Well in about 9 hours I'll be starting the swim leg to my first race in months. I'm currently going through the motions of finding my wetsuit, making sure my towels are clean, got everything I need. The kind of excitement in tedium I only get when I 'm racing. The field is smaller than I expected granted after last year's horror stories, some potential customers might be waiting to see how this year turns out. The course is a little hillier than descriptions would lead but if everyone uses common sense it should be a good day. So I'll continue to dig out my crap pack and repack, and use the sweet soothing sound of Disturbed to get me ready for my experiences tomorrow, after all I need to lead out of the swim for good measure.
Getting down with the sickness
R.D.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
It's times like this I'm glad I don't have the cash to invest: or Bob-o speaks out of his ass
Well upon reading the Angry Runner the Economy is in the shitter and it's only going to go deeper into sewers for the short term foreseeable. For people with stock, that's reason to get a gallon of Pepto, pull out your hair and curl up in the fetal position as you agonize whether to hold and ride out the storm or sell in panic and drive the market even deeper into the septic tank (please consult a qualified financial advisor for help and advice as I am a bank teller talking out of his arse.) For folks like me who are paying back debt, and don't have a lot to play with, the lowering interest rates are a help especially with student loan consolidation peaking around the corner and a variable rate private loan that is a regal pain in my side ( man I was dumb, I should have just gone to CCSU or UCONN freshman year.) but regardless lower Prime rates are good for me and others with variable interest rates and for anyone looking to buy real estate/ investment property if your credit is in good shape.(once again consult individuals with experience in this stuff I am not really qualified for this type of advising.)
For guy like me who will hopefully be on the right track in a couple of years ( barring unemployment, but my company is well capitalized at the moment so it looks like we'll survive the storm....I hope....) it looks like Wall Street will be a bargain bin when the dust finally settles the survivors emerge from the piles of dead they will be bloody, bruised and looking for capital, and that will be the time for me to invest. But until then I'll keep watching the real economists and wait and see when this thing is finally going to bottom out and then begin to rebound, granted from what I've been reading at Angry and Co. it might not be until at least 2010-2011.
Unitl then at least from what I'm seeing Government bonds might be a good investment or if the Fed had any common sense they would push them to fund the massive bailouts that they have undertaken in the last month...but regardless I will leave the econ to the economists.
R.D.
For guy like me who will hopefully be on the right track in a couple of years ( barring unemployment, but my company is well capitalized at the moment so it looks like we'll survive the storm....I hope....) it looks like Wall Street will be a bargain bin when the dust finally settles the survivors emerge from the piles of dead they will be bloody, bruised and looking for capital, and that will be the time for me to invest. But until then I'll keep watching the real economists and wait and see when this thing is finally going to bottom out and then begin to rebound, granted from what I've been reading at Angry and Co. it might not be until at least 2010-2011.
Unitl then at least from what I'm seeing Government bonds might be a good investment or if the Fed had any common sense they would push them to fund the massive bailouts that they have undertaken in the last month...but regardless I will leave the econ to the economists.
R.D.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Aid Station to Aid station.....
At the pre race meeting at last year's Ironman New Zealand Cameron Brown broke down how to run the Ironman Marathon : "break it down into 21 2km races, run aid station to aid station." well maybe I should carry over that philosophy to life.
