Dec 31 - SBR would like to express its gratitude to MIchael Staenberg and THF Realty for their generous support of this website and our magazine. They are a huge supporter of the St Louis Metro cycling scene and do so without a lot of fanfare. Absent their philanthropy, many of the local cycling teams and programs simply would not be where and what they are today. All the best to THF in 2007.

Dec 30 - The Quartermax Triathlon staged on the Who Tri's Harder weekend of June 23-24 at Innsbrook Resort will once again serve as the Missouri qualifier for the 2007 Best of the U.S. National Championship. That race will be contested at Cypress Gardens Adventure Park near Tampa, Florida on October 6... Have you gotten fixed? Single speed bikes, or fixies as they're affectionately known in the cycling world, are growing immensely in popularity. For some individuals it's a function of their interest in the suddenly reborn sport of track racing as new velodromes are beginning to spring up across the U.S. For others it's a reaction to the experts expounding on the virtues of fixed gear training. But for those in style-conscious NY and LA, single speed bikes and its attendant bike messenger "look" have grown into a kind of cycling haute couture. Check out this video of the LA scene... West County YMCA is offering a six week Triathlon Training Class leading into their Indoor Triathlon scheduled for Sunday, February 18. The classes will be held on Wednesday evenings 6:45-8:45 PM beginning January 10. The sessions will include a training program with individual attention, fitness level benchmarking protocols, maximum heart rate testing, racing tips, and technniques. For complete information call the West County YMCA at 636-532-3100 or email... Joe Friel Training Bible Clinic for Cyclists and Triathletes takes place Fri, Jan 19, 7pm Maplewood Bicycle. Seating is limited. Reserve your space by calling 314-781-9566. Topics include: How Cyclist Rate their Abilities and Limiters, Cycling Power Ability, Anaerobic Cycling Ability, Time Trialing, and Mental Toughness Training... The Frozen Buns Run is coming Jan 13. The St. Louis Triathlon Club will produce this 5k event. The event will start in front of Blueberry Hll on Delmar in the Loop. web

Dec 28 - Readers in need of a dose of winter glass-half-full optimism should make note of the fact that the days are already getting longer. Furthermore, as incredible as it sounds, there are only 72-days remaining until the Daylight Saving Time change on March 11. In 2007, DST will extend all the way to November 4... The 24th Annual Bop To the Top takes place on February 3. The event is a 37-floor climb up the stairwell in the One American Tower in Indianapolis. There is a bracket for virtually everyone with an open division, age groups, weight classes, and a multitude of team options. Money raised will benefit the Riley Hospital For Children. Last years female open winner was Cindy Moll who has won at least 7 seven years in a row. She has also claimed the Empire State Building Stair Climb title several times. web

Dec 27 - SBR happily welcomes two great, new web sponsors to the site. Ben Rosario and Matt Helbig, co-owners of Big River Running Company, have graciously aligned themselves with Swim Bike Run St Louis. This upstart specialty retailer has made huge strides early on in its business life. We look forward to great things coming forth in the future from this dynamic enterprise. Likewise, Nancy Lieberman, President of the Spirit of St Louis Marathon, will privilege our homepage with her banner. If there is any person who has made a greater impact on the St Louis running community in recent years, we'd like to know whom it might be. In the course of a few short years she has transformed the St Louis Marathon from a fading event to a full-blown, nationally recognized destination race... As we've emphasized in the past, SBR remains highly selective in choosing our partnerships and we encourage you to give back to these with great advertisers and sponsors with your dollars whenever feasible. We also recommend clicking through the banner ads and exploring all of the sponsor websites... StlMultisport.com was recently launched by Josh Bone to provide the metro with an alternative multisport resource... SBR wishes to thank the anonymous benefactor who contacted Three Story Press and suggested that they send us a copy of the Dave Shields novel, The Tour. It didn't take long to dig in to this Tour de France novel as on the way home from the post office and in the course of our errands, I sprinted through chapter-one in a Schnucks parking lot. A book review will be provided in the very near future... St Louis area athlete, Dave Galli, plans to swim the English Channel in August, 2008. This athletic endeavor is actually an effort to raise funds in the fight against ALS (Lou Gehrigs Disease). To find out more about him, or how you can support him and the cause, please go to Dave's website... If you own a bicycle, the consensus is that Oregon is the place to be. While many great, cycling-friendly U.S. states could convincingly argue their case, the fact remains that Oregon has received accolades for its favorable road and MTB cycling environments. IMBA awarded the state its A-Grade and the League of American Bicyclists have bestowed Bicycling Friendly Community honors upon six Oregon cities: Gold— Portland, Corvalis; Silver— Eugene; Bronze— Ashland, Beaverton, and Bend... Little Shark Athletic Company has made the transformation from store nickname to official title. Located at 6176 Delmar in the Loop, there is nothing diminutive about the retailer's quality and service. web

Dec 20 - For anyone who's spent time on e-Bay, one thing that quickly becomes clear is that you never know what you'll find. Among the bikes we saw for sale was a Corima Cougar set up for track racing. This exquisite machine is being sold by a chap in Australia for the tidy sum of AU$19,000. For you international currency traders, yesterday's exchange rate put that at a cool $14,341 USD. web

Dec 19 - Little did those St Louis area runners who managed to run with Dean Karnazes last week realize that they would be the last ones to do so on Karno's cross country trek. He decided to terminate the 3000 mile coast to coast running tour at the St Charles Family Arena on Friday. In his blog on Monday, he admitted that in the of course of making what he termed an impromptu decision to run from NY to his home in SF, he didn't take into account the number of challenges he would incur aside from just the running. Weighing heaviest on his mind though, was the time spent away from his family which eventually became simply too much to bear. But Karno indicated that he would put together a planned and supported effort in 2007 on an even greater scale... After-work runners can take heart in the fact that our dwindling daylight will turn the corner after Dec 22, the arrival of the winter solstice. That day brings the least available daylight of the year as it begins with a 7:16 AM sunrise and ends with a 4:43 PM sundown. That's 9hrs 27m 39s of daylight. From that point, the days continue to grow longer until June 21 at which point we will have 14h 52m 28s of daylight.

Dec 18 - The December issue of Outside Magazine just went into their online archive and with it an entertaining self-analytical read about his cycling addiction by John Bradley. web... The National Bike Summit is scheduled for March 14-16 in Washington D.C.. It's no accident this annual gathering takes place in the nation's capitol. The cycling community will voice concerns and key issues affecting bicycling, document the value of bicycling, and present its legislative priorities to the 110th Congress... Perspective - You've got to hand it to the organizers of the new Triathlon One O One Series who are gearing up for a limited launch in 2007. They have the moxie to go up against the M-dot franchise which owns a near monopoly on the long and ultra triathlete's bank account. This is not unlike the old American Football League when it challenged the cartel that was the NFL over four decades ago. The upstart AFL hung around just long enough to effect a merger. Whether One O One has merger hopes in its endgame plan, will seek to remain autonomous, or can simply sustain beyond a few years, remains to be seen. The WTC zealously protects its turf. Whether consciously or not, it has successfully steamrolled a slew of non-IM events. One O One will compete most directly for 70.3 customers. If a race director wants to attract a professional field, that can be accomplished with money. Drawing age-groupers who have Ironman visions dancing in their heads will prove to be a much stiffer challenge. I admire the entrepreneurial and competitive spirit of Triathlon One O One but hope that their efforts don't become just another hard lesson in Business 101

Dec 17 - The Cycling Photography Exhibit at Mesa Cycles drew a full house last evening. The bike shop at Brentwood and Clayton Roads was effectively transformed into a tasteful art gallery. The lighting was excellent and the pieces were smartly displayed with each artist hanging his work in a separate alcove. Showcasing their lens craft were local photographers Matt James, Eric Filcoff, Kurt Jambretz, and Daniel Elavsky. Kudos to Russ and Adrienne Murphy for their great hospitality... Those cyclocross racers who a couple of weeks ago at a cyclocross race in Kansas City saw Steve Tilford end up chest high in icy lake water then go on to win, were probably not surprised by his victory at USA Cycling 'cross nationals this weekend. The tough as nails Tilford earned the M45-49 stars and stripes jersey up in Providence, Rhode Island.

Dec 15 - A new series and new triathlon distance format will be unveiled in 2007. Triathlon One O One features a 3km (1.86M) swim, 130k (80.6M) bike and 30km (18.6M) run. This equates to 101.06 miles, thus the name. Age group registration for each race will be limited to 1500 athletes. The 2007 schedule includes: May 6 - Bradenton, FL; June 10 - Clearlake, CA; September 2 - Halifax, Nova Scotia; November 11 - The Woodlands, Texas. The series hopes to expand in 2008 to 20 events with each race offering a $50,000 pro prize purse. The Woodlands, Texas will serve as home for the Championship race with $150,000 professional prize purse... Dean Karnazes is running today out to the St Charles Family Arena from a starting point downtown near the Arch. We encourage as many runners as possible to join him. The best way to locate his westbound whereabouts is through the GPS tracker he carries. Hope to see you out there. blog

Dec 14 - The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has proposed a settlement with Ameren as recompense for the Taum Sauk reservoir disaster. DNR officials have suggested that the utility company either give up or share the old Rock Island Railroad corridor. If this potential 47-mile rail to trail conversion took place, it would connect the towns of and Pleasant Hills (near KC). The trail could then easily be linked to the Katy... Perspective - In the course of our daily web surfing, we came across this timely posting by syndicated sports journalist James Raia from Sacramento, CA: "Twenty-six years ago, Terry Fox, after losing his right leg to bone cancer, set out on a 5,300-mile journey to run across Canada. He ran about a marathon a day for 143 straight days. Fox died before completing his journey... With more frequency in the recent times, long-distance runners have seemingly tried to outdo each other by attempting largely ego-driven running quests. It all seems rather silly... That said, this soapbox as serves as a plea to magazines, web sites, corporate sponsors and various media outlets. The next time a runner says he or she is going to attempt some newfangled running ordeal, please take a long look at the person's reasons before giving the effort credence and/or your media influence or financial backing. Do not disrepect the legend of Terry Fox." After reading this we wondered: Who is he alluding to? Hopefully he responds to our e-mail inquiry.

