish”, so I got in the mode of good form/good pace all the way to the finish. I made the turns and could see the crowds lining the street, see the finish area and hear the announcer. There were only a few other runners ahead of me at that time. Get close, find my boy Max, who will be running across the finish with me, and stay strong to the line. I was looking right and left not knowing where he would be. As I was about 3 blocks from the finish, a volunteer saw my number, turned and sprinted ahead to the holding area for kids meeting athletes to run across the finish line with. She had her arms pumping and was in an all out sprint to the area, it was funny. Suddenly Max appeared at about the 1 ½ block out point and we ran together across the line. I really felt good at the end, not totally drained like I have before. The mountain had been climbed; I was now officially an Ironman.
Never once did I have any doubts about being able to finish, never once did I have any stomach distress, never once did I question why I spent all this money and chose to do this – all thoughts I have had in other races. I knew I had to swim 2.4, bike 112, and run 26.2. My body and mind were programmed to do that, no more no less. I was well prepared and executed flawlessly that day. It was a perfect day. The saying “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity,” applied today. I had some good luck and more importantly, I was well prepared. Whether I heard Mike Reilly say it or not, I am an Ironman. I guess I may have to do it once more to hear him say it…..
Thanks for reading, take an extraordinary journey up a mountain and when you reach the summit may it be all you could have asked for. Don’t forget to look right and left and see all that has gone into the journey and certainly thank those around you who have given you anything that was helpful to you along the way.

SAMMONS GRABS MASTERS TITLE AT LOVELAND.

2008-06-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

PHOTOS:
Mike Sammons comes off the podium after claiming the overall Masters champion title
Kelli Binzer flashes her pearly whites.
The MHM tent was full post race
Leslie Lobojko on her way to a personal best
Coach Kathy heads home on the run
Dave Marcus heading out on the run

Lake 2 Lake:

ABSOLUTELY PERFECT WEATHER conditions greeted the athletes on race morning. Cloud cover for the entire race, no wind and temperatures in the 70's. These are the days we pray for!!

The Mile High athletes were lead by 47 year old Michael Sammons who took 12th over all and won the Overall masters division title by over 5 minutes. Also racing were Coach Kathy 4th in her age group, Leslie Lobojko, 8th in her age group (course personal best), Susie Wargin, 10th age group, Kelli Binzer (Kelli just had a baby 5 months ago!!) and Dave Marcus.

Michael Sammons: 2:20.00
Kathy Alfino: 2:43.04
Leslie Lobojko: 2:52:56
Susie Wargin: 2:57:06
Kelli Binzer: 3:06:39
Dave Marcus: 3:44:05

Congratulations to all who participated.

ELKHART LAKE:

Jon Gentine, who is in the middle of training for Ironman Wisconsin, took 10th place in his age group at the Elkhart Lake Olympic distance triathlon. Jon finished in a time of 2:51.54 Nice work Jon!!

Ironman CDA @ Buffalo Creek Xterra results

2008-06-22T19:50:00.000-07:00

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE MILE HIGH MULTISPORT IRONMAN FINISHERS!!!!

IMCDA

Coach Truesdale was Idaho this week to support the five Mile High Multisport athletes who completed their first Ironman race this weekend. Despite frigid lake temperatures, everyone pereserved and crossed the Ironman finish line in what turned out to be perfect conditions.

Sean Reilly, Highlands Ranch, Colorado (coach Kathy) led the group with a time of 12:26. Teresea Gray, Littleton, Colorado (Coach Kathy) finsihed her first Ironman in a time of 13:37.16. Troy Green (Coach Steve) from Overland Park, Kansas finsihed in a time of 14:02.27.. Nice work Troy!!! Jeff Spiegel, Parker, Co. (Coach Pete) completed the course in a time of 14:26.57. The final MHM athlete of the evening was Dawn Mchpereson, Kansas City, Mo. (coach Steve)who came in at 14:48.09.

Buffalo Creek Xterra:

Chris Juels (coach Pete) finished the Xterra course with a 10 minute course P.R. Chris took 4th in his age group amongst 30 competitors. Nice work Chris.

Photos from the 5430 Sprint

2008-06-15T18:00:00.000-07:00

5430 Sprint, Kansas 70.3

2008-06-15T15:39:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend. We had 12 athletes race the 5430Sprint in Boulder. Coach Pete and Steve were on hand to cheer everyone on and the Mile High Tent was filled pre and post race. In Kansas, John McGrath completed his first Half Ironman in 6:20. Coach Pete's brother Mike completed his first triathlon of the year in North Carolina.

Next weekend Jeff Spiegel, Sean Reilly, Troy Green, Dawn Mchpereson and Teresa Gray all compete in Ironman Coeur d'Alene.

5430 Sprint Results:

Dan Madruga................... 1:19.28
David Reed ................... 1:19.54
Steve Uccello ................ 1:23.32
Kathy Alfino ................. 1:27.09
Susan Johnson ................ 1:31.56
Leslie Lobojko ............... 1:34.20
Marci Madruga ................ 1:35.28
Dawn Leget ................... 1:41.24
Jeff Spiegel ................. 1:43.33
Susan Brashear ............... 1:54.43
Barb Esses ................... 1:56.16
Eddie Wislon ................. 1:57.34

Cabbage Head Duathlon & Highlands Ranch Tune Up Results

2008-06-08T11:39:00.000-07:00

BIG SKY DUATHLON:

The ladies of Mile High (see top photo), Coach Kathy, Susan Johnson, Susie Wargin and Dawn Leget made their presence know at the Big Sky Duathlon on Saturday. Susan Johnson lead the way posting a 1:22.42 (10th women overall and 12st in her age group. Coach Kathy (3rd in her age group, 13th overall) followed in 1:24.03 with Susie Wargin hot on her heals in 1:24.41 (3rd in her age group, FIRST time on the podium!! and 18th overall). Dawn Leget finish in 1:34.53 with a 9th place age group finish and 52nd place overall!! NICE JOB LADIES!!!!

H.R.C.A. Tune Up Sprint:

Leslie Lobojko, Susan Brasears and Jeff & Lori Liedy represented MHM at the HRCA tune up sprint. Leslie lead the group with a time of 1:14.20 and a 3rd place age group finish. Jeff Liedy followed in 1:17.20 and a 14th age group finish. Susan Brashear posted a 1:34.24 and Lori Liedy brought home a 1:52.48 finish. It was great to see you all out racing!!!

Boise 70.3/Xterra/Elephant Rock/Hugo and preparation

2008-06-02T08:01:00.000-07:00

Photo: Swimmers prepare to enter the glass like water of Grant Ranch.....Scott Binzer from Kentucky and Clay Taulman from Colorado met at the Boise 70.3. They took the opportunity to take this great photo. Thanks for sharing boys!!

BOISE 70.3:
Congratulations to Scott Binzer and Clay Taulman on completing the inaugural 70.3 Half Ironman on June 1. The conditions yesterday in the water were less than ideal and many swimmers had swim times much slower than anticipated. Both Clay and Scott have bigger races on the schedule for the summer and this race was a great test to determine their current level of fitness and evaluate race strategies, nutrition and preparation. Race results are listed on the MHM web site.

Xterra Sho Low:

Chris Juels took 4th in his age group in his first race of the year. He produced one of the top bike splits of the day.

Hugo Road Race:

Marci Madruga completed the 78 mile Hugo Road race on Saturday. This was the longest bike race Marci has done and we are all proud of her accomplishment.

Elephant Rock:

David Reed, Susie Wargin, Dawn Leget, Barb Esses and Susan Brashear all completed the Elephant Rock cycling ride this weekend. Perfect weather conditions and scenic views make this one of the best single day rides in the country.

PREPARATION THOUGHTS AND DAY TO DAY EFFORT:

With the start of the Grant Ranch open water swimming program I have had the opportunity to interact and observe some of the best triathletes in the state/country. In the past I have written at length about how the best athletes are consistent in their approach to training and racing. One observation I have made is those that are at the top spent the time on the little things that make a difference come race day. One of the elite athletes comes out of EVERY open water swim she does and races to a designated spot and strips off her wet suit. If you were observing her you would think she was in a race. The minute the wet suit comes off her facial expression changes. It is like watching a transformation from race face to calm, cool and collected. This same individual asked the master coach a few weeks back how she could improve her kick. He gave her a few pointers but told her to spend some time kicking on her back and feel her hips come to the surface. That was all there was to the conversation. EVERY time this person comes to masters she spends time kicking on her back. He swimming has improved dramatically since taking this simple pointer and incorporating it into her daily routine.

Take some time and evaluate what are the intangibles you bring to training and racing. Are you methodical in your approach and take the time to perfect the small things? Do you spend time practicing your open water swimming entrance and exit or do you just go through the motions? When someone gives you advice do you take the advice or dismiss it?

If you want to achieve your triathlon goals you need to become a student of the sport. The race season is upon us. Those of you who work hard and are consistent to the approach you bring to training and racing will surely find success.

Weekend Results/Transition Notes

2008-05-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

A big weekend of racing for Mile High Multisport athletes who were raced all across the country (Colorado, Ohio, New Mexico, Tennessee and Illinois). Just a few reminders as most of you dust off the racing cobwebs. Spend some time working on your transitions. The Mile High Web page has an article on transition tips in the athletes only section. You can always google triathlon transitions or watch some videos on you tube to get some tips. Timing chips seemed to be a problem for a few of you today. Invest in a good timing chip band and make sure they are well secured under your wet suit. For those of you concerned about squeezing every last second out of your transition consider cycling and running without socks. I've run for years without socks in racing flats and no socks without complications. If you insist on wearing socks I suggest you put them on after the bike when your feet are dry.

