Kona 2011 Part 2- Life in my sport. Why?

I am often asked how I can train and race while having three jobs. It is a challenge, to be honest. The logistics of having a few careers along with training daily can be a real grind- and I would not have it any other way. I am on my path. I have said it in past posts in this blog- I love my life in this sport. It forces a strict regimentation into my life that I find comforting and fulfilling. Obviously, I would not be in my 30th year of military service if I did not enjoy a little structure.

I love the routine and life rhythm of training and racing. It is fun to think how and where I am going to get in my training. As one who lives a good portion of life on the road, figuring out how that training is going to take place is a huge challenge. It is also hugely rewarding when I do get that training in there with everything else I have going on. I sometimes have to train tired after flying all day. From an exercise science perspective, it isn’t optimum, but a lot of things in life are not optimum. Life is frenetic, confusing, and can be wrought with mistakes…and so is some of my training. As I get older, it gets easier as I have figured out how better to do things, but it is never perfect. What in life is?

On the drive back from Buffalo Springs, Teresa and I had a very long talk about why we still race triathlons. We both had unsatisfying efforts. T was forced to DNF due to sickness and I was run down by two athletes in my AG after having been in the lead of the race for 4 hours. The travel, the money, the time training, the pre-race nervousness, the obvious suffering that takes place in long, hot, difficult races- why? T and I are in our late 40’s and early 50’s. Why the forced, unnecessary pain? We spent hours driving through the northwestern part of Texas breaking our sport down in great detail. The answer we came up with is that in the rigor of racing and training hard, one can often find their “best self”.

Your best self is that part of you that surfaces when you draw from deep within to find strength, courage, and toughness and the other personal qualities one needs to make it through this life and avoid the enduring downward pull toward mediocrity. The demands of living a life in this sport forces a person to continue to work on finding their best self. In order to set the table in your life to find that best self requires that you build a system for living that facilitates finding the extraordinary in yourself- every damn day. If you can find it in Ironman, you can find it in love, work, and any area you need to. I have come to embrace all areas in my life at the same temperature I approach Ironman. I believe I am better for it. Ironman, like real life, never gets easy. You have to continue to try harder every day. The results are extremely satisfying when you do succeed and infuriatingly maddening when you don’t. It is in that tension between success and failure where the contest of life truly resides.

In addition to constantly searching for your best self, other reasons for continuing to live a life in this sport are the authentic friendships in which I am blessed to be a part. Some of my best buds are in my triathlon community. Obviously, I am blessed with a tight navy network of dudes that are my dear friends for life. Triathlon has also provided me with a “bro network” of wonderful and authentic folks with whom I like to stay in close touch. Along with those close buds, the overall community of folks we see at races is really fun. Big events like Kona really drive that home. It was such a pleasure to walk through town this week and re-unite with so many wonderful people from our Ironman life. Aussies, Kiwi’s, Brits, Americans, South Africans, Austrians, Germans, Brazilians, Canadians, and Portuguese- our triathlon friend network is literally global. I find that part of our sport to be fantastic.

So there it is. Life in this sport is an exercise in finding your best self. Along the way, it is very likely you will find a bunch of epic friends to help you in that search. The thought of that makes me feel at home in a sport that I have decided to invest a sizable portion of my life.

Jonser

Kona Blog 2011 Part 1- Ironman. It can be a freak show, but it is my kind of freak show!

I seem to not feel the urge to blog much when I am not at race venues. When I am at these epic venues such as Kona, my grape fills with perspective on a number of topics. Obviously, this week it is mostly on Ironman and life in this sport.
Teresa arrived here last Thursday and I followed on Sunday after work. It is good to be back on the Big Island for this race. I am not racing this year. Teresa is here to compete in her 11th Kona and her 24th Ironman overall. In my opinion that is pretty remarkable. It comes at a cost, but she continues to love the sport, as do I.

There is a lot to love about this sport. The lifestyle, the race venues, and the types of people this sport attracts are what keep me fired up on Ironman. I would have to say that there is a freak show aspect to Kona, but it’s my kind of freak show. I dig it. I can only imagine what some folks think if they have never been around a big triathlon and this crowd rolls into town. The streets are lined with tanned ectomorphs with their shaved legs, skintight everything, knee high compression socks, and the obligatory M- dot (ironman corporate logo) tattoo on their ankles. Many are sporting a minimum of two watches on their arms so they can track their every move by GPS, monitor their heart rate, and count their kilojoules of energy expended. I’m not kidding. They track their energy expended and measure it in kilojoules to come up with a TSS. I forget what TSS stands for (I think it is Total Stress Score). I have athletes that report theirs to me. It is a 1 percent solution for all but the really big volume boys, and I deal in 90 percent solutions. With ironman training, it is a basic JFT prescription for most folks. JFT is a quote from a couple of mentors of mine. It stands for Just F—kin Train. I find with most, that if they consistently JFT, they hit every athletic benchmark they can set for themselves.

So let us get back to the freak show. Walking around Dig Me Beach here in Kona in the morning is an epic freak show, but I love it. You see everything. This morning was the Underpants Run. A couple of famous US coaches, who are married to a couple of former champions of this race, conduct this run at a few Ironman races around the world. It is a kick to watch. Folks show up in their underwear and run like an army platoon around town, perform funny calisthenics and various group running drills. You see just about anything you can imagine in these runs. It is hilarious. This morning, there were small kids running with their dads, in public, in completely crazy underwear. All part of the freak show-my freak show.

On the whole, when you come to these races you see very committed athletes who are the best 1,700 in the world, along with some lottery folks and CEO’s who pay their way in. I live in Boulder and get to see the pros train on a daily basis up close, with a few of them being my good friends. I respect the pros, but that is their job. I have a huge appreciation for the working age group athlete. They are the backbone of this sport. They pay the exorbitant entry fees so that these races happen, they buy the products that support the companies that sponsor these events, and their story is the one I am most interested in telling.

Ironman is on a lot of folks’ bucket list. It is a stop on their journey of self discovery, and I think that is the coolest. I have to admit that is not where I am. Ironman is not a stop on the journey, it is a destination. This is my sport. This is my freak show. I have wanted to compete in this sport for as long as I can remember, and I love being here. I hope to be here for a lifetime.

More later.
Jonser

Operation Rio De Janeiro: the 5th World Military Games Post #5- Conclusion

On race morning I woke up early and hustled down to board the buses that would take us to the race venue on Copacabana Beach. The bus was full of nerves and eerily quiet. I sat next to Kathy Rakel and we chatted a little about a few race items, but for the most part, it was a quiet ride. Upon arrival, things got really busy with getting everyone situated. I was running around trying my best to be helpful, but with the exception of applying a few tattoos (race numbers) on a couple of the girls, they had it down and were ready to roll.

I had no expectations of any of the team members other than they race their hardest and be happy with their effort. I could tell they were all ready to get started and it was most likely a relief for them when the cannon sounded, sending them all into the water. Laura was the first to emerge from the water for our team and I got busy from then on. The race went by in a blur and before I knew it, they were all finished and I was hustling back for the men’s start. Kathy was our top female at 21st and Laura was next, followed by Jolene, and then Big O and Lil O. Rachel quickly filed in after Lil O. I was ecstatic with all of their times and especially their efforts. The swim was choppy and they all, with the exception of the O’Connors, wound up in lousy packs of riders to work with. The only reason the O’C’s were fine, was it was the two of them and a straggler or two at times. Poor Kathy got isolated between packs and did a 7 lap TT solo before finally catching the pack in front of her. She rode tough and I was proud of her for catching that pack.

So the girls got home and I was happy and off to watch the men go at it. Oskutis had a monster swim and was able to get himself into the lead pack within a few laps. Bales and Tonder took a bad line to the first buoy and paid for it on the swim and had to ride hard all day in lethargic packs, but both finished it off with great runs. Brad P raced his guts out and had a breakthrough performance, finishing third among the US team. Weasel raced tough all day and got home in style. Like the women, most of the men found themselves in packs with athletes who didn’t want to work on the bike. Everybody just wanted to sit in and wait for the run. This format of triathlon has that aspect to it and can be frustrating for those strong on the bike.

All in all, it was a superb showing for the US Team. One has to remember that other countries bring professional athletes, not real military members, so I judge our performance by an objective standard, not based on the overall field. Some of these athletes here came straight from the ITU (pro world cup series) circuit and watching them struggle to be comfortable in a military uniform they never wear was interesting to observe during our time together at the Opening Ceremony. It is what it is, though, and we know the drill. I did find it interesting that there were some Brazilian athletes here that had military ID cards that were issued in the last days of June 2011. The Polish male team could not produce military ID’s and were not allowed to compete.

My favorite thing about our stay in Rio would have to be our time spent with some of the other teams. By far, our overall favorite team was the Irish. We met up with them in the airport before we ever got to the Blue Village. Their Team Captain and Coach, Derek Nugent was introduced to me by my National War College Classmate, Ireland Defence Forces Colonel Michael Beary. Michael and I had taken a couple of classes together in grad school and became fast friends. His experiences as an Irish Colonel in many multi-national forces scuffles around the world give him a credibility that I truly respect. He just happened to be in Rio as one of the Chiefs of Mission for the Games and it was great to reunite with him.

