2007-08 Triathlete

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12-WEEK SWIM PROGRAM

WORLD’S LARGEST TRIATHLON MAGAZINE

POWER

4 METER ESSENTIALS

7

LAWSOF

POST-WORKOUT RECOVERY

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triathletemag.com

N ° 280/AUGUST 2007

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CONTENTS

AUGUST ‘07 No. 280 Cover: California-based triathlete Juliano Teruel

Photo by John Segesta

TRAINING

On the Cover: • 12-WEEK SWIM PROGRAM

127

• SPECIAL HIGH-TECH ISSUE

62

• 4 POWER-METER ESSENTIALS • 7 LAWS OF POST-WORKOUT RECOVERY

COLUMNS XTERRA ZONE

by Emma Garrard

156

BIKE OF THE MONTH

by Jay Prasuhn

158

CUTTING EDGE

by Jay Prasuhn

160

GEAR BAG

by Jay Prasuhn

164

RACE CALENDAR

198

TINLEY TALKS

by Scott Tinley

208

136 86

• GET MORE FROM YOUR LONG RUN

140

• FALL TRAINING FLATS REVIEW

118

DEPARTMENTS LAB RABBIT

by Steve Tarpinian

127

LANE LINES

by Lance Watson

132

THE BIG RING

by Jim Rutberg

136

12 14

ON THE RUN

by Matt Fitzgerald

140

STARTING LINES

by Mitch Thrower

16

SPEED LAB

by Tim Mickleborough, Ph.D.

142

EDITOR’S NOTE

by Cameron Elford

18

TECH SUPPORT

by Ian Buchanan

144

MAIL CALL

20

DEAR COACH

by Roch Frey & Paul Huddle

146

TRAINING FEATURE

by Michael E. Price

150

FIRST WAVE “Pre-race tension”

by Elizabeth Kreutz “The set-up” by Robert Murphy

CHECKING IN 29 News report; Tri news; Medically speaking; Second take; Gear tip; Reality check; 70.3 series; Gear page; Industry profile; Point-counterpoint; On the Web; Pro bike; Gatorade athlete; North America Sports; Online poll results; Club profile; Travel talk; Light read AT THE RACES 177 Ford Ironman 70.3 Florida, Escape from Alcatraz, Memphis in May and more 6 AUGUST 2007

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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Athlete: Paul Thomas Photo: John Segesta

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“I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE PLACED A PATENT ON MY THIRD LAW OF MOTION.”

SIR ISAAC NEWTON

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the red actuators positioned below the ball of the foot strike first and compress, absorbing the shock and using the energy to stretch the active membrane into the mid-sole. The actuators and flex grooves in the sole allow your feet to flex naturally through your stride and “sense” the ground as if you were running barefoot.

Then as you push off to initiate the next stride, the membrane rebounds – driving the actuators back from the mid-sole as it returns to its original shape and transforming impact energy into forward propulsion.

ven though Sir Isaac can’t collect royalties, he’d be happy to know that his 3rd Law of Motion is being put to good use. First he changed our perceptions of the universe, now his scientific laws are being used to help runners run faster, with less injury and more efficiency.

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* Covered by one or more of the following U.S. patents: US7036245; US6842999; US6327795; US6330757; US6195915; US5937544; US5647145; US7168186 and other patents pending.

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CONTENTS

FEATURES MACCA UNCOVERED

96

An interview with Chris McCormack

By Jay Prasuhn THE IMPORTANCE OF R & R

UNDISCOVERED GEM 109 Triathlon comes to Turks & Caicos

By Brian Metzler

86

7 tactics for enhancing recovery

By Matt Fitzgerald

ON THE LEADING EDGE

62

The decade that changed the sport

By T.J. Murphy

REVOLUTIONIZE YOUR TRAINING

72

118

THE LINE-UP

Top high-tech training toys for 2007

Previewing the fall training shoes

By Jay Prasuhn and Brad Culp

By T.J. Murphy

10 A U G U S T 2 0 0 7

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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Š2007 Giro

Play with air. The Giro IONOS. Coming this summer. giro.com/ionos

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FIRST WAVE

PRE-RACE TENSION Lake for the 1.2-mile swim at the Ford Ironman 70.3 Florida in Orlando in May. For more on the event please turn to page 177.

1 2 AUGUST 2007

Elizabeth Kreutz

By the early-morning light, athletes prepare to charge into Bay

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 13

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FIRST WAVE

1 4 AUGUST 2007

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Robert Murphy

THE SET-UP

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

An athlete prepares his gear in transition at the Memphis in May Triathlon on May 21. Please turn to page 177 for more on the event.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 15

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STARTING LINES No.280 • August 2007

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

Board of Directors Mitch Thrower Matthew Barger Russ Crabs John Duke Jean Claude Garot Steven E. Gintowt Bill Walbert Publisher John Duke Chief Executive Officer John Duke Associate Publisher Heather Gordon VP, Sales & Marketing Sean Watkins Chief Financial Officer Steven E. Gintowt

The power of thought

By Mitch Thrower We live in world of measurements and boundaries. Countries have borders; people have personal space. Our lives all have a timer, clicking toward somewhere we cannot see. Our language and interaction is filled with comparative measurements. How far are you going to go; how fast and how hot is it; what is the temperature? How much does your bike weigh, and have you been on a scale lately?

Often, measurements are used to limit our activity. When we’re growing up, we are told we are too young for something. Then, for a brief moment, it seems we are old enough for anything, but, moments later, the expected activities for “older” people don’t include riding a bike or running a marathon.

Then came triathlon and with it such inspirational figures as Sister Madonna Buder, who finished Ironman Hawaii at age 76. And Kristen Sweetland, who at just 18 became the youngest Canadian ever to win a World Cup triathlon when she placed first at Richards Bay, South Africa, this May. Or, if you want to go back to the beginning of triathlon, John and Judy Collins’ son Michael finished the Ironman at age 14 before a minimum age was established.

Still, numbers and limits can be useful, especially as they apply to training technology. Technology allows us to measure our splits, our heart rates, the weight and effectiveness of our equipment. But where is comparable technology for our minds? After all, the greatest supercomputer on earth is between our ears, and it’s powered by things as simple as bananas and spinach. As such, it was refreshing to find the Web site ted.com, which offers a tune-up for the mind with lectures from top thinkers.

According to the National Science Foundation, the average person thinks about 12,000 thoughts per day. Deeper thinkers (triathletes, you’d imagine), might put forth 50,000 thoughts daily. But, as the New York Times reported, New York Yankees MVP Alex Rodriguez worked with a performance coach to actually reduce the number of thoughts he has per day—the contention being that highly trained pro athletes must get rid of negative and useless thoughts. But a more effective approach might be to develop a better eye for the useful thoughts (and then swing at the really good ones), rather than trying to pare back the overall volume—particularly given the mind-body synergy that all triathletes develop and which powers our thinking and quickens our minds.

The ultimate question then becomes: what will you do with this new superpower? The answer, I think, comes when you harness your mind and body to your heart. At your best, you can funnel that energy not only into gratifying athletic performance but also into seeking new ways to pay forward Train Smart, those blessings to others, as we see with the Team in Training concept and countless other individuals who transform their involvement in the sport into someMitch Thrower thing far larger than themselves. mthrower@triathletemag.com 1 6 AUGUST 2007

Editor-in-Chief T.J. Murphy, tjmurphy@triathletemag.com Managing Editor/Interactive Editor Cameron Elford, cam@triathletemag.com Senior Editor Jay Prasuhn, jay@triathletemag.com Associate Editor Rebecca Roozen, rebecca@triathletemag.com Photo Editor John Segesta, johns@triathletemag.com Associate Interactive Editor Brad Culp, brad@triathletemag.com Creative Director Kristin Mayer, kristin@triathletemag.com Graphic Designer Oliver Baker, oliver@triathletemag.com Contributing Writers Matt Fitzgerald, Roch Frey, Paul Huddle, Tim Mickleborough, Scott Tinley, Barry Siff Contributing Photographers Delly Carr Robert Murphy Medical Advisory Board Jordan Metzl, M.D., Krishna Polu, M.D., Jeff Sankoff, M.D. Advertising Director John Duke, johnduke@triathletemag.com Production/Circulation Manager Heather Gordon, heather@triathletemag.com Customer Service Linda Marlowe Senior Account Executive Sean Watkins, Cycling & Events seanw@triathletemag.com Senior Account Executive Lisa Bilotti, Nutrition, Apparel, Footwear & Auto lisab@triathletemag.com Marketplace Sales Laura Agcaoili, laura@triathletemag.com Office Assistant Shannon Frank, shannon@triathletemag.com Accounting Vicky Trapp vicky@triathletemag.com

Triathlete founded in 1983

by Bill Katovsky & Jean Claude Garot Triathlon Group North America Offices 328 Encinitas Blvd., Suite 100, Encinitas, CA 92024 Phone: (760) 634-4100; Fax: (760) 634-4110 www.triathletemag.com Attention Retailers: To carry Triathlete in your store, call Retail Vision: (800) 381-1288 SUBSCRIPTIONS: Your satisfaction is important to us. For questions regarding your subscription call (800) 441-1666 or (760) 291-1562. Or, write to: Triathlete, P.O. Box 469055, Escondido, CA 92046.

Or, e-mail: subs@triathletemag.com.

Back Issues available for $8 each. Send a check to Triathlete Magazine Back Issues, 328 Encinitas Blvd., Ste. 100, Encinitas, CA 92024 and specify issues requested, or visit www.triathletemag.com.

Publication Mail Agreement #40683563. Canadian mail distribution information: Express Messenger International, P.O. Box 25058, London BRC, Ontario, Canada N6C 6A8 Submission of material must carry the authors’/ photographers’ guarantees that the material may be published without additional approval and that it does not infringe upon the rights of others. No responsibility is assumed for loss or damage to unsolicited manuscripts, art work or photographs. All editorial contributions should be accompanied by selfaddressed, stamped envelopes. Printed in the USA.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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EAT IT UP ,OVE TRAINING ,OVE RACING ,OVE FEELING GOOD NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU RE PUSHING -ORE THAN ANY OTHER GEL '5 MAINTAINS YOUR ENERGY STEADILY AND KEEPS YOU GOING STRONG 'IVE YOUR BODY THE BEST AND ENJOY THE JOURNEY

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EDITOR’S NOTE

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

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n 1999, a team of climbers on Everest, acting on information provided by a 1975 Chinese Everest expedition, began a search for the bodies of British climbers George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, who disappeared on the mountain in June 1924 just 900 feet below the summit. Whether Mallory and Irvine actually summitted the 29,035-foot Everest before falling on their descent, or if they were still on the way up when disaster struck, remains an enduring and tantalizing mystery—and one that is unlikely to be solved, leaving New Zealand’s Sir Edmund Hillary and Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay as the first confirmed climbers to reach the summit, accomplishing what scores before them had failed to do.

But notwithstanding the uncertainty that, more than 80 years later, continues to surround the Mallory and Irvine expedition, when the 1999 team of climbers located Mallory’s body—lying face down in the weathered shale at 27,000 feet—the photograph made public by the expedition underscored the magnitude of the feat the two men were attempting by tackling the world’s tallest mountain with rudimentary gear that, today, would be considered ill-suited for anything but, perhaps, a fair-weather stroll on the local bike path.

Jump to 2007, and now many of us won’t head out the door for a 40-minute run without a GPS unit, heart-rate monitor and our special mix of protein-carb-electrolyte drink.

I

And on race day, we use chip timing with RFID technology, paired with a power meter on the bike and capped by online coverage that allows viewers worldwide to track an athlete’s progress in real time.

But while Mallory and Irvine tackled a far less-controlled situation than most of us now encounter on race day, the technology that helps us monitor and control both our performances and our immediate environment, far from diluting the thrill of adventure and competition, has, we’d argue, heightened it considerably by opening the door to a level of performance and precision that, just a few decades ago, was not only unknown to the athletic community but which likely was beyond the imagination of all but the most radical dreamers.

Take for example the men’s marathon world record, which has plummeted over the past century from 2:58:50 at the first modern Olympics in 1896, to 2:29:01 in 1925, 18 months after Mallory and Irvine went missing on Everest, to the current record, set in 2003, of 2:04:55. For women, the progression is even more impressive, with the record tumbling from 3:27:45 in 1964 to 2:15:23 in 2003.

In this issue, we pay tribute to a few of the early innovations in triathlon—without which much of what we do every day would be impossible—and round up some of the top high-tech gear, which can support you in your quest to met your goals.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR TRIATHLON AND SEVERAL THINGS THAT YOU JUST REALLY WANT

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Men’s Comp race suit || Aquarack bottle holder || Karbon Kage bottle holders || CarbonX 1.5 aerobar || Quick Stop Carbon brake levers

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MAIL CALL

The annual swimsuit debate: Round 1 O

h for heaven’s sake. I just received the latest edition of Triathlete (June 2007): the swimsuit edition, and after reading the publisher’s note (an apology to his more uptight readers) and the various letters responding to last month’s cover (the one with Fernanda Keller and her bike), I have to shudder. What, in heaven’s name, is wrong with people?

The human body is an incredible machine and I, for one, enjoy seeing models who are truly athletes. Forget these silly little girly magazines that show in-shape models with absolutely no muscle. Hooray to Triathlete for portraying what a real athlete looks like. I enjoy seeing the human form: both male and female. And no, the site of the human body in a bikini or briefs doesn’t make me want to run out and cheat on my husband.

I pulled out some of my past Triathlete magazines and, lo and behold, there are men on the cover with no shirts and very tight biking shorts. So where are all the letters fussing and fuming over such an abomination?

I have a bit of advice to some of the readers of Triathlete: For all of those who just cannot bear the sight of the human form, avert your eyes when you enter the Uffizi in Italy where Botticelli’s Birth of Venus hangs in all of her glory. Throw a toga over Michelangelo’s David as you stroll the corridors of the Academy. And most certainly do not, under any circumstances, visit you local pool. For it sounds to me as though some of you will be driven into fits of uncontrollable sexual ecstasy causing irreparable damage, as such images are, in one reader’s words, “harmful to your male subscribers.”

Jennie Vander Weide Missoula, Mont.

I finally got to the June issue. I am amazed that there were three letters from readers scandalized by your Fernanda spread, versus one in favor of it. And I am sure you will have dozens berating you for parading beautiful athletes in skimpy suits.

What amazes me is that only one reader wrote in to applaud you for celebrating a 42-year-old beauty, and it was from a man.

I am a 37-year-old mother of two young children, and if you asked me to pose for 20 A U G U S T 2 0 0 7

you not only would I be thrilled, but my husband would be proud and I would not hide the magazine from my children. After all, you are showing muscles, not privates, as my 6-year-old daughter calls them.

Keep up the great work!

Susanne Navas Via e-mail Unlike many of your female readers, I definitely don’t object to a sexy woman on the cover of Triathlete. In fact I like it. So why am I so appalled at this month’s swimsuit edition cover? It might as well be the cover of Maxim. Could you at least try to tie in the sport of triathlon? May’s cover featuring bikini-clad Fernanda Keller leaning on her Cervelo P3 was so much hotter (and my triathlete husband agrees).

That cover set you apart from the hundreds of magazines on the newsstand that have pictures of hot girls in bikinis. Give your readers something they can relate to.

Maybe next year Maxine Bahns could at least be sporting a body marking (after all, she is a triathlete).

Randi Geffner Via e-mail I just got my June 2007 issue in the mail and frankly I am astonished at the holierthan-thou weasels who wrote in. First are the folks that freaked because Triathlete showed Fernanda Keller in a black bikini.

Oh, the horror. Get over it, folks. The people who wrote in that really kill me are those that make it sound like you are not Christian if you are not appalled or those who called it pornographic.

And Charlie Yu, you, my friend, have issues. I guess Mike Reilly is a serial liar when he says, “You <insert name here> are an Ironman!” at numerous races across the nation. All I can say is that if your self-worth and self-esteem are so wrapped up in this that you are actually insulted because someone who hasn’t done Kona calls themselves an Ironman, then you need to seek professional help.

George Raihala Via e-mail

a video. As far as I’m concerned, she is who our girls should be looking at as a role model and not the other options that are already too available through mass media.

Women-only races.

Necessary.

Whether you guys would like to admit it or not, you can be pretty intimidating, especially if you’re a first-time triathlete. I did my first tri at one of the Danskin sprints to get my feet wet, and it was the best thing I could have done for myself and my self-esteem as a racer.

Finally, as far as I’m concerned if you do any Ironman you deserve the title. I would like that reader to go up to any athlete who just crossed the finish line at Ironman Japan or Australia and share the view that they can’t call themselves an Ironman triathlete unless they do Hawaii.

So there you have it. I’m not writing to complain about the swimsuit issue, and thank-you TJ.. Murphy for your race-year predictions (Light Read, June 2007), which put a smile back on my face after reading Mail Call this month.

Erica Green Via e-mail

Did you really earn your M-Dot? I

always love the swimsuit edition. There are always some great ideas for race-season fashion, and it’s always a riot to read

When I read the letters in the June Mail Call I figured you were going for a theme.

I’m not sure who to respond to first. Yes, a mostly naked Fernanda on the cover of the April issue took me back a bit as well, but if I worked as hard as she does (and I feel I already work pretty damn hard) I would do the same thing. As far as our young girls seeing this image, she is healthy, fit, positive and not a size 0 bulimic model or dancer in T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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MAIL CALL

rules aren’t worthy of Ironman status is ridiculous and smacks of elitism. Is an NFL player not a pro football player unless he’s played in the Super Bowl?

Mike Yarnoff Reston, Va.

that your magazine is threatening our worth as human beings, negating the great strides made for equal rights and endangering our very way of life by showing some folks in swimsuits. I’ve often wondered if you guys made up those letters that voice such affront.

In the same way, I wonder if Mr. Yu’s letter in the June issue is real. Would somebody really say you’re not an Ironman unless you’ve finished Kona? Well, in case Mr. Yu is a real person, I’ve got a couple of questions and a statement for him. Are you a real Ironman if you got into the show at Kona by lottery or only if you qualified?

How about those folks that qualified because there were very few people in their competitive category either because they can still perform amazing athletic feats at age 75 or because they happened upon a new qualifier race that wasn’t filled that year? Are they worthy of being called Ironmen? If the Ironman world championship were moved to another venue (for the purpose of discussion, but let’s hope that will never happen), will there be no more Ironmen because those races will not feature that particular course?

I haven’t been able to qualify for Kona yet (I’m hoping that I’ll be the fastest 80plus-year-old on the course one day), but I’ve done the distance and faced the beast (at WTC Ironman events, no less) and have no problem calling myself an Ironman. Any idea that those of us who have done a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike leg and 26.2-mile run in a sanctioned event and under established USAT/WTC 22 A U G U S T 2 0 0 7

Boy, do I feel foolish. When I first got into triathlon, I did it to impress Charlie Yu. I bought the bike I thought Charlie would approve of, bought the wetsuit I felt Charlie would approve of and bought the latest racing flats, tri shorts and top, all in hopes that Charlie would see me at a race and give me the thumbs up.

I entered races I thought Charlie felt were important, read the magazines I thought Charlie would read and even cut my hair to look like what I thought Charlie would look like.

When I decided to enter an Ironman (whoops, 140.6-mile triathlon), I agonized over which race to do. What if Charlie didn’t approve? What if I did the wrong race? But I entered Ironman Coeur d’Alene (whoops, sorry, that long race in Idaho in June) and started training. Every mile I ran, every lap I swam and every hour I biked, I kept thinking, “This is for you Charlie!”

And now this.

It’s bad enough that I read the letter in your June issue from Charlie Yu. But my family, friends and co-workers did too, and they think I’m an idiot. “You trained all winter and spring to impress this Charlie Yu guy that you don’t even know and this is the thanks you get. Boy, are you stupid.”

Yes, I guess I am. I did the wrong race. I wasted an entire year.

I never even met Charlie Yu, but I got in excellent physical shape. I learned what I can do when I set my mind to it. I inspired my wife, kids, friends and co-workers to believe that if I can do something like an Ironman then they can too. And most of all I had fun. Grinning from ear to ear and high-fiving people I’d never met. The race was almost a year ago and I still smile when I think about it.

And I learned one more thing. The other 1800-odd folks out there on the road that day couldn’t have cared less what Charlie thinks.

And truth be told, neither could I. Mike Robertson Via e-mail I’d like to say that I really enjoy your magazine; it helps me train better. I can do without the scantily clad women in the swimsuit edition, but at least you keep it fair and include scantily clad guys for the girls.

Anyway, in reference to the M-Dot flippity-flap, I have been an avid weightlifter and short-distance runner for 25-plus years, but I am in my third season of triathloning (sprint distance), and I love the sport and do my best to improve. With that being said, I must admit that I cannot imagine, in my wildest dreams, competing in an Ironman competition.

Oh, I like to think I could finish one.

Heck, I even taunt my family and friends with the idea of stepping up to an Olympic-distance tri—but an Ironman? If I ever do finish one not only will I have a huge black and red, M-Dot tattoo placed in the center of my back to tout my accomplishment, but there will also be a sign in my front yard declaring my splits. And the first guy (or girl for that matter) that tells me I’m not really an Ironman because it wasn’t done in Kona will get an earful.

If you’re one of the dedicated athletes who has completed an Ironman, then you’re an elite athlete many of us revere. It doesn’t matter what continent you competed on, the distances were the same.

Congratulations.

Bill Henninger Newton, Iowa “Did you earn your M-Dot?” You’re damn straight I did!

First of all Mr. Yu your elitist and negative attitude has no place in triathlons.

Statements such as the one you made in the June issue of Triathlete are ridiculous. I finished Ironman Lake Placid last year, and if I want to call myself an Ironman, I will.

My best friend did Ironman Wisconsin in September, and he is definitely an Ironman.

If you were there, as I was, watching these fantastic athletes finish in horrendous conditions, you would not make statements diminishing their accomplishments.

In triathlon, it is the community feeling of races that many of us treasure. It is about each competitor challenging himself or herself to reach the finish line in his or her best time. Do you want to beat the person next to you? Absolutely. But at the end of the day you shake hands and congratulate the person.

A lot of us then stand at the finish line and cheer the people coming in. You should try it sometime. You do not brag, boast or say they didn’t really do it because they were slower than you. Therefore, I am not sure why you feel the need to brag about wining your age group many times while diminishing the accomplishments of others. Congratulations on your wins. But whether you agree or not, we are Ironmen T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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• St. Anthony’s Triathlon • Ford Ironman 70.3 Califor nia • Ford Ironman World Championship •

© 2007 S-VC, Inc.

What you get out of your race depends on what you put into your training.

•Wildflower Triathlons • Ford Ironman Arizona•For store locator, go to www.EnduranceFormula.com

• Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon • Accenture Chicago Triathlon • Ford Ironman Wisconsin • 5430 Long Cour se Triathlon • St. Croix Ironman 70.3 •

• Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene • Buffalo Springs Lake Ironman 70.3 • Timberman 70.3 Ironman • XTERRA • Vineman Ironman 70.3 •

™

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(and women) if we finish 140.6, whether the race is in Hawaii or Idaho or Lake Placid. If you want to tell everyone your accomplishment is better than ours because you finished Hawaii, fine. It may make you feel better, but don’t tell us we are not allowed to call ourselves Ironmen.

Ryan Dunne Ironman Philadelphia, Pa. If we are making M-dot rules here’s the big one. The first 12 finishers in 1978 are the only true adventurers and true Ironmen the few who would dare to test the human body and give us the Ironman to begin with. I wear my tattoo with pride, doing the distance in Lake Placid and Wisconsin in 2005 where Mr. Yu would have been crying on the side of the road.

How dare anyone having done the distance take away from anyone else. After reading the mail from Charlie Yu I wanted to cancel my subscription until I realized it was the swimsuit edition. Love it!

Iron Mike Endieveri South Glens Falls, N.Y.

24 A U G U S T 2 0 0 7

It was with great sadness and disappointment that I am writing in response to Charlie Yu’s misdirected and selfish comments directed toward the March 2007 article written by Dave Wallach. For the thousands of age-group and professional triathletes that have competed in Ironman races around the world, Mr. Yu’s comments are an affront not only to the individual but to the sport as a whole.

Having competed and finished the 2005 Ironman Wisconsin race, I have nothing but fond memories and a sincere sense of accomplishment. Granted, I didn’t race through the lava fields, but anyone who was there can attest racing in 90-plus degrees and 90-percent humidity proved a tremendous test to the mind, body and soul.

Without a doubt, the Ironman world championship in Kona remains the Holy Grail of our sport, which is why I will continue to enter the lottery until I get in. That said, the other Ironman races, regardless of geography, also represent a challenge and achievement. For Mr. Yu to say that a nonKona racer isn’t a real Ironman is a shame and downright disrespectful.

For me, I will always cherish hearing, “Jeffrey Goldberger, you are an Ironman!” as I crossed the finish line. Like others, I shared this experience with my family, which included my 75-year-old father, who didn’t understand the allure of Ironman until he spent Sept. 11, 2005, in Madison, Wis. The finisher medal was great, but the hug and tears I shared with my father was the true reward.

To those that are contemplating an attempt at the Ironman, ignore cynics such as Mr. Yu. The good news is that Mr. Yu is the exception and not the rule. Train hard, embrace the experience and be proud to call yourself an Ironman.

Jeffrey Goldberger New York, N.Y.

Fernanda flap: Round 2 W

hen I received my first edition of Triathlete magazine with Fernanda on the cover, I had to scoop my jaw off the

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floor. Am I the only one that thinks what an amazing cover girl she made? I am a 34-year-old mother of two girls who just ran back-to-back marathons, and I would give my left arm to look half as good as she does. How can anyone think your cover exemplifies porn? I would never hide that cover from my girls. Naturally, if you have been doing Ironmans for 20 years you will have such a wonderful body.

If you’ve got it, show it, and she did, very beautifully!

Sasja Jackson Via e-mail I was surprised to read the letters ranting about the Fernanda Keller pictures.

Anyone that uses her name and the word “pornography” in the same sentence should be ashamed of themselves. She is a product of more than 20 years of a nutritionally sound diet and hard-core exercise.

Claiming anything else simply highlights personal flaws in your own psyche.

Pornography is in the Sudan, Darfur, Iraq, Virginia Tech. If you’re embarrassed to look at a human body you might want to run down to the local psychiatric

ward and have a conversation about your inferiority complex.

Instead of demonstrating to your children how a life of exercise and nutrition will allow them to retain a youthful appearance and a healthy existence, you simply told them to be ashamed of their bodies. I have a newsflash you religious types: You were born naked and you will pass into the next life the same way.

I point out to my daughter and son that Fernanda Keller doesn’t have $10,000 breast-enhancement surgery to be attractive. She doesn’t have Botox injections and she isn’t obese or struggling with clothes or appearance issues.

She apparently isn’t embarrassed about herself and she shouldn’t be. Fernanda used her lifelong passion for sports to maintain a youthful appearance. Any complaints about the pictures or claims of indecency sound like petty jealousy.

Get a life.

On a side note, the letter about not being an Ironman unless you finish in Kona is ridiculous. To insult the great number of people who complete the distance is simply ignorance. To display

such arrogance in public suggests this guy spends most of his time alone.

How about printing letters that celebrate the triumphs of our sport and leave the rest in the trash where they belong.

Jim Sargent Salt Lake City, Utah Just received the latest issue and read the bitter comments about Fernanda Keller on the cover. I can’t believe that every time a female is on the cover there has to be such controversy. How many times has a male graced the cover in just a Speedo? What is there to be appalled at?

Kathy Eversole stated that she and her husband are upstanding Christians and they will teach their kids to respect what God gave them. I am an upstanding Christian, and I will do the same when raising my kids and point to Fernanda’s photo in reference to someone who has done just that. What is the big deal? It seems Triathlete magazine needs to work with a company to develop the racing burqa for women.

Jon Hughes Via e-mail

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26 A U G U S T 2 0 0 7

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CHECKING IN

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

NEWS REPORT TRI NEWS MEDICALLY SPEAKING SECOND TAKE GEAR TIP REALITY CHECK 70.3 SERIES GEAR PAGE INDUSTRY PROFILE POINT-COUNTERPOINT ON THE WEB ONLINE POLL PRO BIKE GATORADE ATHLETE NA SPORTS CLUB PROFILE TRAVEL TALK LIGHT READ

CHECKING IN T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 2 9

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OSU Triathlon Club

CHECKING IN NEWS REPORT

Could triathlon go varsity?

By Brad Culp f you asked any university’s athletic director 15 years ago what they thought about triathlon, they would probably think you were talking about a track-and-field event. Fast-forward to today and the prospect of the NCAA sanctioning triathlon as a varsity sport is being discussed as a real possibility.

This past April, almost 80 schools sent athletes to the USAT Collegiate National Championship in Tuscaloosa, Ala., which was won by the Naval Academy (see At the Races on page 177).

The event filled with 1,000 athletes in record time—nearly double the number of participants just two years ago.

NCAA guidelines state that at least 50 universities would have to agree to sponsor a varsity program before they

I

3 0 AUGUST 2007

could vote to sanction triathlon.

According to USAT’s national events director, Jeff Dyrek, this process is only just beginning.

“We have to look at all the information before anyone makes a decision,” said Dyrek. “Right now, it’s just an open discussion and nothing more.”

The general consensus among collegiate triathletes is that the move to a varsity sport would help boost already surging interest in the sport, but some athletes have their reservations. This year’s collegiate national champion Kevin Collington, from the University of Florida, believes the move would be both good and bad.

“Obviously the biggest benefit would be the financial support from the schools,” said Collington. “On the other hand, there is the Title IX issue. At Florida there’s a huge football program, with 60 guys, which would hurt a sport like triathlon. They may only be able to sponsor a women’s team.”

However, if the NCAA does indeed sanction triathlon in the future it’s unlikely that this would signal an end

to the sport at the club level.

“It would be like any other NCAA sport,” said Dyrek. “Most schools field both varsity and club basketball programs. There can be both a simply participatory side and a more competitive side. That’s always been the spirit of triathlon.”

The change would also bring about the issue of having college students race professionally. If triathlon remains as a club sport, students can compete in collegiate races even if they have a pro card. NCAA rules would disallow this.

“Racing on an intercollegiate level would be more important to me than racing pro,” said Collington, who currently races professionally. “I would much rather win collegiate nationals than win the little money that comes with a win at most pro events.”

Still, don’t expect to attend the NCAA Triathlon Championship anytime soon.

A process such as this can take years, but the discussion between USAT and the NCAA is a start. As for now, USAT will again host collegiate nationals in Tuscaloosa next April.

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and build our frames to ride great and to be fast and durable. The Top Performance certification just underlines our company philosophy.”

IRON GIRL GOES TO VEGAS IN ’08

Due to reader interest, we’ve included below contact information for each of the companies featured in the June 2007 swimsuit edition of Triathlete. To order a back issue, please go to triathletemag.com and click on “Order a Back Issue.”

Aquaman aquamantri.com (269) 279-9915 De Soto desotosport.com (800) 453-6673 Louis Garneau louisgarneau.com (800) 448-1984 Nike nike.com (800) 806-6453 Oakley oakley.com (800) 431-1439 Orca orca.com 64 + 9 + 523 0820 Reebok reebok.com (800) 934-3566 3 2 AUGUST 2007

Speedo speedo.com (888) 4-SPEEDO TYR tyr.com (714) 897-0799 Zoot zootsports.com (800) 241-9327 2XU 2xu.com (760) 632-9300

VALDORA CYCLES EARNS TOP PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATION Valdora Cycles PHX carbon timetrial/triathlon bicycle frame earned the highest fatigue certification possible from Germany’s EFBe Pruftechnik testing laboratories.

The Top Performance certification (the highest possible standard in the bicycle category) awarded to Valdora by EFBe Pruftechnik was not just for the out of saddle bottom-bracket test.

Instead, the frame received certification in the most difficult three-part fatigue test, which includes the seat-tube load and head tube-load tests.

“We are not surprised with the results of the tests,” says Peter Olson, president and CEO of Olson International, Inc, makers of Valdora frames. “We design

Tim Mantoani Robert Murphy/Bluecreekphotography.com

MAKE CONTACT

The Iron Girl Lake Las Vegas Triathlon will take place on Saturday, April 12, 2008, at Lake Las Vegas Resort, a residential and resort destination situated on a privately owned 320-acre lake located 17 miles from the Las Vegas Strip.

“We are pleased to introduce an international-distance triathlon to the 2008 Iron Girl Event Series. The Lake Las Vegas Resort provides the perfect Iron Girl event experience with first-class hotel and spa amenities at one of the top destinations in the U.S.,” says Iron Girl director Judy Molnar.

The inaugural Iron Girl Lake Las Vegas International Triathlon will consist of a 1.5km swim, a 40km bike and a 10km run, starting with a wetsuit-legal swim in Lake Las Vegas, continuing with a challenging bike route through Lake Mead National Recreation Area and ending with a run course along the grounds of Lake Las Vegas Resort. Iron Girl will also offer a sprint-distance triathlon, consisting of a 400-meter swim, 10.6-mile bike and 3.1-mile run.

To register for the inaugural Iron Girl Lake Las Vegas Triathlon, scheduled for April 2008, visit irongirl.com.

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Number of triathlons in which professional triathlete Becky Lavelle will compete in 2007:

15

Estimated number of hours she will train in 2007 (swim, bike, and run):

700

Estimated number of kilometers she will cover while training and racing in 2007:

11,300

Estimated number of swim-to-bike and bike-to-run transitions she will negotiate in 2007:

75

Number of times Becky has finished first since turning pro in 1998:

25

Number of races Becky has podium-finished since 2001:

38

Number of years Shimano has been producing carbon fiber racing soles:

18

Number of years Shimano has been producing pedals:

26

Number of bearing systems in one Dura-Ace pedal set:

6

Number of other shoe brands that use or have used Shimano soles:

CLASSIFIED

ProTriathlete Becky Lavelle

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Outsole Material: Carbon Fiber Composite Strap System: Reversed for SpeedierTransitions Interior: Seamless for Sockless Comfort Ventilation: Unparalleled

Weight in Grams: 278 Oversized Platform: Maximizes PowerTransfer Triple-Bearing Axle System: Silky Smooth Stability: Rock Solid

Š2007 Shimano American Corp.

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Stay Balanced!

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

When you eat is just as important as what you eat.

Let us show you how our Within-Day Energy BalanceTM technology will maximize your performance.

Got the chills?

Then chill out

By Dr. Jeffrey Sankoff any athletes attempt to train through illness for fear of de-conditioning.

Yet illness negatively impacts the ability to train, and excessive training makes an athlete more susceptible to illness. The truth is training while sick may lead to a prolonged or worsened illness and more de-conditioning than would occur were adequate rest taken.

Compared to sedentary individuals, triathletes enjoy increased muscle strength; a higher VO2 max (increased delivery to and consumption by the muscles of oxygen); and improved cellular efficiency (increased ratio of energy output to energy used).

The time-dependent effects on these parameters of a total cessation of training, i.e. the rate of de-conditioning, is dependent on how long an athlete has been training prior to stopping. For indi-

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viduals who have been training regularly for over a year, a complete cessation of exercise will result in a loss of 50 percent in all these parameters after three months. For those individuals with less training, there is a return to pre-fitness levels at three months. The longer you have been training regularly, the longer it takes to de-condition.