Dec 13 - Perspective - A solitary figure ran towards me— steadily, patiently. From a hundred feet his form appeared picture perfect with head up, shoulders back, a relaxed arm swing, and an even stride. At ten feet he looked somewhat smaller in stature than the preconception his photos had created in my mind, but make no mistake, solid as a rock. For sure he wasn't the reed of a man one might expect to see half way through a 4000-mile run. Meet: Dean Karnazes. The list of overwhelmingly positive adjectives one might ascribe to DK would be a lengthy one. A few that stood out in my mind during an hour run with him were: amiable, affable, approachable and simply awesome. I intersected his transcontinental run at a point on old Highway 50 in Flora, Illinois. To suggest that the town's Main Street has never before been graced by such rare fauna would be an understatement. Immediately I find that Dean is given to conversation and he wants to know about me. I on the other hand have 99 questions I'm dying to ask him, yet the tone remains very relaxed. After ten Western States 100's, the Badwater Ultramarathon, 26.2 miles at the South Pole, 50 marathons in 50 days, national television appearances, and countless other exploits, there's not much that can alter his nature which is a rare brew of easy-going yet intensely driven. Despite his extraordinary accomplishments, I sense him to be unpretentious in the extreme, at times exposing a surprisingly self-deprecating sense of humor. His passion for ultra-distance running is fueled in large part by his fascination for pushing the human spirit beyond commonly accepted limits. The 1310 miles he ran in 50 days plus these 3000 in his coast to coast effort are about connecting with people, furthering the fitness cause, and raising money for his foundation— Karno Kids. The lasting impression I took home from the experience was the one he probably would have wanted. In the end, it was just a couple of regular guys running down the road, shooting the breeze— amazing... The Honolulu Marathon found a few St Louis area athletes basking in 70-83° weather while they ran long. Among the finishers were: Dan Brennan of St Peters 6:36:31, Jan Cardona of St Louis 7:00:55, Michelle Conway of Hazelwood 7:03:50, Mary Kraichely of Wentzville6:58:33, Carlos Mahia of St Louis 3:49:30, Sandra Mills of Hazelwood 4:00:09, William Rau of Creve Coeur 4:44:52, and William Culley of Swansea IL 4:31:28... Nice work to the guys at Big River Runnning Company for their 9th place finish at the USATF National Club Cross Country Championship in San Francisco. In all, over 60 elite clubs and 1200 competitors converged on Golden Gate Park to earn bragging rights as the nation's best cross country teams and take home a share of the $20k prize purse. Open division place, name, and time: 7-Ben Rosario 30:46, 61-Matt Helbig 32:07, 75-Adam MacDowell 32:21, 83-Brian Lyons 32:27, 88-Tim Bradley 32:30, 249-Joseph Porter 35:37.

Dec 11 - A few runners stayed in town to compete in the Pere Marquette Endurance Trail Run (see Daily Update Archive) and the Dash to the Den 5k. The latter event was won by Mark Palm of Wentzville in a time of 17:40 and Jennifer Burke from Ballwin with her 19:42 finish. In all, 168 runners took part in the race at Quail Ridge Park... Nice work to all of the local area runners who completed 26.2 miles in marathons all over the country... Dallas White Rock— Calvin Malloy 3:23:26, Clayton Ricks 3:28:35, Sara Cooney 3:41:04, Jill Newman 3:52:36, Conrad Wildsmith 3:57:33, Kristen Jorgensen 3:57:33, William Reinecke 3:58:23, Jody Jorgensen 4:05:56, Eric Jorgensen 4:05:57, John Ulett 4:08:31, Chan Rogge 4:11:00, Kristyn Rogge 4:11:00, Margaret Mueller 4:37:24, Naresh Mutala 4:44:06, Mike Emch 5:02:01, Eugene F Belleza 5:02:1... New Las Vegas— Very Nice effort to Tom Jackson of O'Fallon, IL who finished 21st overall with a gun time of 2:53:39. Nice work to the rest of the crew from the St Louis area as shown with chip times: Jay Indovino 3:27:02, Sharon Leve 3:30:39, Johan Bendtsen 3:43:05, Desmond Kirchhofer 3:44:09, Jill Indovino 3:45:15, Steve Snyder 3:46:18, David Hefholz 3:52:11, Holley Boeger 3:52:25, John Brenner 3:54:24, Teri Griege 3:57:36, Christina Cogorno 3:58:14, Laruren Asinger 3:58:14, Michael Boeger 3:58:17, Katie Lerwick 4:08:14, Tim Wirick 4:08:25, Juli Russell 4:21:19, Jennifer Mommens 4:23:38, Michael Clarke 4:26:39, Meghan Taff 4:29:04, Michelle Kitzelman 4:32:47, Cliff Leve 4:34:16, Rita Goddard 4:38:50, Debie Smiley 4:43:09, Becky Snyder 4:43:56, Jed Gaines 4:47:09, Tim Seifert 4:48:02, Melanie Darmsteadter 4:48:35, Barbara Wnek 5:07:11, Barry Strange 5:08:53, John O'Connell 5:14:07, William O'Connell 5:30:09, Christopher Bent 5:36:40, Elizabeth Wannstedt 5:47:49, Jerryl Christmas 5:50:11, Frank Meyers 5:56:31... Rocket City— Kevin Campbell 3:02:39, Nick Whiteside 3:08:57, Louis Berra 3:22:19, Teresa Roeckle 3:43:20, Jeff Bockhorn 3:44:13, Jim Weatherly 4:50:54, Joanne Bockhorn 4:58:12...

Dec 10 - The Pere Marquette Endurance Trail Run took place yesterday. It was sold out months in advance to runners eagerly willing to punish their minds and their bodies on the very difficult course. The challenging event didn't seem to faze Zac Freudenburg who continued his dominance of local running events. The 28-year old came in over 7-minutes ahead of runner up Matt Brier (57:47) and third place finisher Sam Yount (57:56). Freudenburg (50:31) was the sole runner to go sub seven minute pace in the 7.5 mile off-road event by averaging 6:44 per mile. As well as he ran, he was still well off the course record (45:57) set by Rudy Rocha in 1991 and nearly equaled by Mike Farrell (45:58) in 1999. Debbie Kerber-Rehr (1:07:52) put in another fine performance by taking the women's title ahead of Kristen Moore (1:09:25) and Mary White (1:13:15). In all, the course accommodated 443 finishers... The Ironman World Championship highlight show had nearly everything that we expected that it would— great camera work, heartfelt stories, and as much drama as could be wrung from a race in which the viewers already knew who the winners were. Even at that, there were a few areas in which the 2006 production distinguished itself. For one, it was very ironic to see Normann Stadler and Chris McCormack warmly embrace at the finish line, knowing as we do about the war of words that would come forth from them in the days following the race. Looking ahead to next year, it appears as if McCormack's Kona maturation process is nearly complete and he is at last poised to win there. But as we all know, that's why they run the race. The human side of this outspoken athlete really came through in his candid, self-analytical interviews. Another observation about yesterday's show was how well it showed just what a "thrashing machine" the age-group mass swim start actually is. That full contact melee is not for the faint of heart and the combination of footage and athlete interviews really brought that message home. Another aspect of the race that NBC focused on was the wind. Oddly, viewers were set up when reminded more than once about how unusually calm conditions were for the race only to be told later about how difficult the wind was. It seemed a little inconsistent. Then there is the story of Jon Blais, who raced in 2005 and watched from a wheel chair this year as the debilitating effects of ALS took hold in his body. It's dreadful to know that the odds of his even being alive for the the 2007 race are greatly stacked against him. Each year we watch the show thinking it's just going to be more of the same old, same old and every time we come away with something intensely positive and emotionally moving... Geneva, New York will flex its mussels (sic) this July. The 4th annual Musselman Triathlon has been awarded an ITU Pan American Cup race to supplement its half-iron, sprint, and kids races. The weekend of racing takes place July 14-15 at Finger Lake just outside of Rochester, New York. The ITU Pan American Cup Series will also visit U.S cities Honolulu, Des Moines, and San Francisco... What do you get when you combine a spinning class and a bus? BusBike, of course. This spin class caters to nearly 400 participants each month. The mobile studio is in many ways a publicity tool as it is chartered by businesses for their own marketing purposes. But on the other hand anything that promotes fitness and an active lifestyle can't be all bad. web

Dec 8 - Recently discovered in the basement of a Chesterfield home were boxes of possessions from Dr. James Naismith, the creator of the game of basketball. Much of that memorabilia is currently on auction in Dallas. That got us to thinking about the history of triathlon, a relatively short one at that. What would triathlon relics fetch at auction, like one of the original 5-inch tall Ironman trophies made of nuts and bolts that were given to finishers in the 1978 race? Profiteering aside, maybe triathlon needs a real Hall of Fame— a repository for triathlon artifacts that might be recovered while the creators and original participants of the sport are still among us. It should be an international museum that crosses all NGB and organizational lines for the good of the sport... What do cities such as Ishigaki, Lisbon, Madrid, Vancouver, Kitzbuhel, Beijing, and Cancun have in common with Des Moines, Iowa? Answer— All of them along with seven other cities will host ITU World Cup Triathlons in 2007. All sixteen races will each offer a minimum $100,000 prize purse. This is a result of series title sponsor and ITU global partner BG Group pouring $20 million into the sport over nine years. And about that event in little old Des Moines? It will be the richest race in the history of triathlon (that is, of course, unless Lifetime Fitness decides to trump it)... The following is an amusing excerpt from George Nellis' nearly 40,000 word written account of his 1887 bicycle ride from upstate New York to San Francisco. His 72-day trip cost an estimated $300. He rode a nickel-plated Columbia Expert high wheel that retailed for $150. The bike and his sparse baggage weighed around 42lbs— Day 16- Sturgis, Michigan to Mishawaka, Indiana. 49-miles, 8-hours. Wednesday, Klinger Lake, White Pigeon and Mottville are entered and left behind and 22 miles away I cross into Hoosierdom. Three miles and Bristol, Indiana, captures me for dinner. Sorry, indeed was the aspect of Bristol’s only hotel. From a mental vision of cold pork, soggy potatoes, bad coffee and musty bread I was suddenly awakened to the reality of a dinner fit for an epicure, and that fellow was I. A nicely broiled steak, mashed potatoes, elegant coffee, milk, lettuce, cabbage, peas, tomatoes, corn, fine bread, pie, cake and a whole saucer of strawberries to top off with caught me that time, and more astonishing than all, twenty-five cents footed the bill. At 1:30 I mounted my Expert and wheeled south to Elkhart, twelve miles away, over very fine roads. Reach Osceola, 6 miles further, at 4 o’clock. A big rain stops navigation here and for a time nearly paralyzes us. No hotel in the place and six miles to Mishawaka, raining like blixen – and no prospect of stopping. No supper either so we repair to the corner grocery. Glory! A stem of bananas. Glorious! Some molasses cookies. “Cookies 8 cents a dozen, and I’ll give you all the bananas you can eat for 25 cents.” I take six bananas and a dozen cookies. Five minutes later I want six more bananas and in ten minutes later I want six more bananas. The proprietor begins to quail, I begin to eat. Bananas are going down fast. Extraordinary demand and two dozen have been laid away. “Here, take your quarter and get out of this store.” I took pity on the poor fellow and desist. He won’t pick up any more hungry bicyclists by the wrong ear again, that’s certain.

