Just For Kicks (Part I)

http://www.myheritage.com

http://www.myheritage.com

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2007 California Ironman 70.3: A Photo Essay

Photos by Benjamin, Arnold, and Action Sports International
Text by Arnold
Smack-down by Fernando

Once upon a time Benjamin, Frenando, Mark, and Arnold travelled from Los Angeles to Oceanside for the 2007 Ironman California 70.3.

Benjamin, whose work schedule kept him from training, was relegated to driving and support duties. He wasn't happy about that.


Mark, Fernando, and Arnold woke up super early and prepped all of their gear


After his extensive training sessions, Mark was unusually confident:

It was very early in the morning, so Mark and Arnold couldn't be too made that Benjamin fell asleep at the wheel and only got a picture of Fernando swimming (that's him in the center with the high elbows and perfect head position):


Thank God for race photographers who memorialized Arnold and Mark exiting the swim:


Mark and Arnold look pretty studly, yeah? Well, they got a picture of Fernando too:


Actually, someone must have been in love with Fernando, because he got several cool swim exit pictures (Mark and I only got one each--this was shaping up to be Fernando's day):


After exiting the water, they each found our trusty steeds and bolted out of Transition 1:




Mark's transition was a little longer than everyone else's:


As soon as they mounted their bikes, Arnold, Mark, and Fernando rode like the wind:


Arnold rode especially quickly, and opened a large lead over his two training partners:

But that lead dissipated quickly on the run, where Fernando ran like a machine:


And Arnold ran like a sloth:



Oblivious to the battle raging in front of him, Mark contently ran like a gazelle, albeit a tired one:


A determined Fernando crossed the finish line first:


Defeated, Arnold limped across the finish line, but managed to raise his finger in exaltation"

Arnold's only consolation was that in his haste to stop the clock, Fernando forfeited a solo finish photo-op (what a loser!):

Their rivlalry over for the day, Arnold and Fernando embraced, shared a beer, and after a shower and a nice Saturday afternoon nap, welcomed their friend Mark home:



THE END!

2007 California Ironman 70.3
HLB Triathlon Team Results
1.2-Mile Swim, 56-Mile Bike, 13.1-Mile Run

Fernando
Swim: 37:03 (1:52/100 meters)
T1:6:31
Bike: 3:10:08 (17.7 mph)
T2: 3:08
Run: 1:59:00 (9:05/mile)
Total: 5:55:47

Arnold
Swim: 46:47 (2:21/100 meters)
T1: 4:32
Bike: 2:57:12 (19 mph)
T2: 3:27
Run: 2:25:32 (11:07/mile)
Total: 6:17:28

Mark
Swim: 52:49 (2:39/100 meters)
T1: 6:35
Bike: 3:39:09 (15.3 mph)
T2: 9:51
Run: 2:44:40 (12:35/mile)
Total: 7:33:02

For all of the HLB Triathlon Team's Photos from the event, click here.

Where Did Civility Go?

The following e-mail exchange took place when Benjamin's brother, a dedicated roadie, posed a very important question: What is HLB Athletics?

Arnold
To: Benjamin's Brother
cc: HLB Athletics
Date: April 6, 2007 9:54 a.m.
Subject: re: Dear Friends

HLB Athletics is an association of Health Law employees and their family members aiming to improve the world one race at a time. By being Benjamin's Brother (and coincidentally, a Health Law Attorney), you can be fast tracked for membership ( i.e. no need for the traditional "jumping in"). If you're interested, I can send you an application.


http://hlbathletics.blogspot.com/
------------------------------------------------

Benjamin's Brother
To: Arnold
cc: HLB Athletics
Date: April 6, 2007 10:01 a.m.
Subject: re: Dear Friends

Great site you guys created. Sure, send me the app (I assume you are joking) if you can deal with a roadie who hates swimming (it's so damn boring) and who gave up running because of bad knees.
------------------------------------------------

Benjamin
To: HLB Athletics
cc: Benjamin's Brother
Date: April 6, 2007 11:34 a.m.
Subject: re: re: Dear Friends

Someone in my office who wants to remain anonymous (it was Fernando) saw this and said: "Wow, he hasn't even joined yet but he's got all the excuses down already."

