At the start of every Ironman is a swim.  For someone whose swim is their weakest event, it can be viewed as something to get through–to survive before the real racing begins.  I have experienced six Ironman mass starts so far and each of them has come with some degree of discomfort, confusion, dismay and even panic.  My worst experience was at 2011 Ironman France, in Nice on the famous French Riviera.  There was no issue with water temperature which…

Here I am about 2 1/2 weeks after Ironman New Zealand (more on that later) and I don’t have one of my regular weekly training plans.  I find myself worrying about losing fitness before I get into formal training again very shortly.  You see, I am aiming for a solid PR at Ironman Hawaii 70.3 on June 1 and I want to be in top form.   My rational self (and my coach) is sitting on one shoulder and preaching…

Maybe there will be some things I share with you that will be interesting or helpful.  Maybe not.  You will decide that for yourself if you follow my blog that comes to life today. I will be writing about triathlon–what inspires me, what my training is like, my racing experiences, the products I use and the ups and downs I experience on this particular journey. I’ll also share my experiences in community service.  I have always believed it’s important to…

Ironman New Zealand is just about 10 days away.  I feel cautiously ready, until I really sit still and think about the length of the event.  I was sick with a stomach flu and then a chest cold for so long, I feel a bit deficient in my training.  And that sick spell affected my mental state too.  An example:  I was going to swim 4k this morning at Ala Moana Beach Park to check out my fabulous Freak of…

I tend to get cramps in my adductors when pushing hard on the bike.  If not on the bike, then soon after on the run.  I am doing many things to try to minimize this with supplements, hydration, training, and compression.  I searched online for a pair of long compression tri shorts.  I have raced in 2XU tri shorts in the past and liked the way they reached nearly to my knee and provided a bit of support.  But, they…