It seems like just yesterday when I started training this year's batch of youth triathletes. Yet I know it wasn't yesterday, because their race is less than two weeks away. Where did the summer go?
Last year at this time I was getting ready for Ironman Louisville. Weekends were dedicated to long workouts. Five thousand yard swims, 100 mile bikes, and 15 mile runs were all the rage. Many Saturdays found me up at 5 a.m. and out the door, with Mrs. Pol well aware it would be dinner time before I returned. If I returned on my own at all. At least once she had to load kids into the car and pick me up along the bike route.
In the midst of all that training, I was working with members of the youth tri club getting them ready for their first race. Regardless of my own workouts, I was with them twice a week for some kind of training.
And somehow, this year seems busier. It isn't, and I know that. Yet I'm unable to explain why it seems so much more frantic. Was it the week spent volunteering at camp? Is it the laid back approach to training and racing? Is it the lack of a clear and daunting goal? (Not that a 50 mile running race isn't daunting). So much about this summer is the same as last year, minus an impending Ironman. There is no way this year should FEEL more hectic.
Mrs. Pol asked that there be no Ironman on the agenda, this year. And I have no intention of signing up for one for the 2009 season. One thing is certain, though. If next summer feels "lost" like this summer has, I will be finding a full distance race for 2010. Whether it's IM MOO, Beach 2 Battleship, or another, I'll find something to focus the efforts.
Of course, that's if I don't go off the deep end and decide to do a 100 mile running race. I've done whackier things...
 After a long vacation week, it's time to get back to work. And for the faithful readers anxiously awaiting the Spirit of Racine race report, we start with the picture on the left. It should be noted that it is difficult to see people walking to the start, and impossible to see much beyond that. About the middle of the picture is a bouy that can just barely be made out. And this is around 7:45, almost an hour after the race was supposed to start.
Due to extremely poor visibility, the race start was delayed about an hour, and the swim route adjusted to bring the course closer to the shoreline. Even then sighting was nearly impossible and swimmers were all over the course. I missed the final turn bouy by more than 100 feet and had to swim back out and around that marker before heading to shore.
Even so, my final swim time was 37:39. That makes me question the actual distance, as it was an improvement of nearly six minutes over last year's swim. While I may have gotten faster, I question whether I'm THAT much faster.
I blazed through T2 in just over 90 seconds, and started the run in extremely hot conditions. The temperature pushed 90F as the day wore on, and I went through a lot of water for cooling purposes. I struggled on the run and finished with a time of 1:55:59 compared to 1:45:51, last year.
The gains made on the swim, bike, and transitions were enough to offset the loss on the run, and I finished with an overall time of 5:27:55. My goal was to break 5:30, so mission accomplished. I'm a bit hesitant to consider it a PR as I believe the swim was short, but I can only go by the numbers I have.
 I was speedy in T1 as I went without socks and I had preloaded my drinks onto my bike. Last year, I had the bottles in a cooler with ice. Even though I forgot my gels and had to run back for them, I was way faster than last year.
I felt sluggish on the bike, and was concerned about losing time over last year. While I think my actual pace was slower, this year, I didn't stop to change anyone's tires, and came in with a bike time of 2:49:27 compared to last year's 2:53:06.
One big change from last year was the strong presence of course marshalls. They were up and down the course, and it appeared to have an impact. Last year they had full fledged pelotons all over the bike route. This year, drafting was much less prevelant, and most of that was the hard to avoid situations on major hills.
 I blazed through T2 in just over 90 seconds, and started the run in extremely hot conditions. The temperature pushed 90F as the day wore on, and I went through a lot of water for cooling purposes. I struggled on the run and finished with a time of 1:55:59 compared to 1:45:51, last year.
True to my resolution to improve, or at least change, the way my run pictures turn out, I made sure to do something different as I ran by photographers. I don't know if the "arms up in victory" pose is any better (since this is at about mile 1), but it is at least different.
The gains made on the swim, bike, and transitions were enough to offset the loss on the run, and I finished with an overall time of 5:27:55. My goal was to break 5:30, so mission accomplished. I'm a bit hesitant to consider it a PR as I believe the swim was short, but I can only go by the numbers I have.
 I'll be out and about for the next week, and to the best of my knowledge will have little to no access to E-mail, the Internet, or even my cell phone. Here is the general itinerary:
Saturday A.M. - Head to Camp Onaway for a week as a leader.
Saturday P.M. - Head to Racine and check in for the race.
Sunday A.M. - Spirit of Racine half-Ironman
Sunday P.M. through next Saturday - Leader at Camp Onaway.
I'll try to catch things up on the 27th, but don't count on much. I'll have been away from my family for a week and will have lots of catching up to do with them, too. This is the first time my daughter will have to go this long without seeing her daddy.
