RAINMAKER, HEART BREAKER

Yes, the Olympics are history. Witness this guy imitating a Shriner during the closing ceremonies. You've seen those Shriners on those motorcycle thingy's driving crazy like at parades. I've seen them take out the first row of folks at parades. Always keep the EMS close by. But while the Chinese were closing their games, the man pictured below was all business.

Props to the Rainmaker, who's blog is always chock full of good stuff. The guy can cook..he trains, he takes great pictures...has a sense of humor and he is flat out a very good triathlete while training in the nations capitol. What does the guy do last week while the Olympics were being put to bed?? He blistered a 10:49 in his first Ironman at Ironman Canada. Great job Ray!!! Go to his blog (CLICK HERE) for another great race report. Hope you don't mind me pilfering a pic of you scorching the bike course!!!!!

In the same race, BreeWee, had some racing issues...tires appeared to be the smallest of her problems. Early into the run, she was in the med tent, getting fluids...unable to finish, which to most of us was a shocker, as she is so darn good at racing. Bree regrouped and is now declaring that she hopes to........

GET LUCKY IN KENTUCKY!!

Bree is racing at Louisville and hoping there, she can get a Kona slot. So many of my buddies from the Cleveland Area are racing this weekend in in Ky. Best of luck to all..

This past Tuesday I swam at Fairport with the regular group but the water was too rough for a swim out to the breakwall......so we did some work along the shoreline....about a half hours worth. My swim buds, Karen, Eddie, and Juan are also hoping to Get Lucky in Kentucky. Karen and Eddie are multiple Ironman finishers. All the best to Juan who hopes to hear those words announced......."You're An Ironman. After the swim, I ran a strong tempo 5 miler with my son Patrick on the North Chagrin Trails... 43:30.

Sunday, The Bride surprised me and asked if I wanted to take a bike ride??? Heck yeah, I said. And so, off we went.... The Bride has such a busy schedule and spends alot of time in between her different classes working on new routines and music mixes and stuff. So we have not been on the bikes together in a while. We went all over. Through 5 different towns... spent, lots of time at North Chagrin as well.. Just a great workout!! I used my son Pats bike, (which is my old tri-bike) and it was just so nice to cover so much ground..... We were out nearly 3 hours and 45 minutes.

Saturday, I ran 1 hour and 45 minutes at North Chagrin on the bridle trails. I am getting in long workouts and also lifting very hard, using heavy weights this week to change things up.

Notice the Motivation Quotation on my sidebar. The first 2 quotes are J.T. originals. I will try to post about 3 times a week...a fresh motivational quote. One that originates in this persons little skull. Any suggestions??? Let me know.

TREMENDOUS TRIBUTE

Greg Christopher of Twinsburg Ohio gets my props as well. In a very nice gesture, He wore race number 45 in the Greater Cleveland Triathlon Half Ironman earlier this month. It was his tribute to late Twinsburg officer, Josh Miktarian, who was killed in the line of duty. Officer Miktarian wore badge #45. Greg's gesture was a wonderful tribute. He never met officer Miktarian, but respected what he stood for. Greg is on the right, and thats Ted Yates, who also went the distance on the left. Its important that we always keep the memory alive of someone who serves us all each day. Of course, its also cool that race director Mickey Ryzmek made the #45 possible.

Everyone have a great day. Lifes a Blast

DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR????

Thanks for all the comments on the Yes You Kanye post. The rap "Your'e an Ironman seemed to resonate with those who go the long distance. Should I record the song, and put it on YouTube????? We'll see.

In the meantime, I am climbing out of a mini-funk..one that would be expected after racing 4 times in four weeks.

Today I officially busted out of it and while thats cool...I have to recount what happened afterwards

I went to Memorial Park Pool in Euclid. 25 yard outdoor pool. Adult swim at 5pm. I wanted to rip off one mile in a strong, sustained manner. I was not looking for a P.R....nor was I hoping to go Phelps on the thing... Wore the lonely little swim cap that wasn't able to enjoy himself in the Greater Cleveland Half Iron..(Swim was cancelled...too rough). I worked on long strong strokes in the water...spent many laps trying to work on maintaining my head under water for a good portion of the lap. Many laps I came up for a breath only twice.

When I hit the mile...the time was 32:02. That was a solid effort. I continued swimming, alternating hard lap, easy lap. Finished up a 3,000 yard swim. Felt very strong. Not exactly Michael Phelps. Mikey might have those 8 golds..(see Sports Illustrated Cover shot)

But I got a few medals of my own, buddy!!!! LOL!!!!

