Loren Leonard

I have had the privilege of getting to know Loren Leonard this year. I originally heard about him through Rick D, and took an opportunity to introduce myself to him one day. For those of you who do not know or have not heard of him, Loren is a triathlete who raced with us in the Hawaii 70.3 2008. He has raced in the Kona Ironman World Championships 10 times, and is 79.

He was using the Hawaii 70.3 to try and qualify for the 2008 Kona Ironman. Because he was the only one in his age group, he needed to make the cut-off times, and finish the race. This would provide him with his qualification slot and allow him to race in the World Championships in October 2008.

I am happy to say that Loren met his goal. He finished in 8:25:39 just beating the 8:30 cutoff. He told me some time after the race that he would have finished sooner, but he went a bit off-course on the run.

Loren is a regular fixture at Spectrum Club MB. Please introduce yourself to him if you are given the opportunity, and wish him luck this year in Kona. He is an amazing person, and is truly inspirational.

The Wu Wei of life

While we were in Hawaii for the race, I introduced a Taoist principle that became the mantra of our trip.

Wu Wei (Non-Interference)

Wu Wei as described by Ted Kardash of Jadedragon.com:

“Wu-wei refers to behavior that arises from a sense of oneself as connected to others and to one's environment. It is not motivated by a sense of separateness. It is action that is spontaneous and effortless. At the same time it is not to be considered inertia, laziness, or mere passivity. Rather, it is the experience of going with the grain or swimming with the current. Our contemporary expression, "going with the flow," is a direct expression of this fundamental Taoist principle, which in its most basic form refers to behavior occurring in response to the flow of the Tao.”

This idea became increasingly pertinent throughout our journey. Not only during preparation for the race, but also during the race itself. My feeling is that you can utilize the Wu Wei principal throughout your training, along with your daily life. Many of us already practice Wu Wei during our everyday lives without knowing it, but it helps to recognize situations and opportunities where you might be battling against the natural order of the world, and it may benefit you to reevaluate and try to “flow” instead of “fight”. Your frustrations will quickly extinguish if you can acknowledge the dilemma and use that realization to apply a little Wu Wei as the perfect remedy.

Hawaii 70.3 2008 slideshow

Hawaii 70.3 2008

Hawaii 70.3 (May 31, 2008) was an experience like no other. It was our (Shannon, Barry, myself) first race at the ½ Ironman distance. We really didn’t know what to expect, and trained for a difficult race. Being on the Big Island was magical. I hadn’t been back for quite a few years, and just landing and departing the plane was a bit emotional.

The first couple of days were actually a bit hectic. Since this was our first experience with an Ironman sponsored event, we didn’t realize how much needed to be done pre-race. The bike to run transition (T2) bag needed to be ready to go when we registered. Then we had to pick up our bikes and ride them back to our condo. The next day we had to drop our bikes off at the swim to bike transition (T1). Then we had to prepare another bag with our actual swim to bike transition gear. It was all new and honestly a bit stressful, but we got through it perfect, and nobody forgot anything (thankfully). Even with all the prep work, we were still able to get in a couple of pre-race swims, one at the swim site, Hapuna Beach Park. This is a beautiful white sand beach in a partial cove a few miles north of Waikaloa. We also drove the bike course, which ended up being very helpful, as it gave everyone a mental picture of the route and it made the ride psychologically easier.

We woke up the morning of race day to windy Big Island conditions. The alarm went off at 4:15am, as we needed to eat, get to Hapuna beach to check our bikes, set up our transition, get body marked, and get ready for the start cannon which was scheduled to fire at 7:00am. Once we were at the beach and finished our preparations, we had a little time to soak in the atmosphere and meditate on the day. Everyone around looked very fit and focused, and I was a bit tense to say the least. The swim start was in open/deep water, and Shannon and Barry decided to battle the masses and line up towards the front. I had a different plan, and stayed a little further back in the second group. Once the cannon went off the chaos began. 1200 athletes all swimming for the first buoy, and no one wanting to swim a meter longer than they had to. It was hectic and frantic, but I felt really relaxed, that was my plan for the day, comfortable consistent effort. The ocean swim was awesome, the water was warm and crystal clear. Although there was a current and some chop it was still quite enjoyable to be out there swimming in the Hawaiian waters.

