tcsd trinews december 2014

amie couldn’t imagine ever having a moreperfect swim at a California beach. It wasearly September, and the ocean was warm,

calm, and clear. Swimming out beyond the surf,she had continued parallel to shore for a quar-ter-mile before rounding a rocky point that wasthe gateway to a protected cove and a mile ofkelp beds along a rocky stretch of shoreline. Theseaweed forestwas home toscores ofspecies of crea-tures includingf l i t t e r i n gschools ofsmelt, roilingbait balls ofsardine, brightorange garibal-di, patrollingperch, and crabsand halibut camou-flaged on the bottom. She called it her Tour deFronds.

Jamie had parked her sports bag with a toweland sandals on the sand by a lifeguard tower. Asshe approached it after her swim she noticed ayoung man sitting on the sand nearby, strug-gling to stand while he used a cane for support.He couldn’t have been more than twenty yearsold. His arm bore the tattoo of an eagle with‘Semper Fi’ written below it.

“Can I help you?” she asked, still dripping wet.

She extended herhand.

“I’m okay,” he said as he continuedto struggle.

A blond man with a boogie board was a fewsteps behind Jamie emerging from the water.“Let me give you a hand, soldier.” The surfergrabbed his hand and pulled him to a standing

position wherehe balanced onone foot.

A secondboogie boarderwith dark hairemerged fromthe surf andstopped to pickup his towel afew feet away.“Do you needmy help?” heasked.

“I was going to hop into the water,” the sol-dier said.

Without another word, the two boogie board-ers each grabbed an arm and helped the youngman hop towards the water. Jamie tagged along,curious about how he would fare in the waveswith a bum leg. She was ready to pull him out ifthe surf dragged him under.

Once they were in waist-deep water, the twoboogie boarders let go of the soldier. Jamiedetected a frown of apprehension on his face.

Date:Sunday, December 14th

1-3pm

Kellogg Park, La Jolla Shores

There will be prizes for the top three holiday desserts, as well as donation bins

for Toys-for-Tots and the San Diego Food Bank.

There will be an optional pre-event group swim

at noon.

TCSD HOLIDAY POTLUCK & BBQ

Check the club’s website, facebook page or yahoo

group forum for the latest information.

2014

TRIATHLON CLUB OF SAN DIEGO

Tour de Fronds 1TCSD Events 3TCSD Contacts 3

Board Members 4Weekly Workout Calendar 5New Members 5Youth Tri Series Update 6

TCSD Conversation 7Race Report: IM AZ 12Member Profile 21

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

DECEMBER

TriNews

continued on page 20

Sell your bike when the season’s done or find your dream ride for next year!

Cyclone is made with lots of sweat and the occasional muscle strain. We have just started up and really value your input and feedback - and we look forward to serving you!

Cyclone is the Official Bike Marketplace of the 2014 IRONMAN World Championship presented by GoPro.

Cyclone is a new online marketplace where you can buy and sell great secondhand triathlon bikes among triathletes like yourself. We make it easy and are focused purely on triathlon.

Thank you TCSD for being our very first group of users! If you haven't checked us out yet, please come and have a look - you can even put your bike up for sale!

We invite all TCSD members to get started at www.cyclonetri.com/tcsd!

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value your input and feedback - and we look forward to serving you!ly e have just started up and realCyclone is made with lots of sweat and the occasional muscle strain. W

DECEMBER 20142

WWW.TRICLUBSANDIEGO.ORG3

SaturdayDecember 6th, 8:30am

DECEMBER TCSD MEETINGS, CLINICS, RACES & RIDES*

2014/2015 RACE SCHEDULE

All dates and events subject to change.* Refer to the Club’s website/calendar for additional workouts and latest information.

Run EventsDec 13, 2014 - Tentative.10k, 2 loops starting atHospitality Point.

Jan 118k, loop course in Carlsbad. Theold Dannon Duathlon course.

Feb 7 or 14 Off-road course in Del Mar. More details forthcoming.

Fiesta Island Triathlons Mar 15April 11May 17Oct 31Nov 21 - Tentative

South Bay Triathlons August - date TBDSeptember - date TBD

Beginner TriathlonsJune, July, & August Dates TBD

The TCSD Real Beginners’ BikeRide takes on the 56 bike pathand is a club ride where nobodygets left behind. If you can ridecomfortably for at least 60 min-utes without stopping (total ridetime 90-minutes) then this ride isfor you.

Be ready for a few moderateclimbs on the first half of theride; beginners need hills too!Total distance for the ride is 18miles. Hybrids and Mt. Bikes willgo half the distance.

James will be your leader andis promising a fun-filled morning.Non-members are ALWAYS wel-come. Helmets are MANDATORY.

Option: 5K run after the ride.Bring your run gear if you plan to join.

Schedule of Events:8:30am Bike Q&A9:00am Wheels Roll

NEW Meet up Location:PARK & RIDE Location12791 Sorrento Valley RoadDel Mar, CA 92121map: http://tiny.cc/f0j8cx

Contact:Please contact James Ismailogluat [email protected] any questions/comments.

REAL BEGINNERS’ BIKE RIDE

ALWAYS REFER TO THE TRI CLUB’S WEBSITE AND CALENDAR FOR THE LATEST EVENTS, UPDATES AND

DETAILS. DATES, LOCATIONS, EVENTS, GUESTS. ALL EVENTS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

Triathlon Club of San DiegoP.O. Box 504366 San Diego, CA 92150-4366www.triclubsandiego.orgSend correspondence to the address above or contact President, Stephen Banister.

Membership & Renewal$75/year, $60 active military(w/active ID). Additional years available at discount.

TCSD membership (online) athttp://tiny.cc/v3xypw

TCSD e-listsSubscribe to the TCSD e-mailing list by sending a blank email withyour name in the body to:[email protected]

Publisher & Design/ProductionSprague Design, Dean [email protected] (858) 270-1605

Editor Alexis [email protected] (718) 216-8555

Newsletter Articles and IdeasPlease send to Dean Sprague at [email protected]/or Alexis Barnes at [email protected]

Contributing Writers:Barbara Javor, Melissa Meklinger andCraig Zelent

CONTACTS

NEWSLETTER STAFF ANDINFORMATION

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WELCOMENEW TCSDMEMBERSFelipe Acevedo

Jacob Adams

Richard Bailey

John Barbosa

Michael Beckler

Randy Bernhagen

Rafael Bettoni

Craig Blackwood

Genna Boragine

Robert Bradley

Brian Brannigan

Ryan Brizzolara

Kelsey Christoffels

Anne Clancy

Joseph Clauson

Jeff Clymer

Danielle Delliplaine

Andrew Descary

Liz Dinsmoor

Paul Eisan

Teresa Elders

Connor Fitzpatrick

Steve Folio

Andrew Forsman

Douglas Gillingham

Jennifer Gotenstein

Kelly Haffey

Chad Heath

Lily Hikel

Jamie Inn

Medena Knespl

Christopher Lang

4DECEMBER 2014

Apparel: Zoca Gear Hank Montrose [email protected] (908) 247-1145

Aquathlon Director Jay Lewis [email protected]

Beginner Coaches James Ismailoglu [email protected]

Dean Rosenberg [email protected]

Steve Tally [email protected]

Bike Case Rentals Bob Rosen [email protected]

Club Historian Ian Kelly [email protected]

Creative Team Arch & Christy Fuston [email protected]

