Fun Filled 2013 is Coming!!

The 2013 Race season is coming CLOSER and CLOSER every day and the snow is MELTING away by the hour.  With that comes so much excitement and thanks for the upcoming year.  The definition of excitement below could not match my feelings to the T any better. 

ex·cite·ment  

Noun A feeling of great enthusiasm and eagerness. Something that arouses such a feeling; an exciting incident.

As many of you reading this already know 2013 will be my first season racing in the Pro field.  I felt like it was my time to make the jump and I am going at it full throttle.  Under the guidance of my new coach Will Smith, good things are bound to happen.  My training has been going great and loving the changes so far, but its a long season so I need to pace myself.  The long season will start early April down in Texas for 70.3 Galveston and finish in early November down in Florida for Rev3 half.  Click the tab above for the rest of my tentative race schedule, hope to see many of you at a few of the races ether racing or cheering alongside!! 

Now some BIG BIG BIG thank you's to a few people and companies who have helped me reach this point and continuing on into 2013. 

BIG thanks to all my Family and Friends, the support I am blessed with is like no other.  It would be impossible to put into words how grateful I am.

BIG thanks to RACC (Race Against Childhood Cancer) I will be representing the bright yellow colors with the motivation of racing for finding a cure for childhood cancer. RACC is a great organization doing amazing things for a deserving cause. 

BIG thanks to my friends at Endurance House, I could never have reached this point without the store and the owner Justin P (Justin inspired me to into the sport).  For all your triathlon and shoe needs stop by the best store around!!

BIG thanks to Peak Performance Massage Madison for always keeping my legs and body in tip top shape.  If you want to take your performance to the next level this year start getting into PP on a regular schedule.

BIG thanks to Newton Running for making the VERY best shoes on the market. Working for some fast results with the lugs under my feet.

BIG thanks to CycleOps for helping me to continue to take my biking to the next level.  I would be lost without my powertap wheel and trainer.  Its crazy to think that this amazing company is from the lovely Madison Wisconsin.

BIG thanks to PowerBar for keeping me fueled up with all my training and race nutrition needs.  If you want to try any of the products out just let me know.

Well thats all the updates for now, be ready for a fun filled spring, summer and fall. 

Thanks for reading!

GTGTG

January 2013 Fun

Wow! 2013 has started with a bang in so many ways and so excited for what is to come.  Quick update on the racing side for the first month of the year.

-Started with the New Years day dash took 2nd to a old teammate from high school.  Lets put it this way, it was an interesting way to recover from some fun New Years events with friends.  A portion of the proceeds from the race went to benefit Huntington's Disease Society of America.
-Did a indoor team marathon at an indoor track in Milwaukee and finished 2nd overall for the female division which I am not sure how we qualified for that haha.
-Next did a 8 person bike team time trial at the Multi Sport Expo to benefit RACC and we finished 2nd
-The next day they put on a 10k run which I also finished 2nd which also was to benefit RACC.  

So all in all 2013 has started with some great fun friend races to benefit great causes!

In the next few weeks I will be announcing my tentative race schedule as well as some other BIG changed for the 2013 year.

Loven life every day and feel so blessed in so many ways.

Thanks for reading!!

Trainer Session Jamzzz

Lately I have been spending a lot of the time on the trainer "Go Figure" and I have been jamming out on YouTube a good portion of the time "Or on Pandora."  Wanted to share with everyone a small list of my recent music addictions that have been motivation me in the dedication cave.

(Pain Cave has been turned into the Motivation Cave for the time being) 

5 of the songs are from a somewhat new artist Jake Miller who will happen to be playing in Madison, January 25th. The last one is from V.I.C. hint get your WOBBLE ready!!

ENJOY!!

Jake Miller- A Million Lives

Jake Miller- Beast Mode

Jake Miller- I'm Alright

Jake Miller- Like Me

Jake Miller - Whistle

V.I.C.- Wobble Baby!!

Keep JAMMING, Keep GOING!!

11 Benefits of Being Positive

I just started reading a book titled The Positive Dog (The story about the power of positivity) by Jon Gordon and so far I have really enjoyed it. Its a simple easy read which always suits me well haha. Not only is it a easy book to read but it has been easy to implement the main ideas into everyday life and training. Below was one of the first pages of the book that may catch your attention.