Fresh water showers after the swim exit, a little more sunscreen, a quick Clif Bar, and out on the bike course. I knew Shannon and Barry were ahead of me, and I was hoping that they were feeling good and getting into the race. We had quite a few discussions about race strategy, and I felt that everyone had a good idea on how best to approach the day. The bike course was windy, with a lot of small rolling climbs but nothing too bad. I noticed quite a few competitors at the side of the road with flats, and was hoping it wouldn’t happen to any of us. I ended up having a small mechanical (chain fell off) but was able to fix and recover in about 5 min.

Run course was rolling over various terrain. We ran through the Mauna Lani golf course out along the beach and out in the lava fields. The heat and humidity were a factor, but there were aid stations on the course every mile or so, and they were a welcomed relief. There were also many out and back type sections, so we were able to see each other during the run which helped with motivation. Overall, the race was an unbelievable experience and we were all pretty confident that we would be back to the Big Island to tackle the course once again in the future.

Shannon 6:09:33
Barry 6:28:00
Laurence 6:28:08

Wildflower 2007

In 2007 the group grew in size. Once again couldn't find any photos, so if anyone has them send them to me so I can post.
This year can be summed up best in the "race report" that I sent out:

With the Wildflower group growing and getting so much larger, I thought it would be nice to write up a summary of the weekends events so that everyone could get a little flavor and perspective on the results and interesting episodes that some might have missed.

First off I want to thank and congratulate everyone who came out and competed, and those of you who made the journey for support. I can honestly say that I am enjoying the experience more and more every year. We have such a wonderful group of people that are involved and I really feel a sense of Ohana (Family) between us all. I know that for me, the combination of competition, camaraderie, and sense of accomplishment provide the ingredients for a very special weekend.

Enough of the cheesy sentimentality, let’s get started on the details of the weekend:

What can we possibly say about the amazing Rick D. Even with the addition of little Taylor, a small detour during the swim leg, and the distraction of a possible Golden State/Phoenix Western Conference Finals match-up he managed to crush the field and get 8th in his age group and 37th overall! Becoming a daddy certainly hasn’t slowed him down, and his consistency and peak performance is always an inspiration to us all.

TP was a nice addition to the squad this year. It’s always fun to have someone you know competing on Saturday, and what a great race he had. He swam, biked and ran his way right to a lobster dinner (courtesy of B), with no wetsuit, an “interesting” bike, and no prior training whatsoever. His technical skills were showcased as he rode up the campground hill, negotiated the Bud Light hand-off, drained it, chucked the can and continued riding without missing a pedal stroke. 9th in his age group and 48th overall, very impressive TP, hope to see you next year.

Matt had a lot more than the race to worry about this year, and showed some real courage by competing on Sunday after being violently ill on Friday night. He certainly didn’t have his best race, but he finished which was an accomplishment in itself. I think he might have been a bit delirious on Sunday after the race though because I saw him breaking down Brian’s camp instead of his own, not sure about that. Well, unfortunately because he wasn’t feeling too good we didn’t get to see Matt much this year, but to tell you the truth we really didn’t miss him, and Cammy was more fun to talk to. Kidding Matt, you know we love you and hope you are feeling better.

Mike “The Hammer” Tonsing mashed it out again this year and muscled his way to another great finish. I think it must have been the pre-race, Triple decker Peanut butter sandwich I saw him stuffing down. He wasn’t actually able to tell me his finishing time after the race because he was wearing some regular dial watch with a second hand instead of his digital one. The small hand was on the 12 and the big one was on 3 when he finished so I think that was good.

Newcomer Barry Hill seemed to really enjoy the experience and had one of the great quotes of the weekend: “I wish someone had told me that I was going to cramp!”. I wasn’t too worried about E-Barry after I saw his iMobile interactive setup with video conferencing, DVD playback and WiFi all accessible through his steering wheel. I wouldn’t let him race with his bluetooth earpiece in though, I think he was upset. Barry had the most “inventive” breakfast that I have ever seen. The combination of Acai, granola, blackberries and Myoplex seemed very “aggressive” and one that I would never have thought of, but seemed to work great for him. I think the importance of the race hit home for Barry when he was overheard just before the swim start saying: “Laurence just gave me a hug…….this must be serious.”

Steve Labella had a Sunday peppered with obstacles. After the always interesting swim start, he managed to swim himself into the floating gas dock. Riding down Lynch Hill, he sucked down a pebble. He convinced himself that the pebble was lodged in his lung and had to finish the race with this dreaded “pebble-lung” condition. While on the run he started experiencing leg cramps. His painful screams were overheard by Challenged Athlete star Sarah Reinertsen, who proceeded to give him a questionable “nutritional supplement” to help him finish the race. I need to check the rulebook, but I’m pretty sure that was “illegal assistance”.

