June 25, 2003 changed my life.

Not because the Federal Reserve's monetary policy committee met to discuss interest rates, (sound familiar?)
Or that The Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce, Marshall Michigan met for …. some other reason,
Or that Leo Lindig retired from the Falcon Heights Fire Department, Falcon Heights, Minnesota, after thirty-eight years of service. Receiving a decorative pike pole for his many years of service.

Arguably life-changing events, yes?

No.

June 25, 2003 changed my life, because on that date, for some reason which remains a mystery, at the age of 52, I joined the Los Angeles Triathlon Club.

Now, I didn't say 'saved my life'. Nothing that dramatic. But that date, 6-25-03, and oddly that month and day, June 25, 'changed' my life ……. twice.

June 25, the first time: A little history. On June 25, 2003, I could not swim 10 yards in a pool, freestyle, without fear of drowning. The ocean, at that time, was such a remote possibility, that it wasn't even in my thoughts.

I had not been on a bicycle in 40 years. Forty …. years. That's longer than some of you have been alive.

I ran a little, but that was it.

I had no idea what a triathlon was. Not a clue. I DID know, that it started in the water. Swimming. For this reason, I just KNEW that I could never do one. I KNEW this.

And I believed it.

Yet, something drew me to this sport. And to this club and it's amazing members. And allowed me a personal growth that I wish each of you reading this, will experience during your lifetime.

The Bike: I bought a bike. Knowing nothing about bikes, and still new to this club, I called a few members (over and over) with basic questions. And each of them (over and over) offered their advice. If any of these people tired of my calls, I never knew it.

Then I learned to ride. Not quite the same as when I was 12. Clipping in? Tipping over! (I first tipped over in front of an entire film crew in Griffith Park. They, of course, captured this moment … on film.)

Now, let's try riding: It took only one email to the club's (now 1500) members for me to find a riding group. Actually, many riding groups. And we were off. Riding the Pacific Coast Highway, with the Pacific Ocean in the next lane. Or taking to the hills, spending 4-5 hours in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Riding with Triathletes of all levels. Okay, maybe not the REALLY good ones. But, we were right behind those guys. Sometimes. For a short while. But, I swear, each member of this club that I met, seemed to want to help me become a better rider.

The Run: What I learned, very early on, was that running races, and running races after biking, are two completely different days.

I learned about hydration, the hard way. I learned about nutrition, the hard way. I learned that not being open to learning, is a hard way to learn. I learned more about running, through triathlon training, than I had learned while running.

The Swim: Next came the fabled first wetsuit. A gift. A perfectly timed gift. A film producer (and triathlete) with whom I had been working, gave me one as a bonus. "The zipper goes up the back", he explained. My history with, and fear of, water, now had to be addressed.

As with the bike, any of the LATC members I'd see at the pool, or the beach, would offer suggestions, encouragement, etc. That's what kept me coming back. The encouraging words to try again. And again.

And again.

Until, finally, I had some success in the water.

Which lead to one of life's greatest experiences. The feeling you get when you can 'give something back'. Like so many of this club's members, who organize workouts, clinics, rides, etc., I was allowed, along with LATC'er Steve Herbert, the opportunity to start a clinic. The Ocean 101. A clinic to help others better understand, and get comfortable in, the Pacific.

We got to see people achieve, to move past their fear, and to prove something to themselves.

I honestly believe that one of life's great purposes, is to help others succeed.

Part two: a small beach, at the Coeur D'Alene Resort, Idaho.

June 25, the second time: Oddly, coincidentally, or perhaps of no consequence, on June 25, 2007, fours years and one day after I joined the Los Angeles Triathlon Club, I completed my first Ironman Triathlon. Vertically.

Know that more people finished that day ahead of me, than did behind me. And my finishing photo wouldn't make the cover of GQ Magazine.

But I can promise you, that accomplishment would never have happened without the support of this club and it's members. Some pushing me harder on the bike or the run. Others offering me suggestions (and critique) on swimming techniques, or joining me for the longer ocean swims.

LATC member Oliver Martin's words continue to ring true. "No matter what, keep moving forward".

Either in the race, or in life, "Keep moving forward."

The Ironman was never even a possibility in my life. Not on any checklist I made. Me, a triathlete? Hell, me a swimmer? (okay, I still have some work there to get up to speed.)

It was through this club, which supports and builds it's members, as much as it's members support and build the club, that I grew in ways never imagined.