Expo Director

Ironman Coaches Craig Zelent [email protected] (760) 214-0055

Membership Director James Ismailoglu [email protected]

Newsletter Editor Alexis Barnes [email protected] (718) 216-8555

Newsletter Publisher Dean Sprague [email protected] (858) 270-1605

Race Director Jim Johnson [email protected]

Social Directors Bryan Diaz [email protected]

Amanda Scott [email protected]

Social Media Manager Kat Gunsur [email protected]

Sponsorship Director Cory Gasaway [email protected]

Swim Director Chris Costales [email protected]

Swim Director, Open Water Trevor King [email protected] (858) 717-1114

TCSD Cares Steve Tally [email protected]

Track Coach, UTC (Spring/Summer) Bill Gleason [email protected]

Track Coach, North County Mike Plumb [email protected]

Volunteer Director Dawn Copenhaver [email protected] (619) 867-2784

Youth Team Coach

Web Administrators John Hill [email protected]

Richard Reilly [email protected]

Roger Leszczynski

President Mike Plumb [email protected]

Vice President Deborah Jones [email protected]

Treasurer Bonnie Hammer [email protected]

Secretary Paula Munoz [email protected]

Program and Events Officer Jay Lewis

Marketing Office Tassia Bezdeka [email protected]

TCSD Board of Directors [email protected]

TCSD BOARD MEMBERS

TCSD VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Club Triathlons, Race Discounts, Store Discounts, New Friends, Beginner

Races, New Training Partners, Food, Group Rides, La Jolla Cove, Fiesta

Island, Classified Ads, Club Aquathlons, Beginner Friendly, Youth

Program, Family Membership, Club Duathlons, Monthly Meetings,

Masters Swim Program, MTB Rides, PCH Group Ride, Facebook Page

Join the Club - Join the Fun!

http://tiny.cc/k07o2w

5

Monday6:00 AM Ocean Swim, advanced/expert swimmers • Location: La Jolla Cove.

6:00 PM Ocean Swim in Carlsbad • Location: Tamarack Beach.

7:30 PM JCC Swim Workout • Location: Jewish Community Center (JCC) in University City • Fee based.

Tuesday6:00 AM Pannikin Bike Ride • Location: Pannikin - 7467 Girard Ave., La Jolla.

6:00 AM Ocean Swim in Carlsbad • Location: Tamarack Beach.

6:30 AM Bike Workout in Point Loma, Group ride • Location: Moment Cycle Sport, Liberty Station.

6:30 PM Run Workout in Carlsbad/North County, Coached session • Location: Starts at the Bike Trail

that runs between Carlsbad Village and Tamarack Ave. parallel to the Coaster tracks.

Wednesday6:00 AM Ocean Swim, advanced/expert swimmers • Location: La Jolla Cove.

6:00 PM Ocean Swim in Carlsbad • Location: Tamarack Beach.

7:30 PM JCC Swim Workout • Location: Jewish Community Center (JCC) in University City • Fee based.

Thursday6:00 AM Ocean Swim in Carlsbad • Location: Tamarack Beach.

6:15 AM Pannikin Bike Ride • Location: Pannikin - 7467 Girard Ave., La Jolla.

6:30 AM Bike Workout in Point Loma, Group ride • Location: Moment Cycle Sport, Liberty Station.

Friday

6:30 AM First light ocean Swim • Location: La Jolla Cove.

Saturday

8:00 AM Bike Workout, Group Ride • Location: Meet at Starbucks in Del Mar, Hwy. 101 & 15th St

8:00 AM Bike Workout, Group Ride • Location: Nytro Multisport, Encinitas.

Sunday

TCSD OFFICIAL WEEKLY WORKOUT WINTER CALENDAR

* Refer to the Club’s website/calendar for additional workouts and latest information. WWW.TRICLUBSANDIEGO.ORG

SWIM

BIK

E

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FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF OFFICIAL CLUB WORKOUTS, REVIEW THE WORKOUT SCHEDULE ON THE CLUB’S WEBSITE.

Herbert Lefler

Tracey Locher

Joe Longo

David Maley

Elizabeth Mallof

Nicolas Margarot

Andy Martin

Diego Martinez

Kristine Mcgraw

Nathen Murawski

Lance Myers

Robert Nash

Susan Oswalt

Oliver Partridge

Christopher Pearson

Angel Pena

Pranav Perimbeti

Tam Pham

Jack Quinn

Kal Restom

Sarah Richards

Megan Riise

Danielle Rose

Kelly Ryan

Jeff Seckendorf

Joel Shedroff

Nicola Sundeen

Colleen Takahashi

Bob Uslander

Heather Weiner

Nick Wenger

Vincent Willyard

Tim Young

NEW TCSDMEMBERS, cont.

6DECEMBER 2014

BikeBling.com333 East Grand AvenueEscondido, Ca 92025 1 (800) BikeProwww.bikebling.comDiscount: 10% off parts and accessories.

Endurance House-Oceanside

401 N. Coast Highway

Oceanside, CA 92054

(760) 978-6422

http://endurancehouseoceanside.comDiscount: 10% off to TCSD members.

HERevolution235 S Highway 101 Solana Beach CA 92075www.hertrishop.com(760) 560-7077Discount: 10% off.

Hi-Tech BikesContact: Jamie Henning7638 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.San Diego, CA 92111(858) 715-1517 Discount: 10% bikes and wheels,15% off accessories.

SPONSORS OF TCSD

MULTISPORT

continued on page 7

Meet special guest experts at our events! Plusreceive special Roadrunner Sports discounts foryour whole family and chance to win gift cardsfrom Ralphs!

Events will be held atRoad Runner Sports5553 Copley Dr San Diego, CA 92111

All events be held on Sundays from 10a-11a(see below for Feb., May & June)Check in the Dog House at 9:45a

Dec. 14, 2014Funshop: Get Strong! Bring a mat.Time to Tri Shop! Triathlete ChecklistScavenger Hunt

Jan. 4, 2015Funshop: Shoe Dog Running SkillsHappy New Year Fun Run

Feb. 8, check in 11:45amFunshop: Biking EfficientlyBring your bikes and helmets.

Mar. 15Funshop: Safe Bike Handling SkillsBring your bikes and helmets.

April 12Funshop: Triathlon TransitionsBring your bikes and helmets. Wear run shoes.

Friday, May 1, 4-6:30pSpring Sprint Packet Pickup & Course Talks.

Saturday, June 6, 3-5pSan Diego Kids Splash & Dash Packet Pickup and Course Talks.

July 12Summer Family Tri Fun in the Sun-What’s happening. Summer Tri-on Fashion Show

August 16Try Triathlon Endurance Food and Drinks-Fuelyour Body for Energy.Tri Transitions Fun-Run Course

October 11Share your Family Race Stories and Photos.Meet the SoCal Youth Triathlon Series Winners!

Questions? Contact Coach Judi([email protected]), Coach Paula, andCoach Jim.USAT Certified Coaching.Triuscoaching. http://www.triuscoaching.com

See YOU there!

This is the fourth year of the Youth Tri Series.This year, RoadRunner Sports will be sponsoringthe series with lots of great series awards andspecial discounts for your whole family!

All kids ages 6 to 15 years old can Tri outthese high quality, safe, mostly USA sanctionedMultiSport events, with distances specificallymade just for kids their age! Our USA TriathlonCertified Coaching Team will be offering kidstriathlon open water, transition, and preraceclinics to help each child be well prepared fortheir races.

