Beer, Boots and Laughs

Well the "Ironman Zurich Training Commencement" party on Saturday night was great. We met at our house for wine and appetizers then headed over to Gasthof Zur Gemutlichkeit (trying saying that 10 times). Trimama and I rode with Iron Jenny in her tri equipped SUV...Holy crap that thing drives itself! GPS, backing up camera, heated everything...way fun and we were'nt even at the resturant yet!

Here's a little snap shot of the evening, IronJenny will have more pics from her side of the carnage! :)




Later I need to discuss training/making a living/dang I need to be super organized!

Tac out

Ziggy Zaggy, Ziggy Zaggy Oui Oui Oui!!!

The local Tri club is getting together, to have a 'Beginning of training for Ironman Zurich!" party tonight....oh boy. Trimama and I were going to go on this Switzerland adventure in June, until we realized the time and especially money committment involved. So this is our way of supporting our local tri homies. Were going here tonight.
Should be interesting being that the video camera will be rolling and Iron Jenny will be present. I hear were passing around a large glass boot filled with beer. If you put on the table you have to drink twice....aaah, oh boy.

Stay tuned, have pics and stuff soon. And yes I realize it's a German restaurant, but hey, it's in the same general area as the Ironman...sorta.

Tac out... but not under the table.

Donuts, Wii, hair loss and random training thoughts.

First, thank you for your kind comments regarding my heart issues and the Ironman Video. I really appreciated your thoughts prayers and enjoyment of the video!

Last Saturday morning I went out on my traditional run for family donuts. I'm not sure how long this tradition has been going, but the fine art of finding tasty donuts is serious business. If for any reason I entertain the idea of not jumping in the frezzing car to pick them up, great mournig commences followed by weeping and nashing of teeth. So donut morning can not be avoided. I don't really mind though. It's one of our traditions that keeps me connected to the kids. So much of the week seems to be like 6 individuals moving through their routines and Saturday morning donuts/cartoon's is a time I always look forward to.

A new family tradition has become this-



Wiiiiiii! Pathetically fun. The best part of this game is that Chopper can roll a virtual bowling ball along side Hypen-Girl and myself and were all having a great time. So if you can get one, I recommend! We did'nt discuss the benefits of Wii at our parenting church group on Sunday night, but I'm sure there is a theological basis for family edification by way of Nintendo.

So about 10 years ago my hair started becoming so thin that I did the Telly Savlas thing of course I was in denial that It would continue to thin, but the ghost of Kojack was coming...and he wanted something!





So imagine what I'm thinking when I wake up last Saturday to this sight.


Picture does'nt do it justice. He looked like he had soaked both hands in water then used metal forks to clean lint out of an old outlet! It was unbelievable. It was also depressing. My gosh son, you have sooo much hair. Well enjoy it for now boy, because the ghost of Telly may some day come to the door and he'll want all of those folicals!

I am so cold. Training has been going well, but man am I cold. I find that each year I begin to really ramp up training I loose that nice warm blanket of fat around me and start to need multiple layers of clothes just to maintain my warmth. Anyone else find this to be true regarding winter training?

Beginner Triathlete is more like Seasoned Triathlete. What a training plan. Last week I ran 18 miles, swam 5000 yards and biked for 6 hours on a trainer!! This week calls for about 6 hours on the trainer, 5 hours of runing and 4000 more yards. I'm cutting short most of my runs due to knee issues and limiting swimming to twice a week only.

I can grow to hate swimming. Last year we had a divorce about mid season. We came back together just this past month and seem to be reconciling o.k. I just find swimming to be long and sorta boring. I need underwater headphones/ipod. Where's Steve Jobs when I need him!!! Well I'll figure it out. Hope all your winter training is going well.

Take care,
Tac out

Ironman Florida-Part 2

I was able to get the rest of the video into part two. If you have not seen part one It's the post below this one.

Turn it Up!

Ironman Florida-Part 1

YouTube only allows certain megabyte and time sized files so I have split this into 3 parts.

Question?