Here's wishing that each of you have many June 25th s throughout your lives. Those life changing moments, the importance of which is only realized months, and sometimes years, later. Those life changing moments which set the course for life's directions never imagined. Yes, I wish all of you many June 25th's.

Lastly, here's to my June 25th's yet to come. And to the people I want to share them with.

Welcome to the best sport on the planet. And the best club in the sport.

Picture: Tim Bomba in the back row/center with one of his Ocean 101 Groups, 2006.

It's an age old dilemma for everyone who's ever joined the LA Tri Club or updated their profile:

What is my "Training Level"? Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced?

Pick one and let the tri world know where you stand and how you rate. It's a bit unfair, really, having just three buckets into which we group thousands of athletes whose ability and experience range from brand new to professional.

Sadly, we get reports of new members breaking out in hives trying to determine just what each level means. Woe be to the newbie who dares claim "intermediate" status or the expert guilty of horribly false modest in purporting be a "beginner" because they only joined the club a month ago.

In the interest of club-wide alignment and to save countless members the shame of an incorrect training level, we offer this first-time-ever attempt at defining just what it means to be a Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced level LATC member.

Training Level
First, let's define "training level". This is widely understood to mean more than "training". It's about your ability and experience. If you were a former NCAA Division 1 runner but only train once a week and have only done one triathlon, your training level might be low but no one in their right mind thinks you are a beginner. Think of the three levels as encompassing a mixture of experience, knowledge, and ability in both training and racing triathlons.

Beginner
Beginner can be defined by both your physical ability and your knowledge of the sport. To be a real Beginner, you need to be not only slow (an important pre-requisite of Beginner-hood) but you need to have very little experience and knowledge in triathlon training and racing. It isn't hard to be a beginner but it's hard to stay one. Let's face it, even if you stay slow it is hard to avoid getting more experience and knowledge even if simply by osmosis. So let's put it to the test.:

You are a beginner if…
+ If you think carbon fiber is something you add to your cereal to improve digestion
+ You think Body Glide is something best left for the bedroom.
+ A trip to the kitchen is considered a "long run".
+ You still aren't sure: Do we swim, bike and run ALL IN THE SAME DAY???
+ You time your races with a calendar or sun dial.

You are NOT a beginner if…
+ You haven't done a triathlon but you competed in swimming, biking, running, or any other sport in college.
+ You can complete the following sentence: "My half-ironman PR is…"
+ You have a strong opinion on bike brands, shoe brands or wetsuit brands.
+ You've traveled overnight for a race.
+ You have race results from two different years.

Intermediate
Here's where it gets tricky. You KNOW you aren't a newbie anymore but you aren't super fast. You are really knowledgeable but haven't cracked the Top-10 in your age-group in a race. You know all the routes through the Santa Monica mountains but get dropped going up Latigo. You know the difference between a Cervelo P3C and R3 but still haven't broken 12 hours at an Ironman. What's a Clubber to do? Help!

Never fear. Intermediate is a great place to be. This is the place where speed doesn't matter but experience makes the difference. Triathlon knowledge can help the Beginner be an Intermediate. But speed definitely is also part of the mix. Here's the rule of thumb:
" If you aren't experienced or knowledgeable but you are fast, you are an Intermediate.
" If you aren't fast, but you've been in the sport for a while and are knowledgeable about the sport, you are an Intermediate.

However, if you are both experienced AND fast, it's time to face facts: You are Advanced. Step up to the plate and be proud. Let's put it to the test:

You are an Intermediate if…
" You can complete the following sentence: "I thought Wildflower was faster this year than any years since…"
" You *know* what Body Glide is but still make jokes about its extracurricular uses.
" You've ever sent an email to the club to lead out a ride longer than 30 miles.
" You own a tri bike and a road bike and know what each one is for and why.
" You've done VO2 max testing or blood lactate testing …and enjoy talking about it with your teammates during long rides.