For participating in the races and clínicsthroughout the triathlon series, kids will be

able to earn great series awards!Here are our series events finalized so far:

Event #1: Sun., March 8, L.A. Tri Event #1Kids Triathlon.

Event #2: Sun., May 3, Sprint Sprint KidsTriathlon.

Event #3: Sun., June 7, San Diego Retro Tri &Kids Splash & Dash.

Event #4: Sun., Augst TBD, Kids Triathlon atChula Vista Challenge.

Event #5: Sat. Oct 3, SoCal Youth TriathlonChampionship at Scott Tinley's Triathlons.

See TRIUSCOACHING.com/upcoming-events forall the latest series events, Kids Tri TrainingClinics, and info!

UPDATED 2014-2015 FREE & FUN FAMILY EVENT SCHEDULE

2015 SOCAL YOUTH TRIATHLON SERIES IS OPENING SOON!

Craig: What was your athletic back-ground before you started racingtriathlons?Kyle: I grew up competing in everysport my parents would let me bein. The one sport I never hadenough time for was swim team,which would have paid off bigtime now, but that is all good.Basketball has always been a loveof mine, I never have enoughtime to get on the court any-more but hoops is definitely asport that I love. I always kindaknew growing up that runningwas going to be my best sport.My family moved into Yakima,WA, when I entered high school,and was blessed by being able to run cross coun-try and track for one of the best coaches in thecountry. I was able to earn a scholarship as an800 meter runner for Eastern WashingtonUniversity.

What was your first triathlon experience likefor you…and the spectators? Kyle: My first tri was a sprint tri during my jun-ior year of high school. For some reason Ithought some good cross training (swim, bike,and run) would be good for my cross countrysummer training. I never swam before the race.I rode a couple of times, but was running everyday for cross. I swam in board shorts and nogoggles. My contact came off my eye mid swim,

and I was all loopy coming out of the water. I thought runningshorts and especially spandex were very un-cool,so as I entered T1 I stripped my board shorts off(now completely naked), threw on underwear,bike shorts, and then basketball shorts over thebike shorts. I tossed on a cut off sleeve shirt,bike gloves, helmet, my sister’s sunglasses,socks, running shoes and hopped on my dad’sold school yellow 10-speed bike where you hadto shift down on the frame; it was awesome. Icame into T2 for another complete change ofclothes and then ran my guts out for the 5K. No

TCSD CONVERSATION WITH:By Craig Zelent ”

7

Moment Cycle SportContact: JT Lyons2816 Historic Decatur Rd., Ste. 135San Diego, CA 92106 (619) 523-BIKE www.momentcyclesport.comDiscount: 10% off product, laborexcluded.

Nytro Multisport940 S. Coast Highway 101Encinitas, CA 92024(800) 697-8007 www.Nytro.comDiscount: 10% everything but service.

Revolution Bike Shop235 S Highway 101 Solana Beach CA 92075revolutionbikeshop.com(858) 222-2453Discount: 10% off parts and accessories

The Triathlete Store14037 Midland Rd. Poway, CA 92064www.TheTriathleteStore.com(858) 842-4664Discount: 10% off CODE: Available on TCSD Member Discount web page.

SPONSORS OF TCSD

continued on page 8

continued on page 8

Kyle Hummel“

WWW.TRICLUBSANDIEGO.ORG

Kyle hanging with his parents after a 70.3.

I got to talk triathlon with TCSD’s most recent World Champion

Kyle Hummel. It will blow your mind to hear what Kyle has gone

through just to be able to walk around like a normal guy. He has

come so far to become the Ironman 70.3 World Champion for

the men’s 30-34 age group. He is an awesome athlete who

really appreciates the gifts he has been blessed with. I know

you will enjoy getting to know Kyle.

one ever said anything about me getting allnaked in transition; looking back I don’t knowhow. Gotta love tri people, they know what’sup.

Congratulations on recently becoming theIronman 70.3 World Champion for the menage 30-34. I heard your IM 70.3 career start-ed a few years ago with a bang. How did yourfirst 70.3 go?Kyle: My first year oftris was 2006. In 2007 Igave my first shot at the70.3 distance. I was stillrocking my road bikewith clip on aero bars. Iwas racing Lake Stevens70.3 and at this time, thebike was a two loopcourse. The end of thefirst loop went right bythe swim area so all of thespectators were locatedthere. As I came into thisarea I decided I wantedsome water at the bottomof the hill right in the mid-dle of what happened to bewhere my parents were located. I tried to graba water bottle from a volunteer but he washolding on much too tight to the bottle, andwhen I tried to grab it I was thrown backwards.I tried to correct but it was too late, I wasgoing down. I bounced across the pavementlike a ragdoll. Luckily my dad was taking photosand got some in action wreck shots. I was a

mess of road rash anywhere on my body thatwas bony. My ankles, knees, hips, elbows,shoulders, everything was torn up. My firstattempt at a 70.3 was a DNF.

You have had some major health issues for ayoung guy. One of these started on August 6,2009. What happened on that day?Kyle: August 6, 2009 was the day that tested

my attitude aboutlife and familymore than I evercould have imag-ined. The reason Igot intotriathlons was tocomplete anIronman. Threeweeks beforetrying to com-plete my firstironman I washit head on byan SUV whileon my bike.

I had neverreally been

injured before, let alone breaken a bone.But I knew that day, lying face down in a ditchin the Montana summer heat, looking up at myleg with the tibia bone sticking out that therewas no doubt I had not only broken my leg, butit was shattered. The very first thought thatwent through my head was that all of my hardwork is down the drain, I will never competeagain.

8

CONVERSATION, continued

DECEMBER 2014

Aqua Spherewww.AquaSphereSwim.comDiscount: Products sold through localretailers with TCSD discount.

Garminwww.garmin.com

Hypoxico - Altitude Training Sysemshttp://www.hypoxico.com

NormaTec - Recovery [email protected](866) 658-5896Discount: 10% discount

Oasis One-Twelvewww.OasisOne-Twelve.comDiscount: 10% discount

SPONSORS OF TCSD


APPAREL & EQUIPMENT

TCSD has traveling bike and wheel cases for rent!

We have hard-shell single and double bike cases, and wheel cases that will hold three wheels.

Deduct $10 if renting both a bike case and a wheel case.

To reserve a case or if you have any questions, contact Bob Rosen at [email protected]

The single cases are shippable by UPS and FedEx. Rates per week:Single case $25 Double case $40 Wheel case $25

TCSD BIKE & WHEEL CASE RENTAL PROGRAM

Finish line celebration at IM 70.3 World Championship.

But I did, and I was even faster,more committed and determined.

What was your comeback likeafter that terrible accident?Kyle: Very slowly, and painful.My family is incredible and myparents took me in because Ineeded 24/7 care. I had somuch support from extendedfamily and friends that would stay withme once I got out of the hospital while myparents were at work. I had some really darkdays over the first six months. I went fromfull on ironman training to stuck in a bed allday. Just to do something/anything I wouldgo in the back yard and my dad would bringweights out to do some upper body weights.After I was able to get around OK on my ownI moved back into my townhouse in Missoula.I could not work so I would do as much as Icould at the gym. I would lift upper body, alot of one legged squats and toe raisers, swim

in the pool but no flip turning in fearof hitting my left ankle on top of thepool. The break to both tibia and fibulawere so bad that the bone growth need-ed was a very slow process. I ended uphaving five surgeries to the leg over a 13month period with two bone grafts to helpenable bone growth.

