I’m back. This has been quite a year on the triathlon front.  After some good gains last year, I really started to see some big changes this year in my ability to train at higher intensities, my ability to recover, and my ability to execute on race day.  I’ve had a pretty-much injury free year and my main target for the year was Ironman Canada in August. I had an early season running focus where some faster running was introduced into my running with the race target being a hilly half marathon on Mercer Island in March, with...

Executive Summary: Welcome to the suffer. Pre Race I was really excited to get back to Penticton this year.  We carpooled up with Owen and Polita which not only saved a bunch of gas but made the trip a lot more fun.  The weather was sketchy the first two days as some storms blew through, but got nicer as the weekend approached.  My last few workouts were good and, just like last year, I was amazed at how great the swimming is in Lake Okanogan.  The water is warm and very clear, and the way the beach is set...

"Ladies and gentlemen, you are about to witness one of the greatest spectacles in all of sport!" These are the muddled words I hear over the loudspeaker while standing on the beach with 2100 other athletes minutes before the start of Ironman Coeur d'Alene (IMCDA) 2008.  And I kind of seize on that word "spectacle", because spectacles are great for the person watching.  They're not always so great for the people in said spectacle.  Oh well, let's get on with this thing. Just like at Ironman Canada last year, there was no real warning for the athletes.  At some point the...

After IMC, I really felt motivated to work on the running over the winter.  The plan was to do a January marathon as a forcing function for a lot of solid running. We picked this one since I'd heard good things about it and I like the area. We got a hotel in Del Mar and kicked back in San Diego on Friday and Saturday.  Man, it's easy to love that area.  Highs in the low-to-mid-60s in January were mighty nice compared to what we've had around here.  We went to the zoo on Friday, which was a lot...

As part of my winter running focus, and run up to the Carlsbad Marathon in January, I decided to take a spin through the Seattle Half Marathon this morning.  The race kind of snuck on me - so here's my confession: I never managed to get registered for this race but showed up and ran it anyway.  I did so self-supported though; I didn't take any support out on the course and just carried some gels with me.   I signed up last year, and I'll get off my arse and sign up when the time comes next year.  I...

Okay, so it's a little late given the race was over two weeks ago, but nonetheless here's now it went...as always it's long and self absorbed. :) In a nutshell, it’s been a little over four months since IMAZ and I’ve put in a ton of hard work. It’s easy to let goal creep set in and forget that in terms of physiology, four months isn’t that long, especially when almost a month on one end is race-recovery, and two weeks on the other end are taper. That said… Prerace... I totally get...

[WARNING: This Got REALLY Long. But, hey, it's got pictures!] The Setup. Prior to May 2004 I'd never actually swam a lap in a pool in my life. Triathlons sounded fun, and that July I signed up for and raced in the SeaFair Sprint Triathlon (see picture taken from plane on the way to Tempe below). I never thought I'd do an Ironman. In fact, there were several times when things like "no way", "hell no", and "never"...