EC Tucson Camp Day Three

Day three of the Camp was meant to be a bit of a regroup day; at least in terms of cycling mileage.

The day kicked off for most folks with a morning swim main set of

500, 5 x 100
400, 4 x 100
300, 3 x 100
200, 2 x 100
100, 100

After knocking out the swim everyone headed back for another stelllar breakfast before rolling out for the day's ride. One group opted for a mellow 30 miles and a second group went for slightly more miles at a good clip. Mat, Gordo, and I headed up the longer route and Mat reminded all of us (again) that he responds quite well to altitude (as he put in big pulls down here in AZ). I was rolling along second in line telling Gordo that we should probably nickname him "The Responder" given the way he rides down low.

After finishing up Mat, Jonas, and I went for a quick easy swim since we (minus Jonas) missed out on the morning fun. Jonas offered up a nice mellow drill/swim set and followed up with some stroke pointers for both of us.

After swimming we headed up to the EC HQ to run a nice easy 10K on some local trails. The scenery in the Saquaro West Park is really beautiful at this time of year and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The abundant moisture in the spring has left areas green that might not be otherwise.

Day Three closed out as every day does: Eating and Socializing. The conversations lasted a little longer than the previous two nights since most folks expended a little less energy throughout the day. Dr J headed up an informal discussion on bike fits and plenty of people we able to add valuable insight or offer questions.

Day Four is meant to be a balanced mixture of training with an emphasis on swimming. Some of the athletes might be heading into one of their biggest swim sessions of their season (or life??).

Until tomorrow,

jd

Endurance Corner Tucson Camp Day 1 and 2

The EC crew is hosting the first of two training camps here in Tucson, Arizona. Even though I lived in Phoenix for two springs ('04 and '05) I have never trained in Tucson (which is a much higher profile training spot). Yesterday was the second day of the camp and it included a summit up Mt Lemmon (21 miles and 6000+ feet of elevation gain). I had always heard about this ride, but (as mentioned) I had never done it.

I learned a couple things on that ride yesterday:

1. It takes a long time to climb Mt Lemmon.

2. Early season climbs over 20 minutes are quite tiring no matter how long I have been doing this.

I think all the campers (encompassing a wide range of abilities) felt a great deal of satisfaction after reaching the 8000 foot summit. I don't care who you are; 6000 feet of continuous climbing is challenging and should not be taken lightly. All the athletes reached the summit at ease and then cruised down the mountain to finish off with a short run off the bike.

As we transitioned to a run in Udall park we came across Bobby McGee (World Famous Olympic Running Coach) who was going through his famous drills with the Resident Triathlon Team (here on a training camp). Nice to see a cross section of athletes and lifestyles in one place. You know what they say about great minds....

After finishing their runs the athletes regrouped and headed up Star pass to the EC HQ for another one of Brooke and Russ' famous dinners. No one left hungry and everyone left happy (its close to the slogan: "Come Hungry; Leave Happy."

Today is a regroup day (for some) that includes an early morning swim; a moderate ride; and a midday run that ranges from short to long (10K to 10 miles)

More updates tomorow. I'll get some pictures posted as well,

JD

A to B

A lot is going on in JD's little world and so this blog will have to be short. We are finalizing all the preps for next week's Arizona camp and so any downtime I actually have is spent SBRing instead of writing down my thoughts for the week.

I only want to mention one quick point about a conversation I had this week. A buddy and I were talking about how different people approach training, particularly those who are either 'all in' or 'all out.' This is not limited just to training hours, but to diet, alcohol, sleep, etc. For many, if they cannot do things "right" they choose to not do them at all.

I have continuously seen this with Long Course triathletes who believe that anything that isn't long, hard or stressful is not worth their time. They would just as soon 'take a zero' instead of logging 30 minutes of exercise that day. To them, triathlon cannot exist without the above.

I don't necessarily have these same issues. Part of that is a result of being in the sport for over seven years and knowing that any and all adaptations take a (very) long time. The second reason, and the one I want to expand upon a bit, is that I always see myself progressing forward; only the speed at which it is happening is what changes.

Lets make this visual. Take a line with two points. At one end is Point 'A,' at the other end is Point 'B.' Point A represents the first day you ever set out to improve as a triathlete and Point B is the best you could ever become.

