Andy, I am disappointed.

Being a sports fan in Cleveland, Ohio right now is really exciting. Our 3 major pro sports teams have all been competitive this year including a trip to the NBA finals and baseballs ALCS. Our OSU Buckeyes also made it to the National Championship in both Basketball and football with an outside shot at another National Championship appearance in football. Currently our Cleveland Browns are a game back from the 1st place steelers and and are in position for a wildcard birth.

Being a fan here has never been so much fun(At least in my lifetime). None of our teams have won the final game of their respective season, but they sure as hell gave us a good ride. Local athletes like Jenson Lewis, Troy Smith, Anthony Gonzales, Ted Ginn, David Lighty, Joe Jurevicius, Josh Cribs, Eric Snow, and of course Lebron James have captured our hearts. Others like Fausto Carmona, Chris Wells, Daniel Gibson, and Derick Anderson have stepped up To huge levels for us. Greg Oden, CC Sabathia, Kellen Winslow, along with the aforementioned Smith, Cribbs, and the King have all been the very best there position has to offer. Our town has so many athletes doing great things on the biggest stages. Pro sports are fun in NEOhio. We can finally cheer again.

Well, not so fast. Anderson Varejao, the Brazilian rebounder that resembles side show Bob from the Simpsons is insulted by the contract offer of 32 million dollars over 5 years and refused to sign. He has reportedly asked for as much as 45 million. Now he is demanding that the CAVS trade his rights or he will take his talents to Europe. Somehow he feels this would be a better plan than to earn $32,000,000.00 over the next five years while playing with the best player in the game.

Now, I understand these guys can make a lot of dough to play. But Andy is asking well beyond his market value. The guy is not the starter at his position. He wants starter money.

My biggest problem with Varejao's demand is that he feels he is being treated unfairly.

I am not sure what he thinks unfairly means.

Most of the workers that work in the same part of town he works(Gateway) are service employees. Peaple like Zac Nichole and I that work long hours for erratic pay, with few benefits and a dependence on gratuity to earn a living.

The really screwed up part of all this is that,

ANDERSON VAREJAO DOES NOT TIP HIS SERVERS!

Lucky for Andy, nobody tips in Europe.

One last thing Andy, ask Maurice Clarrett if he would have done any thing differently.

Some of us are just happy to have a chance to play.

Turkey Trot and Turkey Not

I woke this morning at 6am, had some breakfast, got dressed and hopped on a bus. My first stop was at a coffee shop where I switched bus lines. The coffee shop is one that I would not normally frequent(bartsucks or some jumblewords variation), but it was open. My next bus arrived quickly which was good because it was cold windy and rainy. I was downtown quickly and I headed into the convention center to register.

The Cleveland Turkey Trot is a five mile race thru downtown. The weather is always the big question. Two years ago the course was cut short due to dangerous conditions. Last year it was perfect. This year was mid 30's rain/snow mix, wind, basic suck. The lakefront was sure to be nasty. So the morning talk centered on what to wear. I went with the tights, long sleeve Coolmax top, a coolmax short sleeve for a second layer, gloves, and a hat.

We had a good showing from CTC. The hour pre-race wait flew by. with 10 minutes till the gun, we all headed out to lakeside and waited.

Ding ding ding, and we were off. I had no plan, just run and see how it goes. My hammy strain from this past Sunday quickly began to flair up. I was aware of it, but it didn't bother me enough to convince me to back off. I hit mile one in 8:15.

Soon after that IronJack caught up to me. He had shown up just in time for the start. The two of us stuck together through much of the run. It helped me out quite a bit. We ran this race together last year. We make each other work.

Though the weather sucked, it was manageable. I enjoyed the harder effort and just kept pushing. At the final mile I pulled ahead of Jack a little and started racing those around me. I crossed the line in 43:11. No PR by any stretch. I felt great, turned around and waited a few seconds for Jack.

Following the race, The CTC folks all gathered. JenC Had a big smile and held up her finish time for me to see. She had a good race.The mood from everyone was very positive.

A few of us headed to Bartsucks because it was open.

I hitched a ride home with Jack and Showered up.

Once home , I started cleaning my apt. Man, did it need it. I felt very domestic. I cooked my tofurkey and went to my folks.