Along with the Irish Team, we also spent a lot of time with the Canadians. They are just good folks and we really enjoyed their companionship. We knew all of them as they came down to Armed Forces Nationals in April and used the race as their qualifier for their National Team as well. Other teams I enjoyed were the Colombians, and especially India. I knew a few of the Indians from Mumbai in 2007, and they are a team that is still developing. They remind me of Marines, in that where you see one of them, you see all of them. That is a terrific quality in a team. I loved the time I spent with the Indian Team. We traded emails and I look forward to staying in touch.

In looking back on my 13 days in Rio, I would have to say I grew weary of the logistical snags we experienced with the Brazilians. As I have posted earlier, they got left high and dry by the contractors in charge of things and they rebounded nicely, but an area I grew impatient with was timeliness of travel. I tried twice to go on tours while there and both times the delays with buses and the inability to stay on schedule forced me to abandon the trip and just go back to my room. The bus ride back from the race took us 4.5 hours. It really did. That is not an embellishment or exaggeration. My athletes were absolutely starving and being trapped on a bus after racing contributed to extra muscle soreness for them as well. I would have to give the host country of this year’s CISM a C- for logistics. I have faith that they will get it right for the Soccer World Cup in 2014, followed 2 years later by the 2016 Olympic Games. They know they have work to do. The organizers of CISM cruised through the crowd during the after party that they threw for all the athletes, shaking hands and thanking folks for their patience with the snags here and there. I respect that.

In being so harsh on the Brazilians for logistics, I would have to give them an A++ in hospitality. Brazilians are lovely people. Friendly, warm, enthusiastic and an absolute thirst for any pin, garment, jacket, or patch with USA on it was refreshing. They literally swarmed Scotty Tonder one afternoon when he pulled out a pin for a child at a soccer game. We were greeted warmly at every single meal and the friendliness was genuine. They also took their role in protecting us very seriously. I always felt safe during travel. We always traveled with armed security and a motorcade, which was kind of cool. I will always remember Brazilians as fantastic folks.

One doesn’t get many opportunities like this in life and in sport. I don’t take the last 17 days for granted. For me personally, it came at a bit of a cost in that my schedule does not flex easily to accommodate 16 days away from real work and my business, but we made it work. It only worked because my wife took up all of the slack, as did a few of the folks I work with back in my navy headquarters. Thank you to my dear Teresa, as it is our anniversary today and I am hours from being able to see her and the little brown dog. I am counting the minutes. Thank you to Commander Matt “Burro” Grahl, USN for covering my six back at the Navy so I could come live this wonderful experience. I am blessed in many ways. My time with this team is among the many blessings I enjoy. They, along with Brazil, will be in my heart forever.

Thank you to the All Armed Forces Triathlon Team. They put up with my idiosyncrasies, which are considerable, and they made me laugh until my belly hurt more than once. Rio 2011 is in the books, as is my time with this team. A life experience I will never forget.

Thanks for reading. Train with joy or not at all!
Jonser

Operation Rio De Janeiro: the 5th World Military Games. Post #4

Tomorrow is the big day for the athletes. At the Team Captain meeting last week, the race director stated that unless something strange happened with the weather, the swim should be without wetsuits. But as all things go, we find ourselves with two cold, rainy days leading into tomorrow’s race. It is not a big deal in my mind in that the weather is forecast to be nice tomorrow, it’s just that the water will have cooled with the changing weather and the athletes will begin their day in rubber. For us, there are no worries. All of our athletes brought wetsuits in case we did end up racing in them. There are a few countries like Belgium that are scrambling to find a wetsuit for their third best guy behind Vanhoenacker and Van Lierde (no relation to Luc, although Luc Van Lierde is his coach). I think the Germans are going to hook him with a suit, so he should be good. The Belgian coach and I raced against each other in 2006 and got along great, so to be honest, if I had my rubber here with me, I would loan it to them in a second. Friendship in sport is the CISM motto and if the coaches can’t live it…

I am happy with the draw we got for both the male and female races. The draw is done by computer at the coaches meeting and we drew the furthermost position to the left for the male, which puts us #26 out of 26 teams for the start. The start is a parabola so there is no definitive advantage to any team, other than preference based on ones teams’ strengths. For our females we are third from the left in very similar position to the males. I was excited with this draw as a few of our women are more specialized in biking and running and I was concerned about them getting swallowed up and choked off in the center, were they to have gotten that seed in the drawing.

I genuinely like our chances in this race. Our athletes, unlike a good number of other competitors are all pure “soldiers”, as I heard a euro coach describing his athletes. I was running with the German coach the other evening. We have been saying hello to the other on Alii Drive in Kona for years without formally meeting one another or knowing that we were each involved in military sports as well. He described some of his athletes as “athletes” and the others as “soldiers”. An example on roughly how the conversation went- “We don’t have our athletes here for this race so close to the next WCS (World Cup Series) race, we only brought soldiers”. See, in most competing countries within CISM, conscription, or what the United States calls the Draft, is still in place. This means that every single male has to enter into mandatory service. In many of these countries, that service can be done as an athlete. Along with this, many military men are elites on their own, just as are the members of our team. So when we talk about our team in the same terms as Michael, the German coach, all of our racers are soldiers. With that being said, our soldiers are used to racing on the weekends and then training along with working normal jobs through the week. This means they are always carrying a steady level of fatigue in their bodies. The real advantage of us conducting our 4 day training camp in Annapolis and then having this long period of time here in Rio, is the team was allowed to lay down a pretty solid of work during the first part of this trip and then pull back a little bit and just rest. I am convinced that the team in general will have a breakthrough day tomorrow because of this. Stress then rest equals fast times on Copacabana baby!

I think the cooler times are going to bring some pretty fast times. I am excited to see our top men and women rage, and I am anxious to see the team members that I consider as developing have huge breakthroughs that take them to a new level, which bodes great things for the next few years of Armed Forces and CISM.

It is amazing how attached I get to these kids (and Weasel). I pay very close attention to precisely what each one does in their training each day and can see progress happening on a daily basis. I have run this team very differently than the way other Team Captains are running theirs. Some are very structured in the teams daily activities and run a very tight ship. For those teams and those programs, I think that is spot on. For us, I think allowing the athletes to construct their own training days is to their advantage. I try to always be close by if there are any questions, or someone needs an inspiring swim workout because they are bored with what their personal coach has them scheduled for them that day. For the most part, I think in our team, just being there and being available is the best for the athlete. Having said that, I have become hugely invested in each of these athletes races, and I am secretly very nervous for them. I’m not that fussed about overall placings and team placings. Those things take care of themselves. I am nervous because I want them to all walk away with having the race of their lives, and most importantly, an experience they will remember forever.

This will be a very special race on a very special venue. How many times do you get to race at your limit on the streets of the Copacabana shepherded by a colossal statue of Christ the Redeemer looking down upon ya? It is lining up to be an epic day. That much is for sure. I doubt I will have a voice tomorrow night. I plan at screaming at volume 11 for my team with all I have the entire race.

Thanks for reading,
Jonser

Operation Rio De Janeiro: the 5th World Military Games Post #3

Tonight I am sitting by the open window with the cool breeze and the smell of rain on asphalt filling the room. Two blocks away there is yet another Brazilian live band playing in the compound. If you have not spent time listening to Brazilian music, you might want to try it. Lovely stuff.

I thought I would talk a little about the female squad we brought with us here to Rio. Our Armed Forces National Champion this year is Air Force Captain Kathy Rakel. Kathy is an Air Force Intelligence Officer stationed in Arizona and lives and trains in the same area with trips to Southern California to train with her coach. This is Kathy’s second National Armed Forces title and first CISM competition. To be honest, I did not know Kathy before this trip. We exchanged hellos at Armed Forces and traded a few emails with details on the trip before this, but we came on this trip as strangers to the other. Kathy has been very single minded in her preparation for this event and has bypassed the sightseeing and touring here in Rio for the most part, so she and I have found ourselves running and swimming a fair amount together in the afternoons here locally. This has given us the opportunity to get to know one another a bit in the last 10 days or so. Kathy is an extremely impressive individual. If one were to look back at her life in her 26 years they would be blown away by her accomplishments. She is the type who only has one speed- full on, and her life shows it. It has been a blast to get to know her and hang with her a bit. Kathy is high speed for sure, but has a lovely, calm, and enjoyable personality that allows you to just hang out and get to know her. We have had a lot of fun just chatting about whatever comes to mind and truly exchanging in conversation. I am excited about watching her race this weekend. A race this size, with the international talent that is present, will be an excellent test for Kathy. I think people are going to be surprised with her performance. I won’t be. I can feel what is coming. Kathy is going to lay down a blistering race and I am going to have a front row seat to watch it.

Air Force Captain Colleen O’Connor and I were on the same CISM team that competed in Sweden in 2006. I actually don’t remember Colleen that well other than her birthday was on one of the days we were there and we did something nice for her. Colleen and I have since reacquainted and I have the honor of personally coaching her and her sister. Colleen is the real deal both in life and in sport. Colleen was the second place female at Armed Forces and is only going to continue to get faster. Colleen is an Air Force pilot and has a very challenging international flight schedule, which can be a huge disruption to her triathlon training. We have managed to come up with a system to keep her training rolling even when she is bouncing around the globe. Colleen is a former NCAA Division 1 swimmer and brings that work ethic to her training. We have also become solid friends along our triathlon journey. Colleen is a blast; she is sweet, intelligent and mature. The world needs more Colleen O’Connors’. Colleen’s training here in Rio has been awesome and I expect her to bust out a big one this weekend. I can’t wait!