Lesley Paterson has had a biginfluence on your success. Whathave you learned from Lesleythat sets her apart from othercoaches you have workedwith?Kyle: I originally met Lesley inthe pool, and we swam in thesame lane in Masters swim-ming, and she was all intenseand encouraging all at thesame time. I was like ‘who isthis little Scottish girl allamped up all the time?’ Then



14037 Midland Rd, Poway, CA 92064

858-842-4664

On the way to recovery.

I realized she was one of the strongest riders in the group ridesI would do and I knew that she was someone special. We becamefriends and started doing workouts together and we both realizedthat we both have the same attitude and killer drive in ourselvesthat make for great training partners. I looked at many coachesin the San Diego area but I did not connect the same way withanyone that I did with Lesley. Her amazing training philosophy ofstrength work before speed makes so much since and my racinghas had amazing improvements because of her training style. Icould not maximize my racing abilities just in the race seasondoing all speed work. It starts from weeks and weeks of hard corestrength work and gradually building in the speed to peak at justthe right time.

The team at Rehab United and Tyler Forbes have also played asignificant role in your success. How have they helped you? Kyle: I was introduced to Bryan Hill with Rehab United throughLesley because our first year of working together I could not stayhealthy. After I broke my leg, I did zero hours of physical thera-py. I honestly thought it was a waste of time. My mind set wasthat my body will just fix itself. But with one injury after anoth-

er, I knew I needed outside help. Bryan and I got really closebecause I will do whatever it takes to be my best so I was in PTthree times a week. Bryan really worked out some issues and builtsome needed strength in my broken leg.

But even with all of Bryan’s incredible work I was still gettinginjured. Two years ago I could barely walk because my psoas wasso inflamed. I was a mess and needed some serious deep tissuework. That is when I was introduced to Tyler Forbes, a chiroprac-tor with Back in Motion. This guy is quite honestly amazing. Hetore into my body in a way that would make me scream for bloodymurder. I would leave an hour long session drenched in sweatfrom Tyler breaking apart my muscles. These sessions hurt morethan anything, but I knew that it had to be done. If it was notfor Tyler I would still be injured and I truly believe that. My bodywas such a mess and so tight all over that it took two months ofworking with him before I was able to run pain free. I have nowgone two seasons of racing with no injuries by keeping constantvisits with Tyler.

What other fringe benefits have you enjoyed from your work-outs at Rehab United?

10DECEMBER 2014


11

Kyle: Bryan puts on great strength and injury prevention classesa couple times a week at his Rehab United clinics. I originally metRandi at these strength classes. I would briefly say hi to Randiafter I originally met her, but since I was there to work out thatwas what my focus was on. She may be hot, but I have otherthings to worry about, like how bad can Imake myself hurt today. But after one classI found Randi and I in a great conversationout in the parking lot for 10 or 15 minutesand was about to approach her about get-ting dinner together when she abruptlyended the conversation because she wasgetting too cold, and before I knew itshe was gone, leaving me standingthere. I thought ‘that sucks’, but I willsee her again. Rehab held a teambuilding event at a Padres gamearound ten months after our originalfirst (what I thought) great conver-sation outside of RU. As a triathletethere really is no time for a sociallife, especially the more serious youtake the sport. Your training part-ners become your training bestfriends. That night I was able toattend the baseball gamebecause I was injured and Randihad just finished an ironman sowe were both out of training andactually had time get to know someone. We both con-nected at that game and now have become more than bestfriends; we're each other’s better half until death does us part.Bryan claims to have set us up. All I know is that I owe that guybig time because without Rehab I would have never met the loveof my life.

You had lung surgery earlier this year. What brought that on? Kyle: The lung issues were the result of a bacterial infection tomy lung and diaphragm. The exact cause of it all will always be amystery. But it all started the week of Oceanside this year whenI went into that race already feeling sick. I got in a fist fight withsome guy in the swim and ended up with a black lip and swal-lowed a lot of that nasty water. 15 miles on the bike I puked allover the place. A week after the race I was feeling worse andworse and could barely run. In the middle of a six hour bike rideI was on the side of the road, not able to breathe and honestlypretty scared. Not being able to breathe is no joke and nothingthat I had encountered before. I ended up in the ER and was diag-nosed with pneumonia and pleurisy. That was the start to thecrazy summer of mine.

You had a major physical set back this year. How did you

bounce back so quickly from being so sick to World Championin a few short months?Kyle: Last year, I was able to put up good results and I reallywanted to get a great base of training going into this year. I wasdoing seven hour training days the first week of December andpeople were telling me I was nuts, ‘what the hell are you training

this hard for when your first half ironman is notfor over two months?’. The thing isthat you never hear of anyone doingsomething great by being normal orby doing what everyone else does. Iwas going to take my racing to anoth-er level and that meant taking mytraining to another level. I really didnot care what anyone else thought. Mygoals and ambitions are higher than thenext person; therefore I am going to dotwice the work as them. We must havedreams to make us strive for greatness…‘Nothing can happen if not first a dream.’

After my six day hospital stay from lungsurgery I spent two weeks recovering. Iended up with eight weeks until WorldChampionships 70.3. I spent that first threeweeks absolutely murdering myself withstrength training. I maxed my body out everyday because that is what needed to be done tocompete at a high level. Regularly waking upbefore 4AM, running hill repeats in the pitch

dark or on my bike trainer pounding away. Imoved into speed four weeks before Worlds get-

ting more quality or quantity and that paid off big time. If I didnot have those monster months of training in December andJanuary my body would not have been able to handle the load Iput in the two months before Worlds.

How did the IM 70.3 Worlds go down for you in MontTremblant?Kyle: I came out of the water in 27 minutes which I was happywith considering how physical the first seven or eight minuteswere from a run in start. The body felt good and headed out onthe bike (what ended up being in 39th place).

I got on the bike and started passing guys with ease, groups offive to ten guys like it was nothing. I moved into the top five bythe half way mark and knew I was having a special day. By theend of the bike I came into T2 tied for second and felt great. Iran down the leader at mile five and never looked back. It wasone of those days where the mind never breaks, the body feels nopain, the day every triathlete hopes they have when they race.Randi was there at the finish line and hugged her so hard with



Mid-fives from Kyle’s now wife, Randi, at 2013 CA 70.3.

A race/love story from a first timer and thebetter half of a training couple.

“I’m a volume guy, you know.” Gulp. I beganfeeling slightly nauseous. I was sitting next tomy boyfriend, Marc, and our running/tri coachwas describing his Ironman training philoso-phy to us. “What, exactly, is ‘volume?’” Ithought. In my opinion, ALL triathlon train-ing was voluminous, but I had never trainedfor a full 140.6. What did I know?

Let’s backtrack a bit. Marc and I had vol-unteered for Ironman Arizona in 2012. Wewere relative newbies having just started inthe sport earlier that year. We decided to skipthe Monday sign-ups and drive home due towork obligations. But on the ride home, stillbasking in the IMAZ finish line adrenaline, weconvinced ourselves that maybe we COULD doit. Well, it never happened; the race sold out in15 seconds or so and we were done. At least forthat year. All during 2013, we planned to vol-unteer again at IMAZ to secure a 2014 slot. Wemade our way back to Arizona in 2013 and

signed up the morning after

volunteering. andhere we are nowin a hip, casualrestaurant in Encinitas, sit-ting across from our experienced coach, JimO’Hara, who is trying to explain that we’re infor something “voluminous.” This made me alittle (ok, a LOT) nervous. I’m a single mom, Iwhined to myself; I have three young kids, afull time job and I’m LAZY in the mornings. In

12

DECEMBER 2014

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reality, if nothing else motivatedme it was the fact that I had spenta small fortune to sign up for therace. I needed a coach because Iwas determined that when peopleasked me what my time goal was, Iwas NOT going to reply “oh, just tofinish.” Bring it on, Mr. Volume.