Results:::::::

Susan Johnson ran to a 3rd place overall finish at the Federation Cup 5k in a time of 22:50.

Duane Newton walked the event in 58 minutes. con rats Duane on beating your goal of 1 hour. Duane has some pictures on his blog site http://couchpotato-to-ironman.blogspot.com/

Susie Wargin ran the Colfax half marathon today in 1:45. This was her first half and both Susie and Coach Kathy were pleased in her time!! Congratulations Susie!!

Susan Brashear completed the rain soaked Cleveland half marathon in 2:16.

Cody Hanson completed the Buffman and Squeaky Olympic distance race in a time of 2:40. Cody was 5th place in his age group and had a 11 minute personal record.

Kim Katz won her age group at the Niles Sprint triathlon in Niles, Illinois. Kim had a 1.5 minute personal record.

Mike Ciesemeir completed the Galena Triathlon in 1:40:33. Mike took third place in his age group and reports this was his first visit to the podium post race. Nice job Mike!!!!

Barb Esses set a personal record by 5 minutes at the Greeley triathlon in 1:23:55.

Shelley Fedderson made a return to triathlon racing after taking some time off of racing to have her second child. She completed the Longmont triathlon in 1:25. Welcome back to the sport Shelley!

Jeff Liedy set a P.R. at the The Gift of Life and Breath 5k in a time of 21:56. Jeff tokk 7th in his age group.

Jeremey Anderson completed the Memphis in May triathlon in 2:35. After an outstanding swim and bike he experienced a reoccurring Achilles problem and walked the last 4 miles of the race.

Weekend Photos and Results

2008-05-10T13:05:00.000-07:00

Photos:(Barking Dog Duathlon)

Daniel Madruga waits for the start of the run
Coach Kathy with MHM athletes Susie Wargin, Dawn Leget and Susan Johnson
Kathy and Susan head out on the run
Susie and Susan out out on the bike
Susie shows great form in the finishers shoot

Results Barking Dog Duathlon (5k run 30k bike 5k run:

Susan Johnson 15th overall F40-44 1st age group 1:41:06
Kathy Alfino 17th overall F45-49 2nd age group 1:42:08
Susie Wargin 38th overall F35-39 9th age group 1:49:30
Dawn Leget 75th overall F40-44 11th age group 1:58:56
Sean Reilly 145th overall M35-39 28th age group 1:49:36 (It should be noted Sean ran 20 miles the day before this race in preparation for IMCDA. He still had a 10 minute P.R.)
*** Daniel Madruga DNF as he flatted twice

Little Foot Tri:

MHM athletes John Gentine and Susan Brashears both completed the Little Foot triathlon on Sunday. The water temperature was around 50 degrees. At last report, neither athlete could feel their feet, hands or nose. Congrats to both of you for showing some real guts in completing this race. I did a race in May ONCE......

Weekend Results 4/27

2008-04-27T18:21:00.000-07:00

Photo: Coach Pete and Cody H., Harvest Moon 2007. Jeremy Anderson, Spirit of Racine

Kim Katz (Oak Park, Il) celebrated her 29th birthday  by running the Lake Front 10 miler (as in Lake Front of Chicago) in 1:25:21

Jeremy Anderson ran a 18:25 5k in Ravenswood, Illinois. This was a 1 minute P.R. for Jeremy!!!

Cody Hanson (Santa Fe, N.M.) and Susan Johnson (Denver, Co) represented MHM well at the Atomic Man duathlon in New Mexico. Cody (who has shed his Clydesdale designation to race with the age groupers) took 10th overall and 1st in his age group. Susan was 3rd female overall and 1st in her age group.

Jonathan Nixon South Africa Ironman race report

2008-04-17T10:27:00.000-07:00

Ironman South Africa 2008 – Race report

What a great experience. Thank you to everyone who sent messages of good-luck and congratulations. It means a lot to know that I have so many great friends who were thinking about me.

Here is my race report. I intended it to be short and sweet but it ended up being long a drawn out.

Build up and training

I did my first Ironman in Coeur d”Alene in 2006 and after that I swore that I would never do something that crazy ever again. Being my first Ironman it was certainly a day that will live in my memory forever, but it was a very tough day, I really suffered on the run and it left me wondering if I could 1) do better, and 2) actually enjoy the day and enjoy the experience.

About 14 months ago, Theresa, my amazing wife, told me that she was in full support of me entering the 2008 Ironman in South Africa. Having been through this with me once before, she knew the impact that training for one of these things has on our family life. She also agreed, knowing that I would be making the trip to South Africa alone and that she and our two boys, Matthew and Gregory, would not get the reward of a nice vacation to the beach in South Africa. She has been incredible and there is absolutely no way that I could ever have come close to doing this and to achieving my goals without her support.

The next step was to meet with Pete Alfino. In March 07 we had lunch and I asked Pete if he would train me again. Pete got me through Ironman Coeur d’Alene and I knew that he knew my capabilities, as well as my strengths and weaknesses, better than anyone. I explained my motivations for doing another one and I asked him if he thought it was possible for me to break 11 hours. He didn’t hesitate. He told me that I had the ability and that if I put in the effort and followed his plan that I could do it. He told me that he would put together an interim plan (April 07 to September 07) to work on my weakness and that full Ironman training would begin on October 07.

From April to September primarily worked on strengthening my cycling and trying to improve my swim technique and my efficiency in the water. The only race that I did in 07 was the Harvest Moon Half Ironman (in September ), and we did not make this an “A” race. So the summer was very relaxing and it really allowed me to focus on my cycling and swimming. On October 1st I started on Pete’s Ironman program and followed it religiously. I am the type of person who likes to have a plan and I like to be held accountable. I know that this doesn’t work for everyone, but without Pete I don’t think that I would have done nearly that same amount, type or intensity of training, and there is no way that I would have been able to get myself in the same shape and condition that I was for this race.

Pre race

I arrived in South Africa a week before the race. My mom and dad live in Kenton-on-Sea which is very beautiful small town about and hour and a half from Port Elizabeth (PE). I spent Monday and Tuesday with them and did nothing except eat, sleep, relax and get over my jetlag. On Wednesday we drove back to PE and checked into our hotel which was about a mile from race central. It was perfect. Just close enough so that I could walk to the beach and do some test swims but far enough away that I wasn’t immersed in all the pre race hype.

The weather in Port Elizabeth had been pretty good for the 3 days leading up to the race. I was able to do some light training and it felt very good to be able to swim in the ocean instead of a pool, and to have the warm African sun on my back instead of the cold snowy Colorado weather that I had been training through for the last 6 months. I felt very relaxed and confident and I knew that there was nothing else that I could have done to get prepared for this race.

The only little hiccup was that on the first day in Port Elizabeth I scratched the back of my right heal on some rough concrete steps that lead down to the beach. I didn’t think much of it, however on the day before the race I noticed that I had a split in the skin. I wasn’t too worried, however it did prompt me to get some big heal sized band-aids from my mom which I through into my special needs bags and also into my swim-bike and bike-run bags. Other than this I felt rested and ready to go.

Race day
After a typically restless night I got up a 4am, ate, showered, dressed and got down to the transition area at about 6am. It had rained a little overnight and there were some scary looking dark clouds hovering around. At 6:40 they herded us over the timing mats down the same rough concrete steps to the beach. On the second to last step I did it again. I scraped the back on my right heal against the step, but this time I ripped off some skin. I couldn’t believe it. Here I was minutes from the start and there was blood poring from my right heal. The only thing that I could think to do was to pull the remaining loose skin off and to sink my heal deep into the beach sand and hope that I could stop the blood flow. I was furious with myself, but there was nothing that I could do about it.

The swim
The cannon went off and we charged into the ocean. With the typical chaos of an Ironman start my heal was forgotten and I started concentrating of not getting punched or hit. It was very crowded for the first three quarters of the first loop, but then it eventually thinned out and I started finding a little bit of open water. I hit the beach in about 31 minutes and headed back out for the second loop. The sea was very calm and it was wonderful to swim in. My second loop should have been faster than my first but for some reason (I must have taken the scenic route) it took me longer and I finished the swim in 1 hr 5 minutes. I was happy with my time and headed to T-1.

T-1
Found my ”swim to bike” bag and headed to the changing tent. I took off my wet suit (no wet suit strippers in South Africa), and immediately started attending to my heal. Thank God that my mom had given me the large band-aids. I put the band-aid on, put my socks on and prayed that it would not bleed during the bike. I had decided to bike in cycling shorts, not triathlon shorts, and so I had done the swim in a Speedo (under my wet suit). Another interesting deal was that they had female volunteers in the changing tents. Oh well, I got naked, changed handed my bag to a volunteer and ran off to get my bike. As I got to my bike I noticed that I still had my swim goggles in my hand. Sometimes I really wonder where my mind is. I stuffed the goggles into my bike jersey and after 6 minutes I was on my way.

The Bike
The bike is a three loop course. Gradual uphill for the first 10 miles or so with a few short steep bits, then some gentle rollers before making its way back down to the coast line for a final sweep along the rugged beautiful ocean back to T-1. It is a spectacular course. Fairly rough roads, but spectacular.