A-------------------------------------------------B

In my mind I am always traveling from left to right. If I need a day off or when I go into the offseason I do not see myself as moving back towards the left; I merely stay at the same point on my path to B. I think this perspective allows me the flexibility to listen to my recovery needs better than others as well as maintaining a mentality that every session counts not matter how little the impact.

Don't let the complexity of life get in the way of your path. Keep things rolling and exploit the moments when you can speed things up a bit.

See you in AZ,

jd

Kristy Gough

Kristy Gough was tragically killed this past weekend on a training ride in Northern California. You can read the specifics on xtri.com here: http://www.xtri.com/features_display.aspx?riIDReport=4538&CAT=24&xref=xx

The photo above was taken in 2004 in Kona, Hawaii; probably 2.5 weeks before Kristy went on to be the Top Female Amateur in Kona. I met her at Epic Kona that year and trained with her (and others) for the three weeks preceding the race. I have not seen her since those three weeks, but I still remember her well. I remember her personality and character more than her athleticism, which is a great sign considering how accomplished she was athletically.

Rest in Peace Kristy.

JD

Solvang Day Five and Epilogue

I'm back in Boulder on this Tuesday morning, but I still never recapped the final day of the camp before leaving Southern California. It was a day (and camp) to remember.

The final day was scheduled to be a handicapped race that included the entire camp; both coaches and campers (65 folks). The A,B,C and D groups were divided even further so that we had a D1 and D2 group, C1 and C2, etc. This amounted to 8 groups rolling out across a 16 minute window. Mark P, Gordo, Mat, Gardie, Riley, Stan, and I were in the final group.
The entire camp had a neutral rollout for about 25 miles to the starting point for the race. The race course was a 28 mile out-and-back that had three climbs in either direction (six total) mixed with flats and wind (turnaround was at the Pacific Ocean).

All groups were divided by two minutes except for the two A groups that only had one minute between them. The first A group had Robbie Ventura, Captain Morgan (aka Strong Rob), and Brian Hass so it was hardly 'slower' than our group; it mostly depended on who was going to be doing the work.

Our group started out like the race was going to last about 28 seconds, and not 28 miles. The pace was fast and hard and it took a few minutes for us to calm each other down. Fortunately we hit a climb and the speed settled and our pace did as well.

Except for Gordo.
He started to slowly pull away and we were rather confused as to why he was riding up the road. Soon enough we realized that he was using the first climb to bridge to the first A group before they started descending. He managed to do so and it was a pretty clever move. Once our group ascended the summut we started bombing down the descent to try and take time out of A1. Unfortunately we must have been going too quickly because Mat was out in a tigh switchback (pic afterwards above) and we lost him.

We lost a bit of the wind in our sails at this point and we slowed up to make sure he was alright. We got word that he stood right up and was going to be ok so we regrouped and pushed on. From there we pushed the pace to the turnaround where another crash had dissolved Gordo's group and he was forced to ride solo. G mananed to link up with Jason Shizzler so he had one other rider to work with to the finish line. At this point we had four folks left: Mark P, Gardie, Riley, and myself, but we still had a good gap to make up and not many miles to do it.

It was really fun to see the team dynamics over the next 14 miles. We stayed together on the climbs to make sure we all summitted together and then Riley and Mark P would push the pace in the flats and downhills. This pattern was bringing us closer and closer to the two riders up the road. Gordo had no choice but to do all the pulling at this point so Shizzler was in a great position to be first to the line.

With 2K to go we were getting closer and with less than 500 meters to go our group caught Jason and Gordo and Gardie sent Riley up the road to duke it out for the finish. Riley was out-sprinted by Jason, but I think we all felt a great deal of satisfaction to have done everything we could to be in it in the end. I think all of us (except maybe Gardie) had moments where we felt we could no longer contribute, but we held each other together all the way to the finish.

The photo above Mat is the four of us after this finish. Nice country in the background, huh?

