In his marvelous tome, The Italians, Luigi Barzini, asks (then tells) us, "What exactly are these cose all'italiana? They are things in which we reflect ourselves as if in mirrors: a gratuitous Beaugeste, a shabby subterfuge, an ingenious deception, a brilliant improvisation, an intricate stratagem, a particular act of bravery or villainy, a spectacular performance...Such cose may not be statistically prominent, but they happen only in Italy." http://www.ciclotte.com/CiclotteContent.html
Like this design of an indoor trainer. To me (and my Italian nose) this slick little puppy smells like Milano and I am quite sure rides like a Lamborghini. I wonder if she can replicate the climbs in the Dolomites?????
Sorry folks, but this is too good to pass up. Just a few days over 31 years ago. Jerry in fine form and Donna Jean adding third part to harmony on a very laid back version of Bertha. The sparkle in Jerry's eyes is worth the price of admission alone. Watching Donna dance and Jerry jam reminded me of Max & Minnie from this mornings post. "Really had to mo-oo-ove."
An interesting study from Mens Health on HIT training, specifically on intervals, and the value thereof. http://www.menshealth.com/run/all-about-intervals.php Sent over by VBA Gold member FW. As you all know we have introduced a new 'leading lady' to our program. Her name, Minnie, embodies the yin to Max's yang. She is the goddess of recovery. She is nurturing, requiring that you 'simply' focus on the rest, relaxation and recovery portion of the interval so that when required or instructed, the proceeding trip to see Max is, well, just that, the apex of the physical erg effort. Max is short for Maximum and Minnie is the nickname moniker we reverently use when addressing the minimum, or mini. Max and Minnie. High and Low, Work and Rest, Hard and Soft, Fire and Water, Night and Day, Earth and Sky. Classic Intervals. They are our guides.
Photos are from the Trek Travel website. http://www.trektravel.com/ I will be spending four days with them in Santa Barbara Co. next week and very much looking forward to reporting on the activities. After that it's out to St. George, UTAH to ride and shoot their new IM course. And then we do our ride to Pt. Townsend for camping and running the Rhody Run http://www.rhodyrun.com/ and then riding back. All this over two days, May 16 & 17. If ya wanna go, please use the comments icon below and address all inquires to either Max or Minnie.
RCVman is but a humble servant to their spirit and wisdom.
It might be somewhat a stretch, but of the last three books I have read, two were about running. The other one was about horses. They like to run, too, so therein lies the literature trifecta. This latest one, Chi Running by Danny Dreyer http://www.chirunning.com/shop/home.php has rocked my world, and not just the part that running plays in it. As you can imagine from the title, it contains little gems of Oriental wisdom and an altogether radical (to the western, modern mind) approach to the oldest of sports. Think Kwai Chang Caine on Heartbreak Hill. To say, thusly, that I thoroughly relate and am mesmerized would be an understatement the scale of calling Ironman a walk in the park.
To capsulize, he talks about how we can run injury free, run longer, smoother and with more speed as a result of impeccable form and absolute economy of motion. He says look at the Kenyans. Where are the big, bulky Mr. Man muscles? How do they get so fast with so little mass? Well, dear VBA, in a word. Chi (chee).
If you run (and I know that you do), or if you have run, are hurt, and want to run again, or if you want to run faster and pain free (whoa!) this is a must read.
And it doesn't hurt to start a chapter (in this case four) by stating, "How do I best move towards mastery? To put it simply, you practice diligently, but you practice primarily for the sake of practice itself." This gem from George Leonard's Mastery.
Here we go again. Budget Travel Magazine http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2009/04/23/AR2009042301954.html has decided through an in-depth and thorough poll of travel agents, advertisers, PR agencies and boards of tourism still having dough left in their budgets, that our incredibly mismanaged, inefficient and overpriced ferry run from Seattle to the Isola de Bainbridge, is number TWO on the list of best ferry rides in the US. We have been sandwiched between Juneau and Stanton Island. I am quite sure that the realtor's on the island love this as does the Chamber of Commerce. I for one wish that they would keep the kitty the bag just a little longer. And please, BTM, don't brag up our trails, you can find something your demographic will like better than clogging up the Grand Forest, like visiting the down-homey Starbucks in Safeway, the charmer Subway in the Mall or the Old Bainbridge Mac's Lounge up on High School Rd. It is a nice picture though, Bill Point ya suppose? (ooopps)
Sporting incidents singled out and applauded by the media as examplesof heroic action are used to support the idea that athletes are significant socialfigures because they are capable of representing important societal values, i.e.,courage, gameness, integrity, and poise. From: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=96432474
On the eve of he first 'true' race of the year (there is a clock involved), I find myself lost in the wonderful and mysterious world of ritual. There are things that need to be done in order to:
1) Be ready, 2) Race well, 3) Maximize and enjoy the experience.
