New Orleans Rapport de Course

This is how it all begins - training in Bayou Teche in Oma's backyard with the Morgan City crew. It's great to have a local group in our area - we all work together to schedule workouts where we go our own pace and encourage each other.

Along with training I've been installing an invisible fence for our dog, Sandy. Signe helped me put out the flags after I had buried the lines. Our lives are very busy this Spring with track and tennis, so planning for our NO's weekend was hectic before we left and has been crazy ever since we got home, hence the delay in my race report.

Lisa and I took off for our NO's weekend on Thursday at noon. We didn't actually leave home until around 3pm after packing the car with all of our tri gear, clothes and food for 4 days. When we arrived we met up with Stu, Chris, Michelle, and Robbie and headed to Deanie's for seafood and beer. Then on to the French Quarter for drinks where Chris rode a mechanical bull in a bar called "Bourbon Cowboy"! The photo above is our lake swim on Friday morning where Michelle and Chris were cut up on the barnacles on their way out of the water.



Saturday we interviewed the Zipp pros in our condo. They were modest and easy to talk to - Lisa was drooling over their bodies, even going as far as begging the professional photographer, Steve Stenzel, to please shoot Linsay's legs (red shorts above) She deemed them "Perfect"!




He knew better than to deny her request - here he is in action.

When our four girls arrived on Saturday we took a stroll and ran into Regis and Kelly - I think Kelly might do tri - check out that bod!

New Orleans is known for it's French and Spanish architectural influences - lots of wrought iron work - I snapped a few shots because I'm hoping to build a gate for our house one day.

This is a shot of the French Quarter - local artists sell their pieces along the park (on the left).

Unfortunately I don't have any race photos yet - I'm hoping to post some soon.

The day of the race Lisa and I woke up at 5am and made our usual peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the race. We ate bagels, drank coffee and walked 2 blocks over to catch a bus to the lake (15 miles away). Transition was great - we were located very close to each other - perfect because we were planning to race together. We've never done that before and decided it would be fun to run together, so I waited in T1 for her.

The water was perfect - not much chop and the 150 person waves seemed very manageable. During the swim I couldn't believe when I saw the red buoy indicating the 1/2 way point - crap this thing is long.

The bike was nice on the way out - not much traffic and the wind at my back. It was the way back that made me a little crazy. Lisa was about 1/4 mile back and I'd see her at each turn around - she was suffering, so we decided to take a break at the last water stop. She took off her shoes and was nauseated - we ate rice crispy treats and talked about the constant wind and how uncomfortable everyone looked.

T2 went fine and we settled into our run groove - then we saw cousin Miles - that's where the bad idea began. We had instituted a team rule that if you pass someone you could and should spank them. So, Lisa and I each took a cheek and swatted Miles. 1/2 mile later he spanked me so hard I had a perfect handprint with welps and bruising - thanks, dude.

I'm not sure what we were thinking at that point - maybe that none of us wanted to be spanked anymore, but we decided to take it in nice and easy. We met cool people along the way from all over the country - then we saw Wil - with a huge smile she ran the last mile with us and got some photos. Seeing the kids, Oma, and all of our friends at the end was the best - a safe day on my home turf in beautiful weather - a day to remember.

The finisher medals were excellent - they have the traditional water meter cover imprint on one side - a memory that NO's is sub sea level - and inagural finisher on the other, a reminder that this is the first time I raced this way - with my family!

Laissez les bon temps roullez !!

IM - New Orleans

Ironman - New Orleans is next weekend. Lisa and I have been training as much as we can, but have been limited by the rest of our busy lives. Today we've planned an open water swim in the bayou with some of our friends to get used to the water temperature and wearing our wetsuits.

All of my Evotri teammates are coming down for this event, and a lot of our friends from Morgan City are participating, also. More than anything, we're really looking forward to seeing everyone compete, especially those who have never done the 70.3 distance before.

Matt Rinard is a friend of ours from college who did the awesome poster for this event. The price of it is $50 unframed or $175 framed. To reserve your print you can call 1-800-628-6621, drop by the gallery at 738 Royal St. in the French Quarter, or email info@galleryrinard.com.

Best of luck to everyone who is competing!

Happy Mardi Gras 2009 !!

Mardi Gras is here again!

We've had beautiful weather this year for our parades.

Lisa and I had a great time on the float today with our friends Jay and Val.

The rest of the wild crew on our float - lots of jello shots and dancing.

My business partner's daughter Caitlyn was a maid in the court this year.

King and Queen Hephaestus 2009

Happy Mardi Gras !!

Mardi Gras Marathon

My second daughter Anne Lee is now officially a marathoner at age 15. She was awesome!!

Kirstie, my oldest daughter Catherine, and Katelyn were rock star race volunteers!

Lisa and I are so incredibly proud of Anne Lee!!

Mexico mission trip '09

My third daughter Signe and I spent last week in Reynosa, Mexico, on a medical mission trip. My wife Lisa and I decided that when our girls turn 13, I would take them on a mission trip for some one-on-one father/daughter time, and Lisa would take them on a trip when they turn 18. So this was Signe's turn.

We travelled to Reynosa with a group from the Methodist church here in Morgan City. There were 2 physicians - me and another physician from Mexico. We saw patients the whole time - over 100 patients each day that we worked. We treated many different conditions - colds, hypertension, diabetes, worms, lice, headaches, rashes, back aches. One elderly woman was very sick with pneumonia - we had to make special arrangements for her treatment. We take so much for granted here in the U.S.

Other members of the team did other jobs - dispensed medications, took blood pressures/blood sugars, translated, cut hair, held babies, etc. There's a long line to be seen by the doctor, so Signe entertained children with coloring books and fingernail polish. She was a tremendous help to the team wherever she was needed, especially in the pharmacy.