Dec 7 - Huge thanks to Show Me Cables for re-upping their banner ad support of SBR through 2007. As with all of our carefully chosen sponsors, we greatly encourage readers to support their businesses whenever feasible... In yesterday's post, we missed Rick "the" Mann and his 3hr 45 min at the Tecumseh Trail Marathon. Rick, if you move to this side of the river, we won't neglect you anymore in our Missouri results searches. Nice work... On NPR, "All Things Considered" featured a segment on the artists producing today's children's music who have revived the spirit of punk rock. That is to say, their songs exhibit a certain energy, and they themselves are producing the music on their own time and dime. So what does all this have to do with Swim Bike Run? Fair question. The song played on-air that caught our ear was Bicycle by the Jellydots. If you close your eyes and listen to the 2-minute excerpt from this uptempo kid's song, you can actually see (feel) the pedals turning. The CD is a great Holiday gift for young music lovers in your family... Jim Pitre and Lon Haldeman, who have produced the Race Across America for the last six years, have agreed to sell the race to Fred Boethling, John Hughes and several other investors from the RAAM/UMCA (Ultra Marathon Cycling Association) community. The 2007 RAAM will take place as planned with solo racers starting on June 10 and teams heading out on June 12. Jim and Lon will continue in an advisory capacity and are working with with new ownership for a smooth transition... What do you get when 3,916 cyclists take part in a 109-mile timed ride? Ordinarily one might think it was a Grand Fondo in Italy— NOT. It's El Tour of Tucson. The weekend is a celebration, fun ride, race, fund-raiser, tourist attraction, fitness fest, and more. Incidentally, the first group to finish averaged 25.6 mph. web... Ian Thorpe's recent retirement from competitive swimming elicited a wide range of comments from those in the sport, but none was better than Swimmer Magazine's: "It is a great shame because he's such an ambassador for Australia. But maybe later he'll actually do very well in the Masters swimming."... The Karnazes watch has become something of a grown-up's version of Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego as this ultra, ultra-distance runner makes his way west from New York to San Francisco. Currently in the Cincinnati area, DK expects to pass through St Louis around December 18. It's probable that local TV will converge on him en masse which will provide great exposure for his Karno Kids Foundation. But if you want to spend Q-time with this running legend, we suggest you drive east and intersect his route somewhere in rural Illinois. On his blog, Dean has been chronicling his progress, statistics, and thoughts through so many miles and personal encounters.

Dec 6 - Nice work to local area runners who took part in the Tucumseh Trail Marathon— 17-Andrew Karandjeff 3:37:18, 42-Robert Edwards 3:59:44, 67-Carey Smith 4:12:49, 83-Gregory Sloan 4:20:33, and 216-Tyge Fourtner 5:06:27. The point to point race was staged within Yellowwood State Forest near Bloomington, IN. web... The USAT has accepted Jill Petersen into its Elite Development Program. This will allow her to live and train at the U.S. Olympic Training facilities in Colorado Springs. Athletes admitted into the program have typically raced World Cup, Continental Cup, or have been members of the USAT Junior or Under-23 National Teams. Otherwise it requires a nomination by a member of the USAT National Teams coaching staff and for the athlete to meet both swim and run time standards to be admitted. Jill follows the path blazed by Sarah Haskins who herself finished '06 as the #2 ranked U.S. woman. This is a huge step for Petersen, the 2006 USAT Age Group W20-24 National Champion. A full year of focused training and instruction by USAT coaches will impart a huge positive impact on the already gifted athlete. Congratulations!... After a one-year hiatus, the Steel Legs Century will return in 2007 with a new route designed solely to test your cycling mettle. If you participated in the the 2003 or 2004 SLC, you know what we're talking about. Complete route and registration details will be posted here when available.... Professional triathlete/duathlete, Jonas Colting, is petitioning the ITU to change the Long Distance Duathlon World Championship back to the 4k-120k-30k format from the 3k-80k-20k (run-bike-run) set for 2007. He makes his case and invites you to join his petition in an article posted by xtri.com... Making "Share the Road" license plates available in Missouri has been a subject of interest off and on again for the last several years. With the advent of the Tour of Missouri in 2007, it would seem an opportune time to get this matter rolling once and for all. Only a handful of other states have such specialty plates, but nearly every state has themed license plates for fraternal organizations, professional sports teams, universities, etc. What more visible and appropriate place to promote cyclist's rights than on license tags? It seems likely that most cyclists would pay an extra $15 for a thoughtfully conceived Missouri plate that reflects both the beauty of the sport and that of Ozark country. A statewide design contest could be held to come up with an appropriate backdrop. An apparent roadblock to this initiative is the state of Missouri's specialty plate start-up fee of $5,000 which is probably five-thousand reasons why there is currently no Share the Road plate offered in Missouri. The Missouri Bicycle Federation, who has as recently as the spring of 2006 tried to promulgate this concept, is probably the right organization to champion the cause. But ultimately it will likely come down to money, as most things do. If the Missouri cycling community wants the concept plates and are willing to pay for them, they can easily happen.

Dec 5 - Good luck to local runners taking part in any of the four popular marathons scheduled this weekend— Dallas White Rock, Rocket City (Huntsville, AL), New Las Vegas, and Honolulu... At times it seems easy, when you and your bike are making music together. That metaphor became reality when composer Flip Baber created some holiday ad music for Specialized using a bicycle as his sole instrument. Instead of choosing the simplistic Jingle Bells, the artiste in Baber opted for The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite. Video... The St Louis Triathlon club gave their website a fresh look, and elected officers for 2008... The youth triathlon scene in St Louis will take another step forward in 2007 with the addition of a new event to the race calendar. Details have yet to be finalized, but we'll have them here just as soon as they are... Local first year triathlete, Jill Petersen, got a mention in Triathlete Magazine. The article speculates on the USAT Athletes of the Year for 2007 and includes her name looking ahead to 2008... The KLM Marketing UCI Cyclocross Race on Sunday had a bizarre twist when Steve Tilford (Trek-Volkswagen) went off course and into the c-o-l-d lake. He not only managed to finish, but he also won. Top ten finishers included Big Shark riders 6-Nathan Rice and 7-Josh Johnson. Velonews... The St Jude Memphis Marathon drew 77 St Louis area marathoners to Music City over the weekend. The contingent managed nine top-10 AG finishes. Nice work to everyone making it through the 26.2 miles. Special congrats go to: 20- Thomas Whalen 2:45:10 St Louis (1st M. Masters), 40- Bill Kotaska 2:56:46 St Louis (3rd M40-44), 44- Katie Sutton 2:57:54 St Louis (4th W25-29), 77- Trenton Casto 3:09:08 St Louis (3rd M20-24), 151- Ed Cook 3:24:16 St Louis 3rd (M50-54), 153- Carol Wright 3:24:33 Wildwood (3rd W45-49), 179- Jessica Pollock 3:27:32 Freeburg, IL (1st W35-39), 398- Amy Wind 3:48:52 Kirkwood (1st W. Grandmasters), 411- Teresa Bieg 3:49:24 St Louis (10th W40-44)... The Half Marathon also felt the impact of the Gateway City. A week removed from running away from the field at the Great River Road 10-miler, Zac Freudenburg of St Louis led all 4,212 half-marathoners to the finish line with a time of 1:08:12. Also with a strong finish was Seth Jenny of Swansea, IL whose 1:17:31 earned him 6th in the very competitive M25-29 bracket. Terry Proffitt of Kirkwood took 6th in the M45-49 by going 1:32:48. The M60-64's was a battle between local runners with Mike Toolen of Shiloh, IL winning it in 1:39:27 and Jim Wright of Wildwood taking 2nd with a 1:46:06 effort... Complete results

Dec 4 - Anyone who has raced 1.2M-56-M-13.1M at Innsbrook will probably tell you that it is among the more challenging half courses they've ever done. However, the Auburn Triathlon out in California (~90 min. west of Lake Tahoe) bills itself as "the world's toughest half." Judging solely by race results from afar, it's difficult to know how accurately any course is marked, but gauging from their bike and run splits the claim may have merit. Last year's race saw just one racer average 20mph on the challenging bike course— and just barely. That was overall winner Clas Bjorling. As for the run, Bjorling and women's pro winner, Darlene Hunt, were the only two racers to go under 7-minute pace on the run. New for 2007 will be a long-course duathlon with 5k-56M-10k proportions. Top three in each age-group will qualify for long-course duathlon worlds to be staged in Richmond, Virginia on October 21... If you've been reading our serial on local hills, and perhaps even riding a few of them, you may have a better appreciation for the 2007 Giro de Italia. It will feature a stage that will take riders up Monte Zoncolan. This is a 10.1km ascent with an average gradient of 17%... Registration is open for the 2007 USAT Age Group National Championship held in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, June 30. All previous Team USA members automatically qualify for Nationals. Check the USAT website for complete qualifying standards. This event is the sole pathway for triathletes looking to make 2007 Team USA and compete at ITU Worlds in Hamburg, Germany Sept 1-2. The top 16 in each age group earn a berth... Perspective— Winter relegates many of us to the great indoors to break a sweat rather than enduring the cold air outside. I love summer as much as anyone, but if you're not taking an occasional jaunt outdoors, I think you're missing out. It does require a certain amount of intestinal fortitude to embrace those nasty wind chills, but under the right circumstances winter running can actually be a lot of fun. Running in just the right snow is not to be missed. A jog through Forest Park yesterday afternoon found me avoiding the icy paths altogether for the grass and its two-inch deep, semi-frozen snow cover. The crunchy, impact-absorbing effect it provided was a joy to my knees. I couldn't help but be reminded of the similarity to another impact-forgiving, albeit much warmer, running environment— the beach in summer...

Nov 30 - USA Track & Field Federation has a database of more than 90,000 running routes in its America's Running Routes service. This is particularly beneficial for business travelers but can be useful for just about anyone trying to chart new pavement. We plugged in Missouri and it came back with 1,764 results arranged by location. There is a lack of uniformity in the location field, but other than that it is a great resource. The National Governing Body has also redesigned their website and come up with a cool new logo... The Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team, Team CSC and Predictor-Lotto have announced their participation in the 2007 Tour of California (Feb 18-25). These are the first three of the expected 16 teams to formally do so. The Tour de Georgia has announced its route and host cities. It has also expanded the 2007 edition to seven days (April 16-22). The Tour of Missouri (Sept 11-16) will be making its own press releases regarding routes, host cities, and team signings after the first of the year.

