2006 - No Time Like The Present

2.16.06 Thursday

I need to fill-in my history below, but for now instead of writing about it, I think I'll just Do It! (hmm, someone ought to use that as a marketing tag line - note to self, call Nike or someone). It's 82 degrees and sunny out there and I skipped lunch - so I'm going to go for a 20 mile bike ride before I finish this section later today.

2005 - A New Man, A New Plan

2005 was the year I got back into training - I didn't intend to enter as many events, but it was a lot easier to schedule a work out when I knew I would have to complete a tough event in the next month.

I started working out as a New Year's Resolution and set my sights on doing the Tom Landry Triathlon in May. My neighbor Scott got me on the bike and I started doing rides with him - the rest becomes routine.

2004 - Losing Mom to Cancer: The Year of Wearing Yellow

I lost Mom on May 28 after a month in the hospital to remove tumors associated with Throat Cancer. Roughly 60 years of smoking finally took her. Soon after, I heard about Lance Armstrong's foundation and the yellow wrist bands and I started wearing mine in September 2004.

I wear it as a reminder of taking care of one's health: eat right, excercise and don't smoke. I used to smoke a cigar a day, and my wife smoked cigarettes - not any more! If I don't feel like working out, I just look down at that yellow band and something stirs me to get up and move.

I started running and biking again, but I still could not get into a routine - until I picked an event to shoot for. 

1997 to 2003: Hiatus

Not much to fill-in here. My daughter was born in '96 and I started spending every evening after work playing with her rather than training. I think it was a good call. Anyway, I did a bunch of 5K and 10K races pushing her in the baby jogger until about 1999. Then I did the Olympic Trials triathlon in Irving, TX in 2000 so I could still call myself a trathlete (one every 5 years ought to keep me in good standing - right?).

 I'd have to check my T-shirt drawer, but I don't think I did anything between mid-2000 and mid 2004.

1992 to 1996 - Genesis

In the beginning...

In the summer of 1991 my friend Jerry used to bug me all the time to ride bikes around White Rock Lake. I was in my mid-30's and needed to get back into shape, so I reluctantly complied. In early 1992 we entered the Tour of Dallas bike ride and I was introduced to the Dallas Triple Crown - a series of events that included The President's Fitness Triathlon.

I asked Jerry if he wanted to do the relay portion of the triathlon consisting of a 1 mile swim, 40k bike and 10k run. I would swim, he would bike and a co-worker would be our runner. Being competitve, Jerry asked me for my estimated swim time for the 1 mile swim leg and said he would get back to me. An hour later he was in - I was a long distance swimmer in high school so when he checked out my time he saw we would be competitive.

I was third out of the water, Jerry caught another guy during the bike but our runner got passed by two people - we missed the podium, but it was a respectable 4th place for our first event. From then on I started training for triathlon and I did a bunch between '92 and '96.

Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon and Sharkfest Swim

Of all the events I did, The Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon was the most fun. Not only did it require a weekend in San Francisco, but I got to swim accross the most infamous stretch of water there is: From Alcatraz Island accross the bay to Aquatic PArk at the western end of Fisherman's Warf. Talk about great stories at cocktail parties!

I did this event twice but I also did the stand alone Sharkfest Swim a few times - just the 1.5 mile swim from Alcatraz Island without the 20 mile bike and 14 mile run. The Sharkfest Swim - now that's a great T-shirt.

However, the most interesting swim was the 2 mile Golden Gate Swim (from the south tower to the north tower, accross the entrance to San Francisco Bay). While we were swimming accross, a supper tanker tried to enter the bay and had to change course and enter at a different point because of us. After it passed in front of us we got to swim up and down the mountainous swells created as it went by - Cool!

Add in a few long distance triathlons (The defunked Texas Hill Country Tri), several Hotter N' Hell Hundred bike rides in Whichita Falls, TX and a couple of Dallas White Rock Marathons and I was pretty busy collecting T-shirts (MY wife made a cool quilt out of a bunch of them).

I learned a lot about myself during all the training, injuries and competition. And, I honed some great practices: disciplne, goal setting, planning and perseverance. I also collected a lot of great memories  - not to mention the great collection of T-shirts!