In order to accomplish all of the above, henceforth referred to as the 'goal', one needs to approach these in chrono order. You need to be ready. You need to have trained. You need to have put in the miles, worked the core and fine tuned the machine as best you can.
If you have been successful on the above, number two is simply a matter of being present and taking what the day offers. You will know if you have been successful on number 1 if you have been successful on number 2. And vice versa. Most athletes are in constant flux deciding on the success rates of these two items. Sounds easy, no?
Number three is my favorite. I have been doing various forms of this since I was six. That is over a half a century my dear VBA. I have learned a lot about ritual, the need for preparation and the joy, value and rewards available to the person who crosses the line first - as well as last. I like racing. I like the challenge. I like the competition. I like cleaning my bike the day before a race. I like the last 60 seconds before the gun fires and my mind does a slide show of all the training sessions that have taken place over the winter. I winder if they will provide me with a return on investment. I wonder if I am ready. In 30 seconds I will get to apply all the knowledge of the past into the present moment of the race, along with hundreds of others. I WILL maximize this experience and enjoy each and every moment, every foot strike, and pedal rotation, knowing full well that it will involve effort and hence, pain.
It's a ritual I look forward to. And it's time.
Photos: Top, It's Spring and time to have fun Middle: The Blue Jays in the ritualistic pre-game strategy chat Bottom: Otto checks my front wheel true as part of the race prep ritual.
That time of year again folks. We will kick it off Sunday down in Enumclaw for the Mt. Rainier Duathlon. It's a tough little 10K/40K/5K Du that has always kicked my fanny. The video clip is from the much-discussed (as compared to award-winning) Northwest Triathlon 2003: Tips video. As mentioned in the YouTube description, there are a lot of familiar faces here, overall champs Leroy Popowski and Anne Jensen put on a virtual running and biking clinic and my old buddy Tim Becker takes Oscar home for "Best Demonstration of Marking the Start Line at a Local Event", illustrating in 16:9 aspect ratio the true beauty of this low key, yet thrilling, once a year event. And BTW, that is the incomparable Billy Hale channelling John Fogerty on the score. I just spoke with the event organizers at BuDu racing http://www.buduracing.com/and there is still room folks. Come on out and join the fun.
Here is an in-depth review of CompuTrainer by fellow blogger DC Rainmaker. http://dcrainmaker.blogspot.com/2009/02/in-depth-computrainer-review.html His analysis on RCVs are about 3/4 of the way down. Nice job DC, going from 19 avg mph to 22. And as far as his assessment of the costs involved, let's do a pro-rated analysis real quick (e.g. 'do the math').
Start up cost. $1,500. Years of use: Let's say ten. Cost per year: $150.
Or you can buy $1,500 worth of accessories like carbon cranks, aero helmets, stylish shades, dimpled wheels, and $5,000 frames and get neither fitter nor faster. But then again, if all you want to do is LOOK good, go for it. Additionally, you could also buy three of our competitors set-ups over that same period of time because they don't guarantee their hardware for life like we do, nor will they withstand the training punishment you intend to dish out on your journey to health, happiness and killer bike splits. So overall cost:
Let's take a minute here and note the accomplishments of others who have blazed the trail before us. I have often spoke of my heroes in past posts, (John Howard, Steve Prefountain, Jerry Garcia, Buddha, Karen Smyers) and when I come across others who display the qualities that I admire, I think mention and promotion is something that I can, and should, do. Today I came across one Greg Kolodziejzyk. http://www.adventuresofgreg.com He is an endurance monster. He rides, he races, he designs, he innovates, he sets records, he speaks, and he motivates. Here is a sample of his message:
3 Million Years
3 million years of evolution has produced an animal whose natural environment probably consisted of walking the distance of a full marathon each and every single day*. Now take that animal (also known as a "human being"), and stick him in a small cage, rob him of natural sunlight, make him sit in a chair all day and feed him a steady supply of chemicals and refined foods.
Is it any wonder that 60% of North Americans are over weight? Described by the World Health Organization as an "escalating epidemic", obesity is "one of the greatest neglected public health problems of our time with an impact on health which may well prove to be as great as smoking." Being overweight leads to many serious medical problems like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and many other health related issues.