Captain Erin O’Conner is the younger sister of Colleen. As I coach both sisters, I would sometimes get them mixed up when I was writing their training schedules, so I started calling them Big O and Lil O. Erin is Lil’O. Other than being a squirt, there is nothing little about Erin O’Connor. She goes big in everything she does. She was actually not even named to the Air Force squad this year, but due to an injury to a teammate, was a last minute addition to the team. So what did she do? She ripped out an amazing race at Armed Forces and finished third female overall! That is how Erin rolls. I love coaching this young woman. As one of my favorite Lieutenants from down in Corpus likes to say-she is legit! It would be wise to not look past Lil’O. She is a beast on the bike and as mentally tough as any athlete I have ever met. I love to get her fired up. I can tell when I am successful because her eyes quickly tighten up just a bit; kind of like how a fire control radar locks a target. I have big plans for this kid. The fun part is I am sure her plans are bigger!

Air Force Staff Sergeant Jolene Wilkinson is an Air Force Reservist and a pro triathlete and personal trainer. Jolene and I met during our time together at the 4th World Military Games in Mumbai, India in 2007. Jolene gets my vote as the athlete most fun to talk with while walking on scary streets. I remember in Mumbai she and I talked our heads off while walking through some scarier parts of Mumbai. The same just happened the other day. After all of the Force Protection Briefs we have received before coming here, a few of us launched out the front gate to head to a grocery store a mile or so away. Jolene and I chatted non-stop the entire way there and back. After I got back, one of the other Team Captains told me that little stretch of road was one of the most dangerous in Rio. Classic. Some leader I turned out to be! Jolene comes into this race extremely fit and healthy. I always enjoy watching her race and Sunday will be no exception.

Coast Guard Lieutenant Laura Springer is no stranger to these higher level competitions. Laura has actually competed in CISM in Swimming and now in triathlon. Laura and I met in Kona in 2009. Laura has also raced on the All-Navy Cross Country team in addition to the other two sports. If you were to ever gone for a swim or run with Laura you would know why she is competing at this level. She is a truly beautiful athlete to watch. Her swim stroke is both graceful and powerful as she slices through the water with authority. Her running is the same. When Laura strides, she bounds from powerful stride to powerful stride with sleekness and grace. As a coach, I sit there and think- geez, that is just beautiful to watch. A pure athlete is how I would describe Laura. It is great to have her here.

Coast Guard Lieutenant Rachel Beckmann is a grad school student in Oregon, getting her masters in Chemical Engineering. This degree goes along with her Electrical Engineering undergraduate degree from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. If you were to read that with nothing else in there, you would never come up with who Rachel really is. She is probably the most intriguing of all these athletes to me. She not only comes with a 400 pound brain, she is also the real deal in multisport. She can go at any distance. I have seen her do good things in both Sweden and Mumbai at ITU military distance and we have also shared the same parts of the lava fields in Kona together. Rachel has a phenomenal sense of humor and my favorite kind of sense of humor. It isn’t the gut busting obvious type of funny ha ha’s. It is the subtle and nuanced observations from someone much wiser than her years. Rachel has impressed me every single international trip we have ventured on together. This trip is no different. I also pity the person that is not her teammate who tries to stay on her wheel on Sunday. Rachel will take them to a new level of difficulty. Rachel hurts people on the bike-males and female alike. One of the other international competitors here was eating lunch with me a couple of days ago and pointed over at Rachel. “Who is she?” he asks me in broken English. I thought he was sweet on her or something so I just said, “that is Rachel” with nothing more than that. “She strong on bike…mean on bike!” That would be Rachel! Rachel is never an athlete I ever wonder whether she is going to have a good day or a bad day. She will go like hell anytime, anywhere, at anything- not just triathlon. That is why I like and respect Rachel as much as I do.

Well, there we go. There are our girls. They are probably the strongest 6 I have seen us put together. I am really looking forward to their race on Sunday. Once I get back to real internet, I will upload a bunch of photos along with team pictures, etc.

Thanks for reading!
Jonser

Operation Rio De Janeiro, the 5th World Military Games- Post #2

This morning we got up to head over to the site of the swimming for the Pentathletes, as they have a macdaddy 50 meter pool to swim in vs. our 25 meter ice bath. As luck would have it, the competition schedule and our swim practice schedule didn’t jive, so I got to learn a bit about the sport of Pentathlon. Unbeknown to me, the military forces of the world have some of the finest pentathletes in the world, including the USA. The athlete I spent time with this morning was Major Ely Bremmer, USAF, who competed in the 08 Olympic Games. I got to watch him shoot and we walked around the sporting venue and chatted about the sport. Modern Pentathlon is a very interesting combo of horseback riding, fencing, shooting, running and swimming. There is some luck involved in what horse you draw for the competition, but the remainder comes down to just pure athleticism. Imagine running a 1000 meter run as hard as you can go and then picking up a pistol that shoots a laser beam and hit the bulls eye 5 times, and then repeat that two more times over. I am known for a lot of things; being a good shot is not one of them. My pistol marksmanship ribbon aside (I’m sure the range master just felt sorry for me back in the day because all the other ensigns got marksmanship ribbons), but how bad of a shot am I? Let’s just say no animal has ever feared my presence in the woods. I can’t hit a target standing still, much less with a heaving chest from being in oxygen debt after just running hard. So that is what I learned this morning- Pentathlon is a challenging and skilled sport demanding some pretty varied skills from its athletes. Good stuff. I am trying to hit a new sport each day that I know nothing about so I can keep learning. I am going to have to break down and go watch some of the swimming finals, though, as that is clearly my favorite sport besides triathlon to watch.

This morning, I thought I would write a few lines on some of our triathletes we have on the team. The team is comprised of 5 men and 6 women. The Team is selected at the Armed Forces National Championships. We take the top 6 men and women. Unfortunately, one of our males got sick prior to our traveling and could not make the trip.

Lt Col Greg Price, USMC, is a fighter pilot by trade, and like me,a reservist. He has been on active duty for the last 4 years as the Officer in Charge of the Wounded Warrior detachment in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Greg is also an American Airlines pilot and intends to return to the cockpit when he has completed his tour with his current assignment. I have blogged about Greg “Weasel” Price before. Weasel and I duked it out in Kona in 09 (there is a blog about it if you go back to my October 09 Kona race report on the blogsite). Weasel and I get the opportunity to train together when I am on Honolulu layovers, he is just a super dude. I am glad he is here representing.

Major James Bales, USAF, is our Armed Forces National Champion this year and should do quite well on race day, which will be on the 24th of July. James is a former NCAA Division 1 swimmer, pro triathlete, and when he is not doing that, he is an orthopedic surgeon at the Air Force Academy. I could start kicking out his sports and professional resume, but that would be a series of posts all by itself. Just know that James is one of those dudes who are good at everything. Great athlete, scary smart, and one of the most genuine and nicest guys you would ever want to meet. He and I have traveled abroad to races before and I always look forward to our chats.

LTJG Derek Oskutis, USN, and I first met by phone when he was a midshipman at the Naval Academy and was the Captain of the Naval Academy Triathlon Team. Derek is 24 or so and is a great young man. He is fresh out of Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) training and is also a ranked pro triathlete who has time racing on the international scene. He is a ball of energy and literally cannot sit still. I crack up every time I look over at him, because he is always swinging his arms, snapping his fingers, wiggling his legs, something is always moving on this kid. He has a thousand ideas about a thousand things and is just going full on the entire time he is awake. I get energy from Derek and it is great to have him around. He has a bright future doing whatever it is he will do in life, triathlon or other. His parents should be very proud of who he is and how much he has achieved in his 24 years on this planet.

Capt Scott Tonder is an Air Force physiologist who is on his way to medical school in the coming weeks after this competition. I had never met Scotty before this trip. We ran an hour or so on the track together the other day and yacked our heads off. He is going places and he does it with enthusiasm and a natural curiosity that will serve him well. He is a phenomenal athlete on top of all his other talents. I am anxious to see how life treats this fine young guy. He is having a blast here in Rio and is taking it all in, as he should be.

Brad Pigage is a Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer based in Houston, Texas. As a former enlisted man in the navy, I have a special place in my heart for the young enlisted studs that do good things in our force. Brad, or B-Rad as he is known by some, inspires me. He is a hard working athlete who has a very bright future in our sport. I make no bones about it- he is my favorite athlete on the team. I love to see young dudes always doing their best, and that is Brad. He wants to be the very best he can be all the time. I especially appreciate his military bearing and self possessed nature. He is mature beyond his years, as all these guys are, but he has a specialness to him that makes me excited about his future. I expect nothing but great things coming from B-Rad, both in the sport and in his career. He is by far the most excited about being here at his first international competition. He should get comfortable-he will see more of these CISM’s and World Games for sure. I am ecstatic he made this team- he races the way men should race.

I will cover the females in a separate post. Most of the athletes are finished with their training for the day and are off to see some sites or watch some events. I have come down with a small cold (I think I got a chill from training in the ice bath), so I am keeping my distance from these guys and getting in a little training of my own to stay fit and get back to being healthy.