11 Benefits of Being Positive
1. Positive people live longer. In a study of nuns, those that regularly expressed positive emotions lived an average of 10 years longer then those who didn't.
2. Positive work environments outperform negative work environments.
3. Positive, optimistic salespeople sell more then pessimistic salespeople.
4. Positive leaders are able to make better decisions under pressure.
5. Marriages are much more likely to succeed when the couple experiences a 5-to-1 ratio of positive to negative interactions, whereas when the ratio approaches 1-to-1, marriages are more likely to end in divorce.
6. Positive people who regularly express positive emotions are more resilient when facing stress, challenges, and adversity.
7. Positive people are able to maintain a broader perspective and see the big picture, which helps them identify solutions, whereas negative people maintain a narrower perspective and tend to focus on problems.
8. Positive thoughts and emotions counter the negative effects of stress. For example, you can't be thankful and stressed at the same time.
9. Positive emotions such as gratitude and appreciation help athletes perform at a higher level.
10. Positive people have more friends, which is a key factor of happiness and longevity.
11. Positive and popular leaders are more likely to garner the support of others and receive pay raises and promotions and achieve greater success in the workplace.

For more research and links to studies and resources go to www.feedthepositivedog.com
Thanks for reading!!!

Florida REV3

REV IT UP!!!!

Below is a short video about before, during and after the race.

(Yes I am in the middle of the woods taking this video haha)

Things to Remember 
-Driving 22hrs to a race is really not to bad at all
-Keep nutrition simple
-Stay aero is the main focus for flat and windy bike course
-Have a list of positive things to think about when the going gets tough (Good for every aspect of life)
-Rubbing off the X marks on your hand will allow you to get more celebratory beer post race
-Recovery hydration/kcal directly after race helps a tremendous amount
-EVERY second counts "Only a min separated 1st-4th Amateur"
-Oranges from Florida and Pecans from Georgia are to die for!!
-Tennessee is an amazing state specially Nashville

Rev3 Florida BIG THANKS TO....
-My AMAZING family for the words/notes of encouragement the week leading into the race.
-Friends Patrick, Randy, Dan and Brandon for a run time in Florida.
-Best bud Mark for loaning me his sickly fast Disc
-Endurance House for loaning me a front 404 race wheel last minute notice
-Rev3 for putting on a great inaugural Florida race (Rev3 Website)
-The good Lord for simply everything GTGTG

Tweets from Rev3!!!

Till next time GTGTG

A Race of its Own

VEGAS!!!!

I prepared. I fought. I learned. 

Welcome to Vegas

Leading into Vegas I was in the best shape of my life, hitting zones I never thought possible.  But everyone says that leading into the A race of their season. So what was going to get me the big W instead of someone else? Well....when you figure that answer out let me know ;-) Because the answer is not that simple, there is NO single thing that will guarantee you that win you have dreamed about.  

That my friends, is why we race, and that's what brought me to Vegas.  To fight for the right to PARTYYYY!! No not really.... it was to fight for the Age Group 70.3 World Title.  Very few people knew my true goal for the race but now everyone reading this does.  That goal was well within my reach, but it did not happen.  I am blessed for what I did accomplish though.  A 4th place finish in the 18-24age group and a book of knowledge and experience to come back stronger with.   

Swim Course

Now for a quick race write up without a whole bunch of details.

Swim: 28:49

Was probably the most rough swim I have ever done. Rough as in getting beat up and not being able to find open water. Physically I felt good with my swim and learned that I need to be more aggressive to utilize my swimming abilities. 

Bike: 2:30:08

Being from the Midwest I was simply not prepared for the bike terrain at all. I have never been on climbs so long but glad I have now, was a great experience to have.  (ps Loved the scenery on the ride and the road quality) With my age group leaving in the last wave "8:00am compared to 6:30am for Pro's" I simply passed people the whole ride.  That lead me to believe I was doing really well, but turns out, not well enough haha. Was happy with my discipline to back it off and soft peddle the last 10miles after some big cramps after the last long climb leading out of the National Park and into town. Do not think I would have changed my nutrition/hydration around at all after analyzing it. Big thank you to PowerBar for that. I could have rode a lot faster I am sure, but conservative was the plan, and that kept me below my target watts. Really started to heat up the last part of the ride but still had high hopes for a great run.  