An unnatural sedentary lifestyle causes chemical imbalances in our bodies which can lead to a host of psychological problems. Population studies have shown an inverse relationship between physical activity and depression, and there is evidence that active people who become inactive are more at risk of depression that those who remain active. According to a study from Duke University, aerobic exercise was MORE effective than antidepressant drugs in treating depressive symptoms in three study groups.
The cause of the obesity epidemic and skyrocketing rates of depression is obvious in my opinion. We need to become reacquainted with our "natural environment". Break out of your cage. Get outside and get ACTIVE! Ride your bike, run, walk, swim, climb - whatever it takes.
If you aren't quite sure yet about his credentials, watch this:
Congratulations Greg on all your success'. Rock on, we will follow.
CompuTrainer Rep Extraordinaire Dave Drives tipped me to the Athletics By Design facility in Winfield, IL, an easy ride West of Chicago this morning. Looks like they are doing some very cool stuff with Multi-Rider and their Indoor TT program. (above photo) http://www.abdcycling.com/coaching/cyclingcenter.htm
It also appears like our partnership with Trek and Trek Travel is getting the green light from all parties, so RCVman will be back on the road (not a moment too soon) heading down to shoot three legs of their California Wine Country tour, starting in Santa Barbara. This May 2-5, so stay tuned. More on their fabulous International offerings and opportunities to ride seriously famous courses here. http://www.trektravel.com/ What do you think RCVman would give to shoot a couple of legs in the Alps, race week? How about the Giro, Spain, or New Zealand? Heck I'd film in Baghdad if I thought we could vend a few copies.
Just for the record, Dave and I have worked two IM Wisconsin Expos and he was my driver at Ironman Louisville in 2007. At one point we got a little ahead of the race leaders and ON MY INSTRUCTIONS we blew thru a four-way intersection narrowly avoiding a nasty broadside from a retired couple with glasses thicker than coke bottles. A few meters down the road I also instructed Dave to pay no attention to the Kentucky State Patrol officer behind us with his lights ablaze and his siren a wallin'. After all my gyrations in the attempt to show the officer that we were "official", we pulled over. All this is cleverly covered up in the IM Louisville RCV (Disc 2) by some creative editing and a "You Are Here" sign. The cop was hot and when he asked us why we shouldn't both be in jail right now and our car impounded, Dave told him. It was at that point that I had to step into the conversation and eat a HUGE PLATE of CROW, apologize, take responsibility for my poor directions and promise to NEVER EVER do that again.
Until the next time we had to, of course.
RCVmans tales of the war. August 26, 2007. Thanks for the memories DD.
Three brave souls ran the monsterous 13.1 miles of Toe Jam Hill this morning, keeping intact the 28 consecutive years of Bainbridge Island's second longest sporting event. (Chilly Hilly has this distinction at 33). On a beautiful spring morning, on the traditional week after Easter, Eric and Jim joined RCVman for a highly symbolic rolling and relaxed run. All three finished around the two hour mark, and a $100 contribution to the Boys & Girls Club was the added bonus.
We hope to celebrate the 29ers accomplishment next year at number 30. Whay to go Eric and Jim!!!!!
Here are a couple more CompuTrainer Multi-Rider Centers in action. RCVman has begun YET ANOTHER exciting contest, this time the CompuTrainer Video of the Week. Below is the inaugural winner, Velosports from Asheville, North Carolina. Love those checkerboard tiles! http://www.ashevillevelosports.com/ In order to qualify for this prestigious award and claim the prize, contact must be made via the comments tab below. Good work everybody.
We have a couple of new courses in the works. Trek Travel http://www.trektravel.com/ will co-sponsor three days in Wine Country, California and Tri-Hive Magazine http://www.trihive.com/ and CT are working on a pre-release of the St. George IM course. You want some dazzling backgrounds to your Multi-Rider sessions? Santa Barbara and St. George, UT, await. In the meantime, keep those saddles full.
On warm spring nights, I take post-supper cruises in the park on my fixie to practice track stands and various other handling skills. Sometimes I do the pond circuit as slow as I can. All this for a change of pace. The opposite side of the spectrum, so to speak. Met some nice folks tonight who were out walking their beautiful German Shorthairs. We sat on the park benches facing the late afternoon setting sun and talked about "the local old-timers'. It was nice. I felt warm, happy and completely at home. Welcome to spring.
