Category Archives: Sports

Triathlon, the continuing result

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Yup, that’s me, the ugly fat boy, but I made it through again. This was my 53rd triathlon, Clay’s Park in North Lawrence, Oh. They put on a good race, I did OK. Feel free to check this link  definitely nothing to be impressed with.

http://www.champracing.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/cp_results.143150855.htm#%202%201

Up at 4:30, we had to stay in a hotel because it was about 2 hours from where my son and daughter live and that would have meant leaving at about 4 in the morning to be there in time. This way we were only about 45 minutes and didn’t have to get up until 4:30 to make sure I was all set to start by 7:45, Yippee. Now I’ve heard other people do this staying at a hotel, they set their phone, their watch, the radio and have the desk call. Didn’t matter, I was awake, but I did hear all things go off, which doesn’t often happen, all usually fail to go off.

My son and grandson were with me, usually I go alone, no one else wants to have to get up this early on a Saturday or Sunday morning. It was really great to have them with me, especially at the beginning, so much to get organized, having someone just hold your bike while you register, PRICELESS.

We (we being just me) squeeze into the wetsuit, which as you can see is a challenge. This was a small race and for whatever reason the old guys were put up in the second wave. There were only four waves, but still, the waiting around to start is not fun. There is the kibbutzing, not really trash talking, if anything, in triathlon, it’s the other way around. “Oh, my swim stinks, I’m never going to get through it.” Yeah, right this is the guy who strokes right by you. Just trying to get you to let down your guard, kinda of take your edge off. The temperature at the start was around 49 degrees, but the sun was bright, so it didn’t really feel cold, but it is strange when you’re standing in water and you can see your breath, and others. The horn finally goes off, you run until you have to swim, you start swimming way faster then you should, you get your breathing up, your heart beat up and then wonder why you’re flapping around like a lame duck. You have to keep looking up, especially in this race, everyone seemed to be getting pushed to the left of the buoys. I only got shoved around a couple of times and kind of smacked from the side, so pretty tame start.

So you finally get through, for me took about 11 minutes to go 500 yards, not at all anything resembling wonderful, but it will do. Look down at the GPS watch, find it’s not doing what it’s supposed to??? It is keeping splits, so you just hit the split for the transition. My swim to bike transition is always abysmal and it was again today, being too fussy, need to just throw on shoes, helmet, glasses and go. But I have to putz around. Finally get going and am doing pretty well.

One thing about the hills around where I live, is that it’s great training. There were hills in this race, but nothing that couldn’t be handled, and eleven miles later, decent bike split. Throw off my shoes, my helmet, throw on running shoes and I’m out the gate. The run too, was pretty uneventful, and it should be because everyone else has finished. All right, not everyone, but there was sure no crowd left. The run was pretty flat and I maintained a decent pace and finished. My son was taking pictures, which is nice, it’s a really small race, so there wasn’t anyone taking pictures for money and you like to have something to remember, other than a t-shirt, because I sure wasn’t going home with any awards, I don’t know, maybe fastest pastor, being the only one I knew of. It was a nice overall day, I got to spend time with my kids, we literally drove right by the Football Hall of Fame, so we had to check that out. The William McKinley presidential museum Image It was fun, quick stop at McDonalds, two hours back to pick up my wife and our luggage and then a three mile drive from there. Reality smacked me right in the face, when we were about twenty minutes from home, got a call that the mother of one of the church’s elders was dying, stopped to pick up the police chaplain van as the police chaplain because I’m on call until Tuesday, got home, put on more appropriate clothes, rushed to the hospital and spent a couple of hours there. Next morning woke up early, conducted Matins worship at 8:30, Bible study, worship at 10:30, prayer meeting at 1:30 and then finally home and flopped.

Great weekend, it started on Wednesday when we attended my son’s graduation, very proud of the Timothy and great quality time with our daughter Erica, and grandson Nicholas.

Triathlon race day, frankly anticlimatic to the rest of the preparation.

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Well tomorrow is my first of the season. I try to do two triathlons in a season, one as early as possible and then others as the opportunity comes up during the season. The season being, kind of, from April until October. The Hawaiian Ironman kind of signals the end of the season which is in October.

My goal is to do as many races in as many states as possible. This of course requires travel. When I first started most of my races were on Cape Cod, so just get up earlier (that said, I and most others I read always have trouble sleeping the night before so getting up early, not that big of a deal if you really didn’t sleep to begin with.) The way I’m doing it now is to rely on technology to get me to a new place as quickly as possible, needless to say, one glitch there and there will be problems.

Another consideration is race gear. Triathlon is probably second only to NASCAR in the amount of gear. Two years ago I had already reached the Virginia line before I realized I forgot my helmet and bike shoes. Stopped bought new ones, I needed new shoes anyway. But most have special watches, wetsuit, special shorts and shirts, bicycle, running shoes. Forget one thing and kind of a pain, there are horror stories of a racer forgetting a bike, or having it smashed in travel and having to borrow, beg, haven’t heard of anyone stealing, a new bike. Of course, since I’m going somewhere new have to get a hotel nearby, found one thirty dollars less then my first choice. All I’m doing is sleeping there the night before, really don’t need much in amenities.