I was talking to Trimama the other night about which workouts seem the toughest. I'm realizing that I base toughness not on the actual rigorous nature of the workout, but on the inconvience of scheduling the working out. It's harder for me to get over to the YMCA and jump in the pool then to just go downstairs and get on my trainer, even though some of my trainer workouts are much harder then my pool laps. Just curious what training workouts you find to be the most difficult and why?

Let see what I'm up to this week.

Monday 2000 yard swim, 30 minute run, 20 minute weights/core
Tuesday 45 min. spin
Wednesday 1 1/2 hour spin
Thursday 3100 yard swim (gulp)
Friday- off (thank goodness)
Saturday- hour run, weights/core

Ironman video out soon?!

more !
less ?

Tac out

IMFL video done and my IT band didnt Blow up

First this...



Commodore coming out of the water. Preatty cool eh? I was peeling wet suits so I yanked out the camera when I saw him coming (sorry to those other athletes I missed while filming :})

This video is part of a much larger Tri Geek Ironman Florida video the I finally finished this week. Should have the rest of it up in a few days.

I was watching an Xterra race yesterday on ABC. Preatty cool, Mad Mel finished first as usual. As I watched them pound out the trail run I just looked at Trimama and said "at that point both IT bands blow out of the side of my leg and gush blood like a Quentin Terrantino movie!" Needless to say,I have still been having some issues with my knees when running, but this week was different.

Tuesday 1400 yard swim, 40 minute run, no problems
Wednesday 2.5 hour spin on the bike, long but good.
Thursday 3100 yard swim with speed work. Felt great.
Saturday 1 HOUR 45 MINUTE RUN!!! On treadmill, no knee problems...Yea!

So that was a very encouraging week. I cannot lie, Wildflower cometh and the gulp you just heard means I need to get serious on sticking to my training plan!

Have a good week from your occasional poster :(

Tac out

Holy cow...4 workouts in one week

It's almost like I'm training for endurance events.

3000 yard swim yesterday, with speed intervals. Oh that felt great!

1 hr run today. Supposed to be 1 3/4 hr, but we got company tonight so less running now, more on the weekend.

Trimama's penalty box. I love it. Although if you find me in it, it's all untrue.

Have a great weekend!

Tac out

Training Begins

Yes sir I officially started my wildflower/Ironman Florida today.

1 hr bike
20 min strength train.

It felt nice to get on the bike again. Especially since the doctor said that my A Fib is not going to be serious and I can live and train as usual. Thank you for all of your kind words, thoughts and prayers. They mean a ton, this was a weird and scary time around here.

Speaking of scary. In one of my posts I talked about how Trimama was almost about to pull her resume out she was so nervous. So I'm reading her blog today and discover I had no idea what she thought resume meant!!

Trimama-"I can put the dating resume away..."

What!!??? Nice. I meant work resume, she went strait to hot guy market in case hubby slumps over resume.

I had no idea

tac out

Jump in the frozen lake? No I have a heart condition

Well I do. Yeah, sometimes life gives you the right excuse at the perfect time. I am so not about jumping into a frozen lake with 400 of my best friends. Trimama says she did it last year to prepare herself for the mental testing of Ironman. I think my training (based on doc's approval) will have lots of testing, so frozen lakes can wait.

I see the cardiologist tomorrow, hopefully I get good news and can begin my training for Wildflower the day after. I'm going to get more regular in posting (no that's not a new years resolution) because I want to track my training and follow my fellow flower heads.

Man I've been tired lately! I've been debating going off caffeine for quite some time, and this whole atrial fib thing has caused me to eliminate all caffeine and most alcohol for awhile.

Saturday-Blinding, I mean excruciating headache and slept for almost 2 hours during the day

Sunday-no headache just slept 3.5 hours during the day!!!

Monday-still no headache 2.5 hour nap (just got up)

It is amazing how badly addicted I was the this stuff. My body is clearly needing all of this rest. In fact I've never felt so relaxed and restful.

I learned a ton of info stuff over at how stuff works.com about how caffeine effects the body. Check it out.