Per requests, here is the Map My Run of the course. Somehow I doubled up the distance at the water station (Country Club Road and Ft. Ward Rd.) so the mileage extended to 13.8 vice the actual 13.1. OOOps. I'm sure it will feel like 35.8 when we get back to the start. I will add a lite mix of Gatorade to the water. Looks like the field is now all the way up to three, and I even saw three time (if memory serves) overall champion Jorge in the park yesterday and invited him (thereby dramatically diminishing my chances of taking the overall.) I am sorry that I forgot his last name...but not his grace at a high speed gait, this guy can flat out run! That is the latest for now. Hi Ho. At this rate I might be designing T-Shirts by COB!!!!
Please hit the comments button below if you have any questions on the run, now know to all as THe 29er!! Gracias.
Did ya ever see "On The Edge"? GREAT running movie and near the top of my all-time favorite sports movies. Stared Bruce Dern as the enigmatic runner, obsessed with beating the course record at the 100 year old Dip-Sea in Marin County. The 1985 move is a cult classic among runners. Today I can very much relate. The back-story: Friday night (after my run) I had this weird feeling that I was forgetting something. Something big was about to take place and I was on the mute end of the aural spectrum. Something about Easter. Ahhhh, the Toe Jam Half-Marathon, traditionally staged the week after Easter. Has been for 28 years now. I thought to myself that this incredibly hilly and hard event would be (yet another) gauge of my current physical fitness. Even knowing that the data would not be great news, it would provide, hopefully, some motivation to start the serious spring ramp. So I went on-line to enter the race that I have done 11 times in the past and have always respected and revered. And dreaded, I mean this in ONE TOUGH SOB. And that is what makes it what it is. Same reason that Chilly Hilly is so infamous. It's our wonderful backyard full of hills.
So imagine my dismay, RCVGBA, when I discover that the event has BEEN CANCELLED. WTF? 28 consecutive runnings and they pull the plug, without even consulting me? In RCV-ville, folks, that is a felony.
After a few phone calls and e-mails the story pointed to the plain and simple fact that the Boys & Girls Club, who now "own" the event, having taken it off the hands of the BIPRD four years ago, put in a lot of work last year and lost money. This, coupled with the economy forcing sponsors to pull, provided all the motivation they needed to walk away. And nobody is rushing in to take their place. Except that my old pal Billy Nelson at Nelson Wood & Glass is interested in combining the 10K with his Taste of Lynwood event in September. Noble, but that would be like staging Halloween in May, or running the Kentucky Derby on Mothers Day.
So I have taken it upon myself to keep the streak alive. THERE WILL BE A TOE JAM HALF MARATHON FOR THE 29TH CONSECUTIVE YEAR. I may be the only participant, but there will be this event, this year, on Saturday, April 18th.
A few details: It will be the 'old course', starting and finishing at the Bethany Lutheran Church parking lot on Finch Rd. It will start at 0700. There is no entry fee, there are no T-shirts, medals or official timer. No volunteers, cops at intersections, or paramedics. I will mark the course Friday night and put out an aid station with water at the 3-T's intersection. Other than that you are on your own and automatically disavow any knowledge of an organized event in the case of accident. All participants are required to have fun, pay homage to those that have run before us on this historic course, and make a $13.10 donation to the B&G Club of BI. RCVman in return will recognize you and YOUR SPIRIT in the quest to keep the Toe Jam streak alive.
Some things you just have to do. Like add On The Edge to your Netflix queue before Friday.
Well, well, well. How long HAS it been? RCVman shot the world famous St. Croix 70.3 Triathlon on a balmy, partially rainy, steamy and challenging Fifth of May, 2007. For those of you keeping score, that is coming onto two years. Suffice it to say.....no, please allow me to say, that this RCV had every glitch, headache, screw-up, set-back, delay, hassle, and challenge imaginable. We have been working on this since the day after I returned from the USVI some 23 months ago, and now, RCV fans, it has been released. There are flaws, most obviously from my end, as the logistics of shooting 56 non stop miles on a rolling, climbing (did I say climbing?), wet, humid (duh) and ever changing lighting environment, was, saying it understatedly, a nightmare. So there are the few overstaurated segments, a few washed out meters, and one or two soft focus recoveries. But, all in all, I think it is a pretty fair representation of the course and what I am quite confident will be a serious ass kicker of an RCV.
RCVman would like to take this opportunity to thank all the good people involved with this production. Roger and Ray at RacerMate, as always, displayed more patience and dedication than a team of red ants, and the guys down in the VI, all assisted tremendously and gregariously. Tom, Todd, Win, Wayne, gracias amigos. And to my favorite tri-gal of all time, Karen Smyers, merci beacoup.