Thanks for reading-
Jonser

Operation Rio De Janeiro: the 5th World Military Games- Post #1

This whole Rio adventure began sometime last summer when the All-Navy Endurance sports coach, Jim Felty, called me and told me that he would not be able to attend the World Military Games in Brazil as he had family commitments that precluded him from making the trip. I was honored that he would think of me, and so that is how I find myself on this wonderful journey as the Team Captain of the All Armed Forces Triathlon Team.

This adventure started last weekend in Annapolis with a 4 day training camp for the athletes. It actually turned out really well. The athletes turned up fit and ready to roll straight out of the gate. We got in some great swims at the Naval Academy pool and some terrific group rides on a loop that one of the Naval Academy grads taught us. We trained through the day and ate as a team at night. It was a ton of fun. The weather was rocking and that just made it all the sweeter. I have been to Annapolis before, but have never spent much time there. If for some reason I had to work in DC, I would live in Annapolis. It reminds me of Coronado, California with a traditional east coast vibe. It is truly a lovely place.
Our trek to Brazil was a 25 hour adventure with a serious bag drag in there. We were loaded down with bikes, wheels, two weeks of gear, Team USA garbalia, the works. I don’t think I have ever lugged that much stuff from one place to another by air. This was even after I packed a box of things I didn’t think I would need after Annapolis and sent it home! We flew to Miami and then after a 5 hour sit we flew to Rio where we sat for another three and a half hours before we were bused to the Athletes Village.

Have you ever shown up at a friend’s BBQ or party an hour or so early by accident and they were expecting you but they aren’t truly prepared for your arrival? That is what it was like for us getting here on the 13th. Rooms weren’t ready, no food for the first 5 to 6 hours, no hot water- the list goes on. We were roughing it for a bit and we were wondering if the Brazilians were going to be able to conduct a sporting event of this magnitude. It was so bad that the Chinese athletes literally slept along the road outside the Athlete Village and the Chileans slept on the bus that brought them from the airport. We have since come to learn that the contracting company in charge of throwing this shindig walked off the job 10 days prior to the athletes arrival here at the Village. Can you imagine? Here is where I have to just take my hat off to the Brazilians and the delegation as a whole. 10 days prior they get left high and dry and by four days into our stay all systems are go.

When we first arrived, we ate beans and rice along with chicken, coffee and bananas with some different assortments of bread for all three meals. We now have the full spread of plentiful choices, and gifts at the door in the morning when we arrive at the dining facility! God Bless em. It gets a little better every day and we are having a fantastic experience.

I will post more in the coming days now that we have hot water, wireless, viable training venues, and all the other basics that make a two week visit to this wonderful country memorable.

More later…

A rest infused stream of consciousness on work, goals, and retirement.

The title of my blog is random thoughts, revelations, and crazy crap that seem to occupy that space between my ears. My time down here in St Croix, including the day of travel, has left me with a few days to just think and rest. I have been thinking a lot about my good fortune. I am one of the most fortunate guys in the world in that I have three gigs that I absolutely love. It has been said that if you have a job that you love, you will never work a day in your life. I totally embrace that statement and it has been true for me.

I love all three of my gigs for different reasons. I love flying for United Airlines. I have wanted to be a pilot since I was 7 years old. I’m not making that up. It isn’t an embellishment. It is the truth. I have always loved airplanes and have always wanted to fly them. I literally used to dream of being a United Airlines pilot. When I was a kid, my parents were divorced and I would travel with my little brother from one parent to the other. We would always fly on United Airlines to Denver and then fly Continental to Houston. The pilots used to pull us up to the flight deck and give us the tour. I remember them asking me if I wanted to be a pilot when I grew up. Well, it worked out for me. United has been wonderful to me and I have loved it.

I could have never done any of the things in my life were it not to have been for the Navy. I quit high school and enlisted in the navy when I was 17 years old. I have done everything from clean toilets to serve food in the wardroom, to all the other grungy lower level jobs that young enlisted men do in their first years in the service. I even bucked hay on a working party in Memphis, Tennessee! I have also tracked Soviet airplanes and ships back in the day as an 18 year old electronics warfare technician. I have flown or traveled by ship all over the world thanks to the navy. They paid for my education both undergraduate and graduate school. I have been in the same room as the President of the United States three times in my life. I have sat in the White House Press Secretary’s office. I have flown in 20+ different types of airplanes and done some really cool things. Now I get to pay back for all of those incredible opportunities in a leadership role where I get to set the stage for some to live out some of the same experiences that have come my way. I do a lot of navy as a reservist- and love every single second of it.

A lot of guys think of making rank as something that is a reward to them. I look at that one differently. Ribbons and medals are awarded for what you or your unit has done. Rank is bestowed with a trust based on what they believe you will do in the future. I was quite chuffed when I made 0-6 because it meant that the number of years I could serve would be increased to 30 years commissioned service (36 years for me due to my enlisted years). I now get to bang around this place for 7 more years and work as hard as I can to look out after the next generation of the navy. Of all my gigs, being a navy guy is my absolute favorite. T and I were talking about it over lunch yesterday when I was clacking away on my iphone answering emails. She asked me if I ever get tired of working. No. I don’t. I love technology for that reason. I can be in St Croix preparing for a race and at the same time staying engaged, so that nothing slips through the cracks. I also have a dynamo of a staff that are smarter than me and have my back 24/7. In a crowd like that, I never get tired of working- because to me it isn’t work, it is service. It puts a whole different spin on it.

My third gig is the coaching thing. I sometimes refer to myself as the accidental coach. I started coaching friends of mine, literally on the back of bar napkins in pubs laying out a basic week structure for dudes. I remember one time drawing out a mitochondrial cell in a bar in Ecuador, with a dull pencil, explaining how the cell works and why it is important in endurance exercise. I absolutely love this stuff! That gravitated to sending out Monday emails with a layout of what my buddies might want to consider when getting their training in week to week. Mitch Gold with Counterpart coaching took it from there when he gave me the opportunity to coach with CpC in 2005. Mitch taught me how to coach and how to throw camps. For that, I will forever be in his debt.

In 2008, I ventured out on my own fearing that my coaching journey might draw to a close due to being in grad school and launching into marriage with T. I had no idea that it would blossom so fully into a genuine coaching enterprise with T as my partner, and having a few coaches come onboard to share with us the opportunity to build the IMJ tribe. I still can’t believe I am rolling down this coaching journey enjoying it as much as I am.

It is amazing how much I learn each day from both the navy and coaching. To be honest and blunt, United Airlines is a union gig. I fly revenue trips for a corporation. I have an employee file number that is six digits long and a union member number. I communicate with a computer for my schedule, I fly the trip, and a paycheck arrives. I rarely fly with the same person twice, there is very little camaraderie, and I will only progress as far as my seniority (based on my date of hire) allows. I still love it, as this profession allows me to do so many things other career paths do not, but it is what it is. We aren’t exactly curing cancer over there at the big U.

I learn new skill sets every day in the navy. I think my favorite thing about the reserves is the growth that is necessary in order to successfully take on each of the new roles that have come my way every couple of years. At this level in leadership, if you don’t grow and continue to develop; you will be gently ushered toward retirement. I love that about the navy reserves and the navy in general. You are never done learning and growing. It never gets easy, and the next challenge is on its way as we speak. I heard a phenomenal quote from a woman we met at breakfast yesterday morning here in St Croix. Susan Quinby spends an appreciable amount of her winter here and is a faculty member at Barnard College at Columbia University in New York City. She quoted her mother when she said “if you rest, you rust.” After watching my grandfather take his own life at 85 because he was literally bored to death (my opinion), I have just become very comfortable with the thought that I will never retire from working. My roles and gigs will inevitably change over the years, but I don’t ever intend to stop working. I just don’t see any reason to go heels up, wear sansabelt slacks pulled up to my nipples and white tennis shoes, play golf (a fat white guys plague if you ask me), and sit around watching network news bitching about stuff that probably doesn’t affect me, is half true and that I don’t fully understand, just because I am bored out of my grape.

Coaching is an example to me about how much I have to learn in this life. I say it again. I have so much to learn. I have so much to do. I am only partly aware of how much I still need to learn, because I think there is truth in the axiom that “you don’t know what you don’t know”.

On things that I need to learn, the business side of coaching has probably been my biggest challenge. I have always been very uncomfortable talking with folks about money. I suspect it is because I was raised poor by a single mother. We needed help from the government in the way of welfare (working welfare, my mother has always had a job and worked her ass off). As a boy, I was very aware of our situation and was embarrassed by it. I think because of this, I get very reticent to raise the issue of money, even when it is for services paid in the way of coaching. Just learning from Teresa how to go about that, as well as how to advertise a business, build a website, develop product, search engine optimization, set up a social media site, etc., has been huge. I am much more comfortable in talking training protocols, methodology, and things like sports science. The business side of IMJ has made me so much more aware on how business in America works. It is a recurring theme both with the navy, my coaching, and my journey as an athlete- there is just so much to work on, whether it is in the way of training hard and continuing to improve as an athlete, or learning more about how to be more effective in making my athletes get faster, or working hard to more fully understand how to most effectively provide leadership and impact to the navy folks with whom I work. I love the prospect of the challenges that lie ahead!
So there it is. That is what has been rumbling around in my brain the last three days. I would quickly state that I am having a glorious time with my wife, best friend, lover, and training partner. I just absolutely love traveling to races with Teresa. Everybody deserves someone that loves them completely. I am in that situation with Teresa. No one is more content with that thought than me. Blessed.