About 5 minutes into the bike it started raining. It was a gentle rain, but after 30 minutes my shoes, socks and feet were soaked. I was a little worried about what was happening to my heal, but it wasn’t bothering me. I felt something brush my leg but I couldn’t figure out what it was so I ignored it and kept going. After an hour I reached down to get by “Gel-bottle” and it was gone. It had come loose and had fallen off my bike. I had 500 calories in the bottle and it was an important part of my nutrition plan for the bike ride.

The rain stopped, the sun came out and the notoriously heavy PE winds remained fairly calm. I felt strong on the bike and really enjoyed the course. At one point a monkey ran out from the bush and crossed the road in front of me – pretty cool. I tried to keep things smooth and maintain a fairly constant pace. At the end of the second loop I stopped for my special needs bag. I took two Hammer Gels and an extra bottle of Perpetuem that I had packed. I also had packed a marmite sandwich (tastes like vegemite) and quickly ate it while I was stopped. I felt better for stopping and adding some much needed nutrition. I felt great on the third loop and was able to finish the bike in 5 hrs 33 minutes. This time included about 4 minutes for stopping (three “potty breaks” and my stop for my special needs bag. I was very happy with my bike split and my legs felt fresh. All the training had paid off

T-2
T-2 was fairly uneventful. I grabbed my “bike to run” bag and headed to the changing tents. The band-aid on my heal had stayed firm and there was no need to put a new one on. I changed from my bike clothes into running shorts, shirt, fresh socks and my flap hat and headed out for the run. Took me just under 5 minutes

The run
The run is also a three loop course. It is pretty flat and it does a figure eight up and down Marine Drive. The crowds were huge and the atmosphere was fantastic. One of the biggest changes that Pete made to my training was on “pacing for the marathon”. I did all of my long training runs by running for 9 minutes and walking for 1 minute. As running is my strength I was very skeptical of this plan, but I tried it and to my surprise I discovered that my long training runs were far mare enjoyable, and that I was also a lot less fatigued. I discovered that when you take walk breaks you have the ability to use slightly different muscles than when you are running and you also tend to take in more fluids and nutrition.

When I headed out on the run I felt great, however at the first aid station (which was approximately 9 minutes into my run) I stopped running and forced myself to walk for a minute. It was actually fairly comical. Guys that I had passed when I was running patted me on the back when they saw me walking and told me to stay strong. The crowds yelled encouragement and when they saw me start running again they would cheer and yell things like “that’s the spirit”, “never say die”, “way to start running”. I never altered from my strategy and kept running for 9 or 10 minutes and then walking for 1. I could feel the pain in my right heal but it never deteriorated, and other than a blood soaked band-aid and sock at the end, it ended up not being a problem. After two loops I was ahead of my planned pace and I felt pretty strong.

Just after I started the third loop I went from feeling great to feeling spent, done, wasted, and exhausted. It came at me from out of nowhere. It also hit me in the only section of the course that is fairly remote. No aid station for about 3 miles. I really struggled and started having negative thoughts. My walk breaks could not come fast enough and I dreaded the end of my one minute break when I would have to start running again. I made it to an aid station where they were handing out Power Bars. I had trained using Power Gels but never Power Bars, but I was desperate for any kind of solid nutrition so I walked for almost 2 minutes and ate the whole thing. I immediately felt better and started picking up the pace again. .After that, I made a point of eating something solid at every aid station. They serve cold boiled potatoes which worked great. I think I ate 4 of them in the last 8 miles. I also ate another Power Bar and I took a Power Gels as well.

Finally the long day started coming to an end. I heard the music for the finish line and started picking up the pace. What a great feeling it was to hit the finishing shoot. My folks had been out on the run course all day which was very motivating for me and when I saw them as I entered the finishing shoot the goosebumps, adrenaline and emotions overcame me. I yelled all the way down the last 75 meters. The announcer called my name. “Here comes Jonathan Nixon from the United States. He is a two time Ironman , but now he can call himself and African Ironman” The sun was still up (which was one of my pre race goals). and I crossed the finishing line in 10 hours , 41 minutes and 25 seconds.

What a great feeling. I had achieved every one of my goals.
• I had made it to the start line,
• I had made it to the finish line,
• I had finished before the sun went down,
• I had run a sub 4 hour marathon (3:51),
• I had broken 11 hours,
• I had enjoyed the entire day,
• and I had got to share the experience with my mom and dad.

Thanks

To Pete Alfino. You did a phenomenal job of getting me prepared for this race. There is no way I could have had the day I did without you.

To all my friends, co-workers and colleagues in Denver. Thanks for all the e-mails, calls, and words of good wishes.

To my mom and dad. Thanks for sharing this day with me. Thanks for being out on the course all day and for giving me so much motivation to keep on going. Doing this with you was very special for me.

To Theresa, Matthew and Gregory. Thank you for letting me follow my dream. Thank you for giving me the freedom to do all the training, and to make this a once in a life time experience that I will talk about until I am an old man.

Results and more

2008-04-13T17:06:00.000-07:00

Photographs: Jonathan Nixon at the 17 mile exchange with Kelli Binzer. Doug Beeman waits to take over..
Duane Newton and his blogging friends

Jonathan Nixon: Ironman South Africa 2008 10:41:25 165th overall and 18th in his age group.

For those of you who don't know Jonathan's story, he came to the United States from South Africa over 10 years ago. He is husband, father of two and an owner of a successful business. This is Ironman number two and unless he changes his mind... "my last one".
In 2006 Jonathan was 7 weeks out from Ironman Coeur d'dlene when he agreed to help pace MHM Kelli Binzer on her quest to qualify for Boston. Jonathan had a long run that day and along with Doug Beeman agreed to help me help Kelli. The above photo shows him at mile 17 handing Kelli off to Doug. I was the transport person that day. Soon after the exchange Jonathan looked and me and said, "I have a stress fracture in my foot, I've had one before and I felt it come back around mile 12". Tests the following week confirmed his suspicion. Jonathan went on to finish IMCDA that year in a time of 11:29.41. After the race he told me he was disappointed in his time. I couldn't convince him that for a first time race, his injury and temperature in the high 90's this was a great time.
No one was more surprised than I when he contacted me in the middle of last summer and told me he was thinking of signing up Ironman South Africa. Today he set a Personal Record by over 45 minutes with a 10:41 finish. Reports from Port Elizabeth are that Jonathan was ecstatic with his time. When I last heard from him he was enjoying his first beer in 4 months.
If you want to know the secret to his success in lies directly in his work ethic. In a few words he was consistent, dedicated and never complained, questioned or wavered.. he just followed his plan and remained positive.

Duane Newton aka Big D:

For those of you who are new to the blogging community you need to read the story of Duane Newton. I first met Duane at triathlon 101 conference last year. At the time he was over 400 pounds and told me he wanted to do an Ironman some day. Duane went on to finish 5 triathlons last year. Duane is heavily involved in the blogging community and has quite the following on his web page Couch Potato to Ironman http://couchpotato-to-ironman.blogspot.com/. Over the past few months Duane has experienced some troubles with his bike and has resorted to riding the spin bike at the club. His road bike was out of commission and he was struggling with what to do to get back outdoors.
This weekend Duane went to watch friends compete at Ironman Arizona. As is typical when Ironman atheltes get together a dinner was held Friday evening. What Duane didn't know was that his blogging friends had secretly collected funds and purchased a new bike for him. They disguised the reveal by staging a fake raffle in which the winning ticket was picked by Duane. When he read the ticket it stated "To Duane, from your friends in the blogging community". The picture above is of Duane with his new wheels and more importantly, some very special people.

KHCCTT results and a note from Jonathan

2008-04-10T11:23:00.000-07:00

Last evening begin the start of the Cherry Creek Time Trail series. Both Susan Johnson and Marci Madruga braved the elements (cold, wind, rain, snow flakes) and completed race number one of the seven race series. Both ladies are off to excellent starts..

Senoir Women 4

Susan Johnson 31.03 6th out of 23
Marci Madruga 34.59 16th out of 23

Jonathan Nixon has arrived in South Africa and sends the following note.

Am in PE. (Port Elizabeth)
>
> Swam one loop this morning. Definetly an ocean swim. Conditions were
> perfect and it was still choppy. Decent sized swells make it a
> challenge to site. Water is a lot saltier than California or The
> Sound.
>
> The weather is great. Warm and windy but not a cloud in the sky.
> Yesterday I swam for 24 minutes and rode for 40 minutes. Today after the swim I
> road for 45 minutes and ran for 25.
>
> Some rain is forecast for Saturday but is expected to clear by Sunday.
> Keep your fingers crossed.
>
> Plan on registering this afternoon and I'll keep my eyes open for a
> shirt and some cool swag
>
> I am relaxed and loving being here!

Jonathan Nixon on his way to Ironman South Africa

2008-04-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

Photos: Jonathan climbs Camel Back mountain in Scottsdale, AZ, Jonathan and Steve U. after a long day of training.

Best wishes to Mile High Multisport athlete Jonathan Nixon who heads to the "home land" this week to compete in Ironman South Africa. Jonathan is excited to return to his native land and participate in front of his family and friends. He has worked extremely hard in his preparations for this race and on behalf of the coaching staff and athletes at MHM.......... De La O..........

The Cherry Creek Time Trial series begins this week and there are several MHM athletes participating. Stay tuned for updates.