Furthermore, reducing training volume rather than stopping altogether slows de-conditioning. Seasoned athletes who decrease training frequency to once a week will prolong the rate of de-conditioning significantly while those individuals who have only recently started training obviate any de-conditioning altogether.

So if you feel ill you should plan on decreasing both the volume and intensity of your training for the duration of your illness. This will not lead to significant de-conditioning and will allow your body to fight off the infection. If exercise makes you feel worse then a complete cessation of training is warranted. After recovering, ensure that you adjust your training schedule so you do not expose yourself to unnecessary risk of injury.

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CHECKING IN SECOND TAKE

Wildflower Triathlon announcer, Don Ryder, rocks on to the National Anthem before the race start on May 5 in Lake San Antonio, Calif.

2OBYN "ENICASA #APTAIN 4EAM -ERRELL 7IGWAM !DVENTURE AND 4EAM 0ROJECT !THENA 2ACING

"REAK THROUGH YOUR PERFORMANCE BARRIERS

h!FTER TRYING EVERYTHING OUT THERE TO GET AN EDGE ) CAN HONESTLY SAY !CID :APPER 7ORKS WITH CONlDENCE ) AM SUDDENLY BREAKING ALL OF MY OLD RECORDS "OTTOM LINE !CID :APPER IS THE BEST SUPPLEMENT ) VE EVER USED AND ) AM STARTING TO FEEL LIKE THE ATHELETE ) VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BECOMING v

!LL NATURAL SAFE NOTICEABLY EFFECTIVE

!CID :APPER IS THE P( HEALTH SUPPLEMENT THAT GIVES ATHLETES THE EDGE TO BREAK THROUGH PERFORMANCE BARRIERS

WWW ACIDZAPPER COM

3 6 AUGUST 2007

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eastonbike.com photo: Rich Cruse

Running Straight and True to Beijing â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;08 Professional athletes like Xterra champion, Brent McMahon, rely exclusively on Easton components like the precision tuned XC ONE Disc. Each Easton wheelset is hand-built by our master wheel builders using high, uniform spoke tension that guarantees Easton wheels will stay truer longer.

Proprietary disc specific rims feature welded joints and are hand-built to the same precise specifications as ALL Easton wheelsets. Stronger, stiffer wheels, quick precise handling, better ride quality and reliability.

Brent also relies on Easton bars, stems, seatposts and frame tubing.

BRENT MCMAHON 2006 Nissan Xterra West Champion 2006 Nissan Xterra Southeast Champion

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INNOVATION IN ALL THE RIGHT PLACES.

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

The innovation that went into the legendary Bones™ carries through an entirely new line of Saris Cycle Racks. Because no matter which one you use, you deserve a lifetime of great cycling experiences.Where every trip is as enjoyable and worry-free as the ride itself. And you always arrive confident that your bike is ready to go.

Bones™ RS The world’s first locking strapless rear rack that uses ratchets and steel-belted bands to secure the rack to a wide range of vehicles.

Sleeves or no sleeves?

By Troy Jacobson he purpose of a wetsuit is to keep you warm when swimming in cold water; however, among triathletes, high-tech sport-specific wetsuits have also become synonymous with increased speed and reduced fatigue. If you’re shopping for a suit, consider the below to help you navigate the sleeves-sleeveless conundrum and select the style of suit that will work best for you: 1. Where you live and where you’ll be racing: If you live in the Northeast or upper Midwest where water temperatures are in the 50s and 60s in the early season and climb only into the low 70s during the peak of summer, you may wish to consider a long-sleeve suit for added warmth. For those of you who live in the Mid-Atlantic, South, lowerMidwest and other areas of the country where temps are warmer, a sleeveless suit may be an option.

T pink Bones™ Support more than your bike with this cause-conscious Bones rack. $5.00 from each sale will go to Breast Cancer research.

Bringing the Power of Cycling to Life.™

2. Your distance focus (sprint, long course, ultra, etc.): For shorterdistance events you may want to go sleeveless, particularly if the swim takes place in warm water. The intensity of a shorter swim is going to be higher, causing you to heat up more and require more efficient cooling, which a sleeveless suit provides. In addition, by going sleeveless you’ll likely be able to cruise through transition more quickly than in a fullsuit.

3. Your swim background: Those with competitive-swimming backgrounds may find that the enhanced flotation provided by a fullsuit alters their naturally efficient position in the water and can interfere with their feel for the water. On the other hand, those without a deep swimming background sometimes find that the additional flotation offered by long-sleeve suits improves body position, allowing them to swim faster with less effort.

Troy Jacobson is a former pro triathlete and has been a professional tri coach since 1992. For more information visit coachtroy.com.

Madison, Wisconsin 800.783.7257 T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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GIVE YOUR BIKE THE LOVE IT DESERVES.

THE SARIS THELMA RACK She’s as simple to use as she is stylish. As easy to install as she is to load. So your only workout is the ride, not racking your bike. Her name is Thelma and she’s the perfect combination of brains, beauty and brute strength. Welcome to the family Thelma.

Discover how Thelma redefines the rear rack and find your nearest Saris dealer at saris.com.

Saris Cycling GroupTM is Saris Cycle RacksTM and CycleOpsTM Power.

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One time-honored ritual for endurance athletes is the carbo-loading party, often held the night before the race. Athletes gobble down heaps of pasta, bread and salads in an attempt to top off their glycogen stores. While this makes good sense in theory, the reality is that you can derail your race by engorging yourself. Most races start around 7 a.m., and most carbo-loading meals happen between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. the evening before the race. The problem here is that the food transit time from the mouth to elimination takes between 12-18 hours. So rather than stuffing yourself the night before, instead consume a high-carbohydrate diet and have your carbo-loading party two nights before race day. The day before the race, eat lighter, carb-rich meals, and never stuff yourself.

The truth about carbo-loading

By Troy Jacobson ertainly, nothing is more important than the training you did in the weeks and months prior to your event,

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but your actions in the 72-hour window before the gun goes off can spell the difference between success and failure.

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

CHECKING IN REALITY CHECK

Troy Jacobson is a former pro triathlete and has coached endurance athletes professionally since 1992. He is the creator of the Spinervals training series and other DVD workout titles. For more information, visit coachtroy.com.

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Pearl Izumi® syncroSeek®2 Trail Shoe with Seamless Race Upper WeAreNotJoggers.com

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70.3 SERIES CHECKING IN

INTRODUCING THE NEW

PERFORMANCE SYSTEM. John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

The revolutionary new 3-step system that supports optimal per formance by providing athletes the power to Energize, Refuel and Rebuild.

Energize

Bjorn again Swedish bike powerhouse Bjorn Andersson emerges as a triple threat

By Brad Culp his month, Triathlete caught up with recent Wildflower champ Bjorn Andersson, of Sweden. After years of only moderate success at the Ironman distance, the perennial bike-course record-breaker has recently turned his attention to the Ironman 70.3 series.

We expect bike-course records to fall all season long.

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Triathlete: You seem to have come into your own this season at the 70.3/half-Ironman distance. Why do you think this event suits you so well?

Andersson: I think it’s a good distance for me because nutrition isn’t quite as important as it is in Ironman racing.

Other than that, it’s a good distance to race since it’s long enough to still be a true endurance event but short enough to recover from quickly and be able to do more races.

Triathlete: Will you be racing the Ford Ironman World Championship 70.3 in Clearwater this year?

Andersson: Yes, I hope to qualify for and race in Clearwater this November.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Triathlete: The bike course in Clearwater is super flat. Is this a disadvantage for someone with your prowess on the bike?

Andersson: Normally I do well on flat courses, but it depends on how the course looks as well. If it’s protected from the wind and has a lot of turns, it’s harder to get a good gap. Looking at last year’s results it seems like people came off the bike pretty close together. Maybe it’s not the best course for me, but it’s hard to tell without actually seeing it in person.

Triathlete: What specific drills and workouts do you do to build such incredible bike strength? What can some of our readers learn from your training methods?

Andersson: A lot of cycling is about putting in the big miles, so it’s pretty simple that way. What people tend to forget is that it’s also important to do some higher-intensity work to get faster, even for long-distance racing. So incorporating some threshold workouts for most of the year would be my No. 1 tip.

Triathlete: With the addition of a world championship at the 70.3 distance, will you shift your focus to the shorter distance?

Andersson: My Ironman racing history hasn’t been very successful, and since I seem to do better at the shorter distance that will be my focus for the next couple of years. And of course, it’s nice to have a world championship at another distance.

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CHECKING IN GEAR PAGE

Nutrition revolution

By Jay Prasuhn It ain’t about plain old bars and gels anymore. Companies are creating unique, convenient and customized ways to provide the sports nutrients you need.

CamelBak Elixir $44 Just drop an Elixir electrolyte tablet into your 24oz bottle (or bladder pack), add water and the effervescent lemon-lime tablet dissolves without mixing, providing you with 410mg of sodium. And with no sugar (using sucralose as a sweetener instead) to act as down-tube glue, not only do Elixir tablets make hydration-unit cleanup easy but they also ease the pain of post-ride or race bike clean-up. camelbak.com

Infinit Nutrition $38 per 25-serving bottle At infinitnutrition.com, you can create a custom drink with as many or few calories, as much or as little flavor, calories or protein as you desire for the perfect drink for your taste, sweat rate or nutritional needs. Don’t want to think about it? Infinit has specific pre-made blends for short distance (high in glucose), long distance (high in calories and protein), high caffeine, low-carb blends, you name it. Our custom concoction, delivered within a week, was a blend of carbs, electrolytes and protein for the 70.3 distance. And it was just as ordered: lemon-lime flavor, with all my caloric and sodium requests spelled out on my own custom nutrition label. infinitnutrition.com

Enlyten Electrolyte Strips $9.99 per 18-strip 3-pack

Meeting your multisport nutritional needs can be a hassle.

But Muscle Milk n’ Oats pre-mixes into your breakfast or post-ride lunch snack, providing 30 grams of protein in a tasty blueberry, apple/cinnamon or bananas-and-walnut-flavored concoction with whole-grain oats. All in a single-serving bowl, it’s microwaved for a minute and ready to eat for on-the-go recovery. The pudding, loaded with 20 grams of protein, is chocolate with a hint of coconut—a perfect post-ride recovery treat. cytosport.com

4 4 AUGUST 2007

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Cytosport Muscle Milk Pudding and Muscle Milk n’ Oats

You’ve seen the strip breath mints at the grocery checkout? Take that system and apply it to electrolyte intake.

Enlyten strips are packed with electrolytes and are absorbed directly through the mucous membrane of the mouth, bypassing gastric absorption and entering the bloodstream much more quickly for speedy electrolyte replacement. enlytenstrips.com

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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PERSEVERANCE “Victory belongs to the most persevering.”

– Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)

After several flats forced him out of the lead in last year’s race – Normann came back, not only to win this year’s Ironman, but to set a new bike course record at 4:18:23! The silky smooth and refined aero performance of his Si3N4 equipped 606’s meant Normann’s legs were fresh enough to never relinquish his lead on the run.

They really are very fast… you really ought to try them.

Normann Stadler - Two Time Ironman Champion

Photo – Jay Prasuhn

800.774.2383 www.zipp.com

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CHECKING IN INDUSTRY PROFILE

Big dreamer: All3Sports.com’s Patrick Dowd

By Jay Prasuhn

ased in Atlanta, All3Sports has become a leader in online sales.

The force behind the success is owner and triathlete Patrick Dowd, who started with two employees in an 1,100-square-foot location nearly six years ago. With a grandiose vision, he has grown it into over 400 bikes, 800 wetsuits, 23,200 items in stock, a 12,000-square-foot storefront with 15 employees and a reputation that has earned him pretty big honors as the No. 1 Zipp dealer worldwide and a top-three retailer for Cervelo, Kuota and Quintana Roo. Triathlete chatted with Dowd to uncover his winning tactics.

B

Triathlete: What’s your history in the sport of triathlon and in sport in general?

Dowd: Two colleagues were discussing an upcoming race, and I was pulled into the conversation and one of them stated, “You should do it with us; it’ll be a blast!” Like many late-20somethings I’d sacrificed fitness for my career and was way out of shape.

Having never been more than a recreational athlete, triathlon was a challenge, but I was up for it. The rest is history. I made it through that first race and got hooked on the sport.

Over the next few years I got in great shape and enjoyed being a competitive age grouper.

4 6 AUGUST 2007

Triathlete: When did all3sports.com start, and what was the impetus behind creating the company?

Dowd: At the time it was impossible to find everything I needed as a triathlete locally. In addition, I knew we could provide a better Internet destination than what was currently offered. So with the support of my wife I launched the brick-and-mortar and all3sports.com. I wanted to create a place local triathletes could call home while building all3sports.com into the nation’s leading triathlon retailer. Thanks to our customers, we are well on our way.

Triathlete: The online-sales market is immensely competitive. I know price is always a key component, but what sets you apart and keeps customers coming back?

Dowd: Price may lure a customer, but great service keeps them coming back. Our customers know we’ll always match a lower price from an authorized dealer, but our goal is to meet or exceed each customer’s service expectations. In addition we set ourselves apart from the competition by the enormous amount of gear and bikes we keep in inventory, our prompt and accurate shipping service and our knowledgeable sales staff.

Triathlete: Speaking of dreams, what exactly is the meaning of all3sports.com’s “Dream Big . . . Dream Fast . . .” tagline?

Triathlete: You sell a lot of bikes to customers online. Why do customers come to all3sports.com, and how do you put them at ease with buying a bike online?

Dowd: Customers seek us out for a number of reasons. Perhaps they don’t have a Kuota or Cervelo dealer in their area or if they do, perhaps their shop doesn’t have the bike they want in stock.

For all situations, our customer-service reps work with customers to build the best bike for their needs. We do over 800 bike fittings in the store each year and have developed a proprietary-fit database where we can get a person into the right size frame every time. To accomplish this we have an online fit measurements guide that we use to gather accurate personal measurements.

With the amount of components we stock, we can custom configure a bike to the customer’s specifications and usually get it out the door to them in 24 hours.

We’ve also developed a quality assurance and packaging process that involves technician and manager signoff to ensure a customer gets his or her dream bike in dream condition. We’re sticklers for precision.

Triathlete: Like many aspiring restaurateurs, multisport is full of ambitious shop owners that suddenly realize that owning a tri store is a difficult game. How have you made sure that this is always considered a business and not get pulled into making emotional decisions based on where you think the sport is going?

Dowd: We’ve structured the company carefully from the start. It’s not about emotion or ego. It’s about running the company in an efficient manner and satisfying your customers’ needs. I’ve been fortunate enough to assemble an awesome team of great business minds who happen to be enthusiasts in the sport as well. I believe we’d do well in any industry; we just happen to be passionate about triathlon.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Doug Coulter/The Sporting Image

Dowd: We adopted that line a few years ago because we realized we were doing more than just selling triathlon gear. In a small way we were helping folks realize their dreams. Whether it was with a race-number belt to compete in their first triathlon or with a race-ready tri bike in hopes of making it to Kona. It also encompasses our mission to be the leader in the industry.

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Desiree, 30, top American at the 2006 Ironman in Kona, seeking ultra-responsive, 50.55 cm partner who’s a real winner

Desiree Ficker finished on the podium with an inspiring 2nd place performance at the 2006 Ford Ironman World Championships. Like the competitive spirit that burns in Desiree, we at Guru are equally fired up about creating the best triathlon bikes in the world. And for 2007, they feature an exciting new paint and design program.

At Kona, we set Desiree up with a completely new customized, carbon monocoque Crono that’s incredibly responsive and swift as the wind. A match made in Hawaii. gurubikes.com

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CHECKING IN POINT-COUNTERPOINT

Some folks just tri harder At issue: We’re all familiar with at least one know-it-all blowhard who is convinced the rest of us want to hear, ad nauseum, his, or her, authoritative pronouncements on training, racing or pretty much any other subject. But do these loudmouth windbags play an important role in boosting our sport’s growth?

In praise of pontificators

By Cameron Elford take great umbrage with the term “overbearing windbag.” Triathlon attracts goal-oriented people who are willing and able to commit to a course of action then do what it takes to achieve the outcome they desire. This is not so shocking, but the ability to be honest with oneself and follow through is an astonishingly rare quality, given the overflowing landscape of abandoned, unsuccessful personal-improvement schemes and fad diets.

As difficult as it may be to typify triathletes as a homogeneous group, it’s clear that anyone who completes a triathlon, whether sprint or Ironman distance, deserves to be immensely proud of his or her accomplishment and possesses a commendable reservoir of physical and mental strength. From that, it’s a relatively small step to imagine an athlete keen to share his or her accomplishments with the rest of us, whether out of a desire to motivate and educate others or due to unruly, but harmless, hyper-enthusiasm for the sport.

Still, I concede that early-morning pre-masters practice pontification can be irritating at times, especially when it comes in the form of unsolicited stroke feedback from a bigmouth who has no business offering up analysis to anyone.

A sample exchange: Loudmouth Larry: Hey, Cam, you know, you’d swim a lot faster if you didn’t drop your elbow at the start of your catch and increased the angle of your forearm to twice the inverse square root of the standard deviation as calculated by the central limit theorem as it applies to your fastest 1500 time.

Oh, and by the way, let me tell you about all the training I’m doing right

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4 8 AUGUST 2007

now. First off, I’m doing the latest high-tech geek-squad program and today will ride at 200 watts for . . . blah, blah, blah.

Me: Thanks Loudmouth Larry. You know, you’d be a lot faster, too, if you shut the hell up and actually swam the entire practice for a change.

Although such caustic (yet deeply therapeutic) outbursts are rare, they nonetheless underscore the danger of writing off potentially helpful advice as just so much nonsense by resorting to ad hominem attacks.

Similarly, Loudmouth Larry, if for no other reason but for the fact that he talks about nothing other than triathlon (and, in particular, brags about his accomplishments or opinions as they relate to triathlon), can function as a powerful recruiting tool for the sport by wearing down the resistance of his friends, neighbors, co-workers and family members until they feel compelled to give triathlon a try, at which point we, the converted, know they’ll be hooked.

And unlike many sports, where others must lose so that one individual or group can win, triathlon is no zerosum game. As more people are drawn to the sport by its biggest, and loudest, cheerleaders, we all win: Whether we are annoyed, delighted or simply bemused by the Loudmouth Larry in our training group, we have him and his at-times obnoxious commentary, in part, to thank for the growth of tri clubs and the concomitant expansion of training and racing opportunities as Larry’s overbearing pontification on triathlon, and himself, helps ensure the sport is never far from the mind of anyone within earshot.

Keep it to yourself

By T.J. Murphy es, of course, promote triathlon.

Live the life, love the sport, be a humble example of what triathlon is all about. Leadership by example. But please, don’t shove it down people’s throats like buckets of wheatgrass.

Don’t wear Speedos into restaurants,

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and don’t parade around like everyone owes you a gold medal. Let the civilians ask you about triathlon, and answer their queries with enthusiasm and modesty. Encourage them. Have them join us. But resist the temptation to strut.

You know what I mean. Be in triathlon long enough, and you’ll likely have an encounter like the one below.

“Oh no.”

“What?”

“Ray’s here.”

“Oh no.”

“Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.”

“Check out which Ironman shirt he’s wearing today.”

“Leave it to Ray to wear an Ironman Florida shirt to a Christmas party.”

“Maybe he’ll show us his M-Dot tattoos.”

“Or shave his legs for us.”

“I’ll bet anything he says that we’ll never believe what he did today.”

“Hey guys,” Ray says.

“Hi Ray.” “You’ll never believe what I did today.”

“Did you get some training in, Ray?” “Five hours on the CompuTrainer.

Five hours. Nuts man! Just crazy stuff.”

“Five hours, huh?”

“That’s right. Five hours. Try explaining that to your wife. Nobody does stuff like this now. Then I did a wicked T-run. I’m thrashed, man. I’m getting fit. I think I’m going sub-11 this year.”

“You must mean next year. Would you like a cookie?”

“Ugh! Cookies are for hogs.”

“Uh, Ray, this is my wife, Helen.

Helen, this is Ray. He’s our fastest club member. He eats no cookies.”

“Hi Helen. I’m Iron Ray.” “Hi. I’m Helen.”

“Are you a triathlete?”

“Well, not really, but it looks like fun. I’m thinking about doing a sprint race this year.”

“I mostly do long stuff,” Ray counters. “These guys probably told you.

Ironmans and crazy stuff like that. A sprint race really wouldn’t be much of a workout for me.”

“Oh,” Helen says.

“Yeah, you’re going to have to do the Ironman someday Helen. That’s really what it’s about.”

Walk the walk and talk the talk. But don’t be like Iron Ray. T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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BECKY LAVELLE HAS VISION BECKY LOVES THE UNCOMPROMISING FORM OF THE VISION TRIMAX CARBON INTEGRATED BAR - SOLID HARDWARE, EXTREME ADJUSTABILITY & AERODYNAMICS THAT CANNOT BE MATCHED USING SEPARATE COMPONENTS. 975 GRAMS. LEARN MORE ABOUT VISION COMPONENTS AT WWW.VISIONTECHUSA.COM

R-BEND

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tance tr iathlon s require a perfe c t bALANCE of pow er, foc us and drive.

Becky t hrives in these conditio ns and she de mands the sam e from her equ ipment.

- john s egesta , photog rapher

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Courtesy raybritt.wordpress.com

CHECKING IN ON THE WEB

We scour the Internet to bring you the good, the bad and the just plain weird as it relates to our sport.

This month: Introducing The New Kenny Souza AVI-BOLT. Available Now in Orange County Exclusively at:

raybritt.wordpress.com aymond Britt may not be a professional, but the guy knows a thing or two about triathlon. His list of accolades includes 27 Ironmans, 45 marathons and too many other races to count. On his Web site, raybritt.wordpress.com, Britt has compiled a collection of race reports, training logs and advice suited to the everyday triathlete.

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If you’re a self-coached athlete, this needs to be on your list of favorite sites. Britt has posted six years worth of his personal training logs for eager readers. Whether you’re a tri-newbie or a Kona veteran, you can learn a thing from the pages of data.

On the homepage you’ll find links to blogs by fellow endurance-nuts like super-freak Dean Karnazes and ultrarunner Lisa Smith-Batchen.

Britt also offers personalized coaching services, for those interested, and free advice for the confused beginner.

His training philosophy focuses on quality miles, instead of mindless training, to suit triathletes who also have a life.

TRIATHLETEMAG.COM POLL RESULTS

What do you think about the annual Triathlete swimsuit issue?

25662 Crown Valley Parkway #H-2 Phone: 949-429-7784 www.laderacyclery.com Please visit triathletemag.com to vote in our current poll.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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CHECKING IN PRO BIKE

Rutger Beke’s Cervelo P3 Carbon

K J D

C J A

By Jay Prasuhn

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Jay Prasuhn

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the 74-degree bike he broke into Ironman on. Beke came off the bike in first place at Ironman Arizona, in April, and held his lead through the marathon to record his first Ironman win. With his newfound bike power, perhaps this erstwhile run specialist has more bike prowess than we’ve been led to believe.

We’ll see come October in Kona.

A B C D E F G H I J K

Frame Cervelo P3 Carbon, 56cm Fork Cervelo Wolf TT, carbon steerer Headset Full Speed Ahead Orbit IS, 1 1/8” Aerobar Profile Design Carbon-X 1.5, Profile Design Quickstop 2 brake levers Groupset Shimano Dura-Ace 10-speed, 11-21 Dura-Ace cassette Drivetrain SRM/Shimano Dura-Ace, 172.5mm crankarms, 53-39 chain rings Wheels Zipp 999 wheelset Tires Vittoria Corsa EVO-CX, 700 x 21mm tubulars Pedals Shimano Dura-Ace PD-7800 Hydration Profile Design Karbon Kage/FuelBelt FuelBox Saddle Fi’zi:k Arione Tri T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Jay Prasuhn

ust three years ago, I recall a photo of thennewcomer Rutger Beke, aboard a Spanish-built bike, wrestling his rig northbound on the Queen K with one of the worst bike positions I’d seen: slack seat angle, stretched upper body reaching for the aerobars. It was amazing he finished fifth in Kona, coming from behind on sheer run talent.

Over a year ago, Beke switched to an industry standard bearer, the Cervelo P3 Carbon. What a difference a new bike makes, particularly one that fits its rider. Beke needed nothing aftermarket on the well-dressed P3C (he even ran stock Cervelo Mach 2 brake calipers). His Fi’zi:k Arione Tri saddle is set up in the P3C’s fore rail bracket position with the saddle a tick forward on the rails for about a 79-degree seat angle—a far cry from

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Nouveau Monde DDB - Photo : P. Brunet.

UNIQUE BIKE FOR UNIQUE PEOPLE

D I S C O V E R W H Y L O O K P E D A L S A R E U N I Q U E O N : W W W. L O O K C Y C L E - U S A . C O M

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Courtesy Christopher Yows

CHECKING IN GATORADE ATHLETE

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CHRISTOPHER YOWS Summit, Mo.

By Marni Rakes

GATORADE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH 5 4 AUGUST 2007

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s a first-timer, Christopher Yows completed his first triathlon in 1997

with borrowed cycling shoes that were too big and friend’s bike. After that, Yows took a lengthy hiatus from triathlon in order to complete graduate school.

Excited for his return to the sport in 2000 and an anticipated MBA degree, Yows purchased his first bike in 2001.

Currently, the 35-year-old father of three works as a full-time employee for a mid-size plastic-product manufacturing company and is a dedicated Ironman triathlete. “Last summer, my wife found out she was pregnant the day I left for Ironman Wisconsin,” Yows says. “She’s the real hero of the family.” The exciting baby news must have distracted Yows from the unfortunate 2006 Wisconsin weather conditions, as he set a PR by over an hour and finished in 11:26.

With a daughter who plays soccer in the fall, basketball in the winter and soccer again in the spring, Christopher seldom misses one of her weekly practices and attends every one of her games. “It is important to be there at all of her activities,” says Yows. “It’s okay to miss a workout for her.”

Beyond his family, Yows believes it’s important to form relationships with other triathletes. Training buddy and good friend David Seay joins him for daily 4:15 a.m. runs and 6 a.m. swims.

“Since the majority of my training sessions are in the morning, I’m usually in bed no later than 10:30 p.m. It really helps to have a training partner when you train early in the morning.”

Having completed three Ironmandistance races since 2003 and looking forward to an attempt at Ironman Louisville in 2008, Yows admits that Ironman training is more than a big commitment. “You can’t just train for a triathlon,” he says. “It’s your lifestyle.”

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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Courtesy North America Sports

NORTH AMERICA SPORTS CHECKING IN

n Aug. 26, 2007, in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, the cannon will sound to officially begin the 25th edition of Subaru Ironman Canada. As the athletes embark on their Ironman journey of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run, they will follow in some historical footsteps.

Since 1983, Subaru Ironman Canada has challenged the best in the world of Ironman triathlon and become a favorite for many. Triathlon icons Paula Newby-Fraser and Scott Tinley have both won here. Three-time world Ironman champion, Peter Reid has won here twice as has fellow Canadian Lisa Bentley, who began her Ironman career on this course.

First in the hearts of the Penticton community among the winners is fivetime Subaru Ironman champion Lori

O

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Bowden. A two-time world Ironman champion, the Victoria, B.C.-based athlete has posted more victories at the event than any other elite athlete. On the men’s side, Ray Browning of Denver, Colo., dominated the race in the early years with wins in 1988, 1989 and 1990.

One of the elements that makes pro and age-group athletes return to the event is the remarkable volunteer Iron Army. Some 4,500 strong, this group is made up of friends and families of participants plus former participants, but mostly the volunteers are members of the community. “I feel privileged to be involved with an international event that is so well received and appreciated by triathletes of the world,” says Judy Sentes, president of the Ironman Canada Race Society. “I am one of over 4,500 volunteers who embraces this world-class race and takes pride in hosting, for 25 years, the Subaru Ironman Canada Triathlon, every August.”

A number of special celebrations are planned for the 25th Subaru Ironman Canada Race Week in Penticton. A number of former champions will be

returning to participate in the festivities that will feature a gift to the community of Penticton, a retrospective evening of music, video and remembrance and a charity hockey game featuring an Ironman All-Star team against some former NHL legends. The city has become involved, with the local museum hosting an Ironman Canada exhibit and an Ironman Canada art contest open to all students living in Penticton and the surrounding communities.

“Subaru Ironman Canada is one of the athletes’ favorite races because of the bonding between the community and athletes,” says North America Sports president Graham Fraser. “It is a 25-year bond, which continues to grow. Triathletes love the Okanagan people and the spirit they bring to the weeklong festivities. Subaru Ironman Canada offers one of the world’s most beautiful courses with a great variety of terrain. It really is a special week for everyone involved.”

For more information about the 25th Subaru Ironman Canada, please log on to ironman.ca.

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POLO TRI (Philippines)

By Fred Uytengsu & Rune Stroem abuhay and greetings from the Philippines.

Polo Tri Team is a group of professionals who have taken up the sport of triathlon in the Philippines. Members are former weekend warriors turned hardcore amateurs/adrenaline junkies who come from diverse athletic backgrounds but all share a penchant for

M

multi-sport training and racing.

The group was founded by David Charlton, Rune Stroem and Fred Uytengsu, all of whom started in triathlon in the mid-â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s. However, Polo Tri started about five years ago when the group expanded to its core of approximately 40 members, composed of both Filipinos and expatriates.

Polo Tri members race regularly in the Philippines but have also competed internationally in Australia, Western Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Lake Placid, Lanzarote, Maui, Laguna Phuket and Asia.

In addition to triathlon racing, members have competed in adventure races and numerous 10Ks, half-marathons and marathons. Several members have competed in the New York and Honolulu marathons, and another handful has competed in a masters bike tour that races throughout the Philippines.

The team has organized workouts during the week, which start at 5:30 a.m. at the Manila Polo Club (where the group got its team name). Mondays and Thursdays are bike days; Tuesdays and Fridays are run days; and Wednesdays are the lone swim days.

Saturdays are usually long-ride days from 90-150 kilometers, and Sundays are reserved for long runs.

If you ever find yourself in the Philippines, we welcome one and all. For more info about the club, please visit sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/polotri.

Courtesy Polo Tri Team

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time is

relative TT01 Team Astana: 2nd Place Team Time Trial Paolo Savoldelli: 1st Place Individual Time Trial 2007 Giro dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Italia

TT02 BMC Racing Team: 1st All-American Winning Squad 2007 Giro del Friuli Venezia Giulia

TT03 New for 2007: Poised for Victory

Learn more about the BMC Time Machine family of products at: www.personal-precision-program.com www.bmc-cycling.com

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U.S. Multi-Sport turns up the temp in Tempe RACE: Tempe International Triathlon DATE: May 20, 2007 EVENTS: Olympic and sprint YEARS RUNNING: 4 LOCATION: Tempe, Ariz.

WATER TEMPERATURE: 77 degrees F PARTICIPANTS: 1,100 RESTAURANT OF CHOICE: Monty's BEST REFRESHMENT: Red Stripe 24-ouncer

I

n 1870 Charles Hayden started a ferry service on the Salt River (now Tempe

Town Lake) to bring supplies back and forth to his flour mill. Eventually, however, the town once named for him was renamed to Tempe as it was said to resemble the lush Vale of Tempe in Greece. This is the backdrop for the Tempe International Triathlon in May. After setting up in transition, it was time to get body-marked. The volunteers with the markers were girls from the local roller derby. I got the Goth girl in fishnet stockings. And then it

was go time. The swim was unique because when you came up for air you could see jets flying overhead giving you that extra boost for speed. The bike course was a loop course, which ran alongside ASU and up through Papago Park, with a couple quick downhills for a little hammer recovery and before you knew it, it was onto the run. Getting to be around mid-morning, the heat was picking up and so was the pace. The run course went along the Lake with a jaunt through Papago Park and back to the finish.

The more you participate, the more it hits home who you are and what you can accomplish. We all remember our first race and the journeys that we have had and the friendships we have made along the way. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s keep it rockinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; gang, and make sure you tell your friends.

Find your next travel destination event at usmultisport.com.

See you down the road, Hubie & Warren U.S. Multi-Sport

Courtesy Hubie and Warren

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Life in the small chain ring

By Dave Wallach live in Chicago, which means a few things: I love the Cubs, Old Style Beer, Italian beef sandwiches—and I don’t really get to do a lot of hill riding, which, in turn, means I suck at hills. Maybe it has a little to do with my 6-4/220-pound frame, but I am more comfortable with blaming it on the insanely flat roads.

With all that in mind, when I was asked to work in Marin County, in California, for four months, I grabbed my shiny new BMC and my bike shorts and headed out to the land that Gary Fischer built and Jerry Garcia smoked.

My goal was simple: Learn to become a better climber.

My first stop was Zoom Multisport, where I met Keith McDonald and got the lowdown on the triathlon scene.

“It’s an amazing community out here, but intense.”

“Aren’t we all?” I asked as I gazed over Zoom’s Infinite Pool.

“Out here it’s even more so than any other place I have ever lived. They work 60 hours a week, ride 100 miles on the weekend. I call it the AA personality, twice as much as the typical type single A.” I am not knocking the Midwest; it has hard climbs. The Horribly Hilly

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Hundred didn’t get its name because it’s easy, but Keith described the difference.

“Right out your door you can climb a total of 8000 feet in a day on your bike, riding through national parks, be on the coast and then back home in an urban setting,” he said.

That’s what I was looking for. I learned of great climbs in the area: El Diablo, The 7 Sisters, The Headlands, Paradise Loop and, of course, Mt. Tamalpais. It was here at Mt. Tam that I was to do an epic battle, sort of like Spiderman and that sand thingy, but in less spandex and a bike helmet.

Charlie Livermore runs the ECycling Program at Endurance in Mill Valley and shared his expertise with me. “The hills you are used to are a rolling terrain, and climbs like Diablo and Tam are sustained and can go on for miles. You need to start slow and find a rhythm; don’t be anxious or you’ll blow up. Just because you’re going slow doesn’t mean you’re not working hard.”

Despite what some people may think, I am an Ironman. I know pain. But never like this. On my first day I decided to attack the region’s legendary climbs and

quickly found that, after only a few hundred meters, I couldn’t pedal one more rotation to move one more inch forward.

I fell off my bike, threw up and began to laugh. I was hooked.

Of course there are two parts to a climb: the up and, even better, the down.

Despite not making it to the top (not even close), I was ready to rock, and as I approached 50mph, heading into what should be called Dead Man’s Curve, with my hands clutching the brakes, I thought, “Maybe I’m in over my head.”

Apparently it’s more than just pointing your bike downhill. Charlie recommends descending classes because in the mountains or even in hilly terrain it can quickly become a matter of life and death. “It’s serious stuff out here. You have to learn how to stay within yourself.

If you have control of your bike and are properly trained on how to descend, it can be an amazing experience.”

My strategy was to attack these climbs over and over again, which I later found out from Charlie was the wrong approach. “When you do that you are constantly working at your max and doing more damage than good. By working your aerobic engine on the flats, it will help you be a better climber.”