Nov 29 Inside Triathlon editor Tim Carlson filed a race report from the Ultraman World Championship which was won by Jeff Landauer, and arguably the best female endurance athlete in the world, Shanna Armstrong... People normally picture triathletes with a body composition resembling that of a gazelle or whippet. Here's a CBS news video featuring a 320 lb. triathlete... It's probably safe to assume that over a billion people on the planet readily recognize the Nike emblem characterized by the "swoosh," as it eventually came to be called. If a value had to be assigned to it, how much would it be? That's a theoretical question that may never know an answer, but we do know how much they paid for it. It was originally created in 1971 by a graphic design student at Portland State University, Carolyn Davidson. She had met Phil Knight who was then teaching an accounting class. Knight hired her to perform some freelance work for his company, Blue Ribbon Sports. In need of design ideas for a new line of athletic footwear, he hired her for $2 an hour. She submitted a bill for $35. In a gesture of gratitude, in 1983, Knight gave Davidson a gold Swoosh ring and an undisclosed amount of Nike stock... Isaac Galvez of Spain died early on Sunday after crashing heavily into the track railing during the Madison event in the Six Days of Ghent. A Madison is a multi-day, two-man tag team bicycle race. Velonews

Nov 28 - Two local bike shops made the National Bike Dealers Association's 2006 Top 100 Retailers List— Big Shark Bicycle Co. and Maplewood Bicycle. Neither retailer is a stranger to NBDA laurels which are a function of sales, customer service, community involvement, bicycle education, and other parameters. Congratulations to both... The St Louis Post Dispatch ran a story on local ITU pro triathlete Sarah Haskins. Sports columnist, Kathleen Nelson, performed the interview. While most SBR readers are already keenly aware of Sarah's career, it's nice to see her and the sport of triathlon get some well-earned publicity from the local newsprint giant... Is it time to get serious about your swimming? How about $1650 serious? Training Camps are being formed for February under the auspices of US Masters Swimming, USA Swimming, and the US Olympic Training Center. This is a rare and unusual opportunity for a twelve Masters Swimmers to receive Olympic athlete-level analysis and instruction. Qualified applicants will be notified Dec 1 of their acceptance into the Feb '07 Camps. PDF... The La Loma Altitude Training Center in San Luis Potosi, Mexico is situated at 6,233 feet above sea level. Swim teams from all over the world are not only drawn to its high altitude but also to its low prices. $50 a day per athlete includes three buffet meals, dormitory, local transportation, and access to all training venues. This is a remarkably affordable swim training experience for your team. web

Nov 27 - Last month, Mark and Amy Livesay opened a specialty retail store in Columbia, Missouri. The Starting Block , as it is named, is located at 2902 Forum Blvd., Suite 103, inside the Wilson’s Total Fitness complex. The store sells men's and women's fitness apparel, shoes, and accessories... CrossFit St Louis offers area athletes a solid option for getting into or staying in shape. CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program for many police academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide. The local affiliate is operated by certified instructor Laurie Miller. Small group classes are forming to begin on Dec 4.

Nov 26 - Congratulatons to Zac Freudenburg (51:22) and Eileen Petito (1:04:12) who won this year's Great River Road Run. A total of 894 runners took part in the 10-miler... Nice work to Derek Holland (16:23) and Kristin Chandler (18:07) who won the Turkey Tracks 5k Run. In all, 388 runners participated in the Thanksgiving Day race... Michael Aitken (15:43) and Kathryn Hamera (17:37) were the overall winners in the Chesterfield Turkey Trot 5k run on Thursday. An enormous field of 1704 runners toed the starting line in a very successful event... Nov 24 - There are a number of highly contested bike races that remain relatively unknown outside the realm of ultra distance cycling. These contests are staged throughout the U.S. as riders attempt to set state-crossing records. The ordeal is as much about finding the quickest or flattest point to point route as it is about being in good cycling condition. These are sanctioned efforts with a UMCA official acknowledging the finish time. Missouri Records - Akihiro Inoue, St. Louis, July 6, 1996 south to north 403 miles, 26hrs 41min, 15.12mph. Chris Hopkinson, Derbyshire, UK Sept 3, 2004, west to east 190.5 miles, 8hrs 38min, 22.07mph. Chris Hopkinson, Derbyshire, UK Sept 4, 2004, east to west 190.5 miles, 9hrs 29min, 20.07mph. web

Nov 22 - In last Friday's update, we profiled 100 mile ultra endurance mountain bike races. Now it appears that Lance Armstrong has caught the bug for this mondo MTB racing by announcing his intention to participate in the 2007 Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race. This is the same Leadville of off-road running fame. The course offers brutal climbs and technical descents. It is comprised almost entirely of single track between 9,000 and 12,600 feet above sea level. Top competitors, like three-time winner Dave Wiens, finish in a little over seven hours. The time limit for finishing is thirteen hours. In 2006, only 506 of 750 racers met the cutoff. web

Nov 21 - On Monday, the International Cycling Union informed the Tour of Missouri that their race license has been granted 2.1 status. Most now allows organizers to invite UCI ProTeams (max. 50%.), along with the UCI professional continental teams, UCI continental teams, and national teams. This is a huge advance for the ToM and one that may well bring some of the best names in the sport to the Midwest... In October, Scott Rigsby became the first double amputee to complete a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run triathlon. His marvelous achievement has already succeeded in creating more opportunities for PC athletes. At the same time, the publicity surrounding his feat has inadvertently called attention to a race blithely making unauthorized use of the trademarked I-word. As zealously as the WTC safeguards the I-word, it's amazing this event has flown under the M-dot radar. Compounding the matter is an interview with Rigsby by USAT, who should know better, in which they clearly didn't fact check the event title. If all of this seems like much ado about nothing, just ask Ultramax Events how litigious the folks in Clearwater can be. All legalities aside, Rigsby enjoyed a historic day and now has his sights set on, you guessed it, a full Ironman. Rock on Scott.

Nov 20 - Jason Holroyd (16:53) and Helen Alexander Kratz (20:18) led 352 runners to the finish line in the Jingle Bell 5K Run over the weekend. Results. The event was just one of 104 Jingle Bell Run/Walks staged across the country to raise funds for the National Arthritis Foundation... Eighteen year old Cameron Ayers (17:30) and nineteen year old Julie Monda (21:30) won the overall gender divisions at the McNair Park Cross Country Run. Results... Googling— One of great things about the world wide web, aside from its utter vastness, is that every so often you stumble upon one of those little hidden gems. The Helvellyn Triathlon in England is just such a nugget. You know you're in Great Britain when you're instructed in King's English that wetsuits are "compulsory." And how about a run course with the following description? "The weather on the fells (n.- an upland stretch of open country; moor; barren or stony hill) even in mid-summer can be poor and the tops could well be in cloud. You will not be allowed out of the bike/run transition without full body cover weather proof clothing, map of the route, compass, whistle and suitable footwear for a fell run. Some form of backpack will be required." A small photo gallery from the event has been posted for your viewing pleasure... Inside Triathlon posted a recap of the ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championship. As mentioned in yesterday's update, congrats to locals making the finish line on what was a very tough race course. Event web... SlowTwitch.com is reporting that at least one pro triathlete at the Ironman World Championships has returned a positive drug test. Whether this is an actual infraction(s) or detection of a therapeutic use exemption remains to be seen. The story apparently reaches beyond simple lab results as they were mistakenly sent to ITU chief Les McDonald. Let the intrigue begin.

Nov 19 - The 2006 ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships in Canberra, Australia are now history. Torbjorn Sandballe (5:59:13) and Bella Comerford (5:59:13) were the overall winners. Four St Louis are residents made the trip as a part of Team USA. 81-Matt Brier 7:13:27, 373- Bob Patterson 9:01:48, 459-Patty Nooney 9:45:38, 536 Patrick Byrne 11:26:39... For 2007, USA Triathlon will raise the cost of its annual membership $39 while is one-day licenses will increase to $10. The current $30/$9 rate structure has been in place since 2003. web

Nov 17 - If you haven't checked out the Ultramax website redesign, we have two words for you— it rocks. Bold and richly textured, with just the right amount of Flash animation, the site is a masterwork by the web gurus at Foundation Computing. If this resembles a wine review, we offer our appraisal after having visited many, many Webby Award winning websites over the years. Very nice work guys..... As for SBR, the last couple of days have been spent optimizing our site. Ideally you've noticed that the homepage loads much faster after we simplified and parsed reams of HTML code. Aside from those tweaks, we're flirting with a few design change ideas and additional functionalites to enhance the site. We should have those in place for 2007. But for us, one thing will never change— content is king...... Last month Active.com posted an informative article by Lynda Wallenfels about a growing segment of mountain bike racing— 100 mile ultra-endurance racing. As her article points out, 2006 was the inaugural season for a unifying series, the National Ultra-Endurance Mountain Bike 100 Series, which included six events in six different states. It's not inconceivable that the off-road century may eventually become a benchmark much like the road bike century, marathon run, or Ironman triathlon. Clearly not every off-roader is predisposed towards that kind of distance, but the sport does offer an interesting gauntlet for endurance athletes seeking new challenge... For fun we checked out a few races and posted their links. Durango MTB 100 , Shenandoah Mountain 100 , Lumber Jack 100 , Breckenridge 100 , Park City Endurance 100 , Cascade Cream Puff , Wilderness 101 , Mohican 100....... Look for The Flying Scotsman to be in movie theaters Dec 29. Based on an autobiography by same name, the film tells the stranger-than-fiction tale of Graham Obree and his pursuit of the hour record. The film received positive reviews after premiering at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Readers unfamiliar with Obree's story can gain a sense for his battles— personal demons, the UCI, and the ultimate cycling record— by reading a Velonews review. We also found a web with photos of the bikes that Obree built.... Aerobars pre-dated Obree's creations— '87 RAAM, '89 TdF, Scott DH Aerobars. In what is beginning to feel like seven degrees of cycling separation, we went a step further and dug up historical accounts on the development of aerobars, tri bikes, and such. Dan Empfield (QR founder) wrote an article for Slow Twitch that chronicles his role, and we found an authorless article about "bike technology" posted on Kevin Mackinnon's (Ironman.com) personal site... All of this meandering eventually led us back to the The Flying Scotsman. Go see the film when it opens...... The situation for Australian cyclist Paul Crake , who was involved in a freakish, wind-driven bike crash last weekend, has taken a much-feared turn for the worse. His post-op leg paralysis is a condition from which doctors say he will likely not recover. Gives all of us pause for thought when counting our blessings on Thanksgiving.

