Dang, it's been a long time since I last posted. The trip to Panama, Mexico and Boston was good for business but way too long. I feel completely out of touch with Family, Germany and the world in general. So, this posting will be short.
Shark Attack
It's always scary to hear about a shark attack but it's 10 times worse when it's at a favorite swimming spot and it happened to a fellow triathlete. Now I don't know Dave Martin by name but I'm sure as soon as his picture is posted I'll know who he was. It's sad for his family and it's sad for the Tri Club of San Diego. That club has been hit by too much sadness over the last year. The loss of the club president and now this. From all the way over here in Germany the Jewell family is thinking of everyone in San Diego today.
Six Minutes to Freedom
I am probably way late on this book but my gosh, if you haven't read it, read it. This is the story of how Panama really got taken down by the US Special forces in the late 80's. It's not a war book though. It's about a guy who had a belief that his adopted country could be better. It's also a great Special Forces story but that comes late in the book.
The Day my Butt went Psycho
It's a book Marco read and I picked it up today. I've been laughing ever since. It's totally stupid but at the same time every guy should read this book and also let their 9 year old read it. The title is enough to let you know what this book is about. It's really well written, trust me.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Dads and Family
This past week was a great week. My Dad, Papi flew to Germany to spend the week with us. He said he wanted to see how we lived in Germany. Dad, I hope we didn't bore you too much. This part of Germany is much like the midwest USA. You can cover it in a day.
Some things about my Dad - He has a unique way of calming me down. He also has a unique way of making me proud. I think I'm just a really lucky guy to have a Dad like mine. He's a great supporter and he's still the guy I go to for advice on everything. Although I didn't directly ask for it during this trip he gave me great advice without even knowing it. By just spending time with him and listening to his stories I continue to learn how to be a better husband and a better collegue at work. Most importantly to me above all else is that Marco adores him. There is Papi and then there is the rest of us in Marcos eyes. If Papi says so it must be true. The bond between the two of them is something special to watch. We are all lucky to watch it play out.
As soon as my Dad sends pictures of our week, I'll post some on the Blog.
The real hero of the week though was Mary. Now all of you know how I feel about Mary. Last week just shows you that I'm the luckiest guy on earth. Last week, Mary and Marco were on vacation so it was a good time for Papi to come visit. Mary played tour guide and really went out of her way to make my Dad feel at home. On Thursday they drove to Stutgart (2 hours away) so Papi could pick up the new Car. They toured the MB factory, had lunch and delivered the car to the shipper. Then they drove home. How many daughter in laws, or son in laws for that matter would do that. 4 hours of driving and an entire vacation day spent driving a non-blood relative to buy a car. I don't really know I just know that Mary did it and she desrves something for that trip alone. You can reach her at jewell492@aol.com if you would like to send her your hero worshiping emails or ask advice on how she does it.
Finally, I will be away from the Blog for a couple weeks. Work and Travel await!
Next week it Panama again!
Then it's 3 days in Mexico City to visit retail and Runners.
Final stop is Boston for the Annual Boston Marathon and all that goes along with it.
Home again on the 22nd of April
It's a good life....
Dave
Some things about my Dad - He has a unique way of calming me down. He also has a unique way of making me proud. I think I'm just a really lucky guy to have a Dad like mine. He's a great supporter and he's still the guy I go to for advice on everything. Although I didn't directly ask for it during this trip he gave me great advice without even knowing it. By just spending time with him and listening to his stories I continue to learn how to be a better husband and a better collegue at work. Most importantly to me above all else is that Marco adores him. There is Papi and then there is the rest of us in Marcos eyes. If Papi says so it must be true. The bond between the two of them is something special to watch. We are all lucky to watch it play out.
As soon as my Dad sends pictures of our week, I'll post some on the Blog.
The real hero of the week though was Mary. Now all of you know how I feel about Mary. Last week just shows you that I'm the luckiest guy on earth. Last week, Mary and Marco were on vacation so it was a good time for Papi to come visit. Mary played tour guide and really went out of her way to make my Dad feel at home. On Thursday they drove to Stutgart (2 hours away) so Papi could pick up the new Car. They toured the MB factory, had lunch and delivered the car to the shipper. Then they drove home. How many daughter in laws, or son in laws for that matter would do that. 4 hours of driving and an entire vacation day spent driving a non-blood relative to buy a car. I don't really know I just know that Mary did it and she desrves something for that trip alone. You can reach her at jewell492@aol.com if you would like to send her your hero worshiping emails or ask advice on how she does it.
Finally, I will be away from the Blog for a couple weeks. Work and Travel await!
Next week it Panama again!
Then it's 3 days in Mexico City to visit retail and Runners.
Final stop is Boston for the Annual Boston Marathon and all that goes along with it.
Home again on the 22nd of April
It's a good life....