My moment of cycling nirvana came when 2006 Ironman Coeur d’Alene champion Chris Hauth invited me to join him and a group of athletes on an easy ride to Point Reyes. His idea of an easy ride was 50 miles that somehow ended up being uphill both ways. After being dropped on the first climb, I was riding alone. As I pedaled along and took in the scenery, my breathing became relaxed, my legs stopped aching, my head was clear and all I could hear were the wheels on the road and my breath. I was floating alone, effortless, in a state of complete calm. I saw an eagle soaring above my head, a butterfly dancing in the wind, and I thought about sitting on a porch, drinking a beer and how all of my Ironman wins connected me with the universe. Okay, maybe that’s a stretch, but I finally got it and was enjoying the experience that Keith had told me about months before.

My time in San Francisco eventually ran out. I met a great group of people who truly love the sport of triathlon and were eager to share their knowledge and experience in an effort to get a flatlander up a mountain. Memories I will cherish forever and great lessons learned.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

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THE

ROARING A look back at how triathlon began its long and expensive love affair with high-tech wizardry

â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80S

Rich Cruse

By T.J. Murphy

6 2 AUGUST 2007

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IN 1982, WITH ABC WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS CAMERAS ROLLING, JULIE MOSS CRAWLED TO THE FINISH LINE FOR SECOND PLACE AT THE HAWAII IRONMAN, THE IMAGERY OF COURAGE IGNITING A STAMPEDE INTO THE SPORT OF A MAGNITUDE NO ONE COULD HAVE POSSIBLY IMAGINED.

1984

Triathlon boomed through the remainder of the 1980s and would eagerly define itself not only as the sport of ultimate endurance fitness but also as one mad for innovation.

Why was that? In part, triathlon was right out of the oven, with no tradition or history to guide or shackle it. Also, consider the sort of person drawn to the sport: An Ironman triathlon was beyond the limits of reason. To do one was to break apart barriers and achieve the impossible. You naturally grasp for every degree of advantage.

The desperate thirst for new and better stuff was different. Pure distance runners were usually pragmatic minimalists, preferring to pare down rather than stock up, and always skeptical of a salesman trying to convince them to spend more money on shoes and shorts.

Cyclists loved and honored craftsmanship but existed within a sport drunk with European tradition and, like runners, generally kept their distance from anything promising whiz-bang improvement. This changed, of course, when American Greg LeMond, a man who shamelessly brought along his tri-bars to the Tour de France in 1989, used his high-tech advantage to obliterate Lauren Fignon’s 50-second lead that Fignon had carried into the final ride, a time trial, to Paris. LeMond crouched into his aero set-up and turned a whopping 55 x 12 gear to the tune of 34.52 miles per hour to overtake Fignon by eight seconds and win the event. Since then, tentativeness in wind-tunnel time hasn’t been much of a problem for the cycling world, but, unlike triathlon, the embrace of technological innovation is heavily regulated by the UCI. LeMond’s use of the Scott aerobars (he also used a Giro aero helmet and a rear disc wheel) seemed to help validate triathlon as a sport, and not just some eye-popping footage of endurance freaks.

Technical innovation continues to throttle triathlon along at high speeds today. But for a look back to when this began, consider just a few of the creations of the 1980s and how that decade help give our sport a sparkling, aero-designed shape.

In the Los Angeles Olympic Games, carbon-fiber disc wheels and aero spokes make a splashy appearance in track cycling.

Triathlon licked its chops.

Scott Tinley sees Mark Allen wearing a prototype aero helmet and said, “I laughed my ass off.”

Cogs began to be added to the rear cluster and bikes could increase their number of speeds to 14, 18, 21 and 24.

The handy drawstring gadget used on backpacks transitions to the laces of shoes used by triathletes. Lace locks become ubiquitous in transition areas. Attaching race numbers to elastic bands also took off. Why train more when you can engineer 30 seconds out of your transition time?

The need to change from swimsuits to cycling clothes to running clothes began to alter when the first skin suits began to hit the market: one-piece wonders that you could swim, bike and run in. For whatever reason, triathletes are drawn to loud colors and patterns.

In fact, neon pink begins to eek its head into the colors of the sport; Team Tiger from Redondo wore skin suits with bright tiger stripes.

In 1984, Lance Younger, then 27 of Seal Beach, Calif., had lost his leg in an accident five years before. Using a “specially designed prosthetic device for cycling and a wheelchair for the running” he races in the Sacramento to San Francisco Ultimate Tri, a 3.6-mile swim, 155-mile bike and 31-mile run adventure spread over three days. The door had already opened for what would one day be the physically challenged division.

1985 Steve Hed finds out that he has a knack for aerodynamics while tinkering away in his garage and producing disc wheels. Hed’s name and his company would become synonymous both with triathlon and cycling.

1983 In the summer of 1983, we see the beginnings of wily manufacturers catering to the triathlon market. Sidi produced Jolli cycling shoes that used a Velcro enclosure, enabling a triathlete to chop off a few seconds in transition.

Hind Lycra tights began to gain popularity.

Triathletes would begin a love affair with neon Lycra that bordered on the ridiculous. One of those things you did when you got drunk at the party and hope everyone forgets.

A videocassette was produced in 1983 called Triathlon: Training and Competition—available in VHS and Betamax versions. It sold for $60, and oddly enough, the ad thought it important to mention that the VCR didn’t come with your purchase.

Also launched in 1983: Casio’s $30 triathlon watch plus a Swimmer’s Treadmill with tethered lap-pool system, emergency alarm and solid oak structural members.

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At the Tri-Fed National Championships, held at Cascade Lakes, a freak storm hits before the race and water temperatures plummet from 73 degrees to a spine-chilling 58 the day before the race. The swim leg was two miles long. While some triathletes were already turned on to wetsuits (not designed for triathlon, and they were a nightmare to try and strip off in transition) most in the field was not and was doomed to hypothermia. $6000 worth of wetsuits was shipped overnight to the race.

Triathletes not only begin to discover that wetsuits kept you warm but could also help you swim faster. Manufacturers will soon begin to fill the need.

In the 1970s and well into the ’80s, hairnet-style helmets—a web of leather strips—were common. The first hard-shell helmets were hot and very heavy. In 1984, ANSI standards were created and many of the helmets being produced were erased from the market. In 1985, Ironman champion Scott Tinley is seen and photographed using an aero helmet, a sight that would slowly become more common as plastics technology allowed for lighter, stronger and better-vented helmets.

A little thing called a heart-rate monitor begins to become part of the triathlon vernacular.

1986 Those things that are so commonplace now in the sport were, then, just thought experiments being put into action: Scott Molina appears on the cover of Triathlete magazine wearing Oakley glasses.

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HOW THE TERMINATOR WAS WIRED Triathlon great Scott Molina recalls the techno-boom of the 1980s Triathlete: What spurred the high demand triathlon technology?

Scott Molina: I rode the first prototype HED disc in 1985. I think the wheel was a result of Steve Hed seeing the new aero technology at the 1984 Olympics. We knew wheel aerodynamics were important, and Steve made them accessible to the average dude. But it wasn’t until Brad Kearns smoked the field using Boone Lennon’s Scott DH bars at the Desert Princess Duathlon in 1987 that we really took notice of how technology could provide a significant difference.

Triathlete: So aerobars had a big impact.

SM: Yeah, Scott DH aerobars were the most significant thing. Then they came out with a little aerobar called the 100k bar, which was pretty cool. I still have a set in my garage with a Gripshift on the end. Nike came out with some of the very first trisuits, and they were fairly see-through. I hope she’ll take this as the compliment it is—as far as making an impact I’d say Joanne Ernst racing in one of the first Nike trisuits was one of the finest moments in the history of our sport.

Triathlete: Who among your peers was the most aggressive in trying out inventions?

SM: I’d say Scott Tinley and Mike Pigg were the most willing to try anything new that had to do with cycling. I remember Tinley’s carbon wing-shaped bars, his aerolite pedals, skinsuit, aero bottle, aero booties and helmet in Kona.

Triathlete: Was there a triathlete you would crown as the techno-geek of all time?

SM: Yeah, a Canadian guy named Nick Martin. He rode in an extreme position similar to Bjorn Andersson’s current position. Then there was the Ohio dude Rob Roller who invented that funky mirror system attached to his helmet that allows him to keep his head down and still see ahead. I say “allows” because he still uses it.

Triathlete: Did you ever ride one of the funny bikes?

SM: Yeah, I rode every kind of bike—the first aluminum bikes, first carbon bikes, first funny bikes, the one with 2 x 24-inch wheels, the first beam bikes and later ended up on a TitanFlex. My lower back never liked being that bent over, so all of the bikes that were very low in the front end screwed me up.

Triathlete: Were there any inventions you tried that simply cracked you up?

SM: The seat shifter was pretty funny. But it also worked. The 68-tooth front ring I used with my PowerCam required a mountain-bike derailleur. The first PowerCams were always coming unscrewed, and I’d be stuck way out in the boonies and have to hitch a ride home. Steve Hed had to weld up a special rear cog-set with a nine-tooth cog for my 24-inch-wheel bike. You had to use a long chain with that little cog to make sure the chain wrapped all the way around it or else it skipped and slipped like crazy.

Ironman champion Dave Scott was well known for sticking figs onto his bike to fuel himself on the 112-mile bike leg. This was the year that Brian Maxwell began baking PowerBars in his kitchen.

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Triathlete: Of that era, which innovators truly impressed you?

SM: Steve Hed was always tinkering with stuff and was willing to do whatever necessary to test his ideas. He was the first guy to spend big money on wind-tunnel testing. If something didn’t work he would always just shelve it and move on no matter how much he had invested in it. Jim Gentes really changed helmet technology and removed the geek factor a ton at Giro. Giro made helmets cool and aero, and that was huge for triathlon and cycling at all levels. Jim Jannard at Oakley made the first unbreakable aero cycling glasses. Obviously the guy had some vision that there was a market there. That was one company I should have stuck with. All three of these guys helped shape the modern look of cycling.

—TJM T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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WIN A KUOTA KALIBUR! Subscribe or renew your subscription to Triathlete and you’ll be automatically entered for a chance to win big!*

One lucky winner will ride away on a 2007 KUOTA KALIBUR, the carbon-fiber bike Normann Stadler rode to the fastest time ever at the 2006 Ford Ironman Championships, averaging 26.1mph for 112 miles! The KALIBUR will be equipped with SRAM’s recently launched tri-group set, which will also be used

by Normann in his quest for his 3rd IM title in October.

5 runner-ups will recieve a HYDROTAIL by Beaker Concepts

A $99 value

triathletemag.com *No purchase required to enter – see back of magazine for complete rules. Entries must be received by 10/15/07

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Toe clips never saw it coming: Look’s clipless pedal system begins to catch on.

The Timex Ironman watch hits the shelves and retails for $40.

Not everything flies, however. Consider the FastTrans device: You slot your cycling shoes on one side and your running shoes on the other of this box-shaped machine, and when you come into transition you can shoehorn your way to the next leg without the use of your hands.

Few buy the FastTrans.

1987 Scott DH aerobars begin to catch on fire as one of the surest ways to slice through your bike leg.

Triathletes put to test some radical bike designs. “Funny Bikes”—bikes using a front wheel that is smaller than the rear wheel—hit the races.

Zipp Discs comes into existence with a honeycomb-core disc wheel weighing in at 1150 grams.

Profile also says hello to triathlon with the Speed Aero 1 aerobars, featuring a “U” section, variable brake placement and arm rests.

Schwinn introduces the TriSpoke Wheel, made of Kevlar and carbon fiber: “lighter than most disc wheels, but stronger and with benefits similar to discs.”

Welcome to our world the Quintana Roo Full-Suit: comprised of 3.2mm and 4.8mm neoprene. “This is the one that started the speed revolution,” Triathlete magazine says.

Aero-friendly behind-the-saddle water-bottle cages make their appearance. Profile markets what they call Piggy Back models.

1989 Steel had been the frame material of choice. The early attempts at using aluminum produced bikes that were lighter but which could handle only a season of use and were painful to ride because of the way they transmitted shock right into your butt. Aluminum frames begin to improve, and carbon-fiber composites begin to get noticed when Look introduces the Kevlar 2000: 100-percent Kevlar carbon-fiber frame and fork set.

In 1987, Velodyne—a maker of indoor-training machines— markets a race simulator. A company called CompuTrainer also cranks open this market with a product called Racermate. The CompuTrainer could simulate head and tailwinds. Programs of the day are designed for computers like the Commodore 64.

Giro creates the Prolight helmet in 1987. A hard-shell helmet that weighed, on average, 52 percent less than conventional helmets of the day.

Shimano and Campagnolo continue an epic battle of innovation that produces amazing achievements in bike components. Index shifting was one of the biggies.

1988 Kestrel introduces the 4000 graphite Kevlar boron composite.

Kestrel would lead the industry into the age of carbon-fiber frames.

6 6 AUGUST 2007

At Interbike in October 1988, Cannondale unveils their 3.0 aluminum frame. Using varied wall thickness and butting some tubes, the 3.0 frame is only 2.8 to 3.2 pounds. A complete bike can weigh less than 20 pounds.

Hed Design introduces the Light Disc at less than 900 grams for $750.

Grip shifters were appearing on more and more bikes and SunTour markets aerobars that give the rider the benefit of drop-bar hand positions.

Trek joined Kestrel in the composite monocoque market, introducing the Trek 5000.

Hed-X and the Zipp Eliminator 3000 full-disc wheels are unleashed onto the market.

Invention rages: The Hooker Elite time-trial bike is constructed with bladed tubing and custom narrow-profile handlebars; Holand Cycles experiments with seat angles as steep as 90 degrees. Paula Newby-Fraser is pictured riding a Hamilton concoction with 24inch wheels, steep frame angles and short chainstays. Both Scott Molina and Mike Pigg are pictured using seatposts that allow for additional forward adjustment. Bikestream offers a drinking dispenser that allows for hands-free drinking from a plastic straw always stuck near your face.

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Whether you’re sprinting for the finish line or the next city limit sign, the Courchevel is your reward for working hard all winter. Visit Maxxis.com or your favorite dealer to learn about Maxxis road technology. Maxxis tires, technology for speed.

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INNOVATIVE BY DESIGN Dan Empfield on the forces that have shaped, and continue to influence, our sport

By Cameron Elford Dan Empfield, the California-based innovator behind such revolutionary multisport inventions as the steep-angled tri bike and the triathlon wetsuit, as well as the founder of Quintana Roo, one of the sport’s most recognizable and respected brands, has arguably had the single greatest impact on the technological progression that has become one of the hallmarks of triathlon. Today, Empfield continues to wield a powerful influence within the sport as the publisher of slowtwitch.com.

Triathlete: Why do you think triathletes have always been so quick to adopt new technology—from aerobars to race wheels to sports nutrition to power meters—while other sports, such as cycling perhaps, remain more focused on tradition?

Dan Empfield: There’s a bit of urban myth in saying all or most triathletes will try anything. What’s truer is that a significant subset of them is not impacted by the inertia of tradition, as is the case in many other sports. It’s not that all triathletes jump at the chance to try something new, but a significant number of

key influencers will, and they’re the crash-test dummies for the rest of the sport.

Triathlete: In your opinion, what are the three most influential technological developments in the history of the sport?

DE: Well, that’s a squirmy question to give me, because as you might know that has been answered before—not as of yet by me— and others have listed the top three as Boone Lennon’s aerobar, the triathlon wetsuit and the tri-geometry bike. It’s typically listed in that order, and I’ve often been associated with the development of the last two of those technologies.

But I guess it depends on what you consider a tri-specific development. The aerobars were not, you’ll remember. Road racers threw them on the ground in 1986, and triathletes came walking by and picked them up. If you consider our sport championing a product invented for, yet cast off, by road racers, how about Gripshifts?

You could even throw Look’s clipless pedals, Giro’s helmets, Oakley’s Factory Pilots, into that category. I don’t know how many

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2007 SCHEDULE - DATE / EVENT / LOCATION 03.11 XTERRA GUAM / Piti, GU 03.17 XTERRA SAIPAN CHAMPIONSHIP / CNMI 04.01 XTERRA MIAMI / North Miami, FL 04.01 XTERRA REAL / Granite Bay, CA 04.21 XTERRA ARIZONA XTREME / Mesa, AZ 04.28 XTERRA FT. YARGO / Winder, GA 04.28 XTERRA GATOR TERRA / Ruston, LA 04.29 XTERRA CASTAIC / Castaic, CA 05.06 XTERRA UWHARRIE / Uwharrie, NC 05.20 XTERRA PATANELLA'S KING OF THE HILL 05.20 05.20 05.20 05.27 06.03 06.03 06.09 06.10 06.10 06.16 06.17 06.23 06.23 06.23 06.24 06.24 07.08 07.08 07.14 07.15 07.15 07.15 07.15 07.21 07.22 07.28 07.29 07.29 07.29 08.05 08.05 08.05 08.05 08.12 08.12 08.18 08.18 08.19 08.25 08.26 08.26 08.26 09.02 09.29 09.30 10.28

Lebanon, NJ XTERRA LAST STAND / Augusta, MI XTERRA DIRTY / Canyon Lakes, TX XTERRA WESTCHAMPIONSHIP / Temecula,CA XTERRA SMITH LAKE / Fort Bragg, NC XTERRA ACE BIG CANYON / Oak Hill, WV XTERRA DEUCES WILD / Show Low, AZ XTERRA EUREKA SPRINGS / Eureka Springs, AR XTERRA TRIMAX / Mifflinburg, PA XTERRA SOUTHEAST CHAMPIONSHIP Pelham, AL XTERRA BUFFALO CREEK / Buffalo Creek, CO XTERRA EASTCHAMPIONSHIP / Richmond,VA XTERRA DAWG DAYZ / N. Little Rock, AR XTERRA SOLSTICE / La Grande, OR XTERRA TAHOE CITY / Tahoe City, CA XTERRA GARNET HILL / North River, NY XTERRA TORN SHIRT / Brighton, MI XTERRA M2XTREME / Ellicottville, NY XTERRA LOCK 4 BLAST / Gallatin, TN XTERRA IRON CREEK / Spearfish, SD XTERRA THOMPSON LAKE / Poland, ME XTERRA EX2 / Flintstone, MD XTERRA MIDWEST MUDDER / Lawrence, KS XTERRA VASHON ISLAND / Vashon Island, WA XTERRA HAMMERMAN / Anchorage, AK XTERRA WILD HORSE CREEK / Bozeman, MT XTERRA DINO NEW CASTLE / New Castle, IN XTERRA SKY HIGH / Grafton, NY XTERRA FIRST COAST / Jacksonville, FL CRESTED BUTTE BANK XTERRA Crested Butte, CO XTERRA APPALACHIA / Indiana, PA XTERRA PANTHER CREEK / Morristown, TN XTERRA CAMP EAGLE / Rocksprings, TX XTERRA SNOW VALLEY / Running Springs, CA XTERRA STOAKED / Hanover, NH XTERRA IRON WILL / Jonesboro, AR XTERRA DINO LOGANSPORT / Logansport, IN XTERRA MOUNTAIN CHAMPIONSHIP Ogden/Snowbasin, UT XTERRA CHARLOTTESVILLE / Charlottesville,VA XTERRA MOUNTAINMAN / Kaaawa, HI XTERRA SCHIFF SCOUT / Wading River, NY XTERRA BLACKHAWK / Muskegon, MI XTERRA WILD RIDE / McCall, ID XTERRA ONTEORA / Livingston Manor, NY XTERRA NEVADA / Lake Tahoe, NV XTERRA USA CHAMPIONSHIP / Nevada XTERRA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP / Maui, HI

XTERRA CHAMPIONSHIPSERIES RACES IN RED. XTERRA POINTS SERIES RACES IN WHITE. Schedule subject to changes. As of January 3, 2007.

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of those companies would enjoy the stature they have today were it not for triathlon keeping them going back when their revenue engines were running on fumes.

Triathlete: You’ve had a tremendous influence on the sport’s technological progression. How and why did you come up with such innovative concepts as the tri bike and wetsuit?

DE: The wetsuit, well, that was easy. Gary Peterson and Scott Tinley were swimming in their surf wetsuits, in cold water, and coming out faster than you’d have thought they should’ve. It just occurred to me to ask how much faster a person could go in a wetsuit if all its features were optimized for surface swimming. Those first wetsuits, made back in 1986, were probably as fast as any of those made today—they just weren’t as comfortable. The tri bike, that’s another case of just using one’s intuition. We all knew the bars were faster, but it was hard getting comfortable on the bike. So people were trying all sorts of strange configurations, custom stems and seat posts trying to optimize the aerobars. It seemed to me that the thing to do was start with the bars, and build the bike from the bars back.

That’s all a tri bike is.

Triathlete: Although we are still learning, in the 1980s everything was new, from the distances to the equipment to the kind of people the sport attracted. Do you think technological breakthroughs, as opposed to engineering and perfecting existing concepts, is continuing today at the same pace? In what areas do you feel the greatest progress is being made?

DE: I’ve got ideas banging around on the inside of my brain

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right now: a new way to approach the saddle; a new kind of shorty aerobar for road-race bikes. There is a ton of stuff to be invented or improved. We’re not close to being done. When I stop riding my bike, I’ll probably stop conceiving of ideas. All you have to do is ride and ask yourself what it is you’d like that you don’t have.

There’s always an invention or design able to fix what ails you. I won’t be the one coming up with the new designs—others smarter and younger will do that. But if I’m still coming up with new concepts I’m sure my betters will keep up the pace of new inventions.

Triathlete: Looking back at issues of Triathlete from the 1980s, there were some crazy products that ultimately were rejected by the market. What are a couple of the goofiest ideas you came across?

DE: I hate to poke at anybody else’s ideas. Some of the stranger ideas I’ve seen are being schlepped around right now. In general, the stuff that tends to work the least well is also the most over-engineered.

I’ve seen some highly ornate answers to very simple problems.

Triathlete: Any technological predictions for the next decade?

DE: The ideas that will gain traction will be met in the marketplace with, “That’s so simple! Anyone could’ve come up with that!” The best ideas are the easiest and simplest in concept. That said, here’s a sorry fact: Those whom I know in cycling with the most fertile and inventive industrial engineering minds don’t ride much anymore. Riding is the engine of invention. A lot of new, great things will make their way to market, but they’ll have to come by way of a new generation who’ll generate their ideas from aboard their bikes.

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7 0 AUGUST 2007

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WELCOME TO THE

REVOLUTION The top in tri tech, all at your fingertips

By Jay Prasuhn and Brad Culp

7 2 AUGUST 2007

Ask Bill Gates and he’ll tell you technology involves microprocessors and megabytes. True, but in multisport, it means more innovative designs, unique materials—all serving to make an athlete’s experience better. Faster racing. Easier, more comfortable movement.

Quicker recovery. From cost-no-object to trickle-down we present some 2007 tech offerings.

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BIKE TECH Trek Equinox TTX 9.0 $3,099 Trek has one of the fastest tunnel-proven bikes in the world, presented at a (relative) pauper’s price.

The 2008 TTX 9.0 has the same frame design as the model ridden in Hawaii by Chris Lieto (including trailing-edge fork/frame surface continuity, the frontally clean shifter-cable run and reversible carbonaero seatpost) but takes the price way down with a frame comprised of new entry-priced white-level OCLV carbon fiber, Bontrager parts and a Shimano 105 groupset. Technologically proven, value priced. trekbikes.com

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Oval Concepts A921 Jetstream $995 and R910 $299 Remember the F1-designed A911, its aero Venturi slots and its $2,500 custom-designed pricing? Now you can get it in a flat base-bar version with lower adjustable pads and adjustable extensions—at a third the price. Or, go for the R910 road version. The beauty of both bar configurations is a new Stem Cap Clamping System (SCCS) nose-cone stem cap, with integrated extension mounts underneath and pad plates on the top for the A921, or extension clamps only for the R910. That means super-low four-position pad placement on the 750-gram A921 and eliminates the need for bar-top pads (great for shortcourse/ITU athletes), allowing use of flat-top or superlight road drop bars for a clip-on that doesn’t really clip onto anything since the extensions are fixed to the stem cap, not the bar. We’ve been testing both 26.0 bars (with 31.8 oversize coming soon) and love both but really love the 921 for bringing a wicked-fast bar at an affordable price. ovalconcepts.com

XLAB Laminar Vest, Price TBA Still in prototype, the yetto- be-priced XLab Laminar sleeveless aerodynamics testing top includes strategically placed yarn filaments that wag in the wind, emitting telltale signs about our position. Our experience with the jersey shows that it does what it promises—the filaments sway with the wind and and torque, but lie even when good bike position is achieved. What this means to you is you can do aero testing and analysis on the road with your coach or training partner providing valuable data to make you faster. Each jersey will come with tips and guidelines to help you interpret your aero analysis. airointernational.com T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Beaker Concept SpeedFold $28 So you’re on the ride with three dollars and 62 cents, your 5mm allen key, insurance card and ID, all gummed up in your jersey pocket from a half-used gel packet. The Speedfold keeps your ride goods, even your iPod Nano, safe in a durable lightweight semi-rigid nylon wallet, neatly organizing your stuff in elastic mesh pockets and zipped safely together in a small packet that fits in your jersey pocket. beakerconcepts.com

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SRAM ceramic bearings for pulley ($130) and bottom bracket ($195) and PowerMeter Pro by SRM ($3,400) In the incessant pursuit of unadulterated speed through decreased friction, SRAM offers new ceramic-bearing kits for their Force and Rival road groupset rear-derailleur pulley wheels and bottom bracket. SRAM’s lab tests have demonstrated that the bottom-bracket pulleys will save on average four watts while the pulley wheels will save one watt, over traditional steel bearings. Plus they’re 10-percent lighter than steel. In concert, the new Force SRM crankset integrates SRM wattage-reading capability through the Force carbon crankarms for all your power data. sram.com

Shimano WH-7801-SL Dura-Ace Tubeless-compatible wheelset The first tubeless road wheel in history (paired with Hutchinson’s Fusion tubeless tires) has been a blast on our first test. Yes, they’ll accept normal tubes, but like their off-road tubeless brethren, the road tubeless are simple to use. The carbonbeaded Hutchinsons are easy to install on Shimano’s 24mm deep Scandium rims. The result is an amazing ride without pinch flats and a tire that won’t roll off the rim (meaning you can ride it home flat). Plus it’s lighter than any other wheel/tire combo. shimano.com, roadtubeless.com

FSA NeoPro Crankset $850 The new all-carbon NeoPro features one-piece carbon construction and a full-aero, slippery profile to the wind. It will also feature the same hollow carbon-fiber crankarm as the K Force Light and will come in a massive range of crankarm lengths, from 170mm to 180mm in 2.5cm increments, with a 54/42 chain-ring configuration on a 130bcd. Also included is FSA’s choice ceramic MegaExo bottom bracket. fullspeedahead.com

Blackburn Delphi 6.0 $150

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OK, so it’s a wireless bike computer giving you your basic features.

But then you have an altimeter, cadence, percent grade, temperature, backlight, all nice. And the cherry is a heart-rate function that provides accurate heart rate as well as your ride time in and above your preset heart-rate zone—a great tool to determine how well you’re really keeping your leash on during the long ride. Plus those massive digits on a four-line data display make it an easy read, even on the descents. blackburndesign.com

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TRAINING ANALYSIS mapmytri.com Free

iBike with TT Kit $508 The benefits of iBike are now well known: amazing wattage data (including percentage of power coming as a result of hills, aero drag, etc.) from a unit that is totally mobile. But the new TT kit allows us to keep our iBike on one bike that sees frequent changes from training wheels to racing wheels.

Why? Because it allows use of your disc or other wheelset without having to sacrifice watts data for race day. The new TT kit includes a Topeak Xtender, allowing you to mount the iBike below the aerobars for accurate readings unimpeded by forearm blockage. ibikesports.com

Tanita BC-558 Ironman Segmental Body Composition Monitor $299 Tanita has taken body-composition analysis one step further by including hand grips, which makes the readings more accurate and gives you more information about where the muscle and fat are in your body. thecompetitiveedge.com

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Cyclingpeaks.com WKO+ $99 The gold standard of data-analysis software, WKO+ is designed to work with downloadable training devices like those from CompuTrainer, PowerTap, iBike, Garmin and Polar, among others. Originally designed exclusively for bikewattage analysis, it add more multisport value with heart-race and run-pace cross-reference capability plus the exclusive Performance Manager Chart, which helps you determine when you will peak and just how long your race taper should be. cyclingpeaks.com

Sportsnutritionclinic.com $20/month, $200/year Whether looking to improve performance through nutrition, lower your body-fat percentage or simply lose weight, this online program uses your resting metabolic rate, records of foods consumed and records of daily activity to calculate the calories an athlete consumes and burns at any given minute of the day. It also calculates your percentage of carbs, protein and fat for a given day and matches it against recommended numbers. sportsnutritionclinic.com

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Images courtesy the manufacturers

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s GoogleEarth for triathletes. Users can map open-water swims, plot cycling courses (and measure exact elevations) and track every run with just a few mouse clicks. Once the map is complete, you can quickly view it in 3D on a satellite map or share it with friends. Best of all, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s free. mapmytri.com

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Human Touch HT 1650 Massage Chair $4,799

MotionBased.com $11.95/month MotionBased, Garmin’s Web application, translates GPS data into functional analysis and online mapping.

Athletes can also replay their activity in the Map Player or race a friendly competitor. motionbased.com

Who says recovery can’t be high tech? The HT 1650, often called the Rolls Royce of massage chairs, delivers a deep, full-body massage with a fully retractable foot/calf massager and patented robotic technology. In addition to manual massage settings, it’s fully loaded with eight automatic programs that deliver the perfect massage. To boot, the chair has won design awards, so this piece of tech doesn’t startle the feng shui of your home. humantouch.com

HEART-RATE MONITORS/ GPS/MUSIC Polar RS800sd $489 Polar’s new training system wasn’t designed with the casual jogger in mind. The super-watch allows athletes to measure speed, distance, cadence and stride length. The 2.4 GHz signal allows for undisturbed data transmission, regardless of environmental factors. Included in the package is the Polar ProTrainer 5 Software, which enables runners to plan event-specific workouts, upload them to the wrist unit, complete them and then download the results back to the computer to measure goals against performance. polarusa.com

Garmin Forerunner 305 $350 When it comes to triathlon, the Garmin Forerunner 305 is the ultimate high-tech device. Athletes can track everything from time, speed, distance, pace, elevation, calories burned and heart rate. The Forerunner is water-resistant and has a quick-release mount that makes it easy to transition from your bike to your wrist for spot-on race-day pacing. garmin.com

The new 30GB Zune has been coming on strong with a killer music player; not only does this PC-compatible unit play up to 7,500 of your favorite songs with an easy-to-navigate toggle, but it also includes a built-in FM tuner and has a three-inch color screen for videos or photo galleries—great for passing the hours on the flight to your next race. Optional armbands are also available as well, allowing you to take your Zune out for you long run. zune.net

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Images courtesy the manufacturers

Zune $249

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Progio Training Companion $399

Trimble Outdoors

An all-in-one personal trainer that you can take to the gym or on the road, the 512MB handheld unit connects to the internet to download video workouts (including available programs from Dave Scott, fitnessanywhere.com or ptonthenet.com) that are then relayed through the 3.5-inch LCD display. It’s the next best thing to having someone like Dave Scott as your personal coach. progio.com

Trimble has created a program that turns your cell phone into a GPS tracking unit, calculating speed, pace, mileage and displaying it on the phone screen. Once the workout is done it’s transmitted to your online training page for further analysis. allsportgps.com

Fitbeats.com $4 per track

Images courtesy the manufacturers

At a loss to stay motivated during your TT efforts when Sarah McLachlan drones on the MP3 player? Fitbeats offers tempo-set tunes catering to triathletes with time markers and audio cues for run-interval sessions and bike drills, acting as an in-yourear coach. fitbeats.com

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APPAREL Louis Garneau Carbon H-Flexx Bib Short $190 Who thought bib shorts could go hightech? Apparently, Louis Garneau did. The Carbon H-Flexx’s panels are anatomically constructed to facilitate the extension and contraction of the hip-flexor muscle group and prevent fatigue. The Carbon Ion Lycra includes carbon fibers that pull moisture away from the skin, and the ultra-comfortable Airgel Chamois contains perforated gel inserts to evenly distribute weight on the saddle. louisgarneau.com

Oakley Radar $155 Oakley definitely doesn’t skimp when it comes to technology. The new Radar features an interchangeable lens design to optimize vision in any environment, highlighted by a revolutionary lens coating that repels water, skin oils and debris, making for crystal-clear optics. Even the nosepiece is interchangeable to allow for a completely customized fit. oakley.com

Zoot ULTRA Multisport Tight $130

Skins Travel Compression Tight $140 and Compression Sox $56

Zoot’s brand-new ULTRA line is designed with one thing in mind: comfort. The Multisport Tight features a removable Integra 1D pad for unmatched versatility and muscle support. BIOwrap technology means the support panels offer maximum muscle compression and a bit of added warmth. Couple that with WRKS Thermo knee panels and you’ll be ready to ride through the harshest winter days. zootsports.com

8 2 AUGUST 2007

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Any apparel company that does sizing based on body-mass index is certainly cutting a new path.

While the Australia-based company has a wide product range, it’s the compression tights and the Sox we were taken with. Each features graduated compression that is great for muscle containment (a nice feature while running), and the travel tight aids recovery by eliminating lactic acid, reducing day-after muscle soreness and even helping prevent a condition known as deep-vein thrombosis (serious blood clots that can form in the legs) on your flight home. skins.net

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Descente Men’s Optima Short $170 for bib, $150 for short Descente has combined two high-tech fabrics to create one of the most comfortable shorts you’ll ever try. The side panels are made with Aero-XT, a dimpled fabric designed to provide compression and facilitate evaporation. The body of the short is made with Aero-X, a moisture-management fabric with unmatched durability. descenteathletic.com

Newton Distance $155 Images courtesy the manufacturers

Not just any company is worthy of Sir Isaac Newton’s name.

Newton shoes mimic the advantages of barefoot running. The Active Membrane Technology absorbs more impact than traditional running shoes and then converts this energy into forward propulsion to help runners go farther and faster with less fatigue.

The Distance weighs in at a mere 9.2 ounces (men’s size 9), yet is reliable enough for the longer days. newtonrunning.com

patent pending

Field Tested By Heather Gollnick

2007 Ironman Arizona Champion Heather Gollnick demands the very best. She knows winning at the highest level of triathlon requires the most advanced technology available. That’s why she relies on Optygen and MultiV to stay ahead of the pack.

See for yourself how the award-winning, critically acclaimed First Endurance system can help take your training and racing to a new level.

firstendurance.com or 866.347.7811

8 4 AUGUST 2007

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TheOFlaws recovery 7 steps to maximize recovery and maintain consistency in your training and racing

By Matt Fitzgerald • Photos by Robert Murphy

WHAT IS RECOVERY? IT’S A SET OF PROCESSES, INCLUDING MUSCLETISSUE REPAIR AND MUSCLE-GLYCOGEN REPLENISHMENT, THAT OCCUR AFTER YOU COMPLETE A WORKOUT AND SERVE TO PREPARE YOUR BODY FOR THE NEXT WORKOUT—RIGHT? Well, yes. But recovery is much more than that. It is also the primary means by which you gain fitness.