Nov 16 - The St Louis Post-Dispatch interviewed Manchester resident, Greg Smith, after his successful Ironman Florida experience. He took part in the paper's Healthy & Fit Challenge. web... Team USA members are enjoying sunny, 77° weather in Canberra, Australia as they prepare for the Long Distance Triathlon World Championships to be held on Sunday. The event will employ the 4k swim-120k bike-30k run format for a final time. (2007 it becomes double-Olympic distance). Best of luck to local athletes on the team roster: Patrick Byrne, Bob Patterson, Patty Nooney, and Matt Brier

Nov 15 - Ultramax Events will soon roll out their newly redesigned website. In the meantime, they are offering triathletes the opportunity to earn a Season's Pass to their races. If you know of a company interested in becoming a race sponsor, it could be your ticket to free racing in all Ultramax Events in 2007. The program is subject to some restrictions, but for a complete description and details, email Dulsey

Nov 14 - Paul Crake won the annual Empire State Building Stair Climb five times in succession (1999-2003) and in the process set a still unbroken record of 9 min 33 sec. So how does he top those 86 flights of stairs? He does it by becoming a professional bicycle racer of course. Applying the same fervor he displayed in the Big Apple, Crake quickly became a member of the Australian team at the 2004 Road World Championships in Italy. Last year the Aussie placed third in the Australian Open Road Championships. However, racing last weekend at the Tour of Southland, Crake and a group of other riders were blown off the road by fierce winds just two kilometers from the finish. Crake took the worst of the it suffering fractures to his C1 and C2 cervical vertebrae and dislocations of his T5 and T6 thoracic vertebrae. He is in Christchurch, AU after surgery yesterday. Full recovery mate. web ... Sad news surfaced in the wake of Ironman Florida earlier this month when it was learned that Barney Rice died three days after the race. The athlete was pulled from the water near the 1.8 mile mark of the swim. An EMT crew was able to revive his pulse on the way to the hospital, but sadly the athlete later died. Strange in all of this is Ironman's continued silence. Both IM NA and IM Florida offered no comment to Florida news reporter Josh Weinfuss. Condolences to the Rice family.

Nov 13 - Nice work at the Mother Road 100 to Jeff Neumann of Wildwood. He led St Louis area athletes in the 100-mile run with his 12th place finish and a time of 21:29:15. Also making the line in good position were 24-Joseph Neubauer 22:55:10 and 43-Corky Miller 25:26:56. A total of 99 individuals and 19 teams completed the race... Steven Werths (1:18:36) and Judy Dorpinghouse (1:24:33) won the Gateway Half Marathon. Ironically perhaps, Larry Huffmann had a faster 13.1 mile chip time than the winner but finished in second place. He came through the finish chute a frustrating four seconds back of the winner by official gun time criteria. While it most likely wasn't the factor that kept Huffmann from the winner's circle, a quick scan of the chip/gun differentials through the lower half of the results will reveal that many runners seriously mis-seeded themselves at the front. A respectable number participated in the event, but the field of 391 runners fell far short of the lofty goal of 3,500 the race had hoped to draw. Upon reaching that threshold, the race would have offered a $25,000 cash prize purse. If indeed the race happens next year, race officials might be wise to provide a corral for the elitesCraig Alexander of Australia (3:45:37) and Samantha McGlone of Canada (4:12:58) won the first Ironman 70.3 World Championship... Nice work by Rich Wierzba 4:39:21, Kristin Moore 4:44:10, Kevin Jokisch 4:52:32, and Jennifer Cunnane 5:16:02... As things turned out, the The Silverman Triathlon's 100K Relay Division didn't produce a sub-8 hour finish. The event's much anticipated challenge more closely resembled a comedy of errors for two of the world class teams. A missed swim buoy, one lost aerobar bolt, a penalty, and a twisted ankle kept the $100-large safe. Xtri posted a recap of the strange happenings in the desert. web... Trek announced that they will adopt the new CLIX wheel retention system for their 2008 bikes. A 2006 Eurobike Award winner, the product was designed by Montogue Inventive Technologies in the U.S. This clever skewer setup will make wheel installation easier and much safer. Product illustration

Nov 12 - Embracing the fitness lifestyle has many implications, among which, is maintaining a healthy diet. It is a generally accepted fact that one of the biggest saboteurs of a healthy diet is the fast food industry. Morgan Spurlock's scathing film, Super Size Me , took an editorial shot at global fast food purveyor McDonalds, but the corporate giant barely suffered a flesh wound. Now comes Fast Food Nation . Opening in theaters Nov. 17, this fictionalized account of the Eric Schlosser fast food industry exposé may be the tipping point for many who have considered going vegetarian... Andy Potts of the U.S. (1:50:37) and Rina Hill from Australia (2:03:18) won the ITU Triathlon World Cup in New Plymouth, NZ yesterday. Congratulations to Sarah Haskins for a very fine 6th place finish. Out of the water and onto the bike leg in the lead pack of eleven women, she crossed the line in 2:04:56. Nice work. Videos from both the men's and women's races are available for viewing. The pre-race buildup video includes footage of the Weebix Youth Triathlon in New Plymouth. More than 1500 Kiwi kids eagerly took part in the event. Check out how they manage with almost no bike racks. web

Nov 10 - The recent mid-term elections were not only good for the Democrats, but they resulted in good news for the cycling community as well. The 157-member House Bike Caucus saw 138 individuals reelected to their seats in the House and three elected to the U.S. Senate. web ... Yesterday we reported on Dean Karnazes as he set out on his NY to Cal. transcontinental run. Coming on the heels of his already incredulous feat of running 50 marathon in 50 days, the question in most people's minds is, "How does he do it?" By way of some dangerous, high stakes, sports medicine espionage, SBR has uncovered the tightly guarded secret of Mr Karnazes success. Click Dean's photo at left to learn the truth.

Nov 9 - Team Discovery theoretically pulled off the greatest pro cycling off-season coup by signing Ivan Basso. The former Fassa Bortolo and more recently Team CSC rider, had his 2006 season essentially taken away from him after being implicated in the Operation Puerto doping investigation. The addition of Basso clearly changes the team dynamic at Discovery giving them a rider who will be marked as a favorite to win the ' '07 Tour de France. We give this deal an asterisk only because in the world of pro cycling it seems nearly impossible to consistently and accurately determine who is really clean and who uses... The Mother Road 100 is a one-time road running event that celebrates the anniversary of Route 66. It will start in Arcadia, OK and travel 100 miles along that historic highway to a finish just beyond Sapulpa, OK. Official finishers face a time cutoff of 30-hours. Participants must also carefully monitor their weight as a 7% loss will result in disqualification. web... Wendy Chrisp of Endurance Coach wrote an informative article covering many training and racing aspects of ultra-distance running... The Ironman 70.3 World Championships take place this weekend in Clearwater, Florida. Ironman.com will give this event much the same coverage as its full-distance, big brother staged in Kona. The men's pro field includes names such as Spencer Smith, Luke Bell, Craig Alexander, Chris Legh, and Mathias Hecht while the women's field is a who's who of world elites like Desiree Ficker, Heather Golnick, Dede Griesbauer, Michellie Jones, Becky Lavelle, Kate Major, and Katja Schumacher. Best of luck to Nate Korteum Trent Tollakson duking it out with the pros and of course we wish good results for all the St Louis area athletes taking part in this inaugural event. web... The statistics on Dean Karnazes epic 50 Marathons in 50 Days: Pairs of shoes- 5, Pairs of socks -18 , Lost toenails - 3, Blisters - 2, Calories per day - ~5000, Trail marathons - 5, Max temp 104°, Min. temp 38°, Fastest marathon 3:00:30 at NYC, Slowest 4:45:21 at Tecumseh Trail Marathon, Longest drive 11.5 hours, Shortest 55 minutes, Average amount sleep - 4.5 hours , Starting weight 154lbs, Ending weight 153lbs, Number of people inspired by his achievement - millions... The next step for Karnazes, or shall we say the next 5,080,000+ steps, will be back to California as Gump.. er.. Dean...will now runs home from New York City. This was a totally impromptu decision that Karnazes admits was made with no prior logistical planning— the polar opposite of his carefully orchestrated past fifty days. Every marathoner has at one time or another gone out for a long run with no particular route in mind. That's not so strange. It's just that in Dean's case the run will be about 2,980 miles longer. web

Nov 8 - W hile looking at cycling gear the other day, I discovered a disturbing trend developing— bad cycling jerseys. There's no doubt in my mind that a happy hour was involved when the design department convinced management to go ahead with some of these ideas. Jerseys not to wear.

Nov 7 - The 2006 La Ruta de los Conquistadores took place over the weekend in Costa Rica. Billed as one of the toughest mountain bike races in the world, the event led participants on a remarkable race course— into nine microclimates, through lavish rain forests, near volcanoes, over mountains, and along crystal clear rivers. We pulled four striking images from the race photo gallery. one two three four... With the points she earned in last weekend's Cancun race, Sarah Haskins moved up three places to 20th in the BG World Cup Triathlon rankings. PDF... The Racing With Giants adventure racing team posted a photo-journalist account of their experience in Primal Quest. It's a lengthy article but well worth a read when you have time. It does an excellent job of capturing the essence of the 10-day race. Several remarkable photos also accompany the text. web... The Trek Store of St Louis, along with their KC and Omaha locations, is raffling a Trek 1500 bicycle signed by the man himself. The bike resides safely at their Kansas City location. Tickets are $5 each and available through December... The Silverman Triathlon takes place on Sunday in and around Henderson, Nevada. So challenging is the course that $100,000 prize had been offered to any relay team that can go under 8 hours. That barrier has been broken by individual racers on the fast course of the Quelle Roth Challenge in Germany, but for a solo racer to accomplish that on the Silverman course is virtually impossible. The team competition has drawn a number of high profile professional athletes from all three disciplines pooling their skills to meet the challenge, probably as much for the bragging rights as the money. The latest team to announce their intention is the trio of Jonas Colting (former Ultraman World Champion), Bjorn Andersson (perhaps the strongest cyclist in triathlon), and Patrik Tjärdal (clocked a 30 min 10k on the track). web

Nov 6 - The Cancun BG Triathlon World Cup had 82 pro women from 28 countries competing in heavy rain and wind. Anja Dittmer of Germany (2:01:52) took the win by just eleven seconds over Joelle Franzmann. Nice work by Sarah Haskins (2:02:52) who stayed with the lead pack from the start and finished in the money in 9th position, just one minute back of the winner... The men's race witnessed up and coming star Javier Gomez of Spain (1:48:32) capture his third World Cup win of the year which secured for him the overall Series title and its $40k bonus. web ... The running world can relax now that Lance Armstrong has completed his first marathon. After going sub-three hours at the New York City Marathon, the totally gassed Armstrong promptly stated that it was the toughest physical challenge he's ever faced. This is coming from a man for whom no mountain was high enough while on the bike. The punishing, impact-nature of running 26.2 miles imposes a far different stress on joints and muscles than spinning pedals. It's mildly reassuring to know that one of the best endurance athletes in the world can hurt just like the rest of us. Nice work to LA and all the St Louis are runners who made the finish line. web... Valley Forge, Pennsylvania will be the site of a new 2500-seat, indoor velodrome. The 130,000 sq.foot, multi-purpose structure is planned for completion within 18-months giving 2008 Olympic hopefuls a state of the arts training ground. It doesn't come as much of surprise that this area would move forward with such a project. The nearby open-air Lehigh Valley Velodrome in Trexlertown, Pa., has produced 16 Olympic team members, including 2000 gold medalist Marty Nothstein. St Louis area trackies have revived the Penrose Park Velodrome. If track usage is consistent and if local interest in the sport can be grown exponentially, perhaps one day the Metro might see its own indoor track.