In addition to the Notbird, my family was very conscious to keep most of the sides vegan. To replace the Thanksgiving triptofan, I had a little extra wine. Dinner was good. My whole family was present and we all got along.

Before desert, my moms centerpiece caught on fire. I reacted quickly and smothered the flames with my hand. I have a nice blister on my index finger now. The pain was really intense. I held a straight face, but my lil'sister saw through my stoicism. We treated it and drank coffee. Thats how we handle adversity......Kind of funny, during the toughest part of IM, I looked for caffeinated gel.

Anyhow, Happy ThanksGiving.

The neverending adventures of Ironyman

In our last episode, Ironyman was railing on and on about staying in the moment.

Well while checking my email, I read a message telling me I had won a prize in the Jasper Blake "Win a Bike sweepstakes".

Chances are i have won some Rudy Project Sunglasses or maybe an areo helmet. All very cool, but I can't help but to start thinking ahead. Maybe I won one of the four Kouta frames. Maybe, maybe maybe.
If all I win is a funky areo helmet or pair of shades, I will still be geeked.

Anyhow, Jasper is hysterical and very insightful. Do check out his blog.

__________________

Ironyman celebrates Thanksgiving

I recently added a stat counter to my blog. The counter allows me to look up all kinds of info about site activity.

One of the google searches peaple use most to find my blog is "How to deep fry a turduckin". Being a vegan, this is pretty funny/gross. The search results refer to an april Race Recap where I referance a deep fried turduckin that I thought was horrible on many levels.

So, if you found this site looking for info on turduckin, lets start with the origin of your planned feast. If you want to enjoy your turkey dinner, do not click here.

How come the future has to take such a long time.

As I look back on my '07 triathlon season, I feel I had a very successful year. I stayed injury free. My training was consistent. I got my nutritional issues rectified. I rebuilt my bike. My swim issues were addressed and put on a corrective path. My "A" race goals were met.

My early goal was to run The Cleveland half in 1 :45. I ran it in 1:45.01.
I PR'd at the half Iron distance.
My Oly and mary times were the best since '99.
I became an Ironman.

I did not make many mistakes or have happy accidents. I never blew away my expectations nor was I seriously disappointed. I was steady on all year.
My spiritual journey was deep. I learned alot about myself and the universe/the tao/......so on and so fourth.
I developed new friends ships and deepened existing ones.
I stayed true to my plan of doing IM as a vegan and carefree(that was a typo/ I meant "carfree").
I got a tattoo.
I had an amazing experience this past year.

I am looking back now so that I can plan for next year. I think my greatest strength last year was my ability to stay in the moment. Having a carefully prepared plan enabled me to remain present to the work I had to do. I followed my road map closely and let the big picture take care of itself.

For the next week, I will be creating my training plan for '08.

My race schedual will begin in January with an attempt at 50k. I am veiwing this as a base building day. I figure the trail, hill, and other course features will be unlike a traditional marathon. Should help to train the brain.

Nichole and I are considering The Big Sur Marathon in April.

At the end of June is Mountaineer 70.3 followed by Steelhead 70.3 at the start of August.

August 31 is IMKY. This will be my "A" race. I want to go fast!

Fall races will be dictated by post IM recovery.

A singer I like sings out "How come the future takes such a long time, when you're waiting for a miracle".

What made my year so great was that I never felt like I was waiting for the miracle. I always felt that I was living it. On Ironman day, my strategy was to enjoy every second of the race. The execution of my strategy was simple, as that is how I trained. For me long course triathlon is not about a long race. For me it is all about one precious moment.

That moment is now.

Bounced our way...

We were gonna win. We lost. We were tied. We won.......What the hell did I just see?
Boy, I bet a few fans in Baltimore are shocked and disgusted.....
HAHAHAHAHAHA.
Art Modell is a scumbag.
I am convinced the Bush administration used Art to discredit Sen. Voinivich when
Modell sighted the then Gov. of Ohio as the friend that advised him to move the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore.

Anyhow, the Browns won despite losing today. The Baltimore Raves lost despite having won.
How Funny.

_______________

I spent the weekend training. I felt like doing just that. That and watching the Browns and Bucks beat their bitter rivals.

I ran a lot.
I lifted.
I swam.
I rode my bike.
I played guitar.
I ate well.
I didn't do laundry.
I read.