You can’t really separate the physiological processes of post-exercise recovery and those of fitness adaptation. Post-exercise recovery episodes are like small steps that add up over time to the long journey of developing race-level triathlon fitness.

The recovery and adaptation processes are linked primarily through immune-system messenger cells called cytokines. The most important of these cytokines is interleukin-6 (IL-6). Released from the muscles during intense or prolonged exercise, IL-6 disperses throughout the body and stimulates numerous processes that affect the body’s performance during the workout (for example, increasing fat burning), the body’s short-term response to the workout (for example, limiting inflammation that is caused by muscle damage incurred during the workout) and the body’s long-term structural and functional adaptations to training (such as increased fat-burning efficiency and endurance).

Looked at from this perspective, recovery is no longer merely something you need to happen so you can perform well in your next workout. Rather, recovery is almost the entire point of the workout.

The more total recovery you experience over the course of the training process, the fitter you become. Maximizing recovery therefore should be a major objective in your overall strategy of preparing for triathlon competition. Here are seven laws of recovery that will enable you to maximize recovery throughout the training process.

Law No. 1: Time heals all wounds The various recovery processes take time—some more than others. Muscle glycogen is usually fully replenished within 24 hours. But muscle-tissue inflammation may take two or three days to fully resolve. There are various things you can do to push these processes along—such as eat right and sleep adequately—but their overall effect on the time it takes to restore your body to its normal

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performance level is small. The most important recovery practice of all is simply giving your body enough time to rest. Consistent failure to do so will result in stagnating fitness and, ultimately, injury or illness.

How much time is enough time? It is neither necessary nor advisable to follow each workout with enough rest time for all of the recovery processes to reach completion. If you did, you would find yourself working out four or five times a week at most. The only circumstance wherein you really need to achieve a state of complete recovery is before racing. During the normal course of training, you need only recover enough to perform at least as well in your next workout as you did in your last workout. If you are able to sustain a steady trend of gradually increasing performance, then clearly you are allowing your body enough time to recover between workouts.

Beginning triathletes can achieve this level of recovery on a schedule of six workouts per week (two swims, two rides and two runs.)

Advanced triathletes may be able to consistently gain fitness on a schedule featuring double the workout frequency.

However, it’s important to note that the multidisciplinary nature of triathlon means recovery time for triathletes is unlike that of single-sport athletes. After completing a run, for example, your body will be ready to perform well in a swim or bike workout before it will be ready to perform well in another run. By arranging your weekly training cycle so you never do consecutive workouts in the same discipline, you can enjoy more recovery time between workouts within each discipline than you would otherwise.

Law No. 2: Frequent training demands faster recovery In the preceding section I suggested that it is best not to allow your body to achieve a state of complete recovery after each workout. The reason is that challenging your body to perform in a less than fully recovered state stimulates adaptations that improve the recovery capacity itself. Since the recovery processes bleed into fitness adaptations, workouts performed in a pre-fatigued state boost fitness in a slightly different way than do workouts you start well rested.

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This was shown in a recent study from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Subjects exercised one leg once daily and the other leg twice every other day throughout the study period.

The total amount of training was equal for both legs, but the leg that was trained twice every other day was forced to train in a less fully recovered state. After several weeks of training in this split manner, the subjects engaged in an endurance test with both legs.

The researchers found that the leg trained twice every other day increased its endurance 90 percent more than the other leg.

The practical implication of this study is that you will tend to gain fitness faster if you do some workouts in a well-rested state and others in a somewhat pre-fatigued state. The well-rested workouts will boost your fitness primarily by giving you opportunities to perform at a high level. The pre-fatigued workouts will boost your fitness by challenging your body to recover and adapt more quickly between workouts.

To take full advantage of the opportunities afforded by both wellrested and pre-fatigued workouts you must do two things. First, you should train as frequently as you can without reaching a point where you are pre-fatigued for every workout. If you currently work out once a day, you might achieve a big jump in fitness by doubling (that is, performing two workouts in one day) just once or twice per week, even if you do so in a way that does not increase the total amount of time you spend training throughout the week. The second thing you need to do is vary the challenge level of your workouts. Go easy when you are pre-fatigued and go hard when you are well rested. More on this in the next section.

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Law No. 3: Workload modulation helps you get the most out of recovery Recovery is typically equated with rest, and while rest is a necessary condition for recovery, it is not a sufficient condition. Recovery also requires a stimulus—that is, a workout that is challenging enough to create a demand for recovery and adaptation in the body. If all you ever do is rest, you won’t experience any recovery and you certainly won’t become any fitter. And by the same principle, a hard workout stimulates more recovery than a gentle workout.

Indeed, the harder you train—within your body’s adaptive limits—the more recovery you will experience. The hardest-training triathletes (except for those who over-train and actually compromise their fitness development by doing so) are the fittest athletes because they have experienced the most recovery. What’s more, the fitness gains that result from hard training plus adequate rest increase one’s capacity to train hard and recover from hard training.

If you take advantage of this adaptation by training even harder, you will experience even more recovery and adaptation.

The best training approach to maximize recovery and fitness gains is one where hard training and rest are balanced properly.

Rest is relative. If you normally swim 2,500 yards in a pool workout, a 1,500-yard swim workout will provide a degree of rest and facilitate recovery from your most recent hard swim workout. If you normally train 10 hours a week, a seven-hour training week will provide a degree of rest that enables you to absorb and fully adapt to last week’s hard training.

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Balancing hard workouts with easier workouts and hard training weeks with easier ones is referred to as workload modulation, and it’s one of the most effective ways to maximize recovery. The reason is simple: If you tried to train hard in every workout, every week, you would not get enough rest to properly recover and your workout performances would go downhill. So the net result of training too hard is an inability to train as hard as you can if you modulate your workload.

Some triathletes can handle only one hard workout per week in each triathlon discipline and must go easy in their other workouts.

Others can handle two or even three hard workouts in each discipline. Some triathletes need a recovery week every fourth week while others need them more often. You may need to experiment with different formulas in your training to find what works best for you.

Law No. 4: It’s not just what you eat and drink, but when Time and rest afford an opportunity for post-workout recovery and adaptation processes to occur, but that opportunity cannot be realized without nutrition. For example, if protein is not consumed after a workout, the body experiences a net loss of muscle protein, so instead of building up the muscles, the day’s training breaks them down. But if adequate protein is consumed within two hours after completion of the workout, there is a net gain in muscle protein.

Time is a critical factor in maximizing the recovery-promoting effects of post-workout nutrition. The body exists in a unique

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hormonal state during the first two hours after exercise that allows nutrients to be used much more effectively than if the same nutrients are consumed later; but the same hormonal state also amplifies the negative consequences of not eating and drinking. Taking full advantage of this muscle-recovery window is essential if your goal is to be as ready as possible for your next workout—especially if that workout will occur later the same day.

There are four types of nutrients that you should consume within the muscle-recovery window—and ideally within an hour of finishing a workout. Water and electrolyte minerals (mainly salt) are needed to rehydrate the body. Carbohydrates are needed to replenish muscle-glycogen stores and prime the immune system.

And protein is needed to repair muscle damage and provide the raw materials for tissue adaptations to training.

Regular foods and beverages containing these nutrients will do the job. For example, a tuna sandwich and side salad with a tall glass of water is a great post-workout recovery lunch menu. But sometimes recovery supplements get the job down better—as when you’re just not hungry during the first hour after an intense workout.

Law No. 5: To skimp on sleep is to skimp on recovery Sleep is a unique state of deep rest that promotes rapid recovery from the stress of exercise. Lack of adequate sleep is itself a stressor, so if you consistently under-sleep, you will not recover from workouts as quickly and you will also be unable to handle as much training as you could handle if you did sleep adequately. As few as four nights of partial sleep deprivation result in skyrocketing levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which inhibits muscle repair. In addition, research in non-athletes has shown that short-term partial sleep deprivation increases circulating levels of C-reactive protein, a biomarker of inflammation. Therefore, muscle damage-related inflammation is likely to be exacerbated by inadequate sleep.

But it doesn’t stop there. Insufficient sleep reduces the body’s ability to process glucose and, therefore, to produce energy. And human growth hormone, the muscle-building hormone that plays the biggest role in rebuilding tissue after exercise, requires sleep for full activation, so the less sleep you get, the less muscle you wake up with. Sleep loss also weakens the immune system by reducing the activity of interleukins, molecules involved in signaling between cells of the immune system.

The latest neuroscience suggests that sleep even plays a crucial role in relation to motor-skill refinements—such as those that make you a more efficient swimmer, cyclist and runner. During sleep, the brain’s motor center appears to practice movements performed by the body during the day. So, believe it or not, in a sense, if you miss out on sleep you miss out on some of your training.

How much sleep is enough? Sleep experts believe that there is a high degree of variation in sleep needs between individuals. It’s best to sleep until you are slept out, regardless of how much time it takes. In other words, in a perfect world you should sleep long enough so that you awaken spontaneously in the morning and couldn’t sleep more if you tried.

Law No. 6: The little things help a little When you think about techniques to promote exercise recovery, you probably think of things like stretching, massage and ice baths.

While such measures are very widely practiced as recovery measures, research has not been kind to the notion that they do much good. Nevertheless, they can’t hurt, and even measures that help a little might be worthwhile.

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Studies on the recovery-related benefits of massage have turned up conflicting, but mostly negative, results. The most recent study was performed by researchers at the University of Western Australia.

They found that post-exercise massage significantly reduced muscle soreness and inflammation but had no effect on the recovery of muscle function, which is all that really matters. The problem with this study, however, and with most other studies that have addressed the same question, is that they involved non-athletes undertaking a single session of unaccustomed exercise, so the results are of dubious relevance to highly fit endurance athletes engaged in a regular training program, and a great many elite endurance athletes swear by sports massage. One full-body deep-tissue massage per week from an experienced sports-massage therapist ought to do the trick.

The same points apply to various forms of cryotherapy (cold treatments)—such as ice massage and ice-water baths—used to promote recovery.

Research has shown that cold treatments may slightly reduce swelling and joint stiffness, but they will not accelerate the restoration of normal muscle function. Yet none of this research has replicated the circumstances of high-level endurance training, and a growing number of elite

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endurance athletes are making cold treatments a part of their regular post-workout routine. Standard procedure is to fill a bathtub with cold water and ice and immerse the legs for 10 minutes after a hard ride or run.

Research on the recovery-related effects of muscle stretching is more definitive: The practice offers no recovery-related benefits whatsoever. It does not reduce muscle soreness or muscle damage or affect muscle function. However, there are, of course, other reasons to stretch (namely increased mobility, injury prevention and injury rehabilitation), so keep doing it.

Law No. 7: When you need to rest, your body will tell you Another underappreciated way to maximize recovery is to rest when your body needs rest and not rest (that is, train hard) when your body doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need rest. I sometimes refer to this approach as training opportunistically. By modulating your training workload sensibly you will most often get rest when you need it. Come up with a standard weekly workout schedule in which harder and easier workouts are sequenced in a way that reliably has you training hard when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re ready to train hard and going light when you need to regenerate. Likewise, come up with a standard recoveryweek frequency (every third or fourth week works best for most triathletes) that consistently gives you the opportunity for relative rest just when you need it.

Planning your training workload modulation in these ways will minimize the frequency with which you find yourself feeling in

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need of rest on days when your workout schedule calls for hard training. It is impossible to eliminate such surprises, however.

Therefore you must be prepared and willing to replace a scheduled hard workout with an easy workout or day off whenever your body tells you it needs a break. Training hard when your body is not adequately recovered to perform at a normal level will do more harm than good.

How does your body tell you it is not prepared for hard training? Scientists have come up with all kinds of tests to determine athletesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; states of recovery and readiness to perform, but none of them works terribly well. It is very difficult to predict how you will perform in your next workout until you start it. Once you have started a workout, your body will tell you itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not ready to go hard simply by feeling lousy. Thus, your decisions to substitute hard workouts with easier ones when necessary must be 11th-hour decisions in many cases. If you start a planned hard workout and feel lousy after the warm-up or first hard interval, abandon the planned workout and complete an easier alternative training session.

In cases where you feel extremely sore or fatigued from recent training, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reasonable to change or even cancel a planned hard workout before you start it. Also, if you feel unexpectedly lousy in consecutive workouts, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s usually best to avoid giving your body a chance to feel lousy in your next workout by modifying or canceling it ahead of time. The more practice you accumulate in listening to your body in these ways, the more accurately you will be able to judge when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to back off and regenerate.

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MACCA UNCOVERED An interview with Chris McCormack

By Jay Prasuhn • Photos by John Segesta

MONTHS REMOVED FROM THE 2006 KONA SHOWDOWN, MCCORMACK HAS TWO FIRMLY ENTRENCHED CAMPS: THOSE WHO CONSIDER HIS BRAVADO ARROGANT AND SELF-SERVING AND THOSE WHO LOVE HIS OUTWARD CONFIDENCE AND STRAIGHT TALK. Somewhere in the middle lies the truth as to who Macca really is. Yes, he is confident. To know him is to know how fervent he is about the sport. For there are very few athletes who will willingly stop for a photo with a stranger five minutes before the biggest race of the year or will, with genuine interest, ask while autographing your run hat how you, Joe Age Grouper, went in your race. It’s for that reason that Macca stands at the pinnacle of the sport, without even having won the big dance in Kona.

Yet. Triathlete sat down with the effervescent Aussie in Del Mar, Calif., to reflect on his career, his desire to win in Hawaii and his passion for the sport that few can fathom.

Triathlete: Few probably know that your career track first led you to pushing papers behind a desk at a bank. How did you go from a banker to one of triathlon’s icons?

McCormack: I finished university with a commerce degree in 1995. When I finished school, my parents were like, “Get a job,” and I got one with Banker’s Trust three weeks out of school, in November. Come June, I quit. I was 23, and I missed the training I had been doing. At the time in Australia they had the Triathlon Grand Prix Series on television. You’re 23—the most important thing in your life is getting on television to get chicks. I was like, I’m in a suit working with 40-year-olds. This guy Brian who used to sit next to me was 42. Outside my parents, he was the oldest person I knew. I looked at him and said, “This is me in 20 years.” So I said, “I’m gonna go for it.”

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Triathlete: How was it at those first few races when you were dining on mac & cheese?

McCormack: I went to France with a girl. We had $4,000 in our bank, an open-ended ticket and were there to see how long we could go. We just bummed it. Race, race, then I landed a World Cup in Paris. I ended up getting fifth. That following weekend was Drummondville [Quebec] World Cup, and I was first. And that was it. The rest is history.

Missing the Olympics was the first time I took a breath.

Everything to then had been successful. “What do you mean I’ve failed? What do you mean I’m not on the team?” I sat there, wanted to drop out, quit, go back to banking. I felt like a failure. I’d won a world title, world No. 1 for three years, felt like I failed if I couldn’t make the bloody Australian team.

Then I thought, how about if I go to America and do all the races I’d dreamed about? Chicago, San Diego International, Alcatraz. And I found what I missed: 4,000 people at a race. I was totally re-energized for the sport. No way am I retiring; I’m moving to America. I love it.

Then I look back: 2001 was one of my most devastating seasons because while everyone said I won in 2000 because the good guys were in Sydney at the Olympics, in 2001 everyone was here, and I won everything. The Hamishs, the Whitfields, everyone who was at the Olympics, smoked ’em all.

Triathlete: How do you reflect on your short-course career?

McCormack: I didn’t drop out of short course with any animosity. When you reflect, I see my time on the World Cup as the most enjoyable racing of my career. When you think of the Olympics, it was fantastic for our sport, and we owe a lot of that to Les McDonald. I still look at Simon [Whitfield, 2000 Sydney Olympic

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it yet,” but a lot of people haven’t won it. After Hawaii I sat down with my guys and said, “Are we gonna do the Olympics?” but I said, “You know what? I’m enjoying Hawaii and I see more success and fulfillment in that race, because it shows I can persevere at something. I’m not running away from unfinished business.” That’s something I want to show to my children, which is, number one, chase your dreams, which I did by turning professional and leaving a banking job, and number two, not quitting when I have said so vocally that I want to win this race. I just want to keep trying to do it, to solve the puzzle and show there is no failure. I’ve never failed. The people who fail are the ones who don’t try.

So yeah, at age 34 I put some questions past [sixtime Hawaii winner] Mark Allen to see what he thought, and it was all about sticking to Ironman.

That made my mind up. The rest of my career is Ironman, putting the Olympics to bed, and it was a weight off my shoulders.

gold winner] and Hamish [Carter, 2004 Athens Olympic gold winner]. Simon Whitfield’s performance in Sydney was one of the most inspiring races I’ve ever watched, and Hamish’s race in Athens was, for me, a win for me. I raced Hamish my whole life, and he’s an athlete I admire, someone I’ve always measured myself against. He deserved that win.

Triathlete: I remember one of your goals was to dive back into short-course racing and make a bid for 2008 Olympic gold. At what point did you realize that the Beijing points chase was not going to happen?

McCormack: In a perfect world I would have won Hawaii last year, and then I would have loved to have two years to get the points and chase the Olympics. As you get older, you’re looking for motivation.

That said, the biggest challenge of my career has been Kona. Of every single thing I’ve ever done, it’s never taken me so long to win one, so it’s become a puzzle to me, a project, and I’m enjoying the process of getting closer and closer. I get ridiculed: “He hasn’t won

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Triathlete: It seems those critical of you have measured you against your results in Kona.

McCormack: I get upset. I understand that process.

I think the person who gets more abuse about it than me is Simon Lessing. The problem is once you start down the Hawaii path, you’ve basically said, “Everything I’ve done in my past is irrelevant, and I’m only going to be measured by this race.” Simon’s the greatest triathlete that has ever walked the planet, full stop, period. Then I read on these chat sites that he’s a piece of shit, he’s got no heart, he’s gutless, he’s weak.

I’ve watched this guy in Europe rip the best people apart. He’s the most talented athlete I’ve ever seen.

But you start to realize these people are armchair critics with a lot of opinion but no panache. They don’t know what they’re talking about. They’re uneducated.

At the end of the day, you want to be measured by your peers, and if I were sitting here next to Simon Lessing, I’d tell him, “Mate, you’re phenomenal.” Sometimes you get caught up in that bubble of trying to please everyone, but I just get back to basics—I do this for me. Everyone’s gonna pat me on my back when I win it. The years I’ve failed there, there’s been nobody. I care about my family and the people who are close to me. If I am successful, it’s gonna be a closed shop. There’re gonna be no back-patters. I’m gonna shoo everyone away. If that’s rude, hey, that’s the way it’s gonna be. It’s my dream, and it’s been a difficult one. Had I come to Hawaii in ’02 and won, I don’t think I’d appreciate what Hawaii is as much as I do now.

Now, I really appreciate it.

Triathlete: Meaning you have a closer bond to Mark Allen now as he mentors you?

McCormack: Totally. Which is why I was upset when I was attacked this year [following the 2006 Ford Ironman World Championship, race winner Normann Stadler said he thought that McCormack has cheated by drafting on the bike]. For the first time in my career I was ecstatic with my second place. It was a full-year process to get there. It’s not fair people are measured by 12-month increments. For me, I failed, failed, failed, then a little bit of success, then second. I was ecstatic. I think if I go and win the title I’ll look

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back and see that second-place finish as one of the most important races of my career.

McCormack: That’s what happens a lot in Hawaii now. And that’s why last year there was such a buzz: You had two guys that were both looking to win. In the past, someone got away and everyone else consolidated their position with a little shuffling around.

Next year, with everything going on . . . I will follow the same approach: I will die, give it all I have. I’m a statistician, and it looks like if I do what I’ve been doing, nine out of 10 times you’re gonna win with the fastest marathon. I’m gonna run faster this year, will make some schedule changes and will be more prepared.

Looking forward to the challenge. To finding those 71 seconds.

I used to be an angry racer. I tried to take that across to Ironman, and it doesn’t work. You’ve got eight hours.

You get angry, but you soon get tired.

After that it’s like, “Shit, this is hard!”

Triathlete: Let’s talk about that race.

As far as suffering, how does that race rank? Had you dug any deeper before?

McCormack: What I’d done was followed my race plan to perfection. I was always gonna ride with the front bunch and was gonna try and execute the fastest marathon. I had trained for that and was confident. The satisfying thing for me was I didn’t settle for second. I won my second place.

I was beaten by Normann, but I put it on the line at 10 miles and said, “I am prepared to come 10th here, but I want to win.” That’s the difference. There’re some people in the past who have come second there but were looking for third. I was always looking for first and was beaten by Normann.

Triathlete: Do you find that to be prevalent in today’s tactical racing people will mete out only as much effort as they need to secure their position instead of simply going for it?

Triathlete: We understand your schedule changes include not doing Ironman Germany despite a challenge and eliminating an Ironman from your schedule.

M c C o r m a c k : My focus will be running faster [at Hawaii].

Years ago when I went off the front by 12 minutes on the bike, everyone on those chat sites said, “McCormack’s an idiot. He’s a dope.” Had I caught Normann this year, Norman would have been the idiot; people would have said, “Normann went off the front. He’s stupid.” Everyone’s a genius in hindsight, saying, “Normann did the smartest thing in the race.”

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First thing, we didn’t give Normann 10 minutes—he took it.

Everyone’s like, “Why didn’t you ride a bit quicker?” We rode 4:27.

It ain’t easy. Had I run 2:45 and won the race everyone would say, “McCormack is a genius tactically; Normann’s an idiot, he pushed too hard.” You can never win.

But for me [the focus is on] improving my run, running a 2:43 and being there on the bike. I think people will be more aggressive on the bike. The whole Mark Allen philosophy of winning that race on the run is for me. The whole mindset—especially in Germany—that the bike rider is the hero . . . mate, it’s a triathlon.

I had to change my mindset, because that’s how I used to think.

I used to be off the front on the bike. Normann has the luxury to make some changes, take chances. Me, I’d just like to win it. After that, I might go, “Hmm, next year I might ride off the front.” But let’s just win the race first. I’ll be ecstatic if I win the race by one second. Because I’ll have won the race.

Triathlete: How many years did it take to change your thinking and shift your focus from the bike to the run?

McCormack: It’s a completely different beast, Ironman. When I was a short-course racer—and this is what surprises me about the Germans when they attack me—is that I was a biker. I used to ride 51s in Chicago, 51 in San Jose, belted Walto by two minutes, five minutes in front of Bennett, eight minutes in front of Alexander.

But these Germans . . . short memories.

I used to be an angry racer. There was a lot of animosity there for missing the Olympics, and I took that out in short course. I

tried to take that across to Ironman, and it doesn’t work. You’ve got eight hours. You get angry, but you soon get tired. After that it’s like, “Shit, this is hard!”

I had to change tactics for two reasons: It’s ridiculously hot [in Hawaii], and I’m a bigger-framed athlete and sweat a lot, so I had to assess how to approach Hawaii. I accessed every resource I could. I went into labs. I went with [Kestrel’s] Preston [Sandusky] to Sacramento and sat in a lab with Max Testa. I went to labs at AIS [Australia Institute for Sport] and spoke to world-champion marathoner Steve Moneghetti. I accessed Mark Allen. I got all these resources and realized my best chance is to develop my run. Suddenly you get crucified for it, “Ah, he’s a drafting cheat, soft cock.” It’s like, c’mon, man! But at the end of the day I don’t care. I will win the race.

No one attacked Mark Allen. He was a fantastic bike rider, but he won every single Ironman he did with a dynamic run. That’s it. The Germans’ trump card is the bike, mine is the run. It’s two different philosophies. Last year the German philosophy won and mine was second—but that doesn’t mean it’s gonna stay status quo. I will be playing the run trump card, as will Cameron Brown, [Rutger] Beke, maybe Peter Reid if he’s back. I’m prepared to roll the dice with that, because it’s my best chance of winning the race.

Triathlete: You make no bones about your passion for the sport.

Does that passion fuel your outspokenness?

McCormack: People who take the time get to know me know there’s no arrogance, no cockiness. . . . For me, it’s a dream. It’s turning something I watched as a child into a reality. That’s

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where my passion stems from. I know Cameron Brown is passionate to win the race. I know Normann Stadler is passionate to win the race. They wouldn’t be there if they weren’t—they want to win it. But what motivates me is I love the sport so much. I’ll be doing it for the rest of my life. That’s what [coach and Triathlete columnist] Paul Huddle asked me the other night, whether I lose motivation. I was like, “You don’t get it: I was a banker and I wished for this. I wished I could be a pro athlete, I wished I could be good in the Ironman—I’m getting my wishes!”

It’s like saying, “I wish for a million dollars,” and then saying, “Naw, I don’t want it anymore.” I’ll never lose that motivation; I’ll never lose the hunt. I read Peter [Reid] saying, “I don’t want to push anymore,” and I was like, fuck, have you guys been out in the real world? It ain’t pretty!

Triathlete: How have you been preparing for the challenge of Hawaii?

McCormack: Everyone knows the date of the race, and I don’t hope for anything. I don’t hope—I want! I want to win. I’m not gonna be one of those guys who hopes to have a good day.

That’s chicken shit. You’re not hoping to be fit enough for the race. The reason you train is you want to be fit enough for the race. A lot of people misconstrue that as arrogance, and it’s just not me to sit there and hope.

There’re probably a lot of guys thinking, “Jeez, if he doesn’t win it, how’s he gonna live with himself?” That’s none of their business.

That’s my issue. And I’m pretty sure I can.

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Triathlete: Let’s talk about the verbal dust-up in Kona in 2006 between you and Stadler and Al Sultan.

McCormack: I don’t have any problem with anybody in this sport. We [McCormack vs. 2006 Hawaii champion Stadler and 2005 champ Faris Al Sultan] had our issues in Hawaii. What hurt me there was they attacked who I am, not what happened: “He’s a cheat, and he drafted.” I think it stemmed from Faris, as I watch the video more. Normann had a lot of animosity with the Peter Reid statement [in Triathlete’s 2006 pre-Hawaii issue, three-time Hawaii champion Reid predicted that Stadler would not win another Hawaii title]. He had that fuel and took it across the line. Then Faris crosses the line [and] there’s the whole, “I’m glad you won; I didn’t want him to win.” I got attacked. I can live with it. The thing is I confronted them about it; they’re chicken shit. Have a bit of integrity. If you’re gonna say something, own up to it. Don’t make me pull it out of you, have to show you a Blackberry [at the Triathlete post-awards party in 2006, McCormack confronted Stadler with comments the German made in a post-race interview in which he stated that McCormack had cheated by drafting].

At the end of the day, I don’t have a problem with Normann.

I love the fact that he’s got an ego. If he didn’t have an ego, he wouldn’t be winning the bloody race. It’s three guys with egos, that’s why we’re three guys at the pointy end of the field. You can’t deny that fact. I have no issue with Normann or Faris. But as I said, I want to kick their ass, but they want to kick mine. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Triathlete: At an Olympic-distance race in Dubai, you say you approached Faris for a handshake and he turned his back on you?

McCormack: I think he’s young. He has a lot to learn. He’s where I was in ’98. . . . [When] he won in 2005, he didn’t have a resume behind him. He’s trying to find his identity in a sport where there are a lot of players who aren’t intimidated by him. When you win a world title, it doesn’t bring intimidation. It doesn’t intimidate me in the slightest. I’ve been in his shoes. I’d love to help him. I approached him in Hawaii and said, “Look mate, I’ve been there,” but he has the arrogance and thinks he can sort it all out. Good luck to him.

But if he thinks a world title intimidates me, it doesn’t. I saw that with Simon Lessing. I beat him at [short-course] worlds, and he sat there in press conferences and tried this big bravado.

But at the end of the day, the fact is you have to go to your hotel room, look in the mirror; there’s no one there to pat you on the back, and you have to start the race against the bloke next to you who’s prepared to kick your ass and doesn’t care about the title you’ve got. And that’s where it is with Faris and Normann. I’ve been played like that by Greg Welch, Simon Lessing in my younger days. But you see the maturity of an athlete, that one race doesn’t make a career, an instant champion. One race is one race. I judge an athlete by their ability to put season after season together. And . . . no one has done that better than me in the last decade. That’s the fact. Obviously Hawaii gets more points in the equation as the biggest race of the year, and that’s why Normann and Faris are what they are. But you can wave your

Know your distance.

SWIM IT. RIDE IT. RUN IT. MAP IT. LOG IT. SHARE IT AT WWW.MAPMYTRI.COM

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Ironman title in front of me, wave it in front of Cameron Brown, it isn’t intimidating. It just means you’ve got something I want to take off you—defend it. Like I said, no issues. I look forward to racing them and will shake their hands if they beat me.

Triathlete: Has this rivalry stoked the fire for a race unlike any we’ve had in many years?

McCormack: I can’t believe the interest it’s created. I went to give a talk at Road Runner Sports, and it was standing-room only: 350 people. I used to go down there in 2000 when I was [the ITU] world champion: 30 people. It was amazing. And it’s what I’m saying: people miss a rivalry. The sport needs it. It’s not just me. People pick a side. There’re Normann fans and Macca fans. It’s not a personal attack; it’s whom they support. I think it’s great.

Triathlete: How do you respond to your detractors who say the bravado is just a show?

McCormack: It’s what I am. What you see is what you get. It’s not an act. I certainly don’t think I’m better than anyone else, but I have an immense belief in my support team and myself because

if I don’t, who is going to? I can’t expect the people who are helping me, my sponsors, my fans, to believe in me if I don’t believe in myself.

I know it upsets my wife Emma a lot because she’s the closest person in the world to me, and she understands my passion, and she says, “These people don’t get you.” It’s not bravado. It’s a guy who wants to win a race for himself. That’s it. If that sounds selfish to people, sad for them. At the front of the race, there’re egos, and sometimes you’ve got to bruise an ego to give yourself an upper hand.

What I’m saying is I trained my ass off, I turn up in Hawaii, bring it, mate. As I said to Normann and Faris, give me your best, that’s all I expect of you—and I expect from all of them, and I want to be at my best, and if I win, the first people I’m gonna congratulate are the guys behind me. Because if I’ve beaten them, why would I shit-can them? That’s what I can’t understand with Normann. Why would he shit-can me? If he just beat a putz, then who did he beat?

He should be going, “Chris McCormack is the greatest athlete on the planet—oh, and by the way, did I tell ya I beat him today?” Cause if I’m the greatest, how good is he? That’s how I see it.

If [Stadler] just beat a putz, then who did he beat? He should be going, “Chris McCormack is the greatest athlete on the planet—oh and by the way, did I tell ya I beat him today?”

Know your distance.

SWIM IT. RIDE IT. RUN IT. MAP IT. LOG IT. SHARE IT AT WWW.MAPMYTRI.COM

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We should be encouraging the athletes behind us, creating these rivalries, building a depth in the sport, beyond just Normann and Faris. I want triathlon to be the biggest sport in the world, because the bigger it becomes, the better I become in the future as I end my career.

I have no issue with Normann or Faris. But as I said, I want to kick their ass, but they want to kick mine. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Triathlete: How about the people who do get you?

McCormack: People want reality, and I’m real. The people that understand me understand that passion. They relate to that passion. That’s why second was so important to me. They saw I gave it everything.

Triathlete: The last three miles of the run in Kona in 2006 spoke volumes: gritting your teeth, then hanging on Normann’s shoulder at the finish.

McCormack: I was gone, totally. That shows it’s real. It’s personal to me, and people relate.

And there’re disappointments, and they’ve shared them with me.

I’ve had people come up to me and say, “I heard you’re an ass but you’re a pretty nice bloke,” and I say, “Thanks, mate!” There’s this perception I’m arrogant, but it’s just passion. I honestly don’t intend to offend. This sport is everything to me, and . . . if I ever thought I was hurting it I’d be disappointed in myself.

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UNDISCOVERED Triathlon comes to Turks & Caicos Story and Photos by Brian Metzler

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IT’S A BRIGHT, SUNNY MORNING AS WE SLOWLY MANEUVER OUR SEA KAYAKS DOWN A SERENE SALTWATER INLET ON THE SECLUDED WEST COAST OF NORTH CAICOS ISLAND. With every quiet paddle stroke, we slowly drift deeper into an untouched tropical paradise that time and the modern world seem to have either forgotten or perhaps have yet to discover.

Each direction offers a unique sight that’s spectacular in its simplicity and unspoiled purity. To the left, a large great white egret stands in an eddy on the edge of the slow-moving tidal flow, indifferent to our brightly colored kayaks and us. To the right is a seemingly endless stand of red mangroves lining the edge of Major Hill Cay, a small ecologically rich island uninhabited and seemingly untouched by human life.

Moments earlier, we were examining hundreds of jellyfish and their symbiotic relationship with green algae. Now, just off the prow of our kayaks, alternating flashes of white and black swirl below the surface of the crystal clear water.

“They’re eagle rays,” says guide Mark Parrish, a British expatriate with a background in marine biology. “Mostly you see them out diving on the wall in the 50- to 100-foot range, but they also come into the shallows to feed on conch living on the bottom. And when you see them, you usually see quite a few at a time.”

Turks & Caicos is a small Caribbean nation located between the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic about 550 miles southeast of Miami. Located just south of the Tropic of Cancer in the Atlantic Ocean, it is made up of eight primary islands and dozens of smaller isles and cays, most of which are uninhabited.

The island chain is situated around the edges of two large limestone plateaus, the Turks Bank, with deep offshore waters that serve as major transit points for humpback whales, spotted eagle rays, manta rays and turtles. In the last decade, it has become known for the 1,000 square miles of reef and iridescent turquoise waters that surround the islands, making it one of the most attractive diving destinations in the Caribbean.

Like other Caribbean countries, Turks & Caicos is also famous for pristine white sand beaches, luxurious resorts and fruity rum 1 1 0 AUGUST 2007

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drinks. But compared to the Bahamas, Jamaica or the Virgin Islands, this is an undiscovered gem still in the nascent stage of development as a major tourism destination.

Christopher Columbus stumbled across the island chain when he landed on the island of Grand Turk on his first voyage from Spain in 1492. For 700 years prior to that the islands were inhabited by Taino and Lucayan Indians, who began the local industries of conch fishing, salt raking and sisal farming.

In the 300 years after Columbus’ accidental visit, the islands were alternately ruled by Bermudians, French, British and Bahamians, but by the early 1800s they were primarily a haven for pirates and British Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution.

After a hurricane devastated the entire Bahamian chain in 1874 (including Turks & Caicos), the islands became dependencies of the British Crown Colony of Jamaica.

Turks & Caicos finally became a colony on its own in 1962 (after Jamaica became an independent nation), and it remains an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. Still, it was not until the 1980s that the first resort opened on the modern main island of Providenciales and announced to the rest of the world that Turks & Caicos was ready to become a top international tourist destination.

Since then, it has developed a booming real estate-development industry and attracted lucrative offshore-investment businesses.

Today, more than two dozen resorts and luxury condominium communities dot the arid landscape adjacent to Grace Bay on the north coast of Providenciales, while many other developments are underway on adjacent islands (including an exclusive Ritz Carlton on West Caicos).

