Ironman Access: Cancelled and Thoughts

WTC is ingenious. Hey, let's pre-charge $1000 to give someone a chance at something, that really isn't all that amazing... and people will actually pay it!? 

I've been reading about this for a few days now, and between SlowTwitch.com, Liz's All Access (which was hilarious), and a few others, I've found something I think is spot on.

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/pace-of-chicago/2010/10/relax-its-just-the-ironman.html

...Worth 1000 Words. »


Relax! It's just the Ironman.

David Wallach on 10.29.10 at 12:06 AM

David Wallach

I am your typical BOPer. I love to train more than racing. If you have a race, let me know, I'm there!

Yesterday (Thursday) The World Triathlon Corporation announced the launch of the Ironman Access Program. In a nut shell the Ironman Access program gave people a week "head start," to sign up for an Ironman. The catch, it came at a cost of $1000 for a year membership and then $600 for the race entry.



If you have ever tried to sign up for an Ironman event, then you know it can be a test of patience, since most of their U.S. events sell out within 24 hours, this option did alleviate some of the stress of signing up, if you could afford it.



I received hundreds of e-mails from people who were upset and hurt. The Ironman Corporation took an immediate beating on the blogs, chat rooms and on Facebook. A lot of you out there, though this was unfair, that it took away from the "everyman feel of the sport," and was a greedy move by The World Triathlon Corporation.



The end result was a classy move by the WTC. In a video message delivered by a tired looking President Ben Fertig, they canceled the entire program and refunded the money to the athletes who jumped at the chance to get a head start on signing up for their dream at finishing an Ironman. Click here to see the video.



I think what the WTC was a great PR move, but believe it or not, I completely disagree with what they did. The thousands of you who lost your minds when this new program was announced blew a great opportunity to help the sport of triathlon grow. Hold on, before you start your "have you lost your friggin' mind e-mail," hear me out.



The Ironman is just a brand. What you did by running around like a bunch of whiny kids was put them in a bigger position of power. All of the calls, e-mails and blogs weren't making the people at the WTC mad but instead sending the message, " yes, we love you more than anything, we live for you, we love you Ironman, forget Rev3, forget Silverman, all we care about is your brand, please be nice to us. Congratulations you are a monopoly."



That's right, you blew it. Yesterday was a line in the sand, and instead of saying "enough, we refuse to cross this line," you all jumped over it like good lemmings. Instead of getting over the fact that Ironman is just a brand name, and there are dozens of other 140.6 races out there that offer more difficult courses, easier sign ups and better athlete experience, you collectively dropped your pants and took it in the back side. This was the chance to support other races. This was your chance to help triathlon grow, to realize that it's not about the brand name, but the accomplishment. You thumbed your noses at the other race directors and let them know, "you are an after thought Rev3 or Silverman, a cute diversion after we do the Ironman."



The Ironman Corporation is a business, make no mistake about that. They are in the business of making money and growing their brand, just like Coke, Disney and Jay Z. The difference between The Ironman and Coke, is that The Ironman is a lifestyle brand, it effects all of us at such a deep level, that it becomes personal, we are invested in it, it can change your entire life. Coke, you drink it, you burp, it quenches your thirst, the experience is over. As a lifestyle brand when they make a change that seems unfair or greedy, it hurts, you feel betrayed and "left out in the cold," as a lot of you have stated. It's understandable, but at the same token, get over it.





This is not an "everyman sport," as one of you said in an e-mail. This is a rich guy, type A intense sport. The average salary of an Ironman is $150,000 plus. Now there are a lot of you out there(including me) who make much less than that, but this is not "everyman or woman's sport," that would be Social Club Volleyball. If you cross the finish line at an Ironman event you are part of the fittest 1% people in the world. 1% out of 6,697,254,041 people in the world and the Ironman Corporation is trying to make a profit off of that tiny margin. Yes kids, they are a business.



This isn't new, bands have been doing it for years. Yes, membership to the Jonas Brothers Fan Club is only $34.99 and you get early access to pre-sale ticketing before the general public, but then have you have to pay hundreds for the tickets, t-shirts, parking etc. Eventually the t-shirt will fade, the music will be dated, the Jonas Brothers will end up in re-hab and the experience will be gone. With Ironman the memory lasts a lifetime, how much is that worth?



You didn't have to do this. It was an option, like the Community Slots and volunteers getting early entry. Some people spend a lot more than $1000 to travel to a race, rent a car, pay for a hotel and volunteer, so they get an early entry. Should we protest that as well? Should volunteers only be local folks who don't spend a ton to volunteer and cut to the front of the line?



I applaud the WTC for making a smart business move, listening to their customers and staying on top of their game. When the Ironman entries jump to $1000 per race, remember this day and your victory over "the man," you won the battle but lost the war.







Read more: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/pace-of-chicago/2010/10/relax-its-just-the-ironman.html#ixzz13lAtShoe

All the Pregnant Ladies

Watch and enjoy.