Weekend Results March 30

2008-03-30T15:44:00.000-07:00

Photos: Clay Taulman prepares his steed for Texas. Clay pre and post race Longhorn half sporting the new MHM gear. Steve Uccello on the bike and run course in California sporting the new MHM gear!!

Congratulations to Steve Uccello and Clay Taulman on completing Half Ironman distance races this past weekend.

Steve completed the California 70.3 distance race in Oceanside, California in 5:23:01. Another strong effort from Steve in an early season half in less than stellar conditions.

Clay completed his first half Ironman race in Galveston, Texas, the Lonestar Half in 5:37:01. Clay used this race to gauge his fitness level as he trains for his first Ironman in Kentucky in August. He has worked extremely hard and has dropped over 30 lbs in the off season.

Scott Binzer ran the Papa John's 10 miler in Louisville, Kentucky on Saturday. He set a course P.R. by over 2 minutes and finished in 1:19:08 despite 25 mph winds.

Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend.

2008-03-27T17:10:00.000-07:00

Best wishes to Steve Uccello and Major Clay Taulman as they head to California and Texas to represent the State of Colorado this weekend. Have fun racing at sea level boys!!

Scott Binzer also races this weekend as he tackles a 10 mile run in Louisville, Ky. good luck Scott

Weekend Reuslts

2008-03-16T10:55:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Barb Esses on completing her first marathon in Rome, Italy with a time of 5:18:28. Coach Kathy hasn't had the opportunity to get an update from Barb!!

A few other folks raced this weekend and I will post updates as we receive them. When you race PLEASE notify us of your time and a race results link so we can add your results to the web page and blog!!

Running of the Green 7k:

Susie Wargin
Time: 32:42
Guntime: 32:53
Pace: 7:32/mile
23/645 Age group (30-39)
290/2934 Overall

March Madness Half Marathon:
Kim Katz (Oak Park, Il): 2:01:38 Course PR

Stealth Duathlon:

Cody Hanson (Santa Fe, NM) 1:19 3rd place age group!! If you recall Cody raced as a Clydesdale last year!. Congrats on the finish, losing weight and droping the Clydesdale title!!!

Shamrock 10k

Scott Binzer 46:02 PR

Barb Esses set to run the Rome Marathon.. Miscellaneus News

2008-03-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

A few years back Kathy and I went to Rome for a week. It was a trip of a life time for us. As we left Rome to travel to Southern Italy we came upon a number of runners arriving at the train station. We learned the Rome Marathon was taking place two days after we left.
This weekend Mile High Multisport athlete Barb Essess tackles the famous cobblestones of Rome. Best Wishes Barb!!

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Several of you are running in local Shamrock races this weekend. Good Luck and enjoy the festivities.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Congratulations to MHM Junior athlete Kevin Stoddard on qualifying and racing at the Sectional Swim meet held last weekend in Seattle. Kevin took 5 seconds off his 400 time and 1 minute off his mile time. Kevin's only fault all weekend was flashing a smile at his coach (Matt Beck) towards the end of his mile. Per Matt "he won't do that again!!". I won't embarrass any of us by posting Kevin's times!!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Congratulations to Marci and Dan Madruga on their fine races last weekend at the Bear Creek 9 mile time trial. I have been unable to find official resutls for the race.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Upcoming Events:

Steve Uccello heads to Californian for 70.3 half ironman
Major Clay Taulman heads to Texas for the Galveston half ironman
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Cherry Creek Time Trials:

The starting roster for the KHCCTT series has been posted on the ACA site. Kathy and I have withdrawn from the event due to a late start time. Look for MHM athletes, Scott Messick, Susan Johnson and Marci Madruga

Race Results and Susie Wargin's race report

2008-03-02T10:08:00.000-08:00

Photo of Susie as she crosses the finish line!! Love the smile Susie!!

Congratulations to the following MHM who completed the Snowman Stampede race at Cherry Creek State Park last weekend

20 miles:
Barb Essess 4:08 (Barb is in the final stages of preparing for the Rome Marathon)

10 Miler:

Jeff Spiegel 1:36:40
Susie Wargin 1:23 (PR)
Steve Uccello 1:14:23

** Team uniforms shipped on Friday and should be here mid week!!

*** If you would like to read about my training week in Arizona with MHM athletes Steve Uccello and Jonathan Nixon click on the "Coach Pete" blog link on the right hand side of this blog

Susie's race report write up follows. Keep these race reports coming as all of us learn from each others experience.

212 Degrees

Let me start by saying I never, and I mean never thought I’d be a “long distance” runner. In fact, I recall an argument with my husband three summers ago when he brought up a duathlon featuring a 5K run on both sides of a bike. I told him my body and knees could never handle more than a 5K.

For once in his life, he was right and I was very wrong.

In January, I ran in Frosty’s Frozen 5 at Chatfield. It was the 2nd race in the 3 part Winter Distance Series. It was my first 10 mile race and only the 2nd time I’d ever ran that long. I finished in 1:27:17 and the Alfino’s raved (that’s what we pay them for right?). Having never gone that distance, I really didn’t know what was good or bad for an “I’m never going to be a long distance person.”

Last weekend (4 weeks after Frosty’s), I concluded the series with another 10 mile run in the Snowman Stampede at Cherry Creek Reservoir. This now marked the 3rd time I’d run 10 miles in my life. I had been very diligent with my training and even lucked out with my last long training run being in Tucson where the altitude is low and the streets are flat.

I went into the race gunning for a goal set by Kathy of 1:25. I felt very relaxed and prepared. It was much warmer than Frosty’s (by about 25 degrees at least) which I was pretty psyched about. Frosty’s and the Jingle Bell run in December were in the single digits and teens at race time.

I started towards the front. I don’t know why I do this because I always get passed and it would probably serve my ego better if I was at the back and doing the passing. Must be that Type A thing. I still passed a few on this one.

When the siren sounded I took off. I started a new race practice in December with the Jingle Bell of putting off my MP3 player for as long as I could. I wanted to really get a feel for my body: listening to my breath, checking my form and my mind. In my last two races, I was able to wait until the last couple miles before I really wanted those tunes.

This time, I never touched the play button.

Mile 1 was a little climb out of the Marina, onto the road and out to the sidewalk along Dayton. At the 1 mile marker , I pressed the lap button on my Garmin and saw 7:43. “Holy crap” I thought – did I press start late? I knew I didn’t. I began to wonder if I was going too fast and pushing too hard too early.

But I felt really good and I kept thinking about the video Pete sent out last week: 212 degrees. I could go slower, but that would be less than 212 – I wanted to leave it all on the course this time.

At the 2nd mile marker, I clocked a 7:46 mile and I thought “Man, at this rate I could win my division.” That didn’t happen, but it was a nice thought for two miles in. I was still feeling strong.

Mile 3 was uphill a bit and I kept my heart rate in check. I have never worn a HR monitor during a race before and I really used it to help figure out where I needed to be – the difference between 211 and 212 degrees and then also 220 degrees where I didn’t need to be! Mile 3 was 8:02.

During Mile 4, things flattened out and I started to follow a gal I’d been passing back and forth during miles 2 and 3. I felt comfortable… too comfortable. After an 8:09 Mile 4 and an 8:20 Mile 5, I suddenly thought, “What am I doing letting her set my pace?” I took off and let her try to catch me the rest of the race. Mile 6 clocked in at 7:55.

She did pass me once more in Mile 7 but it didn’t last long. I could tell (rather hear) she had been giving everything she had to catch me. Poor thing.

I ate a gel block after Mile 3, 6 and 8 ½ which seemed to work well for me. One word of advice though: in colder weather, make sure those things are fresh out of the bag. I had 3 blocks that had been in a baggie since the week before and that was just long enough to harden them up in the cold and they were a bitch to chew. I about hyperventilated after the 3rd one. Lesson learned.

Somehow I just kept cruising. I kept an eye on my HR and just tuned into myself. I was up against me, no one else and I knew I was going to beat my goal. I’m really crappy at math though, so I had no idea how much I’d beat my goal by.

Many times I do races alone, but this time I knew my family would be waiting at the finish line. I know it’s a pain for spouses and kids to come out, find parking, etc., but what a huge difference it made during that last mile knowing they would be there when I came in. Our kids are 8 & 5 and think I’m nuts for always working out. They don’t understand now how much it meant, but someday they will.

The final 200 yards to the finish was uphill in the Marina (for those who have done tri’s at Cherry Creek, you know how fun that is coming out of the water). I couldn’t see the clock until I rounded a corner and couldn’t believe my eyes: it was on the final seconds of 1:22.

I sprinted and finished with a time of 1:23:04. I didn’t come away with any hardware (14/90 AG and 88/362 Overall), but I did walk away with a deeper understanding of myself and what I need to do to fuel even more improvement.

1:23:04 – that meant I averaged 8:18/mile which was 28 seconds faster per mile from a race I did just 4 weeks earlier. As I look back and try to figure out how it happened, it boils down to these things:
• No music (or beat) and totally in tune with myself
• I got away from comparing myself to what anyone else was doing
• Heart rate monitor
• Support at the finish line
• Most importantly: the thought of 212 Degrees. If you haven’t watched that clip, watch it. Then watch it again on the eve of every competition you have this season. It doesn’t take much to make a huge difference in your results. I didn’t improve that much physically in four weeks, but I did improve that much mentally.

Congratulations and more.