The TCI government is on a mission to attract upscale development and world-class sports tourism, but it is also dedicated to preserving the islands’ natural beauty and the privacy of those who seek a quiet escape. In 1992, it helped create the Turks & Caicos National Trust, a non-profit organization that has set aside dozens of nature reserves, wildlife sanctuaries, historical sites and marine-life breeding grounds.

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United States Virgin Islands ~ America’s Caribbean

October 21, 2007 12th Annual Coral Reef Swim 5 Miles - Buck Island to Buccaneer

Sponsored by:

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For those reasons, Turks & Caicos is quickly becoming a hot spot for luxury getaways, seafaring tourism and jet-setting celebrities. Bruce Willis, Keith Richards, Donna Karin and Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are among those who have recently purchased homes on some of secluded outlying islands.

The ITU-sanctioned Island Triathlon Series race on Dec. 1 (see sidebar on page 114) will be one of the first major international sporting events held on the islands.

“It’s a good time to be in Turks & Caicos,” says Premier Michael Misick, the country’s chief minister. “We’re experiencing a lot of growth, but we are in a position where we can carefully choose the kind of development that we want and protect our natural resources.”

The late start in attracting tourism has left many of the islands as pristine and untouched as they were hundreds of years ago. That’s especially evident on sparsely populated North Caicos, 12 miles northwest of Providenciales. Known as the Garden Island for its lushness and abundant rainfall, North Caicos is home to a large flock of pink flamingos, the historical remnants of an 18th-century cotton plantation and numerous eco-adventure opportunities.

Each of the islands has its own unique identity and attractions, but as a rule of thumb the larger the island, the smaller the population. Middle Caicos is home to the largest cave network in the Bahamian Archipelago and numerous ancient artifacts. West Caicos has spectacular diving and a variety of bird life, while Grand Turk, the capital island, is home to a state-of-the-art cruise-ship center, numerous 18th- and 19th-century landmarks and other points of interest. (Astronaut John Glenn splashed down off the coast of Grand Turk after orbiting the earth in 1962.)

Daily connecting flights and boat charters are available to most of the outlying islands, making day trips or overnight excursions easy for any tourist.

Car and bike rentals are available on most islands, as are taxis and guided tours.

TCI is home to about 30,000 full-time residents, a friendly mix of native “belongers”—many of whom are descendants of African slaves or Bahamian immigrants—and ex-pats from the UK, U.S., Canada, Dominican Republic and Scandinavia. The tourism and development growth have helped develop the country’s infrastructure, making it a comfortable destination for ex-pats and seasonal residents.

“It’s changed quite a bit in 10 years,” Parrish says.

“But there is a lot more in the way of arts and culture, more sporting facilities, better roads and more schools now. There’s a lot that’s been happening here, and it’s not all on the beach.”

Like other Caribbean countries, Turks & Caicos operates on island time, a low-key way of life that forces even the most intense, goal-driven triathletes to relax and operate in slow motion.

“People who visit here realize it’s like heaven on earth,” Misick says. “Once they experience the beauty and tranquility, they’ll want to come back.”

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ABOUT TURKS & CAICOS Weather: Turks & Caicos Islands typically receive 350 days of sunshine every year, but a constant trade wind keeps the climate at a comfortable level yearround. From November to May the average temperature is 80 to 84 degrees, while water temperature typically ranges between 74 to 78 degrees.

Accommodations: The Alexandra Resort (alexandraresort.com), the official race hotel, is nestled at the midpoint of Grace Bay Beach, a 13-mile continuous stretch of white sand. It’s a clean, modern facility with a beachfront restaurant, private outdoor bar, freeform pool and onsite fitness center. All 160 rooms have an ocean view, a kitchenette and wireless Internet service. The race starts on the beach behind the resort, while the transition is located in a newly paved parking lot 50 yards off the water. For accommodation details, visit islandtriathlonseries.com.

Restaurants: Fresh seafood is abundant at restaurants around Grace Bay, with conch, tuna, swordfish and mahi-mahi among the local specialties. The Orchid Restaurant at the Alexandra features international cuisine with a Caribbean twist on a large deck looking out over the ocean. Magnolia Wine Bar & Restaurant at Miramar Resort (miramarresort.tc) near Turtle Cove is known for its critically acclaimed cuisine and attentive service, as well as spectacular sunset views. If your visit includes a Wednesday night stay, head to the fish fry at Smokey’s on Blue Hills Road, about a 15-minute cab ride from the Alexandra Resort. On other nights, the Conch Shack is another good place to get good, affordable fare and mingle with locals.

Activities: There are plenty of sporting adventures to be had on Turks & Caicos, including deep-sea fishing, SCUBA diving, snorkeling, sea kayaking, mountain biking and exotic bird watching. The best guide service is Big Blue Unlimited (649-946-5034; bigblue.tc), which is headquartered on the northeastern edge of Providenciales. Ask for Mark Parrish, a British ex-pat who has been leading trips of all sorts for more than 10 years. The concierge at the Alexandra can arrange a round of golf at Provo Golf & Country Club, a nearby 18-hole championship golf course.

Other: The country’s only international airport is located on Providenciales, but other islands can be quickly accessed by boats or prop planes . . . The U.S. dollar is the official currency of Turks & Caicos Islands. Credit cards are accepted by most businesses, and ATMs that accept U.S. and Canadian bank cards are available on Providenciales and Grand Turk.

Cell phone service is available throughout the islands (including via many North American service plans).

For more information about Turks & Caicos, please visit turksandcaicostourism.com or turksandcaicos.tc.

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THE ISLAND 80 Island Triathlon Series debuts in Turks & Caicos in December

By Brian Metzler Last summer, Canadian marketing executive and passionate age-group triathlete Hala Bissada was relaxing on a white-sand beach in the Turks & Caicos Islands when a brilliant idea popped into her head. Why not organize an international long-course triathlon that incorporates the turquoise waters, pristine beaches and majestic spirit of this small Caribbean island nation?

“I thought, ‘What a great place for a major event,’” says Bissada, who finished Ironman Florida in 2004 and also has six half-Ironman finishes to her credit. “Turks & Caicos is still sort of unknown. It’s still a jewel that hasn’t been discovered. I decided to write a proposal to the tourism board about it and they were very much in favor of the idea.”

Thanks in part to strong support from the local government, her vision will become a reality when the inaugural event of the Island Triathlon Series (ITS) gets underway on December 1. The 80-mile, ITU-sanctioned race consists of a 1-mile ocean swim, a 66-mile bike ride on a

recently paved highway and a 13-mile road run on the island of Providenciales.

Located 75 minutes by plane from Miami, Turks & Caicos Islands are known for turquoise water and luxurious resorts.

The country is part of the British West Indies and remains a British colony, even though the local currency is the U.S. dollar.

The new triathlon, which will be televised in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Latin America, comes on the success of April’s CARIFTA Games, the track and field championships of Caribbean nations.

“We’re very excited to have the opportunity to host this type of world-class event,” says Dr. Carlton Mills, the country’s minister of education, youth, sports and culture.

“It will showcase the amenities of our islands and allow the athletes to experience the friendly, relaxing atmosphere we have.”

Bissada acknowledges that the timing of the race could create a long season for athletes competing in the Ford Ironman World Championship in Kona or the XTERRA world championship in Maui.

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But she believes the sheer beauty of the exotic destination will encourage athletes to rearrange their schedules.

Judging by the long list of pro athletes who announced their commitment to the race when it was announced in April that appears to be true. Among the big names that have announced they’ll compete are world champions Chris McCormack (Australia) and Melanie McQuaid (Canada), as well as Chris Lieto (U.S.), Rutger Beke (Belgium), Lisa Bentley (Canada), Desiree Ficker (U.S.), Joanna Lawn (New Zealand), Kim Loeffler (U.S.), Matt Reed (U.S.) and Marino Vanhoenacker (Belgium).

“There’s definitely an upswell in people looking for races like this,” says race consultant Chris McCrary, who represents Lieto, McCormack, Loeffler and Beke.

“This race will be totally unique. With this race, you’re going to be on an extraordinary vacation and, oh by the way, you’ll also do a great race while you’re there.”

Bissada and race director Kelly Mathews said their top priorities are putting on a safe event over a fun and challenging course and pampering the athletes—both pros and age-groupers—as much as possible.

Abundantly stocked aid stations, on-course cooling misters and a lavish post-race party are just a few of the perks they plan to have at the first event. They hope to have between 300 and 500 competitors, although the race capacity is 750.

“We’re looking at this race as being a luxury triathlon,” says Bissada, 41. “It’s about giving yourself an opportunity to do the sport that you really love, but it’s also a vacation opportunity and a chance to pamper yourself. Once the race is done, you have the opportunity to see and get to

know one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean.”

The race will start on the white-sand beach on Grace Bay along the northern side of the island. The course will consist of a rectangular ocean swim followed by a four-loop, mildly undulating bike course on Leeward Highway and flat run that concludes at the Alexandra resort hotel.

“It’s a great course that will be both challenging and beautiful,” says McCrary, who previewed the course in mid-April. “The bike course has a little hill in it that, because you have to climb it four times, could create some distance in the race, both for the pros and age-groupers. And the run definitely has a Kona feel to it. It’s flat, but it’s not going to be a walk in the park because it will be hot.”

The race is aligned with Tri4Dignity, a fundraising initiative that provides athletes with an opportunity to achieve a personal goal and offset their travel expenses while raising money for HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention through Dignitas International.

Bissada plans to host additional ITS races on other Caribbean islands in subsequent years and would like to hold the series’ first world championship in 2010, possibly in Turks & Caicos. She chose the 80-mile distance and relatively short swim to set it apart from other races and also to attract competitors with sprint, Olympic and Ironman backgrounds.

The entry fee for this year’s race is $250.

Direct flights are available from Miami, Atlanta, Charlotte, New York and Toronto, while travel packages are available through Skylink Holidays (800-262-6818; skylinkholidays.com).

— BM

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THE FALL

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COLLECTION The top new training flats for triathletes

By T.J. Murphy How many years, on average, do you ride the same bike before upgrading to the latest aero model? Two? Five? 10? For most of us, selecting a bike is the beginning of a long-term relationship. Not so with training flats, however. Despite the hefty price tag associated with most running shoes, they inevitably end up worn out and broken down in just a matter of months. Here then, is what you can expect to see in the stores this fall as you retire your comfortable summer trainers.

Diadora Mythos Road $85 For those of us who overpronate, the Mythos Road is one of the shoes designed to lead us away from the land of chronic injury. Retaining a good deal of responsiveness (flexible forefoot, semi-curved last, not too heavy) the Road is powerfully reinforced under the arch with a second, firmer density of foam and an imbedded footbridge. diadora.com

adidas adiZero Tempo $110 The lightweight Tempo uses ForMotion technology to enhance the overall smoothness of your footstrike during fast-paced running. The result is an anti-pronation shoe youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be comfortable using for speed work, fartlek training and races. adidasrunning.com

Puma Complete Magnetist $125

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Puma continues to get better and better in their running line. The Magnetist is well cushioned throughout a lightweight design. A flexible, responsive shoe for standard training runs and also something you might consider for long races. puma.com

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Saucony Grid Labyrinth $85 The Labyrinth represents a striking innovation in trail-shoe design. The rugged carbon-rubber outsole uses a collection of different lug sizes on a light, low-profile midsole. Seriously: if you added a bit more protection to the upper, you feel like you could play Astroturf football in these. As for on-trail performance, the outsole allows for grippiness on just about any terrain you will encounter. saucony.com

Reebok Premier 3D Trainer $85 When I got my first look at the 3D Trainer, I assumed it must have been a $120 shoe. How nice it is to see an $85 shoe of such quality. This is a fast, responsive shoe with a curved last, a medial bridge for a shot of torsional rigidity and plenty of cushioning throughout the midsole.

A fun ride. reebok.com

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Avia Avi-Trail $90

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The midsole of the Avi-Trail is made of lightweight EVA and is bolstered by a medial post to add stability. Although specified for the trail, the AviTrail will do the job on the roads too. As for the trail, you canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help but like the top layer of the upper: a skeletal mesh that provides sleek integrity to the shoe. avia.com

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Asics GEL-Nimbus 9 $120 For cushion freaks, the Nimbus is a favorite (now in its ninth version). The midsole is comprised of spongy foam and large gel inserts. The fit is so well conceived (and cozy) you want to take off running the second you put them on. A medial footbridge works to reduce the forces of a twisting foot. Great long-run shoe and definitely a smart race-shoe pick for the neutral-footed. asics.com

Craft Karhu M1 $160 Handmade and beautifully crafted, stability is enhanced in the M1 by the use of a 10-gram carbon plate and the philosophy that supporting the foot’s natural movements is the best way to stem any injury-producing problems. craft-usa.com

Newton Trainer $175

Images courtesy the manufacturers

There’s been a lot of talk and research in the running-shoe world centered on what it would be like if we could do all of our running barefoot. The Newton may be the best product to pioneer this territory. The Newton, created by triathlon’s injury-prevention guru/genius Danny Abshire, gives the runner a whole different feel of what a running shoe is supposed to be. Essentially, the midsole has been engineered to trick your foot into thinking you’re running barefoot through the jungle. newtonrunning.com

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AVIA AND SOUZA BACK TOGETHER

Courtesy Avia

Over the past two years, Avia has been re-inventing itself, returning to the company many runners and triathletes recall it to be in the 1980s and early ’90s: a high-performance, grassroots-marketed maker of technical running shoes. Ask any old-school running-shoe salesmen from that time, and they’ll tell you that one of their best selling shoes was the Avia 2050. He or she will also recall Avia’s sponsorship of Kenny Souza, the duathlon star that singlehandedly put duathlon on the multisport map.

Ed Goldman, VP of marketing with Avia, recalls discussions about whom the company should look to sponsor to pair up with recent investments in their development department. “Some of the guys said to me, ‘We’ve got to get Kenny back,’” said Goldman. “When I was told of what Kenny was up to, his finish at RAAM last year despite bronchitis and how he was still a competitive athlete, I didn’t even have to think about approaching him.”

Goldman says that Souza was one of the all-time best athletes a company could sponsor. “He always went beyond what was expected of him.” In the past two years Souza has focused on ultra-distance cycling events. His most recent performance: a 268-hour-and-47-minute effort to finish fourth in the solo division of the 2006 RAAM. At Wildflower this year, the 25th anniversary of the event, Souza spent time at the Avia booth, and the reunion became part of the theme of the weekend.

Look for Souza, 43, to resume competition this summer.

Etonic Minado MC $100

The Radius looks like it might be a heavyweight trainer, but the foam MoGo cushioning has been tuned so it’s light and soft. The shoe is beefy under the forefoot and rearfoot, with a medial pod plugged under the arch for support. This is a solid daily trainer for the neutral foot. Brooks fans wanting more raw stability should look to the ASR 4 or the Trance 7. brooksrunning.com

For the flat-footed, big-guy-type runner with a foot that rolls like a bowling ball, the Minado is a welcome addition to the motion-control world. Exceptionally protective thanks to a solid midsole, a stability plate and dual-density EVA post, the MC is a workhorse. You can order up to a size 4E as well. etonic.com

Images courtesy the manufacturers

Brooks Radius $85

1 2 2 AUGUST 2007

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KUOTA FOLLOW YOUR D REAM

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ON THE RUN

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SPEED LAB

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TECH SUPPORT

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DEAR COACH

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TRAINING FEATURE

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T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 1 2 5

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

“A POSITIVE ATTITUDE may not solve all your PROBLEMS, but it will ANNOY ENOUGH people to make it worth the EFFORT.”

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LAB RABBIT TRAINING

Swim-focus phase Weeks 1-4 of your 12-week swim progression

By Steve Tarpinian ver the past several months, we have brought you a number of 12-week stepby-step training programs from sprint to Ironman distance. This month, we are beginning our first single-sport focus: a 12week program designed to help triathletes of any ability boost their economy and skill at one of the three individual sports that make up triathlon. Perhaps not surprisingly, we have chosen to begin at the beginning—and with the sport that demands the highest level of technical proficiency. Below, you’ll find weeks 1-4 of our 12-week swim focus. Weeks 5-8 and 9-12 will follow in the September and October issues. If you’d like to follow any of our previous Lab Rabbit programs, please visit triathletemag.com and click on Order a Back Issue.

This program is designed for Olympic-distance-focused triathletes; however, we have included easy adjustments for you to take into account varying race distances. So whether you want to do a sprint, Olympic, 70.3 or Ironman event, let’s get started.

To begin, there are three specific aspects we want to highlight so you can make this program as effective as possible and incorporate it into your overall training schedule:

O

1. BODY POSITION AND TECHNIQUE ARE ENHANCED BY SPEED The human body is denser (heavier) in the lower half. This is because the lower half of our bodies are mostly comprised of the heavily muscled legs (less body fat is stored around leg muscles and there are no lungs carrying buoyant oxygen in and out). The technique work for this four-week training block will focus on body position and kick to minimize drag and ensure our legs do not ride low in the water and increase drag. In addition, we will incorporate speed work in almost every workout to reinforce correct body position.

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

2. SWIM TECHNIQUE IS MORE CRITICAL AND COMPLEX THAN IN OTHER SPORTS

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

This is not news to most triathletes. Yet somehow this knowledge does not always translate into a commitment to include drills in every workout. Take responsibility for your improvement and become, in a sense, your own coach.

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3. RELIANCE ON PERCEIVED EFFORT TO GAUGE INTENSITY It is very easy while biking and running to look at a screen and get feedback regarding time, heart rate, wattage or pace. In the pool, however, other than sneaking an occasional glance at the pace clock, it is more difficult to quantify effort. For more advanced swimmers, targeted pace training can be useful. For this 12-week program we have devised a simple definition of intensities based on your perceived effort. See the perceived-effort scale on page 130.

Note: You can also use a Tempo Trainer to monitor your pace. This device is, in essence, a metronome that you place under your cap and which will beep at a rate you set. This is an easy tool to use, and it works well in conjunction with the perceived-effort suggestion in this article.

1 2 8 AUGUST 2007

KEY TECHNIQUE DRILLS FOR WEEKS 1-4 The keys to good body position are to keep the body level and glide onto your side with each pull. While there are many drills for working on this, the below can be especially effective at improving body position. For your technique work we suggest a minimum of 2 x 50 of each below drill per workout. Take 10-15 seconds between 50s to re-focus on what you are trying to accomplish in each drill.

Floating with a light kick: Push off the wall and float on your stomach with the lightest kick possible. Experiment with how you hold your body. When you need a breath, use your kick to rotate onto your back. If you are struggling, put a kickboard under your stomach to provide support.

Perform the drill for a few minutes each week until you can float with minimal kick.

Kick on side: The objective here is to kick on your side with your head on your shoulder and bottom arm extended forward with one goggle in and one out of the water.

Your top arm should be flat against your side. The natural tendency is to start lifting your head out of the water to breathe; however, this will force your legs down and make you work harder. Do one whole length on one side and another length on the other.

Kick on side with one stroke: This drill addresses body position and rotation.

Perform the drill as above, but every five kicks or so take a single stroke and change sides. The focus here needs to be on making a smooth rotation and keeping the body in alignment. The best way to do that is to start the recovery first and stay on your side until your recovery hand T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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• • • •

passes your face, then start to bend the elbow of the leading arm and, as the recovering arm enters the water, begin your pull with the leading arm and roll to the other side. Keep your neck in alignment with your spine (do not lift the head) by rotating on the long axis. Repeat to the other side. Take your time; at first you may only do one rotation per length.

Kick on side with three strokes: This drill is the same as the previous drill; however, in this variation you take three strokes as you rotate from one side to the other. Focus on an integrated rotation with each stroke, driving with your kick and hips, not the head and shoulders.

Easy: 60-70% of max effort Medium: 70-80% of max effort Fast: 80-90% of max effort Sprint: 90-100% of max effort

THE PROGRAM Below you will find the first four weeks of your single-sport focus phase. Schedule the three weekly workouts listed in the table below (plus the optional session, if desired) in place of your regular weekly swim workouts. During this time, continue to train in the other two sports but devote adequate attention to your swim sessions by focusing on your drills and taking the time to swim the sets properly, emphasizing proper form. If your goal is other than an Olympic-distance race, then adapt the below schedule by adjusting the volume of each session. For example, if the program calls for 3 x 500, do two sets for sprint distance and four or more for longer events.

THE JARGON Descending: Each consecutive swim gets faster and times drop Example: 3 x 500 descending would be the first 500 easy, second 500 medium and third fast Negative split: Second half of a swim is faster than the first half Example: 5 x 200 negative split. The first half of the work interval (100) would be easy or medium speed and the second half fast

THE SCHEDULE Please note that the below table lists only the main set for each workout. Always be sure to include a warm-up of 5-15 minutes, a technique block of 10-20 minutes and cool-down of 5-15 minutes.

Sample swim session • Warm-up: 5-15 minutes of easy swimming focusing on easy breathing • Technique work: 10-20 x 50 drill • Main set (see below table) • Cool-down: 5-15 minutes of easy swimming

SWIM FOCUS: WEEKS 1-4 Week

Workout A

Workout B

Workout C

1

3 x 500 descending with 15 seconds rest

10 x 25 sprint with 15 seconds rest; 10 x 100 with 10 seconds rest

1000 as 3 lengths moderate 1 length fast

500 fast/400 easy/300 fast/200 easy/100 fast.

15 seconds rest between swims

2

3 x 600 descending with 15 seconds rest

10 x 50 with 5 seconds rest; 5 x 200 negative split with 10 seconds rest

1500 as 3 lengths moderate 1 length fast

10 x 125: Descend 1-3/4-6/7-9/10 easy. 15 seconds rest between each 125

3

4 x 300 descending with 15 seconds rest

20 x 25 sprint with 15 seconds rest; 10 x 50 with 5 seconds rest alternating fast/easy

2000 as 3 lengths moderate 1 length fast

Technique only: No main set; in place of main set do technique block again

4

3 x 500 descending with 15 seconds rest

10 x 25 sprint with 15 seconds rest; 10 x 100 with 10 seconds rest

1500 as 3 lengths moderate 1 length fast

5 x 200: #1 all fast; #2 as 150 fast/50 easy; #3 as 100 fast/100 easy; #4 as 150 fast/50 easy; #5 all easy

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Optional session

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John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

PERCEIVED-EFFORT SCALE

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Drilling it in Must-have skills for open-water swimming

By Paul Regensburg ot only can open-water swimming be intimidating, but the often-confusing melee of arms and legs can also cause athletes to lose focus, tighten up, produce more lactic acid and, eventually, fall off the pace. Thus, maintaining your composure and technique in the open water, no matter what comes your way, will result in improved efficiency and faster splits. To that end, here are several key open-water swimming drills that can help you stay relaxed and focused when the going gets rough.

N

START DRILLS Waist-deep starts: When starting in waist-deep water, push off the bottom with your feet, dolphin dive forward with your hands extended together and your ears squeezed between your biceps, streamlining through the water to maximize your glide. If the water is still shallow, then stand up and repeat. If the water deepens, start

1 3 2 AUGUST 2007

swimming by taking a strong stroke with one of the lead arms and follow with 20 to 40 powerful, sprint-speed strokes. Count them. Remember to keep your head low in the water and overemphasize your rotation.

Swim easy back to your starting point and repeat the drill four to six times.

Beach run or re-entry: Start on the beach in a ready position, then run into the water at a good speed, but not an allout sprint, swinging your legs over the surface of the water while leaning forward.

When the water level comes up to your lower thighs, dive forward, streamline and begin swimming as explained above with the waist-deep start. Practice this drill with 40 strong strokes to simulate the start of a race and repeat four times, adding 20 strokes each time.

Deep-water starts: While floating on your stomach, extend your arms forward and tread water with your legs, looking forward but staying low in the water. Keep your body horizontal with your feet near the surface; this will allow maximum acceleration when the gun goes. When you are directed to start, begin your kick, keep your head down and build your pace with 20 strong strokes until you are at race speed. In the pool, you can practice this witha set of 8 x 50 with each interval starting with a deepwater/floating starting with no push off.

DRAFTING As on the bike, staying in another athlete’s draft creates a slipstream effect in the water, resulting in an efficiency gain of up to 8 percent, which can chop 30-60 seconds off a mile swim. To practice drafting in the pool, start with a group of four swimmers. Athletes should push off the wall as a group, with one or two swimmers leading the pack and the others following closely, either at the feet or hips of the swimmer in front. Continue swimming in this manner for 200-400 yards or three to six minutes. This will allow you to mix things up and practice the following drafting techniques to determine which one works best for you.

At the hip: Position yourself with your shoulder parallel to the hip of the swimmer next to you—this will allow you to surf his or her wake. You may find that this disrupts your stroke, but keep in mind that swimming on another swimmer’s hip also slows this athlete down, which can be a useful tactic if you are struggling to stay with another swimmer.

Side-by-side: Side-by-side swimming is the worst drafting scenario. It will not only slow you down but will also slow down the person next to you by creating a situation where the two of you steal each other’s water and lock arms.

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At the feet: Swimming directly behind another swimmer, near their feet, is the most efficient way for two to three people to swim by creating the least amount of drag.

Remember to keep your head down, follow closely and watch the bubbles created by the swimmer you are following or it can be easy to lose track of the feet. A little tip: try to follow strong, larger swimmers that don’t kick much, as their draft is much stronger.

Using landmarks: Every six to 10 strokes raise your head straight forward, with your eyes just above the waterline, and sight on a fixed object in the distance.

When you raise your head your legs will be pushed lower in the water, limiting your body rotation and putting on the brakes.

Counteract this effect by increasing your kick. After sighting the object, lower your head back into a low position in the water.

SIGHTING DRILLS

WATER EXITS

Sighting is an important aspect of successful open-water swimming, and although not always necessary if you’re drafting well, it is an essential skill to have at those times when you need to guide yourself. Try these drills to improve your sighting.

Breathing: Practice sighting by turning your head slightly forward after taking a breath, with your eyes just above the surface. Focus briefly on your target, then lower your head back into the water and continue your normal breathing pattern. Bilateral breathing is recommended to balance your body position, rotation and stroke.

Sight every six to 10 strokes until you build confidence that you are swimming straight.

As you near the end of the swim, increase your kick to boost blood circulation in your legs before moving into a vertical running position. When approaching the exit, swim until you can touch the bottom, then stand up. If it is still deep you may want to dolphin dive until the water is just above your knees, and once you are able to run, exit the water with high knees. After exiting the water move your goggles onto your head but wait until you are in transition before you remove your goggles and cap from your head. If you are wearing a wetsuit don’t begin to undo the zipper or remove the top of the suit until you are clear of the water.

Each time you practice in the open water

you should use the end of the workout to practice two to three exits and remove your wetsuit at race speed on the final exit.

Make use of these techniques in your pool and open-water workouts and nothing will catch you off-guard you on race day.

Remember, the more practical and racefocused your training becomes, the better a swimmer you will be.

TAKE-HOME MESSAGE For efficient open-water swimming, practice: Waist-deep starts, beach run or re-entry starts and deep-water starts.

At-the-hip drafting, side-by-side drafting and at-the-feet drafting.

Sighting drills: focus on breathing and using landmarks.

Two to three water exits after each openwater swim.

Thank you to Jessica Kirkwood for her contribution to this piece. Paul Regensburg is an Olympic, Pan Am Games and Ironman coach and team manager. Visit lifesport.ca or contact Paul at coach@lifesport.ca for more information.

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1 3 4 AUGUST 2007

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4 power essentials Tips for getting the most out of your power meter

By Jim Rutberg

et’s face it, triathletes like their gear: high-tech, beautiful, expensive gear.

But as a coach, I have to say some gear is more useful than other gear, and a cycling power meter is the one piece of high-tech equipment that can have a significant impact on your race-day cycling performance. First it’ll help you train more effectively, and it’ll allow you to better monitor your effort during a race.

But as with your first training session with a heart-rate monitor years ago, using a power meter involves a shift to a new way of thinking about your efforts. You can’t just slap it onto your bike and look at the pretty flashing numbers as you ride. To get the most out of your investment, you have to use it, and the data it collects, wisely.

Here are a few tricks to getting more out of your power meter. Use them and, ultimately, two things will happen: You’ll get faster on the bike, and you’ll focus your training on productive workouts and stop wasting time and energy on those workouts that give less bang for the buck.

L

The strain gauges that measure your power output are affected by atmospheric conditions, so it’s absolutely essential that you calibrate your power meter before every ride. If you don’t, the numbers you see in the file later will not accurately reflect the work you did. You could end up taking it too easy because the meter spits out numbers that are too high or working yourself to death because the meter is registering numbers that are lower than reality. While there are a growing number of excellent power meters on the market, here’s what you need to do to calibrate each of the two most popular brands: To calibrate an SRM: SRM refers to the calibration process as “Setting the zero offset.” Spin the crank backwards to wake up the power meter. Press MODE and SET simultaneously so only two numbers appear on the screen. Spin the crank back-

1 3 6 AUGUST 2007

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

TIP NO. 1: CALIBRATE BEFORE EVERY RIDE

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Visit us today online or call toll-free 888-293-3934. *If an item is not in stock at the time you place your order, we will take care of the shipping charges to send it out as soon as it is back in stock (USPS or UPS Ground shipping only). Pre-order items not eligible.

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wards until the top number stabilizes, then press the SET button to make the bottom number match the top number. Press MODE to exit, and go for your ride.

To calibrate a PowerTap: Saris calls this process â&#x20AC;&#x153;Zeroing the torque.â&#x20AC;? Toggle the MODE button until you get to current watts on the computer. Hold down the SELECT button until the word â&#x20AC;&#x153;wattsâ&#x20AC;? disappears. Torque is now being displayed.

Now hold down the SELECT button until the value reads zero. Then press the SELECT button once to exit the function.

TIP NO. 2: DOWNLOAD THE DATA

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This point sounds obvious, but it is the number one issue my fellow coaches and I encounter with athletes who own power meters. The handlebar-mounted computer may give you some average and max data from your ride, but thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s much more valuable information within the actual file.

A power file can tell you how youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re fatiguing during intervals of different intensities, which in turn reveals specific areas within your cycling fitness that need attention.

For instance, you might have great average power for five-minute efforts but low power numbers for 30-minute efforts (as a triathlete, you want the opposite scenario).

You have a tool on your bike that can save you a tremendous amount of time and energy by telling you when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done enough work and when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to rest or focus on your swim or run, but if the data never makes it out of the power meter itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only marginally useful.

TIP NO. 3: USE YOUR KILOJOULES WISELY The two main types of information your meter provides are power and energy, and many people focus only on power.

However, one of the biggest benefits of training with power is being able to accurately measure the amount of mechanical work youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing, which, by estimation, is approximately equal to the number of calories youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re burning.

The work being done is the more important of the two variables because it allows you to adjust the length and intensity of your rides and achieve the training load youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re after by accounting for the impact of headwinds, tailwinds, climbs and descents.

For instance, your workload for an Olympic-distance triathlon bike leg might be 1500kj in two hours. Thus, at some points in your training you might want to do 1500kj rides. But a hard 1500kj ride could take two hours and a 1500kj endurance ride could take three to four

hours. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important to know how hard you need to go and when you need to stay out longer, or go home earlier, to accomplish the desired workload.

TIP NO. 4: OPTIMIZE YOUR AERO POSITION There is a range of methods you can use to evaluate your aero position on the bike, and the level of accuracy tends to vary with price. Wind-tunnel testing is at the top of the range, followed by power-meter testing on a velodrome. (Slapping clip-on aerobars to your handlebars the morning of the race is at the bottom of the range.)

The method readily available to any athlete with a power meter is to ride a set distance on the road at your race pace. A half-mile stretch of clear blacktop is all you need. Assuming the wind and humidity are the same each time you ride, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able to analyze the way your power output changes with each modification to your riding position. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able to figure out whether moving your bars lower or your saddle forward actually makes you faster. Sometimes it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t, because the most aerodynamic position can actually hinder an athleteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to produce maximum power over a prolonged ride. Odd as it may sound, you might go faster with a slightly less aerodynamic positionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and your power meter can tell you.

Jim Rutberg is a Pro Coach for Carmichael Training Systems and co-author of five books with Chris Carmichael, including their latest release, 5 Essentials for a Winning Life. To find out what CTS can do for you, including information about upcoming triathlon training camps, visit trainright.com.

TAKE-HOME MESSAGE To get the most out of your power meter, you have to use it, and the data it collects, wisely.

The strain gauges are affected by atmospheric conditions, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s essential that you calibrate your power meter before every ride.

The handlebar-mounted computer may give you average and max data from your ride, but thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s much more valuable information within the actual file.

One of the biggest benefits of training with power is being able to measure the amount of mechanical work youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing, which, by estimation, is approximately equal to the number of calories youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re burning.

A power meter can allow you to analyze the way your power output changes with each modification to your riding position.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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faster-paced progression onto the end of your long run. After reducing your long run the following week for recovery (something you should do approximately every third week throughout the training cycle), continue the process of building specific endurance by increasing the duration of your long run and the amount of faster running done therein.

Table 1. 16-Week Ironman long-run progression

Running smart Getting more from the long run

By Matt Fitzgerald hen training for long-distance triathlons (Ironman 70.3 and beyond), most triathletes take the same standard approach to long runs. Each Saturday or Sunday they perform a steady, moderate-paced run that’s long enough to leave them well fatigued at the end. As the weeks go by and their endurance builds, they gradually increase the length of these weekend runs, but the pace and structure do not change. Two or three weeks before their goal race they perform their longest run— typically a 12- to 14-miler if the goal race is an Ironman 70.3 and an 18- to 22-miler if the goal race is a full Ironman.

While the standard triathlon approach to long runs is perfectly appropriate for beginners and for anyone whose goal is simply to finish a longer triathlon, more advanced or competitive triathletes need to take a more sophisticated approach to

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long runs that provides greater performance benefits.

Whenever your race goal is to achieve a certain finishing time or age-group placing, you must train not merely to go the distance but to race the distance. To merely go the distance you need nothing more than raw endurance, or the ability to sustain a comfortable pace for a long duration. But to achieve an aggressive time goal for a given race distance you need specific endurance, or the ability to resist fatigue at your goal run pace across the full extension of triathlon’s final leg.

Attaining specific endurance requires that you train for specific endurance, yet most triathletes train only for raw endurance in their weekend long runs.

To make the shift from raw-endurance development to specific-endurance development in your long runs, follow a week-by-week long-run progression in which the overall duration of running and the amount of running that’s done at or near your goal race pace gradually increase.

Start with a steady, moderate-pace run that’s two to three miles longer than the longest run you’ve done within the past month.

