In preparing for my first Beginners Swim Class at the YMCA last March, I thought I would give a brief talk about who I was, what the goal of the class was, and how I hoped everyone in the class would be able to reach their goals as a swimmer in the short six weeks…
This story has been rewritten many times since I first started it, never with a happy ending, at least not until now. You see I have not enjoyed running, or maybe more succinctly, I have not felt good or strong or fast while running this past year or so; I was starting to think that…
So a full disclaimer right up front, this is a good read for old triathletes, bike geeks, or anyone interested in one man’s evolution of their bicycle over 30 years in the sport of triathlon. The first triathlon I participated in was as the cyclist for a relay team back in 1989, on a used…
Let me start with a rundown of the last few years of racing up at Wildflower: 2015 & 2016, the long running drought in California drags on and the water level in Lake San Antonio is too low to hold the swim start at the Lynch Road boat launching ramp. The swim is moved to…
Years ago USAT (USA Triathlon), started something called the Century Club, which was for athletes that had completed some multiple of 100 triathlons. To qualify for this Club you needed to be able to document (in some form), the races you have completed, send it to them, and after they vetted your list they would…
Let me start out by stating the obvious, this article is not about triathlon training, racing, or equipment. On occasion I have focused on specific people in the sport but this time I’m focusing on someone much more important to me, my wife Janice. Jan, as I like to call her, was diagnosed with Systemic…
The impetus for this blog, as you may have already guessed, is my dealing with an injury that has affected by ability to train for my first “A” race of the year. I’ve been doing this a long time and have been relatively lucky when it comes to injuries; I’ve had them but have not…
For over 30 years, excluding last year during the drought, the first weekend in May means a road trip to Lake San Antonio and the Wildflower Triathlon festival. With four different races at three different race distances to choose from, sprint(s), Olympic, and Long Course (i.e., almost a Half Ironman and NOT a 70.3 race),…
It has been nearly 25 years since I purchased a new road bike, actually longer, as 25 years ago I only bought a new McMahon titanium frame, stripping all the necessary parts of my older Diamondback Master TG bike that I did buy as a complete bike a few years prior. That’s not to say…
The trend has been seen and talked about for more than a few years now, the numbers of athletes competing at local races (i.e., one of a kind races), triathlons and running, is down. As best anyone can guess there are potentially many different reasons, starting with the fact that the Baby Boomer generation that…
I recently completed the US Masters Swimming Adult Learning to Swim Course, USMS ALTS, at a one day seminar down in Los Angeles. Even though coaching is not my full-time job, or even a part-time profession, I became a USAT Certified Level I Coach ten years ago and a USMS Level I & II Coach…
When I moved to California nearly 40 years ago (damn, I must be getting old!), I lived in a sleepy little town called Carpinteria for nine months, living right on the beach. Coming from the east coast to the west coast this was like living the dream and even though I eventually moved to the…
The Santa Barbara Long Course Triathlon, a rite of passage for many local triathletes these past 28+ years. A step between an Olympic distance triathlon and a half Ironman distance tri, with distances of 1 mile, 34 miles, and 10 miles, on a hilly course, it is not to be taken lightly. Prior to 1990…
First off, congratulations on doing an Anaerobic Threshold Heart Rate (AT HR), test, or for having your Coach make you do it! This is the first step in improving your overall fitness and training, but why do you need to know your AT HR? Your AT HR is the maximum average heart rate that you…
Having successfully competed in and finishing the Auburn Olympic distance triathlon I moved on to my second new and independently run triathlon this year, the June Lake Triathlon. As if it isn’t enough swimming, biking, and running back-to-back all in one day, dealing with the unique terrain each course offers, from flat to extremely hilly,…
Applying practical ideas to triathlons to make everyone go faster
Applying practical ideas to triathlons to make everyone go faster
Applying practical ideas to triathlons to make everyone go faster
Applying practical ideas to triathlons to make everyone go faster
ThePracticalTriathlete 