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The Vision Quest Camp in Solvang was a fantastic experience. I learned a lot about myself and about how a camp and its dynamics can bring so much out of its participants. Regardless of ability, everyone had moments in the week where they reached into their reserve and pushed the ceilings the place on themselves a little furhter into the sky. I am pretty certain that Mat is going to come back to Boulder with more confidence in his riding and ability. I don't know every cyclist at the camp, but I know that he stepped it up like few I have ever seen.

Another component of the camp that will stick with me many years into the future was the presence of a guy named Gardoe Jackson. Gardie is a functional strength trainer out of Park City, Utah who is also a Cat 1 cyclist and one of the top 50 cross country skiers in the country.

He is also 40 years old and was easily the strongest amigo at the camp.

His athleticism was impressive, but his positive attitude and impact on others is what is going to last with me. Instead of internalizing his strengths, he spread it out to everyone around him and the entire camp became stronger, smarter, and more positive. I hope I can do the same for others one day when given similar oppurtunities.

Thanks to all the support and coaches in Solcang. I hope to hang with the VQ crew again in the years to come.

cheers,

jd

Solvang Day Four

The picture above is Mark P rocking out with syrup on his fruit. The energy he got from that sugar would come back to haunt me later that day.

I apologize for not writing this sooner, but the last couple days served up a lot of training and I found myself with little down time as well. At any rate....

Day four was meant to be a "Submax" 100-mile ride. Vision Quest defines Submax as the first break point above baseline (in terms of lactate) which equates to a blend of steady to moderately hard intensity in EC's terms.

Given the challenge of the day the triathlon group opted for a pre, as oppposed to post, ride swim to get that out of the way. Gordo and I swam 24 x 100 on a 1:30,25,20,15 pattern and I was happy to see that the fatigue was not wearing away at my swim abilities too dramatically. After the swim was completed we headed back to the hotel to get some breakfast in before the ride. Mark P dominated the syrup so it forced me take a photo to remember the day.

The route for the day was a mix of rolling and flat terrain, but the only thing on our mind at the start was the Mile 20 sprint marked with an orange cone 2K out. After getting outworked in the previous day's sprint I was hoping to get a little redemption. My legs felt pretty foul for the first 30 minutes of the day, but they slowly came around as we warmed up.

Things began to ramp up before the 2K-to-go point and I was looking forward to duking it out with the folks around me. I felt great going into the final 500 meters, but my position was poor and I found myself drilling it in the end to try and take 3rd place from Gordo, but I missed it by a hair once again. Oh well.

After regrouping we headed along on our route and everything was going nicely as we approached the base of a steep climb. At the base of the climb we went over a cattle guard and I had the misfortune of dropping a water bottle. Given my thoughts on 'treading lightly' I immediately swung around and went back for it. My conscience was clear, but so was the group at this point. I had to make a monster effort to try and bridge back up. I had not closed the gap by the time the summit arrived and it forced me to continue to work the descent and again in the flats that followed. When I finally made it back I was DONE. We rolled on, but I was never the same and when Mark P picked it up in the final 20K I was absolutely miserable. Mat had missed the group somewhere in those last 20K so I dropped back and rode steadily into town with him.

After getting back into town I ventured out for a few more easy miles with Mark P and Dan. Following that I ran 10K+ off the bike and actually felt like a million bucks. Always intersting how that works some days.

And so day four was complete. Seven hours in the bank.

Day Five was a handicapped race that served up plenty of excitement so tune in again to read up on that.

jd

Solvang Day Three

Day Three started out early once again. Mat and I rolled out the door to knock out the daily minimum run of 50 minutes before sunrise.

Hold on; before we continue;

There is a "camp within the camp" going on right now. The triathlon gents here at the camp have some scoring going on that is based around the rules for Epic Camp. This means:

one point for a 50 min run (minimum)

one point for 3300 yards (minimum)

one point for completing the day's ride

various KOM and sprint scoring that goes 5,4,3,2,1 (those are set by the VQ camp).

one point for various swim sets within the actual workouts.

Ok; so, when you hear me say the "daily minimum" it refers to the scoring above.

After the run we got ready for an 8:45 rollout on what was supposed to be a 40 mile recovery ride. The only paradox was that Robbie mentioned that there would be a sprint midway through the session that is marked from 2 kilometers out. Hardly seemed logical, but it did sound fun at any rate.