The following week, tack a relatively short,

Long run

1

8 miles easy

2

8 miles + 10-minute marathon-pace progression

3

7 miles easy

4

10 miles + 10-minute marathon-pace progression

5

12 miles + 15-minute marathon-pace progression

6

10 miles easy

7

14 miles + 20-minute marathon-pace progression

8

15 miles + 20-minute marathon-pace progression

9

12 miles easy

10

5 miles easy + 5 x (1 mile @ marathon pace minus 15 seconds per mile; 1 mile @ marathon pace plus 1 minute per mile)

11

5 miles easy + 6 x (1 mile @ marathon pace minus 15 seconds per mile; 1 mile @ marathon pace plus 1 minute per mile)

12

Half-Ironman tune-up race

13

6 miles easy + 4 x (2 miles @ marathon pace minus 10 seconds per mile; 1 mile @ marathon pace plus 45 seconds per mile)

14

6 miles easy + 4 x (2 miles @ marathon pace minus 5 seconds per mile; 1 mile @ marathon pace plus 30 seconds per mile)

15

14 miles easy

16

10 miles easy + 10 miles @ marathon pace

Table 1 provides a sample 16-week long-run progression focused on developing specific running endurance in those pursuing an aggressive Ironman time goal.

In the first eight weeks the workouts start with long, easy efforts and end with short race-pace progressions. At week 10 the format changes to a shorter easy segment T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

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followed by a longer segment of faster, variable-pace running. The peak long run, which should be done two to three weeks before race day, is a 20-miler with the last 10 miles run at race pace.

Table 2. 11-Week Ironman 70.3 triathlon long-run progression Week

Long run

1

6 miles easy

2

7 miles + 10-minute marathon-pace progression

3

7 miles easy

4

8 miles + 15-minute marathon-pace progression

5

9 miles + 20-minute marathon-pace progression

6

9 miles easy

7

10 miles + 15-minute half-marathonpace progression

8

11 miles + 20-minute marathon-pace progression

9

10 miles easy

10

2-mile warm-up 2 x 3 miles @ half-marathon pace with 2-mile jog recovery 2-mile cool-down

11

3-mile warm-up 7 miles @ half-marathon pace 3-mile cool-down

Table 2 provides a sample 11-week long-run progression focused on developing specific running endurance for those pursuing an aggressive Ironman 70.3 time goal. This progression builds specific running endurance by increasing the total distance run from a starting level of six miles in week 1 to a peak level of roughly 14 miles in week 8 and by increasing the volume and speed of faster-pace running from 10 minutes of marathon-pace running in week 2 to seven miles of half-marathon-pace running in Week 11.

TAKE-HOME MESSAGE To merely go the distance you need nothing more than raw endurance, or the ability to sustain a comfortable pace for a long duration. But to achieve an aggressive time goal you need specific endurance, or the ability to resist fatigue at your goal pace.

To make the shift from raw endurance to specific T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

endurance, follow a week-by-week long-run progression in which the overall duration of running and the amount of running done at or near your goal race pace gradually increase.

Start with a steady, moderate-pace run thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s two to three miles longer than the longest run youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done with-

in the past month. The following week, tack a relatively short, faster-paced progression onto the end of your long run. After reducing your long run the following week for recovery, continue the process of building specific endurance by increasing the duration of your long run and the amount of faster running done therein.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 1 4 1

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Tiny bubbles Are triathlon and scuba a dangerous combination?

By Tim Mickleborough, Ph.D. DEAR SPEED LAB, I live in California and like to scuba dive as well as compete in triathlons. In the summer months I often scuba dive during the week before I compete in a weekend triathlon, typically an Olympic-distance or half-IM triathlon. I mostly dive on a Friday since I often have that day off work.

Occasionally, if a race is on a Saturday, I may scuba dive on the Sunday. Some friends of mine suggested that this might not be a good idea if I compete and train on the weekend, and so I searched on the Internet and found conflicting advice that scuba diving may be detrimental to performance or even harmful to your health.

How soon before a race can I dive?

Thanks, Ben Santa Cruz, Calif.

Dear Ben, Aside from the issue of whether a couple of scuba dives will affect your performance on race day, there is another important 1 4 2 AUGUST 2007

concern: Is there any danger in exercising before or after diving? The potential health risk stems from the extent to which your tissues become supersaturated with nitrogen during a dive—and whether this induces nitrogen bubbles to form either as a result of pre-dive exercise or through exercise immediately after a dive. Nitrogen is an inert gas stored throughout the human body; however, when the body is exposed to decreased pressures, such as during a scuba-diving ascent, the nitrogen dissolved in the body outgases (that is, the nitrogen is filtered out by the lungs and exhaled). If nitrogen is forced to come out of solution too quickly (as a result of a rapid ascent or failure to make prescribed decompression stops), however, bubbles form in parts of the body, causing itching, rashes, joint pain, sensory-system failure, paralysis and even death as the bubbles move into the left side of the heart (instead of being filtered out into the lungs) and cause decompression sickness (DCS).

Gas exchange works well at a constant temperature. However, after diving, when body tissues have taken up nitrogen, activities such as running, weight-lifting or any other heavy exercise workload may exacerbate bubble formation. These bubbles, which may persist for between two and five hours, can grow large enough to block blood flow, which in turn can cause localized oxygen starvation and trigger an

immune system-like response to attack the blockage. Thus, it is advisable to place four restful hours between exercise and diving and six hours between diving and exercise. Rest allows tissue oxygen levels to drop and reduces the likelihood that bubbles will be generated in the tissues.

There are a couple of relevant studies to consider. In 1949, the Navy found that two hours of post-dive exercise increased DCS incidence significantly. In the 1970s and 1980s, during diving research at the Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Environmental Physiology (F.G. Hall Lab) at Duke University, several divers developed severe DCS during dives shortly after heavy weightlifting.

In addition, Dujic et al. have shown that mild underwater swimming during a three-minute decompression stop reduces post-dive gas-bubble formation. In addition, Wisloff et al. demonstrated that exercise performed a full 10-20 hours prior to a dive can ameliorate venous bubble formation upon decompression.

Still, there are, in the final analysis, no authoritative guidelines vis-à-vis diving and exercise. While, as suggested above, you should not dive within four hours of exercise to allow your body to cool down and rest before exposing your tissues to increased nitrogen levels, it’s less clear whether diving prior to an endurance event could affect race-day performance.

While diving, the lungs are exposed to a hyperbaric environment (increased external pressure), increased respiratory loads and gas density and venous gas emboli (detectable bubbles in the venous side of the systemic circulation). All of these factors have been shown to contribute to changes in pulmonary function after diving. To be on the safe side, I would avoid the Friday dive if you are racing or undergoing heavy training on the weekend.

REFERENCES: 1. Dujic, Z., Palada, I., Obad, A., Duplancic, D., Bakovic, D., Valic, Z. (2005). “Exercise during a 3min decompression stop reduces postdive venous gas bubbles.” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 37 (8), 1319-1323.

2. Wisloff, U., Richardson, R.S. and Brubakk, A.O. (2004). “Exercise and nitric prevent bubble formation: A novel approach to the prevention of decompression sickness.” J Physiol. 555 (3), 825-829.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

Have a question for Speed Lab? If so, please e-mail it to speedlab@juno.com.

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Professional fitting services usually run $200-$400 and the methodology and information provided can range immensely. You tend to get what you pay for with bike fitters so you should interview any fitter you are planning on working with, and do not shy away from traveling to work with a reputable fit specialist.

Ian

If the bike fits . . .

When it comes to bike fit, not all approaches are created equal

By Ian Buchanan DEAR TECH SUPPORT, What is the difference between being sized for a bike and being fit? Some people talk about sizing new bikes and others have said that I should be fit to my new bike. Are they saying the same thing?

Tristan Tristan, You have hit upon one of the most important distinctions in bike selection: the difference between a bike sizing and a fitting. While sizing tries to fit the rider to the bike, a professionally fit bike fits the bike to the rider.

Being sized for a bike generally refers to using rules of thumb or formulas to choose a size in a given bike model. A bike sizing usually takes under half an hour and can consist of as little as seeing if the rider has stand-over clearance over the top tube or (at most) taking some basic body measurements and then selecting the bike size based upon this. A sizing is limited in scope and does not take into account important individual rider variables or even whether the bike is offered in a frame geometry that is suitable to your needs. The end result of a sizing is that the rider must do their best to adapt to the limitations and constraints of the model that is chosen. Despite these sub1 4 4 AUGUST 2007

stantial limitations, the vast majority of bikes, even high-end bikes, are bought and sold by sizing alone.

A fitting is an entirely different process that eliminates the guesswork as to which bikes and products are the best matches by building your riding position first and then using that information to help you consider only those bike models that will actually fit you well.

You need to be cautious as the terms fitting and sizing are often used interchangeably and some dealers advertise expert bike fitting when they are really providing bike sizing. It pays to learn more about the process any dealer uses before you buy. If the shop says their fitting or sizing takes under an hour, be skeptical. If the fitting is free with purchase, be skeptical. If they recommend stock bike models or brands before talking about how the bike fits, or if they make you buy the bike before your fitting, be even more skeptical. A comprehensive fitting with a professional should take a few hours and, at the least, should consist of a detailed interview with you followed by assessments for physical proportions, range of motion/flexibility in key muscle groups, biomechanical alignment assessment and a dynamic session with you on an adjustable fitting bike like the Serotta Size Cycle.

After reading a magazine article about bike fitting, I made some changes to my set-up. These changes included lengthening the stem so the handlebar blocks my view of the hub when riding and placing my heel on the pedal when it is at the bottom of the stroke to set saddle height. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m pretty sure that I followed the formulas properly, but I feel stretched out in this position and my lower back hurts. Am I doing something wrong?

Keith Keith, General positioning suggestions do not work for every rider and often oversimplify the fitting process while ignoring individual rider variations or preferences. For example, three-time Tour de France champion Greg LeMond rode very successfully with his saddle much further back than is common among pro cyclists. It was soon printed in fitting and coaching manuals that this laidback saddle position was the best place to ride as LeMondâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s results were so strong.

What often failed to be mentioned was that LeMond had longer-than-average femurs (upper leg bone) and thus his knee sat further forward in relation to the pedal; what was reasonable for LeMond was not really the norm. Not surprisingly, many people suffered from knee, hip and back issues when riding this way.

Enjoy the ride and train hard and smart!

Ian Ian Buchanan is co-owner of Fit Werx. Fit Werx has locations in Waitsfield, Vt., and Peabody, Mass., and offers cycling and triathlon products, specialty fitting and analysis services, consultation and technology research. Fit Werx can be reached in Vermont at 802-496-7570, in Massachusetts at 978-532-7348 or through the Web at fitwerx.com.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

DEAR TECH SUPPORT,

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CONGRATULATIONS to the 2007 Accenture Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon Champions!

ANDY POTTS

LEANDA CAVE

Produced by

October 20-21, 2007 www.escapetobermudatriathlon.com WWW.BERMUDATOURISM.COM

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TRAINING DEAR COACH

Keep it simple Micromanaging the pedal stroke

By Paul Huddle and Roch Frey DEAR COACHES, I’m a triathlete (training for an Ironman) looking for a clarification on what the ratio should be for the upward/downward part of the cycling stroke. I’ve heard it is supposed to be 10 percent up and 90 percent down; is this true or is it more balanced?

Thank you , Andrew Andrew, Saying you’re a triathlete is enough for us. Saying you’re training for an Ironman only magnifies the stereotype and potential issues that come with it. Just letting us

1 4 6 AUGUST 2007

know that you’re a triathlete tells us that, to some degree, you exhibit a few or all of the following personality traits: neurotic, type A, obsessive compulsive, organized, attention seeking, neat and, of course, willing to try anything that might make you faster than your (pick one) buddy, wife, neighbor, daughter, sworn enemy, etc. And you’re training for an Ironman.

Okay, you’re all of those things and you have no life. Are we close?

Why should any of this matter? It matters because in the never-ending quest for performance it’s our contention that triathletes are forgetting the basics.

Training for this sport is pretty simple, but leave it to all of us to complicate it unnecessarily. Want to become a better triathlete over time? Here’s the formula: swim, bike, run, recover, race—consistently over time. Granted, the fourth ingredient in this formula is often overlooked and can be identified as the cause for many a sub-par performance, but we’re willing to bet that if many athletes

returned their focus to the basics of training their performances would improve. Be specific to the distances/intensities of the events you’re preparing for, mix in the necessary recovery, and, following the above formula, you’ll not only do well but, over time, you will improve.

Okay, the old pedal stroke-analysis question. We’ll preface our response with the usual—different folks will be more efficient at slightly different percentages of up and down stroke on varying terrain but, for most, we’d go back to some of the information we learned in the 1990s from a study using force pedals (pedals that can measure upward and downward pressure) on a wide variety of cyclists (triathletes, mountain bikers and road racers). The results of the study suggested that none of these athletes (some included were the very best in their respective disciplines) could provide any upward force to the recovery portion of the pedal stroke.

There was always some downward force on the pedal during the recovery phase. It

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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TRAINING DEAR COACH

was surmised that the best an athlete could do was to help un-weight the pedal on the recovery portion of the stroke. When analyzing which muscles were firing in what order during the pedal stroke, it became apparent that the natural biomechanical advantages that some legmuscle groups have over others while pedaling a bicycle necessarily cause the down stroke to provide the majority of power that is put to the road.

Still, a couple of interesting points emerged. If un-weighting one’s pedal during the recovery portion is a measure of pedaling efficiency, then mountain bikers were the most efficient. Speculation was that because these athletes need to be able to finesse power into the rear wheel in low-traction situations (steep climbs on loose surfaces), they were better at this.

In two tests with a young cyclist named Lance Armstrong, the second session revealed decreased efficiency as measured by the ratio of upstroke to down stroke.

Interestingly, the second test was done in close proximity to Lance’s world-championship victory, when you might have expected him to be more efficient than earlier in the season. He had become much more of a stomper, but it didn’t seem to hurt him.

So, what’s the correct and/or most efficient ratio of down to upstroke? We’d suggest continuing to work on the recovery portion of your pedal stroke during the off-season (spinning smaller gears while working on feeling even pressure on the pedals all the way around the stroke) and on your easier rides during the season. Take advantage of any opportunity to get on a CompuTrainer to see what your pedal stroke looks like, if there’s a big difference between legs and

1 4 8 AUGUST 2007

how you might increase efficiency. Do some single-leg drills on your trainer. Check out some Power Cranks and see how these impact your cycling. Then, using the information you’re able to gather from all these great tools, determine if any of it is translating to a higher average speed on the road. After all, isn’t that the point?

The way some people talk about efficient pedaling you might think that the goal is to put the same amount of pressure/power into the pedal all the way around the stroke. In our view, this is unrealistic and doesn’t take into consideration the biomechanical advantages of the leg muscles that are the prime movers used in riding a bicycle.

We’d put pedal-stroke efficiency and the drills that allow you to work on it in the same class as swimming and running drills. It’s important but not as important as training specificity. After working on your pedal stroke, go back to training at the intensities and durations that are specific to the events you’re preparing for, get recovered and race. We’d be willing to bet that when you get 80 miles into your Ironman ride you’re not going to be worried about whether or not you’re pedaling with 90 percent on the down stroke and 10 percent on the upstroke.

No, you’re going to be just like everyone who has ever arrived at the 80-mile mark in an Ironman bike course.

You’ll want to kill every spectator and volunteer who is telling you “You’re almost there!” you’ll wonder why your saddle feels like a fencepost surfaced with #4 grit sand paper and you’ll actually be looking forward to running 26.2 miles just to get off this #@*%^#* bike.

Good luck, Paul and Roch

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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TRAINING

adapt to the training stimulus. As such, by introducing a new stressor, such as stride ladder workouts you can take your fitness to a higher level.

Stride ladder workouts are easy to incorporate into your current running program.

You may call them by other names, such as repetitions, variable intervals, fartlek (speed play) or pickups, but a stride ladder workout by any other name is just as beneficial.

They can be done on a trail, track or road and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t require measuring or estimating distances. They can easily be adjusted to your level of fitness while improving fatigue resistance and increasing power enough to give you just the burst you need to edge out your training partner at the finish line.

So who can benefit from a weekly stride ladder workout? Nearly everyone, but stride ladder workouts are most beneficial for the sprint- and Olympic-distance athletes. If you now run three miles or more at least three days a week with relative ease, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re probably ready to incorporate stride ladders into your tri-training program.

Ups and downs Break out of your rut with a weekly stride ladder workout

By Michael E. Price

1 5 0 AUGUST 2007

ike many triathletes, you may be in a running rut, especially at this point in the season when you have been putting in structured miles for months. So why change your routine now? Well, although you may have a training program that works wonders, the law of diminishing returns maintains that the longer you do the same thing the less your body will

L

A successful training program is based on three variables: frequency (how often), intensity (how hard) and duration (how long). Increasing the intensity by incorporating a stride ladder workout once a week will stimulate fast-twitch muscle fibers, teaching leg muscles to be fast, strong and more fatigue-resistant. Stride ladder workouts also help to increase your running economy by boosting leg turnover.

After a five-minute walk, jog easily for five minutes, gradually increasing your pace.

Then begin an ascending stride ladder by running at 80-95 percent of self-estimated maximum pace for five strides (10 steps) then jog five strides, run 10 and jog 10, run 15 and jog 15, continuing in five-stride increments up to running 50 and jogging 50â&#x20AC;&#x201D;about five minutes total time on average. Jog for five minutes to recover before beginning a descending stride ladder.

Begin the descending stride ladder by running 50 strides at 80-95 percent of self-estimated maximum pace, followed by jogging for 50 strides. Continue working down the ladder in five-stride decrements.

After completing the descending stride ladder, recover with a five-minute jog, followed by a five-minute cool-down walk and stretching.

If you find running 50 strides to be too challenging, begin with what is comfortable and work up to 50 strides over a period of weeks or months. If running 50 strides is not

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

THE WEEKLY WORKOUT

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TRAINING

5 minutes

Walk

stretching should be relaxing and rejuvenating not painful. To avoid flexibility imbalances perform the stretches to both sides. If time permits, repeat the sequence of stretches two to three times.

5 minutes

Warm-up jog

1) Stork stretch

5 minutes

Ascend stride ladder

5 minutes

Recovery jog

5 minutes

Descend stride ladder

5 minutes

Recovery jog

5 minutes

Cool-down walk

5 minutes

Stretch

WEEKLY STRIDE LADDER WORKOUT

challenging enough, continue up the ladder in five-stride increments until a challenging level is achieved.

Stride ladders can help improve running form by boosting your turnover, or the number of steps you take per minute. One of the most common hindrances to efficient running is slow turnover, and many runners may find their turnover as slow as 75 strides (150 steps) per minute rather than in the recommended range of 180-190 steps per minute. Thus, during the workout, think about minimizing foot-strike time by utilizing quick, light steps. Toe off vigorously and propel yourself forward not upward, while maintaining a slight forward torso lean of no more than five degrees.

The shoulders, hands and wrists should remain relaxed, not tensed, with the forearms parallel to the ground, moving in line with the body. Keep your head still and focus your eyes about 10 yards in front of you, especially when running trails where roots or debris may cause tripping.

That’s it. In only 40 minutes, once a week, you’re well on the way to running stronger and faster and burning more fat than ever before.

POST-WORKOUT STRETCHING After completing the cool-down, don’t neglect stretching. Flexibility is a key component of any well-rounded training program, and proper stretching will help develop and maintain range of motion, reduce your risk of injury and alleviate post-workout soreness.

The following stretches should be performed in the suggested order. For maximum benefit, ease into each stretch, hold the stretched position for 20-30 seconds without bouncing and ease out of the stretch. Never stretch to the point of pain;

1 5 2 AUGUST 2007

What is stretched? Quadriceps (front of thigh) What to do: Stand tall with your left hand against a wall or stretching post for balance and support. Raise the left foot behind you and grasp the raised foot with the right hand. Maintain a slight bend in the support leg and gently pull the left heel toward the buttocks until you feel a comfortable stretch in the front of the left thigh.

Gently tuck the tailbone forward at the same time as if doing a standing pelvic tilt.

What to avoid: Pulling the heel too close to the buttocks may over-compress the knee joint and result in injury. Leaning forward will prevent an effective hip-flexor stretch.

2) Standing hamstring What is stretched? Hamstrings (back of thigh) What to do: Stand in front of a bench, bleacher, step or other stable platform.

Place the back of the heel of one foot on top of the platform, toes pointing up, keeping a slight bend in both knees.

Maintain a straight back, neutral head position and forward-facing hips and bend forward at the waist, bringing the chest toward the raised leg until you feel a comfortable stretch.

What to avoid: Locking out either knee increases the risk of injury to the knee and lower back.

3 & 4) Wall lean What is stretched? Calves What to do: Stand at about arm’s length in front of a wall or other solid support. Place both palms against the wall and the left foot in front of you, while maintaining a vertical lower left leg. Keep the right leg straight, with the toes pointing in slightly, and the heel firmly pressed into the ground. Lean forward and press the forearms against the wall until you feel a comfortable stretch through the calf. Keep a straight line from the right heel, through the trunk, to the head. To stretch the soleus and Achilles tendon, bend the right (straight) leg while keeping the heel pressed into the ground. Switch legs and repeat.

What to avoid: Raising the rear heel will result in a less than optimal stretch of

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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TRAINING

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

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the calf muscles. Allowing the front knee to pass beyond the toes may cause injury to the knee. Overarching the lower back may result in damage to the lumbar region.

5) Crossover What is stretched? Iliotibial band (outer thigh)

What to do: Cross the left foot over the right. Turn the torso to the left, bend at the waist and look down at the back of the right heel until you feel a comfortable stretch along the outside of the right thigh.

What to avoid: Vigorously pressing the hip out too far may result in injury to the hip or knee.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

6/14/07

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DIGITAL EDITION NOW AVAILABLE Our digital edition is an exact replica of the print edition of Triathlete magazine, delivered to your computer by e-mail. It looks just like the print edition and contains the identical training information, gear reviews, race reporting and nutrition tips as the mailed copy. But the digital edition offers several advantages that print doesn’t:

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No place like home XTERRA athletes inclined to visit Nevada year after year

By Emma Garrard first experienced XTERRA through the lens of a camera while working as a photographer for Incline, Nevada’s local newspaper, the Bonanza, at the XTERRA USA Championships and XTERRA Nevada in 2005. Shooting for the community paper was my first job after graduating from the University of Nevada, and XTERRA arrived during the first fall I wasn’t training to run competitively in a decade.

Watching the wide-eyed athletes descend upon Incline Village, taking in the unreal blue water of Lake Tahoe, the white sand, giant granite boulders, pine trees and mountains, I realized there was much more to the little mountain town than bro-brahs waiting for the first flurries and ex-dotcommers retired at 30. I realized for the first time that Incline is an endurance athlete’s paradise.

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The last week of September, while local duffers hack their last chunks out of the golf course, those taking the road less traveled are treated to magnificent views of the beaches below and sheer granite cliffs above from the Flume Trail.

For one week during the quiet shoulder season the village comes alive as the XTERRA crew arrives at the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe followed by the finely tuned athletes to pre-ride the course, acclimate to 6,600 feet and grab a tri-tip burrito (or four) from T’s Rotisserie.

For the handful of XTERRA athletes lucky enough to call Tahoe’s North Shore home, the course never gets old. “The waters are so clean,” local racer Sarah McMahan says. “You can see the bottom the whole swim.”

The course is unique and varied and is the only race Nevada State Parks allows on the Flume. “I know the course like the back of my hand,” says local racer Rachel Barth.

“Tahoe offers a lot of really great rides, but the XTERRA course offers a lot of technical variety and the best views.”

Barth moved to Incline Village with husband Jeff after it became increasingly difficult for the couple to return to Hot Springs, Ark., after XTERRA week. “We knew this was home the first time we stepped out of our rental car in Incline,” Barth says. “We felt it was the best of both worlds. It had everything we liked to do and we liked the small-town community and the lack of over-commercialization.”

Whether joining the convention crowd at the Lone Eagle Grille (across from the Hyatt) for a little nip by the outdoor fire pit, stopping by for 35-cent happy hour wings at Crosby’s, grabbing a pitcher of Fat Tire at Rookies (both just off Highway 28, the town’s main drag) or carbo-loading with a Primavera pie at Tomato’s (across from the Hyatt in the Country Club Shopping Center) Incline’s comfort pre- (and post-) race eateries serve up what racers want.

Many locals get off the couch for XTERRA Nevada on Saturday. The race consists of a 750-meter swim, 22-mile mountainbike ride and a 5-kilometer trail run. Unlike the USA Championships, the Nevada race does not require qualification.

“It’s great because it gives anyone the opportunity to experience XTERRA,” says McMahan, who won the women’s XTERRA Nevada last year. McMahan was unable do any XTERRA-qualifying races after giving birth to twins Noah and Josiah in the spring but still wanted to race her hometown course. “It’s really good for people who are strong mountain bikers but not swimmers or runners. That bike really kicks your butt!”

Single-sport athletes also have the choice of participating in the GU XTERRA Relay Team Challenge or the 10-kilometer trail run that serves as the XTERRA national championship.

As for me, I hope to qualify for my second XTERRA USA Championship this year.

While I travel to other great spots to compete this summer, I’ll always know, for racing, there’s no place like home.

Emma Garrard, a native of Scotland now living in Incline Village, was a three-sport athlete for the University of Nevada, competing in Nordic skiing, cross-country running and track and field. She was also an academic AllAmerican.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Jim Safford

XTERRA ZONE

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3. All entries must be received by October 15th, 2007. Triathlete is not responsible for lost, late, misdirected, damaged, illegible or postage-due mail.

4. Prize winners will be selected no later than October 26th, 2007 from among all entries received. Winner selection will take place under the supervision of Triathlete, whose decisions are final. Each entrant consents to the transfer of all information contained in the completed entry form to other companies.

5. The odds of winning are determined by the total number of eligible entries received.

Taxes, where applicable, are the sole responsibility of the winner.

6. Potential winners will be notified by mail, telephone or e-mail. Potential winners must follow the directions contained in any correspondence and return all forms correctly completed within 7 days of the date of correspondence. Non-compliance will result in disqualification and the naming of an alternate winner.

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There is no cash exchange for this prize.

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Sweepstakes subject to all federal, state and local tax laws and void where prohibited by law.

9. For the name of the winner, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope and letter of request to: Triathlete Kuota Sweepstakes, 328 Encinitas Blvd., Suite 100, Encinitas, CA 92024.

Coastwise Capital Group, LLC is a boutique money management firm catering to high net worth individuals and institutions.

We offer an array of products and services including hedge funds and separate accounts. Hedge fund interests are subject to special risks and individuals must meet specific suitability standards before investing. This advertisement does not provide individualized advice or recommendations for any specific subscriber or portfolio. This advertisement is only intended for clients and interested investors residing in states in which the Adviser is qualified to provide investment advisory services. Any subsequent, direct communication with a prospective client will be conducted by the Adviser’s investment advisory representatives & must be qualified in the state where the prospective client resides. For more information on our products and services, or to inquire about the content of this advertisement please visit our website.

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BIKE OF THE MONTH

XLAB Avenger TT

Photo supplied by manufacturer

By Jay Prasuhn

The XLAB Avenger TT, outfitted with a Shimano Dura-Ace/Ultegra mix and Bontrager Select wheels, retails at $2,999. fter years of watching the carbon bike market and advising many big brands, San-Diego-based Nytro and XLAB design/bike-fit guru Craig Turner have moved in with the Avenger TT. Before we get to the frame itself, we’d like to note that it’s a heap of small features that make a big difference on the Avenger TT. One of the smallest but most noticeable from an operational standpoint on the Avenger TT is the well-designed internal cable routing, which makes for a cleaner front-on aero profile, as well as the rear derailleur-cable run. Instead of running along the down tube to guides under the chainstay, the Avenger TT takes a cleaner route: internally through the top tube, then down the drive-side seat stay and directly down to port out, conveniently, at the rear derailleur. Why? The higher cable port-out means for a less radical cable bend as it curves around to the rear derailleur—and a better-shifting bike.

Geometrically speaking, the Avenger TT features a 76-degree seat angle atop a carbon-fiber aero post and features easyto-use, replaceable vertical dropouts.

After a fit by Airo International founder Craig Turner at Nytro in Encinitas, Calif.,

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I was immediately set loose for a maiden voyage on a bike kitted for race day with an XLAB wheelset: the Aero v2.0 50mm front tubular and v2.0 disc. Instead of our customary cruise up the coast, we immediately tackled a short but very steep 15percent climb inland, where I made my first mental note: Like the Scott Plasma, the ovalized top tube of the Avenger TT stiffens the frame laterally, while the rest of the frame was unyielding thanks to those burly stays in back.

Expertly dialed, this full-carbon budget racer was primed for action. I was impressed by the rear derailleur shifter action: The straighter cable run actually allowed for a lighter touch. And, at Turners’ urging, I played with a slightly longer aerobar extension position than I normally run. As promised, it—paired with a short top tube on our 58cm tester—made a straight-tracking bike track even easier while still supporting me well. And while the Avenger TT is not as light as some competing superlight carbon offerings on the market, it’s still plenty light, and, as we see it, beats some of the high-price lightweights for stiffness, making for a bike that goes forward fast, without hesitation.

The Avenger TT is certainly designed for an aggressive setup, a refreshing change for bikes priced at $3,000. I’ve found that bikes in this price range are often condescending in terms of design, assuming consumers spending this “little” on a bike would want a more relaxed intro-level ride. I reckon that’s where Turner’s experience as a Nytro retailer plays to his advantage, where he finds his consumers know what they want: fast geometry and features like a tight seat-tube cowling, at a reasonable price.

Comparing the Avenger TT to several like-priced bikes from bigger brands, you should find an equally aerodynamic carbon frame. But that’s where similarities end.

When stacking up specification differences, the XLAB wins, hands down, with an FSA SL-K carbon crankset and super-adjustable carbon-fiber Profile Design T2+ Cobra/CobraWing cockpit. Good luck finding as many upgrade accessories on a carbon bike at a $3,000 price point.

For those seeking value and a welldesigned, well spec’d bike that concedes nothing to the big boys, then offers a little bit more, check out the Avenger TT. For more on the Avenger TT, visit airointernational.com.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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Why Do More Triathletes Choose Nytro?

For starters, we offer cutting edge technical advice and selection. We carry state of the art products, we offer Nytro’s Body Bike FusionTM Fit Process and the best value in the industry…Lowest Prices Guaranteed!

Case in Point; Ask C. D. from Florida. He flew to San Diego with Nytro’s Fly ‘N’ Ride program that paid for his overnight stay. He teamed up with Nytro at the San Diego Wind Tunnel and optimized his Aero Positioning by drastically reducing his body’s aerodynamic drag, which can absorb 64% of your energy. Combine that with our large selection of inventory and technical experience and you know you are experiencing Nytro to its fullest. His bike was Nytro custom assembled and fit, road tested and shipped home. Needless to say, C.D. was a happy man!

Nytro’s strong racing heritage is backed by 15 years of experience winning more World Triathlon Championships than all of our competitors combined!

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CUTTING EDGE

ple from around the country to fly in, get fit to a bike, buy it and train here, anytime of year. It’s a great opportunity.

Trisports.com owners Seton and Debbie Claggett (with their son Torin) have turned what was once a modest home-based business into an industry-leading retail operation.

Trisports.com branches out Outlying thinking meets online shopping

By Jay Prasuhn n 2000, Triathlete met enterprising Tucson triathlete and budding businessman Seton Claggett at a local sprint race. His new company, Trisports.com, was a mom-and-pop (or more specifically, husband-and-wife) operation out of Tucson, Ariz., making a go in a new retail medium: the Internet, with wife Debbie helping manage the “warehouse” run out of their home. Nine years later, online shops have sprouted like wildfire, but Trisports.com has maintained a steady foothold as an industry leader.

A longtime triathlete (and a 52-minute Ironman swimmer), Claggett knows the sport front to back. If it’s a hot product or a reliable brand, Trisports.com has it.

In March, representatives from several top retail brands including 2XU, Zoot Sports and athletes including Michellie Jones and Chris Lieto were on-hand in Tucson for the grand opening of a massive 22,000 square-foot warehouse/retail store, complete with a two-lane Endless Pools to test wetsuits, a bike-fit studio plus open areas for lectures and spin-bike classes.

The company has grown exponentially, and forward-thinking Claggett has revolutionized the retail experience for con-

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sumers, tri clubs, vendors and even employees. Triathlete caught up with Claggett during his grand opening.

Triathlete: This store has it all: Endless Pool, an open area for spin-bike classes, natural light for all spaces throughout the building, a super-organized shipping system. I’d liken it to an REI for triathletes.

Claggett: We wanted it to be a standardbearer and did everything we could to that end. We wanted to be able to do anything.

We’ve got cameras in the pool for stroke analysis, anything. One of our employees said we could do an Ironman in the store, so we’re starting an Ironman club. That guy who thought it up is gonna do it, be the first to do an Ironman in the store.

Triathlete: How does the locale play to your favor?

Claggett: It’s a competitive advantage.

In the winter, everyone comes to Tucson to train. Anyone who’s anyone, from Peter Reid, Tim DeBoom, Lance Armstrong, they’ve all trained here. It’s nice for athletes to have a place to come, get a good fit.

And while the storefront does a lot of local business, our fit program gets a lot of peo-

Triathlete: On the heels of the dot-com bomb not long after you opened, were you concerned with an online business model?

Claggett: We were never on the scale of Pets.com or any of those, but yes, there was concern, but there was also opportunity. At the time, we had maybe three competitors. . . . Our first office was at our home. One bedroom was an office, and our son’s bedroom was the warehouse. It was a small room, but it had a high roof and we literally had things stacked to the roof. My very first shipment was Jetstreams. I was like, “Whoa, I’ve got product, what do I do?”

Those first two years were rough.

Triathlete: Rookie mistakes?

Claggett: Oh yeah. I remember hearing, “Everyone wants PowerBars,” so my first order of PowerBars was an entirely full pallet, 3,000 pounds. Food expires. PowerBar buys expired bars back, but I couldn’t morally do that. Thanks to the local bike-swap meet I managed to get rid of them all. I cut back on my orders of perishables after that.

Triathlete: I’m sure you had to get clever as well.

Claggett: Yep. Shipping on TriAll3 cases would kill me, so I would just drive out with a U-Haul trailer to TriAll3 in San Clemente, load it up and drive the cases back, then put them in rental storage.

Anytime I needed to ship a case, I just drove out to the storage shed. Saved a ton of money.

Triathlete: How have you seen the online segment grow?

Claggett: We used to keep track of our competitors, who’s out there. Now, forget it. Every day there’s a new one. Every once in a while I get some guys coming to me to buy their shop, and I feel bad for them.

Their wives are probably pissed at them and usually they were triathletes and thought, “I’m gonna start selling stuff too.” Not a good idea.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

Jay Prasuhn

Triathlete: How do you balance the sport and your business?

Claggett: When I started, people said, “So, you’re a triathlete starting a triathlon store,” and I said, “I’m a triathlete starting a business.” I happened to be in the sport because I saw a great opportunity, but it could just as well have been selling widgets.

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Triathlete: That said, you came into the market as a triathlete as well.

Claggett: Being a triathlete, I really have a pulse on the sport. Not that other people don’t, but that helps. I had a really sound business plan. Our first year in business we didn’t make much money. The second year, one of my advisors called me and said you’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is you made a lot of money. The bad news is you owe a lot of taxes. My first five years, the numbers I forecasted were accurate to within 2 to 3 percent. And I ran lean and mean . . . lean stock.

But I had a good pulse on the vendors, as to what they’ll be able to do for me.