Brian “B” had an awesome race. I think most of that was due to the fact that he refused to ride his bike 1 mile further than the required race distance for the entire weekend. His conservation of energy and strength help to propel him to a great first time finish. It wasn’t without a few nervous moments though, and I’m not sure he would have made it to the swim start without some gentle nudging and the pre-race “intervention” that we all had to take part in. He eventually came across the finish with a huge smile on his face and the astonishing statement of “That was fun!”.

Big congrats go out to Chad for having an outstanding first time race. 2:38:58 is huge, and is even more unbelievable when you think about the sub-par camping conditions he had to put up with all weekend. I heard that he was only able to receive 125 out of the 158 available channels on Direct TV, and also that someone forgot to pack the microwave popcorn. Don’t worry Chad, I’m sure you will have all those problems ironed out by next year and will have an even better race.

We can’t mention Shannon Phillips without first thanking him for arranging our special guest speaker: Motivational guru and Triathlon coach Ian Murray. I think I speak for everyone when I say what an unbelievable experience that was to listen to him talk for the afternoon…..for free even. Once again thanks for that Miss, it was a real treat. (On a side note, I think the talk might have exhausted poor Ian as Rick D cruised past him during the race on the Lynch Hill climb never to see Ian again. See ya Miss!!). Shannon himself also had a superb first showing, clocking in with a 2:52. What makes this even more of a miraculous feat of will and courage was that he managed to finish the race after ingesting only 10 Gels, 15 Salt Tablets, and 4 bottles of Cytomax. I’m still amazed he had enough calories and electrolytes to carry himself across the line…..truly astonishing. I also have to attribute some of his success to his Saturday night “vision-quest”, where he separated from the group to center himself and gain strength through “metaphysical” methods I can only dare to imagine. I hear that next year he is going to bring along his Shaman, construct a crude sweat lodge and really go “within”.

I myself had an interesting race. After swimming horribly off course I had a nice chat with a race official while holding onto her kayak. Feeling confused and disoriented I appreciated the rest stop and conversation, as it helped me gather myself and cruise to a blazing 36 min swim split. I felt very good on the bike, but then came the interesting run leg. I learn a lot about myself every year during this race, and this year was no exception. I realized that although I am not eating any meat, that doesn’t necessarily mean that I can eat whatever I want. I came in 7 or 8 lbs heavier than my race weight from last year, and I could really notice it on the run. I can honestly say that I suffered a little bit more for every Thin Mint and Samoa from those genius girl scout chefs, as well as the delicious lemon bars and sugar cookies from Corner Bakery. I think next year I will have to adjust my dessert strategy a bit to reveal the slim triathlete that is lurking underneath my currently over-muscular exterior.

Finally, lets get to Kantor. As many of you already know, “Where’s Kantor?” has become the question/statement of this year and can almost be considered as an explanation for many things, one of them being performance. Never in my three years of racing have I seen someone on the side of the road stretching out a tight hammy before the turn-around on the bike leg. As Rick D was running down Lynch Hill to finish the race, Kantor came riding past him on his bike to get to T2 and start his run. Unfortunately Kantor’s finishing time of 3:46 wasn’t good enough to place him ahead of any of the 3 male competitors in the 70-74 age group (3:22, 3:30, 3:41), but he was just able to nose out 60 year old Pauline Higgins who posted a brisk 3:49. I am thinking that next year he may have to adjust his training schedule and maybe cut back on the Baskin-Robbins Chocolate-chip/Jamoca Almond Fudge weekday brick workouts. I may poke fun at Kantor’s results this year, but he is an integral part of the team and we would never have our team name- WK? without him. We all appreciate Mike for his great spirit, support and enthusiasm. Even with his difficult race day he was still able to find the humor in it all and was there for everyone with congratulations and celebration. You are definitely our Captain?

Once again congratulations to everyone for participating this year and as always it was so enjoyable getting together and spending the weekend with you all. I look forward to hearing comments or other stories I may have missed, and also to seeing you all again soon.

Thanks for another great Wildflower weekend.

Laurence
Manager - Team WK?

Wildflower 2006

2006 was the first year that B Hirai, jumped into the fray and competed in the Mt. Bike sprint. He was hooked, and predicted that he would try the Olympic course in 2007. Me, Rick D, Steve, Matt and Kantor all raced the Olympic distance.

Wildflower 2006 Photos