It wasn’t long before we were ona rigorous training schedule thatincluded the obvious SBR, alongwith strength training and stretch-ing exercises. To say that I didEVERY workout would be a lie, butI was diligent with what I coulddo. Our coach Jim began the train-ing by telling us that if my andMarc’s relationship survived thetraining, we should consider theplan a success. Marc and I trainedtogether as much as we could andhad endless tri-related discus-sions—nutrition, rest, runningform, bike cadence, you name it,we chatted about our shared expe-rience. He’s much faster than I am,so I pretty much had to check myego at the door and get used tocoming in last. He slowed his longbikes down to accommodate, meand I put up with his grouchiness.He was my biggest motivator dur-ing training, and I missed himwhen I was finding a workout dif-ficult and he wasn’t there. Lotshappens during training… he gothurt, I broke down crying during aparticular sucky day… we learnedwhen to cheer each other on andwhen to back off. In hindsight, itbonded us together even more.

Fast forward to IMAZ race week-end. We drove to Arizona withMarc’s 16-year-old son Austin. Wearrived on Thursday and were stay-ing about 1.2 miles from IronmanVillage. We checked into the hotelthen made our way to the Village.This was our third time at IMAZ,but it’s different when you’re anathlete. There’s a quiet energy that

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RACE REPORT, continuedsurrounds the crowd, and we were now a part ofit. Check-in went smoothly but was rather slow.You’d think they’d get this down pat by now. Wegot our swim cap, timing chip, race bibs/stick-ers and five race bags (five race bags… seemsa bit excessive, but more on that later). Theyput on your bracelet and from that point on,you’re doing your best to make sure everyoneyou pass by during the next three days sees it.Yes, I’m an athlete… oh, you don’t have abracelet?... too bad for you. Aren’t I special?!

We shopped at the severely over-pricedIronman merchandise store, of course, and thendecided to see a movie to get our minds off ofthe race. Turns out the movie theater near theVillage has those comfy, reclining la-z-boy typechairs; at $7 a ticket, I felt like I had won thelottery. Sleep didn’t come easy that night, but Iwas sort of expecting restlessness. We were upearly Friday morning to do a short bike ride andmet Marc’s parents, sister and Austin back at thehotel. We wanted to be sure to attend one ofthe many athlete briefings and so we did atabout 2pm. We ended up walking around a lotmore than anticipated so we decided to seeanother movie on Friday night. Not such a greatnight as the movie was terrible and we wereexhausted. Another restless sleep.

We planned to do a short bike and run onSaturday, but were on the fence about the prac-tice swim. We heard that the water was unusu-

ally warm but people were talking about thepossibility of getting sick from drinking thenasty water. If you’re not familiar with the swimat IMAZ, it’s in Temple Town “Lake,” which isn’ta lake. It’s a canal and the water is… er, cloudy.After hearing that the low water level made theswim exit difficult, we decided to go ahead anddo the swim. We meandered down to the water’sedge. There was a two-hour window to swim butour plan was to take only a short dip. Variouswetsuitted athletes were walking around, chat-ting about water temperature and how DARK thewater was. It’s something you don’t think aboutduring training, but the camaraderie during anIronman is GREAT. Striking up conversationswith strangers is routine—we have so much incommon and talking about our shared experi-ence seemed to calm everyone’s nerves, includ-ing mine. The swim was uneventful… a littlechilly but nowhere near the announced 70degrees. And it was super-dark… I could seefrom my shoulder to my elbow… no hands!Gladly, the swim exit wasn’t as difficult as I hadthought; the first step out was even with thewater surface, so we’d have to rely on volun-teers to pull us up. The swim is my weakestevent by far, so the practice helped ease mymind.

After the swim, we marched back to my not-so-cool, yet extremely useful minivan toretrieve the bikes. We did a short 25 minute ride

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NUTRITION

noting the lack of wind. Although IMAZ is flat,the wind conditions can be sketchy. At thispoint, we had been there for three days andbarely a breeze had blown. However, by Saturdayafternoon the buzz in the Village (and online)was that the weather forecast was taking a turnfor the windy. Estimated wind had grown from 8-12 mph, to 12-18mph with 20mph gusts.Luckily, we had done many 100+ mile rides onFiesta Island which were oh so much fun. Well,actually, Marc had done many; I had done ONEbut decided to ignore the nervous nellies…itdoes me no good to worry about things I can’tcontrol. After the bike, a quick run got ourhearts pumping and we were ready to drop ourbikes off in transition along with our bike andrun bags.

I would be remiss for not mentioning the “bagsituation.” We can file this under the “I didn’tthink about that” category of Ironman racing.There are endless things to put in a transitionbag at any race, but usually T1 and T2 areTOGETHER. To separate out when I might needchapstick and butt cream was mentally taxing ata time when I had very few brain cells workingat maximum capacity. In what seems likeextreme Type A behavior, before going toArizona, I laid out five of my endless supply ofstring bags on my bedroom floor to representeach IMAZ bag. During the week before the race,I would throw miscellaneous items in each bagin the event I might need it during the race… Iended up with five piles of the exact samestuff… chapstick, body glide, sunscreen, gu’s,bandaids (?), hair ties (can’t get tangles!), etc.I knew I wouldn’t need them all,but “just in case” seemed likeda good pre-race strategy. Inanother apparent OCD moment,I gathered all the small stuffin each bag and put them intoa smaller sandwich bags andlabeled them. The only expla-nation I have for this crazybehavior is that Ironmantraining to a woman feelseerily similar to pregnancy…the hormonal crying, intern-ment unexplained bloatingand now THIS, the “nesting”of my bags. Upon hearing ofmy pre-bagging ritual, Marc

looked at me like I was insane and just shook hishead with a smile (or was that a smirk?). Whenwe got to Arizona, I noted that Marc had baggedhis small stuff too. Maybe I wasn’t so crazy afterall.

OK, back to Arizona… as I was racking mybike, I saw my mom and two sisters who hadarrived earlier that day from San Diego andAustin Texas. I was so glad they were there,waving, smiling and taking pictures. After rack-ing our bikes, dropping our run and bike bags offand posing for pictures, Marc and I headed toour room for some much needed R&R with apromise to meet both families for a carb-loadedItalian dinner. Because of the evident time warpat the race site (are they ALL like this?), every-thing took waaaaay longer than anticipated. OurSaturday afternoon that was supposed to bespent off of our feet turned into a two-hour rest-less TV fest squeezed between racking our bikesand dinnertime.

On the way to dinner Marc dropped me off atIronman Village to pick up my wetsuit. I hadripped a giant hole in the front during the prac-tice swim and we found a vendor to fix it. Nicestguy ever… he was Canadian, so I think thatobligated him to be gracious. He even said he’dwait around for me to show up after the expoclosed. Because of the lack of parking, I was towalk to the restaurant after picking up the suit,an easy three blocks. As a testament to my lackof brainpower, I jumped out of the car and real-ized, as Marc sped off into the distance, that Ileft my purse on the floor of the front seat ofthe car. I showed up, money-less, to pick up mywetsuit. Again, in true Canadian-ness, he hand-

ed me theCarbo load dinner with family, don’t mind the wine glasses.

wetsuit and said not to worry, just send him a check.Marc had also gotten a pair of goggles that he hadn’tpaid for; I felt so terrible but really had no choice. GoCanucks!