It's always quite a bit of juggling to do to arrange to go on a mission trip. Getting off work/out of school, travel arrangements, passport, travel shots, packing, etc. I also get a little apprehensive travelling outside of the U.S. with terrorism, anti-U.S. sentiments, kidnappings, especially when I've brought my young daughter along. I come home from the trip really exhausted from the work that we've done.

But as tired as I am, as much work as it is, I feel so good about what we've done. It feels so right to do this work. I learn so much about life on these trips. I feel like I owe this and so much more, given the many blessings in my life.

Holiday time

Well Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!!

After some much needed down time after IM-FL in November, I'm trying to get back into it to get ready for the Mardi Gras marathon in February, and IM-NO in April. Our oldest daughter Catherine did a marathon when she turned 15 - see The Flying Monkey Marathon, which was a great marathon, by the way. Now daughter number 2, Anne Lee, is 15 and trying to get ready for the Mardi Gras Marathon on February 1. Ironman-New Orleans is shortly after that in April, and my wife and I are so pumped that all of my Evotri teammates will be coming down to Louisiana for the race.

Well, what have I been doing with myself since Ironman?

I went fishing over the Thanksgiving break with my family. We caught a lot of fish but not many we would keep. It was fun to watch the girls get all excited about catching sheepshead. We also caught some redfish which are great eating, but they were too small - they must be over 16 inches to keep. The worst part about the trip were the vicious little gnats that ate us up.

Beautiful sunrise.

Sheepshead teeth.

Gnat bites.

Cousin Miles holding up Catherine's catch.

Not a keeper. The redfish, I mean.

We've continued to plug away at the house. We are finally settling in to living here, but still have many little projects to complete. I'm getting used to the idea that I'll never be truly finished with this house, as projects keep getting added to the end of the list.

The kids are off for Christmas break right now, so Lisa and I decided to take them camping last night. They each invited a friend to come with us, so the camping trip consisted of me and 9 women!! We stayed in a cabin at Lake Fausse Point in St. Martinville, Louisiana, and we had a great time. There are some hiking trails, canoeing/kayaking, bike trails, etc. The woods are loaded with armadillos for some reason - that really freaked out the girls. My favorite part of camping is the campfire at night - we had a perfect night for it.

Our cabin.

Nightfall.

The campfire's the best.

I've also been trying to plan my season for 2009. So far I'm doing the Mardi Gras Marathon and IM-NO like I've already mentioned. I'll probably also do the Crescent City Classic (10K) in April, WIBA in June, and Cajun Man Triathlon (Sprint) in September. Lisa won a lottery spot for Escape from Alcatraz in June, and we're considering that race. It seems like a great experience, but it falls at a bad time of year for us.

So there's the quick update. Hope everyone had a great holiday season. Now back to work!!

Evotri Iron Challenge 2009 !!

The 2008 off season is officially here, but who says the races are over? Team Evotri has a brand new program on tap to keep you tri-primed all winter long, complete with exclusive team opportunities and prizes for your efforts. In fact, we have quite a bit of news to report as we round out the year and get the ball rolling for 2009!

With all of our sponsors returning for another stellar season, and with brand new sponsor, Headsweats joining the team, we're looking forward to giving back to the community in an even bigger way. In addition to our current grassroots endeavors - Simply Stu's World Wide Triathlon, Trisaratops's Youth Initiative, along with RobbyB and Iron Wil's Wisconsin Brick Adventure - just to name a few - we're now planning to reach across borders and oceans in order to do our part to change the world, and we want you to be part of the movement.

Do you have what it takes to fulfill the Evotri Iron Challenge?

This winter, we challenge you to complete an Iron distance race every month. 140.6 miles of swimming, cycling and running at 2.4 miles, 112 miles, and 26.2 miles respectively. You have 30 days, and countless ways to break it down to fit your schedules. Feeling especially elite? Why not try two, even three Iron distances per month? Not only will the top performers receive sweet swag and high honors, they'll also be raising money and awareness for charity JUST by logging miles! Also, complete at least one Iron distance each month and be entered in our grand prize drawing.

Here's how to get involved:

Start by joining the Plus3 Network at http://www.plus3network.com, it's free for you, and priceless for so many more. Log your miles over the next several months and watch them turn to dollars for charities all over the world. Team Evotri sponosr SRAM, among other industry leading companies like Pedros have partnered with Plus3 and pledged to donate cash to the charity of your choice for every swim, ride, and run you do - charities like World Bicycle Relief, The Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Safe Routes (ensuring kids' safe passage to school), and The Environmental Defense Fund, among many more.

Once you've created your account at www.plus3network.com, follow the next three steps to not only keep yourself motivated over the coming months, win cool prizes and meet awesome people, but also to have your mileage make a difference all over the world. After you've created your free account:
1: Select a sponsor and a charity of your choice
2: Under PEOPLE, search for "Evotri" and do a "friend request"
3: You will then receive a request to join the Challenge

And that's it. Let the base training begin!

In addition to our Evotri Iron Challenge, we're preparing for top performance in 2009 in other ways. Join the team as one of our honored Ambassadors and be eligible for exclusive opportunities throughout the year, as well as receive periodic training advice from top pros and industry insiders like the unstoppable up and comer, Cycleops's Will Smith, and the legendary Robbie Ventura! Visit Evotri.com and click the "Become an Ambassador" tab at the top of the page to get started.

Also, stay tuned to Evotri.com for the official 2009 press release, featuring more details on how you can even become a fully-sponsored member of the team. That's right, we're adding TWO to the crew near the start of the year, so get involved early and stay ahead of the pack!