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Archive for the ‘Running’ Category

BAA Deferment and Triathlon Elitism

Tuesday, April 17th, 2012

Let’s face it. Even if most triathletes are incapable of excelling in any one sport and instead decide to be mediocre at three, we still have this elitist mindset when it comes to single sport athletes. Take the Boston marathon expo for example. While it is practically tradition across all endurance sports to don gear from other big races you’ve done on the days before a big event as a badge of honor, there is a growing trend of triathletes wearing Ironman gear at the Boston expo.

It is the clothing equivilent of screaming.

“Most of my marathons have been after a 2.4 mile swim and 112 mile bike…” or

“Why are you stressing out? Your race will be done after ONLY 3 hours. My ironman took me 10.”

It is why I hate it when people ask me if I’ve ever done a marathon. While I’m very proud of my race accomplishments,  it is hard not to sound douchey when responding with  ”only during an Ironman.”

As yesterday’s hot ass Boston weather reports slowly started to become reality and the BAA announced that it was allowing runners to defer because of the heat, Twitter blew up and the triathlon HTFU-ness was turned up to 11.

“For many people, running the Boston Marathon is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,’’ said BAA executive director Tom Grilk. “We don’t want people to feel they have to run, because perhaps it’s not the wisest decision under these conditions.”

Said race director Dave McGillivray, “This gives them a choice. They have to assess for themselves if they can handle these conditions.’’

To be honest, I was completely on board in the beginning. What a bunch of p^$$!e$! Did they not think that this race would be held OUTSIDE? Did someone convince you that this was supposed to be easy? Are you allergic to ice and sunscreen? Your race starts at 10am. Most IM marathons start at 2! The hottest part of the day!

I’m not sure what happened, but all of a sudden something clicked. BAA wasn’t doing this because they thought the athletes were fragile flowers that would wilt under the hot sun. They were doing this because they know that marathoners are kinda screwed up in the head and are capable of dishing plenty of damage to their own bodies without blinking an eye. You’ve got every type of runner, young and old, but they’ve all got that in common. Add plenty of heat to 22,000 crazy masochistic runners and something bad is bound to happen.

It isn’t uncommon to have someone die during or immediately after a marathon. It just isn’t. As conditions get worse, the entire race infrastructure gets stressed. Every single extra degree requires more water, ice and medical support to make sure everyone gets to the finish line safe.

While it is easy for iron-distance triathletes to pound their chests about the crazy conditions that they survived to get to the finish line, comparing an IM to a huge marathon just isn’t fair. 1,855 athletes finished Kona last year. 22,426 athletes started Boston this year. Every marathoner is going to require a TON more support (ice, gels, medical, water, etc.) to get to the finish line. While an IM is a far more complex race to organize, the BAA is dealing with more than 10 times as many athletes.

What I started to realize was that this wasn’t about protecting the athlete’s ego. It isn’t an issue of who has the biggest balls. It is a public safety issue. For every runner who decides to defer, they are able to be that much more confident that the resources they’ve put in place will be able keep everyone safe and healthy along the way. The BAA made a smart move in recognizing that putting added pressure on people to race when it may not be in their best interests was irresponsible. They recognize the inherent risks in running 26.2 miles in 85 degree weather with little shade. I have to respect that.

For everyone that finished today. Congratulations. You just became someone’s hero. Never forget this accomplishment.

For everyone that deferred, don’t hang your head in shame. Just tell people that you know enough about yourself that you are sure that you wouldn’t be able to hold back and keep your engine revving within safe limits and would run until your face hit the pavement in a big bloody mess. Live to fight (and run) another day.

Tags: , , | Posted in Running | 6 Comments »

Starting of the season right

Monday, April 16th, 2012

While it seemed like every Boston runner that isn’t doing the marathon decided to do the BAA 5k yesterday, the idea of doing a 3 mile race with 5,000 people makes me throw up in my mouth. Just a little bit. NOT my kind of race.

Instead, I picked out a local 5k just down the street from my house for a little run fitness test. It could not have been any more different than the craziness going on downtown. I registered 30 minutes before the race. Just walked up and handed over cash in exchange for a bib and timing chip. Then Sam and I decided to just lay in the shade on a soft patch of grass until the race director called everyone to the start line. It felt more like a big neighborhood group run than an actual race. I loved it.