So that was then. Here were are today with the eighth RCV now to market. http://www.computrainer.com/rm_inc/sales/realcoursevideo_order.htmlAfter all this water under the bridge I couldn't very well let this moment pass without an adjacent trailer, now could I? And after the above mentioned hassles and restless nights worrying and working on this project, the theme of the trailer came to me in a dream Friday night........kind of a dream anyway. Hope you like it.
When I was in the magazine biz, our main competitor, a Conde-Naste pub that had been the industry standard for 50 years prior to the emergence of our fledgling, radical and bleeding edge start-up, was the focal point of my every marketing and promotional strategy. I used them for comparatives, I used them for market tests and analysis, I used their weakness (the few they had) to promote our strengths. What they didn't do, we did, and what they did do, we did more of. They were, in a phrase, the competition. They were the big guys, the Goliaths, HQ'ed in New York, and we were the Davids, tucked away in mossy Seattle. We had to work harder, smarter, constantly in guerrilla mode and ready to fight. My boss at the time, a former Husky defensive back whose Dad was an All-American at the UW in the 50's, and the namesake of our two football publications, was fearless and instilled in the staff (me and my two assistants) that spirited competition was a crucial component towards our winning the market share war with the suits from the Big Apple. At the time it was empowering and I loved the battle as much as the outcome. We won a few big games and our work had meaning. It was fun.
Moving the time line ahead two decades to the present , my attitude on competition has considerably changed, evolved into a softer, more 'sustainable' approach. The main competition is no longer against others, but with myself. Now, a competitor is nothing but a mirror, showing myself back to me and my many weakness'. The better the competition the better I stand the chance of becoming stronger. The greater the challenge, the sweeter the rewards, the tougher the course the more fun to take on and see what I got. Or had. Or want to have. YOU make ME better. And hence the Japanese bow at the end of an Ironman to the course (a metaphor for life's challenge.)
I came across this test report today on one of our competitors products and was struck by my reaction to the reviewers rhetoric in the highlighted paragraph below. http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/article/elite-realpower-ct-reality-trainer--20308 Is that more a slam on the competition or a back door compliment for us? I think it's the latter, and that is the way I look at competition these days; You make us better. Thanks for the review on the competition.
More importantly, the RealPower CT’s slick feature array and eye-catching video environment shine a little less brightly when held up to similar – and less expensive – options like the Tacx Fortius VR or more refined systems like Computrainer, which now offers its own video-controlled environments (at additional cost) and GPS course builder and download functionality, useful training features like SpinScan and more advanced analytical software that isn’t available with RealPower, and a more ubiquitous user network to facilitate remote races.
My knee jerk reaction, as always, was wrong. When I read the news this morning that scientists have found a way for you to lose excess weight by doing NOTHING, I sniffed a scam. http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20090407/can-brown-fat-make-you-thin Sure, another pill, diet or program that takes your money in barter for a placebo. I am going to say this again (and then again, and then again again): THE HARDER THE EFFORT THE GREATER THE REWARD. If you are the last person on earth still thinking that you can lose weight, build muscle, increase cardio fitness (all the while controlling stress and building your immune system) by taking a pill, or eating nothing but rhubarb and radish, or by doing 1,000 sit-ups a day, please, please, PLEASE send that wasted money to me, and not those "as seen on TV" scammers. The only way is hard work folks. And lots of it.
So imagine my mirth when I see this article on brown fat. How it generates heat and uses white fat (bad) as fuel to do so. So, you say, can we dedicate the brown to eat the white, thereby reducing the ratio of overall fat content and accomplishing the slacker objective of losing weight without exercise? Simply put my dear friends, no we cannot. Nice try and a great headline, but it doesn't work. Yet.
Maybe one day in the 23rd Century, when we evolve a little more, it will, but for today and the rest of your lifespan, you are going to have to do it the old school way, e.g. Frequent visits to Max.
I did however, take from the finding that brown fat is used to generate, control and regulate body heat, primarily in babies and seniors (because they can't do it for themselves), leading me to the conclusion that we can use this (and have been) in our training. Spin in a cold room, and ride in the sleet and rain. We then use what remaining brown fat we have to heat the body as we make yet another assault up the hill where my good buddy Max awaits, humored as always by all these silly human attempts to find the easy way up.