After the swim, I was showering and getting dressed. Leaving the pool, I had a senior moment. I wasn't sure if I had worn my hearing aid to the lockeroom or not. Called The Bride and asked her to look around some spots at home.. No luck. Went back in the lockeroom. No luck. More looking. No luck. However, where this would usually get me upset..I wasn't in the least bummed. I looked at home. Went back to the pool. Not a hearing aid in sight..

The aid is 4 years old. Insurance will not cover a new one. I will have to get re-tested and will have to settle on a new unit. I was thinking. Why am I not upset??? We're talking about 2-3 thousand bucks. Not to get too spiritual, but I think I'm being told to be more attentive. To listen more. To absorb what is going on around me as much as possible. Don't get me wrong, I will be at a disadvantage without it. Ever interview athletes while your in a crowd of reporters??? Theres a reason why I am always right up front..staring at the LeBrons, Zydrunas Ilgauskas's and Derek Andersons, or Travis Hafners as I come up to their chests..all 5 feet 8 inches of me. God Bless Lebron, he's always speaking directly to me...to make sure I can take in what he has to say. I appreciate that. Now, I will have to listen more...not just at work..but everywhere.

Didn't somebody once say. God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason.

And also I will listen to what my body wants more. I sense it wants to be pushed again..and the mini-me Phelps swim was one workout that follows that logic. There will be more..

Have a great week..Happy training.
Life's a Blast

YES YOU KANYE

Hi gang... its been a nice week, recovering from the Greater Cleveland Triathlon and planning workouts and races in the upcoming months... 4 races in 4 weeks was a daunting task, but we survived. So far this week, I had a breakwall swim at Fairport with much yardage tacked on afterward. A couple of tough weight workouts and a long bout with the elliptical machine. Trying to avoid any running as my hamstring mends a bit.

The Bride has Pilates, and I will take a class or two, but the work sked is crazy. Browns are full go. I will be at Giants Stadium next Monday as Browns face the Super Bowl Champs. High School football is one week away and the seasons will slowly change. I love this time of the year.

You might know by now, if you have followed this blog that I like to take creative license with some of the famous and infamous of writers and weave my own web of words about training and racing... Hey, you gotta have fun...right?????

One of my earliest blog entries was a take on Dr. Suess (click here)
I spun my own Hemingway take (click here)
I can rap like Jay Z.... (move the mouse here)
and, lets see...ohh yea.. a take on Stevie Wonders "Superstition". My Fav.!! (click it)

So..I was thinking.....why not another rap??? Would Kanye West write something like this for endurance racing???

You're an Ironman

Summer sun is smoking
Like a record broken
All effort, no joke-in

The body is aching
Endurance limits shaken
Replacement fluids taken...

The Heart beats are soaring
Clothes drenched, sweat is pouring..
Burning carbs you've been storing.

The Mind shouts, Stop..you've done enough!!!
We know your're really tough
Bag this Ironman stuff!!!

No, you reply........ I'll tell ya why!!!
Its the thrill..the competition high!!!

So...you increase your pace,,,.
visualize the Ironman Race.
Add 2 miles just in case..

You keep on churning....
Lungs are burning..
Body is protesting
But your not resting

Cuz..your still thinking..
follow the coaches plan
Run forever...cuz you CAN !!!!

You're an Ironman!!!!!!

SHRINKAGE

Shrinkage is just one of the possible headlines for this post. Other candidates??

STEELHEAD WE FEEL YOUR PAIN

HOW TO GO FROM HALF IRON TO A BIKE RIDE IN 48 HOURS

ANGRY LAKE TICKS OFF TRIATHLETES

I could go on. The Seinfeld theme refers to my second headline choice. How plans and the event shrunk. It has nothing to do with...ahhh...well...you know. I was originally doing the Half Iron. But as my previous post pointed out, my hamstring muscles held a heated meeting and caused me to tweak the hammy again Friday morning. I took their hint and decided just to do the Aquabike. 1.2 mile swim, followed by the 56 mile bike. That way, I would not run and aggravate the hamstring.

Great plan. But we did not consult the Lake. I should have known. Angry lake. Strong winds and strong current and Mickey and the Greater Cleveland staff made the right choice. They cancelled the swim. I understood completely. I took my wrath out on the shallowest of the Great Lakes. I didn't flip it off, I just shouted...."I'm upset with you right now but I'll get over it."? Hey, I survived the infamous Fogman-Pineman-Ironman in 99'.

Hey, it was a beautiful morning. Love the sunrise.!!!!