Well off to see freinds for a new years day party, after which I'll probably need 14 hours of sleep!

Tac out

Am I this out of shape?

The classic statement of a triathlete who's taken a 3-4 month break from training after realizing his heart is beating really fast. Well at least that's what I thought the problem was.

Been swimming twice a week lately alternating 2500 and 1500 yard swims. Felt preatty strong.

Started this new run method lately. The shuffle. Works preatty freakin good. Trimama has been encouraging me to do it for about a year now. "You run to heavy, your stride is to long and pounding on your knees." She was right. It also helped when I saw the Florida Ironman video. The women's champion, Bella Comeford, is strongest on the run. As long as she can hold somewhat close in the bike, she usually passes the leaders on the run and wins. Of course knowing Trimama was wrong, I watched Bella run...WITH A SHUFFLE! What the &*^%$%^. Once again humbled, but thankful.

I am very grateful for my wife, kids, parents and friends. I got home from the hospital tonight, sat down and played legos with soap and chopper. We made a mean lookin fire station for chopper and urps new Christmas fire trucks. Play time seemed alot richer tonight.

My fast heartbeat turns out to be less about conditioning and more about atrial fibrillation. Was it a good sign that my first thought and second statement to the doctor was "Can I still do Ironman Wisconsin?" She's not sure. I'm on blood thinning medication right now and see the cardiologist on Tuesday. What the fudge. I feel like I'm 29, 38 still seems young and I got heart problems. Oh well. He has His purpose in this too.

Appreciate your prayers. This scared Trimama a little tonight. I did need to reassure her that I'm not dead yet, so she can put the resume away :)

Tac out (but not dead, just out)

I think training sounds ok.

Well finally getting out of the crazy time here at tribal land. I finished our project as you can see over at Trimama's blog and my work project deadline has been completed. I swam 1800 casual today. I think that I am actually starting to look forward to training. I have taken about 3 months off. It's been great. I really beat my body at work and I really needed all of this time off. But the itch is starting. If I wanted to start my 20 month plan for Wildflower, it starts this Monday....Naaaa I am going to wait till after the first of January. Although there is no crime in taking a look at my training schedule over at Beginner Triathlete :)

Tac out

Oh look I'm to busy to post

Holy Cow.

Besides the 50 hr work week, I'm remodeling our bedroom this week. Definetly not enough posting (I'm sure Iron Wil's lacky would agree), but I had a great Thanksgiving weekend. More to follow.

Did I mention I like Apple Macbook's :)



Tac out

Revenge..I'm a nerd?

I'm writing right now from a lawn chair, 12th in line at 11:30pm and will be here for 6 1/2 more hours. I'm pretty sure this is the nerdiest thing I've ever done. Hey can you blame me, I'm getting a 800 dollar HDTV for 375.00. Can't pass this up. I'm hanging out with my nephew, hyper bear, who just digested about 8 pounds of sugar and will clearly be the entertainment for EVERYONE in line for the rest of the evening.

I'm going to argue that the majority of people here have never considered the thought of a tri. The more time I sit here, the more I'm getting this sudden urge to acquire many writing utensils and spatially organize them on a plastic sleeve in my shirt pocket.

Oh well...Watching Space Balls will have never looked better!



Tac out

230.00 cookies..Bumper stickers..and God

These were expensive cookies tonight. I am tending the tribe alone because Trimama and Hypen Girl are at Basketball practice. The house has been without the one culinary wonder that I do contribute, my famous oatmeal cookies. That is changing because today, the Sears man came out and replaced a $7.50 piece for ABOUT 230.00!!

##$%&*#!!!

Alright... got that out.

I probably could have diagnosed the problem, ordered the part and fixed the dumb thing myself. But I probably would have spent two Saturdays figuring everything out. So I paid a blue collar guy like me to fix the problem and the got to spend time with my crumb crunchers tonight making arguably the best cookies in the tri universe!