This morning as I was writing an email to Catherine explaining that I wouldn't be coming down, the reasons why and how it would interfer with life goals, I couldn't bring myself to send it. The rational part of my head was saying hit the damn button already, but I flinched. I exited the email and browsed the HEAT website for a moment. I read Tony's blog about IM Kentucky and for a moment memories flooded back. Part of the reason I did the damn sport was for the people, for knowing I could do something most people wouldn't even dare attempt, to see new places, try to new shit and have a whole new set of complaints afterward. So am I doing IM NZ....... I don't know? It could happen Entries don't close until Jan (earlier if it sells out but with the economy, I don't think that's an issue.), a lot can happen before then , I could get a promotion, my parents could end up getting a shitload of new home buyers taking advantage of low interest rates and fed incentives ( I could also get hit by lighting twice in the same spot while simultaneously winning the lotto and being abducted by aliens. To put the odds of that in perspective, not that I don't have faith in my parents but I have no faith in the market.). I'm not going to worry about it if it happens it happens if it doesn't oh well I actually get to stay warm this winter....I've got to take life one day at a time, right now bills and grades are pressing, getting my Pale "fat " Franco-American ass into Ironman Arizona is behind that, followed by what ever else life throws at me. So that's how I've got to look at it, also it gives me time to come up with a more polite email.
R.D.
This morning as I was writing an email to Catherine explaining that I wouldn't be coming down, the reasons why and how it would interfer with life goals, I couldn't bring myself to send it. The rational part of my head was saying hit the damn button already, but I flinched. I exited the email and browsed the HEAT website for a moment. I read Tony's blog about IM Kentucky and for a moment memories flooded back. Part of the reason I did the damn sport was for the people, for knowing I could do something most people wouldn't even dare attempt, to see new places, try to new shit and have a whole new set of complaints afterward. So am I doing IM NZ....... I don't know? It could happen Entries don't close until Jan (earlier if it sells out but with the economy, I don't think that's an issue.), a lot can happen before then , I could get a promotion, my parents could end up getting a shitload of new home buyers taking advantage of low interest rates and fed incentives ( I could also get hit by lighting twice in the same spot while simultaneously winning the lotto and being abducted by aliens. To put the odds of that in perspective, not that I don't have faith in my parents but I have no faith in the market.). I'm not going to worry about it if it happens it happens if it doesn't oh well I actually get to stay warm this winter....I've got to take life one day at a time, right now bills and grades are pressing, getting my Pale "fat " Franco-American ass into Ironman Arizona is behind that, followed by what ever else life throws at me. So that's how I've got to look at it, also it gives me time to come up with a more polite email.
R.D.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
News on Nutmegman, Vienna, and more
Well I bit the bullet last night and sent out my app, hopefully it won't hit until Thursday, I haven't previewed the course yet but I've heard of a few trouble spots hopefully no monster climbs or descents but there are some sections that will make it interesting.
Bjoern did well in Vienna making me deathly afraid of throwing down against him in an Olympic tri. ( His swim split is only 4 min. slower than mine now and his bike is a good 6-10 min. faster, the run I guess it depends on his IT band. Dude two words:Trigger Point.) I'm still confident I'll take him next November at Ironman Arizona, after all a 2.4 mile swim and a marathon are long races in their own right .
I re-read, my Bob-o's going back to Taupo post and as I sat there and read it it almost seems like it was written by a different person. Have things changed that much? When I wrote the post Things looked pretty settled, Catherine and her roomate were going to take me in for about two weeks, then came news of cutbacks at the Times, she was fired and they offered her her job back within hours, ( not sure if she took it.)and I haven't heard from her since. She said she was still going to try to organize a homestay for me if she moved back to New Plymouth. Part of me is greatful for the effort yet the other is leery. Do I really want to take advantage of a stranger's hospitality? Cat and I are friends so that's cool, but Simon's moved to OZ, I'm not sure if Jude or the ladies in reception survived the layoffs, I met Jo the grand total of once, what if they hate me? what if I tick them off with my cocky attitude and my Damn Rock and/or Roll I just don't want to leave a bad impression on anybody, so that's had me looking at Tui Oaks for 7 days, maybe head to New Plymouth or Auckland for a week while I'm there ( or just get on the bird and come straight back), but a hotel almost doubles my anticipated costs. That's what's had me thinking this whole mess might not be meant to be. Irregardless I know Bjoern and I are doing Ironman Arizona that November, part of me really wants to go back to NZ but for the first time in a while I'm actually agreeing with my rational side and thinking staying home in March might be the wiser plan..but I don't know we'll see I'll wait until I hear from Cat...and run the number cruncher 4000 again.