The wind was very strong. The guys putting up the start arch thingy had a tough time stabillizing it.
Transition was filling up fast. Racers knew immediately that the swim was not happening. I hooked up with dozens of my triathlon buddies. Matt, Jen, Eric, Aimee, Tracie, doing her second triathlon. Joe R. Jeff, Bill M. Karen, Juan, Bill, Eddie. Tanya, mother of a little girl with cerebral palsy, who had raced her first tri last week. Tanya was doing the Aquabike also. Saw Janet and Jodi but didn't get a chance to say hi. I think everyone was just resigned to the notion that we would all have to make lemonade out of lemons.

They sent off the Half Iron racers at 7:15. They would have to run about 1.2 miles and then head to thier bikes. Us Aquabikers were going off at 7:45.

The wind played a factor in several areas of the course and because it was going off the Lake. It was strong. I was loaded up with a few gels, one bottle of replacement fluid and one of water. We did 2 big loops up into Concord, and toward Little Mountain. Theres a very steep but not terribly long hill you have to stand on the pedals to get up..then a gradual climb after that...but the course is fun to ride because you can get some speed going on the way back. On the second loop you get to the entrance of the park and you then have to go back and do 2 fairly short loops, but the wind really seemed to be strong as I did my final two loops. All in all, I had a solid effort. I was after a 3 hour or under time, but settled for an unofficial 3:13 but I have to check the final results. For show purposes only,we had to leave transition and go out and over to the overall finish area. That did not affect our time, it was just so they could give us our medals and get our timing chip. I just put on a cap and walked over and through the finish in my bare feet..

Some riders were stopped by trains. Volunteers took their numbers and then officials adjusted their times. I nearly was stopped . I even heard the train sound, but I came through the second crossing and the gates were up. Other riders complained there were several little trains..meaning a string of riders, obviously drafting which was illegal. I did see some numbers on the results with some kind of violations listed so I know they were docking people for these, but maybe not as much as was going on.

However...it was a perfect day to ride despite the wind. Cool. Just perfect. Afterwards I hung out. Listened to Charlie entertain and compared racing tales.

Later , at home, all the swim caps from my 08 races had a little get together.. They even welcomed in the bright Yellow cap I was to use today... Treated the little guy like one of the family. It was touching.

But the wetsuit..!!!?? He was obviously put off that there was no swim. He just hung out in on the patio , getting some sun, and not socializing with the caps. What an attitude.!!

Later, I fired up the grill and cooked up hamburgers, chorizo hamburgers and get this.....BISON. No pics, but it was tremendous. They say bison is a great source of protein. All I could think of was Kevin Costner and "Dances with Wolves" That got me thinking of some of the triathletes who still wanted to race in the very strong Lake Erie current. How about "Dunces with Waves"

Life's a Blast.

A MEETING OF H.U.R.T.

(SUPERMARKET WIDE SHOT TRIGUYJT AND THE BRIDE SHOPPING)

TRIGUYJT
"ISN'T THAT ODD"

(CLOSE UP AS PACKAGE OF BUNS FALLS TO FLOOR)

TRIGUYJT
"THOSE BUNS FELL ON THEIR OWN..OH LOOK HONEY, THEYRE HONEY BUNS"

(JT STARTS TO BEND OVER )

(CUT TO SHOT OF MEETING ROOM..DEEP IN THE BODY OF J.T....ITS A MICROSCOPIC WORLD..TUBES OF LIQUID OVERHEAD... MANY SMALL BEINGS IN THE ROOM AND THEY ARE ALL SHOUTING...

"I'M AT THE END OF MY TENDONS WITH THIS J.T. GUY."

"4 RACES IN 4 WEEKS!!!"

"HE'S KILLING US"

(ITS A MEETING OF THE ORGANIZATION CALLED HAMSTRINGS UNDER REPEPITIVE TRAUMA...OTHERWISE KNOWN AS H. U. R. T.)

"CAN WE HAVE SOME ORDER"!! SHOUTS THE LEADER HAMSTRING.

"J.T. NEVER FULLY REHABBED THE STRAIN IN HAMSTRING JUST BELOW HIS RIGHT BUTT"...AND NOW HE'S DOING A HALF IRONMAN AT GREATER CLEVELAND"

" REMEMBER HOW HE HAD THAT SHARP STABBING PAIN JUST ABOVE HIS RIGHT KNEE A WEEK AGO"??