Then you get some hot pulse, everyone posts on Slowtwich and everyone wants some widget. One week you have huge demand, the next it’s dead. So yes, you really have to understand the industry.

That’s why all our buyers are triathletes.

They have to know what’s hot, what’s not.

Triathlete: Give us an idea of what volume means in your business to provide some context.

Claggett: We sell over 350 different wetsuits—brands, size, models. Now we have ’em all in stock, some several deep.

Pretend a suit is $300 at cost. That’s over $90,000 in neoprene. That’s just wetsuits.

Figure in frames, apparel, everything—it’s a very expensive business.

Triathlete: How do storefront and online differ?

Claggett: Aside from sharing the same stock, they’re totally different. The

biggest, thing, understandably, is you don’t see as many returns in store. People sometimes are unsure of what they want, and they’re often not really honest with themselves about their weight.

Triathlete: To have such a successful online component and now a storefront you have to be giving back to the sport.

Claggett: That’s really important to us.

We have a separate non-profit that puts on a race. Trisports.com bankrolls it, and the

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vendors pitch in for this great raffle.

About 25 percent of the funds stay in Show Low for their youth sports foundation, the other percent goes to Challenged Athletes Foundation.

As a company, it’s a symbiotic relationship with the coaches, the teams, the races.

We sponsor races and athletes, whether product, sometimes money. Yes, there’s an advertising effect, but the money we put into it is way more than what we get out of it. The last three years, we put about a half million dollars back into the sport.

And for athlete sponsorship, some may talk about the pros they sponsor, but we sponsor the slow guys and the fast guys.

We look for people who are active in the community, athletes around the world.

We also look at ways to be as green as possible, sending metal parts like chains off for use in creating bike artwork.

Triathlete: You also provide your staff with good benefits—which I wish I had during my bike-shop days.

Claggett: Our staff is super-high priority, and while it’s a fun place to work anyway,

we want them to feel like they’re part of something. All offices have natural light, whether solar tubes, windows, so people don’t feel cooped up. Showers, profit sharing, retention bonuses, 401k, medical, dental, vision, all that.

But we provide a free massage every month for our employees and a program for our staff where they get a free bike from our stock up to $3000 retail after a

year with us. We also have a commuter program, based on your miles to work each day, that helps pay off the cost of parts for the bike. And any employee that rides their bike every day to work for a year gets to pick any bike from our stock, regardless of cost. And we have sales incentives that, if we hit, the team gets a free cruise, ski trip, trip to Disneyland or employees can cash out.

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Total package 630 grams: crankset, two chain rings, attachment bolts and titanium bottom bracket.

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FIRST LOOK From open-water confidence to ride-day comfort, we’ve assembled a collection of what’s hot and new in the world of multisport

By Jay Prasuhn

Swigz Dual Hydration Bottle $15 From the why-didn’t-I-think-of-that file comes the first dual-hydration water bottle. The 24oz bottle is actually two 12oz bottles with separate reservoirs and spigots that pair up to form one bottle. Our test revealed real-world utility with an energy drink in one half and water in the other on a bike with one bottle mount. For those maximizing space and utility on the bike, the Swigz bottle is the answer. swigz.com

T1 Bike Shoe Platform $30 Mounting onto the chainstay and crankarm, the light T1 Platform is designed to keep your cycling shoes level when clipped onto the pedals for a quick T1 exit.

Once you push down onto the pedal, the spring-loaded platform snaps out of the way. t1shoeplatform.com

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

All photos provided by the manufacturers

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Sidas Conform’able run $80 and bike orthotics $80 Offering a nearly custom fit off the shelf, French-made Conform’able orthotics feature a run version with proper flexibility and support and a bike version with proper canting, metatarsal head support and stiffness with a soft suede upper. They also can be heat-molded through the heel cup for a more customized fit.

Used by the Jittery Joe’s Pro Cycling Team, Danish pro Thor Hushovd and French pro triathlete Gilles Reboul, the bike and run orthotics we’ve tested are among the top off-the-shelf orthotics available. sozegroup.com

Vapour moisture TRANSFER FABRIC REAR POCKETS aquaglide water resistant fabric flatlock stitching vapour moisture transfer panel safety reflective

CRAIG ALEXANDER WORLD 70.3 IRONMAN CHAMPION

silicone leg gripper

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

For dealer enquires, please email dealer@orca.com or call 1.866.257.6722.

For further product information check out www.orca.com

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TYR Catch Paddle $15 Most swim paddles are designed with the sole purpose of increasing power. TYR’s new Catch is designed to make you more powerful while also helping you develop better feel for the water. The paddle makes any stroke imperfections easier to feel and thus easier to fix.

The smaller paddle surface will ensure your shoulders stay healthy while you improve your stroke. tyr.com

TYR CrossBlade Fin $28 The new CrossBlade doesn’t look like your usual training fin, and after one swim you’ll realize it’s anything but. This newcomer from TYR is designed as a multi-purpose training fin. The intermediate blade length combines attributes of both short- and long-blade fins. This allows triathletes to increase tempo and speed and offers increased resistance to build leg power. tyr.com

Fi’zi:k Tri Gel Pads $30 The first aftermarket aerobar pad, the Tri Gel replaces stock aerobar black foam pads with washable, shock-absorbing, nonmigrating TechnoGel pads. Versions of the Tri Gel include cut-to-fit replacement pads for Profile Design’s F-19, F-22 and Venturi bars plus Syntace’s BioWing and Vision aerobars. fizik.it

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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Lane Lines to Shore Lines $35

All photos provided by the manufacturers

Swimming 100s on the 1:10 with power in the pool is one thingâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;but doing it with sun in your eyes and some guy next to you cracking you in the head is another. Needless to say, openwater swimming is a whole different game. In this valuable raceday DVD, Gary Emich, world record holder for the Alcatraz swim, takes you through the fine nuances of open-water swimming from sighting to mental confidence to fueling up for race day. lanelinestoshorelines.com or trimagstore.com

INVISIBLE ZIP flatlock stitching MICRO-FLEECE CHAMOIS

The recovery benefits offered by lower-leg compression socks are becoming increasingly well known, and VitalSox is taking note. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been testing the Recovery Sock (used most notably by mountain biker Tinker Juarez), and the padded, antimicrobial sock offers true graduated compression for fast recovery from your long run or ride. recoverysock.com

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

DEBBIE TANNER ITU WORLD CUP WINNER

VitalSox Recovery Sock $30

CRAIG ALEXANDER WORLD 70.3 IRONMAN CHAMPION

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For dealer enquires, please email dealer@orca.com or call 1.866.257.6722.

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AT THE RACES

Out of the fog American Andy Potts continues his ascent into triathlon stardom with his win at Escape from Alcatraz

By T.J. Murphy

n the blustery afternoon on a June day before the Accenture Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon, a mom and her two kids emerged from a restaurant on San Francisco’s Embarcadero, not far from the Ferry Building. “Look guys,” she said brightly. “It’s the sun! That’s what happens sometimes: The fog burns off and the sun comes out.” Then, as an aside to herself almost, she added, “Why, it feels like it’s almost . . . March!”

While the North American racing season was heating up, the Escape from Alcatraz offered a respite, as the Marchlike conditions are actually quite comfortable to race in, once you re-calibrate your body temperature after the most awe-inspiring swim in the sport: a 1.5mile diagonal dash across the icy waters of San Francisco Bay, from off the

Brightroom Photography

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T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

island of Alcatraz to a small beach located near the Marina Green.

Every triathlete should do the Escape at least once in his life. Also, every triathlete should bring mittens and scarves and be a spectator, particularly at the swim exit, where most athletes climbing to their feet and taking their first few steps look as one might expect a spaceman to look after making the journey to Mars. They don’t seem to know where they are or what’s happening. Behind them, the chop and tide has spread their fellow racers

T R I AT H L E T E M A G A Z I N E 1 7 7

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IF YOU CAN SURVIVE IN NEW YORK, YOU CAN SURVIVE ANYWHERE. LIKE KONA.

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ACCENTURE ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ across the bay like stars in the night, with kayakers working feverishly to help them navigate to land. Most need a minute or two to clear up their heads.

One young woman, a spectator, spotted her mom coming to shore and standing up. The daughter shouted, “Mom! Mom! Wow! Mom!” Mom didn’t acknowledge any of it. The daughter started blowing a whistle in between her shouts, running right up behind her. “Bleeeeep! Bleeeeeep! Mom! Bleeeeep.” Mom didn’t flinch. Just kept moving slowly in the direction she figured she was supposed to go.

1 8 0 AUGUST 2007

One racer who had little trouble knifing through the foggy swim was 30year-old Andy Potts, an American who had finished second and third at this race, but never first. In addition to his experience racing here, he was coming in on a wicked hot streak. After collecting titles earlier this year at Ironman 70.3 California and the USAT National Triathlon Championships in Honolulu, a fiery Potts exited the fabled Alcatrazto-San Francisco swim in 24:31, with only Jan Sibbersen, at his side and never turned back, beating 2006 Alcatraz champion Matt Reed, 2004 Olympic

San Francisco, Calif.

June 3, 2007 1.5-mile swim, 18-mile bike, 8-mile run Women 1. Leanda Cave (GBR) 2. Pip Taylor (AUS) 3. Alexis Waddel (USA) 4. Joanna Lawn (NZL) 5. Becky Lavelle (USA)

2:18:47 2:19:35 2:20:29 2:21:25 2:22:11

Men 1. Andy Potts (USA) 2. Bevan Docherty (NZL) 3. Greg Bennett (AUS) 4. Matt Reed (USA) 5. Greg Remaly (USA)

1:59:34 2:00:17 2:00:21 2:02:04 2:02:31

Brightroom Photography

silver medalist Bevan Docherty and Aussie great Greg Bennett. Potts’ 47:20 effort on the 18-mile bike and 43:08 scramble on the tough eight-mile run earned him the title with the only subtwo-hour performance of the day, in 1:59:34. Docherty finished second, in 2:00:17, and Bennett was third in 2:00:21. Reed and Greg Remaly followed, lighting up the scoreboard with three Americans in the top five.

“When I got on my bike,” a cheerful Potts said after the event, “I got into my rhythm and just started pushing.

That’s what you have to do with a world-class field like this. Last year, halfway through the bike, Matt Reed caught me. This year, when I got to the same point and I was still in front, that made me push harder. Same thing with the run: I found my rhythm and just kept pushing. I didn’t want to work as hard as I was and then lose it.”

At the finish line, Potts was exuberant.

“The finish chute is my time to celebrate. It’s the place where I can enjoy all the hard work I put in to get there.”

Like Reed, American Becky Lavelle, admitting she had “a tough day,” failed to defend her title at what is inarguably one of the great races of the sport, opening the door to Great Britain’s Leanda Cave. Cave followed American Linda Gallow out of the frigid water and then immediately took control of the race, lacing together a 26:45 swim, a 54:47 bike and 51:39 run to hold off Australia’s Pip Taylor and American Alexis Waddel with a 2:18:47 clocking.

Taylor crossed the line in 2:19:35 and Waddel was third in 2:20:29.

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McCormack, McGlone win Hawaii 70.3 Jones just edged out by long-course upstart McGlone

By Cameron Elford or its third anniversary, the Ford Ironman 70.3 Hawaii on June 2, which begins at spectacular Hapuna Beach and ends at the Mauna Lani Resort on the North Kohala Coast of the Big Island, shed its original name—the Ford Ironman 70.3 Honu.

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Yet the event, offering qualifying slots to both 70.3 worlds, in Clearwater, Florida, in November, and the Hawaii Ironman, in October, continues to attract hundreds of the sport’s top athletes intent on tackling a slice of the Ironman world championship course.

This year, defending 2006 Hawaii 70.3 champ and Kona runner-up Chris McCormack, from Australia, and emerging long-course star and 2004 Canadian Olympian Sam McGlone topped the field at this challenging event, which begins with a 1.2-mile ocean swim followed by a 56-mile ride north to the turnaround at the town of Hawi, on the island’s northern tip, before finishing with a 13-mile run through the Mauna Lani Resort.

After stomping the fields at Wildflower, Oceanside and Clearwater in 2006, relative long-course newcomer McGlone has this year committed to racing Kona and, given the inroads

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she has made going long, combined with her newly demonstrated ability to handle the Hawaii heat and humidity, has emerged as yet another up-and-coming Ironman threat as many of the women who have dominated Kona for the past decade slowly begin to turn over the world-championship reins to relative upstarts such as McGlone, 2006 Kona runner-up Desiree Ficker and ageless Australian Michellie Jones who, at 37, remains a favorite at any race she entersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;despite just being edged out of the 2007 Hawaii 70.3 title by McGlone.

Eight minutes behind triathlon great Jones after the bike, McGlone, 27, used a 1:25:57 half-marathon to pull past the Aussie and capture the win, which, although less than 90 seconds in front of the defending Ironman world champ, underscored McGloneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s already impressive long-course credentials despite spending the majority of her career thus far focusing on the ITU World Cup series. After posting a blistering bike and run, Jones cruised in for second place while Kailua-Kona local Bree Wee finished third.

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Caledonia’s Patrick Vernay In the men’s race, was second, nearly four minMcCormack continued his utes back, while Hawaii’s preparations for the 2007 Tim Marr took third.

Kona showdown with defending IM world champ Normann FORD IRONMAN 70.3 HAWAII Stadler by setting a Kohala Coast, Big Island, Hawaii new course record at June 2, 2007 the Hawaii 70.3 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run event and leading nearly from start to Women finish.

Despite 1. Samantha McGlone (CAN) 4:31:42 Macca’s commit2. Michellie Jones (AUS) 4:33:08 ment to recast him3. Bree Wee (USA) 4:47:08 self as a runner, the 4. Rachel Ross (USA) 4:48:48 erstwhile ITU 5. Monique Petrov (USA) 4:53:02 world champion nonetheless threw Men down a scorching 1. Chris McCormack (AUS) 3:57:18 2:11:31 bike split 2. Patrick Vernay (NCL) 4:01:59 then followed up 3. Timothy Marr (USA) 4:11:08 with a race-best 4. Peter Loveridge (AUS) 4:12:34 1:17:54 run. New 5. James Bowstead (NZL) 4:13:31 T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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AT THE RACES

Stoltz, McQuaid dominate XTERRA West Champs

By Jay Prasuhn onrad Stoltz ran his finger over the scar that runs lengthwise down his wrist, metal plates crossing under the skin where one bone cracked into six pieces. It was a visual reminder of what may have

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been a career-ender when Stoltz, a two-time XTERRA world champ, crashed pre-race at XTERRA Tahoe last year.

Fortunately, the tall South African healed and returned to the XTERRA circuit with a fresh outlook that helped score him the North American season-opening race at the XTERRA West Championships in Temecula, Calif., on May 20 as he dusted the field in 2:28:20. In the women’s race, defending XTERRA world champ Melanie McQuaid picked up where she left off last October, taking the Temecula title by five minutes over chief rival Jamie Whitmore.

“I wasn’t gonna come back,” Stoltz said flatly. I paid $12,000 out of pocket

for the operation on my wrist. I was losing sponsors left and right and was like “Why? Maybe I’ll just stay home and build houses.”

As one of the sport’s friendliest characters, XTERRA wasn’t ready to let the Caveman crawl away into retirement.

“When the world was coming down,” says Stoltz, “Tom Kiely from XTERRA told me, ‘We’ll stand by you.’ Some people are in it for the business, and some people are in it because they believe in you as an ambassador.”

With a newfound fervor and a healed wrist after a winter of recovery, Stoltz was back in the game for Temecula, and a lighter, fresher, hungrier Stoltz hit Temecula’s Vail Lake for the start.

Out of the water with the leaders, he

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“The NORBAs went so poorly. I thought I was way behind where I should be,” McQuaid admitted.

Out of the water second with a slight lead on Whitmore, McQuaid set off on the early climbs and, in a reversal of early indicators, began putting time on Whitmore. “I said, ‘Don’t look back.’

Last year I looked back and it slowed me down,” Canadian McQuaid said.

Whitmore, recovered from her fall and resultant DNF at XTERRA Maui last year, did her best to chase but was admittedly flat, thanks in part to a new training program and coach.

“He’s helping me re-evaluate my goals. My goal is worlds, which means this year sacrificing top form in some early-season races, and I felt that today, just didn’t have the snap.”

Into transition with a hefty 3:15 lead over Whitmore, McQuaid powered the run to pad her lead into the finish.

“My friends were like, ‘Do less, hang out more,” McQuaid said. Looks like it worked!” Whitmore crossed for second place five minutes back but was optimistic about the result in context of the season.

“I think it comes down to what [McQuaid] did this week versus what I did,” Whitmore said. “I guess she rested, and I had to train through it. I’m not totally dissatisfied. There are more races, and I’m happy giving up one.”

2002 XTERRA world champion Candy Angle held off pro mountain biker Dara Marks Marino for third.

2007 XTERRA WEST CHAMPIONSHIP immediately put a gap on Canada’s Mike Vine and Aussie Andrew Noble.

“I couldn’t believe it; I felt really, really good,” he said.

By T2, Stoltz’s lead was nearly five minutes, which allowed him to measure his effort on the hilly run. “I could afford to not run the downhills, and since I have two races soon after this, recovery is important.”

While Vine did his best to reel in Stoltz on the run, he was only able to gather up a minute of the deficit.

Unopposed, Stoltz crossed the finish line for his first win in a year. Vine took second, while the fleet-footed veteran Noble claimed the last podium placing.

1 8 8 AUGUST 2007

Despite the joy of returning with panache, Stoltz maintained perspective.

“To be able to come back and give something back to the people who had faith in me, it’s very rewarding,” Stoltz said. “But it’s early season. It’s all about Maui.”

MCQUAID & WHITMORE SQUARE OFF AGAIN For McQuaid, the defending XTERRA world champion, and her main opposition in Jamie Whitmore, the tale of the tape indicated Whitmore had the early-season edge. While both had battled one another on the NORBA pro mountain-biking circuit, it was Whitmore who was dominant while McQuaid was flat.

Temecula, Calif.

May 20, 2007 1.5km swim, 30km mountain bike, 10km trail run Women 1. Melanie McQuaid (CAN) 2. Jamie Whitmore (USA) 3. Candy Angle (USA) 4. Dara Marks Marino (USA) 5. Jennifer Smith (USA)

2:50:43 2:55:46 2:59:02 3:00:03 3:04:37

Men 1. Conrad Stoltz (RSA) 2. Mike Vine (CAN) 3. Andrew Noble (AUS) 4. Josiah Middaugh (USA) 5. Brian Smith (USA)

2:28:20 2:31:33 2:34:13 2:35:34 2:37:14

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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I’m not Normann...

...but I am a finisher.

I teamed up with Active.com to find races, training plans, health and fitness tips, and to connect with the largest community of athletes on the planet.

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Unleash the Athlete in you. Discover. Register. Participate today at Active.com/triathlon EVENT DIRECTORS: SAVE TIME AND MONEY, with Active’s online registration tools, volunteer management, merchandise sales, training plans and more. U.S. Toll-Free: 888.543.7223, x1 The Active Network, Inc.

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Elizabeth Kreutz

AT THE RACES

Alexander, Schumacher storm Florida 70.3

By T.J. Murphy

water in just over 25 minutes. The race then evolved into a 26-plus mph battle for the lead during the 56-mile bike, with Iowa’s T.J. Tollakson blasting a 2:04:26 for best-split honors.

Alexander, shadowed by Lessing, biked 2:07:20, and then took off at a blistering run pace (he would eventually average 5:43 per mile) to take the win.

Tollakson faded during the run, eventually finishing sixth as the top American.

SCHUMACHER DOMINATES WOMEN’S RACE henever Craig Alexander boards a plane heading for Florida, you know he’s smiling. It was just months ago when the speedy Australian unleashed a 3:45 effort at the Ford Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Clearwater to best Great Britain’s Simon Lessing by two minutes, for the win. Add Mickey Mouse to the scene, and the men’s competition at Ford Ironman 70.3 Florida, in Orlando on May 20, was a bit of déjà vu.

Held within and around the spectacular confines of the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, the event started with a 1.2-mile swim off of a white-sand beach in the Fort Wilderness Resort into Bay Lake. New Zealand’s Bryan Rhodes ushered the lead men out of the

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After a 30:13 swim, Germany’s Katja Schumacher, the reigning Ironman Wisconsin champion, tangled with Americans Karen Smyers and Karen Holloway during the bike leg that tours through Orange Country. Stapling on a 1:27:22 split on the Fort Wilderness run course to complete a balanced race effort, Schumacher and Smyers pulled away from Holloway during the first lap of the three-lap run course. Smyers couldn’t hang on near the end, however, and Schumacher finished well out in front in 4:28:28 for the win.

Athletes were competing for a pro prize purse of $30,000 and 100 qualifying spots for the 2007 Ford Ironman 70.3 World Championship to be held in Clearwater, Fla., in November.

FORD IRONMAN 70.3 FLORIDA Walt Disney World, Orlando, Fla. May 20, 2007 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run Women 1. Katja Schumacher (GER) 2. Karen Smyers (USA) 3. Tine Deckers (BEL) 4. Karen Holloway (USA) 5. Heather Gollnick (USA)

4:28:28 4:34:06 4:36:31 4:37:52 4:38:19

Men 1. Craig Alexander (AUS) 2. Simon Lessing (GBR) 3. Luke Bell (AUS) 4. Bryan Rhodes (NZL) 5. Santiago Ascenco (BRA)

3:50:27 3:53:47 3:54:18 3:55:52 3:56:30

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AT THE RACES

Macca, Tingle tops at Memphis in May

By Brad Culp ustralian Ironman superstar Chris McCormack got his fair share of competition at the Memphis in May Olympic-distance triathlon on May 21, but his 35:35 10km run was enough to seal up the win, in 1:47:36. The women’s race was even tighter, with Laura Tingle, of Colorado, edging out Alisha Lion, of North Carolina, in 2:02:32.

Almost 1,800 athletes toed the start line in Millington, Tenn., (just outside Memphis) for the 25th-annual event. A time-trial start, super-fast bike course and soaring temperatures all made for an interesting race.

In the men’s elite race, Macca crushed the field with a 17:01 swim, with a large pack about a minute behind. McCormack was able to hold onto the lead for most of the ride, but hard-charging Andrew Starykowicz, from Long Grove, Ill., pulled into the lead by averaging an incredible 28.3 mph over the 40km course.

In typical Macca fashion, the Aussie reassumed control on the run and pulled away to win by over a minute.

Starykowicz held on for second, as Paul Ambrose, also from Australia, ran his way up to third.

Robert Murphy/bluecreekphotography.com

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As for the women, it was Kelly Handel, from Austin, Tex., leading the way out of the lake after a 19:05 split. On the bike, it turned into a three-woman race. Tingle led the way, with Lion and veteran Lauren Jensen, from New Berlin, Wisc., staying in close contact.

Tingle headed out of T2 about a minute in front of Lion, and she would need every minute of that lead.

Lion made up all but three seconds, as Tingle sprinted to the win in 2:02:32. Lion came in seconds later, with Jensen another minute back. After fading on the bike, swim leader Handel had the best run of the day for the women and finished fourth.

While the pros put together some impressive times, the day was all about the almost 1,800 age-group athletes competing. Gregory Rouault, from Broken Arrow, Okla., was the men’s overall amateur champion, with an impressive 1:47:56 finish, only 20 seconds behind McCormack’s winning time. Kiera Karas, of Columbus, Ohio, was the top amateur female, in 2:03:58, making her the third-fastest overall female.

The event, which also included a mountain-bike triathlon on Saturday, is part of the annual Memphis in May Festival. The month-long celebration draws people from all walks of life to Memphis, with festivities such as concerts, cultural events and even the world barbecue championship.

“It’s a really great weekend,” said Nathan Truex, who finished eighth in the elite division. “It’s exciting to race with guys like Macca, and I look forward to doing it again.”

MEMPHIS IN MAY TRIATHLON Millington, Tenn.

May 21, 2007 1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10km run Elite Women 1. Laura Tingle (USA) 2. Alisha Lion (USA) 3. Lauren Jensen (USA) 4. Kelly Handel (USA) 5. Amanda Felder (USA)

2:02:32 2:02:35 2:04:27 2:05:01 2:08:00

Elite Men 1. Chris McCormack (AUS) 2. Andrew Starykowicz (USA) 3. Paul Ambrose (AUS) 4. Brad Zoller (USA) 5. Adam Truex (USA)

1:47:36 1:48:55 1:51:37 1:55:14 1:56:29

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USAT COLLEGIATE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Whipple and Collington take Collegiate Nats

By Brad Culp eams from over 70 schools headed to Tuscaloosa, Ala., on April 21 for the USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championship. At the end of the day, the United States

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Naval Academy stood atop the podium, as they took the men’s, women’s and combined team titles at the Olympicdistance event. The win marked the first time a team from east of the Mississippi River has taken the overall title.

Leading the way for the Midshipmen was Justine Whipple, who sealed up her second consecutive women’s title in impressive fashion. Her final time of 2:02:44 dusted the field by over threeand-a-half minutes.

Stanford’s Laura Wadden led the way out of the water, with a blazing 17:05 split, but after that it was all about Whipple. She posted the day’s

TR Malony

best bike split and topped it off with an incredible 36:16 run to seal the win.

Kate Ellis of Arizona State picked up second (2:06:21), with Amanda Felder of UC San Diego third (2:08:21).

In the men’s race Kevin Collington, from the University of Florida, proved that the Gators are on top of the food chain in yet another sport. Collington trailed Nicholas Vandam, of West Point by 20 seconds after the swim before posting one of the day’s best bike splits. However, leading the way off the bike was Eric Bean, from the University of Wisconsin, and Thomas Brown, of Navy.

“I knew I wouldn’t lead start-to-finish,” said Collington. “I just wanted to stay close to the lead heading into the run.”

After a quick 36-second T2, Collington was back with the leaders, and a lead pack of four athletes was running for the win. Midway through the 10km run Collington pulled away and sprinted to a 1:52:07 finish. Close behind were Steven Sexton, from Cal (1:52:40), and Ethan Brown, of Michigan (1:52:54).

“I’ve raced collegiate nationals four times, and this was without a doubt the best one yet,” said Collington.

“Everything ran smoothly and everyone seems pretty happy.”

Finishing behind Navy in the combined-team standings were CalBerkeley and University of Colorado.

Colorado was also awarded the Team Spirit Award but elected to give the honor to the 20 athletes who represented Virginia Tech.

Tuscaloosa, Ala. April 21, 2007 1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10km run Women 1. Justine Whipple (Navy) 2. Katie Ellis (Arizona State) 3. Amanda Felder (UC San Diego) 4. Leah Larson (Colorado) 5. Michelle Wedemeyer (UC Irvine)

2:02:44 2:06:21 2:08:21 2:11:27 2:11:36

Men 1. Kevin Collington (Florida) 2. Steve Sexton (Cal) 3. Ethan Brown (Michigan) 4. Eric Bean (Wisconsin) 5. Andrew Hodges (Virginia)

1:52:07 1:52:40 1:52:54 1:53:19 1:53:26

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Hassel, Plata top World’s Toughest Tri

By Cameron Elford uburn, Calif., about midway between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe, has long been a popular destination for endurance athletes.

For the fifth straight year, the city has played host to the World’s Toughest Half, a half-Ironman-distance triathlon that is part of the Auburn Triathlon, a multisport festival that also now includes the Olympic-distance Auburn International Tri and the Auburn International Duathlon, which served as a regional age-group qualifier for the ITU duathlon longcourse world championship Oct. 21 in Richmond, Va.

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This year, at the World’s Toughest Half, on May 20, Athens 2004 Olympian Victor Plata topped the field to join a list of past race winners that includes two-time Ironman world champion Tim DeBoom and Swedish triathlete Clas Bjorling. In the women’s race, Hawaii Ironman age-group champion Diane Hassel, from Fort Collins, Colo., was first across the line in 5:33:52—an impressive time given the punishing bike course that tackles the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, accumulating 6000 feet of climbing over the 56-mile route, and the run through Auburn State Park featuring a 1.5-mile, 400-vertical-foot climb followed by the 1.2-mile Cardiac Bypass climb.

In the Olympic-distance event, Gina Kehr, who finished fourth at the Ford Ironman World Championship in 2006, was the firstplace female in a time that was good enough for sixth overall. Recent Cal grad Steve Sexton topped the men’s Olympic-distance field.

Top-ranked master Gordy Holterman won the duathletes vs. triathletes battle with an incredible 4:32 to come across the line first in the duathlon, and overall, 15 minutes clear of the next finisher. Melanie Roberts finished first in the women’s du.

-

WORLD’S TOUGHEST HALF Auburn, Calif.

May 20, 2007 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, 13.1-mile run Women 1. Diane Hassel (USA) 2. Solette Kummer (USA) 3. Suzanne Slivkoff (USA) 4. Madelyn Stewart (USA) 5. Jami Andrews (USA)

5:33:52 5:44:04 5:56:13 6:13:23 6:14:23

Men 1. Victor Plata (USA) 2. Lars Finanger (USA) 3. Albert Boyce (USA) 4. Staffan Westerberg (USA) 5. Ciaran Byrne (USA)

4:51:03 4:52:31 4:59:3 5:04:0 5:09:44

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MJ wins second-annual Encinitas Sprint

By Rebecca Roozen

E

ncinitas, Calif., just north of San Diego, hosted its second-annual sprint triathlon on May 20.

It was Caue Suplicy who took the lead for the elite men. Second- and thirdplace finishers, Juliano Teruel and Zack Paris, beat Suplicy out of the water, but his 30:39 20km bike splitâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the fastest of the dayâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;put him first at the finish in 1:01:51. Teruel took second in 1:01:53, while Paris pushed an impressive 15:24 run, but it was only enough for third.

2XU ENCINITAS SPRINT TRIATHLON Encinitas, Calif.

May 20, 2007 750m swim, 20km bike, 5km run

Courtesy 2XU

Australian Michellie Jones headlined a full field of about 900 athletes, up from last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 650. The Ironman world champ and 2000 Olympic silver medalist, who resides in neighboring Carlsbad, showed her versatility as she dusted the rest of the womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s field. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is always great to race locally,â&#x20AC;?

Jones says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I can ride to the race and sleep in my own bed. It felt good to see where I am in my training.â&#x20AC;?

The race began at the popular surf spot, Moonlight Beach. Jones was the first female out of the 750-meter swim in 11:56. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The race was a little more difficult due to the challenging surf,â&#x20AC;? she says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I felt a little rusty with my transitions, but overall I felt strong.â&#x20AC;? Her 32-minute bike split and 18:43 5km run put her at the finish line four minutes in front of Lesley Paterson, who finished in 1:10:15, and seven minutes in front of the third-place female, Misako Win.

Women 1. Michellie Jones (AUS) 1:06:33 2. Lesley Paterson (San Diego, Calif.) 1:10:15 3. Misako Win (Carlsbad, Calif.)

1:13:24 Men 1. Caue Suplicy (San Diego, Calif.)

2. Juliano Teruel (San Diego, Calif.)

3. Zack Paris (Solana Beach, Calif.)

4. Luke Walton (Poway, Calif.)

5. Erik Nau (San Diego, Calif.)

1:01:51 1:01:53 1:02:41 1:03:05 1:03:12

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T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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KID’S RACE KICKS OFF THE EVENT

Blake, Loeffler win Subaru Victoria International Half Iron

By Cameron Elford

006 Ironman Canada champion Jasper Blake, from Victoria, British Columbia, and 2005 Ironman U.S. champion Kim Loeffler, from Colchester, Vt., won the Subaru Victoria International Half Iron on May 26 at Shawnigan Lake, a rural resort community an hour north of Victoria on the southern tip of Vancouver Island on Canada’s West Coast.

Over the past decade, as the sport of triathlon has grown, fueled in part in Canada by Simon Whitfield’s 2000 goldmedal performance at the Sydney Olympics, Victoria has emerged as a top training destination (the Canadian equivalent of San Diego, Calif., or Boulder, Colo.) and is home to Whitfield as well as two-time Ironman world champion Lori Bowden and, until recently, three-time Ironman world champ Peter Reid.

Area triathletes have long had a choice of top local races here, such as the longrunning New Balance Half Iron in June, and this year the event calendar expanded yet again to include Victoria International Half Iron, one of three races that will make up this summer’s Subaru West Coast Triathlon Series.

2

The inaugural Subaru Victoria International Half Iron got an early start with a kids’ running race on May 25 before the athletes the next morning plunged into Shawnigan Lake to begin the two-lap wetsuit-legal swim for the half Iron—then, an hour later, were followed by the sprint-distance race, which was headlined by two ITU World Cup stars in the hunt to make their respective national Olympic teams for Beijing ’08: Lisa Mensink, racing for Holland, and Brent McMahon (also well known on the XTERRA circuit), of Canada.

After emerging from the swim near the front of the half-Iron field, both Loeffler and Blake —who was second out of the water, in 24:32, behind only a relay team—dug into the challenging four-loop bike course, which circles the lake and includes a series of short, choppy hills that require repeated bursts of power, which can sap leg strength.

“The bike’s hard,” said Blake of the 88km course that winds through temperate rainforests on nearly carless roads. “There are a lot of momentum killers—it sort of rolls.”

Still, Blake put in a strong bike effort over the nearly windless course under high, broken clouds to post a 2:17:03 split, which put him seconds behind Victoria’s Ben Cotter—who hammered to a race-best 2:15:14 ride to catch Blake on the final lap of the bike course—into T2.

But despite giving up the lead to Cotter on the bike, Blake used his leg speed to quickly make up ground and open a gap over Cotter on the 21km out-and-back run, which takes place entirely on the Trans Canada Trail, a winding dirt and gravel footpath that carves through stands of Douglas Fir and Cedar trees.

“I caught him [Cotter] about 500 meters into the run and tried to just settle into my pace and not get too crazy at the start. It felt pretty good, but it’s a tough run course,” said Blake after crossing the finish line with a 1:24:01 run split to take the win in 4:07:28. “Because it’s all on gravel and it goes up and down a fair bit, it was a tougher course than I thought it would be. I’m pretty wasted right now.”

Before the race, Blake was coming off a big week of training in Penticton, the home of Ironman Canada, in preparation for Ironman Coeur d’Alene on June

Adrian Lam

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24. “[Coeur d’Alene] should be good; this was a good prep for it,” he added.

With the day’s second-fastest halfmarathon, in 1:25:18, Jamie Moracci, from Leamington, Ontario, managed to snatch second place from Cotter, who finished third, just two minutes behind Moracci.

LOEFFLER RUNS DOWN CORBIN

Marcela Viglianchino

After heading out onto the bike within seconds of Missoula, Montana’s Linsey Corbin, Loeffler found herself in a back-and-forth battle with Corbin over the challenging course. “We went back and forth a lot,” said Loeffler. “I came into T2 right behind her. We were pretty close throughout the whole bike.”

But once on the run, Loeffler, a former track and cross-country star at the University of Massachusetts, began to chip away at Corbin’s slim advantage and had grabbed the lead by kilometer four.

“On the run, after I passed her . . . I just kept opening the gap,” said Loeffler.

“But I know she’s a strong runner so I just had to run pretty hard.”

