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March 2014

Tri Geek

Monday, March 3, 2014

Jay Larson racing at the Carlsbad 5000.  And yes, that's Mark Allen on his shoulder. 

When I tell people I was a triathlete back in the mid-to-late 1980's, they always throw me in with true pioneers like Tinley, Moss, Warren, etc. I don't belong there, I was part of the next wave—I was what they spawned. Though ignominious, I did have an important contribution to the covered wagon era...I was first generation Tri Geek!—the first seduced—junkies, lusting for inclusion to a sexy, shiny new sport. However painful to observe, we were born of the oh-so-true, "...sincerest form of flattery" maxim. Tri Geek, along with "poser" and "wannabe," is stamped into the sport's lexicon.

Breakfast in Kona, Naked in Transition

Monday, March 3, 2014

Dan Empfield at the Ironman in Kona, Feb., 1981

For Mark Montgomery (Monty on the Slowtwitch Forum, and my next door neighbor), Scott Tinley, Scott Molina and I, it was our first Ironman and very near all of our first triathlons.  That was Kona in 1981, the first Ironman on the Big Island and when I say it was the first time we all attended that race I don’t mean to imply we knew each other.  We didn’t.  I don’t believe I met any of them until 1986 or later.

Why I Continue To Race

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Scott Molina at the Nice Triathlon in 1983. He's still racing hard, 31 years later. (Mike Plant photo)

For me the act of signing up for events is the key to continued motivation to find the best version of my athletic self. I don't actually need to do the races; they are almost always anti-climactic. I know that but it does not deter me. Signing up and knowing I have events is enough to help me find the urge to prepare, and it’s that process of preparation and all that's involved with it that keeps me in the game.