"THAT WAS ME"

(ALL TURN TO SEE A HAMSTRING TENDON IN THE BACK OF THE ROOM)

"YEAH, THAT WAS ME. I'M SICK OF THIS JOKER. HE REALLY SHOULD NOT BE RUNNING ON IT, ESPECIALLY DOING THOSE TREADMILL SPRINT OR CHARGING UP A HILL. HE IS 55 YEARS OLD. THE MUSCLES ARE NOT AS LOOSE. HE HAS A WIFE WHO TEACHES PILATES BUT HE DOESN'T TAKE THOSE CLASSES ENOUGH."

LEADER HAMSTRING
"SO WHAT ARE YOU SUGGESTING"

' I THINK WE SHOULD DO SOMETHING JUST TO LET HIM KNOW WE KNOW WHAT THE HECK HE IS UP TO'

'YEAH, LETS TEAR THE HAMSTRING"

"RIP IT RIGHT OFF THE BONE!!!"

'NO I THINK THATS TOO DRASTIC'"

"LETS JUST TWEAK IT..THATS ALL.. NOTHING SERIOUS...I MEAN THIS HAS GONE ON LONG ENOUGH... HOW MANY MEETINGS OF H.U.R.T. HAVE WE HELD"

'TOO MANY"

'YEAH, 5 MEETINGS IN 3 MONTHS, ITS CRAZY'

(LEADER HAMSTRING)

"ALL IN FAVOR OF A TWEAK, SAY AYE"

"AYE' AYE' AYE' AYE' AYE AYE' AYE''

'ALL OPPOSED SAY NAY'

(SILENCE)

"AYES HAVE IT. MEETING OVER...NOW HURRY EVERYONE GET IN POSITION...NOWS OUR CHANCE..HE'S STARTING TO BEND OVER'

(SHOT OF SUPER MARKET AS J.T. BENDS OVER"

TRIGUYJT
"OUCH, ARRRGGGH"
THE BRIDE
"WHATS THE MATTER"?
TRIGUYJT
'MY HAMMY...MAN THAT HURTS'
THE BRIDE
"GUESS YOUR BODY IS TRYING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING"
TRIGUYJT
"AGREED. I'M JUST GONNA DO THE AQUABIKE AT GREATER CLEVELAND...NO RUNNING FOR ME. WHENS YOUR NEXT PILATES CLASS??"

TEAM DAWUD

Hi there...What follows is an account of a wonderful experience. I only swam a half mile today, but as part of a special relay, I feel I got as much out of this day as I have had in finishing an Ironman...without the mind numbing pain and all of course..


The above image was not captured by a professional....but hey, I am getting ahead of myself. Thats Aminah pulling the carriage with her son, Dawud in it. But first, lets set up what this was about.

This is North Coast Harbor in Cleveland. To the left, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To the right is Browns Stadium. I don't know who the guy in the shot is...someone who just happened to be there.

This is Dawud. He is 10 and has cerebral palsy. I had just met him and his parents. We were teammates on team #129 and we felt Dawud had to get his arm marked like the rest of us.

Thats Aminah, his mom, and Dawud's dad..Dawud Sr. Mom was gonna pull Dawud in the carriage for the 16 miles on the bike and dad would push Dawud the 3.1 miles. They had never raced before but trained hard. The bike, the carriage and Dawud accounted for about 140 pounds or so. Mom said she was ready. The family has been connected with United Cerebral Palsy of Cleveland and Dawud has shown many improvements in many areas. His speech and many other factors.

We were getting excited right before the swim. I was in the sprint relay and women 35 and under wave for the swim. The swim was a half mile. Dawud was anxious for the race to begin. I smoked the swim folks. Was fastest person in the relay portion of 9 teams.. Not sure it was exactly a half mile because my time was quicker than usual..however the time is not the big deal here, right??? After the swim, I sped into transistion, gave Aminah the chip and then shook Dawud Sr's hand.

Then Aminah towed Dawud the 16 miles... What effort. You saw the so called action shot at the top of the post... She need roughly 90 minutes to handle the tough hills-the wind--and exhaustion... What a huge effort!!!!!

But she did it!!! Thats her getting to transistion, all flushed and excited!!! Dawud had a cellphone and called his dad a couple times to tell him where they were. I loved that!!!

Dad changes the stroller out for the run. Take off the bar. Add the wheel for the front..and off he went... Folks, I was amazed. He runs 7 miles a day usually. He did the 3.1 miles in .......(Drum rolll.....) under 9 minutes a mile!!!!!!!! Wow!!!..He was so fast that I did not get my camera going fast enough... I missed him. However, Trish from UCP sent the finish photo thats at the top of the post. Thanks to Team Myles..