Trimama is well known in these parts for her disdain of bumper stickers. She thinks that putting your worldview on your bumper is just silly and makes cars look cluttered and ugly. She thinks that bumper stickers tend to limit the definition of the person in the car. She said she would never want any on her car.

Riiiiight....




Then she did and Ironman. :)

Speaking of Tri's I suppose I need to start thinking more about next year. I'm really taking it easy right now, because I want my body to be ready for the rounds of training that I'm planning for next year.

Round 1
Wildflower. This will be my first half-iron. I won't be able to train alot outside for this, so I'm a little nervous. But I'm going with a great group of people so I'm confident I'll be fine. Training for this begins in mid January.

Round 2
After recovery in May I start training for Ironman Wisconsin. AHHH..FREAK OUT. O.k. I'm fine, although I think that will happen often. I really have no confidence in my run. My knees (IT band, Quads) are really bad right now. So thinking about Ironman really makes me wonder how it will be possible. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. That's a verse I will hold onto tight this next year.

Trimama found that training for Ironman grew her emotionally as well as spiritually. I feel this undeniable pull towards Madison. I know this sounds weird, but I just know that God want me to be there. Not for my own acclaim, but for His. To enjoy and deepen the relationships that He's put in my life and to challenge my own thinking about who and what I am.

Ironically, it's Thanksgiving week. I am very thankful for all that the triathlon experience has brought into my life. The people, the challenges, the deeper marriage, the coming together as a team of my family, the beauty of nature and seeing His glory in all of it.

Thank you for stopping by!

Tac

I love Apple

I do. I really enjoyed putting together the video of the tattoo outing. I think what I like is that my Mac is so intutive and makes the production so easy. I have one more big project that I hope will be a good video and pictoral presenation of the IMFL experience for the Tri Geek Alliance. It is so fun just putting it all together on my imovie story board.

Oh...and if your wondering...Yes, I did drink the Steve Jobs koolaide and do bow down to his likeness each night before bed.

I'm preatty sure Wildflower will provide lots more material for the future.

Tac out

Thank you Thank you

After my world premier last night of Tri geek Tattoo 1 and 2, I went out on the town with the stars of the show and we 'celebrated' quite late into the evening. Okay, one star of the show, the smokin red hot Trimama.

As my directing debut, I want to thank all the participants involved with this production.

Their is a troubling report, according to Access Hollywood, that Iron Kahuna is claiming he was acting regarding pain from his tattoo.

I'll let you be the judge.

Part One



Part Two (The controversial 'pain acting' segment)



Tac out

I'm a little verklempt...I'll talk amongst myself

Wow, what a week in Florida. I'm amazed at what an awe inspiring experience the whole trip was. I guess this is one of my race reflections from the other side of the course, the spectator side.

I think I was just as stressed as any race that I myself had participated in, and this was Trimama's race. Towing 3 children, placing 2 pets, cleaning and packing along with wondering how Trimama was doing, left me preatty weary. Yet my weariness was replaced by amazement upon arriving in Florida.

I feel like I entered a beautiful dream.

I can't find any other word for it. Oh boy...verklempt....hang on....

I'm not kidding, writing this literally brings tears to my eyes. I think seeing all of these bloggers with whom I've come to know their individual stories, heartaches and struggles and them seeing them take on the Ironman challange, produced an overwhelming joy for them. I really don't know these people, but I think that's what makes this whole blogsphere thing so interesting... I kinda do know them. Most of the bloggers are exactly what you imagined them to be. So cheering them on felt like cheering on an old friend.

I guess I already miss them too. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. It's like having good friends that you only see once in a long while. Well I hear over at Tri Geek Dreams there's talk of some more 'family' reunions. I'm looking forward to those.

I am thankful that God has allowed me to be part of these peoples lives. I'll continue to pray for them as they take on new challenges, both in the dream world of Triathlon and the real one too.

O.K...I'll give you a topic...Wildflower 07...Great race or excuse for Kahuna to see naked coeds...talk amongst yourselves!

Tac out

Enough Said....

My Baby is an Ironman!!!!!