Run: 1:35:18

The run is what it comes down to in long distance triathlons and I was ready for it.  I had NO clue what place I was in which drives me CRAZY, but I knew I had to be close to overall age group win if I ran well. So I put my head up and started running.  By the time my age group started running, it was really starting to reach mother natures heat maximums (Heard 105F was reached.)  The course went like this... Slight down hill, turn around, run up Long Hill, turn around run downhill.... repeat 3 times. "Also 3 great views of the Las Vegas strip." Cant give an exact time when things started to fall apart.  If I had to guess, it was about the time I started to poor sticky perform on myself to try and keep cool haha. Because by the time my group was on the run course they had basically NO cold liquids or ice to cool the core temperature (I hate complaining how a race is ran because I know every race does the best they can.... but REALLY, the race was in a desert)  Was so blessed to see my lovely family on the run course (Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, "sister and fiance in spirit".)  You always seem to bring your form together when you know you will be seeing your loved ones around a corner.  Also the volunteers were GREAT like always, race would never happen without them.  Ended up running a run time not even close to my abilities, but was happy to give it my all for that day.

Total: 4:39:44

For someone who has never really raced well in the Heat or Hills I am very happy with my progress as a athlete.  The big man upstairs has a plan for every day and every race and I am happy to finally except that.  I perform the best I can for the day and that's all I can ask for.
For me.... Dreams continue to become goals, and goals continue to become achievements. Its a long steady hill to the top and I simply want to continue to enjoy the ride.

Thanks Always 

YourTrainingZone- Training me to my full potential "Blue Smurf's away!!"

PowerBar- Providing me great race day and training nutrition "300kcal of gel/hr and lots of perform"

Peak Performance Massage- Getting my body and keeping my body healthy to train and perform

Newton Running- Making amazing running shoes "Ran in MV2's at Vegas and loved them"

Endurance House- Always supporting me

USANA- Making nutritionals I can trust, Nutrimeal to keep me lean and REV3 for giving me some extra energy.

LOTS OF PICURES

Relaxing at the house...

Throwing a Coin in the wishing well 

Pree Race!!

Blue Man's Group Show night before race

Grandpas Famous Poster "Believe"

Visiting the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop from the TV Show

Grandma and Grandpa After the race

Ballegio Water Show

Margaritas with Grandma

Visiting the Flamingo Hotel 

Packet pick up Finish Line

Class Act Andy Potts @Packet Pickup  

Parents and Myself after the Race

Finished!!

Lost $.90 right off the airplane

Class Act Chris Lieto @ Expo

Preventing Tragic Swimming Deaths in Triathlon

     Triathlon as a sport has and will continue to grow each and ever year. With that growth comes many challenges. One challenge that is of the up most importance is the safety of those participating in the sport. I am sad to say that we have had far to many deaths in the swim portion of triathlons this year.  In my eyes, any death, is too many deaths.  My heart is full of sympathy for those who have lost their loved ones and I send my condolences.
     In this blog post, I want to express my opinion on limiting these tragic events from happening.  You can not put the blame on athletes or race directors in these events.  Below are a few things that I think both athletes and RD's should take time to consider.

-Athletes-

-The first and number one thing for athletes is "Control the Controllables." 

That means...

-Training an adequate amount for the event your participating in "Not oh I am doing at Ironman in 2 months maybe I should join a Masters swim team now."  

-Knowing your limits "Not trying to be a superhero."  

-Warming up properly before race start. 

-Having routine check ups to limit the risk of sudden health issues. I understand that you can do all the above correctly but say you have a hidden heart condition that you never knew, problems can still arrise.

-Race Directors- 

Ideas...

-Having a "Swim Check" for those who have never competed in a triathon before. While working at the indoor pool lately I have had to check-off/sign-off that people are safe to either enter a race or join a club. For example this rowing club they need to swim a 200 then tread water for 10min, for a couple who were doing a swim around the Statue of Liberty had to swim a 1000 straight.  They were both simple sheets to fill out that put a peace of mind for the racer and the organizer of the event.

-Lining up swim waves based on ability levels. For example not putting the faster age groups (M18-24) in the last wave after say the (W50-54).  Also for larger races having a (First timer/less experience waves and Elite/highly experience waves)

-Requiring athletes to warm up before the start or at least get into the water prior to the gun going off.

-Many races already do this but important to have a pre-race practice swims at race site.

-Keeping swim course close to shore as possible

Of course even if all this happened, injuries or deaths can still happen, but hopefully implementing these would limit the possibilities. 

If you would like to read more about this subject click the Slowtwitch link Limiting Deaths in Triathlon.

Ironman Swim start.... Crazy!

God Bless,  Safe Swimming and enjoy the last of summer.

GTGTG