2008-02-21T19:01:00.001-08:00

Congratulations to MHM athlete Kelli Binzer (and her husband Keith) on the birth of their first child Brooke. At last report, mom and dad are a little tired but all are doing well.

Congratulations to Coach Kathy on her USAT All American Selection. Kathy finished the 2007 season ranked #16 in the United States.

Good Luck to Steve Uccello, Susie Wargin and Jeff Spiegel who race the 10 mile Snowman Stampede this weekend at Cherry Creek State Park. Barb Esses will run the 20 as she prepares for the Rome marathon.

Welcome to Chris Juels, Susan Johnson and Jacqueline Esquibel to he Mile High Multisport Family. Welcome back Kim Katz!!!

Take a minute to look at the following video which has been making the rounds on the Internet. Take a minute and reflect on some of the great messages you will hear. There is a full length version of the entire presentation on you tube if you are interested. A very inspirational message.

Bicycle Maintenance: We are getting to the point of the year when the bikes come off the trainer and head outdoors. It is highly recommended that each of you have a tune up on your rides to ensure everything is in proper working order. Hands down, Coach Truesdale is one of the best wrenches in the state. Many of you have used ST in the past and I'm positive will attest to quality work and service he provides. He gets very busy in the summer months so I recommend you contact him early. Don't leave the fate of your bike in the hands of some 16 year old at your local bike shop. ST can be reached at Steve@milehighmultisport.com

As we prepare to head outdoors remember safety is always more important than anything else. Obey the rules of the road. Make sure you watch and listen for traffic and leave the I-pod at home (or at least turn down the volume and leave your ear bud out of your left ear). Drink plenty of water, wear your helmet at all times and wear sun screen.

I've received confirmation that the team clothing will arrive in early March. I will notify you to make arrangements to come pick up your gear (and will mail the garments to those of you out of state) as soon as they arrive.

Be safe, live life to the fullest and remember... this is your hobby not your profession.....enjoy each and every moment and be thankful that you are healthy and wealthy enough to participate.........

Peace!!

Results and More

2008-02-16T15:21:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Steve Uccello on his 7th place age group finish at the Chilly Cheeks #3 Duathlon held at Cherry Creek State Park. Steve finished the 10.5 mile bike and 4 mile run in 1:01:34.Future MHM athlete Susan Johnson also competed today and placed 2nd in her age classification with a 1:08:31 finish.

Mile High Multisport team apparel is cheduled to arrive at the end of the month. I have ordered a limited amount of extras in various sizes. These will be sold on a first come basis. If there is enough interest we can talk about placing another order in early summer. There are plenty of swim jammers and womens swim suits available. Please contact coach Pete if you are interested.

Everyone should be starting to think ahead to the first few races of the season. The winter months have been spent working on limiters, improving core strength and setting a solid base of training. We are soon approaching the time of year when the intensity of workouts begins to pick up. Clean up those bikes and get ready to start heading outdoors. In the near future all this cold and snow will soon be behind us.

Zones, Feeback and Just Putting in the Time

2008-01-30T14:16:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks have been interesting in the terms of the amount of communication back and forth with a number of our athletes. Kathy, Coach Steve and I have all talked and we all agree that the winter months yield more questions than any other time of the year. I won't complicate the reasoning behind the questions with anything other than athletes have more time to think and spend far too much time reading triathlon magazines/books and then "wonder" if the plan they just read about is the one they should be doing. Let me simplify a few things for everyone with regards to heart rate zones, feedback and the bottom line to success.

Zones:

There are different training zones and or paces designed to have certain physiologic adaptations. Many coaches use a lot of different terminology to the point where the zones have just become plain confusing for all. Let's simplify everything:

Zone 1: Recovery/ <69%>

Zone 2: Endurance/69%-83% of your LTHR/Slow twitch development/delays onset of fatigue

Zone 3: Tempo/84-94% of your LTHR/Long Race pacing (up to half IM)

Zone 4: Lactate Threshold/95% -105%/Maximal improvement of your LT

Zone 5/>V02Max/Maximize Cardiac Fitness/Improves V02 Max

There are many ways to come up with your LTHR numbers and many debates over whose methods are accurate. If you want accurate numbers then pay the money to go to a local exercise physiology laboratory and get tested in each discipline as you will have different ranges for swimming, biking and running (test are done for biking and running). The other method is field testing to determine your LTHR and you calculate your numbers based on the field test. Remember, the best predictor of performance is the performance itself. A 5k run and a 40k Time Trial in race conditions will typically yield the best numbers to work with.

Feedback:

Communication with your coach is critical to developing your current and future training plans. Having said that, the information you give your coach has to be useful. Writing "completed" or Done" or nothing at all doesn't tell your coach anything. Telling your coach, "hey the workout said 3200 yards but it was only 3050 doesn't tell the coach anything other than they can't add. Use your comments section to let your coach know how your body responded to the training. Were you able to hold the desired zone, was it easy hard, just right? Could you have completed more intervals? Was your perceived exertion in line with your Heart Rate? How was your nutrition? What interval were you holding in the pool? How was your feel for the water? Where you lacking motivation or on top of your game? There is a lot of information to provide your coach which is used to build your next block of training. Remember, it takes 6-8 weeks to see if adaptations to your training yield the desired results.

Just Putting in the Time:

I know there are a lot of coaches out there who would argue with this next statement but I would argue with them that nothing beats putting in the time. Coach Kathy says it best when she says "go hard on your hard days and easy on your easy days, there is no in between". I don't believe I have ever seen her wear a Heart Rate Monitor or talk about what zone she is in. What she does year after year is put in the time to get the desired results. A poorly written plan followed consistently yields better results than a well written plan not followed at all.

Don't make this sport more complicated than it needs to be. If you need tools to quantify where you are then slap on a Heart Rate Monitor ( I use one) or get a power tap, garmin or the what ever the latest gadget is and believe in the process. As coach Truesdale says "put your ass to the leather and just ride".....

Welcome Teresa Gray (Coach Kathy), Sean Reilly (Coach Kathy) and Dawn Leget (Coach Kathy). MHM wishes Shawn Powers much success and happiness as he takes a new job in California and leaves the MHM family.

January 19

2008-01-21T08:22:00.000-08:00

Ross Hauser, Disney Half Marathon 2008 5th place

Congratulations to the following athletes who raced this weekend:

10 mile Frosty’s Revenge

Steve Uccello: 1:14:52
Susie Wargin 1:27:21
Clay Taulman 1:35:50
Jeff Spiegel 1:47:44

Following is Ross Hauser's race report from the Disney Half Marathon. I will put this in the race report log but I thought it would be good for everyone to read. Pay attention to all the small things Ross did to ensure success. Not only did he follow the plan (even though he questioned it), he spent a lot of time and effort in mental preparation. A small tip from fellow MHM Scott Binzer was the key that enabled Ross to properly place himself at the start of the race. Read the report and ask yourself if you do the little things to succeed. It is one thing to talk about wanting to succeed and another to follow through.

HAUSER, OAK PARK, ILLINOIS 5TH PLACE IN THE MEN’S 45-49 AGE GROUP, DISNEY HALF MARATHON

I am writing this in the Orlando Airport. Just two days ago, I crossed the finish line at the Disney Half Marathon, my watch saying that my net time was 1.29.52. I was ecstatic, but realistic as I waived to a volunteer to help hold me up to keep me from fainting. What I didn’t realize at the time was that the Disney Half Marathon is one of the top 10 largest half marathons in the United States. Even more shocking was that I finished 80th out of 13,000 people. I finished 5th place in the 45 to 49 men’s age group and would be getting an award! It was all just ‘surreal’ to me.

You see WHAT A SHOCK: 1:29.53!!! ROSS prior to this race the best I had ever finished in any ‘big’ race was the top third. There is a big difference from being in the top 33%, to the top 1%. Going over the race in my head, it shouldn't have been a real surprise that I did that well. You see I was in corral A, first wave. In other words I was seated in the fastest corral. I started in the middle of the corral so maybe 400 people started ahead of me in the race. It only took me 30 or 40 seconds to cross the starting line when the gun went off. After about ¼ mile, because the pace was so slow because of bottle necking, I went onto the grass and started passing people. Besides two people who passed me, I remember passing people for the next 1 hour 20 minutes. So I must have passed 322 people!

You see I was very well prepared for this race. Just two months ago, I had a meltdown at the Miami Half Ironman. I had projected a sub-five hour finish, but ended up doing 6:03 in the race. In analyzing what went went wrong, my coach Pete Alfino of Mile High Multisports, put it succinctly to me, “Ross you didn’t follow the plan!”. I had basically overtrained by doing my running workouts too fast just prior to the race! He told me on email and over the phone that if I would just follow the plan, my next race, The Disney Half Marathon would be a success. For the next 10 to 11 weeks I did basically exactly what he said. Besides missing a few workouts two weeks before the race because of a cold, I followed the plan. If I followed the plan, my coach felt I would break 1:30 in the half marathon. This was my goal.

While I worked on physical preparation with Pete, I continued to see Gina Orlando, clinical hypnotherapist, to work on the my mental outlook. She has been helping me with the mental side of sport and life. While I initially was seeing her to help me sleep, through hypnosis and positive self suggestions and other techniques, we were also working on having me mentally prepared to ‘train and race like a champion’. She made many discs for me to listen to and had scripts for me to repeat to myself. Gina did an awesome job getting me ready mentally. Even in my previous meltdown race, I was mentally positive and strong throughout it. Besides sessions of hypnosis, I worked on envisioning me running strong. When I would think about the race and getting a vision for it, one time kept coming up. This time came up at least three times I remember. The time was 1:29.52. I kid you not!