You are NOT an Intermediate if…
" Your Ironman PR starts with an "11" or less -or- your time got you in the Top-10 in your age group (Congratulations, you are now Advanced.)
" You're still trying to figure out the "Body Glide" jokes from above (sorry, you're a Beginner.)
" You are running out of room on your office wall for podium pictures (Congrats, you are now Advanced.)
" You get offended when someone uses the term "Newbie" to affectionately describe newbies. (Sorry, you are a Beginner. Plus, you need to lighten up.)
" You look around the transition area to see who is racked near you so you know who you need to keep track of in order to get a Top-10 (Congrats, you are Advanced.)
" You can't figure out why people spend so much time talking about bicycle gearing. And you find it amazing that we actually eat pills full of SALT! (Sorry, you're a Beginner.)
Advanced
This one is actually pretty easy. It's the place where speed meets experience. Not absolute speed: If you are a 60 year-old who qualifies for Kona, you might not be faster than a 30 year-old who doesn't…but you are still Advanced! If you've been doing the sport for a few years, know quite a lot about bikes, can speak with authority on how to deal with an IT band injury and have gone through more than two wetsuits, and have a stack of old race numbers lying around in a drawer, you are probably advanced.

Let's put it to the test:

You are Advanced if…
" Your LA Tri Club membership number has one or two digits.
" The term "Tri Fed" means something to you.
" You actually *use* Body Glide in an extracurricular manner (bonus points for your Advanced status if you also use your Heart Rate Monitor for extracurricular activities.)
" You own a medal or plaque from a race in a year that starts with "19..."
" Two words: Kona qualifier
+ You get unsolicited emails from people asking your opinion on compact cranks for races like Wildflower.
+ You've never looked at someone's calf as they pass you on the run and seen the number of someone in your age-group.

You are NOT Advanced if…
+ You're in your first year of triathlon, didn't do collegiate or high level club athletics and aren't sure which of the three sports you do first.
+ You race road triathlons on a mountain bike
+ You still don't know where to get a wetsuit repaired or how to ride to Santa Barbara/San Diego (or at least where to find those things out on the LATC website)
+ You are doing an Ironman but still haven't done an Olympic.
+ You bought the 404's but still aren't sure why.
+ You need to ask if you're advanced.

Hopefully this helps you make this all-important decision with confidence. And never fear, even if you get it wrong, no one will hold it against you. Until you get dropped going up Latigo.

Good luck, train safe and race hard!

I remember racing my first 10k and not having any fathom of how I could run one step further. 6.3 miles was impossible.

I did my first Olympic distance triathlon and couldn’t imagine how people completed anything longer.

I did a ½ Ironman and knew without a doubt that there was no way in hell I could ever race twice that distance.

I did an Ironman.
And I felt wonderful at the end.

We are interesting animals, us humans. (Yes, I know we’re mammals, but let’s not split hairs on this one right now. You’ll make me lose my train of thought.) Most of us can only imagine what we already know. Sure we can pretend to muddle about other things, but true imagination is different. Imagination has one foot in reality. In the confines of our human brains, imagination has boundaries.

We live in a box that we call reality, trapped on all sides by boundaries and categories. And for most of us that box defines the limit of our imaginations.

We leverage our life experiences as a means to stretch our imagination. Like a theme from the Truman Show, day after day we travel down the same road, until one day we dare to imagine a different route to a different destination.

As athletes, we are given the opportunity to dream on a regular basis. We strive to go faster, harder, stronger, longer. We dream of beating this time or conquering that course. And when we focus on the dream, when we set out a plan, suddenly the dream is in the realm of reality. It is within our box.

Our bodies are controlled by our minds. Nobody ever won without first daring to dream that they could. So we push ourselves not as much to the limits of our body, but to the limits of our imagination. Assume you can never finish an Ironman, and you never will.

Let’s call it the Bannister Effect.

In a world that believed in the limitations of man, Roger Bannister dared to imagine. He imagined that he could run a sub-4 minute mile, a feat that was far beyond the collective imagination of the time. Yet once he stretched beyond these mindless limitations and broke the 4-minute barrier, the floodgates of imagination were let loose. Just as suddenly, many others dared to imagine within the expanded Bannister walls. And just as quickly, dozens of others ran faster than a 4 minute mile.

As triathletes, it is up to us to challenge ourselves and stretch the limits of our minds. As we do, so our bodies will follow.

In a funny way we are like goldfish – we will always expand to the size of our bowl. No matter how big the challenge set before us, we will find a way to succeed.

Think you can’t do an Ironman?
I think you are wrong.
Buy a bigger bowl.

Dare to dream. Dare to peek outside the confines of your imagination. Stretch out your arm and put your hand through the fire. Grab hold of the other side and pull yourself through.

I promise, you won’t get burned.