Dinner was great… both of our families were there.I sat near my mom and sisters and they provided themuch needed comic relief that evening. We laughedand chatted. Our good friend Marc (yes, spelled thesame) drove up from San Diego to cheer us on andjoined us for dinner. What could have been a stress-ful “night before” turned into a relaxed, fun dinner.Two nights of restless sleep and the excitement ofthe race had sapped my energy. We returned to ourhotel early, laid out our flat selves (scary that youknow exactly what that means), finalized someodds and ends then both slept surprisinglysoundly.

BRRRRRIIIIINNGGGGG… hotel wake-up call…it’s 3:45am, RACE DAY! We got dressed, ate atthe hotel (nice 4am breakfast), went back to our room for theremaining three (whew!) bags, waited for the hotel shuttle and offwe went. Transition was full of people and there was an excite-ment in the air, but nobody wanted to waste nervous energy, soit was quiet in a somber kind of way. Marc and I separated in tran-sition with the promise to drop our stuff off then meet up for bodymarking, etc. We needed to find my family because we brought abike pump and couldn’t leave it in the transition bags. If you havetrouble making friends, my advice is to bring a bike pump intotransition at an Ironman event; you’ll have people begging to beyour best friend all morning. After fending off the throngs of ournew bike pump friends, I tossed it over the fence to mysister who had somehow talkedher way into therestricted T1 area. Shesaid she just looked“purposeful” and told avolunteer she had to pickup a “Sherpa bag;” theylet her right in. Afterchatting with her andthen getting yelled at forbeing one of the last peo-ple left in transition, Marcand I made our way to theswim. Oddly enough, I was-n’t nervous even though thebest description for my swimspeed is “not drowning.” Marc

actually seemed more

nervous than me. I almost lost him in the crowdand got a little panic-y.Another piece of advice… asmuch as you would like tothink you can pick your lovedone out of a crowd, when thecrowd is dressed in wetsuitsand swim caps, everyone looksexactly the same... like pen-guins. Darn, I at least wantedto bid Marc a farewell and goodluck. Luckily, I found him.Whew.

The swim entrance was movedbecause the water level was solow. We’d have to swim 3/10thsof a mile to get to the start.Geesh, that isn’t good news to thechallenged swimmer; turned out itallowed me to stay warm whilewaiting for the start. Marc stayed

with me the whole time; I could tell he was still nervous. Becausehe’s a better swimmer, he continued to move up while I stoppedabout two thirds back. The cannon went off even before he got tohis spot.

OMG, I’M IN AN IRONMAN!!! I was about to wax sentimental inmy mind when HOLY MOLY, I’m getting kicked, punched, elbowedand otherwise thrashed! That is one helluva swim! It spread outslightly at about 200 meters but not after a powerful kick to the

chest almost knocked the wind out of me. As dirtyas the water had been rumored to be, there’s some-thing to be said for non-salty water. Good thing,because I drank plenty of it. Because I’m with theslow swimmers, I think I get thrashed a littlemore… they’re violent and they’re coming fromevery direction. I poke my head up, look at theflailing arms and legs and think “I don’t look likeTHAT when I swim, do I?” At times I was swim-ming free and clear, and then suddenly a gangof hoodlums would show up and rough me up.I got kicked in the eye by a particularly violentbreast-stroker. He actually apologized afterhearing me scream an obscenity. Yes, my swimis slow enough to be conversational. Afterthe turn-around, the water got choppy… likewhite-cap choppy. It was weird and I wasafraid I was going to get vertigo and/ornauseous, which is a recurring problem forme and why I rarely do open water swims.

16

RACE REPORT, continued

I made it through okay and the end of the swimcame quickly. Exiting was no big deal as the fab-ulous volunteers pulled me up and out of thewater and hung on to me all the way up thesteps.

Can I just say that wetsuit strippers are thebest invention EVER? FWAP! Wetsuit off. Nobodybut me is running to transition. We’re in a RACEpeople, I feel like yelling, STEP IT UP!! At thattime I didn’t know that I was approximately121st out of 125 eventual finishers in the swim.I just knew I was DONE with my least favoritepart of the race. And my family was right there…YAY!!! My bike bag was atthe front of a row, so itwas easy for me to pickit up myself and go. Gotto the tent, dumpedeverything out, tried togo fast but my brainwas definitely on lowbattery. My T1 timeended up being aboutnine minutes… it real-ly felt like five. I won-dered where Marc was;easily well into hisbike by now, I washoping he had donewell on the swim. Heworked super-hard toget faster with swimbeing the most difficult part of his race too.

Another entry for the “I didn’t think of that”file: the sunscreen people. Imagine that youronly job as a volunteer is to rub people downwith sunscreen. As I exited the tent, they’rescreaming “SUNSCREEN!!” with their glovedhands in the air like they’re about to prep forsurgery. How cool. Now I don’t have to get myhands all greasy. Dang, I feel special and pam-pered in an athlete-like way.

I run out of transition (NEVER walk into or outof transition, it looks so hopeless) and I hop onmy bike (ok, more like: stop after the mount line,tilt my bike, lift my leg, adjust my tri shorts,adjust my pedals, push up my sunglasses, turn onmy Garmin, snot rocket), then GO! At this point,because of the sudden swim choppiness I hadexperienced, I knew the wind had kicked up, justnot sure how much and in which direction; turnsout, VERY MUCH and directly at me. The bike is a

three-loop course, so roughly 18.7 miles out(slight uphill) and back. On the advice of mycoach, I broke the course up into those segmentsand only concentrated on finishing my next 18.7miles. Because the wind increased with everyloop, I knew I could easily burn out my legs in112 miles. I finished the first loop at 17mph inroughly just over two hours, which was exactlymy goal; however my “out” was only 14mph andthe “back” was 20mph (or something mathemat-ical to average 17). I settled in knowing that Iwould only get slower each successive loop…the wind gusts were getting harder and compris-ing a larger portion of each loop. I heard Marc

yell my name at somepoint on mys e c o n dloop… hewas on histhird. That didwonders formy spirits. Ialso saw myfamily at thet u r n - a ro undback in Tempe.You really can’tunderestimatedthe power ofhaving support-ers in thecrowd… it’sinstant energy.

My goal was to finish in under seven hours. Itended up that I got as slow as 8.5mph for a sus-tained period. Very frustrating but, again on theadvice of my all-knowing coach, I didn’t fight thewind, just rode on feel. It turned out I complet-ed the bike I 6:52, which I knew because of myGarmin and was happy with under those circum-stances.

Entering transition, you just roll your bike to avolunteer. So cool! He reminded me to removemy Garmin from the bike and knew how to saveand turn it off. Doubly cool! Got handed my bikebag… or did I get it myself? Anyway, I ended upwith another GREAT volunteer helper in the T2tent who knew how to turn on and start my oldmodel Garmin watch, she happened to have thesame one. Got refreshed… I had put a face wipein my run bag, best thing all day. Got everything


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WELLNESS

DECEMBER 201418

RACE REPORT, continued

stuffed into my pockets, basically salt tabs andgels. Had a hat and kept my sunglasses on too.I had followed my nutrition plan on the bike andhad eaten two PB&J’s and drank an Ensure alongwith gallons of water and electrolytes and salttabs so I didn’t feel depleted in any way. I visit-ed the Sunscreen People and was so happy tostart the run, which is my FAVORITE part of therace. I was almost done… I mean, I had alreadygone 114.4 miles… only 26.2 to go, right???