If you survived that rambling stream of consciousness- hope it was worth it.

Cheers.

Jonser

Armed Forces National Championships 2011

If you are going to wear the big N, you better represent!


After my last blog post prior to the Armed Force race, I had intended to get right back to writing on how the race went down. As things go, I charged full speed ahead back into life and did not kick out a proper report on our day in Southern California.

WHY I LOVE NAVY SPORTS

Armed Forces National Championships is a very special event, and is like no other race. I have done this race a number of times over the last decade and have to count it as one of my absolute favorites. The first time I ever competed at Armed Forces was in 2003; before this race was draft legal ITU. In 2002, I saw this sign over the water fountain in a navy gym advertising all the sports that take place in All Navy Sports. I was brand new in the sport and was in love with all things triathlon. I saw triathlon as one of the sports, and decided to give the Navy Sports guy a call. He was a really nice guy by the name of John Hickok. He explained the All-Navy process to me, and encouraged me to apply the following year.

I applied for the All-Navy team in 2003 with a race resume of a whopping two races- a 2:11 Olympic distance and my 10:48 first ironman. Navy sports did not select me to the team that year, but invited me down to race in the open division. I leapt at the chance, and obviously all these years later, I am glad I did. That week with the navy team did so much in motivating me to want to do more in the sport and in the navy. I was surrounded by all these young SEALs, pilots, Seabees, submariners, and divers. Among these young navy studs was a 22 year old triathlon phenom from the U.S. Naval Academy by the name of Ensign Timothy O’Donnell. Even though I was an alternate and not a “real” navy team member, I never noticed. The navy team is an inclusive deal. If you are navy-then you are a part of this team. They included me in everything, gave me free shoes, race gear and loaded me in the van with everyone else. Man was I hooked on All-Navy Sports after that! I did my part during the race and finished as the 6th overall navy guy, which got me a spot on the following year’s team. To this day I am in touch with more than half of the members on that 2003 team, and count it as one of my fondest memories in the sport.

There is a reason that All-Navy Triathlon is as strong a program as it is. It hinges on a couple of legacy players who have given tirelessly to this team for over a decade. The primary stakeholder on this team is an inspirational individual by the name of Commander James Felty, USN (retired). Jim was an elite distance runner back when Carter was president, and has been competitive since. He still winds it up in an ironman or two each year. Jim is the flag bearer of this program, and I am convinced it would not even be a team without him. Jim is easy to love and respect. I think any kid who gets the opportunity to race for Jim on the Navy team has the same opinion. Not only are Jim’s accomplishments as an athlete astounding, his journey through the navy ranks is even more so. Jim made his way through the entire enlisted ranks all the way through Master Chief (that is the top for enlisted guys), and then started on the bottom rung of the officer ranks and made it all the way to retiring with scrambled eggs on his hat (the gold braid you see on the navy hat of senior officers). Jim is even a more impressive person in his personal life as the father of four. He is so dedicated to his kids that he is bypassing the opportunity to be the All-Armed Forces coach in Brazil to take his teenage son on a coveted hiking trip.

The second pillar to the Navy Sports triathlon program is a civilian gentleman by the name of Mr. Kent Blankenship. Kent was the race director of the Armed Forces race for a decade and is also the U.S. member that travels overseas representing us on the world’s sports scene, as well as being the coach in Kona for us military types for many years. Kent has moved on to other challenges, but his thumbprint will forever be etched on All-Navy Triathlon. It has been an honor to be on 9 or so All-Navy Teams. It was the support of these two gentlemen, along with a cast of others like Mr. Bill Marx, who as an executive for the Navy Exchange, has kept us navy boys in running shoes and apparel for a decade. Former Navy Sports director Mr. Donald Golden and current director Mr. James Senn do so much for these navy kids. The details of supporting a team each year both at the ITU Olympic distance and fielding an Ironman Team, along with all the support that goes with it, is a maze of details. I have been blessed to be a part of an organization that has enjoyed the full support and dedication of these wonderful men.

As we go forward, I hope that I can begin to pay back for all the years of good racing I have enjoyed with the letters NAVY across my chest. I know for a fact that there are more than a couple of races that I probably could have been talked into walking or quitting were it not for the weight of the big NAVY on my tri kit that kept me hammering all the way to the line. I always say that when you sport the big N, you better represent.

THE RACE

As I wrote in my last post, the race week weather was cold and windy. I had very low expectations for the race weather, but we were pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t warm, but it was warm enough. One of the benefits of this race is the transition area is literally 300 meters out my hotel room door. I lay on my bed under the covers until 40 minutes before the race. I racked my bike, got marked, slid into my wetsuit and walked over to the beach. I passed on the opportunity to get in and warm up. I just hopped up and down a few times and boom, we were off. The water was the coldest I have ever encountered in a race. It was somewhere between 52 and 54 degrees. It was that kind of stinging cold that just hurts. I got out through the surf and started swimming hard. As I came around the first buoy, the cold just kind of brought my arm swing to a slow grind. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to move my arms, but as I went numb, things improved. I have to admit that I swam a terrible first lap. My navigation was terrible, my arm speed was terrible, I was just basically stinking up the place with bad racing. Fortunately for me things improved on the second lap. I got out after the first lap, ran around the buoy and then back into the surf. I was swimming right next to one of my favorite members of the navy squad, Sam Dannenbrang. Sam is a talented young elite age grouper who will go pro in the coming years. You will recognize his name before long. Sam has a perpetual smile on his face, even when he is swimming. He breaths to his left, I to my right, so we just sat there swimming along eye balling each other. It helped me to find my rhythm and I was able to get my swim mojo back. I swam a fantastic second lap and came out of the water pretty happy with things overall.

My T1 was as terrible as my first lap in the swim. I struggled with my wetsuit and lost the group with whom I had swum. For those who know ITU racing, this was death for me as I had just lost the big boy group I needed for the bike. I got out and going on the bike and bridged up to navy teammate Bill “SPIG” Reid. He, I and an army kid who didn’t want to work got on our way. I was able to gently cajole and convince the army kid that it was in his interest to go hard with us. He was slow to respond, but the beauty of being old in a young man’s world is I know how young dude’s brains work. I literally pushed him into his pull a couple of times when I needed to recover. I barked and threw out a couple of “Jonserisms” that got him thinking his physical safety might be at risk if he didn’t take his pulls. He did fine after that and my threats turned to encouragement when he started to suffer later in the ride. We continued to gobble up packs in front of us and we ended up with 4 navy dudes plus me in a pack of 10 or so. As I was racing open division this year and not a scoring member for Navy, I did my best to take a lot of pulls and make something of them so that the navy boys could come off the bike with running legs. There were a couple of Air Force guys who benefited from my bigger , longer pulls as well, but the Air Force guys took their fair share of pulls, so nothing but respect for those cats.

We came off the bike in a big pack and launched on the run. The navy boys in my pack did some terrific running to do their best against a phenomenal Air Force squad who raced intelligently and honorably all day. Air Force won the overall championship as well as the individual championship by an impressive pro named James Bales, an Air Force orthopedic surgeon. We in the navy hate to lose, but if we are going to lose to anyone, Captain James Bales, USAF, is one I like to see do well. He was the bridesmaid for a lot of years while Tim O’Donnell reigned for 5 years as the Armed Forces National Champion. James continued to race tough all those years and is the epitome of what we should be in our sport. I look forward to spending time in Brazil with James.

I got home fine and ran my standard 40 min 10k off the bike. The reality for me is in order for me to ever be successful at this distance I have to run faster. I continue to improve and am optimistic that I will. The question is will I be able to improve enough on the run to ever make the navy team again at this distance. I think I will. The reason I say this in my blog is a lot of folks who read this have the same question about their own performances. Everyone wonders if they will improve, and if so, will they improve to the point that they are truly satisfied. For me, there would be no reason for me to continue in the sport if I didn’t truly believe I could. There are a lot of choices on how I can spend my days. If I am going to dedicate this much time to our sport, I want to be the absolute best athlete I can be. With running as my limiter, I need to continue to focus on it like I have the last few years. My 6 min pr on the run in Kona prove to me that I can in fact keep getting faster.

I enjoyed this race more than I have in the past. I think a big part of it was due to the members of this year’s team. There are some extraordinary young guys wearing NAVY these days. We have some really impressive pro triathletes in Derek Oskutis, Kyle Hooker and Brad Pigage. We have a cast of spectacular age groupers to back up those boys in Sam Dannenbrang, Mike Brown, Zach Poehlman, John Marinovich, Cam Loos and Jay Calvert. There are a couple of others that I am just forgetting, so please forgive me.

I was swimming the other day and I was carrying on a conversation with myself (as I tend to do on longer, harder sets) about why I liked this year’s team so much more than normal. The answer is easy. The 2011 Navy Team is full of phenomenal athletes, but they are even better people. These dudes, by any metric you want to apply, are just amazing human beings. I loved just being in their midst, listening to their conversations and laughter. I am blessed with the opportunity.

