As a conservative, I mourn the Republican party that abandoned its core beliefs and now pays the price for that move.
As an American, I celebrate the peaceful transition of power and the historic election of an African-American to the presidency.
As a former sailor, I respect the accomplishment of Barak Obama and promise to support him as Commander-in-Chief.
As a political pundit, I promise to voice opposition when warranted and support when deserved.
As a businessman, I fret about the punitive attitude President Elect Obama has demonstrated toward success.
As an accountant, I eagerly await to see how an Obama administration will manage to keep even a few of their campaign promises.
As a strong believer in the political process and the private ballot, I fear the return of the card check system of union voting.
As a Christian, I pray for wisdom for Barak Obama as he begins the difficult process of putting together a cabinet and transition team.
As an optimist, I believe conservatives now have an opportunity to rebuild the party that abandoned them and regain a position of moral, fiscal, and ethical leadership.
As an endurance athlete, I understand that while we sometimes race in adverse conditions, the race goes on.
 While looking at options for a new clothes dryer (long story, don't ask), I took the time to dig up pictures from the Fox Cities Marathon. As usual, I got a couple decent shots in the midst of lots of brutal pictures. This first ones is actually near the end of the race. For me, it was about 38 miles into the day.
As I came down the bridge and saw the photographer, I decided to kill two birds with one stone. By "throwing the deuce," I avoided the limp armed pose that plagues me in endurance events AND paid tribute to George Schweitzer. Incidentally, George paid a return visit to his blog. He's been gone a while, with good reason. Something about training for and racing two Ironman events all while working on his PHD. And I thought racing while raising kids was a juggle! To top it off, he finished IM Lake Placid in an amazing 10:18.
I think this was a pretty good picture, and that's one more "lesson" learned from George (though he admits he needs help after an entire summer of peace sign pictures).
 As I neared the finish, I was thinking how it would be nice to show some energy rather than my usual dull plod down the chute. I had "One Step Beyond" by Madness playing, and considered doing the Madness Shuffle across the finish line. Figuring that would look pretty odd WITHOUT the music, I just ran back and forth encouraging the crowd to cheer. There were a lot of people coming after me, and the spectators were pretty lifeless. I'm amazed anyone was able to get a picture of me as I was running back and forth.
I'm also amazed that I look as decent as I do in this picture. This was just over 40 miles, and I was beat. Don't believe me? I have proof. And just enough humility to laugh at myself. So, one of the "brutal" pictures.
No, wait. That's "BRUTAL!"
 Allow me to present "Death Warmed Over." I love the snarl. Oddly enough, this is also in the finish chute. I went from cheerleading the crowd to an apparently whiny "Are we there, yet?" in just a few feet. Oh well, it keeps me humble.
The series of pictures I have from this race help demonstrate one thing very well. People go through a wide range of emotions and outward appearances during extreme endurance events. Well, that and the fact that I'm just never going to "smile" when I'm racing.
Somebody's just going to have to find a way to snap a picture of me when I'm laughing about something.
 "Do, or do not. There is no try."
At first glance, this seems perfect advice for aspiring endurance athletes. Get out there and do it. Remove all hints of negativity, and forget about "trying to finish." Just get out there and finish.
I'm not sure Yoda and I see eye to eye on this one, though. Then again, I'm not sure Yoda was entirely sold on his own comment.
If you recall, the setting is the swamp planet Dagobah and Luke Skywalker really wants to get his X-Wing fighter out of the water. Yoda tells him to use the force, and Luke says he'll "try." Yoda isn't very keen on the idea of "trying." Luke does try, and obviously fails.
Yoda then demonstrates what he REALLY wanted Luke to learn. There is no such thing as "can't." With very few exceptions, the force makes all things possible. With little effort at all, Yoda does what Luke failed to do. When Luke responded with, "I don't believe it," Yoda's response is, "That is why you failed."
I'm becoming a big believer in "There is no Can't." And I disagree with Yoda. "Try" is a huge part of "can." In life, we sometimes fail. That is often the springboard to success. Instead of Star Wars, think Meet the Robinsons. Sometimes failure should be celebrated as the foundation for future success.