Nov 5 - Ironman Florida is in the books. Jan Raphael (8:22:44) and Bella Comerford (9:28:28) took home the top honors in a race that saw both the men's and women's pre-race favorites unable to keep pace... Great work by Brian Schoenholz 10:33:52 and Aron Rauls 10:43:40 for going sub-11 hours. Congratulations to all St Louis Metro triathletes who made the finish line. Bruce Edwards 12:33:29, Sergio Fernandez 13:21:11, Steve Grigone 11:53:58, Nancy Klutenkamper 12:45:32, Matt Parris 12:54:04, Tim Schneider 11:06:20, Katie Schoenholz 12:29:13, Greg Smith 13:46:52, Michael Sundet 12:21:53, Mark Westphale 14:00:26, Matt Beebe 11:15:13, and Doug Burns 11:49:26... Who has the following race resume? Two-time Ultraman World Champion, RAAM Female Solo champion, RAAM 2-Person Coed Champion, 4-time Ironman World Championship qualifer, she set a course record at the Furnace Creek 508 bike race, and has competed in over 100 triathlons. answer... Free triathlon training tips available on video from ITU pros. Topics include— setting up your bike shoes, working and training, tips for race day, getting out of transition quickly, and getting race ready. Watch online or download them into your video iPod. web... What's cyclocross all about? Velonews TV has posted six short videos that provide newcomers with a nice primer. A general overview of the sport segues into race tips and specific technique instruction. The 30-minute series is well worth viewing whether you're curious about the sport or have just added 'Cross to your winter training... A "middle of the the pack" Ironman Hawaii finisher offers his thoughts on the race for which it took him 13 Ironman races and 15 years to qualify. His article provides some very useful insights for the curious or those with the World Championship on their radar screen. web... A do it yourself recipe for fig bars on the homemade energy page.

Nov 3 - This weekend, local ITU pro Sarah Haskins will look to improve upon her World Cup ranking and cash in on the $100,000 prize purse at the Cancun BG Triathlon World Cup. More than 80 triathletes will comprise the women's elite field. Look for Sarah to vie for a podium finish on Sunday in a live webcast from the ITU site. The following weekend, Sarah closes out her 2006 season in New Zealand at the ITU New Plymouth World Cup. There she hopes to better her 10th place finish in 2005 as well as soak up the remarkable natural wonder of that country... Sarah is also this week's featured athlete on the USAT website... Good Luck this weekend at Ironman Florida to Metro St Louis triathletes: Bruce Edwards, Sergio Fernandez, Steve Grigone, Nancy Klutenkamper, Matt Parris, Aron Rauls, Tim Scheider, Brian and Katie Schoenholz, Greg Smith, Michael Sundet, Corge and Sarah Umlauf, Mark Westphale, Matt Beebe, Doug Burns, Christian Espinosa, and Brent Knox. The forecast for tomorrow's race calls for a sunny day. It will be cool early (49°) then warm to 70°. East wind 10-15 mph with gusts to 25 mph. Race coverage on Ironman.com has already begun with video interviews of Spencer Smith, Lothar Leder, Hillary Biscay, Heather Fuhr, and Bella Comerford. The race gets underway at 7am EST... A well-produced video of the Red Bull Soapbox Race in St Louis was posted on YouTube

Nov 2 - class="unnamed1" size="2">The SOMA Ironman Triathlon took place in Temp, AZ last Sunday offering racers 1/2 and 1/4 iron-distance events. Local finishers in the long- course race include: David Ware 4:56:12, Reed Luikaart 6:14:28., Craig Ficken 6:16:21, and Jill Heaviland 7:06:48. Nice work to all ... This weekend will bring what many consider the toughest mountain bike race in the world, the three-day stage race known as La Ruta de los Conquistadores. For español -challenged readers, that translates to The Route of the Conquistadors, which is exactly what the course follows, namely that of a 16th century Spaniard Juan Caballón. History lesson aside, the race will also teach participants new levels of suffering with its 176 mile, coast to coast ride across Costa Rica and its 28,858 feet of climbing. In the women's division, Louise Kobin will be gunning for her fourth straight title. The men will be led by defending champion Thomas Frischknecht), former Trans Rockies winner Andreas Hestler, and MTB legend Tinker Juarez. web... It is oddly ironic that Lance Armstrong seems to be getting more press by running the New York City Marathon than he did before winning his seventh consecutive Tour de France. LA has agreed to wear a minicam which will allow webcast viewers to track the race and his every footfall free for the first 30 minutes and for $4.99 in its entirety. The subscription is limited to the first 100,000. web... In 2007, the Katy Trail will likely undergo a northern extension from St Charles to Machens, Mo. When completed next summer, this section of trail will provide riders at the Frontier Park trailhead in St. Charles with a 26-mile out and back option... The proposed St Charles County Greenway has gained popular support from cyclists who turned out in force at three open houses used to present the plan. If completed, the trail will extend for some 36-miles as it shadows Dardenne Creek. PDF

Oct 31 - Ironman Louisville has sold out its slots in just one week. This is actually about seven times slower than every other full Ironman event in the world. What's the problem? Seriously though, the event looks to be off to a great start should be a boon for both the sport and the Midwest... The WTC has announced the addition of Ironman 70.3 Newfoundland to their 2007 calendar. Known most recently for hosting an ITU World Cup in Cornerbrook, the area will provide triathletes with wind and challenging hills... Registration for Vineman 70.3 opens tomorrow. This event remains one of a select few half-iron races offering slots for Kona... Ironman Florida is ready to rock this Saturday, Nov. 4 in Panama City Beach. Up for grabs are 80 slots for the 2007 World Championship. Live coverage on Ironman.com... The inaugural Ironman 70.3 World Championship is set for Nov. 11 in Clearwater, Florida. The start list for this event reads much like the one at Kona just a couple of weeks ago. It will prove interesting to see how much recovery from the Ironman World Championships plays a role in the outcome of the higher tempo, half-iron race coming on its heels... Best of luck to all St. Louis area triathletes competing in IM Florida and IM 70.3 Worlds... 2007 will be the year of dueling bicycle trade shows as Eurobike invades American soil. Its organizers intend to compete directly with Interbike, staging their show in September. They have settled on the immensely bike-friendly city of Portland, Oregon. Eurobike outdrew Interbike in 2006 by nearly 10,000 attendees... The 3rd Annual JCC Indoor Triathlon is scheduled for Sat-Sun, February 10-11. Heats begin at 6am in the pool at the Chesterfield location. A sprint distance race comprised of a 400yd swim, 8-mile bike, and 2.5 mile run, as well as a long course race comprised of 750yd swim, 18 mile bike, and 5 mile run, will each be staged on both days. Participants can race one day or on both in any combination. Fees: Sprint – Members $25 / Non $35; Long – Members $35 / Non $45; Two Day Discount – Sprint – Members $40 / Non $60; Long – Members $60 / Non $80; Combo – Members $50 / Non $70. Phil @ pruben@jccstl.org

Oct 30 - The 2006 Xterra World Championships played out Sunday in beautiful Maui, Hawaii. The men's top three were 1. Hamish Carter, 2. Olivier Marceau, 3. Seth Wealing. The 35-year old Carter of New Zealand was first to the line in 2:42:36. His Xterra World Championship trophy will look sharp beside his triathlon gold medal earned at the 2004 Olympic Games. The victory was well-earned after Carter rode the final mile of the bike on a flat, then caught the three leaders on 10k trail run. For her part, McQuaid made it consecutive titles and her third Xterra Worlds overall with a time of 3:07:53. The women's field was led to the finish by the trio of 1. Melanie McQuaid, 2. Danelle Kabush, 3. Sibylle Matter... The Marine Corp Marathon was won by Ruben Garcia (2:21:21) and Laura Thompson (3:00.23), both of the USA. Billing itself as the the "People's Race," the MCM didn't produce world class times from it's winners, but the event delivered a world-class event. Nice work to the many Missouri and Metro St Louis area runners who made and trip and made the finish line. Results... One of the coolest websites we've visited recently is that of Ibis Cycles . Apart from the cleverly themed interface, you've gotta love a frame maker that builds MTBs in the color of Guinness Foam or M&M's.

Oct 29 - On a chilly Saturday morning, the Gumbo Flats Pumpkin Run 10k saw 383 runners take to the streets in the Chesterfield bottoms. Jerry Huber (33:18) and Mairi Burfoot (40:28) captured the titles. In the coinciding 5k run, Liam Revell (16:06) and Kate Schwetye (19:33) were the first to the line in their respective genders among 590 racers. Results... Cyclists are always on the lookout for ways to lighten their bikes, whether its a few grams saved by installing a new pedals, a carbon stem, or some other component. Imagine that you've just cut your bike's by 35.3 lbs. That's exactly what Cannondale did for Dick and Rick Hoyt... Ironman World Championship runner-up, Chris McCormack, responded to Normann Stadler's post race allegations of McCormack's blatant drafting on the bike. On his blog , Macca fired a return salvo of rhetoric aimed at Stadler... Lance Armstrong may spend the rest of his life deflecting accusations. Yet another book has been published making allegations about his drug use. LA Official, released in France this week, is a follow up to LA Confidential, and was penned by the same authors, David Walsh and Pierre Ballester. The latest book focuses on the testimony given in the legal dispute between Armstrong and SCA Promotions, a Dallas-based firm that attempted to withhold a $5 million bonus from Armstrong after his sixth TdF win... Many in the world Triathlon community were surprised by WTC's decision to award Louisville, Kentucky an Ironman event. Who knows what financial, geographical, social, or political influences factored into the decision. To its great credit, the city has put in place a plan endorsed and supported by local government to make Louisville a bike friendly community. Bike Louisville was cited by the League of American Cyclists who bestowed their Bronze Award upon the city for it's efforts.