The groups are divided up as A,B,C, and (get this) D. The A group rolled out at a nice leisurely pace and we all chatted for a good 30 minutes and just generally enjoyed the countryside. Then we see Robbie Ventura roll up and tell us that the B group has caught us and that we need to pick up the pace. So much for recovery.

From there the A group split into two groups and started working a fast paceline. I believe that we were theoretically supposed to move at the same speed, but it seems the second 'A' group managed to fall a bit behind and Mat was the only dude in that group. It might not have been a big deal, but with a sprint coming up soon he knew he would have to make a move to be 'in it to win it." Big M made a monster move to bridge to our group and he just made contact when we hit the "2K to go" cone. Unfortunately he pretty much wasted himself with that effort, but he still managed to work hard enough to situate me as the fourth wheel before backing off. Quite the honorable teammate.

The final 2K run up was mostly flat in the beginning, but then it kicked uphill for the final 800 meters. The group began to thin out and only Gordo, a dude named Rod Riley, and myself were left to duke it out. We were absolutely pinning it since there was no draft effect at this point and Gordo just snuck by me to take first. I came through in second and Riley in third. I cannot speak for Riley, but I know it was a huge effort for G and I since we both posted new PRs for our one minute power outputs (526 for G, 523 for me).

After clearing the stars that were circling around my head the group headed back at a nice steady clip and the ride was completed in exactly two hours. Since it was early we headed to the pool to knock out a few sets. Mat, Gordo, and I swam a main set of 12 x 100IM/150free continuous (as in 3K straight) which was tough for me since I "learned" fly late in life. Then Gordo and I tacked on another set of 1000 straight with a band around the ankles for one additional point.

The final session of the day was a Functional Training set in the parking lot led by Mr. America's Gardie Jackson who proceeded to absolutely drill the attendees (or was it just me?) with his challenging session. I don't think my beer at lunch helped anything either (but not too many places serve Carlsberg in the States so you have to hit it when its there).

The camp was a little less uneventful in the evening since there were no meetings or meals so the crew headed off to a steak house to top off before tomorrow's ride (100 miles).

Until later,

jd

Solvang Day Two

The second day of the camp kicked off early since we all wanted to head over to the pool for a morning swim. I was a bit disappointed to hear the alarm at 5:20, but we do what we can to keep each other honest. Gordo came up with the main sets this morning for the amigos. The send offs varied, but our lane (Mark P, Gordo and I) went with (times in yards):

400 w/up
4 x 200 on 2:45
3 x 200 on 2:40
2 x 200 on 2:35
1 x 200 on 2:30
2 x 200 on 2:35
3 x 200 on 2:40
4 x 200 on 2:45
200 c/d

The set flew by and I expected it to be a lot less enjoyable than it actually was. With that out of the way we all headed back to hotel to have a quick breakfast before the 8:45 rollout.

Today's session was not a long ride, but it was still quite a difficult one. It was all about summiting Mt. Figueroa: a 10 mile climb with 7% avg grade (as much as 18%) with rough roads and sections of dirt/sand (4100 vertical feet).

It took about an hour to roll out to the base of the climb so everyone should have been thoroughly warmed up. After stripping some additional clothes and eating a snack we got ready to start the climb.

The rides are divided into four groups (A,B,C,D) based on ability levels, but we had a mass start for this particular section. Things got rolling from the get go and and I knew from the start that I would not be able to hang with the front group today. Mat and Gordo looked to be in the hunt for the KOM points so I wished them well (in my head) and settled into my own pace. From there it was pretty much a solo mission and I spent most of the time wishing I had a 27 on the back (and even a 34 on the front), but I felt good at any rate.. Gordo and Mat took 1st and 2nd place in the KOM camper points and I rolled up a few minutes later to take the third place KOM points. They both rode very, very well and I was really psyched to see the two of them stamp their authority on the day. It was also great to see three_triathletes_take the top three spots for the day. Nice to know we can hang with some roadies.

After a hairy descent we rolled back to Solvang in beautiful, sunny weather. We only covered 50 miles (3:15 ride time), but I still logged a TSS of 200 so it was pretty solid. Mat and I ran about 5 miles off the bike and called it a (good) day.

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Here were the times from Tuesday's Time Trial for our group.