I'm looking forward to the Alpha Dog Smackdown.

------------------------------------------------

Arnold
To: Benjamin
cc: HLB Athletics, Benjamin's Brother
Date: April 6, 2007 2:57 p.m.
Subject: re:Dear Friends

I don't think we need ANOTHER person to smack down Fernando on the bike!

------------------------------------------------

Fernando
To: Arnold
cc: HLB Athletics, Benjamin's Brother
Date: April 6, 2007 4:55 p.m.
Subject: re: Dear Friends

Be careful guys. I don't think you want to see me upset, and see a little more of what some of YOU have seen already.

------------------------------------------------

Benjamin's Brother
To: Fernando, Benjamin, Arnold
cc: HLB Athletics
Date: April 6, 2007 6:55 p.m.
Subject: re: Dear Friends

Jeez, I don't know about this. I was hoping for a nice, friendly group, but you guys seem way too competitive for me. And, Ben and Fernando, if you aren't nice, I won't wait for you on the top of the hills next time we ride.

100 Miles at 180 Pounds

My "Doing Stupid Things While 20 Pounds Overweight" Tour continued with the Solvang Century, only one week after the LA Marathon debacle. The first 20 miles went great. I even joined a pack with some serious cyclists that was averaging 25 mph through some rolling hills. Nevermind that I was at my anabolic threshold within the first hour of a 6-plus hour ride. It felt good. Until my buddy Aaron dropped me at mile 35. And until my legs totally blew up at mile 60. I was ready to get in the sag van at mile 70 when an old dude on a recumbant bike exhorted me to finish. "Son, I'm 72 years old. I'm going to finish this ride, and so are you." Embarrassed, I coasted my way towards the finish. I hope that I'm inspiring 30-year olds when I'm 72.

My new friends Drew and Whittney and I went to Bacara resort and spa in Santa Barbara for post-race recovery massages. I learned something about myself: I enjoy a good spa treatment.

All smiles at mile 20

Fresh from our sports recovery massages at Bacara Spa

More pictures from the Solvang Century weekend with Drew, Whittney, Aaron and Annabelle here.

26 Miles at 180 Pounds

My New Year's resolution was so simple: lose 15 pounds by March 4, 2007. I've lost that much weight in as little as 40 days. But that was before I turned 30. It seems that on my 30th birthday, my metabolism came to a halt. So March 4th came, with me weighing 180 pounds. A full 20 pounds heavier than when I first did the Los Angeles Marathon three years ago.

I was worried at the start. I didn't train properly. I really ate a lot of crappy food over the past three months. But for some reason, I got to the starting line in Universal City very confident. I would hold back, and aim for a modest time of four hours, thirty-five minutes, meaning that I would have to average exactly 10:30/mile. A snail's pace.

Miles 1-16 were awesome. Best I'd ever felt in a marathon. Maintaining 10:30 was a walk in the park. Then at mile 17, I noticed my heart rate was reaching critical. I don't know why I didn't realize it earlier. Maybe it was the cockiness that comes with running a course that's mostly downhill for the first 16 miles. Maybe it was the ideal running weather, which coincidentally disappeared at mile 16.

At any rate, I struggled to stay on pace.

Then came mile 18.

Body shutting down. Must . . . have water. Start walking. Oh look, there are Dad and brother. They have cameras. Must . . . run . . . for . . . picture!

I walked the next three miles, then did my best impression of the ghouls in "Thriller" to try to run/shuffle my way to a sub-five-hour marathon. To no avail. Official time: 5:02:49.

Damned extra 15 pounds. I was so depressed after the run that I drowned my sorrows in Tecate and Mexican food in Boyle Heights. Drunk and full, I resolved to lose 15 pounds by August 4, the date of the Vineman Triathlon. Who's taking bets?

Check out the pictures my dad and brother took here.

Recognize this guy?

Tour of California - Part II

The Second Annual Tour of California Healthcare Lawyers Viewing Party took place in Long Beach.

