Newsletter August 6, 2012

Practice

Click here for today's practice.  Also we have had about 20 new Tri-Dawgs join the team in the last couple weeks. I challenge some of you to come out to a Saturday morning swim practice while attendance is light during the summer months. The hardest thing about doing this is showing up for the first practice. If you get there, I'll take care of the rest. All abilities welcome. In fact Saturday, we had three new people show up and all survived!

Tri-Dawgs Continue to Grow

We just passed the 225 member mark!

Philadelphia Marathon

I mentioned last week that it would be nice to get a group to go up and do the half or full marathon. We already have a few signed up. Click here to register. This does close out so don't put it off too long.

Olympic Triathlon

This will be too late to alert you to the women's tri which was held Saturday morning and ended with a photo finish but the men will compete on Tuesday August 7 at 6:30 am.

Piranha Triathlons

We are in a solid second place for the club points race with 424 points. Brick is in first and still within our reach with 654 points. Two big races are coming up. The first is North East on Sunday August 12 and the second is Lums Pond on Sunday August 19. Currently Brick has 30 signed up for the two races and we have 34. Please think about doing at least one of these races. Click here to register. I should be at both races and we'll have the tents set up with some light tailgating like at DITR. In case you didn't know, the North East triathlon is the birthplace of the Tri-Dawgs.

From Triathlete Mind

I thought you'd like to know of a new free video series for helping triathletes to mentally prepare for their next race. It's from Chris Janzen of TriathleteMind.com - a site all about the mental side to training and racing. The videos provide practical strategies and tips for the lead up to race day (and helps in training too!). You will need to sign up to receive the 5 free videos in the right order and of course you can opt-out at any time. Get them here: http://www.triathletemind.com/getmentallyready 
Enjoy the videos! 

Bikeline Newark

After not riding for over 20 years I decided to get back in the saddle. Of course, I headed right to Bikeline Newark since they are one of our sponsors. I met with Howard who runs the store. I thought I had an idea of what I wanted but after listening to Howard's wise advice and counseling I looked at some different bikes. He took his time getting a fit for size and explained every step of the way what benchmarks he was using to determine the correct size. I liked the idea that he didn't try to steer me to higher end bikes but patiently explained how different frames and components increased the price levels. He also showed me how I could get the same components found on more expensive bikes on a less expensive bike. After about an hour of sizing and education it seemed relatively easy to pick out the bike that would fit me and my wallet the best. The best part was the 25% off discount Tri-Dawgs get on new bikes. I would highly recommend them if you are in the market for a new bike. And as Marianne can attest, they are the best at bike maintenance. 

Bethany Beach Tri

Click here.

From Sara Santana 

Hello, Dawgs! My 11 year old nephew is excited to compete in his first youth tri at Lums Pond in August.  We are looking for a replacement for his too-small, old, heavy "trick" bike.  Would anyone be willing to sell a bike outgrown by their TriPup?  He doesn't need anything fancy (he's never used gears or handbrakes before).  He's approx. 4'6", and his current bike is 14".  I'm thinking a 20" would suit him better. You can reach me at SaraSantana2@comcast.net.

Kona Legacy Program

Ironman now has slots for those triathletes who have completed 12 or more IM's but have not won one of the coveted slots. Diane's friend, Susan Ford, got one of the first slots. You can read her story here. 

And a couple weeks ago I sent out information about voting for Bethann Telford's video for the Kona Inspired contest. She was the one that has been battling brain cancer and started her own foundation. Out of 105 entrants Bethann was one of the eight winners. I hope to see her there.

Pittsburg Triathlon Race Report

From Kristin Lepley

Hope you had a nice weekend!  I just got back tonight from Pittsburgh - I entered the Pittbsurgh Triathlon this past weekend.  When I first signed up for it back in the fall it was not a part of the Piranha Series - but that changed a few months ago as they added to the Multisport Series as a points race.  It was good to see familiar faces in Neil and Jess during packet pickup and the race.

There was a Sprint and Adventure race on Saturnday with the International race on Sunday.  The sprint race was a 600 Meter swim, 20K bike and 5K run.  I used to live in Pittsburgh after college so I was able to stay with friends and catch up with my old college swim team roommates while I was there.

A nasty storm rolled into the area about 3am on Saturday morning...I was worried they were going to cancel or move the race.  Luckily - the rain stopped around 4:30am just as my alarm went off.  This caused the transition area to be a complete mud pit.  The weather was perfect - cloudy skies and warm...not too humid.  The water was a balmy 81 degrees with an in water start.  My friends said the guards pulled a ton of people out of the water and many people ran into the bridge posts during the swim.  I always said triathlon swimming was a contact sport!  I looked at the bike course on paper - but that didn't reflect the elevation of the course.  The first 10K was a stright climb!  I didn't think it was going to end.  Just as I would turn a corner, I thought it was going to flatten out....but NOOOOOO...the hill continued! 

The run was flat and was along the river front - next to Heinz Field and PNC Park.  Because of the rain - there were puddles and mud everywhere as we didn't have a choice but to run through it all.  I didn't realize it was also going to be a Mud Run too!

In the end - it was a great race and I recommend it to others for 2013.  I finished with a time of 1:47:07.  Of course I am pruoud of my swim - I was 66 out of 487!  Stephanie Khan has been working with me and coaching my running - making progress there - took 8 mins off my 5K from the Dualthon we did 2 weeks ago.

Kristin Armstrong

I thought this was a nice story among so many feel good Olympic stories.

Xterra Wetsuit Newsletter

Click here.

From Swim Smooth

Below is a picture of Rebecca Adlington of Great Britain who medaled the 800 meter finals. Notice how her elbow is bent to 110° which gives her perfect leverage to press clear water backwards, propelling her forwards. In your own stroke you should be aiming for an elbow bend of between 100 and 120°.

Many swimmers pull through with a very straight arm which places a lot of load on the shoulder and produces much less propulsion:

Have a great week!

Coach