They did it!!! and I was so proud to be on the team.

Team shot!!!! Dawud Sr. says he wants to race more and I think Aminah has the bug. A while after our team finished..one of my new buddies finished.

Thats Kristen Minnick carrying daughter Julia across the line. Kristen did the whole triathlon and towed Julia and then pushed her for the run. I had featured her in a piece a week ago. Kristen was amazing. I was so happy for her.

And isn't Julia a gorgeous little girl??? Congrats to Kristen!! Thats hubby Jeff with us.

Finally, I can't thank the folks at United Cerebral Palsy enough for their help. I have made buddies for a long time. I was told all the families raised money for the cause and close to 90 thousand was raised. Of course, Dick Hoyt deserves credit for this as well. The legendary Ironman inspired many of the families when he spoke in Cleveland last fall. Its just amazing what can be done when CAN is the word we focus on.

Life is a BLAST!!!

THREE CUPS OF TEA

Hi.. I'm writing about "Three Cups of Tea" at a Starbucks. Thats like writing about the NBA at Yankee Stadium...but I am getting ahead of myself. I got some "splain-in" to do and I will...but first...the training and racing stuff.

Sunday is the 3rd race in consecutive weeks with next weeks Half Ironman being the 4th in 4. Kinda cranking the sked and loving it. Sunday is the Cleveland Triathlon, which, I believe was the 3rd ever race I did back in the mid 80's. I have done it many times. Its had more name changes than a government witness. Sunday I will swim for Dawud, a young boy with cerebral palsy. His mom and dad are going do the biking and running. A great picture of Dawud is on the previous post and a link to his donation page if you are kind enough to check out. Thanks!!!

Got great news. Last Sundays sprint at Fairport was a 3rd place in the 15 man age group. Patrick claimed a 4th place in the tough 25-29 age group. This season, I have had a second, a first and now this third. Good Golly Miss Molly!!!!

Got in a long swim session at Fairport on Tuesday and was even able to enjoy the breakfast afterwards. Had a mini-tweak of my right hammy on Wednesday am. Only ran 40 minutes. Had a thorough weight session on Thursday, and today (fri) ran 2 hours at North Chagrin. Saturday, more weights and a light bike....Sunday I will swim a half mile with everything I have and then be a cheerleader for all the families racing for their children.

Browns camp occupies alot of work time. Putting together a hour special...doing several pieces on that and High School football practice began.. Its busy, but we love it. Tuesday I poked fun at our anchor woman Stacey Bell, who is single, and who caught the bouquet at Kathleen Cochranes wedding last week. We had tape of her gathering it in, like a punt returner, so silly me... I asked Josh Cribbs, the Browns Pro Bowl return man to comment on her ability. He played along very well and it made for a fun segment. Stacey was a good sport too.




THREE CUPS OF TEA

What a book!!!!!! Greg Mortenson turned a failure into a monumental success in a most unusual way. He failed to scale K2, one of the worlds most treacherous and dangerous summits, just missing by so many hundred meters. He nearly died. He was rescued by the incredible Himalayan people and nursed back to health. He vowed to build them a school. The children there had nowhere to learn and had no books. How this American, an infidel, in the heart of Muslim culture, at the time of the Taliban and 911 was able to forge partnerships with the warlords and bad guys is remarklable. Stunning achievements as he was then able to build many more schools...doing what Sir Edmund Hillary did as well in the years after he scaled Mount Everest.
Greg Mortenson, makes me, an extremely upbeat guy seem like a malcontent. He's amazing. So I was thinking and hopefully you can search back as well in your memory.. When did you fail at one thing and still succeed because or in spite of the failure.??

Humm, I thought. Mid 70's I met a woman who I was in love with. But after 6 months, she dumped me. I was despondent. I was out of sorts and depressed without her. I wrote her mom. I expressed my love for her daughter. To this day, my mother in law remembers how much I longed for her daughter, who is of course The Bride. We got back together and my life has been so enriched.

1980, a station in Buffalo New York, fired me. But that wacking, only opened the door for me to come to my hometown and to take the dream job I so wanted. Its the same job I have today...Sportscaster at Fox 8.

Greg Mortenson dranked much more than 3 cups of tea with the people of the mountain region, but he has immensely changed the lives of many children by opening up their minds to education.Heres to many cups of tea, which will mean success for you.. And, yes, if you are not a tea drinker, do like this guy...just drink the brewed beans.All the best.

Life's a Blast.