Pete told me to write down my splits on my arm that I wanted to hit at miles 1,2,3,6,9, and 11. I did that. I wanted to be at 7:10 at one mile, 14:10 at two miles and 21:10 at three miles. To break 1:30 in the half marathon I had to run an average of 6:51 miles for 13.1 miles. So I would start out slower and then speed up.

I don’t use a heart rate monitor during races. In races I do best if I go by feel. I know what breathing difficulty I have to be at to run the race to the best of my ability. In training I often use a heart rate monitor. If my have average heart rate for a race pace workout keeps going down then this tells my coach Pete and I, that my fitness is improving. Honestly for those 10 or 11 weeks, Pete had me training eight to eleven hours. My maximum amount of miles running was 33 in a week. It didn’t seem like enough training to get me to break 1:30. But I kept with the program! Pete had me doing some race pace running, but speed work was minimized. The race pace runs were my speed work. Three weeks to race day, I recruited Arden Swanson to run a 9.5 miler at 6:50 pace. Arden is a spectacular runner who had won his age group in a couple of marathon races this year! I knew he was in the shape to run that pace. He told some Oak Park Runners Club buddies including Pete and Alona to run with us also. We had beautiful running weather that day, temperatures in the 40s. We covered the 9.5 miler in a little over 1:05. This run, gave me a lot of confidence going into Disney.

Let me just say as I write this, I am still in shock as to the outcome of this run. As I stated above, after I crossed the starting mat, the pace was too slow. I went on the grass and started passing people almost immediately but unfortunately, I hit the first mile marker in 8:10, a full one minute slower then my goal time. There just was no place to run. By mile three I was so far behind my goal pace, that I decided to stop looking at the clock. The only thing I could surmise was that the weather, which was mid 60’s but probably 96% humidity, was slowing me down. I was also frustrated that there wasn’t that much room to run and pass people, but after mile 3 it opened up somewhat.

The race to this point was in the pitch black. As I passed mile 3, I made the decision to just stay positive and do the best I could. I figured at this point 1:30 was an impossibility because I was at least 1 minute 10 seconds down to my pace goals, and from mile 6 to 11 I was to run 6:40, so for me to make up time I would even have to run faster than that. I figured because of the high humidity, it just wasn’t going to happen. But again, I stayed relaxed and decided to just have the best race I could for this day. So from miles 3 to 11 I just ran as best I could. I took some fluids at miles 6 and 10, actually walking a little to make sure the fluids went down. As I ran past mile marker 10, I kept repeating the mantra ‘nice and easy’ to stay relaxed.

While preparing for this race I had to do some treadmill running at race pace, because the weather outside made running outside impossible. What I noticed on the treadmill was that when I set the pace on the treadmill to race pace 6:50/mile, my heart rate would speed up from 162 to 167 if I thought about running fast. When I would think about running ‘nice and easy’ or ‘taking a break’ my heart rate would slow down. It would often go from 162 to 158 or so.

The Disney Half Marathon and Marathon starts at 6:00 a.m. So miles 3 to 11, were ran in the dark. During this time, I concentrated on slow deep breathing as Gina had taught me, as well as the thinking to myself ‘nice and easy’. When I felt overwhelmed or that my heart rate was too fast (my breathing getting too fast also), I thought about the next day when I would be running with my Marion which would be a relaxed pace for me. I then could feel my breathing and heart rate slow down.

When I hit mile 11, there was enough light where I could easily see my watch and it said 1:16.20. I was shocked! I assumed I was headed for a 1:32 or 1:33 half marathon. This would have still been a PR for me. I was stuck on 1:35, as I had done my last four half marathons in this time. When I saw 1:16.20, I quickly did the math and realized that breaking 1:30 was still a possibility! I basically needed to do something like 6:20 to 6:30 pace for the next 2.1 miles! Gina had taught me to think about training and racing with the tenacity of a pack of Pit Bulls. This thought entered my mind and the after burners turned on. The only thing that mattered for me for the next 13 minutes and 40 seconds was running. I just simply ran as hard as I could!

I honestly don’t remember much about passing mile marker 12, I just know that I kept passing people. Specifically there was a fellow runner that from miles 7 to 11 had gone ahead of me and I made it my goal to catch him. In imagined that if I caught him I would break 1:30. I caught him in the middle of mile 12! I then made it my goal to catch the next person. I don’t know how many more people I passed, but it was probably around 10, but when I hit mile 13, the official race time said 1:30 exactly! I knew it took me thirty or forty seconds to reach the starting mat at the beginning of the race. The race for me then was like a 100 meter dash. I just pumped my arms and sprinted as fast as I could. When I crossed the mat I hit my stop watch and to my utter shock it read 1:29.52! Are you kidding! Oh my God! I had done it! I broke 1:30. I felt winded and light headed so I had a volunteer assist me. Wow what a race!

On Sunday night after the Disney Marathon, yes I did assist my wife to set a 24 minute PR in the Disney Marathon for her,where we both crossed at 5:11, I accepted my award for fifth in my age group! The announcer said, now for 5th place in the men’s 45 to 49 age group, from Oak Park, Illinois, with a time of 1:29.53, Ross Hauser. What a shock!

You see when I started exercising six and a half years ago, to loose some body fat I didn’t expect anything but that. What exercise has brought me besides great fitness, is a more positive attitude and a belief that what the Bible says “All things are possible for him who believes” is indeed true! While my main motivation comes from faith in God through Jesus Christ, I realize that the help of coaches (Pete, whose advice needs to be followed), other health care providers (Gina, helping me realize that my thoughts do influence my actions), friends (my Team Gauntlet training buddies, and friends like Arden who help you out in a crunch), and my wife (wow, what an effort she put forth in the Disney Marathon despite tremendous nausea!), all play a role in achieving my goals. My next goal, “breaking 5 hours in the California Half Ironman March 29th”. Like this race, I won’t have much time to prepare. I won’t start training again for two weeks. So I will have only 7 to 8 weeks to get into half ironman shape! Can I do it? Well, with the help of all the above and sticking to the program ‘all things are possible for him who believes?’ Perhaps, some of unbelievers will start to believe that ‘doc he’s pretty fast!’.

Weekend Results January 12

2008-01-14T11:44:00.000-08:00

Daniel and Marci Madruga

Congratulations to the following athletes who raced this weekend.

Marci M. Beaver Creek 5k snow shoe race 1:07:26
Daniel M. Beaver Creek snow shoe race 1:07:24
Mike Nims: US Postal Swim 3700 yards (PR)
Ross Hauser: Disney Half Marathon 1:29:52 (PR) 5th age group, 81st over all
Marion Hauser: Disney Marathon 5:11:01 (20 minute PR)

The weekend runs are starting to pick up in attendance. We have moved the location to Waterton Canyon. Beautiful scenery which last weekend included Big Horn Sheep and a Fox on the side of the trail! Come join us!!

At this time of year the best advice I can give you is that consistency yields results. The vast majority of you are still working in your low aerobic zones and burning fat for fuel. Patience wins in the long run. Let the base work that you do today turn into speed this summer. Stay focused and committed to the plan which has been developed specifically for you and you will soon see the results.

Welcome back Doug Cronin, Syracuse, New York (Coach Pete). Doug will be running the Boston Marathon in April.

Coach Pete and Doug C. IMW 2005

January 2008

2008-01-08T16:18:00.000-08:00

Welcome to 2008!!!

Congratulations to Coach Jason Hart and his wife Kristy on the birth of their son. At last report, mother, father and son are all doing well.

Good Luck to Ross and Marion Hauser this weekend at the Disney Half (Ross) and full (Marion) marathons.

***The Team Uniforms were ordered today and will be here the first week of March. Contact Coach Pete if you were interested in ordering anything.

Welcome Aboard!

Sean Reilly, Highlands Ranch (Coach Kathy).
Mike Ceisemeir, Wheaton, Il (Coach Pete).

Eddie Wilson: Cheyenne, Wyoming (Coach Kathy)
Scott Messick, Highlands Ranch, Co (Coach Pete). Scott is a former athlete who has returned to MHM. Coach Pete and Scott IMC 2005

SWIM LABS TOUR:

On January 5th, a group of athletes from Mile High Multisport toured the Swim Labs facility in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Michael Mann and Gif Cutler explained how the Dart Fish technology worked and gave demonstrations to three MHM athletes. This is truly a state of the art facility and well worth the time and expense to have yourself video taped in the water. Contact Coach Pete for special MHM rates at Swim Labs.

Weekend Results 12/15

2007-12-17T07:36:00.000-08:00

Rudolph's Revenge 10k

Steve U. 45:03
Mike N. 52:00
Susie W. 55:36
Jeff. S. 58:36 (PR)

full results at http://www.winterdistanceseries.com/index_files/page0004.htm

Reach New Heights..Change Your Mental Approach

2007-12-17T07:32:00.001-08:00

Aristotle once said...

“we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."

I’ve been giving a lot of thought the past few weeks to the coaching profession. Technically this will be my third full year of coaching and although I’m pleased with the progress of Mile High Multisport, I have a greater vision of how I want to coach and develop the business. Each year during this time I ask myself Why do I coach?, What my coaching philosophy will be in the new year for each of my athletes, what areas of improvement I see for myself to become more knowledgeable, what I want to continue doing that worked well last season and what I need to do better in the upcoming year.