Now as Teresa and I fly south toward St Croix, the triathlon adventure continues. Armed Forces Nationals woke up my body and my last three weeks of training have been very solid. I don’t know if it will show up this soon in St Croix, but it will be fun to race there, regardless of the result. I plan on going balls out the whole way as a good training day. I hope for good things. Teresa is starting to come right, and if her tempo run on Sunday is any indication, everybody better just stand by. The Pocket Rocket is getting ready to lay it down.

I’ll try to post some small narratives on our experience in St Croix. We had a magical time last year, and hope for the same this year.

Train with joy or not at all!

Jonser

Armed Forces National Championships Prelude 2011

Some fast young men getting ready to whip it up.

It is 13 minutes before the transition area opens for the 2011 Armed Forces National Championships. It is cold here (by my standards) in that it is less than 60 degrees and the water is sub 55 degrees. Ocean swims are always daunting, but cold ocean swims are even more so. Yesterday the navy team went for a dip in the ocean, and I skipped it. No need to practice bleeding to remind ones’ self that bleeding is bad.

We have a stacked team here this year. I am not a short course ITU rules kind of athlete, but have had success in this venue before as well as in Sweden as a member of Team USA. This year, I did not submit an application, but truth be told, I was about number 15 with the numbers selected being at 12 men, 6 women. Fortunately, as one who has been here a lot, they invite me out of professional courtesy and allow me a role on the team as well as invite me to race in the open division. I love it because I get to be around all of this great energy and get in my first race of the year to start knocking off the rust of an all-too work intensive off season with not enough training. With a camp in Lodi last month and showing up here tired from 4 days of good training in Phoenix, I feel like I am starting to make strides toward some sort of real fitness. This race of two hours at my limit will be a nice piece of specific stress to continue to help me build that race fitness I am looking for with a couple of races in June being a target for me.
In one of my blogs last month, I mentioned that I doubted that I would race this year. I skipped a season of racing in 2007 during my year as commanding officer of my squadron, and while I loved my navy job, I was miserable because I had taken something out of my life that I truly love- racing triathlons. I know that my training will be compromised over the next two years in my current navy job, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t race. I love racing regardless of how fast or slow I go. Given the choice, I would rather go fast, but I will take what I can get. At a very basic level, I am just blessed to be healthy enough to train and race. I never forget that. This year will be what it will be, but I will continue to live like a champion and put that champion spirit in everything I do. This year I will also focus on fully supporting Teresa toward another Kona victory, as well as continuing to build the IMJ Coaching tribe.

I can tell this race is a different race for me as it is an hour before the race and I am sitting in my room on my bed blogging instead of warming up and going over my bike with a fine tooth comb. There is just something about being inside warm vs. outside being cold that is very appealing to me right now! I guess I should grow a pair and get moving toward the race. I will follow this up with a full race report and some insights on the race, the week with the navy athletes, and a little about what I pondered on in our hard 5 day block of work in Phoenix earlier this week. It is not necessarily a good thing to come into a prestigious race like this tired from training, but it is much better on the nerves, as usually in years past at this race, I was crawling out of my skin 90 minutes before a race. Today I just want to go race at my limit, not embarrass myself in front of these kids, represent my service and my country, live up to my rank, and be the best ambassador for our sport that I can be. If I zing out a respectable race along with that, awesome. If not, I will take notes on things I need to improve upon, pack up my bike, go have a beer with the other navy coach, and start back training hard tomorrow. Ok, now I gotta go as they are getting close to closing transition! Pain is temporary, but it is a lovely way to test a dudes' character. I will report back soon.

Jonser

March Lodi Camp Conclusion

After the longer ride on Thursday, Friday’s early morning ride was intended to be mellow and just help us absorb the miles from the previous days. With the threat of rain looming, we clipped in a bit earlier than normal and got out on the road. Everyone was in good spirits and we moved along purposefully through the vineyards.

After a short coffee stop in Walnut Grove, the tribe mounted up and we began our trek back home. Bob and I were a bit concerned about the dark clouds and wanted to get closer to Lodi as soon as possible, as the weather looked better back that way. I think I had this in mind when I went to the front and set the pace for the return. After about 15 minutes the winds started to really pick up. I wasn’t wearing my heart rate monitor, nor did I have my power meter attached, so I was just riding based on perceived exertion. I was fortunate to wake up Friday morning with good legs and before I knew it I was unintentionally putting some in the group in difficulty with a few unhinging off the back. Zach, ever the diplomat, stomped up to me and told me that he just got gapped driving 350 watts and I might want to mellow out before a mutiny takes place.

That is the thing with strong direct crosswinds; they don’t provide much protection for those on your wheel. Any unanticipated surges can make it difficult for folks to stay in the group. I was actually a little embarrassed that I had accidentally ridden some folks off my wheel. Truth be told, I pride myself in setting a very steady and manageable tempo when pulling. I love to be on the front pulling the peloton for hours at a time. I was working very hard at this point to keep the group together, yet still get down the road, as I was concerned about the rain getting to us before we got home. After 14 years of living in the Pacific Northwest and training in the rain more than I like to remember, I hate riding in the rain. I mean not just a little, a whole lot! Feel free to refer to my 2010 Kona race day post to see how it screws with my grape.

So there I am pulling the crew with the pocket rocket (wife) riding next to me. She still wasn’t over my putting her in difficulty a while back and she came to the front to tell me all about it. The wind was rocking her world and she was tired from the previous day’s long ride, along with general fatigue from the entire week. I tried to make small talk with her to raise her spirits and get her to not be so mad at me for my honest mistake, but she was having none of it. She looked over at me, told me to shut up, and then she shook her tiny little bony fist at me! Ah, the married life on the bike- just a little piece of heaven…with small pockets of pain. The trial of miles and the miles of trials, as a friend likes to say.

So we survived the “easy” ride and off on the brick run we went. Everyone ran their own pre-assigned program and the Friday training day was in the books. Friday afternoon was a relaxing afternoon of downtime where folks could chill, break down their bikes, and get a massage or whatever they wanted to do after a long week of training.

The last evening at camp was terrific. Bob hosted dinner for us at the Fields Family Winery. It is quite the opportunity to hang out in a small family winery and taste the good stuff, along with eat fantastic Mexican food. It also happened to be Sal’s 47th birthday so the crew got the opportunity to sing happy birthday and hang out. A fantastic time was had by all and it was the perfect end to a lovely camp.

Saturday morning we got up early one last time to swim, which was the final workout of the camp. I stayed on deck and coached the swim with lots of stroke work, drills and video taping of the campers. I very much enjoy coaching from the deck after swimming with the athletes all week. I like to check out the camper’s stroke from underneath the water during our training sets and offer corrections each day, but it is great to watch them from above as well, as some things are more obvious from the deck. I also like to make sure each athlete goes home with drills that are specific to the issues they need to address in their stroke. Doing these types of sessions at the end of camp is ideal as we are able to keep the workload mellow and short while focusing on swimming pretty.

So that was it. Our 7 day camp jammed by and was over in the blink of an eye. We amassed 15,000 to 20,000 yards (depending on the individual) in the pool, rode approximately 250 miles, and ran approximately 4.5 hours all in one week of glorious fun. As much as Bob, T and I worried about the rain, we escaped most of it and we got in every training session that was on the schedule. I saw folks dramatically improve through the week and every single athlete got stronger as the camp rolled on. That tells me that we applied the proper amount of stress in the right doses throughout our week together. I have been to camps where everyone leaves shredded and 70 percent of the athletes got sick in the following 10 days. I don’t want that to be what our camps are about.

Our camps are not tough guy camps. There are other camps that do a better job with that type of athlete. I say it all the time that it isn’t about how much an athlete can endure, it is about how much an athlete can absorb. If somebody wants to lay down the kind of volume that they can brag about in their blogs, then our camps are probably not for you. You can see by our weekly workload that we aren’t setting any records in volume, miles or duration. What we are doing is getting the athlete to train right up to the optimum level of performance to where they can recover every day and come out and have a good day the next day. We all get tired, but we get tired the right way with specific fatigue, properly applied stress, and then we are done. We don’t take athletes deep into uncharted territory. Having said this, our athletes are challenged by the week, and for some, they do hit daily records in terms of yardage and miles, but they are sane milestones that were reached with a specific intent in mind.

This collaborative effort with Bob Korock turned out to be a wonderful experiment. Teresa and I are control freaks when it comes to our camps and we were very leery of working with another coach without being able to control all the variables of the camp. We came away even better friends with Bob, and could not have enjoyed our time with him more. He was so responsive in this effort and we not only enjoyed coaching a camp with him, we enjoyed deepening an already solid friendship as well.

When Teresa and I first decided to start coaching camps, we had a lot of obstacles to overcome. Camps are harder than they look, and it takes an enormous amount of coordination and planning to do them right. Also, there are a significant amount of resources that are involved. IMJ Coaching is absolutely blessed to have the full camp sponsorship of Hammer Nutrition. Steve Born and Kendra Powell of Hammer make sure we have everything we need, and their soup to nuts sponsorship make it possible for us to do what we love to do. It is even more amazing that Hammer signed on to sponsor us before we had ever even put on our first camp. I will never forget this and will always be loyal to Hammer Nutrition. I can say the same for Albert Boyce and Coffees of Hawaii. Albert has supported IMJ with his coffee from the day I started out on my own and there is only one coffee we will be serving at our camps.

