A time for a change. Soy is linked to infertility, breast cancer, hypothyroidism, thyroid cancer, and many other disorders.

Check out the website folks. This is not a good thing. http://www.soyonlineservice.co.nz/

Team TELOS Timp T3 Triathlon was my first of many.

My first encounter with the Triathlon bug was an eye opening experience way back in the beginning of just this year. Yes I know it is hard to believe I have only been racing for one season. (insert funny face here. ;P )
When I finally decided to muster up the guts to actually register for my first Tri I made the choice to do it in my home town of good ole' Boise Idaho. This race was the first in a series of 4 I believe. The Tri was supposed to take place in the pond behind the Clocktower apartments just west of down town Boise. This apartment complex pond was a duck pond. Question: What do ducks do all day? That's right sports fans, they poop. So we were to be swimming in an open water duck toilet. I tell you, that is really exciting.
To make a long story short, they had to move the race to another time and location due to an early construction of a water park going to be built there. Needless to say, the thought of NOT having to swim in a duck pond made me feel a little better, but the fact that my FIRST Tri I registered for was moved and I would not be able to race there, was a little upsetting to say the least.


Now I told you that story so I could tell you this story:

I received word from a fellow coworker that there was a group of individuals in Orem Utah that put on a few races each year and the first race was coming up quick. I got online and registered for it right then!! Boyd, (the fellow I work with) and I were going to do our first Triathlon together. Boyd is an older gentlemen that was looking for ways to stay in shape and have some fun, and one really good way to do that is to train for a Triathlon. I will have to give Boyd kudos on this race since he trained much harder then I did.
I think I was too much into weight training and let me tell you I was served a real big slice of humble pie by the end of the race. This first Tri opened my eyes to a much different style of race training. I guess I needed to learn how to swim, go figure.
Being that this was my first race, Tri or not, I really had no idea what I was getting myself into besides a very expensive hobby. This is where I learned the importance of trial by experience, and what I am talking about is the dinner the night before as well as the pre-race food. I am one of the lucky members of society with a very sensitive stomach and I need to watch what I eat. I learned very quickly into the first leg of this race which happened to be the run portion, that two large servings of oatmeal along with toast and peanut-butter and protein mix and some more stuff I don't really remember all, but that was not the best idea for breakfast.
The stomach pains and gas came on quickly in the beginning and never went away throughout the entire race time. Luckily enough it was a mini sprint race and was not supposed to take very long to complete; bring on problem number two.
As many of you know during a Triathlon that the volunteers work very hard to keep everybody safe and on course. I have seen this time and time again. This particular location of the bike leg where the racers were supposed to finish the two laps and then turn down the side street and head back to the transition area to prepare for the "IN POOL" swim leg, well, somebody was not paying attention at the time of my second lap and since I was a Tri-rookie I really had no idea what was going on. Needless to say, I kept on riding right past the turn off area and right back around the 5 mile block as well as back up the wicked hill. The 3rd lap counts for 15 miles instead of the previously imagined 10. The 3rd track up that hill was a little harder then the first 2, but I made it just the same. Coming back to the course worker for the 3rd time I slowed and asked her; "Is this where we turn?" "Have you finished your second lap?" She says. "No, I have finished 3, so can I turn now?" She said yes. As I slowly headed toward the transition area to ditch my bike and jump in the water, I felt like I was going to burst from the insides out. The pain you get when you kick up endurance really sets my stomach in knots. "I will just hit this pool fast and get this done so I can spend the rest of the day in the can." That is what I was saying which would have been fine, IF I only could swim fast enough to get out of my own way; which I could not. So a very poor quality of dog-paddling followed by walking from one end of the pool to the other is the only thing that my poor beat down body could provide to me at this point.
I had caught up to Boyd by the bike transition and we hit the pool at he same time. He beat me to the finish line by one minute. I think I finished in 1:27:00 and Boyd finished in 1:26:00. Good job Boyd!!
So if you were wondering, I made it out of the pool without any, well, lets just say they didn't have to evacuate the pool due to my poor choices for breakfast. :)
After this most upsetting hour and a half of my life I made the decision to most drastically redesign my training regimen. It now consisted of swimming, biking, and a lot of running. Who would of thought that would of done better then spending most of my time in the gym throwing around weights all day.

So in closing, that first race was just the beginning in a long line of racing. The cool thing is that the sweet folks at TELOS TIMP T3 are re-running this Triathlon in November and I will be there to demolish my previous finishing time by at least 27 minutes. Come on out and see what you are missing.