23 Miles Straight Down

Either this guy is the biggest idiot ever (120,000 FEET!!!?? that's like, 23 MILES), or has the biggest balls on the face of the planet (or edge of outerspace). Here's a picture of the guy. Yes, he's kinda hot.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/skydiverplansrecordbreakingsupersonicspacejump/print

Skydiver Plans Record-Breaking Supersonic Space Jump



Zoe Macintosh





A skydiver is making progress with plans to leap from near the edge of space in a dive that would break world records and the sound barrier.






Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner is a step closer to attempting the feat after a series of recent high-altitude test jumps. He plans to make his ambitious jump attempt later this year.






Starting in the stratosphere at 120,000 feet above the ground, Baumgartner will leap from a capsule suspended by a helium balloon near the boundary of space.






Sponsored by the energy drink company Red Bull, Baumgartner's mission — called Red Bull Stratos — seeks to extend the "safety zone" of human atmospheric bailout last set in 1960 by diver Joe Kittinger. This limit defines the uppermost altitude a human being can safely jump from.






"Right now, the space shuttle escape system is certified to 100,000 feet," said the mission's medical director Jonathan Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon. "Why is that? Because Joe Kittinger went there. You've got a lot of companies that are vying for the role of being the commercial space transport provider for tourism, for upper atmospheric science, and so on. These systems, particularly during the test and development phase, need a potential escape system, which we may be able to help them provide with the knowledge we gain." [Graphic: Earth's Atmosphere From Top to Bottom]






Taking the leap






A team of aeronautics experts recently led Baumgartner through a week of testing meant to illuminate any possible weaknesses in his equipment and to familiarize him with the skills needed to navigate the conditions expected to assail him as soon as he opens his vessel door.






Only a few feet above ground in a capsule dangling from a crane on Sage Cheshire Aerospace test grounds in California, Baumgartner practiced exiting and stepping off his hot-air balloon. Even a slight stumble during this step could cause dangerous alterations in his in-flight position only moments later, as well as reduce his chances of actually breaking the sound barrier.






"The team anticipated that the capsule would tip forward when Felix moved his approximately 270-pound self from the seated center position of the capsule to the step-off platform on the edge of the capsule," Red Bull Stratos Aerial Strategist and Skydiving Consultant Luke Aikins told SPACE.com. "What the exercise demonstrated was that the capsule moved only about a foot, which tells us that we don't have to worry about the capsule swinging back violently when Felix steps off."






Baumgartner proceeded to practice his step-off technique from higher up by doing bungee jumps while wearing a pressurized spacesuit and helmet. At 200 feet above ground in an abandoned fairground, the setting was a far cry from a high-altitude jump, but mimicked the sensation of trying to achieve the necessary forward rotation, said mission technical director Art Thompson. After a few leaps, one team member described Baumgartner's performance as "perfect."






"We still have an unknown, which is what happens to my body when I break the speed of sound, but at least we're going to know that I'm able to handle the step-off," Baumgartner said.






Improved equipment






Lastly, the pilot passed several high altitude test dives at 26,000 feet over the desert in Perris, California. Thanks to a new chest pack aligned to one side of his body, Baumgartner exhibited a harmonious passage compared to previous trials a year earlier.






The previous chest pack had jammed his helmet, blocked his vision and constrained his movement during descent and the critical landing.






During the recent tests, body positions and suit deflation went well enough that the team accomplished all of its objectives.






Dive to death






No simple showman, Baumgartner wondered if the dangerous pioneering mission would mean his own death.






"My biggest concern is that dangerous part of the project which we just haven't thought of," Baumgartner said in a statement. "We try to think of every contingency, but there's always going to be something that you would never imagine could happen. And that might kill you."






The possibility has proved daunting enough to impact his decision to invite his own mother to watch the dive.






"If everything is successful, I would love to have her on site, because the first person that I would want to talk with is my mom, of course," he said. "But if something goes wrong, I definitely don't want my mum on site, because I don't want her to witness a fatality. So I still haven't made up my mind."






According to a press officer for Red Bull, the actual experiment will take place somewhere in North America in 2010. Along with a range of experts and test pilots, mentor and former record-setter Joe Kittinger will also be present.

 
So, homeboy's estimated freefall time will be just over 5 min, 30 seconds. I google's some pictures of Joe Kittinger's jumps, and well, it just looks like a bad idea.
 

Crown of Favor

I don't often speak of my views on religion, because, honestly, I'm not sure what they are. I know I believe in God, and I pray every night when I fall asleep. I usually ask for strength in regards to whatever troubles I have, pray for my friends and family whose troubles out number mine, and always thank Him for the wonderful things, blessings, in my life.

My mother was raised in the strict Catholic family, which to some extenct, back fired on here. My father's background is Christian based, but really, that's about all I know. I was left somewhere in the middle.

I haven't attended a church service or mass in years, minus weddings and funerals. Usually, when I see someone preaching on television, I become annoyed. There's been one televangilist whom particulary irritates me. I have been so turned off by his appearance and mannerisims, I would always scoff and change the channel.