The fountain of youth is inside every one of us, she said with a calm sincerity. All we need to do is allow the body to become one with the universal power of the mind manifest in this noble truth. Is it written somewhere that you have to quit your work once you reach 65, or that you must discontinue playful outdoor activities once adulthood is obtained? The only people who want this are the manufacturers of canes, crutches and motorized wheelchairs. You bring on your suffering, pain and aging as a result of your stinking thinking. Think young, play like a child, laugh, frolic, dedicate the next 20 weeks to finding your passion and power through a rigorous routine. Be happy and smile. Be grateful you have this opportunity, here and now, for a quantum leap of body consciousness. Hear each drop of water in the fountain and see eternity in the veins of every washed stone. Breathe, relax, work, play. But, please, get started today.
Here is the .30 second piece I cut today (after my run and before my ride) to help announce the launch and release (does that sound fishy?) of the all new (official size and weight) RCV software for Multi-Rider. A mass e-mail is going out in the morning t0 18,000 MR users in our data base and I thought a little promo spot to get the juices flowin' would help. So here she are. Don't blink.
I forgot all about our fling with network TV fame last year. This aired on The Today Show over a year ago and I found the link today while searching for something entirely different. The CompuTrainer segment starts at 2:35, and the RCV focus at 3:15. Oh, and here is the kicker, the gal says, "Somebody actually rode the course and filmed it...." Wonder who that could have been.
Lance is not only back in the saddle, he is back in the saddle on the road and it appears that he is also riding at MellowJohnnys http://www.mellowjohnnys.com/pedal-hard with Kevin Livingston in his infamous peal hard classes. All this according to Twitter, which I am growing to appreciate more and more. Tweets LA: "Just went for a ride. On the road. If one of you 484, 272 tells my doc then I'm in trouble. Keep it between us please." Amazing.
Amazing II: How a city the size of Portland, OR (Photo of rider on the St. Johns Bridge, also part of the Portland Marathon course) can embrace cycling and a city the size of Seattle can't. Maybe we should all do STP and just stay there! http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/travel/2008035378_onlywa06mima.html
Amazing IV: Those incredible fixie guys from Davis are at it again. http://wheelsnorth.org/ Remember way back in ought six we took a little fixed gear ride from Davis to Boston to raise money for Histiocytosis? They are now planning a trek North from Santa Rosa to Seattle. Here is the BIG FIX 06 trailer I cut way back when advertising the fund-raising video, of which only 71 remain for sale here: http://www.histio.org/site/apps/ka/ec/product.asp?c=kiKTL4PQLvF&b=217957
Amazing V: Why more people don't use CompuTrainer, Multi-Rider, RCVs and Spin Scan like they do as shown in the photo of Whole Athlete in San Anselmo. http://www.wholeathlete.com/fa_pedal_analysis.htm
Today we graduated the class of 2009 (Top photo). A 55 minute TT was the ceremony and we all finished strong, turning the class mantra into wisdom. I do apologize for my rather vulgar methaphor in reference to going out too hard. Ahem. It was 21 weeks of training, four days a week at 0530. That's 84 one-hour, HIT, sessions. I am proud of this group, their dedication, their attitudes and their spirit. It was fun. Tuesday is the first day of the Spring class and I am taking the Tuesday and Thursday 0700 (might as well be noon!) class, and keeping my 0530 class on Wednesday (post graduate work). The T&T will be spinning 101 as we start from scratch with a new group and a clean slate. I hope to post a similar message 21 weeks out.
Just so you know, dear GBA, the reason I am taking the 0700 classes is not only to free my weekends for travel, training, racing and filming, but to attempt to attract a new audience. I am looking forward to the challenge and hope that I don't scare off too many too soon. I will give it my best effort.
Also, from the Power of the Pack concept, I have been surfing the web to find clubs, facilities and coaches who are using the CompuTrainer Multi-Rider system, http://www.computrainer.com/multirider_fun.htm because we are just days away from launching the beta MR RCVs, and I want some buzz created quick with their release. So I am starting yet another new contest (no wine this time) are here are the paramaters: If your club, team, gym, town or YMCA uses a Multi-Rider system, either steer me to the link or send me a jpeg and whomever has the 'coolest' set-up (as determined by my elite panel of unbiased cycling fanatics), wins a Foxtrot, Romeo, Echo, Echo Multi-Rider RCV. Here are the first round finalists:
In 2007 RacerMate Inc of Seattle, Wa. hired me to produce their new software line of products to be called, TA DA, Real Course Videos. So almost overnight I became (cue the theme music) RCVman. This is the story of my work on the road, filming triathlons and searching for true love. Some things never change.
