Las Vegas Multisport http://lvmultisport.com Your one stop tri-shop! Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:49:57 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 en hourly 1 Is it the equipment or the engine? http://lvmultisport.com/is-it-the-equipment-or-the-engine/ http://lvmultisport.com/is-it-the-equipment-or-the-engine/#comments Tue, 05 May 2009 22:02:13 +0000 admin http://lvmultisport.com/?p=134 You know you’re a triathlete when you have no problem buying a $2000.00 set of rims for your $3000 bike bike frame, but you think it’s insane for anyone to do that for their car. The triathlon world is full of the latest aero whiz bang gotta have it items. Now I’m just as guilty as the next person about wanting the latest and greatest. I own a pair of racing wheels that are among the fastest most aero on earth, but I’ve never raced with them. In fact, I’ve only ridden on them twice because I have a hard time changing the tires in case of a flat. Last year I decided not to use them just 1 week before IM Florida. I knew I’d waste precious energy worrying what I’d do if I did get a flat, and it wasn’t worth it. The rims I did use cost about $150 dollars and they aren’t aero in the least bit. Was it a good decision? Well, I had my fastest bike split ever, by almost 13 minutes, and I passed over 1100 people, alot of them on $6000 bikes with the same wheels I’d left home. I was amazed at how much people would spend to go no faster than 17, 18 mph. Now I’m not knocking these people, my point is that you can’t forget to train. Your bike won’t pedal itself no matter how light and aero it is. It brings me back to the time when I was in high school, just starting out running, and I went to the original Running Store here in Las Vegas to get my shoes. I asked Johnny Clark, the local running guru, and the owner of the store about a certain pair of shoes (the Nike Eagle; quite possibly the best pair of racing flats ever) He told me: “Those are for someone who races at a sub 6:00 pace. Put em back.” and he wouldn’t sell them to me. I laugh now,but at the time it really motivated me enough to train harder because I really wanted those shoes. I am grateful for Johnny for pointing that out to me.

If you slack off in your training because you think your wetsuit will swim for you, your bike will ride for you, and your shoes will run for you, take the yellow bus to the race because you will be going to school, and it will be a painful lesson learned.

In conclusion two athletes come to mind: John Howard and Dave Scott. In 1980 John Howard rode the Ironman Hawaii bike portion in 4:28:00. That was the race record until 1993 when Jurgen Zack broke it with a 4:27:42. When John Howard rode his time, he did it on an aluminum bike, without aero bars and without clip on pedals. When Jurgen rode his, his bike looked like something out of Star Wars. In the 1994 Ironman Hawaii, Dave Scott rode an old frame that had downtube shifters, and he didn’t even have a bike computer. He then rode to the 5th fastest time that day, and took 2nd overall. At the age of 40.

Why are you still reading? Go out and train!!!
Thanks for reading

]]> http://lvmultisport.com/is-it-the-equipment-or-the-engine/feed/ Why I chose an Ironman for my first triathlon http://lvmultisport.com/1st-blog-entry/ http://lvmultisport.com/1st-blog-entry/#comments Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:47:00 +0000 admin http://1747509.sites.myregisteredsite.com/?p=53 Like many people, I was first exposed to the Ironman triathlon by watching Julie Moss crawl across the line in 1982. Two things that really struck me: 1. The sheer will and determination needed to get across the line, and 2. “Hey wasn’t that a woman that just passed her for first place just right before the finish line?!?!”

Fast forward to 2004. My running “career” if you can call it that, is stagnant. I’m 40 lbs overweight,and I need some inspiration. I know, why not sign up to do an Ironman triathlon, one if the hardest sporting events in the world? Never mind that I’d never done a triathlon in my life. I’ve only swam in the ocean once,and I bumped into a surfer and we both thought Jaws was coming to get us; I’ve never rode my bike farther than 65 miles, and the farthest I’ve ever ran is 20 miles,over 20 years ago. Minor details.

I immediately look for a race to enter,and I notice they’re all sold out, and they sell out quickly. I do notice that Ironman Florida is coming up soon,and it seems like the best race because it’s a flat course. Now at the time, signing up for an Ironman race meant you had to either be at the race the day after, and wait in line, or you had to sign up online. I remember coming home very early on Sunday morning the day after the 2004 race, and waiting in front of the computer. As I go to Active.com, I hesitate for some reason. I think to myself that I’ll go to sleep for a little bit, and when I wake up, if there’s still an opening, I’ll do it. I go to bed, and a little part of me hopes the race is sold out when I wake up. I wake up around 1:30pm or so, and I go to the computer. The race isn’t sold out. !@#$% Well, I promised myself I’d do it, and I do. Now I have something to look forward to. I think of Rick and Dick Hoyt, Sister Madonna Buder, Carlos Moleda, and all those that have done an Ironman facing huge obstacles. I figure that if they can do it then so can I.

Despite being severely undertrained, I finished the 2005 Ironman Florida in 14:15:59, just barely missing my goal time of 12 hours :) I learned alot in that race, and since then I’ve improved my time to 11:42:49. In this blog I’ll detsail what works for me in training, as well as the highs and lows of the daily grind. Maybe I’ll inspire someone to finish something they never thought they’d ever do.

Thanks for reading

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