Not long ago, I turned on the TV and walked away, listening to the backgrounds. The minister, Joel Osteen, carried on. I don't know if it's coincidence I'm up early on Sunday mornings, or if I've started doing it on purpose, but I've started to catch many of his sermons.

Today, the message is on daring to call yourself what you are, before it happens. Osteen is discussing how a person needs to act like the person they want to be, even if they haven't achieved it yet. There's much talk of a Crown of Favor. Something that God has given all of us. We're already in His favor, we don't need to sit around waiting for favor to fall upon us.

And why should we?

If I want to be succesful in a career, I have to tell myself *I AM* successful. Not I will be. Afterall, what's the difference in the am and will? Only the space in your mind.  Osteen discusses those with addictions- some day, wishing, hoping, praying to be free. Instead, these people need to say to themselves, I AM free of my addicition. I have overcome.

Even if they haven't.

Even when it's a struggle. You're beat up, down trodden, and feeling low. You hope to have blessings in your life. You ask God for His favor. You think some day things will change. God has already made the change, He has presented you in His favor, now it's time for you to accept them. Claim the changes. Claim the blessings. Your name is already on it, come and get it.

It's the difference of One Day to I Am.

What Crown of Favor will you wear today? What can you do right now to make yourself in a better light? Instead of sitting around today telling myself "I'm going to be fit, I'm going to be beautiful, I'm going to be wealthy," I can tell myself that I AM all of these things.

It's the power of believing.

What can you believe? What can you be?

ELF Says It Best

Like so many of my brain dead moments, instead of coming up with my own material, I'm choosing to plagiarize.

"Shortly thereafter I broke down in tears. I know I need to just last it out a little bit longer and I know that I’M ALMOST THERE. But I’ve got to be honest with you. This is one of the hardest things I have ever done. And I’m not even at the hard part yet! I felt weak for crying but at the same time, it’s kind of like in Ironman training when you find yourself stopped in your long run, 30 minutes away from the end, crying because you’re hurting, because it’s hot, because you know, dammit, that there will be no more relief for another 30 minutes because there is still work to be done. You know you’re going to get back out there, finish up the last 30 minutes and suffer because that’s who you are. You don’t give up. And when you’re pregnant, giving up is not even a choice.






There is no DNF.






Like in training, you’ve got to let yourself hit rock bottom, bounce back and prove to yourself, ok I can do this. I can last it out a little longer, I can push a human out of me, I can take care of that human for life. And the scary thing is that if I can do all of that I know…I can do anything."

To read the full entry, click here for Liz's blog.


Heading to 38 week check up or whatever the feck week it is now.

Sprinkling labor dust to Schwartzie, who's due today. Read about her here.

Oh SlowTwitch

I love SlowTwitch.com. When I have a spare moment, I giggle at all the ridiculous, and seldom not-ridiculous, things the TriGeeks say.

I however, am completly inamoured with the idea of LANCE racing Kona. I'm not sure if he has said he WILL, or if he has, WHEN, but I love the thought of it.

Here's a couple links of the yammering that goes on on a daily basis.

Lance at Kona but how will he get there?
http://forum.slowtwitch.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?do=post_view_flat;post=2886542;page=1;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;mh=-1;guest=105664639&t=search_engine

Anything on The Women's
http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?forum=7;

Why is there a Clydesdale/Athena Category?
http://forum.slowtwitch.com/Slowtwitch_Forums_C1/Triathlon_Forum_F1/Why_is_there_a_Clydesdale/Athena_Category_P2879412/

Chill Out, Yo!

http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/wayoflife/05/03/o.well.lived.life.key/index.html?hpt=Sbin