Dave
Race Results and Going Pro
Bree Wee
Mac BrownThe official start of US Triathlon started on Saturday with the annual Ford Ironman 70.3 Oceanside California. This race has special meaning to me because it's a home course. So far away from home I followed the race and quite a few people in the race. Some notable finishers:
Kim Rouse 5:17:39 1st in her age group. Kim is wife to Mike and is a stud. She is one of the nicest people you will ever meet but when it's race time she has a game face that will make the strongest wimper away. I'm sure we'll see Kim it the Kona and Clearwater Worlds.
Mike Rouse 6:13:20 - This race was too short for Mike. At 6 hours he's just waking up. He is an Ultraman with a personality to go with it.
Mac Brown 4:16:56 - First year Pro. All around great guy. More on him below.
Michelle Jones 4:28:51 - Michelle is a class act. She is a true professional. She has won more races than anyone on the planet and always shows up prepared.
Brian Enge 4:46:03 - Brian is a Soccer Player (a darn good one at that) turned triathlete. Why not, he's also the CEO of Zoot Sports the big brand of Triathlon. He's a darn good triathlete too!
Congrats to all of you above and everyone else in the race. I wish I could have joined in on the fun!
Going Pro
The two pictures above are of two first year pros. Both are extremely talented athletes taking a big step from being an amature to making triathlon their living. Just looking at the photo's might tell you that Mac is a bit more serious about this going pro thing than Bree. At this point though from what I see and especially what I read, Bree is more serious about the venture. First let me tell you about what I know of the two.
Bree - I don't know her and wouldn't recognize her if she turned up at a local pool. She was the first amature at Ironman Hawaii last year, she was a school teacher and that's her son in the picture. She has spent the last 9 weeks in Austrailia training with a group of Pros and tells her stories at : http://www.breeweehawaii.blogspot.com/
Mac - He and I worked together when he first moved to San Diego. It's fun to see him progress from a runner, to duathlete and now Professional Triathlete. Mac had a great amature year last year, winning his agegroup and being the first amature in every race but Ironman Hawaii. If you watch him train there is nobody that works harder than Mac. For more go to www.macbrownracing.com
Back to my story. Both of these athletes have a blog like this one and as a geek triathlete, I keep up on what they are doing. I think I was lucky when I was introduced to Bree's blog because she was in the middle of this 9 week training block so it was just fun to read all the crazy workouts she was doing. One post from last week made me think. Her coach sat her down and said Bree - If you want to be a Pro you have to act like one too. In other words, don't complain, no excuses, work your ass off. Bree said "I fianlly get it".
Mac has a great way of writing his Blog and it's fun to read what he has to say. I was disturbed to read his last post about his race in Oceanside. He was happy with the result, 19th but said something to the fact that this result is all on base miles with no speed work so his expectations weren't high.
The Results in their first Pro Race:
Mac 19th
Bree 3rd and a pay check. (her race was in Austrailia)
I was lucky in my life to live like a pro but more importantly I really got to know a large number of the pros who shaped the sport. I lived in the house of the Agent who has had more impact on the sport than any agent. The one thing I learned from Murphy is that he did not choose his athletes based on results only. Sure the results or the potential of results had to be there, but he wants professionalism. He expects you to work your tail off. He expects you to present a good image to the sport, sponsors etc. All the time. All of his athletes show up to a race ready to race and no matter what happens they will be professional about their actions on the course and can handle the media when needed.
So all of this comes down to a plea to Mac. Mac I really want to see you succeed at being a professional triathlete. First let me tell you one thing, there was only one athlete this weened working off something more than base and that was Andy Potts. He's trying to make the Olympic Team so he's probably on the way to a peak. But everyone behind him was working off base work. Read Brees Blog and swim your rear end off. I know Roch and there is no better swim coach but look at what Bree did. She did not settle into a comfortable pace she hung tough on toes. She credits it to pure volume in the pool with faster people. Race Often and race short. If you are a Pro, this is how you will make money. Get out there and build experience. If you want to improve your transitions like Craig Alexander, do the shorter US pro races. They will teach you to swim fast and will also teach you ultra fast transitions. You can't take your time in transition as a pro. Last bit and I only know this from being around the pros, race your tail off and get mad when you don't hit results. My old roomate Tim Sheeper (www.teamsheeper.com) would come back from a race where he didn't meet expectations and he would be fuming. You didn't want to talk to him for at least a week. Tim had a job the entire time but his job and all of his expenses were based on racing. If he didn't make money he wasn't eating. This made him work that much harder. Finally Mac don't worry about what I say. Find some really succesful pros (not coaches) and find out how they did it(not the training part, the being a Pro part). You are surrounded by them in San Diego. Ask one of them or a bunch of them what being a Pro means and learn from that aspect. You have all the tools and the desire. Now if I can be so bold, start acting like a Pro.
It's a good life.....
Dave
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