As I began the run, I thought about Marc andwhere he was. Nobody had given me updates asI flew by them, but my guess was that he waswell into his run at this point. We had predictedthat he would finish 2-3 hours before me. I TOLDyou he was fast. I was hoping to pass him on therun course at some point during the 2 loops, butnever did. I saw a slew of TCSD folks and otherfriends who were either athletes or volunteers.The crowd support is great on at least half of therun. There are some lonely and dark stretches butthat’s when the mental toughness kicks in. Tofinish an Ironman is really a mental game.Nobody gets to the run without some ache orpain or general tiredness. It’s amazing what youcan accomplish with training, inspiration andmotivation. A little Godly intervention alsohelps.

My coach had warned us about the dangers ofstarting out too fast on the run and I had expe-rienced the detrimental results at a 70.3 raceearlier in the year. I knew at the start of the runthat if I could do a 4:30 marathon, I would fin-ish in sub-13:30. My goal had been 14 hours soI was motivated to not blow up. I mentally brokethe race down into two half marathons. The firsthalf went well and I had to concentrate to slowmyself down. I saw our friend Marc and my fam-ily at the end of loop 1 and felt super-energized.They commented on how well I looked (yeh,right), but I ate it up.

I didn’t come to a complete stop EVER in thewhole race but would slow to get food/drink.Just keep moving, I thought. My coach’s voicekept creeping into my head and I distractedmyself thinking of running form issues… kick myfeet up a little more in the back, knees a littlehigher up front, relax my arms and shoulders. Ithought of Marc often, where he was in the race,how great our training had been. He was the per-

fect training partner for me… I had a tendencyto get that reel of negative thoughts in my mindand it would affect my races. He taught me howto be confident and competitive; it made a hugedifference in how I approached and completedraces. He is done by now, I thought after myfirsts loop, glad that he’d get a chance to recov-er before making his way back to the finish lineto wait for me.

Around mile 19 or so I began to tire signifi-cantly. I knew this “wall” was coming and fig-ured I’d just ride it out and that the excitementof the last few miles would pull me through. Ithink I slowed to an 11-min mile at one point.However, true to my prediction, around mile 22-23, I picked it up. I used the last few miles toplan what my finish would look like. I didn’twant to be a crying mess, so I began to smile.Yep, I was a smiling fool beginning at about mile23. Smiled at volunteers, athletes, whomever Icame across. Lots of people were walking at thispoint and I would encourage folks every chanceI got. The thankfulness was overwhelming.People commented on my smiling, energizing meeven more.

I could hear Mike Reilly’s voice, naming theIronmen crossing the finish line. Approachingthe chute was a feeling like none other. All theblood, sweat, and tears of training for thismoment! The crowd was loud. My arms were inthe air, my smile even brighter. I think I gavesome high-fives but I wanted to savor themoment… please let this chute go on for anoth-er mile!!! I was drinking it in.

Melissa Merklinger YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!! My time was 13:22, well faster than my goal,

and I had passed 93 people in my age groupsince that snail-like swim to move up to 33rdplace. So happy!!!

Most would say that this is the end of theirstory. But mine was just beginning. Four stepsafter the finish line, a Mylar blanket waswrapped around me. I turned, and there wasMarc, standing at the finish line. I instinctivelyhugged him not thinking that the finish linearea is secured, meaning NOBODY is allowed backin there, even athletes. I stepped back andlooked at him. He was not wearing his racing kit.He had a tuxedo shirt on, red bow tie, red cum-merbund, black tri shorts, his signature red calf


sleeves and matching red running shoes. Howcute, I thought, he dressed up to celebrate myfinish. Or so I thought.

To explain the significance of the nextevents, you have to understand that our rela-tionship began only a few months before wejoined the sport. Triathlon was and still is anintegral part of “us.” We’ve had trials and tribu-lations just like any couple, but we’ve alwayshad the shared interest and experience of atriathlon journey. It’s mentally and physicallyexhausting; we’ve seeneach other at our mentaland physical worst andhave been able to cele-brate victories together.We understand.

“Why are you dressedlike that?” I asked whenI came to my senses. Hedidn’t say a word.

He got down on oneknee and asked “Willyou marry me?”

“YES, of course!”Lots of crying and

celebration ensued.Mike Reilly announcedthat he must havecaught me at a weakmoment, because I

said yes. Turns out Marc had planned this formany months; all family members knew, but Iwas caught totally by surprise. I called my kidsthat night and they were thrilled; they love himas much as I do. Thinking back now as I writethis, I am so grateful to have this man in mylife for many reasons. On top of the stress ofour first Ironman, he had the extra stress ofplanning the proposal and purposefully slowedhis race down to guarantee that he’d finish inone piece and be in top shape for MY finish. As

a triathlete, I know what a sac-rifice that is. Icouldn’t reallyask for any-thing more.

So this reallywasn’t a racereport. It’s atribute to theman I love andour crazy,t r i a t h l o n -inspired lifetogether. I can’twait for the nextchapter!

XOXO, Me.

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“Are you all right?” she asked.He gazed at the surf. “This is my first time in the ocean. I’m

from Kentucky.”“Are you stationed here?”He shook his head, still staring at the incoming swells. “I was

on duty overseas until I broke my leg and the Marines gave me amedical discharge. I’ve got some buddies stationed here. I cameto visit them.”

“A combat injury?” the blond boogie boarder asked.“No, a stupid accident six months ago. I don’t know if I’ll ever

walk right again.”“Wanna catch some waves with my board?” the dark-haired

surfer asked. “You don’t need two good legs to ride a boogieboard. Come on, I’ll show you how.”

The two boogie boarders helped get him in position before theoncoming waves broke, and then pushed him off. The soldierwhooped during his first ride, a big grin stretching across hisface. “That was so cool!” He sounded like a ten-year-old kid.When the ride ended in knee-deep water, Jamie and the twosurfers helped him stand and return to deeper water. After sever-al more rides, his enthusiasm hadn’t waned but he grew reluctantto ask for help when the board stopped in shallow water. “I real-ly appreciate you lending me the board to ride the waves, but Ican’t keep asking for your help to stand up.”

The dark-haired surfer shrugged. “It’s not a problem. You don’thave to ride the surf. Sometimes I like to paddle around past thewaves because it’s kind of peaceful just bobbing with the swells.Wanna try that?”

“Say, I’ve got a second pair of goggles in my bag,” Jamie said.“Maybe we can swim around the point to the kelp beds to lookfor fish. They gave a good show a half hour ago.”

The soldier shook his head as he stared at the point. “I’d liketo but I don’t think I can swim that far.”

“You can paddle my board,” the dark-haired surfer said. “I’llswim next to you.”

“And I’ll come with my board,” the blond man said. “You shouldbe okay.”

“I’ll be back in a jiffy,” Jamie said. She darted out of the waterto retrieve the goggles.

They were in no hurry swimming around the point as the four-some chatted. The Marine mostly talked about his tour overseas.Jamie sensed he had a lot to get off his chest, but he was reluc-tant to share too much with strangers.

