When Marathons are Too Easy

My buddy sent me this photo set of an impromptu aid station set up by ultra runners at the Austin Marathon.

As you may be aware, an "Ultra" is anything more than a marathon. Therefore, this event that most people set as a life goal is nothing more than a walk in the park for these folks.

I won't name names, but some of them were drinking beer and eating tacos and still finished under 4 hours. Easily.

Indulgence - Anton Krupicka

Anton rocks.

Rocky Raccoon 100 Miler Video Start

I finally figured out how to post videos without it wrecking my blog. It only took 5 hours of upgrading and wanting to smash my skull into a truck bumper, but it's done.

This is a clip of the psychopaths joyful folks starting their 100 mile running event. Looks like fun? It has a 34% DNF rate. "Look to your left, look to your right. One of you won't finish. And the other two will wish they didn't."

Triathlete Recipes

I grew up cooking complicated meals in the Great Outdoors without much more than what you could carry in your backpack. I was a member of a fantastic high-adventure Scout troop and we would always try to outdo each other with the fanciest meals possible in the most extreme conditions. Lots of times ingredients would get lost, cooking fuel/gear would be compromised, or items would end up being eaten in a previous meal. Still, the judging would go on - with the treasured "Golden Spoon" as the reward. Suffice to say, we learned to whip up a three-course meal in terrible conditions.

As a result, my cooking style is quite bizarre. I can go in pantry, find the most seemingly disparate ingredients, and create some pretty interesting meals. I rarely measure anything because I've learned to eyeball it and I enjoy having the meal taste slightly different each time. My mad cooking skillz can sometimes irritate those that are used to making meals by the book. "How do you know how much to put in? You can't cook that way!" As proof that I'm not making this up, my brother was in the same Scout troop and he is in charge of meals and whatnot at one of the largest catering companies in Chicago. He is a fantastic chef. He cooks the same way.

I was tasked tonight to make dinner for us while my beloved triathlete wife was in class, so I did my typical "Make it up as I go recipe". It turned out tasty, so I thought I'd document how I made it this time and share a decent meal for endurance athletes with all you folks. Here is my humble, thrown-together masterpiece: Totally Aero Thai. Emily gave it the double-thumbs up and my three-year-old even liked it, so it can't be too terrible.

Nutrition is important to us tri-geeks. I'm going to add a page to this blog very soon and list recipes for us to chow down on. Please send me a link to your own. Mine was written and then published with Google Documents. Give it a try if you're looking for a way to keep track of your own recipes. Look closely and you'll see that I've added some triathlon-specific touches.

Safety in Numbers

Studies show that cycling was safest when there was the greatest number of people on bikes.  I can't remember the year, but in America, that was a couple of decades ago.  Drivers are more careful when they know there's a good chance there's a cyclist around.

Even though helmets are safer, lights are brighter, and most gear is better, YOU are still more likely to be hit than before because fewer people are seen cycling.

How do we change that?  By encouraging more people to bike more often for reasons other than just sport. 

People want to do this.  Zen and the Art of Triathlon is successful because we promote the lifestyle, not the winning.  Bike messenger culture is hot.  Gas prices are high.  Stress levels from dealing with traffic are crushing your spirits. (Yours, not mine.  I bike to work.)

I was delighted to see Lance Armstrong building a bike store in Austin that promotes urban and commuting cycling instead of just outright going fast on country roads.  This helps with all of our safety, and frankly, is what our country needs to catch up with the rest of the world.

I've been riding quite a bit with some entry-level cyclists lately and have been adamant about encouraging them to act like vehicles, not third-class psuedo pedestrians.  I show them how to NOT ride on the sidewalk and ride in the car lane instead.  I show them how to place themselves in intersections as vehicles and negotiate left turns across oncoming traffic.

I teach them this for two reasons:

• They have the right to ride their bike on the roads.


• By doing so, it makes it safer for all of us to ride on the roads.

Cars see more of us biking around on roads and the drivers become more cautious and respectful of bikers.
If they regressed and rode on narrow, bumpy sidewalk, drivers see that and begin to believe "Bikers belong on the sidewalk.  See!  There's one on the sidewalk right now!"

Do all of your cycling friends a favor and start riding in the road/bike lane/turn lane like you have the right.  If you wear bright clothing and don't ride like an idiot, you'll be surprised at how kindly car traffic will treat you.  Drivers appreciate it when you ride predictably and stop at all the same stop signs and lights cars have to.

Start biking around town to do errands.  Once you start, it becomes very addictive.  Get a junker bike, cheap lock, and a bike bag and live the urban cyclist life.  It will make you a much better cyclist when training and racing.

And don't forget, tell everybody that you bike around town.  When they joke about acting aggressively towards cyclists, remind them that they could hurt or kill a fellow coworker or somebody's friend or family.  Most importantly, if the cyclist gets their license plate number, they can be charged with attempted vehicular manslaughter.  That usually puts the joking to an end.