Good luck to anyone and everyone racing this weekend. In particular, a co-worker's brother-in-law is running his first Ironman at Lake Placid on Sunday.
 With the way I've been posting, it would be reasonable if someone concluded I was in the final weeks before an Ironman. Reasonable, and wrong. While there is the Spirit of Racine half-Ironman next Sunday, it is the rest of life that has kept me hopping the past few weeks.
But first, about the photo. I am seriously contemplating buying the full size version of this race picture. It was taken at the Trinity sprint race, and is probably the best race picture I've ever seen of myself. I seen to be almost smiling, my form looks decent, and it is free from any "noise" in the background. And for once, the photography company is willing to sell individual pictures for less than $35.
I'm officially in taper for the half-IM, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Between my new role at our church's upcoming (August) Vacation Bible School, volunteering as a leader at a youth camp (next week), and a couple home projects, I've been busy.
Next Saturday, I head to Camp Onaway for a weeklong boys' camp. Given my love of endurance events, I was "volunteered" to run Military Track for the older campers and lead an off-island mountain biking trip. Add to that my role in coordinating the skits, music, and other festivities for a leader run campfire, and I've been busy with preparations. And with the Spirit of Racine race on Sunday, I'll have to leave camp early Saturday and won't get back until mid-afternoon Sunday. A lot of things have to be hammered down before I leave the island.
At church, I am in charge of the "Bible Adventure" segment. We had to build a "city," and I am altering the "out of the box" script just a bit. That requires I somehow build a "time tunnel" that will transport the kids from modern times to ancient Biblical times. Then there's the whole eccentric scientist role to create. But it's for kids. No effort is too small if it helps the kids have a great experience and learn about God.
On the home front, I spent the weekend gathering components for a battery powered back-up sump pump. We had a power outage in the middle of the night Friday. Luckily, B-Boy got scared and woke me up. After getting him back to bed (with a battery powered worklight as a nightlight) and putting Monster Girl in my bed, I checked out the sump. It hadn't overflowed, and I spent the next three hours checking and bailing it every 20 minutes.
We were blessed to have a boy that woke up because the lights went out (or whatever woke him up). I won't rely on that every time, so want to get an emergency system in place. It's one of those "should have done long ago" things that won't get me, again. All that remains at this point is to make the final connection into the discharge pipe and fill and charge the battery.
Who said 10 years of Navy experience and six months learning about submarine electrical systems would never pay off?
And things will likely stay pretty intense until October. While I have yet to sign up, I'm pretty set on the Glacial Trail 50 mile race. Training for that should keep my out of trouble for a few months.
After that? Who knows.
Perhaps it's just a bad summer. Perhaps it's just because I pay more attention. Or perhaps these tragedies are receiving more attention so people become better aware.
On Wednesday, two Milwaukee endurance athletes were struck by a drunk driver while on a ride. Nancy Sellars, a 48-year old with an impressive athletic resume was killed. Tom Chopp, the other cyclist, is in the hospital with a fractured pelvis and rib damage. The suspect in the case was arrested for intoxicated use of a motor vehicle and is free on bond. With the death of Nancy, one would presume the charges would be updated to include manslaughter and the bond would be either increased or revoked entirely.
Sadly, Nancy was the second local cyclist killed in a 12-hour time span. David Bradenburg was struck and killed by an inattentive driver a short time before Nancy was hit. While statistics for Wisconsin bicycle deaths are down, the loss of two cyclists in less than half a day is frightening.
Nancy was well known for her accomplishments as an endurance athlete. A four time Ironman, she also had five Birkebiener cross country ski races and dozens of century rides under her belt. Most recently, she completed the Race Across America bike race as part of Team Badger Bikers. Together, they raised more than $70,000 for the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
I didn't know her personally (that I know of), but she was a sister triathlete. I know something about what motivated her and a bit about the lifestyle she must have led. The accident occurred in Racine County, and it is only fitting that I dedicate my next race, The Spirit of Racine half-Ironman to Nancy's memory.
Just to belabor the point, this Fourth of July was full of firsts, nearly all of them in the first few hours of the day.
The Fox Cities Triathlon Club kicked off the holiday weekend with their first annual Fox Firecracker 5K on the Fourth of July. While the name may be a mouthful, the race was really well done. And that's more than just the bias of an active member. Our race committee outdid themselves and put on a great event.
Keeping in mind this is a 5K, how many races have you attended with skydivers, rock bands, and fireworks? (Okay, the fireworks were just some small firecrackers to start the race, but still...) After lining up the participants, three skydivers jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. The first carried our tri club banner. The second trailed long streamers. The third had an incredibly large American flag flying below.