Lighten up on yourself to have a better life
By Elizabeth Gilbert, O, The Oprah Magazine
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Author: Too many women stress over whether they are accomplishing enough
Also, women find more faults when comparing themselves to other women
Writer urges women to accept mistakes, letting others be more perfect
RELATED TOPICS
Stress
Relationships
(OPRAH.com) -- Nearly all the women I know are stressing themselves sick over the pathological fear that they simply aren't doing enough with their lives.
Which is crazy -- absolutely flat-out bananas -- because the women I know do a lot, and they do it well.
My cousin Sarah, for instance, is earning her master's degree in international relations, while simultaneously working for a nonprofit that builds playgrounds at woefully underfunded public schools.
Kate is staying home and raising the two most enchanting children I've ever met -- while also working on a cookbook.
Donna is producing Hollywood blockbusters; Stacy is running a London bank; Polly just launched an artisanal bakery...
By all rights, every one of these clever, inventive women should be radiant with self-satisfaction. Instead, they twitch with near-constant doubt, somehow worrying that they are failing at life.
Sarah worries that she should be traveling around the world instead of committing to a master's degree. Kate worries that she's wasting her education by staying home with her kids. Donna worries that she's endangering her marriage by working such long hours. Stacy worries that the capitalistic world of banking is murdering her creativity. Polly worries that her artisanal bakery might not be quite capitalistic enough.
All of them worry that they need to lose 10 pounds.
It's terribly frustrating for me to witness this endless second-guessing. The problem is, I do it, too. Despite having written five books, I worry that I have not written the right kinds of books, or that perhaps I have dedicated too much of my life to writing, and have therefore neglected other aspects of my being. (Like, I could really stand to lose 10 pounds.)
Oprah.com: Why women never hear the good stuff
So here's what I want to know: Can we lighten up a little?
As we head into this next decade, can we draft a joint resolution to drop the crazy-making expectation that we must all be perfect friends and perfect mothers and perfect workers and perfect lovers with perfect bodies who dedicate ourselves to charity and grow our own organic vegetables, at the same time that we run corporations and stand on our heads while playing the guitar with our feet?
When I look at my life and the lives of my female friends these days -- with our dizzying number of opportunities and talents -- I sometimes feel as though we are all mice in a giant experimental maze, scurrying around frantically, trying to find our way through.
But maybe there's a good historical reason for all this overwhelming confusion. We don't have centuries of educated, autonomous female role models to imitate here (there were no women quite like us until very recently), so nobody has given us a map.
As a result, we each race forth blindly into this new maze of limitless options. And the risks are steep. We make mistakes. We take sharp turns, hoping to stumble on an open path, only to bump into dead-end walls and have to back up and start all over again. We push mysterious levers, hoping to earn a reward, only to learn -- whoops, that was a suffering button!
Oprah.com: 10 life lessons you should unlearn
To make matters even more stressful, we constantly measure ourselves against each other's progress, which is a truly dreadful habit.
My sister, Catherine, told me recently about a conversation she'd had with a sweet neighbor who -- after watching Catherine spend an afternoon organizing a scavenger hunt for all the local kids -- said sadly, "You're such a better mother than I will ever be." At which point, my sister grabbed her friend's hands and said, "Please. Let's not do this to each other, okay?"
No, seriously -- please. Let's not.
Because it breaks my heart to know that so many amazing women are waking up at 3 o'clock in the morning and abusing themselves for not having gone to art school, or for not having learned to speak French, or for not having organized the neighborhood scavenger hunt. I fear that -- if we continue this mad quest for perfection -- we will all end up as stressed-out and jumpy as those stray cats who live in Dumpsters behind Chinese restaurants, forever scavenging for scraps of survival while pulling out their own hair in hypervigilant anxiety.
Oprah.com: 6 steps to a regret-proof life
So let's drop it, maybe?
Let's just anticipate that we (all of us) will disappoint ourselves somehow in the decade to come. Go ahead and let it happen.
Let somebody else be a better mother than you for one afternoon. Let somebody else go to art school. Let somebody else have a happy marriage, while you foolishly pick the wrong guy. (Hell, I've done it; it's survivable.)
While you're at it, take the wrong job. Move to the wrong city. Lose your temper in front of the boss, quit training for that marathon, wolf down a truckload of cupcakes the day after you start your diet.
Blow it all catastrophically, in fact, and then start over with good cheer. This is what we all must learn to do, for this is how maps get charted -- by taking wrong turns that lead to surprising passageways that open into spectacularly unexpected new worlds. So just march on. Future generations will thank you -- trust me -- for showing the way, for beating brave new footpaths out of wonky old mistakes.
Fall flat on your face if you must, but please, for the sake of us all, do not stop.
Map your own life.
By Elizabeth Gilbert from O, The Oprah Magazine © 2010
Elizabeth Gilbert is the author of "Eat, Pray, Love" and "Committed"
Subscribe to O, The Oprah Magazine for up to 75% off the newsstand price. That's like getting 18 issues FREE.Subscribe now!
TM & © 2010 Harpo Productions, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Stolen: Things People Say

This is stolen straight from the ELF. Click here to see her blog.


Monday, March 22, 2010

Things People Say
WARNING: Very sassy, sarcastic post ahead!I’m going to start a Twitter account called “things people say to me while pregnant.”Call me a little sensitive, a lot vulnerable and sometimes so uncomfortable with feeling so big and uncomfortable but is it just me or does it feel like pregnancy gives people a license to say things to you that they wouldn’t otherwise say. If you are pregnant or have been pregnant you know what I mean. And know why I'm begging for a little more discretion in dealing with the pregnant woman please.Now, I mean no offense. Really, I don’t. Please forgive me of all sass because I am, after all, pregnant, raging with hormones and about to make my 14th trip to the bathroom for today. But here goes, a (long) list of things people say to you when pregnant....

#1 – Anything said about weight gain by the woman who is not pregnant nor has ever been pregnant.Telling you that you only need 300 more calories a day when pregnant. How soon until you can shut your piehole? There are things you don’t know. Being pregnant changes your body. That doesn’t mean that I am nose deep in ice cream every night nor going to stay “fat” for the rest of my life. It just means that there are things you cannot control in life and this is one of them. The body will do what it wants to do. If and when you get pregnant, we will see what your body will do. And I will be there to help you count those 300 extra calories a day.
#2 – Anything said by a man about his once pregnant wife.Don't tell me your wife only gained xx (read: very few) pounds in pregnancy. There is no medal for delivering without drugs just like there is no medal for gaining the least amount of weight. Either way we all get the same thing at the finish line – baby. I gained her total pounds before week 20. I got there faster. Know what that means? I win.