Also, my trusty race photographer/wife decided to pull a fast one on me. As I was getting dressed yesterday morning, she kept asking questions like “So, how much does this race cost?” “You are just going to pay cash and register before the race?” Then she threw on her running clothes and decided she’d join me. She has been working out a lot lately, but hasn’t been training for the race at all. We’ve only ever done one race before, so it was a fun change of pace. She kept apologizing for not being able to take pictures of me on the course, but I was much happier knowing that she was out there on the course with me, kicking butt.

The race itself was pretty uneventful. I tried to go as hard as I could at a pace I could hold. For a 5k, if it wasn’t hurting a lot, I wasn’t going hard enough. I was about 10 seconds/mile slower than I wanted, but I just kept pushing. By mile 1, we started up the second hill and I dropped a few people. I was left with two people right in front of me. An older guy and the first place woman. I tried to hang with them, but couldn’t. I was only able to keep them close enough to use them as my rabbits for the rest of the race.


The hardest part of the race was having to run PAST the finish line, up a hill to my car so I could grab my camera  and make it back to the finish line in time to capture Sam coming across the line. Awesome form and great sprint to the finish. Proud husband. Rocking a vintage pink Trakkers visor too.

And we were able to head back to our house for a quick shower and still have time to check out the awards. I ended up a minute behind my goal time, but locked down 1st place in M 20-29 and 9th overall!

Not a bad way to start the season, eh?

Tags: | Posted in Running | 3 Comments »

Train To Race vs Race To Train

Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

An interesting conversation topic came up in an email discussion with my Rev3 teammates a while back.

Do you train to race or race to train? 

Just about everyone that I’ve met that is into triathlons seems to fall into one of those two categories.

Is racing just an excuse for getting out of bed every sunday morning and charging up hills on your bike before the birds start chirping?

Or is training that annoying thing that you have to do when race directors are inconsiderate enough not to have a new event for you to compete in every single weekend of the year?

Me? 

I 100% in the “train to race” category. While I love racing, testing myself and competing against the clock and others, it is nothing compared to the fun I have splashing through Walden pond as the sun sets behind me, hitting switchbacks on a hilly trail run or rolling for miles on quiet country miles on my bike. I’ll always add a few races throughout the season to keep me motivated, but given the option on any given weekend, I’d much rather spend a long day training with friends than slogging it out by myself on the race course.

What about you? 

Tags: , | Posted in Cycling, Running, Swimming, Triathlon | 7 Comments »

Rev3 Staff Runs Across America For Cancer

Thursday, January 5th, 2012

One of the reasons I love being part of Team Rev3 is because they just do awesome stuff. And it makes it insanely easy to support them.

Apparently at HQ a few weeks ago, there was a conversation that went down something like this:

“With all the buzz that we’ve gotten over the last few years, I really think we need to up our game and look for new ways to give back.”

“How so? You mean like offering complimentary back waxing to help hairy male athletes swim faster at our races?”

“No. Like doing something big for the Ulman Cancer Fund. We’ve supported them in a lot of ways in the past, but I’m thinking about something BIG.”

“Like what?”

“What if we tried to raise $100,000 for them? That could do a lot of good for people with cancer, right?”

“Heck yeah, but how are we going to do that?”

“Let’s run across the country. And invite others to join us along the route or run with us ‘virtually’ and tally up their own miles.”

“Shiver me timbers! That idea it the cat’s pajamas. Let’s start planning.”

Okay, well I’m pretty sure that no one said the last part. But the rest of it was pretty accurate. Even the back waxing part.

Starting Monday, March 26, a bunch of Rev3 staff and a few members of the AG team will start off running from Oceanside, California and won’t stop for 21 days when they reach Washington D.C. And they will be working on raising $100,000 in donations to the Ulman Cancer Fund all along the way.

Unfortunately I won’t be able to join them in person, but especially since my family had to start battling cancer head on last year with my dad’s lung cancer diagnosis, their mission really hits home for me. Me and the rest of the Rev3 AG team will be tallying up our training miles with hopes of at least matching the Run Across America team’s +3,000 miles over the same 3 weeks.

There will be more details on how you can help support the crew on their journey physically, emotionally and financially over the next few weeks. So stay tuned. Until then, if you have it in your heart to donate anything to help the team, please do. See the link on my blog’s sidebar or go directly to http://rev3tri.com/america/donate/

I’m fortunate enough to be able to plan my triathlon schedule 9 months out from now. Others have doctors telling them that they won’t be around by in 9 months. This is for them.

Tags: , , | Posted in Life, Running, Triathlon | 4 Comments »

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