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...
Okay, eight years ago in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I was encouraged to run 1.5 miles two or three times a week. My first thought and immediate response was that I could barely run 1.5 miles twice a year. Doing that twice a week was out of the question. I knew I didn't WANT to do it, and questioned whether I COULD do it.
Through the years, many things have changed. More important than any physical change is the mental change. Faced with some new physical challenge, the question is no longer, "Can I do this?" The question is, "What would be required to do it?" and, "Do I want to tackle this challenge."
Failure is always a possibility. But I'd rather fail to succeed then fail to try.
The question that we (endurance athletes) must ask ourselves is, "How do we share this belief system with others?"
As part of the answer for myself, I'm looking at ways to develop the "There is no Can't" philosophy. I will share it with the 8th graders I mentor at the Boys' and Girls' Brigade and use it to expand our youth triathlon club. Together with the Brigade I will pursue grants to allow us to reach more youth in the community. The youth in the program will learn what they CAN do, rather than be told what they aren't allowed to do.
Co-workers are aware of what CAN be done after watching me run 40 miles. Now, our goal is to encourage others to get out and think about what they can accomplish. Rather than focus on, "I can't run 40 miles," we'll focus on, "I can walk for 15 minutes" or, "I can run 3.1 miles."
It's been said that a person who can complete an Ironman can accomplish anything. What is sometimes forgotten is the long road to that achievement. As endurance athletes, we will always remember. Others around us might forget, or be altogether unaware of the long journey. Helping them to see that goes a long way toward removing "can't" from the picture.
So, Master Yoda, I'm sorry to disagree, but there is "try." But rest easy knowing I believe in the real lesson. "Long you must train if an Ironman you will be. Remove from your thoughts "can't" you must do." Along the way, there might be some failures, kind of like Luke and that X-Wing fighter.
 For months I have eagerly awaited the official release of the Chevy Volt. Today, marking the 100th anniversary of GM, the production version of the vehicle was introduced. GM is determined to make the car a success, and their future as a company is at least modestly tied to that factor.
The concept behind the car is actually fairly elegant. Simply put, it is an electric car with an onboard generator. "Traditional" hybrids combine a gas engine and battery assist to power the drivetrain. In the Volt, the battery powers the drivetrain and the gas engine powers a generator that charges the battery.
For trips less than about 40 miles, the battery is sufficient and the car uses no gas. As the distance between charges increases, fuel economy decreases. After the car is fully dependent upon the generator to charge the battery, it becomes similar to other hybrids, with a fuel economy of about 50 mpg.
My excitement over the potential of the vehicle was tempered by the unknown cost. Reasonably priced, the Volt could catapult GM back into a lead position in the automotive industry. If the price was out of the reach of most Americans or resulted in a long pay-back time, teh Volt's potential would quickly fizzle to nothing.
Unfortunately, it appears the latter will be the case. The current intent is to price the Volt at about $40,000. At that price, most interest will come from people more interested in "saving the world" than saving actual money.
Assuming someone puts on roughly 80 miles between charges (100 mpg), gas costs $4.50/gallon, and a 30 mpg vehicle is available for $25,000, the payback period for the Volt would be 10 years. Even at $7/gallon, the payback is well over six years, longer than most Americans own a car.
Locate a 30 mpg vehicle for $18,000 and you can buy gas at $4.50 for nearly 14 years before the Volt would have been a better purchase.
GM has the potential to electrify the country with the Volt. Based on the news, today, they may find the battery dead before it even hits the market. Time will tell, though, and I will be keeping both eyes open as the vehicle gets closer to full production. Perhaps they'll find ways to drop the price and reenergize prospective customers.
A wide range of well known celebrities competed in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon, this past weekend. Though Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey received the most attention, other Hollywood icons raced with them. Some of my favorites? William H. Macy, Mark-Paul Gosselar, and Anna Kournikova.