Oct 28 - The Tour of Missouri Pro Cycling Race website it up and running. Keep up with developing news in what is sure to become one of the top sporting events in the state in 2007... The mountain bike appears to be undergoing a paradigm shift as virtually all manufacturers either currently offer or are in the process of bringing to market a frame with 29" wheels. The past standard, 26" wheels, may find themselves as as outdated as last year's computer. While the debate still rages on the relative merits of each wheel size, no one denies that the 29ers provide less rolling friction, a more comfortable ride, better obstacle rollover, and even better traction. These benefits would seem to outweighed any diminished acceleration benefit the big boys have. Smaller riders claim they are ill-fitted for the larger setup. 2007 will no doubt see the 29er making big inroads in the MTB market... The Xterra World Championship has drawn its largest field ever to the island of Maui. 575 participants have qualified or been invited to make the trip. This year's field holds a few very interesting names and situations Scott Tinley will be in the swim start for the fifth time. Chris Leigh of Australia and Chris Lieto from New Zealand will be there. Of course Eneko Llanos is no stranger to Xterra Worlds having won it twice, but he is recovering from a surprising 5th place finish at his first Ironman World Championships only a week earlier. The versatile Michael Tobin, who has in recent years made quite a name for himself in adventure racing, will take part in his 8th Xterra. In the past, women's field may have been a coin flip between Melanie McQuaid and Jamie Whitmore but this year the Swiss misses, Renata Bucher and Sybelle Mattier, will have a large say in the final outcome. The event should provide an exciting day of racing and make for entertaining viewing when broadcast as in years past on Super Bowl Sunday.

Oct 27 - A big thank you goes to website sponsors Sports Enhancement Group and Pfoodman for renewing their respective commitments to Swim Bike Run St Louis through 2007. Most of what we do would not be possible without the generous support of companies like them... SBR hopes that all St. Louis area runners who took part in the recent Chicago Marathon made the effort to wear something with the St. Louis Cardinals logo on it. A road trip to Chicago just isn't complete without antagonizing Cubbie fans. Now another golden opportunity has arisen. A host of Missouri residents will jet to the Big Apple for the New York City Marathon. After our Cards banished the heavily favored Mets in the NLCS, what better place to show your team loyalty than in their backyard?... The 2007 Tour de France route was announced yesterday . Velonews

Oct 26 - Missouri will be represented at the Xterra World Championships in Maui this weekend. Good luck to Brad and Barbie Miller of Columbia and Ryan Maher form Waterville... While most Metro area cyclists spent this past Tuesday eagerly anticipating that evening's World Series game between the Cards and the Detroit Tigers, the group that showed up to hear Nathalie Visser speak at Big Shark Bicycle Company were given a an early Halloween treat. In her role as one of Team CSC's Soigneurs, she provides an integral function in the day to day operation of the team. Her slide show and accompanying dialogue offered those in attendance many inside looks at pro cycling in general and Team CSC in particular. A question and answer session followed.

Fuel Belt , Inc. recently acquired the popular website Xtri.com. The company plans a redesign with an official relaunch in December. Fuelbelt was founded by Vinu Malik in 1998. The original concept for his product came as a result of his participation in Ironman Canary Islands. He caught a glimpse of another competitor using a crude homemade hydration device with bicycle water bottles strapped around his body. Malik seized upon the concept honing both its utility and aesthetics. The rest, as they proverbially say, is history... For those keeping score, Dean Karnazes has completed marathon number 40. as most know by now, Karnazes is running one marathon is each state over the course of fifty consecutive days... Ultramax Events will produce a dual championship weekend at Innsbrook Resort in 2007. On Saturday, Sept. 15, the Halfmax National Championship will once again serve as the USAT Long-Course Championship. Then on the Sunday, Sept. 16, a Quartermax and Octomax will be staged. The USAT National Club Championships will be scored by total club participation in all three events. As a result, clubs are essentially given the opportunity to allocate their membership over the distances that each racer performs best- sprint, intermediate, or long... The Who Tri's Harder Multisport Weekend is set for June 23-24 at Innsbrook Resort with a Quartermax on Saturday followed by an Octomax on Sunday. Each event will reward its winners but Awards will be also dished out to those racers with the best combined times. Ultramax

Oct 25 - The Tour de France will announce the 2007 route tomorrow at a lavish ceremony. The multi-media spectacular will lack much of its splash as rider representatives from 11 of the 20 teams refuse to attend as a result of the current squabble between the UCI and the three major tours. Casting an additional shadow over the event is the unresolved situation of Floyd Landis. As for the 2007 route, word is already out that the prologue will take place in London, England, then stage-one running from London to Canterbury... Chicago Marathon officials will have to rethink their use of the "non-skid, non-slip" race logo decal upon which winner Robert Cheruiyot lost his footing and then struck his head upon the pavement. CT scans have revealed that the tumble has left Cheruiyot with minor bleeding over the surface of his brain. Doctors have advised the 28-year old to take several months off from running... 2006 Ironman World Champion, Normann Stadler, took the sting from less than complimentary remarks Peter Reid made to Triathlete Magazine about Stadler's chances at Kona and used it to help fuel his win. In a post race interview with the champ by the same magazine, Stadler then took a shot at Chris McCormack by calling him a cheater for blatant drafting on the bike. Web... Over the weekend, 53-year old Michael Secrest broke the 24-Hour Indoor World Cycling Record on the velodrome at the ADT Event Center in Carson, CA. He rode 534 . 70 miles which bettered the previous record of 530 . 41 miles set by Rod Evans of Australia in 1994. Secrest is little known outside of endurance cycling, but this amazing athlete won the 1987 Race Across America. In a remarkable 1990 endurance-feat/stunt, Secrest drafted an 18-wheeler around the Phoenix Motor Speedway for 24 hours covering 1,216.81 miles (51-mph). Readers may recall Secrest's aborted "Impossible Ride To Cure Hunger" of a couple years ago in which he planned to draft a semi 2,440 miles from California to Florida in just two days at 60mph. The ride unfortunately lived up to its name with impossibly difficult logistical demands.

Oct 24 - The Ironman World Championship witnessed what may have been construed as more earth shaking on Saturday when Norman Stadler crushed the bike course (4:18:23) on his way to capturing the 2006 title with a finishing time of 8:11:56. Michellie Jones (9:18:31) won in just her sophomore effort in the race proving that someone without the name Badmann can actually take the women's division. Congratulations to St Louis Metro area triathletes Edgar Breda (11:09:00) and Gary Berra (14:19:49) for coming through the finish in style. Also, very, very nice work to SBR friend Elizabeth Fedofsky-Waterstraat who ended her week in Kona with a 10:45:34 finish... The Chicago Marathon took place over the weekend and witnessed a bizarre ending in which the second place runner broke the finish line tape. Robert K. Cheruiyot of Kenya (2:07:35) won in a sprint finish only to slip and fall backwards under the tape. He struck his head on the pavement and was taken to the hospital for overnight observation. The women's race was won by Berhane Adere of Ethiopia in 2:20:42... Using a search parameter of "Missouri" yielded some 1,242 unofficial results which may be a few more than we can display here. So, nice job to all of the local runners who covered the 26.2 miles... The Wild in the Woods running series brought installment #3 to Matson Hill Park. The ladies stole the show as Maureen Conley finished 2nd overall in the half-marathon (1:25:27) behind winner Andrew Karandjeff (1:21:45), and Kate Schwetye (47:22) took second overall in the 10k to winner Jeff Vanderlinden (44:47). results... The Texas Time Trials took place last Thursday thru Saturday down in Cleburne, Texas. Congratulations to Virgil Moehsmer of St Louis for finishing 3rd in the solo male 500 miler (33hrs 16min 3 sec). SBR came through the finish just behind in a RAAM-qualifying 4th place with a time of 33:45:25. We'll file a detail-laced race report shortly. Complete results and photos available from race web

Oct 18 - The biggest news to ever hit the Missouri cycling community was yesterday's official announcement of the Tour Of Missouri Pro Cycling Race scheduled for Sept. 2007. In the next eleven months much will be written by the media about this event and many a water cooler discussion will speculate on its potential and merits, but with the Governor of Missouri firmly behind the project and Medalist Sports producing it, the effort to make this a world class event had a solid roll out.

Oct 17 - Congratulations to members of the Columbia Multisport Club who accomplished something of which few can boast— they returned from Las Vegas winners. The close-knit organization won its third USAT Club National Championship over such Division-1 rivals as the high-profile LA Tri Club and the venerable San Diego Tri Club. Inside Triathlon posted a nice race recap . In 2007, the event looks to provide CMC with home field advantage as it shifts to the St. Louis area... While over the weekend an earthquake was unsettling Kona, then just a week away from the Ironman World Championship, the forces of nature were also hard at work in Utah. A record amount of rain poured down on the world famous and hugely attended 24 Hours of Moab mountain bike race while in-progress, forcing race officials to shut down the race and rescue many participants. Confusion ruled about official results when the race was continued in the morning.

Oct 16 - The island of Hawaii was rocked by an earthquake that was measured at 6.6 magnitude. It was followed by more than 40 aftershocks. The Ironman World Championship, scheduled for Saturday, has not been postponed or cancelled. Ironman will post updates on the status of race as the situation evolves. More details on the quake can be found on the Hawaii Tribune Herald... The O'Fallon Fall Fest 5k drew 321 runners on Saturday. Dan Miner came away with the overall win in a time of 16:54. He was followed by Jeremy Collins and Christopher Minor who both finished with the same time of 17:38. The women's field was led by Debbie Kerber-Kehr in 20:16 with Beth Schueler (21:23) and Erin Kuechler (21:33) finishing second and third... Some action from the cyclocross races at Creve Coeur park yesterday were captured on video by Tracy Fober. Here is the link to youtube.