I’m at the point now where I’m thinking all this stuff I have to do, getting up early (4:30 am), finding the place, getting there, getting set up, being a little cold, (air temp should be about 48 degrees when I jump in the lake, another reason for a wet suit. But hey I jumped in Cheasapeake Bay in May in Annapolis, no wet suit, I’ll live either way and being in cold water definitely makes you swim harder). But of course nerves kick in, which are nothing when you’re standing there in a mob scene, waiting for the call for your wave, wondering why on earth and what on earth you are doing there and then the one minute countdown until you jump in the water, get whacked in the head, kicked in the face, elbowed in the ribs, swum over. I’m probably forgetting something. Yea the swim is definitely a uniquely challenging part of the race. Then there are the transitions, trying to get your wet suit off, somewhat dry off and get bike shoes on and out the gate. It’s easier then it sounds, although sometimes I seem to make it more complicated then it has to be. Got a little thing going with the sciatic, so that is another thing to camp on, whether I will be hobbling through the run portion. (Oh come on, it’s 5k, you can do that on your head, he says still not really confident.)

So this is where I’m at, the day before. In no way am I writing this to discourage anyone, this will be my 52nd triathlon, so I must like it/get something out of it. Another choice would just be sick masochist, but let’s put the best face possible on this. But the end is exhilarating, you may be coming in around the same time I am, probably back of the pack. May get passed by quite a few people, may not exactly feel distinguished, but it really is about you. Heck I doubt that I will ever see any of the people I see tomorrow again for the rest of my life and if I do, hey who remembers. But as the sign says, pain is temporary, race results on the web are forever. So, to quote Bill Murray, “I got that going for me.” So I will do my best to not get caught up in the nerves before hand, say a prayer to my Lord Jesus Christ thanking Him that I got there intact and actually ready, that He has given me the strength, stamina and brains or just too stupid to realize, that He will keep me safe and whatever I do, it will be to His glory. Hey say a quick prayer, think of me between about 8am and 10am tomorrow, smile a little bit and hopefully I will have an inspiring story to tell on the other side. Thanks for your interest.

Just do it

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In a couple of weeks I will be doing my first triathlon of the season, this will be number 52. I’ve been doing triathlons since 1985, try to do two a year. I tell you this not to impress you, but to encourage you. Look I don’t have to make a lot of space on my mantle for all my awards, frankly very little space. I have a nice collection of finisher medals and some other miscellaneous stuff. I did a 5K this past Saturday and I had my first experience of someone telling me I had to stay for the awards ceremony, which was cool. Upon further investigation, though, it was determined that I didn’t win anything, it was cool, but in 30 years I never even got that far, so I’ve got that going for me (to quote Bill Murray in “Caddy Shack”.) I have a big collection of t-shirts, but no “podium” awards.
I don’t say this to evoke some sort of sympathy or worse, “why the heck are you a loser and why do you keep doing this”? No, I do these because it’s a personal accomplishment, it’s a way to force myself to stay involved, to do something that’s good for me and also to see how much I can accomplish or at least maintain. Right now I’ve done races in 17 different states, this one coming up will be 18. In a way a personal accomplishment, but not something that’s going to show up on my “trophy” mantle.
It seems to me that too many people won’t attempt something because they don’t think they will do well, or even “horrors” embarrass themselves. It’s been my experience that if anything people really appreciate seeing people who are really trying are out there and I can’t remember there being anything but praise and encouragement. Having said that, I was on the seminary cross country team, mostly because they needed a fifth guy and someone to give us a “team”. I only ended up doing four races and for three of them it was a fun experience and I didn’t get any really feedback. Frankly that’s best for me, I’m here I’m supporting my team, that’s all that matters and that’s the way it went. We did compete in a city (St Louis) meet and it was the one time where I got kind of a hard time. I do not have a “cross-country runner’s physique”, which is what triathletes usually, derisively refer to as “running rib cage” physique. Triathletes, swim, bike and run, they have to have an over all developed physique and not just legs. Having said that an undergraduate team decided that I just didn’t belong there (my kids were older than they were) and who was I etc, etc. Now this is an obviously immature, narrow minded reaction from a bunch of little boys whose opinion didn’t really matter and I let them know as such (reminding them, they may be able to run faster than me, but that’s about it).
I say this not to discourage, but in thirty years of a variety of competitions in 99% of them I’ve been treated with respect, to the effect that “it’s great to see you out here, working at this, trying and good luck, have fun!” I have seen this at many places I’ve worked out; swimming pools, racquetball courts, weight rooms, aerobic centers, martial arts etc. People really do appreciate seeing others getting out, trying, putting in the effort. I’ve seen people genuinely want to help and offer pointers and happy to offer any help or advice.
In a couple of weeks I’m going to be standing on the edge of a beach wondering “what the heck am I doing here”. But shortly thereafter, I’m going to push the stop button on my watch and I’m going to have that feeling of accomplishment, that I’ve finished another one, in another state, maybe hit some personal goals and will be welcomed by the other finishers.
I understand, maybe you are not ready for something aggressive, but don’t let that stop you, set some aggressive goals and then figure out how to accomplish them. Many athletic clubs, YM/YWCAs offer personal trainers at pretty reasonable rates and if you show up and just ask the attendant, they are more than happy to get you started (most actually insist upon it). Think about what you’d like to do, get in a good routine, buy a good book, subscribe to a good magazine, set up a good plan, get a good diet down, start slow, and just keep working on it. It will be great, you will be great, you will feel better and you will enjoy the achievement. God bless and believe me, if I can help in any way shoot me a message, on WordPress or my e-mail is bm2driskell@aol.com