Regardless, I worry about that later, right now I've got a race in 5 days to taper for.
R.D.
Bjoern did well in Vienna making me deathly afraid of throwing down against him in an Olympic tri. ( His swim split is only 4 min. slower than mine now and his bike is a good 6-10 min. faster, the run I guess it depends on his IT band. Dude two words:Trigger Point.) I'm still confident I'll take him next November at Ironman Arizona, after all a 2.4 mile swim and a marathon are long races in their own right .
I re-read, my Bob-o's going back to Taupo post and as I sat there and read it it almost seems like it was written by a different person. Have things changed that much? When I wrote the post Things looked pretty settled, Catherine and her roomate were going to take me in for about two weeks, then came news of cutbacks at the Times, she was fired and they offered her her job back within hours, ( not sure if she took it.)and I haven't heard from her since. She said she was still going to try to organize a homestay for me if she moved back to New Plymouth. Part of me is greatful for the effort yet the other is leery. Do I really want to take advantage of a stranger's hospitality? Cat and I are friends so that's cool, but Simon's moved to OZ, I'm not sure if Jude or the ladies in reception survived the layoffs, I met Jo the grand total of once, what if they hate me? what if I tick them off with my cocky attitude and my Damn Rock and/or Roll I just don't want to leave a bad impression on anybody, so that's had me looking at Tui Oaks for 7 days, maybe head to New Plymouth or Auckland for a week while I'm there ( or just get on the bird and come straight back), but a hotel almost doubles my anticipated costs. That's what's had me thinking this whole mess might not be meant to be. Irregardless I know Bjoern and I are doing Ironman Arizona that November, part of me really wants to go back to NZ but for the first time in a while I'm actually agreeing with my rational side and thinking staying home in March might be the wiser plan..but I don't know we'll see I'll wait until I hear from Cat...and run the number cruncher 4000 again.
Regardless, I worry about that later, right now I've got a race in 5 days to taper for.
R.D.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Nutmegman and Beyond
Well as of now I have a week until my final tri of 2008 and already my focus is turning to 2009 and how I should prep. For those of you not following the inner turmoil of whether or not I should enter IM New Zealand ( it has pretty much gone like this Wah I'm broke wah, wah I might not be able to do it, Wah, wah I've got to grow up...etc.) So if I do do it ( even if I don't I want an excuse to stay in shape) I want to do better than last year, I don't want to fork over a little less than a quarter of my salary to be an "also ran". So I'm planning on getting all the over distance crap out of the way in October/ November ( I might do the Hartford half instead of full, or the full the day after a long ride "prep work" for the ironman marathon.) and then cut to 50-70 mile matinence rides at the lake throughout the winter. The swimming won't be a problem as Stef has taken the role of masters coach and will kick my ass back to my high school level shape, and my running well I plan on doing a little more speed work this time around. In essence I want to go to Taupo as an unstoppable animal. I'm planning to take heed from the Angry Runner and lift , do push ups and eat protein, as I'm finding strength work can helps performance ( ex. Me at Fordham lifing harcore 3 days a week I was able to pull faster splits than I was in high school putting in the same amount of pool time.). I'm planning on using one of my weeks of vacation in either October or December ( if it's in December I may be checking with a friend down south or out west if I can crash with them.) to get a training week from hell in. Early morning swims, long rides and runs to sculpt myself into a rabid animal. As for this week I'm on a mini taper for Nutmegman I haven't been able to preview the course, but I've been training severe hills for the last 4 months so I should be ready for almost anything..hopefully it won't sell out before I enter. I think I'm might be one of the only young guns competing so my age group might be a joke, although in Rhode Island all the fast kids showed up so nothing is guaranteed.
R.D.
R.D.
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