#3 – Anything said by a man about your weight gain.Things like – wow, you’re really getting big or wow, every time I see you, you are eating. I ask you though – when does he have to give up many things that he likes in life to become 25+ pounds bigger with a small mammal growing inside of him. He does not. And because of that, the proper thing to say is "wow you look beautiful" or "gee can I get you some more _____(what you are eating)."

#4 – Stories from your mom about how she finished her pregnancy at the weight you started at. Nothing more needs to be said.

#5 – Stories from the woman who gained over 50 pounds while pregnant.To some extent, she is my hero. She looked at the angry ocean of pregnancy, said fuck it and jumped right into a bag of chips, a gallon of ice cream and whatever the hell she wanted every single day. She knew she was going to be uncomfortable no matter what so might as well go at it full tilt. I have a friend who gained 75 pounds while pregnant. When I asked her how she accomplished that amazing feat she admitted it took a lot of Cinnabons and Oreo McFlurries. THAT takes balls.

#6 – People who say “If you keep ______, that baby’s going to fall right out.”Let’s see: the baby falls out or I spend possibly 36 hours pushing it out while shitting myself. I’ll take my chances.

#7 – People who disagree with your attitude that as soon as you enter the hospital, a source of drugs should enter your veins.It’s like talking to someone about god. Get ready to agree to disagree. I can’t say that I really care which way the baby comes out, just as long as it comes out. There’s a lot of things to feel guilty about in life (tapping into free cable from Comcast, eating the last spoonful of Nutella, blowing my nose on the indoor track at the gym when no one is around), taking drugs during labor is not one of them. There will be plenty of Mommy-guilt every time I want to take my eyes off my kid for the next 18 years.

#8 – Someone who doesn’t realize you are over 5 months pregnant until you tell them.Is this an insult or the best compliment in the world? Happened to me the other day. I’ve seen this guy every 2 weeks or so since December. When he asked if I would be riding my bike outside this week, I told him I can’t do that anymore. His face turned white and he said “you aren’t?” Well, I have been for the past 22 weeks! Does this mean that he sat there for over 5 months thinking to himself, wow, she’s really packing on the pounds or am I hiding what has to be 8 pounds of placenta, 5 pounds of boob and 4 pounds of edema THAT well?

#9 – Once pregnant women who tell you that your _______(enter body part) will never be the same.News flash: after gaining what feels like 100 pounds and watching the skin of your stomach migrate to the next zip code outside of your body, it will never go back to its original state. You mean – that 60 buck tub of cream from Pea in the Pod wasn’t blessed by magical anti-stretch-mark elves? Please let me believe that everything will just snap right back into place.

#10 – When someone informs you that “you are starting to show”.I’m starting to show. Really. Funny because when I looked down today and couldn’t see my vagina I was thinking that I might be able to hide this FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. Amen to showing – finally I can stop feeling like the chick who’s getting a little bit of chubchub around her waist and move on to the we-can-finally-ask-her-when-she’s-due-without-embarrassing-ourselves category.

#11 – Women who kindly inform you that being pregnant in the summer is hell.Because I haven’t already lived through 25 summers in the ass crack of the Midwest summer, these women remind you that being 30+ pounds overweight, bloated and waddling through a 90 degree day with 90% humidity is not as fun as you thought it would be. Neither was the marathon at Kona but I still did that in a Boston qualifying time. Both times. Thankyouverymuch.

#12 – Incessantly being asked “how are you feeling?”Imagine greeting someone every single time with how are you feeling. It’s not just that they ask you the question, they lower their voice and say it in such a way that you think that you might just look AND feel really bad. You think to yourself: am I dying? What you really want to say is: I feel f*cking amazing. How do you think I feel. I’ve already gained 16 percent of starting my body weight and I haven’t crapped in 3 days.

#13 – When someone asks, “are you sure you should be doing that?”If I could walk around with freedom to say that to anyone in the world, imagine the responses I would get. To all smokers, fast food eaters, texting while driving drivers, people posting their workout stats as part of their Facebook status update: are you sure you should be doing that? One night, I took a sip of wine and someone said “are you sure you should be doing that?” Listen, if that’s all it takes to harm this kid then he’s in trouble. I've got a 10-lb killer chihuahua living at my house.

#14 – Stories about how labor is godawfulmostpainfulmessynightmareGosh, I was thinking that squeezing a watermelon through a hole that used to make me think – how will I ever get a tampon in there – will feel so good I’ll shove the kid back in so I can do it again.

#15 – “You look great.”Really? Do I REALLY look great? Don’t lie to me. This is like when a spectator tells you that you look great at mile 18 of the Ironman marathon. No I don’t. I’ve been sunburned, pissed myself a dozen times and I am so desperate for salt I am licking my arm for the sweat. I look like hell rolled over me. Here's the deal: you don't look great, you just look pregnant.