Loeffler built on her margin with a 1:25:49 run—the fifth fastest of the day among men and women—to take the win in 4:23:35 for an astounding fourth place overall. Corbin ran 1:32:47 to finish seven minutes back, in second.

Victoria’s Cheryl Murphy took third after a strong 1:30:26 half-marathon over the rolling trail.

Kraft continues Ironman comeback, Galindez dominates again in Brazil

By Brad Culp rgentine Olympian Oscar Galindez biked away from the field at this year’s edition of the Telekom Brazil Ironman, while German Nina Kraft, the 2004 Hawaii Ironman world champion who was stripped of her title and given a one-year competition ban after testing positive for EPO, utilized a 3:14 marathon to run away from American Dede Griesbauer. Over 1,100 athletes toed the start line in beautiful Florianopolis, on May 27, for the seventh edition of the event.

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Leading the way out of the water for the men was Fabio Carvalho, of Brazil, with a time of 49:13. In close pursuit were Brit Stephen Bayliss and a pair of South American stars, Galindez and Renaldo Colucci.

Once the men got on the road, Galindez used his tremendous bike power to develop an insurmountable lead. Halfway through the 112-mile course the flying Argentine had built a lead of over four minutes over Colucci and Eduardo Sturla, also from Argentina.

Galindez entered T2 with a sevenminute cushion, which proved to be enough to hold off the charge from the rest of the pack. He stopped the clock in 8:21:09, which was about six minutes slower than his winning time from last year.

Colucci closed hard but was unable to make up the 14 minutes he lost on the bike. The Brazilian held on for second with Sturla claiming third ahead of

SUBARU VICTORIA INTERNATIONAL HALF IRON Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia, Canada May 26, 2007 1.9km swim, 88km bike, 21.1km run Women 1. Kim Loeffler (Colchester, Vt.) 4:23:35 2. Linsey Corbin (Missoula, Mont.)

4:30:18 3. Cheryl Murphy (Victoria, BC) 4:45:45 4. Alldritt Miranda (North Vancouver, BC)4:51:30 5. Chrystie Hjeltness (Post Falls, Idaho)5:04:11 Men 1. Jasper Blake (Victoria, BC) 2. Jamie Moracci (Leamington, Ont.) 3. Ben Cotter (Victoria, BC) 4. Scott McMillan (Fairmont, BC) 5. Corey Borolien (Saskatoon, Sask.)

4:07:28 4:13:41 4:15:56 4:25:00 4:26:45

Italian Sebastian Pedraza.

As for the women, Kraft emerged from the Atlantic alongside the male leaders and about 30 seconds ahead of Griesbauer. Scotland’s Bella Comerford exited the water over seven minutes behind Kraft. Once they were on the bike, Kraft and Griesbauer immediately asserted themselves as the best women of the day and the pair rode away from Comerford and 43-year-old Brazilian Fernanda Keller.

The duo entered T2 in close contact, and Griesbauer put together a small lead during the opening miles of the marathon. However, after only six miles Kraft reassumed control and grew her lead all the way to a 9:12:39 finish. Griesbauer finished over five minutes later, with Comerford hanging on for third.

TELEKOM BRAZIL IRONMAN Florianopolis, Brazil May 27, 2007 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, 26.2-mile run Women 1. Nina Kraft (GER) 2. Dede Griesbauer (USA) 3. Bella Comerford (GBR) 4. Fernanda Keller (BRA) 5. Sara Gross (USA)

9:12:39 9:18:18 9:20:09 9:24:28 9:33:08

Men 1. Oscar Galindez (ARG) 2. Renaldo Colucci (BRA) 3. Eduardo Sturla (ARG) 4. Sebastian Pedrazza (ITA) 5. Stephen Bayliss (GBR)

8:21:09 8:29:09 8:29:26 8:33:18 8:37:07

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John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

International Triathlon & Duathlon Race Calendar

Triathlete endeavors to present the most comprehensive calendar of tris and dus. However, because event dates are subject to change, please check with race directors to confirm event information before making plans.

See Multi-Event Contacts for contact information for promoters that have multiple listings. Listings printed in red indicate Triathlete-sponsored races. USA Triathlonsanctioned races are designated with a #. Register at active.com for events designated with @.

RACE DIRECTORS: For online race listings, please go to triathletemag.com and post your races under our Calendar link. Allow one week for your events to become live.

For listing in our print calendar, e-mail your information to rebecca@triathlete mag.com or fax it to (760) 634-4110.

Entries submitted before May 31 have been included in the August issue. All entries that were submitted after that date will be in the September issue.

Please note that most XTERRA global tour events consist of approximately a 1.5K swim, 30K mountain bike and 10K trail run.

1 9 8 AUGUST 2007

2007 XTERRA TV SCHEDULE Market

Station

Date

Time

Show

Amarillo, TX

KAMR

8/4

1 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 1

Greenville, SC

WNEG

8/4

12:30 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 7

Amarillo, TX

KAMR

8/5

noon

XTERRA Saipan

Greenville, SC

WNEG

8/11

1 p.m.

Nevada Passage

Amarillo, TX

KAMR

8/11

1 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 3

Palm Springs, CA

KESQ

8/12

11 a.m.

Nevada Passage

Portland, ME

WMTW

8/12

1:30 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 5

Portland, ME

WMTW

8/12

1:30 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 6

Tri Cities, TN

WCYB

8/12

2:30 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 7

Greenville, SC

WNEG

8/12

1:30 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 8

Charleston, WV

WSAZDT

8/13

1:30 p.m.

Nevada Passage

Amarillo, TX

KAMR

8/18

1 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 4

Amarillo, TX

KAMR

8/19

1 p.m.

XTERRA Planet No. 5

Tri Cities, TN

WB4

8/26

3 p.m.

Nevada Passage

Check your local listings to see an updated broadcast schedule for the award-winning TEAM Unlimited Television productions.

For more information on the shows and a complete list of broadcast dates and times visit xterraplanet.com/television.

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MOUNTAIN PACIFIC

Sprint Triathlon. 500yd S, 6mi B, 2mi R. 08/26- San Diego, CA—Imperial Beach Triathlon. Koz Enterprises. .25mi S, 9mi B, 3mi R; 1mi R, 9mi B, 3mi R. 08/26- Steamboat Springs, CO—Steamboat Springs Triathlon. 5430 Sports. .75mi S, 20mi B, 4mi R. 09/01- Auburn, CA—Lake of the Pines Triathlon. Three sprint-level races.

09/08- Idaho Falls, ID—Blacktail Triathlon. PB-Performance. 800m S, 13mi, 5K R; 1600m S, 26mi B, 10K R. 09/08-9- Pacific Grove, CA—Triathlon at Pacific Grove. Tri-California. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; .25mi S, 12.4mi B, 2mi R. 09/09- Glenwood Springs, CO—23rd Annual Tri-Glenwood Triathlon. 825m S, 15mi B, 5mi R. 09/09- Santa Cruz, CA—Big Kahuna Triathlon Long Course. Firstwave Events. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 09/23- Tempe, AZ—Timex Triathlon. Red Rock Company, Inc. 1500m S, 24mi B, 10K R; 750m S, 12mi B, 3.1mi R. 09/28-30- San Luis Obispo, CA—Scott Tinley Adventure Races. Tri-California. bike hill climbs, road and off-road triathlons.

09/30- San Diego, CA—Mission Bay Triathlon. Koz Enterprises. 500m S, 15K B, 5K R. 10/07- Santa Cruz, CA—SuperKid Triathlon. Finish Line Productions. Distances vary.

10/28- San Diego, CA—San Diego Triathlon Challenge.

1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 10/28- Tempe, AZ—Soma Half Ironman. Red Rock Company, Inc. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 11/09-11- San Francisco, CA—Treasure Island Triathlon.

Tri-California. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; .5K S, 20K B, 5K R.

SOUTH ATLANTIC #08/11- Guntersville, AL—Mountain Lakes Triathlon. Team Magic.600yd S, 16.2mi B, 3mi R. 09/23- Miami, FL—Escape to Miami Triathlon. PR Racing, Inc. 1.1K S, 40K B, 10K R.

NORTH ATLANTIC #08/05- Trumansburg, NY—Cayuga Lake Triathlon. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; 750m S, 14mi B, 5K R; 200m S, 9mi B, 1.5mi R (youth only).

08/11- Grand Island, NY—Summer Sizzler. Score This!!!,

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

#08/05- San Francisco, CA—Alcatraz Challenge Aquathlon & Swim. 1.5mi S, 7mi R. #08/11-Emmett, ID—Emmett’s Most Excellent Triathlon and Sprint Triathlon. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; .5K S, 20K B, 5K R. 08/11- Boulder, CO—Boulder Kids Triathlon. 5430 Sports.

Distances vary by age.

08/11- Telluride, CO—TelluTri Mountain High Challenge. .75mi S, 43mi B, 5mi R. 08/12- Santa Cruz, CA—Santa Cruz Sprint Triathlon. Finish Line Productions. .25mi S, 12mi B, 5K R. 08/12- Folsom, CA—Folsom International Triathlon. Firstwave Events. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R. 08/12- Boulder, CO—5430 Long Course Triathlon. 5430 Sports. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 08/12- Honolulu, HI—Ironman Revisited. 2.4mi S, 112mi B, 26.2mi R. 08/25- Santa Barbara, CA—Santa Barbara Long Course Triathlon. 1mi S, 34mi B, 10mi R. 08/26- Santa Barbara, CA—Santa BarbaraCo-Ed Sprint Triathlon. 500yd S, 6mi B, 2mi R. 08/26- Santa Barbara, CA—Santa Barbara Women-Only

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Inc. 400m S, 17K B, 4.4K R; 4.4K R, 17K B, 4.4K R. 08/12- Salisbury, VT—Lake Dunmore Triathlon. .9mi S, 28mi B, 6.2mi R. 08/12- Central Park, NY—20th Annual Central Park Triathlon. New York Triathlon. .25mi S, 12mi B, 3mi R. 08/19- Harriman State Park, NY—22nd Annual NY Tri/Biathlon Series #2. New York Triathlon. .5mi S, 16mi B, 3mi R; 3mi R, 16mi B, 3mi R. 08/18-19- Gilford, NH—The Timberman Triathlon Festival. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R; .3mi S, 15mi B, 3mi R. 09/02- Lake George, NY—Lake George Triathlon. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R. adktri.org/lakegeorgetri.html.

09/08- Cape Cod, MA—1/4mi S, 10mi B, 3.5mi R. 09/09- Salisbury, VT—Half Vermont Journey. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 09/09- Barker, NY—Danforth Fall Frolic. Score This!!!, Inc. 400m S, 20K B, 5K R; 1.6K R, 20K B, 5K R. #09/09- Lake Lure, NC—Hickory Nut Gorge Triathlon. Race Day Events. 400m S, 25K B, 5K R. 09/29- Darien, CT—Itpman Triathlon. New York Triathlon.

1.5K S, 25K B, 10K R. 09/23- Canandaigua, NY—Finger Lakes Triathlon. Score This!!!, Inc. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; 750m S, 21K B, 5K R.

08/04- Neoga, IL—Mattoonman 1/3 Iron Distance. Mattoon Beach Tri. .8mi S, 38mi B, 8.6mi R. 08/04- Gaylord, MI—27th Mark Mellon Triathlon. 3 Disciplines Racing. TBA. 08/05- Clarkston, MI—Craig Greenfield Memorial Tri. 3 Disciplines Racing. 800m S, 16mi B, 5K R. 08/11- Fort Custer State Park, MI—X-tri Battle Creek.

3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, TBA mt. B, 4mi R; 2mi R, TBA mt. B, 4mi R. 08/11-12- Mentor, OH—Greater Cleveland Triathlon.

1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R; 1.2mi S, 56mi B; .75mi S, 23mi B, 6.2mi R; .5mi S, 12mi B, 3.1mi R. 08/12- Lansing, MI—Lansing Legislator Tri. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R; duathlon TBA. 08/18- Sanford, MI—Sanford & Sun Triathlon. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, 30K B, 5mi R; 500m S, 20K B, 5K R. 08/19- Petoskey, MI—Petoskey Tri. Du. Sprint. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, 30K B, 5mi R; 2mi R, 30K B, 5mi R. 08/26- Ludington, MI—Ludington Tri, Du, Sprint. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, 40K B, 10K R; 500m S, 20K B, 5K R; 5K R, 20K B, 5K R. 09/01- Kalamazoo, MI—Prairie View Tri. Du Sprint. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, 40K B, 10K R; 500m S, 20K B, 5K R; 5K R, 20K B, 5K R. 09/01- Boyne Mtn., MI—Boyne Mtn. Triathlon. 3 Disciplines Racing. TBA. 09/02- Boyne, MI—Xtri Championship. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, TBA mt. B, 4mi R; 2mi R, TBA mt. B, 4mi R. 09/08- Novi, MI—Novi Sprint Triathlon. 3 Disciplines Racing. 800m S, 15mi B, 5K R. 09/15- Neoga, IL—Great Illini Challenge Full Iron Distance and Half Iron Distance. Mattoon Beach Tri. 2.4mi S, 112mi B, 26.2mi R; 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. 09/16- Shelby Township, MI—Stony Creek Championship.

2 0 0 AUGUST 2007

John Segesta/wahoomedia.com

NORTH CENTRAL

3 Disciplines Racing. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R; 500m S, 20K B, 5K R; 5K R, 20K B, 5K R. 09/23- Holly, MI—Autumn Colors Triathlon, duathlon. 3 Disciplines Racing. 1000m S, 30K B, 5mi R; 2mi R, 30K B, 5mi R. 10/13- Neoga, IL—Eagle Creek Long Course Duathlon.

Mattoon Beach Tri. 5mi R, 40mi B, 5mi R.

SOUTH CENTRAL #08/11- Guntersville, AL—Mountain Lakes Triathon. Team Magic. 600yd S, 16.2mi B, 3mi R. #08/11- Alcoa, TN—Springbrook Sprint Triathlon. Race

Day Events. 300m S, 10mi B, 2.5mi R. #08/18- Pikeville, TN—Fall Creek Falls Triathlon. Race Day Events. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R. 09/08- Hendersonville, TN—Old Hickory Lake Triathlon.

Team Magic. 400yd S, 1.5mi R, 13mi B, 1.5mi R. #09/16- Nashville, TN—Music City Triathlon. Team Magic. 1.5K S, 40K B, 10K R. 09/22- Lake Barkly, KY—Lake Barkly Full and Half Iron Distance Triathlon. Head First Performance. 2.4mi S, 112mi B, 26.2mi R; 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R. #09/23- Vonore, TN—Atomic Man Half Iron Triathlon. Race Day Events. 1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R.

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09/29-30- Austin, TX—The Longhorn Triathlon Festival.

1.2mi S, 56mi B, 13.1mi R; .5mi S, 15mi B, 3.1mi R. 10/07- Houston, TX—Du the Bear Duathlon. Out-loud. 2mi R, 12mi B, 2mi R. #10/14- Lenoir City, TN—Atomic Duathlon. Race Day Events. 5K R, 35K B, 5K R. 10/28- Montgomery, TX—Iron Star Triathlon. Out-loud.

MULTI-EVENT CONTACTS 3 Discliplines Racing: www.3disciplines.com; 866.820.6036 5430 Sports: Barry Siff, 1507 North St., Boulder, CO, barry@5430sports.com, www.5430sports.com; 303.442.0041.

AA Sports: 503.644.6822; www.racecenter.com; events@ racecenter.com.

Blue Sky Sports, LLC: 678.237.0308; director@ tribluesky.com; www.tribluesky.com.

Bradventures LLC. Producer of Auburn International Triathlon. www.auburntriathlon.com; 530-888-9911; info@bradventures.com.

By the Beach Productions: 5153 Soquel Dr., Soquel, CA, 831.465.6517; www.bythebeachproductions.com; info@ bythebeachproductions.com.

Capri Events: 773.404.2372; www.caprievents. com.

CFT Sommer Sports: 838 W. DeSoto St., P.O. Box 121236, Clermont, FL 34712; 352.394.1320 (p); 352.394.1702 (f); info@triflorida.com; http://greatfloridian.com.

CGI Racing: 856-308-7522; www.cgiracing.com.

Cutting Edge Events: 217.347.3739; www.cu tingedge events.net, beccakoester@yahoo.com, www.sign meup.com.

Danskin Women’s Triathlon Series: 800.452.9526, www.danskin.com, triathlon@ danskin.com.

Elite Endeavors: Jim & Joyce Donaldson, 8963 Stoneybrook Blvd., Sylvania, OH 43560; 419.829.2398, jdjp@sev.org.

Emerald Coast Events Commission: 850.784.9542; www.emeraldcoasstevents.com; jlynch@knology.net.

EndorFUN Sports: 603.293.8353, 512.535.5224; www.endorfunsports.com, keith@timbermantri.com.

Envirosports: P.O. Box 1040, Stinson Beach, CA 94970, 415.868.1829 (p), 415.868.2611 (f), info@envirosports. com, www.envirosports.com.

Event Power: 22 Jagger Ln., Southampton, NY 11968; 631.283.7400; eventpower@aol.com; www.swimpower. com.

Exclusive Sports Marketing & Nestle Sprintkids Series: 1060 Holland Dr., Ste. 3-L, Boca Raton, FL 33487; 561.241.3801; 888.ESMSPORTS (376-7767);tjcesarz@ exclusivesports. com; www.fam ilyfitnessweekend.com.

Fat Rabbit Racing: Craig Thompson, 614.424.7990, 614.306.1996; craigthompson@fatrabbitracing.com; www.fatrabbitracing.com.

Finish Line Productions: 475 Tinker’s Trail, Boulder Creek, CA. 831.419.0883; info@finishlineproduction.com; finishlineproduction.com.

FIRM Racing: 66 Bruce Rd., Marlboro, MA 01732; P: (508) 485-5855, F: (508) 229-8394; bill@firm-racing.com, www.firm-racing.com.

Firstwave Events: P.O. Box 321269, Los Gatos, CA 95032; P: 408.356.0518; F: 408.356.0534; www.firstwave-events.com..

2 0 2 AUGUST 2007

1.2mi S, 59mi B, 13.1mi R. REMINDER: If a race’s contact information is not listed with the event in the preceding section, refer to the Multi-Event Contacts listings below. There, you will find a list of race organizers who put on either multiple races or series events.

For more events and online race registration, please be sure to check out triathletemag.com and active.com. Both sites offer up-to-date racing and training information, as well as the most recent news and coverage of triathlon’s most popular events. To list your event in our online calendar, please go to triathletemag.com.

Georgia Multisport Productions: Jim Rainey, 4180 Liberty Trace, Marietta, GA 30066; 770.926.6993, 770. 928. 9292 (F); jim@gamultisports.com, www.gamultisports.com.

Great Smokey Mountains Triathlon Club: www.gsmtc.com; tri2000@dnet.net.

Greater Knoxville Triathlon Club: Kevin Mahan, 205 Cross Creek Private Ln., Lenoir City, TN 37771, 865.675.BIKE (2453) (p), 865.988.9250 (f), www.knoxtri.org; kevinmahan@char tertn.net.

Green Brook Racing LLC: Joe Patanella, P.O. Box 825, Green Brook, NJ 08812-825, 732.841.2558; greenbrookracing@ aol.com, www.greenbrookracing.com.

HFP Racing: P.O. Box 375, Thornville, OH 43076; shannon@hfpracing.com, 740.743.2418; scott@ hfpracing.com, 440. 350.1708; www.hfpracing.com Ironhead Race Productions: Jack Weiss, P.O. Box 1113, Euless, TX 76039-1113; 817.355.1279; ironjack@ironheadrp.com; www.ironheadrp.com.

HMA Promotions: 216.752.5151; www.hmapromotions.net Ironman North America: 4999 Pearl East Circle Suite 301, Boulder, CO, 80301; 518.523.2665; 518.523.7542; imanusa@capital. net.

J&A Productions: www.japroductions.com; info@japroduc tions.com.

JMS Racing Services: P.O. Box 582, Marion, IN 52302, 319.373.0741; www.pigmantri.com/ jmsracing.html; jim@ pigmantri.com; john@pig mantri.com.

KOZ Enterprises: San Diego Triathlon Series. P.O. Box 421052, San Diego, CA 92142; 858.268.1250; www.kozenter prises.com; info@ kozenterprises.com.

Lake Geneva Extreme Sports: P.O. Box 1134, Lake Geneva, WI 53147, www.lakegenevasports.com; lgsports@lake genevasports.com; 262.275.3577.

Lakeshore Athletic Services: 847.673.4100, lakeshoreinfo@aol.com.

MESP, Inc. Racing Series: 29395 Agoura Rd., Ste. 102, Agoura Hills, CA 91301; 818.707.8867 (p); 818.707.8868 (f); www. mesp.com.

Mountain Man Events: P.O. Box 255, Flagstaff, AZ 86002; www.mountainmanevents.com; admin@mountainmanevents.com.

New York Triathlon: P.O. Box 50, Saugerties, NY 124770050; 845.247.0271; www.nytc.org.

North Coast Multisports, Inc: P.O. Box 2512, Stow, Ohio 44224; 216-272-0064; mrzymek@aol.com.

On Your Mark Events: 209.795.7832; info@onyourmarkevents.com;www.onyourmark events.com.

Pacific Sports, LLC: 1500 S. Sunkist St., Ste. E, Anaheim, CA 92806; 714.978.1528 (p); 714.978.1505 (f); www.pacificsportsllc.com.

Palmetto Race & Event Production: P.O. Box 1634, Bluffton, SC 29910; 843.815.5267 (p); 843.785.2734 (f); andy5267@

aol.com; www.palmettorace.com.

Personal Best Performance, Michael Hays, 808 Saturn Ave., Idaho Falls, ID, 83402-2658. 208.521.2243; Michael@PB-Performance.com.

PCH Sports: www.pchsports.com; 2079 Cambridge Ave., Cardiff by the Sea, CA 92007; 760.944.7261.

Piranha Sports, LLC/ Greater Atlantic Multisport Series/Greater Atlantic Club Challenge/Escape from School Youth Triahtlon Series: Neil Semmel, P.O. Box 150, Kirkwood, DE 19708; nsemmel@piranha-sports.com; www.piranha-sports.com.

PR Racing, Inc., P.O. Box 56-1081, Miami, FL, 33256; 305.278.8668. trimiami.com, trimiami@gmail.com.

Premier Event Management: P.O. Box 8764, Metairie, La. 70011. 504.454.6561. www.pem-usa.com.

Race Day Events: P.O. Box 31333, Knoxville, TN 37930; 865.250.5948; www.racedayevents.net; Kevin@racedayevents.net Score This!!!, Inc.: 15 Ranch Trail Ct., Orchard Park, NY 14127; 716.662.9379; www.score-this.com; info@score-this.com.

Set-Up, Inc.: P.O. Box 15144, Wilmington, NC 28408; 910.458.0299; set-upinc.com; billscott@set-upinc. com.

Shelburne Athletic Club: 802.985.2229; www.shelburneathletic.com.

TBF Racing: Bill Driskell, 5209 Blaze Ct., Rocklin, CA 95677; 916.202.3006; bill@totalbodyfitness.com; tbfracing.com.

Team Magic, Inc.: Therese Bynum, Faye Yates; 205.595.8633; www.team-magic.com; races@ team-magic.com.

Team Unlimited: XTERRA Series; 877.751.8880; www.xterraplanet.com; info@xterraplanet.com.

Time Out! Productions: Rich Havens, P.O. Box 543, Forestdale, MA 02644; 508.477.6311 (p); 508.477.6334 (f); timeout@ capecod.net; www.timeoutproductions.com.

TriAthlantic Association: 410.593.9662; www.triath.com.

Triathlon Canada: 1185 Eglington Ave., East Suite 704, Toronto, Ontario M3C 3C6; www.triathloncanada.com; 416.426. 7430 Tri-California Events, Inc. Terry Davis, 1284 Adobe Ln., Pacific Grove, CA 93950; 831.373.0678, www.tricalifornia.com.

Tuxedo Brothers Event Management: Don Carr, 317.733.3300; tuxbro@indy.rr.com; www.tuxbro.com.

UltraFit/USA: P.O. Box 06358, Columbus OH 43206, 614.481.9077, www.ultrafit-usa.com.

Updog Sports LLC. www.updogsports.com, info@updogsports.com.

Vermont Sun Sport & Fitness: 812 Exchange St., Middlebury, VT 05753; 802.388.6888; www.vermontsun.com/ triathlon. html, vtsun@together.net.

YellowJacket Racing: 6 Regent St., Rochester, NY 14607; 585.244.5181; www.yellowjacketracing.com, yellowjacketracing@hotmail.com.

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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TRI CLUB LISTING ARIZONA Tucson Tri Girls Niki Mathias tucsontrigirls@cox.net

CALIFORNIA LA Tri Club president@latriclub.com latriclub.com Tri Club San Diego Jim McCann jmccann1@san.rr.com triclubsandiego.org Fleet Feet Multisports Orange County Michael Collins info@multisportsoc.com Orange County Triathlon Club Huntington Beach OCTriClub@triathlete.com San Francisco Tri Club Amy Bohutinsky info@sftriclub.org Golden Gate Tri Club-San Fran Karen Kofod president@ggtc.org Silicon Valley Triathloon Club webmaster@svtriclub.org svtriclub.org Tri Club Marin Mike Belloumini mike@fleetfeetsananselmo.com Kain Performance-San Jose Pete Kain pete@kaiperformance.com kainperformance.com Newport Coast Tri Team Daniel Mathot

ncttpresident@hotmail.com nctt.us Santa Cruz Triathlon Assoc.

Sherri Goodman scat@sctriathlon.com sctriathlon.com

COLORADO Pikes Peak Triathlon Club John “Woody” Noleen noleen@aol.com p2triclub.org

FLORIDA Gold Coast Triathletes goldcoasttriathletes.com

ILLINOIS Tri- Sharks Chris Sweet tri-shark.org/tri-sharks

INDIANA Tri Fort Triathlete Tom Carpenter trifort@triathlete.com www.3rvs.com Circle City Multi-Sport Club Rob Beeler rbeeler@nsisw.com circlecitymultisport.com

LOUISIANA Team Earthquake Ben Hewett trioften@teamearthquake.org teamearthquake.org

MAINE Bikesenjava Multisport

Chris Christie shop@haybikesenjava.com haybikesenjava.com

Road Fit Multi-sport eric@roadfit.com roadfit.com

MASSACHUSETTS

NEW YORK

North Shore Tri Club-Salem Randi Hodson-Dion bhodsdon13@aol.com Wheelworks Multisport- Boston wwmsdirector@yahoo.com wheelworksmultisport.com

Asphalt Green Triathlon Club New York, NY 212.369.8890 CNY Tri Club Inc. Jim Szczygiel president@cnytriathlon.org Hudson Valley Tri Club markstriclub@hotmail.com HVTC.net Team Runners Edge mindyruns@aol.com runnersedgeny.com Terrieer Tri Robert@terriertri.com terriertri.com Triathlon Association of New York City (TANYC) Mo Modali mo@tanyc.org tanyc.org

MINNESOTA Gear West Triathlon Club Gw tri club of Long Lake kris@gearwestbike.com gearwestbike.com

MISSOURI St. Louis Triathlon Club Jason Difini contact@stloustriclub.com stlouistriclub.com

NEBRASKA Team Nebraska Triathlon Club Kelley Perry KelleyTRIUSA@hotmail.com teamnebraska.org

NEVADA Tri Pro Cyclery, Las Vegas Baker1@ameralinx.net triprocyclery.com

NEW JERSEY Team Paramount Mike Grussgott mgrussgott@yahoo.com eteamz.com/paramountadventure

NORTH CAROLINA South Charlotte Tri Club CJ Warstler info@southsharlottetriclub.com southcharlottetriclub.com

OHIO Cincy Express Joe Yorio cincyexpress.org info@cincyexpress.org Team Toledo jdjp@sylvania.sev.org

TENNESSEE (HEAT) Hendersonville Endurance Athletic Team Bill Taylor Ftaylor200@comcast.net triheat.com

UTAH Team Fastlane Scott Kelly teamfastlane@comcast.net Teamfastlane.com

VIRGINIA Tri Cats Chas Ryan tricats.org Tri Girl Training Jaime Waite grandison@trigirltraining.com trigirltraining.com

WASHINGTON WSU Triathlon Club Dave O’Hern daveohern@wsu.edu

WISCONSIN Wisconsin Fox Cities Triathlon Club info@foxtriclub.com foxtriclub.com

NATIONAL Team Trichic Brenda Gilchrist trichic@trichic.com trichic.com

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TINLEY TALKS

Playing at home

By Scott Tinley

he cracks in the sidewalks seem wider. But the hills aren’t so steep. I used to ride them paperboy style—back and forth like a boat sailing to weather. There wasn’t much traffic then. Down the block is a dirt lot where we raced BMX bikes on a course built with Dad’s shovel. It wasn’t called BMX back then, just single-speeds.

Ten-speeds were for racers.

Around the corner is my pal Timmy’s house. Or was. Timmy could swim underwater all the way across the rec center pool.

My other friend, Jimmy or Billy—I’ve forgotten which—tried it all summer and finally, in late August, the day before they shut the pool for the winter, he made it then passed out. All the kids thought he was just doing the dead man’s float. They were laughing and clapping, but it didn’t look right so I pulled him up. He coughed for a month, but every year around Labor Day I’d get a call from him asking, “What’s up?”

Saying thanks, thanks for not laughing.

One year the calls stopped. And I forgot his name.

Over at the grade school now there is gang graffiti on the walls, and the curbs we skated on look tired, like the face of an old

T

person, a friend of your parents who you’ve not seen in many years. There are cracks that have been patched and filled in with asphalt and rouge. And the weeds have beaten their way in, splitting the smooth wave we sidewalk-surfed when the ocean was flat or there was no money for gas.

In recent months I’ve spent some time in the places that made me: the home, the hood, the pool, the running trails, the creek with its crawdads and guppies. I’ve been challenging Thomas Wolfe’s notion of not being able to go home again, that nothing will ever, can ever, be the same as it was.

Wolfe, who died at 38 years of age, was right, of course. But then again, one of last summer’s biggest rock-band reunion tours was The Who, a super-group that wanted to die before they got old. They sound good. And they’re not dead. It’s not exactly the same, but if you close your eyes, it’s close enough for the price of admission.

Oddly, as I ride the old streets and walk the worn trails, I don’t feel so much as old as I feel older; not timeless or ageless but somehow connected to what time has done to my age. And when I went back to my high school, a place I had not seen in 20 years, I was treated like royalty. “Oh my gosh, the triathlete.” I had only come to look around, to ride the flow of my memory and see where I’d sat for lunch, played handball and strained to kiss Michelle Guastello on the lips. The cynic in me was

on guard for alumni donation envelopes being pressed into my hand. But there was none of that, only the sweet circularity of things, the point that Wolfe had missed.

I looked at the ancient, decomposed granite running track. I looked at the tall oak-benched bleachers that I’d run incessantly, that took my cartilage but gave me quadriceps. I didn’t bother to look for a pool because on that side of the tracks schools can’t afford luxuries like built-in cement ponds. Most of the coaches and teachers I knew are gone, some dead, most retired. But the snack shack and the flag pole set at the 110-yards-to-go mark near the back corner of the track are still there.

I walked by Miss Cole’s English classroom where she’d given me a C but had written at the bottom of the report card: “Shows interest in creative writing.”

We talk about the transcendency of sport, about its ability to take us places that other societal institutions just can’t go. We talk about the transformative nature of sport, the way it can mold and morph us into things above and beyond what we are.

But sport can also take us back, back to those early days when all that we are now was framed and formed by a parent pushing a kid on a bike or guiding their hands through a swim lesson.

And if we are lucky, we will be able to return the favor.

If we are lucky. And if there’s time.

ST

Triathlete (ISSN08983410) is published monthly by Triathlon Group North America LLC, 328 Encinitas Blvd., Encinitas, CA 92024; (760) 6344100. Subscription rates: U.S., one year (12 issues) $29.95 (12 issues); two years (24 issues) $49.95. Canada $51.95 per year; all other countries $61.95 per year, U.S. currency only. Periodicals postage paid at Encinitas, CA, and additional mailing offices. Single copy price $3.99. Triathlete is copyright 2003 by Triathlon Group North America, LLC. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Send address changes to Triathlete, P.O. Box 469055, Escondido, CA 92046-9513. Ride-along enclosed in all book region 2 copies.

2 0 8 AUGUST 2007

T R I AT H L E T E M A G . C O M

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DAMAGE ® CONTROL

The Most Powerful Sports Recovery Formula Anywhere

Lab-tested and Now Confirmed World's #1 Antioxidant Sports Performance Value* Fact: Excessive Oxidative Damage will slow or halt your recovery from workouts, causing you to get sick or injured more often and perform poorly. It will also speed up the aging process in all your cells.

As an athlete, you should do everything you possibly can to avoid excessive oxidative damage.

The problem is that prolonged endurance training accelerates the normal oxidative processes in your body by up to 2,000% and can create up to 100 times the free radical “fallout” in your cells. This fallout - better known as oxidative damage - is exactly what you want to minimize or avoid in training and in life. And if you think your body can deal with this naturally or through a good diet, just look at any triathlete who has been training hard for several years without supplemental antioxidants (or with common antioxidant supplements). You can see the damage in their faces and on their bodies. Fortunately, there is a better way to help your body combat this oxidative damage, so that you can train and race to peak performance and not get so beat-up in the process. The key is Damage Control®.

The Damage Control® Master Formula was designed to be the most powerful broad-spectrum antioxidant formula in the world, and a recent independent lab test confirmed this. At over 20,000 ORAC units per dose, the Master Formula was far more powerful than other “super formulas” and 10-20 times higher than the 5 most popular antioxidant formulas*.

No other product in this magazine or in your health food store comes even remotely close to the antioxidant activity in the Master Formula. The fact that it includes a “broad spectrum” of 20 different synergistic antioxidants means that no part or process of the body is left without strong antioxidant support. The Master Formula also contains high potencies of all the critical vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients to support healthy joints and liver function, reduce stress hormones and boost cognition and focus.

Just 6 easy-to-swallow capsules once or twice a day and you've tapped into the power of the most potent all-in-one recovery formula on the market.

Don’t waste another training day.

Order the Damage Control ®Master Formula today online at

www.masterformula.com or call

1-888-774-6259 *See results of our test at www.masterformula.com. The Food and Drug Administration has not evaluated these statements. This product is not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat or cure any disease.

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Chris Hauth

2-Time Olympian 2006 Ironman Coeur d’Alene Champion

RACEDRI™ BODY-MAPPING SYSTEM. IT’S PERSONAL. The body is a living symbiotic relationship. Your legs push you. Your arms provide balance. And the heart powers it to all come together. But each part works independently of the other. Your upper body doesn’t move the way your legs move, so why cover it with the same engineering? Our Multi-Sport collection utilizes different weights and models of our innovative RaceDri technology that improves performance and comfort.

BUILT WITH THE TOTAL ATHLETE IN MIND. THE 2007 MULTI-SPORT COLLECTION. WWW.TYR.COM

Official Swim Cap Sponsor of Ironman North America © 2007 TYR Sport Inc. All rights reserved.