As an athlete, I also go through this process when it comes to setting my personal goals. As a youth I played baseball. I used to love the game and am saddened that I don’t see today’s youth out in the parks playing pick up games of ball anymore. I played at a competitive level and my father was “my coach”. It took me many years to realize that he was a very good coach as he taught me not only the fundamentals of the game but the mental aspect that goes along with athletics. One thing he used to always tell me was “see yourself making the play before it happens.” I would envision myself making the plays that the pros made. In short, I envisioned success before it happened.

Every night, my father would take me outside and “drill me”. Perhaps he would tell a different story, but I don’t recall ever saying “no” or “hang on dad, I need to just finish watching this show”. Although it was years ago, I can still remember the “drills” to this day. I wanted to be a baseball player when I grew up. I had a vision that I would play 2nd base for the Chicago Cubs one day. I wanted to be better than anyone else in my town and I worked very hard to accomplish my goal.

As triathletes, we need to take a look at how we mentally approach racing and training. I’m often dumb founded when an athlete tells me one week they have this lofty goal and the next week they tell me they are lacking motivation to go train. I believe that the goal itself should be enough motivation to want to train. As I evaluate my clients, and how I want to coach, I’ve been looking at the mental aspect of the sport and evaluating each one of my clients. Some clients require very little motivation while others require a lot.

The approach we take to mental preparation should be part of our goal setting process. Each of us should honestly assess this area. Do you require little motivation and give 100% effort to each of your workouts, or are you a “worrier” who often finds excuses to why something didn’t happen. Do you have a mantra that you bring to training and races that helps you keep you focused? If you aren’t sure which type of an athlete you are, ask someone whose opinion you value for an honest assessment. Keep in mind that you may not get the response you want to hear.

It is my belief that mental preparation should be a part of the goal setting process. Your physical ability will only take you so far, it is your mind which defines excellence. The same thing applies to your profession; your intellect will only take you to a certain point. How you interact with others and the mental preparation you take to your job separates mediocrity and excellence. If you have ever wondered about what separates the people on the podium from the people who participate, look no further than your mind. Mentally tough athletes have an inner strength, an inner focus and desire that others lack. They don’t MAKE EXCUSES or justifications on why things happened. The athletes who reach their goals work hard all the time. You don’t hear people on the podium state “they aren’t motivated” “it wasn’t gong to happen today", “I can’t”, “I couldn’t find time”, “I didn’t feel like getting up at 5:30”, I don’t like riding the trainer”; “I didn’t run outside because it snowed or it was cold”. The mind manifests what it hears. Instead of telling your mind what to not do, tell it what it will do. I’m confident you will find yourself working more efficiently.

I recently picked up a book entitled “Mind Gym, an athlete’s guide to inner excellence” by Gary Mack and David Casstevens. It is a short, yet powerful book which every athlete should read. In the book they state, “learn to use your mind or your mind will use you. Actions follow our thoughts and images. Don’t look where you don’t want to go”.

As you approach the New Year, make a commitment to be a mentally strong athlete in 2008. Rid your self of all the excuses. There is a huge benefit to the power of positive reinforcement and visualization. See the results from the minds eye. Champions win in their mind first. “See yourself making the play before it actually happens.”

Results 12/8/07

2007-12-09T13:18:00.000-08:00

Major Taulman in the middle. Yesterdays race conditions were a far cry from Mogadishu Somalia

Congratulations to Major Clay Taulman on his completion of the Chilly Cheeks duathlon in less than ideal conditions.

Total Time: 1:09:20 (Ranked 22d out of 172)

Congratulations to Mike A. on his completion of the Charlotte Marathon in just under 5 hours.

Congratulations to Cody Hanson on his 1st place over all South Western Clydesdale Champion. He was awarded his trophy this weekend.

No Excuses- Be Consistent

2007-12-08T15:44:00.000-08:00

Coach Pete 1989 Chicago Distance Classic

Some one asked me the other day what the key to success in participating in triathlon was. I immediately replied consistency. The beauty of starting this sport in the late 80's gives me a 20 year perspective in which to gauge my reply. It is very easy for me to review the past and seek a common theme with the years I've deemed successful. I also have the privilege of being married to someone who has raced for 5 years longer than I, and has had many successful seasons.

I'm all for efficiencies in life as long as you don't sacrifice quality. In comparison to a lot of our peers, Kathy and I have really succeeded on very few miles . Year after year we are consistent in our approach to the sport. I'm not sure if this is a product of the lifestyle we live or it is the way we are, we've never really disdcussed the topic. We've tried many different approaches over the years and yet I feel like we are behind the times when I read about the newest gadgets or technologies. (I will admit that the use of wattage with training on the bike has peeked my interest and I have been studying this diligently) I still believe that there is nothing more important than being consistent in your workouts each week. You can own a power tap, garmin, newton shoes, an endless pool and a $6K bike but it won't do you any good if you don't follow your workout plans each week.

As I review weekly training logs I hear a lot of "excuses" in why people don't complete workouts. I know this is a difficult time of year to get everything done. I will be the first to tell you to achieve balance in your life, especially during the holidays. However, I think there is always time for a little exercise every day. I can only think of 2 Thanksgivings in the last 23 years that I have not run (one was two years ago because of a back injury and the other was when I was in a walking cast) I've been told by my wife I'm black and white, I'm not an excuse guy. I hear her coach the kids all the time "don't try to explain to dad why you didn't do your chores, just say your sorry and go do them". I'd rather see someone write "I didn't get to it today" and then see them get back on track the next day. Perhaps it is the way that I'm wired but I've just always made the time to get things done. I've ran and swam while I traveled on business, I've woken up almost every day of my adult life at 5 a.m to get in my workouts (even after I went to work for myself), I've passed on drinks with the people at work on numerous occasions in the name of working out. I've rolled out of bed when I didn't want to more than I care to describe. I even completed an Ironman with a splint on my hand 9 weeks after having my tendons to my thumb reattached. I did these things because in my mind I wanted to accomplish something, and since my mind had a vision, I wanted to work hard to achieve my dream. I once had a boss tell me that if I put the same effort into my work that I put into my athletics I would be successful. I thought to myself, if you put half the effort into athletics that you put into this office you wouldn't be so fat. Obviously I don't work there anymore. The point is, you have to follow through on the commitments you make to yourself. Only you have control over your actions. You do so with actions not words. If you write down a goal that you want to take 30 minutes off your half ironman time in 2008, and you don't change anything about the way you approach your workouts, then you better pray for an overcast day and a huge tail wind.

When I began in the sport I had a goal each week to complete three sessions in each sport. Three bikes, three swims and three runs. My goal was to be consistent week in and week out. A very simple approach but one that yielded me some very good results. I kept a journal and would track my success based on my ability to accomplish all 9 workouts each week. I didn't take rest weeks, didn't taper, didn't peak for races. I would start training in March and end my season in August. I have since learned that the lack of calculated rests and periodization training caused me to crash at the end of August. I would rest and be ready to go again the next season. Today we have more scientific approaches to rest and rejuvenation and people can race longer into a season without side effects.

Today you will read a lot of articles regarding reverse periodization when you build speed early in training cycles and endurance later. When we began racing, we would race 5k's and duathlons in the spring, sprints in April/May, Olympic Distances in June/July and then end the season with a half ironman. We built speed early and then added endurance as we approached our longer races. As time moved on we added some different training philosophies and weighed the results based on previous experiences. We got away from the reverse periodization method but still had positive results and outcomes. There are many different paths to road of success but it begins with dedication, consistency and NO EXCUSES.

Weekend Update 11/30

2007-12-03T14:54:00.001-08:00

Congratulations to Kathy on her Tucson Marathon finish in 4:05:30 seconds. She will be the first to tell you that she was disappointed with the outcome. When she returned home last evening she received a call from her father telling her that her Grandmother had passed away the night before the race. Our thoughts go out to the Purnell family during this time. Grandma Marie was 104.

Upcoming Race Weekend:

Steve U. and Clay T. race the Chilly Cheeks Duathlon

Cody races the Automic Man in NM

The Holiday Season:

The schedules get full during this time of year. If you are concerned about getting in your workouts it is best to get them finished in the morning. Do what you can at this time of year. The work we do now lays the foundation for our next race season. Ask yourself .. Is what I'm doing now important?"

Team Uniforms:

We are getting closer to the final design on our new team uniforms for 2008. More information to follow.

Weekend Workouts:

Thanks to those of you who have been showing up on the weekends. We are getting in some great base miles and the benefits are beginning to show. I would like to see some more participation on the weekend runs. Invite your friends and neighbors.

Weekly Update 11/26

2007-11-26T14:28:00.000-08:00

Hawaii Ironman Viewing Ride:

In Lieu of the typical Saturday morning ride there will be an indoor ride on Saturday while we watch the Hawaii Ironman Broadcast. The show begins at 2:30 so please arrive early to get set up. Bring your own bike and trainer. RSVP so I know how many to plan for.

On behalf of the coaching staff at MHM I wanted to wish everyone a healthy and happy holiday season. We had our extended family in town this past weekend and celebrated both Thanksgiving and Christmas within 48 hours. For those of you looking to relieve Holiday stress, I highly recommend cramming both holidays into a 48 hour window. Actually, you can throw them all there and get them all out of the way. I propose Holiday week and you can pick which 7 you want to celebrate and get them ALL out of the way...................

