Rob Eakin Triathlete

Inspiration

Inspiration comes so infrequently and in the most unlikely of places sometimes. So I like to keep a collection of things to get me motivated when I need it.

A couple of recent YouTube finds that have fit the bill lately...

Today I found an interesting source of inspiration. I had planned a tough workout on Knox Mountain in Kelowna (~3.5k climb with 250m of vertical) with 4 x climb alternating easy/all out.

On my first all out climb I noticed a Dad and his roughly 8 year old son (he could easily have been younger but saying he was 6 just seems ridiculous) just starting up the mountain each on their own bike. Then on the decent I saw them again, this time the kid had hit a really steep part (probably about 12%) and was out of the saddle trying to do his best Andy Schleck impression on his tiny bike. It may have been the cutest thing I've ever seen.

The next time up (easy this time), the kid was off his bike, walking it up the steep part but not giving up. So I slowed as I came up beside him and gave him some words of encouragement to keep going. His face lit up in a way I can't even describe.

Sure enough, on my next decent he was back in the saddle climbing again and seeing that gave me the inspiration I needed to smash up the mountain one last time all out. This little guy wasn't complaining one bit when the majority of kids would have given up and would be sulking on the side of the road. It was truly amazing.

So I smashed up the mountain one last time and as I passed the little guy, I managed to let out a "go, go, go" in between gasps  of breath. Again, his face lit up and I could see him pick up the pace ever so slightly. It was all I needed to push my way to the top. You were my inspiration today buddy.

So it was a great workout which was much needed after yesterday had been washed out by torrential rain, hail, roads with no shoulder, flats and tubes with the wrong valve. Some visual evidence of Jeff changing a flat (note the water rushing around his feet) and the river of water coming down the road from all the rain.

Secrets of Greatness

So the triathlon season begins tomorrow with the Delta Triathlon. I'm excited but go into it knowing that while I've put in plenty of work through the winter, I have little race fitness. It wasn't until this week that I started doing more than the occasional workout at race pace and so while I figure I'll be a little faster than last year, the best will definitely be to come.

In my couple of years of racing triathlons, I have learned that I have the greatest sense of motivation right after a race. I feel inspired, good result or bad, to take what I've done and immediately try to better it.

So with this in mind, this race begins a five week race bonanza that I'm hoping will kick start some higher intensity training and racing. This weekend Delta, next weekend the 2-day cycling stage race Race the Ridge, the Sun Run the following weekend, a weekend off (though the UBC Triathlon is beckoning me), and then the North Shore Triathlon.

The key race in my mind is the North Shore race. I'm hoping that by that point I'm in "race shape" and can put down a serious time  (aka a sub 1 hour sprint).  That will then hopefully kick me from the sprint race season into the olympic distance race season for the rest of spring and summer.

On another note, a great article that I was reminded of yesterday thanks to the Twitterverse:

Secrets of Greatness

For most people, work is hard enough without pushing even harder. Those extra steps are so difficult and painful they almost never get done. That's the way it must be. If great performance were easy, it wouldn't be rare. Which leads to possibly the deepest question about greatness. While experts understand an enormous amount about the behavior that produces great performance, they understand very little about where that behavior comes from.

...

The critical reality is that we are not hostage to some naturally granted level of talent. We can make ourselves what we will. Strangely, that idea is not popular. People hate abandoning the notion that they would coast to fame and riches if they found their talent. But that view is tragically constraining, because when they hit life's inevitable bumps in the road, they conclude that they just aren't gifted and give up.

This Isn’t A Math Test

Sometimes you just have to admit when you're wrong. This is one of those times. I claimed (actually more like swore) to many people that Lance didn't have a chance of winning the Tour de France. However, it seems as though I forgot that sports isn't a math test.

So it may not add up. He's taken years away from the sport. He's past his prime. His team was set up to for Contador to win the tour. Everyone thought he was just trying to get exposure for his LiveStrong brand. None of it added up to a yellow jersey in Paris.

But after watching the first week of the tour, I will say I was wrong. It's still going to be an uphill battle (pun intended) to beat his teammate Alberto Contador but I'm saying he has a fighting chance. Yes, we got ourselves a game.

It terms of training, things are rolling along. As Kelowna gets closer, gone are the 100 km rides and 2 hour runs. Instead, they are slowly being replaced by shorter but faster workouts.

I've decided to schedule in a bike/run combo workout at the track once a week in the hopes of figuring out this running off the bike thing I've been struggling with lately. It was something I had trouble with in my first year of triathlon and so in preparation for Worlds last spring I did lots of little runs whenever I biked and combo workouts at the track. It seemed to really help and I haven't done any of that this year so I'm hoping six weeks of it (along with some solid running) will get things where I need them. 

Decided to take a pass on racing the Vancouver Triathlon (Half Iron or Sprint distance) this last weekend in favour of training hard. Having raced last weekend and taking Monday and Tuesday easy to recover, I didn't want to have to ease off the days before the race and leave myself only a couple of days of real training this week.

So instead I got to be spectator/stand-in coach (no Alan, I don't want your job but it was fun for the day). I ran around cheering and yelling out splits at Martina who came up just short of victory to Ironman (Ironwoman?) pro Lindsey Corbin and deserving a rental car with her name on it.

As for the boys, other than Facundo who ran away with the victory, I motivated them by yelling that Martina was coming fast and was going to catch them (as the boys started 4 minutes in front of the girls). Congrats to Ryan, Kamal, and Jeff for holding her off. Maybe next time Clarke and Choppy. It was also great to see Ben throwing down a 6th place finish in his first year in triathlon. Possibly preparing for a run at another Olympic gold but in triathlon this time?

I will say though, that standing on the beach with everyone else in their wetsuits warming up, all I wanted to do was hop in the water too and race. But the chance to race will come again. Soon.