Valentine’s Day is a to remind us of the one’s we love.  I truly love my husband, my children, family and friends.  They are “Permanent” things that fulfill my life and fill my cup to the brim.  Chocolates, flowers and cards are wonderful but after a while they all have to “go back into the box”.  I’m reading a great book by John Ortberg called, “When the Game is Over-It All Goes Back Into the Box “.  This book is perfect for me right now because I’m in a very busy part of my life.  My children are young and getting into sports.  I coach one on one to clients trying to reach a personal best in running and triathlon.  My husband travels and works many hours so the house is hard to balance on my own at times.  Personally I am training for 6 races and ultimately to be at the top of the podium at the Ironman World Championships this October.  This book helps a busy person reflect on what to keep on your plate, how to refocus your energies and time into things that have permanent meaning and ultimately points out that sometimes life is like a game of Monopoly.  We love to win and see houses and hotels on the properties around the board.  Winning that game is like seeing a trophy of success.  I’ve competed in athletics for 30 years and have a lot of medals and trophies.  They are “temporary” reminders that we won and were successful from putting in such hard work and sweat.  As years pass, those trophies end up inside a box and the memories of winning 1st or 2nd fade like remembering if you owned Park Place or all of the Railroads in a game long ago.

Today I had the luxury of flying from San Diego to Newark all by myself.  Five hours of uninterrupted personal time for me to read, nap, eat and now write which is time I “love” to have to myself.  Another big “love” in my life is Triathlon.  It’s fun to reflect back on what Triathlon has brought to my life over the last 20 years.  When the race is over, here are a few highlights that brought me “Temporary” success, pride and fulfillment.    These are all going back in the box.

*Won my first triathlon in 1993 and earned $100.00

*Placed 2nd at NCAA National Cross Country Championships in college after training for a summer in triathlon!

*Moved to Boulder, Colorado for the summer of 1994 to explore triathlon and see a state other than Wisconsin.

*Dated a Pro Triathlete in 1994 who competed and flew me to Hawaii which was my 1st intro to the Ironman.

*Was endorsed with the best Triathlon Equipment.

*Moved to Tucson, AZ after graduating college to pursue my dream of becoming an Olympic Triathlete.

*Earned a spot on the USA Resident Team at the Olympic Training Center.

*Traveled throughout the US and World racing in Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Caribean Islands, Japan and every nice beach of Mexico.

*Appeared in Magazines such as Shape, Triathlete, Inside Triathlon.

*Recognized in the news and local papers for racing.

*Earned personal Sponsorships and contracts.

*Competed in National Championships, World Championships, and Olympic Trials.

*Broke Ironman World Records.

*Get to attend the Best Multisport Camp in the World with Timex who showers us with amazing support and the best Sponsors & product to date!

What’s not in the box is a life filled with relationships which have forever enriched me and made me the person I am today.  Here are some of those “Permanent” markers which Triathlon has brought to my life.

*Passion to explore the extraordinary with out limits.

*My college roommate,Cross Country teammate and friend Carrie Pfieffer who now does Ironman!

*My friend Sara Wagner who moved as much as I did and we can always pick up where we left off.

*Damien Koch, my first triathlon coach and mentor who taught me to keep my sunglasses on for a bright future.

*My parents Roger and Liz who taught me to go after my dreams and passions teaching me what unconditional love is.

*Carol and Ed Max who I lived with in Tucson, AZ as a starving pro triathlete and have become my sons God Parents and friends for life.

*My OTC roommate and friend Gina Derks Gardner who makes me smile and laugh anytime we’re together.

*My husband of 11 years,  Scott  Davis who was my “Home Stay” for a World Cup Triathlon 14 years ago!

*My clients who have become dear friends for life inside or outside of the sport (Cathy Zoc, Dan and Heidi Dague, Kathryn Johnston, Sue Bowman, Katie Narber, Mandy Braidic, Mike Morgan, Angela Hart).

*My two children who helped me gain 45 pounds during pregnancy that motivated me to race Ironman when they were both 2 years old.

*My sister’s Beth, Lisa, Nannette and Michele and my brother David who are each unique and strong.  I am lucky to be the youngest and learn from them all.

*Timex Teammates Brian Boyle and Dave Orlowski who are examples of taking your gift and making the world a better place.

Valentine’s for me this year was a day to reflect on why Triathlon has such a special place in my heart.

Mandy, Sara, me and my sister Beth.

My family.

Bike Fit = More Speed on Sunday at Ironman Cozumel

I’ve always been intrigued by the triathlete that spends thousands of dollars   on a bike or pieces of a bike to make it lighter while riding in a sub-optimal position.  When I became a coach I really started to pay attention to details like this to help clients get the most speed and power out of every stroke to achieve a PR.

My first triathlon was on a borrowed bicycle.  I couldn’t believe how many people I could pass coming far back out of the water.  It felt so fast and I wanted to do more.  I bought my first road bike for $200.  It was a 58″ Aluminum bike that was more than two sizes too big for me.  It’s what I could afford and I thought if I could reach the handle bars comfortably and my knee’s didn’t hurt then it was a good fit.  Funny, but that’s why triathlon is a fun, addictive and a growing sport.  One can always learn more and improve on something.  In 1998 when I lived at the Olympic Training Center I had been sponsored with a custom bike!  The team of experts “Fit” me professionally for the first time with pedals that could measure how much power I could push during the up and down stroke during one 360′ rotation.  My bike split times started to drop and it was all due to a bike fit and the right size of bike.