                                                                        Boyd and I.

Felt like I was going to die.

I Am Athlete - go to their FaceBook page and click the "Like" button.

Hey everybody!!!! Go to the I Am Athlete FaceBook page and click the "Like" button.
 

They are an amazing group of folks and need just a few more friends. Help us out please. If you "Like" their page then maybe I will do something amazing during my next race. You will have to wait until they hit the 1,000 mark before we find out just what it will be.

Boulder Trail Triathlon

There is a first time for everything, and the weekend of the 20th was definitely a first for many things.
The morning starts at 3:00am. Up and getting the car packed for what I like to call a Racation; or a race vacation if you will. Destination; Boulder Colorado. Home of what John Denver likes to call the Rockies. A fellow Team Aquaphor racer informed me of this Boulder Trail Triathlon and since we were going to be in the Colorado area anyway racing in the Warrior Dash, well I just could not resist the double race weekend.
So back on the road.
4:00am, in the car and merging onto the freeway to hit the 80 East into Wyoming. Not the most prettiest of drives but I had the best of company.
Skip forward to the end of the drive:
At 1:00 pm we pulled into the parking lot of the Boulder Reservoir where the Tri was just a few hours away from start. Not only a trail Triathlon, but an evening trail Triathlon. Yet, another first for me.
We checked out the race areas and the beach and then sat down to have a delicious Pre-Race meal. Some killer bread with the best ham and turkey slices along with another sandwich topped with peanut-butter and a protein shake to wash it all down with. 
After lunch we head back into town to find somewhere to sleep for the night. Ya see, we planned this weekend Racation to race, most everything else was just flying by the seat of our pants. We found a cute little hotel right off 28th street, checked in and back to the reservoir we headed. Around 4:00pm the packet pick-up area opened and we could then check in and transition our bikes. A couple short hours to get in a short swim and a nice little run. That was when it hit me like a ton of bricks that stood almost 6,000 feet high. Yes sir! We were in Colorado my fellow blog readers and were racing at a 5,430 foot elevation.( I really thought it was higher than that. Now I really didn't do as well as I had thought) I could not catch my breath at first during my warm up run and it was even worse when we hit the water and tried to swim. I must of psyched myself out with how high I thought it was. I will do better next time. :(
From out of the water we came and into the transition area we went. The run leg followed the swim on this particular course. Another first! I shot out of the transition area like a bolt of lightning for the first 1/4 mile and shortly ran out of breath again slowing to a brisk walking pace and moving forward to yet another sprint. I kept this pace up the whole 5k run; up the side of the dam and then down the dam road, (he he) turning around at the dam water check point and then running back down the dam wall, across the beach, over the catamarans, splashing through the incoming tide just in time to leap over the big ditch in the sand and back into the transition to head off on the bike.
Another first. Yes, I own a CycleCross bike and this would of been the first time I have taken her off road. Sad I know but the ole' girl did wonderfully. It is difficult to say IF anybody was "On Course" the whole bike leg. It was a little confusing at times and with the sun setting and the dust flying we just road till we were told to turn around. Half way through I look ahead and see this poor girl attempting to lift her big heavy mountain bike over this 5 foot fence so me being the nice guy I am helped her out with that dilemma. She was also in my way and so I had to move her bike so I could get across the fence myself. A little lift and a little hop and I was back on the trail only to find a hill I was needing to run up and attempt to ride back down. Now I am not sure if anybody crashed on the way back down this hill since all the rocks and what have you were in the way, but I hope nobody was hurt. Back around and making my way to the finish line where my lovely lady awaited my return. :)

So as a race of many firsts, it was an amazing race put on by the fine folks at Newton shoe triathlon and 24 hour events. I loved the whole race and the folks running the show were very helpful and had all the answers to all my corny questions. Kudos guys!!!

 And YET!! Another in the long lists of firsts. I was able to race with my new "NOW I CAN" jersey top.

If you have yet to check out the awesome group from Now I Can, get on it!! http://www.nowican.org
They perform amazing work and rehabilitation for children with Cerebral Palsy. You can join us on September 11th for a really great benefit concert.
Jarrett Burns will be at the Now I Can benefit concert on September 11 at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre!
Q: What do you get from a half black, half Samoan, half hippie, Mormon singer/songwriter from South Georgia?
A: Music for EVERYBODY that you swear was just for YOU! Bringing together the many faces of pop music, Jarrett Burns blends rock, R&B, soul, folk, reggae, and even jazz into songs with catchy beautiful melodies and clever yet meaningful lyrics. (See more about Jarrett Burns at www.reverbnation.com/jarrettburns.)