Congratulations to....

Scott Binzer of Kentucky (Coach Pete), 10k Turkey Trot, 46.24 (10th age group, 90/720 overall) and Mike Nims, Castle Rock, Co (Coach Pete), 5k Turkey Trot 22.48.

Upcoming Races:

Coach Kathy heads to Tucson this weekend for the marathon.

Several of you are running the Rudolph's Revenge 10k at Chatfield on December 15th. If you have changed plans please let your coach know so your schedule can be changed.

Ross Hauser will run the Disney Land Half Marathon in January and Marion Hauser will run the full marathon.

2008 Race Schedules........

If you have not finalized your 2008 plans with your coach PLEASE do so immediately.

Welcome to...

Troy Green, Kansas City, Mo (Coach Steve). Troy is signed up for Ironman Cour D' Alene in June of 08.

Logging Your Workouts...........

Your coaches can not emphasize the importance of timely and proper documentation of your workouts. It is important for your coach to know how your body absorbed the workout, what your perceived exertion or average HR, and your general thoughts on the workout. This aides your coach in developing future workouts. A few of you are not logging workouts at all, others are just putting in the time worked out with no comments, distances etc. It is up to you what to put in, but you will find more personalized workouts if you provide more detail. Let your coach decide what is enough but at minimum, time, distance, effort, average heart rate if you used an HRM, how you felt during the workout, any residual soreness and if you liked the work out or not (not that it will make a difference).

Speaking of Workouts......

When we moved from Training Peaks to Workout Log I had to manually enter in all workouts. A few of you have pointed out some errors in the length of the workouts and in some of the directions. My apologies and please keep bringing these to my attention so I can clear up any confusion. One of our goals at MHM is clear/concise directions in all workouts. If you find a workout that does not make sense PLEASE write and ask for clarification.

Holidays.....

During this time of year, family should be number one on your priority list. When faced with the challenge of family or sport, do the right thing....... Put some emotional deposits in your families bank. I'm confident you will be making some withdrawals this summer. Enjoy the holidays, watch what you eat and drink, get some well deserved rest and remain as active as you can.

Congratulations to Cody, Brian and Courtney for getting into Ironman Arizona in November of 08. Just getting in can be the biggest battle these days!!

Don't Worry...Be Happy........

2007-11-18T18:03:00.000-08:00

wor·ry (wûr'ē, wŭr'ē) v., wor·ried (wûr'ēd, wŭr'-), wor·ry·ing, wor·ries (wûr'ēz, wŭr'-).
v.intr.
To feel uneasy or concerned about something; be troubled.
To pull or tear at something with or as if with the teeth.
To proceed doggedly in the face of difficulty or hardship; struggle: worried along at the problem.

I've always considered triathletes very fortunate. We are healthy, affable, gregarious and typically financially sound. Most triathletes I know are successful in life outside of the sport. They are successful business owners, employees, husbands, wives, parents and community leaders. Regardless of our skill level, every triathlete should be thankful we have the time, financial resources and support system which allows us to compete.

In the past month I've spoken with a number of you on a myriad of topics. A number of you have a lot of "stuff" going on at work, home and with extended family and friends. As triathletes we have become adept to problem solving and juggling different priorities. There are many carry over skills from our sport and life. The mental capacity to endure the demands which are placed on us during training and competition are applicable to many issues we face during our daily lives.

During our conversations I've heard a lot of you use the phrase "I'm worried about......." you worry about being slow, about your race 6 months from now, that you are gaining weight, etc". My wife tells me I worry too much. I find that funny because I think she worries too much. I've come to the conclusion that we are a community of worriers.

The mental approach we take to life, training and racing is critical to the overall accomplishment of our goals. I used to listen to a radio DJ in Chicago by the name of Steve Dahl. Dahl is famous for the infamous "Disco Demolition" debacle at Comisky Park in the late 70's. Dahl has a GED, is grossly over weight and generally a disgusting guy, but he was funny on the radio when you were stuck in Chicago traffic for hours on end. During his radio show he would always remind his listeners "it's going to be alright, I don't know how or why but everything happens for a reason and you need to let life just run it's course.. Everything will be just fine..............". It didn't matter what the issue was or who was involved, he used to have this care free attitude that life just worked out and all the worrying in the world doesn't do any good. He was a High School drop out, over weight yet he lived in a wealthy neighborhood in the suburbs of Chicago. He would proudly display for all to hear that he just believed things would happen in his best interest. He had a mental imagine that the end result would always be favorable.

As you approach Thanksgiving, take the time to write down all the things in this world you have to be grateful for. The fact that you are able to compete and can afford this expensive hobby speaks volumes. I'm serious, sit down and write down why you compete and why it is important to you? What are you trying to gain by training and racing and where does triathlon fit into your life goals?

Write down the word "worry" on a piece of paper, read it out loud then crumple it up and throw it away. Every time you catch yourself saying "the word", stop and remember what is really important. If you want to loose weight, swim faster, run faster, bike faster then take action which allows you to attain your goal. I've never asked an athlete post race "So how did you do it? How did you have that great race? and have them reply " Well Pete, you see.. Every day, all day long and even at night while I'm supposed to be sleeping I worry. I worried about being fat, slow, out of shape and miserable and because I worried so much my mind made me thin, fast and the outcome today proved that worry does help".. In fact, the response I usually get post race is "I'm not sure why I worried so much last week, everything turned out just fine, I wish I hadn't used up so much of my mental energy worrying about something that never happened."

Think about all the negative energy you burn when you are worried. Your mind is actively working towards a negative outcome. The mind tends to manifest what it is thinking about. This doesn't mean we can "will" our way to be the best athlete in the world. It does mean that we have a much better chance of success with positive mental thoughts than negative beliefs. Since we are in control of our belief system this shift in behavior shouldn't be difficult. It only takes dedication, perseverance and commitment to a desired outcome, qualities every triathlete possesses.

In the famous words of Bob Marely

Don't worry, be happy.In every life we have some trouble. But when you worry you make it double

The Season is Over, Now What?

2007-11-12T15:36:00.000-08:00

Coach Pete Halloween 2007

This weekend marked the end of the official race season as far as I'm concerned. In years past, the race season was typically over the last week of August and racing into October was only for those "special" people who made it to Kona. October was for marathons and racing triathlons into Mid November was unheard of.

I've done a lot of reflecting the past month on the season. I'm entering my fourth year of coaching, my third as a "full time coach". I haven't tallied the final numbers but I'm confident that we increased the number of athletes, coaching staff and number of races completed. My initial impression is that the season was a success. Over the next few weeks I'll get into a deeper analysis. I've spent a lot of time in Work Out Log the past few weeks and I'm confident that you will see workouts which are easier to understand, a sense of purpose behind your workouts and clarification by use of the Coaches Tips section. We are looking to add some You Tube video links which will assist you in performing some your drill work in the water and other exercises in the gym.

A number of you have turned your thoughts to next season and this is understandable. Races are filling quickly and this calls for us to sign up 10-12 months in advance or risk getting shut out. While you focus to the future you must complete an honest evaluation of the past. This is something you can do by yourself or with your coach. I typically start with the goals I set out for last season. This is simple, did I Achieve the goals I set out for myself. Where my goals too easy or did they stretch me? Did I follow the plan which was established for me and mentally and physically did I give efforts in racing and training which allowed myself to achieve my goals? I also look at the races I competed in and looked for unusual patterns between myself and my peers which I can work on. If I rank 20th in every swim, 5th in the bike and 4th on the run then it makes it very simple what one of my key focuses will be in the winter.

It is important that you work with your coach to establish your goals between now and next season. When establishing your goals there should be a line of site between recent results and future results. If you went 5 hours at the 5430 Long Course this year and your goal for next year is 4:45 you need to determine where you are going to make up the 15 minutes and how?

If you are stuck year after year with results that you aren't happy with then there needs to be some changes to your routine. Remember the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Allow your coach to make the necessary changes to your schedule and evaluate the effectiveness of change.

Each of you should fully understand your goals for the upcoming season. You should understand which phase of training you are in and what you are seeking to accomplish in the current week of training. You should also understand how the current week falls into the big picture. If you don't understand the phases of training please read the article in the athletes only section of the Mile High Mutltisport web site on understanding your annual plan or contact your coach. The off season or non race season is a great time of year to work on your limiters. Talk to your coach about taking a Yoga or Pilates class, what their thoughts are on having your swim stroke analyzed, your running form critiqued or improve your functional strength.

Now is the time to implement change if you want different results next year. Simple changes in routine and form can have big results next year. No one likes change but we all know that change is good and change happens for a reason.........and it typcially creats a positive outcome. Open yourself up to doing new and different things. Keep a positive attitude and outlook and keep things in perspective.

Weekend Results 11/09

2007-11-11T17:57:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to David Reed, Ross Hauser and Shawn Powers on finishing the Miami Man triathlon. Marion Hauser also biked as part of a relay team. Weather conditions were near perfect with a little wind on the bike.

David Reed (Coach Pete) 5:17.44 (1 hour personal record) 12th age group, 105th overall
Shawn Powers (Coach Steve), 5:19:2, 10th age group, 115th overall
Ross Hauser (Coach Pete) 6:03:39 35th age group
Marion reported a 3 hour bike split.

Cody Hanson (Coach Pete) also competed in the Silverman Iron Distance race this weekend. After posting a 1:54 swim split he was pulled from the bike course at mile 89.