Most importantly, it goes without saying that camps would not happen if it were not for athletes who come to them. Thank you so much to Sal Lancaster, Michelle Schwartz, Zach Poehlman, Rosie Barnes, Stu Gibson and Josh Vincent for taking time out of their busy lives to come do it up in the vineyards of Lodi. I learn and grow from every camp in which I get the opportunity to participate. This one was no exception. I got to train hard, hang out with awesome human beings, and learn a lot about myself. I count this experience as yet another blessing in an enormously blessed life.

Train with joy or not at all!

Thanks for reading.
Jonser

March Lodi Camp Day 4

Today’s ride turned out to be one of the best rides I have been a part of in a camp. After another attack on Panera Bread Co., we clipped in a little after 9am and headed out as a peloton of 10. The first 90 minutes to 2 hours was just a comfortable 2 x 2 pack cruising out on these beautiful Lodi countryside roads. We made our way through the vineyards and headed north toward the Rancho Seco Nuclear plant. We cruised along highway 104 toward Ione where we stopped for water and whatever anyone needed to take onboard before we got into the climbing.

At the Ione stop there were these two Irish Setters that hung out with us on the curb. The owner quickly appeared and had to show us what good dogs his guys were. He would put nuts down in front of them and they would stare intently at him waiting on his every word. He would say eat…they wouldn’t move. He would say Bella…they wouldn’t move. He said some words in Japanese…they wouldn’t move. He then whispers Bon Appetit! Boom! They were on those nuts like a hobo on a ham sandwich. It was pretty awesome and it kept us entertained. So what does that have to do with long rides and triathlon? Everything. There is a lot to see in this world, and tooling around on your bike for 7 hours at a pop gives a guy the opportunity to stop, hang out in a small town in Northern California, and take a look around. It isn’t every day you hang out with dogs that speak French. I just dig stuff like that.

After watering up, we pressed into the lumpy part of the ride with plenty of hills to suffer in for a few hours. As soon as the roads turned into windy hills, a few of us boys ratcheted things up and got in some good climbing. I was easily the least fit of the three of us off the front that had decided to point our noses uphill. Zach and Mark are both tough boys in the mountains and I rode at my limit to stay with them most of the day. They got away from me during a piece, but I was proud of myself to keep them in view. There is nothing like some climbing for a couple of hours to expose whatever weaknesses you have been hiding in the flats. I sat on my LT (Lactate threshold) and higher during the climbs. It felt good to get in some hard work. That is exactly what I was hoping would happen this week.

The peloton did some really good work through the lumpy parts as well, and we all popped out the other side into Sutter Creek happy and tired. We continued our day around the back roads of San Joaquin Valley checking out some unbelievable horse farms, reservoirs, dams, waterfalls, and some of the nicest riding roads I have ever ridden. There is a European countryside feeling to a lot of this part of California, and the training is just wonderful. At around the 5 hour mark, we stopped for some water and coke, and then rode back as a pack. On the way back, a few of the boys separated off the front and booked it hard for the house. Right then one of the tribe got a flat, so we stopped and fixed it. We then rode the last 25 miles home very controlled, and as a team, minus the three who had gone off the front like they had stolen something. I got to thinking during this time that this is such a smart way to train. I see a lot of groups that drill it from stem to stern in their training, and that is why they go home fried and end up sick. We drilled it during the times we were supposed to and then brought things back into the sane range and continued to get good stuff in, while not blowing ourselves to bits at the end of the day. It was really evident to me at dinner that we had done it right. Everyone was a bit baked from the ride, but nobody was drooling into their salad.

So like I said; today’s ride was easily one of the best training rides I have been on. 103 miles of tough guy riding, 5,000’ of elevation gain, over 6 hours of riding with a little under 7 in the saddle (with stops, flats, etc). Days like today make me fall in love with my sport all over again. This is why I do this stuff. I love to turn myself inside out to see what is there and then when happy with the result, cruise around beautiful countryside with beautiful people talking about beautiful things. This is what I call training with joy.

Bon Appetit’!

Jonser

March Lodi Camp – Day 3

We woke up to rain this morning and we decided to push the big ride until tomorrow. Teresa had coordinated a big fancy breakfast with the hotel, so we got off to a great start by pounding down some big calories to keep us rolling through the day. I have already gone on about this hotel. Today was the same story. Love it.

We got to the pool around 9 this morning and we decided that with no big bike staring us in the face it was time to get in some real swimmin’! We were joined this morning by another one of my athletes, Josh Vincent. Josh has been with us for a few years. I have blogged about him in the past. I love this kid and it is always a treat to have him at the camps. He is also the designer of our logo. He has so much talent and maturity at 32 years old.

Bob’s athlete, Mark Petrofiesa, was able to drop in for a couple of days of training. Mark is one of the best 45-49’rs in the world. He is known for being able to go hard every day, all day. I wrote about him in a blog back in 09 in Kona. Mark and I rode the entire Kona bike portion together this last year. It is great to have him here to train with us for a couple of days. Mark is sharpening up for Oceanside in the coming weeks. Keep an eye on him. He is the real deal.

So back to swimming- the distance for the swim varied from 5,000 yds for a few, with Josh and I knocking out 6,700 yards of fun. The workout was a warm up of 600 free, 4 x 100 on 5 RI, 4 x 50 and a main set of 500 on 5 RI, 5 x 150’s on 5 RI, 5 x 150’s, 400, 4 x 150’s, 4 x 50’s, 300, 3 x 150’s, 3 x 50’s, 200, 2 x 150’s, 2 x 50’s, 200, 350, 250 pull, 150, 2 x 125.

I like the vibe camps get when you get all 8 people rolling through the sets in the pool. It is a neat sound to just hear the hand hits on the water and the splashing of flip turns. It is kind of a hypnotic type of drumbeat that plays on for an hour and a half or so. I get a lot of good thinking in those times. I suffered today through the middle of the set. With fresh arms on Josh and Mark showing up, the tempo was just a touch richer and I could feel it within about 1200 yds that I was going to struggle a bit today. A lot of triathletes like to brag about their yardage and mileage. That is not my intent here as volume just for volumes’ sake doesn’t mean much in our sport. I am only relating what is going on here in Lodi, so the reader gets a feel for what is going down.

There is something that happens when I suffer in training. I don’t back off or slow down, as getting tired through specific stimulus is what I am looking for to create the space for an adaptation to take place, and for my fitness to improve. With that suffering, I am forced to go to what I call “flat mind”. When I am building fitness, I tend to push back against the discomfort/pain at first and then after awhile I can calm down and just let the pain sit in there without spending so much time trying to push it away. Kind of hard to relate that if you haven’t suffered in training for an extended period of time. It isn’t an exercise in masochism; it is just another way to physically be comfortable being uncomfortable. While I am in that state, it is kind of interesting in that I can create a mental state of total calm, even though I am suffering. It is in those moments that I get really clear on a lot of things. I think that is one of the attractions for me in training and racing as a lifestyle. I tend to have an inside voice that is always chattering away kind of like a sports announcer rambling out the play by play as the day goes on. Getting deep in training and spending time suffering tends to make my brain go quiet and in that space of no chatter, I am able to really dial in on specific things I am trying to work through. This paragraph might not make sense to some, but it is what it is.

After the swim, Bob took us to probably the best deli I have ever visited. The food was terrific and the service was even better. A few around the table had that thousand yard stare that you only get when you have been pounding it out in the pool. I dig it.

After a nap and some recovery, we jumped in the cars to drive a little out of town to set up for a longer run. Coach Bob had this route nailed. It was on a rolling road with not much traffic that had rollers for as long as you wanted to run. Everyone had objectives assigned for their run and off we went. The run wrapped around a reservoir and there was some continuous climbing that left one up on a plateau with an awesome view of the entire valley. Most of us knocked out 60 to 100 minutes of steady aerobic running. I dialed in a 12 miler. I struggled through miles 7-9, but then hit a good patch and was able to get home on a pace I could live with.

I am digging this place more every day. It is crazy that I grew up less than 60 miles from here and had absolutely no idea how prime this part of the country is. If I were to again live in California, I would bee line it right here. It is a good thing that Boulder has stolen my heart and I plan on living there forever. But if I ever change my mind…

So another good day of training, some suffering, and everybody is getting good and tired as we look forward to some serious riding tomorrow. 110 miles of rollers, flats and hills are on tap. I’m suspecting that I will be getting more “flat mind” time tomorrow. I have been there and done that plenty in my years of training. I don’t always look forward to it, but I know what to do when it gets here.
We are doing exactly what we are supposed to be doing here in Lodi- Training with joy or not at all!

Seek clarity in all you can.