The extensive publicity surrounding their success at the race is sure to invite the standard responses. Some will ooh and aah over famous actors and actresses competing in the event. Others will decry the attention pointing to the thousands of "average joes" who compete in a wide variety of races without so much as a peep out of the media. Still others will wonder what all the fuss is about.
I, for one, am glad to see articles about well known people pursuing endurance events. First, they have a much larger audience than I have. While I might be able to motivate several, even dozens of people to pursue a running race or triathlon. Jennifer Lopez completing a triathlon has the potential to motivate tens of thousands, particularly young ladies. The combined "star power" of those competing in Malibu this past weekend vastly increases that potential. And anything that helps grow the sport is wonderful.
Second, I believe actions speak louder than words. J-Lo made a comment that it might be neat to do a triathlon. That got some attention. Her training might have garnered a bit more coverage. Actually starting and finishing the race was the real news. Rather than blathering on to the news media about things outside her control or expertise, Lopez put in the training she needed to succeed. And while we can't all be famous in Hollywood or the music industry, we can all succeed in pursuit of a healthier lifestyle.
Finally, I celebrate the personal achievements of anyone who decides to pursue any endurance event. J-Lo's celebrity status in no way diminishes her accomplishments. Her situation might make certain aspects of the journey easier. Then again, I've never tried to train for a race while juggling a family, a singing and acting career, and all the demands that go with it. She deserves a great deal of credit and recognition, as do all of the others who finished the race, celebrity or not.
It's been said before that one of the great things about the sport of triathlon is the way it brings people together. Very rarely in the rest of life will you find yourself competing toe-to-toe with the top performers in the sport. Now, we also find celebrities racing in our midst.
Lopez is like us in at least two ways. First, the swim is her biggest fear and worst discipline. Second, she is a triathlete.
 Certain events in history have helped define and shape our country as we know it, today. They are usually easy to identify because they are those moments that seem frozen in time. They are forever etched in our minds. Years, even decades later, we find ourselves going, "I remember it like it was yesterday. I was..."
In my life thus far, the single most remarkable event is that which occurred on September 11, 2001. It turned the very simple act of looking for supplies at the UW Oshkosh school store into a surreal image that will remain with me to the day I die. James Nachtwey and Time Magazine provide the image shown here. I think it is a good representation of how many felt, that day.
The world as known crumbled around our ears. We stood in the rubble, looking on in horror as events unfolded. And then we mourned.
In a way, our country is still mourning. We continue the struggle that started that day, and we have no way our knowing how or when it will end. All we can do is fight for what we believe to be right.
So today, remember. Remember those who gave their lives without even knowing the reason. Remember those who died trying to save others. Remember those who lived and face the pain of the past.
And remember those who lay their lives on the line every day that we might continue to live free. Those who serve in harm's way in places far from home. They do so for little recognition, less money, and well aware of the risks.
Most importantly, REMEMBER.
When younger, I participated in various youth sporting leagues. In California, it was baseball. When my family moved to Wisconsin, we found soccer the more popular summer sport. I made the change, though I found myself little better at soccer than baseball. And to be fair, I wasn't all that good at football, which I played in high school.
In the youth leagues from my childhood, two things were always celebrated. Participation and success. First and foremost, kids were recognized for trying. There were many teams on the field destined to lose many, if not all the games they played. The players shared the praise of all the coaches and parents, regardless of outcome.
Success was also recognized. Those players and teams that excelled were acknowledged for their accomplishments. Their victories didn't lessen the value of teams with fewer wins. It recognized the value of working together, training hard, and playing well. In life, there are varying levels of success, and youth sports are an example of that.
It appears some would shift from that view. In New Haven, Connecticut, one youth baseball team is being punished for, well, being too good. It seems they have a shining star in little 9-year old Jericho Scott. As pitcher, his speed and accuracy has helped take his team to an 8-0 record, and first place in the league.
Now, league officials have demanded the team's coach replace Scott as the pitcher. When the coach refused, those officials cancelled the team's last game. Given the situation, Scott's parents brought in a lawyer to force the league to allow their son to play.