Mark P 17:56
Justin 17:57
Gordo 18:03
Mat 18:11
Alan 20:xx

Wednesday is an easier day before the final two big days.

All for now,

jd

Solvang Day One

I have about 20 minutes (this is Wed Morning) before I head out the door for this morning's swim so I'll give a brief recap of what went on yesterday here at the Vision Quest Camp in Solvang.

Each day has a series of challenges and goals for the campers. The first day included a 5 mile Time Trial after a 30 minute roll out. All the triathletes of the group were seen out very early in the morning logging a run before the 8:30 roll out, but hopefully none of them ran too hard. I know I was keeping things in check since I have had zero intensity lasting over a few minutes so far this year.

The Time Trial was only five miles in distance, but it was longer in terms of time because of the nature of the course. It began with a gradual false flat, then rolling, then finished with about a one mile climb. Everyone on the course had a power meter (supplied by Powertap if they did not bring their own) and we all posted our times and power averages for future placement in group rides.

Mark P, Gordo, Mat, and I all finished within about 20 seconds of each other which was exciting to see. I don't have the official times, but our watts were all over the place and it made for fun comparison. Mat posted the best power-to-weight numbers while I posted the best time-to-watts numbers.

All in all, it made for a good start to the day. From there we divided into different groups and headed out for another 40 miles of riding. The first 20 were pretty chill and then it went full on to the Solvang city limits. Having all those guys around never fails to bring out the best in me. I was gapped at the end and had to put in a monster surge to get back on. Don't think I'd be getting that stimulus on the ol' trainer in BoCO.

After finishing the ride we kicked it around the hotel before knocking out a 3500 yard swim at the Santa Ynez YMCA (as seen in "Sideways").

All in all, a good first day. The Camp that Robbie Venture and his crew are putting on is_top_notch. Everyone from Boulder is certainly enjoying themselves and I'm sure all the Midwest crew is as well.

More tomorrow,

jd

Off to Cali

Some of you all might recognize the folks in that photo. You have the champion of Ahwatukee on your right and the 2005 Champion of the World on your left. This picture was taken in early 2006 when Faris was the current defending champ.

The Endurance Corner crew is headed off to a cycling camp put on by Vision Quest Coaching out of Chicago. The first day kicks off with a 10 mile TT and it looks as though there will be plenty of challenges along the way. It will be quite different to knock out 400+ miles considering I have rarely ridden more than 4 hours in one week so far this season. I hope Southern California can take a break from its wet weather pattern to allow us to have some pleasant riding weather, but I won't hold my breathe on that one.

I'll post some photos and updates from Cali when I get there. Gordo is flying back from the Southern Hemisphere after two training camps so he better bring it for the first TT!

Off to Cali Forn I A

jd

Arizona

I took off to Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona over President's Day weekend to visit Brooke's friends and family as well as have a visit with my coach. My brother used to live in Phoenix (48th and Elliot for those in the know) from 2003-2005 and I spent January-May there in 2004 and 2005. The first night I was there Brooke and I stayed (and went out) in downtown Phoenix. The urban lifestyle is growing down there which is pretty cool to see since I often considered "Phoenix" to really just be a conglomeration** of individual municipalities. It is a very similar situation to the downtown/midtown revival in Houston and, if done well, it can certainly be a lot of fun.

The second and third night we stayed in North Scottsdale near Scottsdale Road and Carefree Highway. It is quite a different setting up there with a plethora** of gated Golf communities and mansions mixed amongst the cacti (I had Showtime's "Weeds" theme song going through my head). The topography of the north valley is quite beautiful, but it is getting more and more crowded every time I go there. Folks have always told me that a lot of the (cycling) rides from Scottsdale go north on Sdale road and then west on Carefree Hwy. That is, straight up, sketchy in my mind considering the lack of shoulder and the double wide 65 mph traffic, but I digress.

One fortunate advantage of being in the ares was the 1) weather, 2) a plethora** of oxygen and 3) a (running) track only a couple minutes from our host. I headed over there on Sunday morning and knocked out a set of 200,400,600,800,1000,800,600,400,200 of I pace (see 'Daniels Running Formula') intervals. It was great to be able to run at a faster pace than 5500 feet allows, but it almost felt as though my legs had been through a race when Monday morning came along.