#16 – Being reminded that I’ll never _____ again (sleep, go out to eat, have sex, take a vacation, live a normal life).I would imagine that taking on the responsibility of another life involves sacrifice. This is why we waited 10 years to have a child. We’ll make the sacrifices. Life will change. Like most change in life, it will be hard. You telling me hard it will be doesn’t make me think it is any harder. I think back to the race course in Corner Brook. Everyone couldn’t stop talking about the EPIC climb on the course. Turns out that epic climb was something you could stomp up out of the saddle in your big ring. This will be hard but we’ll be the judge of how hard it is. If it’s really hard, I’ll bring my road bike. If it’s epic, I’ll put on my compact crank.

#17 – Stories about pregnancy from women who gave birth to twins (or more).Nothing they she says is stupid, in fact it’s pure genius. Higher value wisdom than she-who-gained-50pluspounds. She says it’s hard, she knows hard. She says she breastfed – two at one time, she basically double-fisted it. She says she didn’t see her vagina after week 12, she’s a legend.

#18 – After being asked how you feel and told you look great it’s only a matter of time before someone asks “when are you due”.I’m due when the baby comes out. He will come out when he’s ready to come out. It could be on a specific day but about 80 percent of the time it occurs after that specific day. So what this all means is that I have no idea when the baby will be born. You can now stop asking me. Every time you ask me it reminds me I still have ___ months to go before I can shed this fat suit. And when I tell you late July it inevitably leads to #11.

#19 – When your husband tells you that he'll still love you even if you don’t lose the weight.I know he means well. But that doesn’t mean I want to hear it. Let’s pretend like I lose all the weight in 3 days and I go back to being me again. Tell me you will only love me then because I’m a pretty competitive person and I need a little fire under my ass. If you tell me you’ll love me no matter what that makes me feel like I have permission to walk around looking 6-months pregnant for the rest of my life. Tell me to nut up and get my ass back in shape or something. Call me Chubs. I’m going to need some motivation.

#20 – Strangers who ask “have you thought about names?”Listen, I’ve had this child named since I was 12 years old. OF COURSE we’ve thought about names! But the real question is why should we tell? Chances are you’re going to tell me some story about a kid you knew in the first grade with the same name who stood in the corner eating paste while shitting his pants. Thanks for the visual. Now, what’s your kid named? Really? I knew a kid with that name who ate his own boogers every day at lunch.

Now, it's not all that way. Know that for all the crazy things people say, you get about ten times as many good things that make you feel warm beyond words. And, of course I write this with the sass and humor that you need to have when you realize that even your underwear doesn't fit you anymore or that you just got out of breath while bending down to tie your shoes. So, cheers to all the pregnant women out there. Carry on, no matter what they say and remember, the correct answer is always: I feel great. Repeat after me: I - feel - great.

Pregnant Olympian

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver/blog/fourth_place_medal/post/Canadian-curler-is-five-months-pregnant?urn=oly,219941

Tue Feb 16, 2010 10:33 am EST
Canadian curler is five months pregnant
By Chris Chase
As with all curling teams, Team Canada features five members. Well, six, if you really want to get technical with it.
Alternate Kristie Moore, 30, is 5½ months pregnant, making her just the second athlete ever known to be with child during Olympic competition. Ninety years ago, Swedish figure skater Magda Julin won a gold medal at the Antwerp Games while in her first trimester.
Though she is showing (as evidenced in the picture above), Moore says that her pregnancy has not affected her ability to deliver rocks ... yet. "[In] the eighth month or so, that might be an issue," she said.
Moore found out about her pregnancy weeks before team officials invited her to join Team Canada as an alternate. When she divulged her secret, the team was more than supportive. Said team leader Cheryl Bernard, "she is young and fit. There's no reason we'll have any problems, and she'll be out there."
Barring unforeseen problems with the other four members of the team, it's unlikely Moore will see any Olympic action. During competition her role as an alternate is much like a backup quarterback in football: She'll be called on if needed. Moore has said that although she'd like to get out on the ice, doing so would mean having to play at the expense of someone else's injury.
Team Canada is the gold-medal favorite in the women's curling event, which begins Tuesday and runs through Friday of next week. Even if Moore doesn't play, she will receive any medal Canada wins.

Decade in Review

I'm a member of an online women's forum- kind of like the Knot, but way cooler- and the decade in review came up. I thought I'd add mine here.

2000- Finished my Freshman year in High School! Dyed my hair purple for the first time. Became a cheerleader (omg, seriously!?). Buried a close friend from suicide. Had a crazy summer cheeering and traveling my little brother around from state to state for moto racing. Turned 15. Met my future husband!

2001- Won conference in Humorous Interpretation for Forensics in school, somebody found my storytelling funny. Stopped cheerleading, it never would have worked out, anyway. What I would consider my Swan Song year in swimming- did fantastic at state, and had two relays win gold at nationals (NSG's). Watched future husband and brother race motorcycles.

2002- Swam, but not well. Got distracted by a boy (oh that scoundrel). Started taking college credit courses while still in HS. Husband graduated HS. Became a car hop at Sonic. I wore roller skates and black booty shorts. Seriously, easiest job ever. Look cute, don't fall, smile. Made bank. Started Senior year.