 

Now YOU Can help share the smiles... A letter from Tracey and Joel Christensen

Friends of Now I Can:
We appreciate your help for disabled children so much!  Now I Can Foundation
has had record support the past three days.  We are asking each supporter to
find 5 new people to vote today-we have 800 votes to make up in the next 3
days, and we can still do it.  Below are detailed voting instructions for
those who need them.  Please pass this on to as many as you can who love to
hear kids say "Now I Can"!

Have you cast your vote for Now I Can yet? Don't forget, you can vote once a
day through Saturday. Each vote puts Now I Can closer to winning $30,000 to
help give physical therapy to kids with disabilities.

Here's How to Vote:

1) Go to http://apps.facebook.com/apxgivesback/ (or search for "APX Gives
Back application" and then click "Go to Application")

2) If it's your first time voting, click "Allow" and then "Like" the
application (You can easily "unlike" it after you're done voting for Now I
Can)

3) Hit "Click to start voting"

4) Click on the green "Mountain" icon

5) Find "Now I Can" and click "Vote this charity"

Thanks for your support!  The POWER OF ONE IS GREAT-and the POWER OF MANY is
unstoppable!

Tracey Christensen
Founder and Director
Now I Can
(801)376-4588
1675 N Freedom Blvd #10B
Provo, UT  84604
www.nowican.org

More exciting things from the Now I Can Foundation

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=11976402&hl=6

PROVO -- Tracey and Joel Christensen are the founders of "Now I Can," a physical therapy center for disabled children in Provo. The work being done there is phenomenal and is helping kids soar to new heights.

"It's a very happy place, and it's just because of the people." -- Kimberly Holmes

Kimberly Holmes' daughter Jessica attends the center.

"Every day I see little differences in her," Kimberly says. "Her confidence level - she's wanting to try new things. I think she's feeling a sense of self-worth in some of the things she's doing, and self-accomplishment. It's just a great place."
Tracey and Joel Christensen share in the joy of seeing Jessica progress. Their oldest daughter was born with hemiplegic cerebral palsy, which mostly affects the right side of her body. Some of the Christensen's biggest triumphs have come in seeing her reach her goals.

After years of seeing limited progress with physical therapy, the Christensens traveled to Poland where their daughter underwent a month of full-body, intense physical therapy. The results were so tremendous that the Christensens wanted to make the same therapy available to families in Utah.

Joel says, "We came up with the name ‘Now I Can' because our daughter was saying, ‘Now I can do this, now I can do that,' and these kids are the same way."
The Christensens started the non-profit organization four years ago. Since then, dozens of children have profited. Many leave the facility accomplishing things once thought to be impossible.
"It's been such a blessing," Joel says. "We've never had a family leave and say, ‘We didn't see any improvement.'"
Tracey says, "It's a miracle to be here and see these kids. They just want to do all the things that other children do, and some of them never will. But any amount of progress they can make is huge for them and their families."
Melanie Donahoo nominated the Christensens for a High 5. "When you get older, it's harder to find heroes. I would say from watching her I would definitely consider Tracey and Joel heroes for what they do, for the help that they bring to these kids, and for the passion they have for what they do."
Joel says, "I look at these kids and the work that they do and their determination. They're heroes to me with their example and the things that they do. We're just trying to do all we can to help them."
Tracey adds, "Sometimes things are challenging and sometimes things are hard. But when they or the parents say ‘thank you' and when you see the progress that's being made, it's worth it."
The Christensens are holding a benefit concert on Sept. 11 at the Scera Shell Outdoor Theatre in Orem. You can also help them win $100,000 in a Facebook contest. Just vote for "Now I Can" on the APX Gives Back page before next Saturday.
Our High 5 partner, Les Schwab, is sending the Christensen's a $100 gift certificate. Key Bank also is throwing in a $100 prize.
If you know someone who deserves a High 5, go to the link here.

To my Sponsors

Sponsors:

Team Aquaphor: http://www.teamaquaphor.com/

Rudy Project: http://e-rudy.com/  -  http://www.rudyprojectusa.com/

  

Rockwell Time: http://www.RockwellTime.com/

Now I Can Foundation: http://www.NowICan.org/

Our mission at Now I Can is to help children with disabilities reach their full potential and greatest independence.

Now I Can offers traditional physical therapy, intensive suit therapy, mild hyperbaric oxygen treatments, and feeding therapy.