Once they entered the kelp beds, Jamie played the role of tourguide. Within ten minutes they saw at least a dozen differentkinds of fish including sting rays and a leopard shark. The Marinereacted like a boy on his first trip to the zoo, punctuating eachof many comments with an exclamation point. “Wow!” “Look atthat!” “Super awesome!” Some of his questions made the otherslaugh. “How do the fish close their eyes at night?” “Barracuda?I thought that was a kind of muscle

Tour de Fronds, continued

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car.” “How can a fish be made of jelly?”They were about to end their Tour de Fronds

when a pair of harbor seals approached the kelpbeds close to where they hovered. Jamie andthe soldier watched underwater and caught aglimpse of one of the seals capturing a smeltbefore disappearing from their view. “Wow!” theMarine said. “I used to think I wanted to be aNavy Seal. Now I want to be a real seal, justcruising underwater for lunch.”

They laughed. “Come on, soldier, we shouldstart heading back,” the blond surfer said.

The Marine grew chattier on their return trip,still exclaiming about all the fish he saw. “Ha!Wait til I tell my buddies I swam with a shark.”After they rounded the point and were nearly infront of the lifeguard tower where they had lefttheir towels, the Marine stopped paddling. “It’sreally cool that friends like you three just upand helped a stranger like me on the beach. Itruly appreciate it.”

“What do you mean ‘friends’?” the blond mansaid. “I never met them before. We’re allstrangers. I guess we saw you could use a handso we stepped in.”

The Marine raised his eyebrows, his mouth

open. “You’re strangers? But you act like youknow each other.”

“We do know each other in a way because weshare a love of the beach and the water,” Jamiesaid. “We wanted to pass some of that along toyou.”

The Marine bobbed on the swells, gazing atthe horizon with a thousand yard stare. “Do youknow why I’m here? I joined the Marines afterhigh school so I could become somebody whocounted, but it turned out it wasn’t like that. Iwas a nobody in a place I didn’t like. Then mygirlfriend wrote me a Dear John letter. Then Ibecame reckless, taking chances, and ended upfalling down an embankment and breaking myleg. It was like I wanted to get hurt.

“Do you know that movie called ‘ComingHome’ that came out after the Vietnam War? Asoldier returns home paralyzed from the waistdown and falls in love with a woman who helpshim in the hospital. She’s the wife of a Marinesergeant who went to Vietnam and thought hewould be a war hero. Only he wasn’t, so he shothimself in the leg so he could be a wounded vetand come home for some sympathy. Only he


TOMAS MAJEKNickname: MagicMember since: 2008Website: http://tiny.cc/s8swpx

MEMBER PROFILE

Age Group: M 45-49

Status: Married.

Occupation: Landscape maintenance/ owner TM Landscaping.

Favorite local restaurant: ThePitchers at Rancho Penasquitos.

When not training, I enjoy: Hikingwith my wife or playing guitarwith friends.

Before I became a triathlete Iwas: Swimmer, Lifeguard, Miner,Firefighter, Computer Technician,Sales Director, Landscaper andRecreational runner.

Who or what inspired you to starttriathlons? In 2005 I started torunning a little and did my firsthalf marathon. I never imag-ined that I'll be able to fit moreworkouts into my schedule until I2007 CA 70.3. I was dreaming,that one day, I'd like to try itmyself. Luckily for me I gotinjured and doctor forbid mefrom running for six months, so Ilearned to ride a road bike andstarted to swim more often.When I got back to runningagain, I was ready for my first“triathlon” (2009 SD IndoorTriathlon in Carmel MountainRanch).


tears running down my face. I would not haveaccomplished what I just did without her.

What are your favorite benefits of membershipin the TCSD?Kyle: The largest benefit from beinginvolved with TCSD is all of the friend-ships you make just by involving your-self in a couple races a year. The clubhas so many great opportunities thatcan make everyone feel welcome and apart of. Triathlons really are about therelationships that we create and buildupon.

Who are your sponsors?Kyle: Scott Bikes, ENVE composites,Oakley sunglasses, XTERRA wetsuits,PowerBar, Betty Design, On Running,Powertap, CycleOps, Tommie Copper.

What are your future triathlon goals?Kyle: My individual goals as a racer I liketo keep between my wife and coach. I willalways set goals for myself as a racer but thisyear has shown your plans can be interrupted byjust about anything. My knowledge that I havegained from Lesley and her husband Simon havemade me become much more involved in thecoaching side of tri’s with Braveheart Coaching.My knowledge as a racer and understanding ofgoing through injuries and ups and downs thatlife throws at you enables me to work with anyathlete, no matter what level of athlete theyare. Everyone deserves to feel great about them-selves. Braveheart Coaching creates opportuni-ties for everyone who wants to fight those

demons that tell you life is too hard, that youcannot do this, because you can. My doctorssaid my race season was over, and then I wenton to become a World Champion.

How can someone reach you if theywould like to benefit from BraveheartCoaching?Kyle: My personal website iswww.kylehummel.com and the Braveheart web-site is http://www.braveheartcoach.com/

Kyle, congratulations on your WorldChampionship! You have made the TCSD andyour loved ones very proud. Thank you forsharing your story. I know you will crush yourfuture goals. Good luck in that journey!

Craig Zelent is a USA Triathlon Level 1 CertifiedCoach. Craig can be reached at (760) 214-0055or [email protected].

DECEMBER 201422

My first real triathlon: 2009Superfrog 70.3. Awesome race,but running in deep sand wasreally tough.

Pre and/or Post event ritual: Pack my stuff the night before,wake up and have an early morn-ing coffee and oatmeal and puton my "racing" pink earrings :) .After each race I celebrate withone ice cold beer.

Favorite event/tri: It used to beSilverman, a 140.6, at HendersonNevada, but it ended in 2010.Since than it's been VINEMAN140.6. Great people, volunteersand the whole scenery aspecttakes my breath away.

Favorite segment (swim, bike orrun): It use to be swim, but thenI got too lazy, after that it hasbeen run, but I'm always excitedfor the bike, so probably the bike:).

PR/Best race (or any split time): I won AG M40-44 at Vineman140.6 in 2011. My PR 10:38:48.This year 1st place AG M45-49Vineman 140.6.

This year’s athletic goal: I'll be trying to beat my PR at Vinemanagain!

Can’t race without: My lucky pinkearrings :).

Most embarrassing or disastrousmoment: None - So far, so good.

My equipment:Wetsuit: TYR Hurricane full wet-suit, Xterra sleeveless

Bike: Felt B-16Shoe: Skechers Go-Run Speed 2 forracing, Asics Kayano 20 for longruns

Equipment wish list: Carbonwheels for the bike.

Best advice: Have fun and enjoyyourself!

Favorite Thing(s) About TCSD: Great source of training plans,friends and free club races forone small annual membershipfee.

MEMBER PROFILE,continued

Hanging with Simon and Lesley Paterson - Braveheart coaching.

finds his wife has fallen in love with the dis-abled soldier. At the end of the movie you seethe sergeant take off all his clothes at the beachand walk into the water. You don’t if he’s evercoming back.” He paused. “That could havebeen me earlier today, if I had the nerve. Thatwas before I met three strangers who let me surfwith them and took me swimming in the biggestfish tank I’ve ever seen. You saved me from

myself. I want to ride those waves and swimwith the fish and seals again. I don’t need twoperfect legs for that.” No one spoke for a longmoment.

“I thought my first Tour de Fronds today hadbeen the perfect swim, but I was wrong,” Jamiesaid. “This is what I would call the most perfectswim. By the way, I’m Jamie.”

Tour de Fronds, continued


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