Portions of this article were printed in Triathlon Life Magazine, April 2008. Jeff Matlow, 2008.

Following the LA Tri Club's tradition of bringing the greatest personalities in triathlon to the center stage to regale the LA Triathlon community with tales of training, racing, and triathlon life, we are pleased to announce an Evening with XTERRA 3x World Champions - Conrad Stoltz and Melanie McQuaid. LA Tri Club meetings are open to all! Ticket information for members & non-members is below.

WHEN : Tuesday, May 13 - Doors open at 6:00 p.m.
DETAILS: Ticket price includes entry to the Expo, a buffet Dinner and
presentation by guest speakers: Conrad Stoltz &
Melanie McQuaid!
WHERE: The Proud Bird: 11022 Aviation Blvd., L.A. 90045. Near LAX. Free Parking.
MEMBER TICKETS: Here - In our RSVP/Polls
NON-MEMBER TICKETS: (WWW.ACTIVE.COM)
http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=1571086

Great news! I read a very interesting scientific article published by researchers in the Department of Physiology and Neurokinetics at Stanford University about running and exercise, which I think might benefit you all... Here are some key points:

1. Nutrition and hydration for long distance runs is extremely overrated. In fact, they suggest that 8 oz of water is enough to last a typical human being for 8 hours of non-stop exercise. They rule of thumb, they suggest, is 1 oz of liquid every hour.

2. Scientists also discovered that the act of actually "running" isn't really necessary to become a good runner. They suggest that all one needs to do is close their eyes and mentally visualize themselves running. By using this scientifically proven "power of the mind" exercise, the subjects in their study were able to increase the mitochondrial density of their muscle cells, hence increasing oxygen consumption and metabolite breakdown, all of which made them not just powerful runners, but also great cyclists and swimmers.

3. The study suggested that most running injuries occur because people mentally imagine them becoming injured. There is absolutely NO physical evidence that overtraining will lead to an injury. All one needs to do is to have enough confidence and courage to know that they are immune to running injuries and they will NEVER have to deal with a running injury ever again. This applies to both beginner and advance runners, but researchers suggested that because beginners have more self-doubt about running, they are more prone to injuries.

4. Study showed that running is hazardous to your health. Aerobic exercise in general can cause hypertension, diabetes, strokes, cardiovascular illnesses, cancer, and on rare occasions, it might infect you with HIV.

5. Contrary to the popular belief, scientists suggest that hiking isn't for people who are too lazy to run anymore.

6. Smoking cigarettes is all of a sudden good for your health.

7. Stretching is a waste of time. From this point on, don't EVER bother stretching ever again.

8. Researchers find that drinking a triple-shot espresso seconds before a marathon start will guarantee a marathon finish in under 3 hours.

9. One hour of bowling (yes, it's a sport, look it up) burns as much calories as two hours of running.

10. Scientists proved that running is NOT addicting and catching the "runner's bug" isn't an acronym for a euphoric feeling felt by people who frequently run. In fact, the runner's bug is an actual disease causing virus with symptoms ranging from nausea, diarrhea, dizziness, and in 100% of men, impotence.

There you have it folks, shocking but true!!!

By: Arkady Hagopian

17 THINGS THAT TRIATHLON HAS TAUGHT ME ABOUT LIFE

1. There are good days and there are bad days and sometimes you can't tell the difference until you start.

2. Contrary to popular belief, sleep is not overrated. Not in the slightest.

3. Don't forget to breathe.

4. Just because it's raining doesn't mean you should cry.

5. Nobody ever said it was easy.

6. Pain is temporary. Pride lasts a lifetime. Sometimes even two.

7. Create a plan and stick to it. It may not always work, but if you stay focused and relaxed, it'll all end up just fine.

8. You've got to try. No matter what happens in the end, you'll have bigger regrets from not ever trying.

9. Strength and courage blossom from the sands of adversity.

10. Sometimes it’s the little things that make the big differences

11. Getting to the starting line is usually a lot harder than getting to the finish.

12. Listen to your body and listen to your mind. And make sure you know when they're lying to you.

13. You can't change the past and you won't alter the future. Enjoy right now, right now.

14. Smile - it does a body good.

15. Be supportive of others. We're all in this together.

16. It's OK to cry.

17. Don't forget to eat. Especially breakfast - that's a really important one.

Jeff Matlow
More at http://IronmanLife.blogspot.com