___________________

Banks suck, and they pick on people that spend all their money on triathlon.

$38!

I tend to over do some things.

One of those things was a draft.

$38 for a little overdraft.

Thats a freaking entry fee.

Banks suck

I have the worst job!

According to an article in The Cleveland Plain Dealer, my job is ranked as the worst job by The University of Massachusetts's. Jobs are ranked by benifits, salery, and retirement plans.

Some how, barrista is worse than solder in Iraq, Afghanistan, or any other place on earth that Americans are seen as a threat.

I don't know why, but I thought it kind of offensive that this report should appear on veterans day.
Have we really become so wrapped up in the importance of personal wealth that we think that my day of work is worse than a 21 year old kid who has had his leg blown off by a roadside bomb during a 15 month tour.? His second.

My job is great I rarely complain about it. The job is fun. I enjoy being there.
I don't believe I would enjoy being in a war.

I base little value on wealth. I have the things I need and more. I live simply, and I am happy.
I have freedom with my job. I have flexibility that enables me to to follow more meaningful pursuits. I spend my work day amongst friends. I don't believe for a second that my job is a bad one.
We are a nation at war.
I have it pretty good.

So any way, I guess what I am sayin' is, "if you would like to thank the people that do the worst jobs in our culture, don't thank me.

Finally Cleveland has a winner.

Thats right, Michael Symon is the new Ironchef.

So if you are thinking I am OK with the Browns and Buckeye losses, I AM NOT.

It could be worse. I could have dragged out my recovery a little further. But I didn't. Not running is not my idea of fall. So I have resumed the run and I am considering running the Buckeye trail 50k in January. I think because I was asked how far I could run, and I replied "I don't know". It got me to thinking that I should find out. The ultra is still mythical to me.

We began tri swimming workouts at oberlin today. First time swimming since Deer creek.....Really. The pool was fun, and I moved over a lane....

Friday was the CTC fall meeting at Bike Authority followed by a bunch of triathletes and beer.I was one of the last of us to be carried out.

Thursday was the gig and debut of the new music on the web. We had a nice turn out at Rocco's.
and I really enjoyed playing. Thanks to everyone that came out. I bet it was one of the only events in town that night with an Ironman on stage, behind the bar, and in the audience.

A few mentions, Congrats to Cat Viola who finished IMFLA in 16:22. She was the final finisher in the CTC Ironrookie class of '07. One thing I have really enjoyed this year was watching Jodi, JenC, Nathan, Jack, and Cat finish. Knowing how hard they have worked makes it so special to witness the feat of becoming an Ironman. There were a few of the original group of eager triathletes from last fall that didn't make it. The race is not guaranteed with registration.

Anyhow, I think thats all I have got for now.

The Music is available for download

Two things I have added to the page are a music player that plays my new CD, and a link to the site where you can purchase high quality downloads of the music.

I hope you like this new addition to the blog.

Also, I ran for 35 minutes today. Felt so good.

Hope to see everyone tomorrow at Rocco's.

Get on the Bus

"I woke up this morning, my head was not in sight
I would ask the walls about it, but they vanished overnight
I could not think or spell my name, or fly their words away
And the heat came round and busted me for smiling on a cloudy day

Escaping through the lily fields, when I came across an empty space
It quivered and exploded, left a bus stop in its place
Well a bus came by and I got on, that's when it all began
There was Cowboy Neal at the wheel of a bus to never ever land"

From
The Other One
Bob Weir-GD

Yeah, I am not sure what the hell that means either.

Sunday, I hopped on a bus. I went to Michigan. I rode around on more buses. I spent time with a friend on the bus. I said hello and goodbye while getting on and off the bus. The bus got me many places, and in many places I got the bus.

When I left Michigan, the air was getting colder. Soon Cleveland will be cold. The day's are growing shorter. Bike committing gets harder and harder with impending snow. I am glad we have a bus. I like going places.

My next scheduled trip to Michigan.....Steelhead 70.3. I spoke with both BBop and The Veg*Triathlete about it today. We are all planning to meet as a group. Zac and Nichole are also making the trip.
Zac has come along way toward restoring his VW. He plans to bring it to Steelhead. If you are at the race, come find us. We will be the group with the bus.