Be the well-rounded person God gave you the opportunity to be

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Just finished my Saturday workout, usually consists of about an hour of weights or an hour plus of bike riding. Usually when it comes up in discussion, the other person will say something like, I wouldn’t do that, sounds like too much work, or I couldn’t bike 3 miles, and it’s not with an attitude of, “Gee maybe I should be in better shape and try to do something”. It’s more of an attitude on their part that they’re proud they don’t “waste” their time, what’s the point. As if they’re somehow smarter by not getting some genuine exercise.
A lot of people will also give me an attitude that if they can’t be a great athlete well what’s the point. I am by no means a “great”, good, even mediocre athlete. Any competitions I enter, I’m usually a “back of the packer”, but by the same token, I am keeping in shape, I am doing things that keep me in better physical condition. The big topics today are obesity, diabetes is an epidemic, stress, lethargy, depression, all things that a decent amount of exercise would greatly help. It’s getting to the point where I can’t go a day without meeting someone who is obviously over weight and tells me they have diabetes. They talk as if they have been somehow victimized and they should be able to do whatever they want with whatever they want. Furthermore, the things that people put in their bodies that are illegal and what do we as a society do? We continue to legalize marijuana. Seriously is there a doubt in anyone’s mind that the widespread use of illegal substances, not to mention a lot of the junk we consume isn’t resulting in damage to ourselves that we are passing on to our children? ADD the all encompassing answer to everyone’s inability to do anything (although just watch how rapt their attention is when they’re playing computer games or watching a movie they like). I’m sure that in a lot of circumstances autism that has also become widespread is a result of a lot of illicit drug use. I’m not trying to be cruel, but those same people who are always so concerned with their secular “truth”, sure find ways to distort the truth of the things they do that are just not responsible ways to act.
Cut to the chase, as we progress there will be more and more demand for medical attention for conditions that we could have controlled by taking just a little responsibility in our lives. Some reasonable exercise would do everyone a great deal of good.
And parents let’s cut the baloney, making sure your kid goes to baseball, soccer, games sorry, those are just not conditioning programs. Those programs are just not designed for children’s physical fitness. There is just way too much adult ego, vicarious living and need to maintain control. There’s just not enough ‘let’s get out there as kids, run until we drop, help each other, learn, on our own, to be part of a team and enjoy what should be the beginning of life long good habits.
Let’s help our kids develop good habits by being good examples and being out there with them doing real exercise. Sorry but a kid playing right field is never going to get their heart rate up to any level for any time that’s going to do him or her the least amount of good.
Don’t count on government or the medical institution to save you, and I think that realization is slowly beginning to dawn on people. But realizing it isn’t going to do you any good when you’re 55 years old, obese, diabetic and have messed up your joints by carrying around far too many pounds for your joints to support. I can certainly see a time coming that because the medical establishment is becoming so ill-equipped to deal with all of this, that they will stop even trying to treat those who have spent their lives chain-swilling twinkies. Or they will turn you away because you abused your body with drugs and now your children have serious problems because of it.
I know, I can hear it “I have the right! It’s my body, to…” yada, yada. Ya, not really. You certainly didn’t “make” your body, and for those who would use this line of discussion they haven’t done anything to make their body better, they’ve just abused it, poor diet, booze, drugs, irresponsible sex, lack of exercise. So you can’t say you’re responsible for caring and nurturing your body. you expect to abuse it and have someone else take care of you. That’s just not realistic. God gave you the capacity to have a remarkable body and life with it, if you abuse what God’s done for you. If you don’t work to make your body stronger and more able, you have abused the gift you’ve been given.
So take some responsibility now, come on down to First St Johns and learn good aerobic and strength building exercises. And while your there you might also avail yourself of the opportunity to strengthen your spiritual life. To become that well-rounded person that God gave you the capacity to be.