Racing with Gratitude: Thanks Coach!

Tomorrow (Sunday, July 27th) there are an overwhelming number of sporting events I'm excited about:

Tour de Larry final stage: Larry's annual event that coincides with that bike race in France. I'll be riding the final stage with Larry on Sunday up Mount Diablo #tourdelarry

La Course: 1st women's pro race at Le Tour de France. For a great article and series of videos about the event check out this post.  I may have to get up at 3:30am to watch this online! (and start cheering for the next events...)

San Francisco Half Marathon: My good friends are racing: Jen 1st half, Isa 2nd half! Go ladies, go!

Ironman Lake Placid: Coach Jim and Kevin from RPM are racing.

Ironman Canada: Friends I met on the run course at various races or friends of friends are racing.



Inspired by the many awesome athletic events going on... I wanted to start a series of posts: Racing with Gratitude.  Hopefully I'll post something each week! #racewgratitude

First official Racing with Gratitude entry: Thanks Coach!

Thanks Coach!

This week I'm dedicating this post to Coach Jim at Red Performance Multisport.  Maybe it will bring him some good luck at IMLP tomorrow... or at least a smile!

I found Coach Jim thanks to Fairfield U.  Unless you are from the Northeast or are a dedicated NCAA basketball fan (we sometimes make the tournament - Go Stags!), you may have never heard of Fairfield University, a small Jesuit University in Fairfield, CT.  I am still great friends with my first college roommate, Colette, who brought my attention to an article in our alumni magazine published just after my Ironman Lake Tahoe DNF (DNF = did not finish).  Being one of my greatest supporters of all time, Colette knew how disappointed I was with my ironman debut performance, and she had a good feeling this article could turn my ironman frown upside down. 


The article was all about Jim Lubinski '03, a Stag alumnus who was a professional hockey player turned professional triathlete.  The article said he also coached and hosted a popular podcast, which sounded interesting.  I knew I could really use a hand with this ironman training, so after reading everything I could find on his racing and coaching, and listening to a few podcasts, I decided to email him and see if he'd be willing to coach one more athlete... 

Fairfield Magazine

The rest is history!  Coach Jim was able to get me into top shape really quickly and was incredibly patient with my crazy schedule.  Thanks to him, I ran my fastest half marathon ever after working with him for about 2.5 months (without this being a goal), and completed the "World's Toughest Half" ironman for training (?!?) on my way to finishing Ironman Coeur d'Alene with a smile.  I couldn't have done any of this without his help.  His methods really work, and I know he genuinely cares about all his athletes.  I highly recommend him for his skills as a coach and for being a good guy.  He's also built up a club racing team and has great ideas about building team spirit in the individual sport of triathlon.

T1 Auburn Tri in RPM gear

 
In honor of one of his recent podcasts (episode #9) on Jim and the Other Guy with Coach Bob and another RPM athlete, Mary (who writes a great blog called Slippers for Sneakers), I made some lyrics up for his "new" RPM theme song... "Party Rock Anthem" and a warmup dance to psyche out the other competitors at the start line... Coach Bob says they should play it as all our RPM athletes cross the finish line, and I told my coach he should request they play this song at the start of any of his races.  



Yes, he completely acknowledges he is "a little late to the party" on picking up on this song's awesomeness as a get pumped to race tune (with the classic Dumb and Dumber reference to "we landed on the moon!")... but it makes for a hilarious segment on the podcast, and I genuinely appreciate the team spirit he's trying to build.  I also appreciate the coaches' willingness to "walk to the sound of their own drums" (in lines with pre-game excitement song #2 on the podcast mentioned above - and also on my workout playlist) and build a team unlike any other in the field of triathlon.


So coach, here you go... when you are singing that anthem in your head to get excited for your next race, replace some lyrics with:

RPM Race Anthem (to the chorus / beats of Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO)

RPM is on the course alright,
Everybody has a really fast time.
Our speed will make you loose your mind
Everybody has a really fast time.


RPM is on the course alright,
Everybody has a really fast time.
Our speed will make you loose your mind
Now we wanna see you... race that..
RPM is hustling... (instead of everyday I'm shuffling)


Then... if you want to really look crazy... you should warm up by doing this during the next beats in the song when they all dance like crazy during the video:

freestyle stroke 1
freestyle stroke 2
arms in aero bars, with one leg pedaling simultaneously (2 revolutions)
then jog, jog, jog,
grab the imaginary finish line tape with 2 hands (as 1st place finisher of course)
and raise that tape over your head (ending at the last beat)

See how much space that gives you at the start! :)  Just kidding... but seriously.


Maybe as a team we should also rock some red party sunglasses and other fun gear while still racing hard and crushing the course?  Although race gear in triathlon already looks pretty silly so I'm not sure what the next level looks like in terms of party rock racing while maintaining full function? flames painted on helmets? mismatched compression socks or arm warmers? maybe request a skull and crossbones rather than smiley face during body marking?  I'll have to work on this a while longer... 

 

Anyone racing this weekend - feel free to get pumped up with our RPM tune or try the warmup dance... if nothing else, it should crack you up and take away the start line nerves!  If that doesn't work... turn to the person next to you and tell them that second place is first loser.  That always cracks me up because I can't say it with a straight face! :)



Thanks Coach Jim for getting me to the finish line with a smile on my face each race. Thank you for believing in your athletes & for working so hard to help others achieve their goals.

Tomorrow, as everyone heads out there... remember to do what Coach Jim says and RACE HARD!

RACE HARD! Mermaid 2014

On a side note: Fairfield U is an incredible school.  I've made some amazing connections with faculty and students there that truly changed my life and set me on a path toward many great things.  Right now, I have a good group of Stags in my life: I'm currently coached by a Fairfield grad, I am collaborating on a research project with my Fairfield biology advisor (who now works at another college, but I met her and was inspired by her at Fairfield), and I am still best buds with my first roommate there! Go Stags!