As you probably know, the "Cuban Missile" from Toyota United won the stage and Levi Leipheimer of Discovery won the race.

Here are some pics.

Discovery leading the pack:


The peloton:



Recognize this bike?



Here's a closer look:



That's right. It's the world champion's TT bike.

More to come.

I Got Schooled

Benjamin runs the same 10-mile route through Culver City every Saturday morning. I had to work all day today, so I thought a morning jog with him would be a nice and not-so-streneous way to start the day. It was supposed to be a piece of cake. In our last race together, the olympic-distance 2006 Ventura Breath of Life Triathlon, I beat him by a good 18 minutes, a full seven of those minutes were gained over the 10k run. During last year's Wildflower half-iron distance triathlon, my half marathon was 10 minutes faster than his.

But I didn't count on two things: 1) Fernando decided to run with us, and 2) Benjamin has been running twice as much as I have. And he got pretty fast.

I was a little worried when my heart rate soared over 160 in the first mile, but I figured that if Benjamin could keep Fernando's pace, so could I. It was a very annoying whenever we each called out our heart rates, and Fernando's was consistently 10 bpm slower than mine. Right up until mile 6, however, I had no problem holding pace. At that point, I made the mistake of reminding Benjamin that I beat Fernando to the top of Mandeville canyon on a bike ride a few weeks ago. Actually, my mistake was speaking loud enough for Fernando to hear, because he immediately gapped us.

But a funny thing happened at mile 7--I started feeling good! I closed the gap to Fernando, and on a short downhill, I shot right past him. For about 5 minutes I really thought that I was going to be the first to the end of the run. I was feeling so euphoric when I realized that Fernando wasn't making up ground that I didn't take heed of my heart rate monitor screaming at me to slow down. I stopped looking at it. I didn't want to be reminded that I wouldn't be able to sustain 90% of my maximum heart rate for more than a few minutes.

To make a long story short, the wheels flew off the wagon when Fernando effortlessly passed me. I couldn't even think about keeping up. By the time Benjamin caught up, my body wanted to shut down. But good 'ol Benjamin was nice enough to keep me company. We ran together as he scolded me about challenging the machine known as Fernando. Then at mile 9, he dropped me.

I now know that it was a conspiracy. Fernando drew first blood. Benjamin finished me off. Thanks a lot guys.
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My heart-rate chart tells the entire story. I was in over my head from the get-go:


I'm actually proud to say that this was the fastest 10-mile run of my life--I averaged a 9:02 mile. Yeah, I know. I have a long way to go to reach my goal of a sub two-hour half marathon.


-Arnold

Midnight Ridazz, Ride On!

I always look forward to the second Friday of the month, because that's when my favorite party rages. Like any other party, there is loud music, blinking lights, and plenty of drunk people. Unlike any other party, this one is on wheels. Midnight Ridazz yo!

Last night's ride was themed the UFO ride, and people showed up wearing space helmets and masks. There were a couple Elliots with their trusty E.T.s as well. It was a nice leisurely 16-mile ride through Pasadena and around the Rose Bowl. There were a few challenging hills, and some fast descents. It was a bit scary going downhill at 35 mph in pitch dark and with hundreds of bikers around, many piss-drunk. And it got more than a little cold.

There's nothing like getting in a nice workout at midnight on a Friday. It makes the end-of-ride Tommy's chili burgers all the more satisfying.




Click here for more pictures from the ride.

More GPS Fun

Being the über-geek that I am, I took my Garmin 305 GPS wrist watch with me to Mammoth this weekend so that I could track where I went with my snowboard. Just looking at this map makes me miss the mountain.

Saturday was a very long day. I woke up at 2 a.m. to meet my cousins in Pomona. We got to Mammoth around 9, played for about 6 hours, then drove back. It was a punishing experience encompassing over 10 hours of driving in a single day, but it was well worth it. The coverage at the resort was very poor--there were lots of exposed rocks on the bowls that I love so much. But even on a bad day, Mammoth is my favorite place in California.

-Arnold