Triathlon #1: Recap

The water was COLD. The end.

Alright, I was also severely undertrained.

That pretty much sums up my experience, but I will explain a few more things in detail. On the way there (Minneapolis to White Bear Lake, MN) there were torrential downpours. This was coupled with the fact that it was 6 AM, and I don’t do mornings. I swore that if it didn’t stop raining, I would be spectating the race from the car unless I could get my wetsuit on prior to getting out of the vehicle. Even if my vehicle was a 747 without seats, this would be an impossible task. It did stop raining, for the most part, which improved my morale a small amount.

Let me rewind about 2 weeks. I have been attempting to do some open-water swims in Lake Nokomis so that I could try out my wetsuit, as well as get reacquainted with swimming in the lake. Unfortunately, every time I tried, it was way too cold. I could get in up to my neck, but getting my head in the water and actually swimming was not happening. So, I was dreading the water temperature and the early-morning swim in the cold.

The water was cold. REALLY cold. I even purchased this ridiculous-looking neoprene head cover. It didn’t matter. I don’t think I front-crawled more than 25 yards at a time. I doggy-paddled and backstroked, and every time I got my head out of the water I was super dizzy and disoriented. I even gave up at one point, and then changed my mind when the boat started out my way. My swim time was 22:30 for a half mile, which is quite a bit slower than my previous 2 triathlons (even slower than when I did a swim alongside whitecaps without goggles).

The bike was nothing special. My body was in shock for most of the ride. I finished middle-of-the-pack for my age group. I did a lot of cursing triathlons during these 40 odd minutes, and contemplated whether I should pursue a sedentary lifestyle full of good food and television.

The run portion was surprisingly pretty good. I had a personal best time for a 5K during a triathlon. I don’t think I received any style points for puking at the finish line, however. My time still isn’t anywhere near where I want it to be, so I am not going to disclose it, but if you are that curious, I’m sure you can figure it out.

I’ve got 2 more races scheduled this summer and have a few things to work towards, especially now that I finished this race. I need to be stricter with my training program and eating; I also need to focus on my weight loss goals, which was reinforced by this well-timed article. I have also learned that late-season races are probably a better fit for me.

T-minus 39 days until #2.

To The Woman Whose Wallet I Found...

Yes, the wallet that had $300 cash in it. The one that also contained phone numbers and addresses for all of the important people in your life. Government Health Care cards. Social security numbers. Photo IDs. Layaway receipts.

I spent over an hour the day I found it playing detective in order to try and get a hold of you. I went to the extent of reverse checking phone numbers for addresses and names. After a week of spending some time every day, I finally reached your sister in Duluth who stated that you were hard to get in touch with due to not really having a place to live, and that you and your son have been moving around just about every week, but she would try to relay the message in the case that someone in the family hears from you. When I did hear from you, I offered to meet you at a mall because “you are terrible with directions.”

I too know the feeling of losing things such as that. It is the worst feeling knowing that your private information is who-knows-where and someone could be doing who-knows-what with your identity. It is a huge pain in the ass to cancel credit cards, get new ID cards, and piece together what else may be missing.

Had you offered me some cash for my troubles, I wouldn't have taken it; you clearly need it more than me.

To the woman whose wallet I found: A simple thank you will go a long way.

How To Pack For Snowboarding, Surfing, and 50 Degree Tourism

I thought I would share my packing job. I am essentially packing for 3 seasons AND triathlon training, in my snowboard bag, which probably won't show up in Puerto Rico following a comment similar to "a snowboard bag to Puerto Rico? Someone must have put the wrong sticker on it" by some baggage handler guy. And that will be the demise of my things for some time, I am sure of it.
I am impressed that I got everything to fit, but I better not buy even a t-shirt!

Whistler and Puerto Rico, Here I Come!

I've been told that this is quite the odd combination for a vacation considering the distance and climate differences between the two places, but I am pretty excited about it. I've never been to Whistler, and I have heard that April is (surprisingly) a good time to go, as they still have decent snowfall, and the nightlife is amazing. Plans here: snowboarding, hanging out, seeing Seattle and Vancouver, (1 tele-board meeting and 1 tele-staff meeting), and hopefully meeting up with some people that I rarely get to see!
I've been to Puerto Rico when I was a lot younger, but don't really remember much of it. I rarely go on warm, relaxing vacations, so this will be a change. Plans here: surfing, drinking coffee by the ocean, island-going, the beach, shopping, eating good Mexican/Cuban food, and of course, margaritas!

And The Camera Saga Continues...

A few years ago, I bought a decent Nikon something-or-other digital point and shoot camera. After having it a few weeks, I wasn't happy with the focusing (or lack thereof) even with the flash, so I brought it back to the store. I had bought the extended warranty (you know, the one that covers anything and everything except for camera disappearance) and assumed that they would take care of it. One week later, they hadn't found anything wrong with it and therefore couldn't help me. They next day, I stuck it under my front tire, revved my engine, and put my car in first gear, sending parts flying as far as 30 feet. Luckily, I was able to find the serial number! I scavenged the parts and brought them back into the store in a baggy. Clearly there was now something wrong with it. Well the exchange process isn't exactly quick; they actually had to send my baggy of camera parts to certify that, no, this camera could not be fixed, and yes, she is eligible for a new one.
6 weeks later, I settled for a Casio Exilim. I didn't have too many complaints until one day the flash just stopped working altogether. In the meantime, I had bought an SLR camera and put the point and shoot on the back burner. I recently decided that it would be nice to have a camera that I could put in my pocket, etc, and that I'm missing a lot of picture-taking opportunities by not being able to carry my SLR everywhere.
Thus, I am now back in the market for a new point and shoot camera. I've had the Casio looked at, and it will cost at least $150 just to send it in.
So, if anyone has an camera recommendations, let me know. I'm not too picky but would like decent zoom and picture quality.

Triathlons - Final

I just registered for 3 triathlons for the summer. I lost out on a few that I would have liked to do due to procrastination, but these should be alright. I may add another 1 or 2 eventually, but finalized for now:

Manitou - June 8th
Chisago Lakes - July 27th
Turtleman - August 9th

Now, must train :/

The Amish: They Get By In The Winter Sports Category

I was taking a bunch of files off of my HP laptop that crashed back in 1989 (alright, 2005), and totally forgot about this video until now. This was taken along my drive from Minnesota to Iowa for Christmas one year...