The Tri Town Times: 10/9/23

• Posted on 10 October 2023
• By Antonio Gonzalez
• Posted in the tri town times
• 0

This week: NICA State Championships; new marathon world record; maintenance classes.
Image: Ben Elumbaugh riding at Wilson Creek.

Hi all,

Here is your weekly Tri Town Times newsletter:

Weekend race report:

- Bogus Basin Ski Resort hosted over 1,000 student-athletes for the NICA State Mountain Bike Championships on Saturday. Boise High School won the team competition and wrapped up a dominate season. Results.

- Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya broke the marathon world record in Chicago yesterday. His time of 2:00:35 is an average pace of 4min 35sec per mile, and lowered the world record time set by compatriot and two time Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge's by over 30 seconds. Kiptum, who won the London marathon in course record time earlier this year, said he knew a course record was possible at Chicago, but not the world record. His closest competitor finished the race over three minutes back.

- An article on the consistent downward trend of marathon times over the past 100 years.

Events I'm looking forward to:

The Women's Ironman World Championships is this Saturday in Kailua Kona, Hawaii.

Shop Ops:

I was at a triathlon race once with my wife, and I observed a long line of athletes at the mechanical service tent. I commented to her: "I don't understand how so many people end up with bike issues on race day. I've done hundreds of races and never have I had a mechanical."

She looked at me with those eyes of disappointment that all husbands know so well and said, "You've had tons of mechanicals at races! You just know how to deal with it."

She's right, of course. My background and experience as a mechanic has been a significant advantage as a triathlete and bike racer. While other athletes stress about the risk of a mechanical during a race, I've been able to focus on the race itself while knowing that if something happens I can fix most issues.

This is one of many reasons why we host a series of bicycle maintenance coursesthroughout the season. These courses won't make you a professional mechanic, but they will give you a baseline of understanding that builds your confidence in working on your own bike. Class size is limited, so sign up early to secure your spot in class.

(Have a group of riders interested in a course? Let me know and we'll host a special course just for your group.)

Quote that struck a chord:

"Your relationships will rarely be healthier than your self-esteem. 

If the time you spend alone is already enjoyable to some degree—that is, if you have a healthy internal monologue and generally feel good about yourself—then you will have a fairly high bar for the type of relationships you'll enter. 

But if you're unhappy with yourself, then you are more likely to put up with bad relationships because they may occasionally make you feel better than you do alone. If you want a great relationship, the first thing you want is to be comfortable with yourself." - James Clear.

Though James Clear is *clearly* speaking about interpersonal relationships in this quote, I believe the most successful athletes also maintain a healthy internal monologue about their training and racing.

When an athlete engages in negative dialogues with the voice in their own head, their training and racing will suffer in kind. To have a great relationship with sport, you have to first be comfortable with who you are as a person and as an athlete.

Have a great week,

Antonio Gonzalez

Tri Town Bicycles

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