On Monday morning I went to Breakfast with Joe Friel, Jim Vance (had not met him before; good guy) and Brooke. We chatted about some of the happenings with Endurance Corner as well as what is developing with Joe's company (and my sponsor), http://www.trainingbible.com/. One our conversations (outside of business) addressed susbtrate usage at subthreshold intensities (since this is what we often address with out physiological testing at EC) .

Joe believed there were two ways to improve it: first with diet, and secondly by training at those (sub FTP) levels. I found it quite interesting that diet was mentioned_before_training which might be of interest to those finding it difficult to hold a good percentage of their Functional Threshold Power/Pace for extended periods of time. The simplest advice would be to cut back on your sugar and starch intake and increase your consumption of fruit, vegetables, lean protein, and good fat. Its the same advice that gets stated time and time again, but it never hurts to hear it again and again either. You can read more about changing your diet by reading Paleo Diet for Athletes by Cordain/Friel. I think there are also some good articles out there if you do a google search, but I cannot guarantee that.

Basically: Eat real foods (i.e. not boxed and processed) and you will accomplish 90% of your needs.

After breakfast it was only a few hours before out return flight to Denver. We had a clear day on the flight home which allowed me to view all of Colorado; begining with the Four Corners and Cortez to Durango to Lake City to Blue Mesa Reservoir to Gunnison (where you could see Mt Crested Butte) to Buena Vista to Fairplay to Co Springs and finally to Denver. I think it is fantastic when you get the chance to view all those beautiful mountains from a different vantage point.

Well it looks like Boulder might have nice enough weather for riding today so I'm going to try and take advantage of that.

Until next week,

JD

*Did you know there is a rock called "conglomerate"? I think its the only one I correctly pointed out in my Geology 101 lab.

**I learned that word (plethora) when I was seven years old from El Guapo in the "Three Amigos."

2008 EC Tucson Camps

Endurance Corner will be hosting 2 camps this spring in Tucson, Arizona. The cost is $2250 and includes everything but your airfare to/from Tucson.

Camp 1 March 22-30, 2008.

This will be a balanced training camp with an emphasis on the bike. For athletes racing IM Arizona, we will schedule an "honest" race simulation ride on March 23rd and make sure the rest of the camp fits into your peak period.

Supplemental physiological testing, season planning, and consulting will be available if you arrive early on March 21st. This includes lactate testing for the bike and run. Please contact "Mat" "at" "endurancecorner.com" if you are interested in these additional services.

Camp 2 April 19-27, 2008. (SOLD OUT)

This will be bike focused training camp and the stronger athletes will ride 400-500 miles across the camp.

####

Fitness: as a guideline, you will want to have a sub 13 hour IM finish and or sub 6 hour Half IM finish under your belt.

That stated, we will have two riding groups to allow for everyone to train their potential. Everyone will have a map for every ride if you choose to strike out on your own. This will take some of the pace pressure off the groups. There will be a sag vehicle that will provide sweeping and drink support.

####

Accomodations are at the Days Inn on 222 S. Freeway in Tucson. This is ideally located for the bulk of our cycling, swimming, and running. The hotel has free wireless internet. I know a few people have requested single occupancy, and that is available for $210 for the week. Please contact Mat if you are interested. These requests must be made by Feb. 18th.

We will also have a central meeting place at Star Pass, where evening meals, massages, training debriefing and "tri talk" will occur every evening.

See you in the Spring,

EC Team

D MEEKER 1

Many of you might have heard me mention Dennis Meeker in my blogs. Sometimes I call him Mayor Meeker; sometimes D Meeker 1; but mostly Denny. I used to think that Mayor Meeker was pretty appropriate, but now I think The Boulder Godfather (TBG) might be a better handle. TBG understands the value of favors and I imagine that everyone in this town is likely indebted to him in one way or another. If TBG arranged a Telethon in one's day time, I guarantee he could generate millions based on the volume of donations from Boulder County only. The difference is that it would be done by reciprocal generosity as opposed to fear (as was the case with Brando).

You see, TBG understands the BRO culture. The BRO culture is based around one dude being there for another dude. Mr. Meeker gets that.