2003- Kept working. Went to school only in early AM's for college credit. First time purchasing a vehicle. My dad thought I was crazy buying a new car when they got me a perfectly good one the year before. Future husband bought a boat. Started wake boarding, well struggled at it. Graduated HS. Started college full time.

2004- Paid off said new car. Between sonic and the bar, I made money. Not kidding! Started getting kind of good at wake boarding, began competing. The boat thing caught on. Started working at future husbands boat dealership. Decided I missed swimming. Went back to club swimming at age of 19. Had to start all over.

2005- Finally requalified for swimming nationals. Tore labrum in right shoulder. Cried a lot. Retired again at age 19. Started getting really good at wake boarding. Earned world ranking of 45 in women's open cable wake boarding. Began looking at homes with future husband.

2006- Bought home with future husband. Started big girl job at hell hole law firm. Graduated college. Thought about attempting triathlon. Purchased bicycle. Did first triathlon. Met some new best friends for life. Did a few more triathlons. Turned 21. Did a half ironman triathlon. Won my age group. Qualified for Triathlon Long Course World Championships. Signed up for Ironman.

2007- Devoted life to training for first Ironman. Busted my ass. Began to worry weather I would ever get married to future husband. Had terriffic year in triathlon. Hated my job. Got engaged- on the beach, at Ironman. Completed Ironman.

2008- Began planning wedding. On cloud nine. Got fired (or, as they so nicely put it, "position is being terminated, and you will be eligible for state unemployment") 7 weeks before wedding. Best thing that EVER happened to me. Got married to WONDERFUL at dream Halloween Wedding, 8 years to the day of our first date. Went on AWESOME honeymoon to Mexico. Came back to job offers waiting for me. Started at new job.

2009- Excelled at new job. Did first stand alone marathon. Got pregnant.

2010- Finally got new car. Had the mustang the whole time. Planning on baby date of July 24. Turn 25 in August. Probably going back to school part time. Maybe new house? Going to have a great life. On to the next decade!

Tagged?!

Like the case of H1N1 that finally got me last week, I've been hit. This time, it's just blog tag. Trish (AKA Womanof1000blogs) tagged me in her latest blog.



So, here we go.




7 things about me.



7. I hate running. I know, weird. I do triathlons, marathons, every distance from zero and up. Still, running isn't a favorite. What I do love, however, is competing. Usually this is just with myself (can anyone say 18 mile run by myself AFTER work? No? Then read this. ) So why do I run, when there are so many things I can compete in? Well, underwater basket weaving is kind of tedious, and really, running requires the least amount of technical gear. Sure, I have a lot of the fancy schmancy stuff, but really it requires two working legs. Thank God, I have that.



6. My hair changes color faster than my uncle's veiled chameleon. I don't know what it is, but when I'm platinum blonde, I'd rather be a redhead. When I'm deep brunette, I want pink streaks. Currently, I am two platinum chunks and a pile of strawberry champagne. Your guess is as good as mine.



5. I know something you don't know. And I'm not telling for at least another month or more.



4. I am a Twitter fiend. It's ridiculous. Social networking be damned, I can't help it. Follow me on Twitter at TriathleteBride (Duh). Don't have Twitter? It's connected to my Facebook status. We're not friends? Well, looky here ---> It all feeds into the right side of my blog. Perfect.



3. I once quipped, "I'd rather give birth to a litter of puppies than have a baby." Please, please, please, do NOT tell my child this when it's old enough to be scared by it.


2. My husband has, on several occasions, been confused for Travis Barker. View Husband. View Barker.


1. I like to have fun. It can be out drinking with the girls, on the lake with best friends, dinner at Grandmas. I love to have fun. Fun at work, fun at home. I try to be upbeat and happy when possible. I do have some Negative Nelly, but I really try to be happy and fun (this does not read as wild-and-crazy). I enjoy life. So should you.












PS
I have to tag someone, so Tim, Julie, Andrea, and Moto Michele, you're up.

Where Are This Child's Parents!?

My father would have slapped me and locked me in the basement.