There is no piece of triathlon equipment more analyzed than the bike.  From Aero water bottle systems, Carbon fiber cages to Titanium bolts, we are all looking for lighter and faster.  FREE SPEED.  Every gram of weight saved by equipment can easily be trumped by a better position.  I’ve always thought of position as important but I simply had no idea how much, until now.  The last two weeks I had to ride one of my old $5000 triathlon bikes due to my Quintana Roo CD01 getting shipped to Mexico via TriBike Transport for my Ironman race in Cozumel.  I could tell instantly that my body was not as efficient.  The more “comfort” position I was set up with on my previous bike means nothing if you’re only engaging your hamstrings soon to be used for the next 26 miles on the run.

I discovered that 85% of the energy you exert is used just to get your body through the wind.  In other words, if I’m producing 200 sustained watts, only 30 of those watts are moving me forward.  What if I improved my position by just 2%?  That’s 4 watts in addition to the 30.  That’s more than 10% improvement in the watts used to push me forward.  Now that’s some FREE SPEED.

Enter, Nes Rodriguez and Retul fit system.  For those who haven’t seen Retul, you need to. For those who have I have advice for you.  You are only as good as your fitter.  Retul is the most advanced measuring system in the business, hands down.  However, the person, Nes is the fit system who owns StudioDNA in Carlsbad, CA.  His education, experience and knowledge is both in the bike and the body.  Dozens of measurements need to be interpreted.

Nes’ had his work cut out for him.  My Quintana Roo was fresh out of the box from Team Timex.  We built it, fit it and an hour later Nes had some advice I didn’t want to hear.  Send it back it’s too big.  I had been working under the assumption that we wanted to replicate last year’s machine.  QR sent me a smaller frame and we started with a blank piece of paper that etched out to the picture above.  This year I only had the chance to race 2 times due to an achilles injury.  In the Sprint and Olympic distance triathlon races I cut 2 mins off my bike splits from last year on my Quintana Roo CD01.  Sunday I will see how much TIME will be saved in an Ironman Distance!

Fit=Free Speed=Qualifying spot for 2013 Kona Ironman World Championships!

In 2007, my cell phone rings as I’m running & coaching my client and good friend Dan Dague 9x up a hill.  It rings 2 more times and I answer it seeing it’s from my husband Scott calling multiply times.  He’s crying on the other end of the line and said, “I need open heart surgery.  The radiologist just called with results to my MRI and I have an 8cm Aneurysm the size of a Naval Orange next to my heart!”  My stomach drops and I said, “I’ll be right home.”

I’ve never been sick the only doctor I had seen in California was my OBGYN to deliver our son Matthew who was 3 years old at the time.  Scott had just raced in a triathlon 2 weeks prior and was going to climb Palomar an 8000 foot Mountain tomorrow on his bike!  He was only 43 years old and a fit triathlete.  He had back pain for the last 6 months, but chiropractors said it was from carrying a heavy suitcase and the travel of driving and flying so much.  Another Doctor was giving him injections in a 25 year old scar that he thought was the cause of Scott’s pain from nerve damage.  They were both wrong and not helping with any of Scott’s pain or discomfort.  So Scott demanded an MRI thinking he had cancer.  He didn’t have cancer but he had a broken rib from the 8mm Aneurysm pressing on his chest cavity and dangerously big that if it “popped” Scott would instantly die.

In High School Scott discovered that his feet were going numb.  It was due to a narrow heart valve that wasn’t getting blood to the lower half of his body properly.  So at the age of 17 Scott had his first open heart surgery to repair a valve that never grew properly from birth (coarctation of the aorta).  He was told  to stop running and never play football again.  Years later, Scott got back to running and did the California Ironman in 2000 defying what the doctors said he could never do.  25 years later his original heart surgery leaked causing this huge aneurysm.  No doctor had ever seen such a case or had any experience.

A new client of mine, Cathy Zoc happened to call while driving to meet with one of three Doctors who wanted to help Scott and do the surgery.  I knew Cathy was a nurse and asked if she had a Cardiologist she could recommend.  Faith was on our side, she said, “My husband Chris Elia was a top Cardiac Surgeon for 25 years and went to school at Stanford.”  Still connected with the world of doctors Chris called the hospital and had them send the MRI tests and results to his house.  He advised us to get the surgery in Stanford.  The hospital didn’t have any surgical rooms available, but we said we’ll stay until one becomes available.  We drove up the coast to Pacific Grove for one night because it was our 6 year wedding anniversary.  Very weird timing and eerie because this is where Scott had proposed.  I couldn’t sleep because my motherly instincts like having a new born baby was to constantly check and make sure my husband was still breathing and his chest rising in his sleep.  Only God could comfort me in this darkness and insecure unknown space and time.

The next morning the sky was grey with clouds.  We were heading to a restaurant to eat.  My cell phone rang.  The hospital found a surgical room for tomorrow morning at 6am!  I hung up and the sky was vibrant blue and the sun shining down upon us.  It was a sign of hope, relief and love from above.  The surgery took 8 hours.  I thought an Ironman was grueling to endure for 10 hours, but not even close.  Waiting all day for the one you love and can’t see on a surgical table with their chest cracked open from back to sternum was the hardest thing I’ve ever experienced.  Taking one deep breathe in a breathing machine was so difficult and painful after the surgery for Scott.  I had to make sure he did 12 deep strong breathes/5x a day to make sure his lungs would regain strength and eliminate the chance of getting infected.  The recovery was 3 long years with a few complications.

Tomorrow, Scott will compete in the Soma Half Ironman.  He and my client Dan signed up for this race in 2007, but Scott never got to the starting line.  Tomorrow I will make sure Scott get’s the Finish Line!  There will be a lot of crying from both of us, but this time they will be tears of joy, success, perseverance and gratitude.  Once you have your health taken away from you there is no greater joy then having it back!  Racing and pushing oneself to be your best is the ultimate medal.  I am so proud of my husband.

My husband Scott with an Iron Heart

Dan & Scott Racing Soma Half IM -take 2