Jonser

March Lodi Camp Day Two

Today was a solid day of camp as we started off the day with a bigger swim and then an easy bike with the key session being the 60-70 minute strength run at the end.
We have really started to enjoy how lovely this hotel is. We begin our mornings with coffee in a lovely setting by a fireplace with homemade organic breads and fruit. It is intimate and we get some time first thing in the morning to really have nice conversations about a myriad of topics. Because a few of us are navy bubbas, the conversation can typically migrate back to what we feel most comfortable talking about- ourselves. With the tragedy in Japan, we are all feeling the heaviness of their grief and we talk about it quite a bit. Three of us navy types have lived in Japan and love both the country and its people, so our hearts are heavy. We also spend time talking about training and the inside baseball of mitochondrial mass, capillary density…and chicks. So we have it all covered I think.
We kicked off the morning by getting to the pool a touch early and getting wet while it was still a little on the chilly side. Everybody brought arms and lungs today and we got it done. Yardage varied among the campers, but all of it good stuff. Zach and I continued our week of trying to get in a bit more swimming than normal. We kicked out 6100 yards in about an hour and 40 or so. Our workout this morning was 4 x 250 free, 4 x 125 on short RI, 1000 continuous every 4th 25 IMO, 800 free, 800 as 4 x(150 free, 50 kick), 400 pull, 1 x 200 IM, 2 x 500 as 250 pull, 100 hard odd 25's, cruise evens, 3 x 50's steady, and then 300 easy with pull buoy with a 100 c/d.

After the swim we ate the Panera bread restaurant out of all of their eggs, seriously. Everyone was famished and we moved through their chow proper. We got ourselves on our bikes with little downtime and cruised out an easy 2 hour ride to help absorb some of the work so far. I especially enjoyed this ride as I got a chance to visit more with everyone here. It is a funny thing when you coach someone via the internet. I am immersed in their daily training lives via emails, texts, phone calls, etc. but there is just so much I don’t know about these folks with whom I communicate on a weekly basis. I love it when my athletes attend these camps because I get to know them so much better.

When it comes to triathlon coaching, I think there are a lot better exercise physiologists out there, and certainly better specialized dudes in various areas, but I think I score pretty high on the GASF (Give a Shit Factor), as I totally give a shit about my athletes and where they are vs. where they want to be. I love the interaction I have with each and every one of them. One of the luxuries of having a coaching business that is not your primary means of income is everybody I coach – I choose to coach. I don’t have to coach any of them if I don’t want to. I like and genuinely respect all of my athletes and I learn as much from them as they probably do from me. How rewarding is that? Huge.

So after the 2 hour ride, we powered down for an hour and then embarked on our key run. The rain started to come down as we were heading out and it got wet and muddy out there pretty quickly. Because I have athletes peaking for different events soon, I had the athletes all on different runs with different objectives. Zach was laying down 5 x 8 minute harder efforts with 1 minute recovery after a longer warmup as he prepares for draft legal Olympic stuff. Rosie was on something similar with a touch longer recovery. Stu is getting ready for Ironman South Africa so he was doing a steady longer effort to work the muscular endurance side of things and live a portion of his afternoon riding a 154 beats per minute heart rate. Michelle was working longer intervals, as was Sal, as they peak for Oceanside. T and I were doing our own thing and I decided to spend my run with Stu. I try to spend every workout with someone different. Stu and I ran steady for an hour. The rain was hammering us at this point and as good friends, we don’t feel the pressure to talk. Sometimes when I train with my folks, I just want to train with them and no talking is required. So we legged it down the levy at a respectable clip shoulder to shoulder, no words being passed. I was rocking a little Underworld in my itunes and was in my happy place.

It is an honor and a miracle to train with my good friend Stu Gibson. Stu and I met in 2003 and became fast friends. He flew over to Kona in both 2004 and 2005 just to be there to support and cheer me on in my first two Konas. Stu is one of those guys who is not only hugely intelligent, as in brilliant, but he can apply it instantaneously. As a navy dude, I have worked with more than a few 50 pound brains, but not all of them can use that brain. A submarine dude best described it as being smart, but not being able to think. This is not the case with Stu. Stu just…well, the damn guy just knows everything. I love talking with him on any subject ranging from enhanced ground proximity warning systems in airplanes to why the overproduction of corn is a government subsidization of McDonald’s and how that is killing Americans through obesity and diabetes. We get it all covered on a long ride!

Stu had a real life scare a couple of years ago. Stu was diagnosed with a fast growing brain tumor. We in his friend network tried to keep things light and fun, as fun as something that scary can be, and we referred to it as a Stumor. Well, Stu survived open brain surgery and the removal of the Stumor and returned to our sport. He has returned to good health and we continue to enjoy our friendship in sport. God’s blessing for sure.

So we got in another 5 hour day or so and are ready to attack again tomorrow. Rain has become the issue as we march forward. We are in a wait and see mode for tomorrow. It will either be a 6 hour flame thrower of a ride, or a long run and longer swim. We will see how the rain gods treat us in the morning.
My quote for this blog came from the famous world champion triathlete, John Hellemens, when he stated “You need to worry about the training that is appropriate for you, not worry about what others are doing”. I really like this quote. It kind of feathers in nicely with my quote I write in here often, “It ain’t about being better than anybody else, it’s about me being better than I used to be".

There you go!

Later,
Jonser

March Lodi Camp - Day 1

Today was the first official day of the March Lodi Camp that Teresa and I are coaching with  former professional  triathlete and coach Bob Korock.  Bob was my coach for a few years and he and I have been friends for almost 5 years.  Bob was a pro for 14 years and is a contractor, father, part owner of a winery, and easily one of the nicest men I have met.

He and I had breakfast in Kona this year before the race and we spoke of the possibility of doing a camp together.  We followed up on it and here we are.  When we both were looking at this week in Lodi to do some late winter training, we checked the farmer’s Almanac and the chances of rain were slim and the temperatures should be solid for training.  We are now a little nervous as it looks like we may get some rain this week.  Here is why coaches need to bring athletes to camps that they know can deal with different situations.  The group we have here are my kind of people.  We got rained on a little yesterday when we did a shakedown run and swim just to loosen everyone up from a day of traveling.  Not one athlete said a thing about the fact it was raining.  They are here to train and they really don’t give a rip about the weather- within reason.

We are living at the Wine and Roses hotel right here in the middle of the Lodi Wine country.  The accommodations are awesome.  Bob knows the folks here so we were able to use this hotel as camp headquarters, which is a blessing.  The staff can’t do enough for us. 

We kicked off the training this morning with a solid swim.  Zach and I pounded out 5,000 yards.  1,000 continuous with every 4^th 25 backstroke, 400 easy free, 10 x 50’s leaving on the :50, and then 8 x 200.  The first 4 were leaving on the 2:55 and then we brought that down to leaving on the 2:50.  We wrapped it up with a 400 IM, and then 600 or so of drills and such to get to 5,000.  Zach and I have trained in camps before and we find that we make good training partners.  Zach Poehlman is a navy fighter pilot based in San Diego and is ramping up for Armed Forces National Championships in Pt Mugu  April 9^th.  Zach is on his first All-Navy team, but it won’t be his last.  As his coach, I am very pumped to see how he goes next month.  He is scary fit, ripped like you read about, and focused.  Should be a fun week. 

After the swim, we got something to eat and hit the 4 hour ride around the outskirts of Lodi.  If you have never trained here, you are missing out.  The riding is glorious.  We rode flats, rollers, some soul suckers and everything in between.  The group assimilated nicely as a group and rode in a tight pack.  It is amazing the ground you can cover when the group rolls down the road together and not strung out all over the place.  In the middle of today’s ride we jumped each other with some peppy climbs and such to make it interesting and Zach and I took off for some serious stuff for a few miles followed closely by Sal who wanted in on the fun.  Sal Lancaster is one of my athletes that I have been coaching for a few years.  Portuguese by birth , he came to the states as a young man and is an amazing success story.  I will feature him one of these days in our newsletter and tell his story.  The short version is that he is the nicest, most sincere guy in the world who speaks with a moderate Portuguese accent.  He also has a quirky streak.  He can be enormously silly and fun and it is always at the right time.  He can split me in two laughing so hard.  He can also whip up a ton of big boy pain on the bike when he wants to do that too.  He was a lifesaver tonight beating back into the wind.  I had been on the front pulling around 20 mph or so in stiff, harsh winds and was starting to bonk a little.  He saw it and immediately dropped in to let me sit on his wheel long enough for me to steal a gel from our newest IMJ Coach, Kristin “Rosie” Barnes.  Having Sal take that pull right then was all I needed to get home.  I was able to recover and get it rolling again. 

I am coming into this camp hoping to build some serious fitness.  I have been working pretty hard with both United and the Navy and my training is really behind where it typically is this time of year.  So much so, that I am flirting with not racing this year.  My new role in the navy is the absolute dream gig, and I want to make sure I do that job to the fullest and our coaching business is in a place that if we continue doing some of the things that are pumping real life into it should bear great fruit for this and follow on seasons.  This has left me training in the seams and I have not been as consistent at the level necessary to race successfully.  I don’t like absolute statements, but I currently can’t see myself racing anytime soon unless my fitness dramatically improves.

That doesn’t mean I am not willing to come and drill it in these camps.  The great thing about these camps is there is such a family environment that you can lay it out on a bike ride or run and the group will still get you home.  I love that part about tight camps.

Tomorrow should be solid.  Zach and I will swim 5-6K in the pool and then it is a casual 2 hour ride and a 1 hour tempo run.  I am looking forward to the whole enchilada.

We will do our best this week to Train with joy or not at all!

As Gordo says- “live by the trials of miles, and miles of trials!”

Later,

Jonser