Skimpy Prom Dress Lands Teen in Cuffs
Marche Taylor, 17, Was Denied Entry to Her Prom Because of Her Revealing Dress
By EMILY FRIEDMAN
May 13, 2008 —
For high school student Marche Taylor, the prom may be a night to forget, not remember, after a dispute over her midriff-baring dress ended with her in handcuffs.
When she arrived for her prom Saturday night in an outfit that consisted of a short skirt and straps of material across her chest, the 17-year-old Houston senior was told to go home and change if she wanted to be admitted, according to school officials.
"The young lady came to the prom wearing an inappropriate dress after the students were told what the guidelines were," Houston Independent School District press secretary Terry Abbott said.
Only one inch of an attendants' midsection was permitted to be shown and slits in dresses could be no more than three inches above the knee, according to the Madison High School prom 2008 guidelines obtained by ABCNEWS.com.
Additionally, "see-through fabrics should not be worn in places which reveal private body parts," the document read.
Students planning to attend the function were required to sign the guideline document and return it to their homeroom teacher, school officials told ABCNEWS.com.
If students did not sign the guidelines and adhere to the dress code, they would not be allowed to attend the prom, school officials said.
And, according the prom chaperones, Taylor's dress fit few of the school's guidelines.
Prom Night Ends With Handcuffs
Taylor failed to leave the prom when she was asked to, according to Abbott, and instead began making a scene. Abbott said Taylor began yelling and acting "belligerently."
"After she was told she would not be allowed in unless she went home and changed, [Taylor] became aggressive and belligerent and eventually police were called to escort her from the building," Abbott said. Police hired internally by the school district handcuffed the teen and placed her in a patrol car until she calmed down, Abbott said.
No official arrest was made, according to several local authorities.
The principal of Madison High School, Aubrey Todd, whose prom it was that Taylor was trying to attend, declined to comment to ABCNEWS.com.
Taylor, who could not be reached for comment, told a local television station that she saw no problem with her risqué outfit.
"I actually like the dress," Taylor told Houston's KHOU of the yellow garment that left her belly bare and covered only parts of her chest with a single piece of fabric. "Everybody else likes my dress.
"She shook her head, she was like 'you are not getting into this prom,'" Taylor said of the prom's chaperone, who she said stopped her at the door of the local Marriot hotel, where the event was being held. "We were arguing back and forth because I wanted to know why I can't get into my prom."
Marche admitted to becoming infuriated after being denied entrance and asking for a refund on her prom ticket.
"They didn't give me any options but to go to jail or go home," Taylor told KHOU.
But school district officials stand by their decision, questioning how the teen could have been allowed to appear in public wearing the outfit in the first place.
"[Taylor's dress] was very inappropriate and frankly I'm surprised her parents let her out of the house like that," Abbott said. "The school did exactly the right thing by enforcing the rule."
Copyright © 2010 ABC News Internet Ventures
var s_account = "wdgnewabcnews,wdgasec";

Hitler Hates Kayne

Now, I like me some Kanyzzle now and then. I still think he deserves a throat punch.

So does Hitler.
Click to watch Hitler get angggrrry at Kanye.

No Baby Bug Yet

But this was absolutely freaking hilarious.

Basically, this blog calls out all the parents that I think should have had to pass a test in order to give birth.

Let the Kids Ride

Click here to see how this ban is affecting our kids!

New Lead Ban Legislation Drastically Affects Motorcycle Industry
bayodome Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 6,658 views
Rumors and speculation have been flying around for a few days now on a law that could affect small motorcycles considerably. As of yesterday, those rumors were confirmed in the form of a new policy that falls under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). The policy is a restriction on lead found in children’s toys and products.
According to the policy, put together by the Consumer Product Safety Commision (CPSC), any product intended for children with lead at more than 600ppm is hereby banned from retail. The intention is to minimize the possibility of children ingesting trace amounts of lead that can be found in small products such as toy cars, as children have the tendency to put things in their mouths. Although the target was small products, the blanket clause states that any product, large or small, intended for children is now banned. Minibikes have traditionally been marketed towards children 12 and under, so they unfortunately fall into the larger category, despite not being toys. All motorcycles have certain amounts of lead that can be found in everything from the aluminum in various parts, to the engine cases and wiring.
What does this mean? According to a Honda spokesperson, they are advising all of their dealers to no longer sell any inventoried CRF50s, CRF70s, and CRF80s. As this point one can assume the other manufacturers are taking similar actions. Bear in mind, this is not a permanent solution and is essentially precautionary at the moment, but it could certainly have a long standing effect on the motorcycle industry as a whole. After all, many dealerships greatly depend on minibike sales in good times and bad. As the details of this ban filter in we will do our best to keep the motocross community informed.
In the meantime, to read about the CPSC policy enacted on February 10th, click here.
There is also a waiver fighting to keep motorycles from falling under this policy which can be found at http://www.tomself.com/

http://motocross.transworld.net/2009/02/11/new-lead-ban-legislation-drastically-affects-motorcycle-industry/


http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-03-18-motorcycle-kids_N.htm?csp=34

Listen Up!

As you may have noticed, I've made some cha-cha-chaaangges to the blog. I decided a re-vamped look for 2009 is in order. So, I'll try to stick to this for a while, or until I get really tired of looking at it.

One of the new items is a playlist. I'll continue to update this, but as I think of new workout songs, I'll add them to the list here. It's pretty much the stuff I'm adding to my iPod.

If you get tired of hearing it, all you have to do is hit the "Pause" or stop buttons. I make no concessions for my choices in music. They cuss, scream, and wail. Consider yourself warned.

Oh, and if you're at work and playlists are blocked, then check them out at home.

Crank the volume to 11.

Grim Reaper at HIM.

This was first posted on Steve in a Speedo, and then on Athena Diaries.

If feeling dead at the end of a Half Ironman (HIM) was only really this funny...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c68aWDi9Hz8

I can't figure out how to load a video on here, but, trust me, you want to see this.