Sadly, allowing the phenom to play may not be the issue. It seems the league president works with a local barbershop that also sponsors a team in the league. The second place team.
Even if the accusations are untrue, the situation is still a tragedy. Disqualifying a youth for being "too good" is pathetic lunacy.
Imagine if Team Discovery had been banned from the Tour de France because Lance Armstrong had already won five times. Or if Michael Phelps were excluded from the 2012 Olympics because he won eight medals ,this year.
Perhaps the winners of last season's Superbowl, World Series, NBA playoffs, Stanley Cup playoffs, NCAA tournament, and Indy 500 should be excluded from participating in the next season of play.
When did words like success, victory, and winner become swear words. If we want our kids to understand what it means to succeed, they must face the possibility of failure.
Relax, The Pol-R Express and myself are fine. The "wiped out" refers to my energy levels as opposed to an "agony of defeat" crash. It's been a long week, as my posting shows.
I'm learning a lot about training for ultramarathons. First and foremost, it is, perhaps, more demanding than training for Ironman. While I have yet to spend 10 hours training in a single day, there's something to be said for the rigors of running three-and-a-half hours on Sunday after running four hours on Saturday. I have a far greater understanding of why Friday and Tuesday are off days.
I'm learning a lot about myself, though.
One of the simple truths about Ironman is that most participants look forward to the bike, so long as it means they can stop swimming. Similarly, they begin to relish the marathon if for no other reason than it represents the opportunity to get off the bike. I remember being absolutely overjoyed heading into T2, despite my concern over the looming 26.2 mile run.
My training for the ultramarathon doesn't have that aspect. I wake up on Sunday fairly wiped out from Saturday's run. And I know I have to go put more stress on an already tired body. Unlike Ironman, it is the same stress on the same body parts.
And while I can complete a marathon with little residual pain, stacking marathon distance training runs on top of each other is another story.
So, I find myself napping just about every chance I get. In fact, I find myself napping in some very odd circumstances. Last night, my daughter kept waking me up as I was dozing off while she was saying her prayers. And while I was reading her bedtime story. And while she was trying to wake me up.
And since I am both a lunatic and a slow learner, I am contemplating "kicking it up a notch." In September, I will be running a "marathon and a half." As part of the Fox Cities Marathon, I will run the half-marathon backwards, arriving at the starting line just prior to the start of the official marathon (hopefully). In October, I will complete a 50-mile ultramarathon, though I'm torn on which one.
For giggles, I am considering continuing the insanity through the end of the year. In November, I would run 60 miles, just to keep the progression going. And in December, I would run 80 miles, or twice my age.
For an encore, I would then sleep the entire month of January.
Last night was the final night of our churches vacation Bible school. And, of course, the last night means clean up. After having parents in for a review of the week and a small reception, we attacked all areas of the church with zeal so it would be ready for Sunday's service. That takes time, and it was closing on 10 p.m. when I got home with the kids.
That's late enough for me, and the kids were running on empty. Sadly, after getting them into bed, I had to get ready for the next stage of the day. Training. Because Wednesday was a late night, I postponed my 10-miler from morning to evening. Painful as it was, I grabbed my fuel belt, MP3 player, and lots of shiny/reflective/flashy things and headed out the door.
Ten miles later, I was thinking that minus a few things, it was like finishing an Ironman just before the midnight cut-off. Granted, there hadn't been a 2.4 mile swim or 112 mile bike. And the run was only 10 miles instead of 26.2. And there were no cheering crowds.
Then again, most Ironman competitors don't start the day with a long work day followed by four hours volunteering at church. Going for nearly 14 hours prior to starting a long run made finishing the run tough.
The nice thing was the run, itself. It was cool, clear, and dark. Those are some of my favorite running conditions. About the only thing I would have changed were the smokers on College Avenue (can't smoke in public buildings around here, so I get to run THROUGH the smoke), and the numerous construction zones I had to navigate. Still, it beats running at 2:30 in the afternoon.
There was one other benefit to running so late at night. I wore my regular glasses, and I now KNOW they need to be adjusted. Kids and glasses don't mix.
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...
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