ME: Denny, we are riding 6 hours a day for a week. You in?

D: Ok

ME: Denny, its 5 degrees outside and we are going open water swimming.

D: Ok.

ME: Denny, my leg fell off so I'm going to need to use yours.

D: Ok.

Perhaps you have picked up on a trend here. Denny is there when you need him. He was the backbone to my (and BDC's, and Gordo's, and Mat's) training in 2007. In fact he might have gone even faster in Hawaii had he not been so willing to help us (and everyone else) out, but Denny cannot help that he helps.

So now you'll know who Denny is (or whatever I call him) in future postings.

He is:

The Man.

The Legend.

THE D. Meeker. 1.

jd

TAMU stepped it up this past week by winning back-to-back games against Texas and Oklahoma. They have a couple road games coming up so I hope they can keep their momentum rolling. Keep it up guys. Boulder (or just me) is behind you.

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A little event called the Super Bowl happened this past weekend and it proved to be a great game. I wasn't particularly rooting for either team, but I did think it was unfortunate that the Patriots did not get to realize their pursuit of perfection. Those of us who saw the game took part in a piece of sports history which may or may not be special to you based on your feelings about sport. I personally find it to be very special when you get to view the actual moment/game itself and not simply hear about it or see the highlights.

Some others that stand out in my mind (that I WATCHED):

*1994 Colorado versus Michigan (at MI). Stewart threw a 10,000,000 yard pass on the final play of the game that was tipped and eventually caught by Michael Westbrook. That was the winning touchdown as time expired.

*1996 Game 1 of the NBA Finals; Houston versus Orlando (at ORL). Orlando was up by 3 with a handful of seconds on the clock and XX was fouled. He missed both free throws and Houston rebounded, went down to the other end, and missed a 3-point attempt. Orlando got the rebound and XX was fouled again. He missed both free throws AGAIN and Houston got the rebound and called a TO. With a couple seconds on the clock Kenny Smith hit a deep three sending the game into overtime. The Rockets won comfortably in overtime.

*2000 AFC Championship; Tennessee versus Buffalo (at Buffalo). The Titans returned a kickoff with time expiring to win the game and go the Super Bowl. This was the famous (or infamous depdning on how you view the replay) cross-field lateral pass kick off return play.

*2004 Summer Olympics in Athens 4 x 200 Men's swim relay. The U.S. held off Ausatralia with Thorpe in the Anchor Leg to win Gold. I've never been that fired up watching a swim race in my life.

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This weekend Boulder county started to look a little more like summer; at least in terms of the number of cyclists on the road. It certainly didn't feel that way considering it was overcast and in the 30's, but I guess everyone is starting to anticipate what it might feel like to be too unfit in April. It was one of those "tweener" weekends as my roommate pointed out; you could ride or you could ski. Those that went skiing were clearly smarter than me and slurred speech.

Even my own little crew seemed to be perking up as my legs were starting to feel a little loaded on the rollers running out highway 36 on the Saturday ride. Denny (aka D Meeker 1, aka Mayor Meeker; aka Bossman) claimed he was simply "testing the new guy," but I was probably tested more than anyone else.

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Last Thursday and Friday the Endurance Corner crew hosted a bike fitting clinic with Dan Empfield. Most of you all that read this blog likely know who he is, but even more of you know his website, http://www.slowtwitch.com/, and the company he launched in the 1980s, Qunitana Roo (which he later sold).

I really appreciated Empfield's approach to positioning athletes on a bike because it seems to follow logic and reason and that, in turn, creates a (consistent) science. It isn't a science that tries to impose an inappropriate angle created on a computer or elsewhere. It starts and finishes with the rider and his/her preferences.

Empfield normally hosts up to 15 athletes during these clinics and ours only had five in attendance. As a result it really allowed all of us to address more areas of interest than just bike fitting. We had several interesting tangents which really showed off Empfield's range of interests in our sport and beyond. I get the same enjoyment when I'm around Molina, Friel, etc: anyone who has been along for the triathlon ride since (or near) its inception. These are the folks that had to create their own norms because there were none. Their search for answers is always what I find to be the most interesting and entertaining component of our conversations.

Until next week,

-jd