In a departure from the pistol or airhorn used to start so many events, this race began with a string of firecrackers dropped into a steel wash basin. It was surprisingly effective and a festive way to sound the start. With nearly 700 runners, the start was well planned and things went smoothly.
At the end of the race, there was a live band, pizza and pasta from Pizza Hut, American flags and firecracker shaped cheese for finisher, and lots of socializing. And after a season of mostly blah shirts from races, this race had a pretty cool t-shirt. Think Uncle Sam in a Tri Fox jersey.
This was the first 5K race completed by one young member of our junior tri team and her younger brother. They both did very well. I ran with her and offered suggestions as she dealt with some shoulder tension issues. Even with that, she finished in about 34 minutes, averaging 10:59/mile. That's outstanding for a person who had never completed the mile and a half in cross country without at least some walking.
The race also offered a unique aid station. There was one official water station with water and Gatorade, positioned at the 1.5 mile point. Just after that was the first of two unofficial aid stations. Provided by the Hilltop Bakery, this most unique station provided three kinds of donut holes, cookies, and some kind of puffed rice treat. It was very impressive, and both the donuts and cookies were good. A second unofficial aid station provided water closer to the end.
Finally, for the first time ever, I was called out in a race. Just after the donut stop (which my young trainee FORCED me to make because she wanted donuts), another Tri Fox came up from behind and yelled, "Hey, are you Iron Pol?" "Yeah, I am." "Cool, I read your blog."
A review of the comments shows Rachel at "Live with Kids" left a note about passing me on the course. Her blog has a very familiar feel as it covers the art of balancing triathlon with everything else in life. Stop by and say "Hi," when you get a chance.
Now, two things made that pretty cool. First, this wasn't a prearranged meeting. I'd have to look back, but I'm not sure I really publicized I would be in that race. This was a chance passing on the race course. Second, this Tri Fox showed she is WAY more in tune with other people than me. She came from behind us and somehow managed to recognize me from pictures. And given this race was put on by the Tri Foxes, it wasn't like I was the only guy on the course wearing the club jersey.
She was past us pretty quickly, and I wasn't able to get her bib number. So, if you are reading this, leave a comment or use the contact form to send me a note, especially if you have your own blog. That way, it can be added to the Tri Blog Community. Regardless, I appreciate both the time taken to read these posts and the shout out during the race.
The rest of the weekend was outstanding as the Pol family celebrated the nation's birth with camping, fireworks, swimming, staying up late, and enjoying friends and family. Oh yeah, an 1800 yard swim, 56 mile bike, and 10 mile run capped off the final heavy training for the Spirit of Racine Triathlon on July 20th. I guess that puts me officially into taper.
NOTE: This post is unrelated to triathlon and is likely to become a rant on society. My first blog was a fairly successful political blog and that part of my nature is taking over for a bit.
WARNING: This post is likely to contain information we'd rather our kids avoid. While the language will be reasonable, the subject is difficult. If you are a younger reader, please go here for an article about the state of youth triathlon, or talk with your parents before reading this post.
A punk rock group called The Bloodhound Gang made onto the "mainstream" radio stations a few years ago with a song called "Animal Planet." While many people were aghast at the content of the song, it was very tame by Bloodhound Gang standards. Many of their songs couldn't and shouldn't be played over the airwaves unless the station is willing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.
And right now, one of their songs is the only thing that seems to fit my mood. It's called, "I Hope You Die." An evil thought, I know. Then again, true evil is the source of my current state of mind.
Today, the body of 12-year old Brooke Bennett was found by authorities in Vermont. For those unfamiliar with the case, Brooke vanished on June 25th. While her family believed she had gone to visit a friend's family member in the hospital, it came out that she might have left to meet someone she had met through a social networking site.
As the investigation developed, we learned Brooke's uncle had been arrested on an unrelated sexual assault charge. He is alleged to have recruited a young girl into a "sex ring." Shortly after that, Brooke's former step-father was arrested on obstruction of justice charges related to the case.
At this point, evidence supports that Brooke did indeed make arrangements to meet someone from the social networking site. Unfortunately, evidence also points to the uncle as the creator of the profile Brooke contacted. Other information further links the uncle to Brooke after she left to meet the On-line contact.
There are a great many things I consider evil in this world. I believe the people responsible for the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center represent evil. I believe the terrorists waging war on innocent victims around the world are evil. And I believe anyone who would do what was done to Brooke is pure evil. There is something wrong with them that goes so far beyond any understanding of the human mind that it can only be described as pure, unadulterated evil.
The rational part of my mind urges caution and seeks justice. That part of me knows that both the uncle and the ex-stepfather must be tried in court based on the available evidence. Until that time, they are innocent.
Another part of my mind, the part more tied to my soul, the part that loves all children and wholeheartedly believes that the primary role of all adults is to absolutely protect them from harm, that part of me has an entirely different reaction.
It wants to scream. It wants me to grab my gun and ensure that these monsters never have another opportunity to even THINK about harming another child. It wants to ensure that our world is rid of the evil that did this to Brooke.
That part of my brain cannot be allowed to foster more evil, though. So, it is forced to yield to logic and rational thought. But the whole time it yells, "Have you no SOUL?" And quietly at first, then more and more loudly, it does the one thing it CAN do. It rebels inwardly. It starts to sing a song. A song from The Bloodhound Gang. "I Hope You Die!" And it focuses on a verse that talks about someone winding up in jail. And it hopes that the guilty party, whether Brooke's uncle and ex-stepfather or someone else, can become the focus of the song.
I hope your cellmate thinks he's god, but CNN refers to him as Bowling Bag Ball Bob,
Service time for abuse of a corpse, only this time the victim's a clydesdale horse
Edited portion so bad I won't even type it
I hope he grins like Jack Nicholson, and forces you to play a game called Balls on Chin,
And whatever happens next is all a blur, but you remember "fist" can be a verb,
And when you finally regain consciousness, you're bound and gagged in a wedding dress,
And the prison guard looks the other way, cause he's the guy you flipped the bird the other day.
I hope this helps to EMPHASIZE!
I hope this helps to CLARIFY!
I hope you DIE!
Something has gone horribly wrong with the programming of large groups of people in this country. We have teachers think it's okay to have sex with their students. We have priests who think it's okay to molest altar servers. We have grown men who believe it's okay to take sick fantasies and turn them into reality. They prey upon our daughters and steal their innocence. And sometimes they steal their lives.
It's evil. And it has to stop. Something has to change the direction in which we are headed. We all have different ideas of what that "something" might be. Our children are our most valuable treasure. They should be treated as such. They should not be treated as sexual objects. And they certainly shouldn't be treated as so much garbage to be discarded when they no longer please us.
Justice will be served in this case. The police have too many leads and too much evidence for that not to be the case. But what about other cases? What about the children we aren't even aware are being victimized? What about the children whose very souls are being destroyed by monsters that live in their houses instead of under their beds? How do we, as a country, find justice for them? What changes can be made to protect them?
Allow me to start by stating that Nancy Toby is evil. Not in a dark, scary movie kind of way. In a "make me look at things" way that forces a self-evaluation I'd rather not have done sort of way. All because of a four sentence post.
When Nancy posted her training figures for the year, I thought, "Hmmm, that's a good idea." There I go, thinking, again. Sometimes I should just leave things well enough alone. A simple, "What a nice post. She's training and getting better," would have been enough. But nooooooooo! I have to go and check my trianing numbers.
There's some good and some bad. First, my training numbers are fairly decent for a non-Ironman year. Comparing stats to last year is perhaps a bit skewed. Still, it's what I have. Second, my mileage puts me on target for a 1000 mile year. The bad is basically the result of comparison. So, here are the numbers.
Swim - 118,695 yards compared to 191,863 in 2007. I consider that kind of a wash. I'd like to have put more yardage in, but must admit this is a non-IM year and it's been harder to get the weekend time for 3-5K swims.
Bike - 383 miles compared to 722 in 2007. If there's a sad part to the numbers, this is it. In fact, last year I did 479 miles in June alone. And I wonder why the bike seems like more of a struggle, this year. If there's something to fix, this is it.
Run - 410 miles compared to 413 in 2007. My runs have been roughly the same because I had pretty much the same pattern. In the second half, mileage is going to take off as I prepare for the 50-miler I hope to run in October. Since I've identified it ISN'T the running that is messing my back up, I'm more confident then ever that I'll take on that challenge.
So, jump on board and see where you are in your training when compared to your goals. I'm falling short of my targets as stated at the beginning of the year. My swim yardage is nowhere near last years numbers. My bike is suffering horribly. And my run is considerably short of 1000 mile pace.
There's room for improvement. And there's also cause to celebrate. Despite the lower volume, I set a 15-minute PR in the marathon. I have the opportunity to set a PR at the half-IM distance. And I have the chance to complete a 50 mile ultramarathon. I'll celebrate the victories while I determine if the original goals were realistic.
Well, I'm glad to see the server is finally back in one piece. Apparently, the webhost had some minor problems with their shiny new Seagate drives, yesterday. In a period of about six hours they lost four seperate hard drives. Normally, I'd be amazed at loosing four new drives that quickly. Since I've dealt with Seagate in the past, it's a bit less surprising.
In triathlon terms, Weebly blew up on the course, yesterday. They seem to have taken a recovery day and everything is back on track. There is a post I'm rather proud of, below, and it was rather difficult to read it, yesterday.
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