Oct 15 - Ultramax Events has announced their 2007 schedule. Most of the dates for the events are set. All of our favorite UMax races are back along with a few new ones. The website reveals that a long-course triathlon is in the works for St Louis County which is to be staged sometime in August. It also hints at another duathlon being added to the calendar. WTG Mark. web... Results of the recent USAT elections have been released. John Beyer, President of the St Louis Triathlon Club, received a Regional Board Seat. The Midwest Region consists of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin... Inside Triathlon posted a read-worthy interview with 2005 Ironman World Champion, Faris Al-Sutan... A very interesting 12-minute video about Race Across America is narrated by Jim Lampley. It sheds light on the outrageous demands that the event places on racers and crews. Part 1 , Part 2... Couldn't make it to Las Vegas for Interbike? We may have the answer(s): Oct. 28 - 18th Annual Veloswap Denver Nov. 18 - 4th Annual Veloswap - Veloswap San Francisco Jan 28, 2007 St Louis Regional Bicycle Federation Classic Bike Show & Swap April 14-15, 2007 - Chicago Bike Show

Oct 14 - St Louis area companies and SBR sponsors, Show Me Cables and Chapel Chiropractic, were included in a segment about flex-time and employers on Good Morning America this past Thursday. video... USAT Club Nationals are set for today in Boulder City, Nevada located just outside of Las Vegas. The event looks to be a showdown between the Los Angeles Tri Club which is bringing 180 athletes to the fray and the Columbia Multisport Club which is taking 147 soldiers into battle. Good luck CMC. web

Oct 13 - The Challenge of the Bluffs run in Alton, Illinois saw Eileen Petito capture first overall. Her time of 31:41 put the 36 year old across the finish line one second ahead of runner-up Bruce Nie (31:42). The the men's top three were rounded out by Nick Whiteside (32:20), and Larry Huels (32:27). In the women's division, Annie Bellantone (34:50) and Pam Campbell (37:09) came through in 2nd and 3rd positions. This was the second race in a row in which Petito has won the overall title.

Oct 11 - If you are participating in the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 22, your time in that city will coincide with the nationwide opening of the new movie, What it Takes. What better way to spend the Friday or Saturday afternoon before the race than with your feet up, watching a documentary about four world-class triathletes. The film provides a year-long, behind the scenes glimpse into the lives of Peter Reid, Luke Bell, Heather Fuhr, and Lori Bowden as they train, race, and prepare for the 2005 Ironman World Championships. Show times are Friday, October 20 at 3:30pm and Saturday, October 21 at 12:30. Location is the Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 North State Street, Chicago, Illinois 60601. 312-846-2073... Interbike afforded me with an unparalleled opportunity to chat with a wealth of personalities in the cycling industry and its periphery. Among them was film maker, Scott Coady, whose first film, The Tour Baby!, offered viewers a look at the Tour de France through his Sony 8. The film has gone on to raise over $200,000 for charity. His latest effort is entitled, Cobbles Baby!. He shot this film at the 2004 Paris-Roubaix and gives us a race perspective not seen on Cycling.TV. In fact, the only way to get this stuff is armed with media passes and brass cajones. Scott was granted nearly full access by the U.S. Postal Team (now Discovery). The bonus features are definitely not filler as Coady visits Omaha Beach, Johan Museeuw's pub on the eve before his very last race, and the Belgium Cycling Centre which helps young American riders adapt to racing life in Europe. Certainly worth a view... While in Utah earlier this year, I took the opportunity to make it to an Omnimax theater which was showing, Wired to Win, Surviving the Tour de France. If you're an endurance athlete or cyclist, you likely have a great interest in both of this film's overriding themes— science and the Tour. The film neatly combines them, then smartly weaves in and out of both through animated sequences which illustrate brain functions and some truly breathtaking footage of the 2004 TDF captured on 70mm film. The actual making of the film became a story in itself, originally intended to feature Tyler Hamilton. His travails forced filmmakers to switch subjects, using instead, Australian pro cyclist Baden Cooke and his French teammate Jimmy Caspar. If you can't catch this film while out of town, a screening is scheduled for 6/15/07 to 01/03/08 at the St Louis Science Center Omnimax Theater... Anyone who fancies himself or herself a student of cycling probably has some vague knowledge about the six-day races staged back in the sport's early, glory days. In their heyday, these indoor track races actually generated more interest and excitement than any other sporting event in America. Author, Peter Nye, along with contributors Jeff Groman and Mark Tyson, first created the book chronicling this fascinating era of cycling. Now those pages are being transformed into a documentary to be aired on public television. Go to the special features section of the website to view both movie trailers of what promises to be a wonderful film that captures a bit of Americana of which few people today are truly aware. Autographed copies of the book can be ordered through the website.

Oct 10 - Trailnet is conducting a Silent Auction for a Steelhead Bicycle from Maplewood Bicycle. The bike has custom fenders, chainguard and a front rack with wood slats. The frame was custom built in California, by Sycip Designs. The bike is an 18" frame. Pedals not included. Retail price is $3500 and the minimum bid is $2000. All bids due Friday, Dec 8. Net proceeds benefit Trailnet. Photo... Tri Fuel posted an article by Ben Greenfield entitled, Seven Serious Barriers to Achieving Your Goals and How To Overcome Them. The piece provides an angle from which few of us have looked at our training and racing. We suggest you check it out. web... An industrious USA Triathlon recently announced yet another sponsorship agreement. Sports Express is the sanctioning organization's most recent addition to a growing roster of business partners. The specialty shipping company provides door to door service for sporting equipment, and for you and me, that means bicycles. The appeal is to provide less burdensome travel through airports. A downside may be that you're without your bike for a period of time before you fly out. Airlines charge a minimum of $50 one-way for bike cases. So for comparative purposes, we plugged in a standard bike case measuring 46" x 30" x 10.5", ascribed a weight of 50lbs, and plugged in a destination of San Diego shipped from Clayton. The results below are intriguing given the fact that UPS, Fed EX, and DHL are business partners with Sports Express. We encourage you to perform your own comparison using the four links below. A caveat regarding these quotes— It's possible additional charges may apply. One additional consideration— Shipping your bike won't provide you with the head-turning looks you get as you wheel your bike case through the airport. A final possibility— Ship your luggage and ride your bike to your destination. Sports Express - UPS - FED EX - DHL

Oct 9 - A marvelous online resource is Cycling.TV which offers a wealth of free cycling videos as well as a premium subscription service. If cycling is your passion, this is a must-see site. (Heads up: Their home page is programmed to de-actvate your back button)... Work in Progress— A ride up the St Louis Riverfront Trail yesterday was an enlightening experience. The trail is undergoing a massive and, quite frankly, in some sections much needed facelift. The asphalt has been very recently resealed from the trailhead located just north of the Arch to a point several miles up trail. This made for very smooth and enjoyable riding. As I approached the northernmost sections of the trail where old asphalt has for many years been in dire condition, a new overlay is being put down. Particularly interesting is the fact that parts of the trail now reach widths of 25-30 feet. Additionally, work on the immense mural being painted on the flood wall continues as it extends further north. It adds an unique aesthetic to the venue. Granted the trail takes cyclists past a bit of industrial underbelly, a fact that is not likely to change any time soon, but the trail affords a nice view of the Mississippi River as it closely parallels that waterway. It's not apparent if the entire 11-mile project will be completed this year or in 2007 as there is still much work to be done, but when finished, it will transform the trail into a first-class bike-ped link between the Arch and Chain of Rocks bridge.

Oct 7 - The reality television bug has apparently bitten coach and author, Chris Carmichael. This fall he will host a show entitled "Me vs. Me in which he pairs active individuals who wish to become legitimate athletes with world class experts in various sports. The half-hour long show will air on the Fine Living TV channel Thursday & Fridays at 9pm Central beginning Oct 19. The debut show only will this Sunday at 7pm Central. web... If you need an excuse to get your bike onto the Katy Trail , what better reason than to head west on any Saturday or Sunday this month for the Herman Oktoberfest . Start early for this long, flat, trail century+, enjoy the German flavored festival that afternoon, then enjoy the return trip aboard Amtrak to Kirkwood station. Alternatively, road bike the hilly ride out Hwy T to Hwy 100 which leads right into Herman... A race number for the Chicago Marathon is for sale on eBay . Following through on such an offer may take a serious leap of faith or more wisely a phone call to Chicago Marathon headquarters to confirm that you can actually pick up his packet with his confirmation letter and your photo ID . Also found on the auction site, is a slot for the long sold-out Iceman Cometh Bicycle Race— These are but two examples of the phenomenon of what might aptly be described as black market race entries. The major domestic marathons like Boston, New York, and Chicago routinely monitor the web for race bib offers by prospective profiteers. The threatened lifetime ban seems an ineffective deterrent. Some desperate marathoners unwilling to shell out big bucks to scalpers have resorted to simply photocopying another entrant's race bib and then blending into the thousands of legitimately registered runners. In one instance that backfired during the 2001 Vermont City Marathon, the women's second-place finisher, Karine Maltis of Montreal, confessed that she was running under someone else's name. Based on her previous time, Maltis did not think she would come close to first place. Race organizers said that she was wearing a counterfeit bib. She was then stripped of her medal and the $800 prize money. The woman who sold her the bib number, Johanne Provencher, was barred from the race for life. The USAT and the WTC have adopted stringent policies for triathlon race number piracy. However, with the seemingly bottomless demand for Ironman slots, hypothetically, all it takes to get to the starting line in Kona is a willing seller plus a buyer armed with deep pockets an easily acquired, totally realistic-looking, fake ID. This discourse is not intended to convey the impression that such activity has become a contagion, but simply to illustrate that the problem and potential for serious abuse exists. And you thought the cheaters were just the ones using illegal performance enhancers.

Oct 6 - The 24 Hours of Adrenalin Solo World Championship takes place in Conyers, Georgia this weekend. Chris Eatough remains the prohibitive favorite to capture his 7th world title. The Trek-sponsored rider was the subject of a recent athlete profile in Velonews . For more information on the series and/or the 24-Hour Solo... The 23rd Annual Purina Dog Chow 5-Mile Run was staged on September 30th in St Louis. 105-male and 83-female bipeds took part in the race which started and finished at Checkerboard Square (9th & Chouteau). In between, the run wound its way through the Soulard and Lafayette Park areas. Men's top three finishers were Dan Miner (27:04), Liam Revell (27:14), Nathaniel Allen (27:48) while the women were led by Katie Sutton (31:04), Allie Baker (33:22), and Helen Alexander Kratz (33:30)... USA Swimming announces the 2005-06 Scholastic All-American Team. The Scholastic All-American Team is comprised of high school student-athletes, who have a grade point average of 3.5 or higher, and have competed in an individual event in the 2005 US Paralympics Swimming National Championships, 2005 Open Water National Championships, 2005 Summer Speedo Championships Series (summer sectionals), 2005 ConocoPhillips Nationals, 2005 Junior Swimming Championships, 2005 U.S. Open, 2006 Speedo Champions Series (spring sectionals), and 2006 Spring Championships. The award is based on a point system for grades and competition. Congratualtions to the following: Parkway Swim Club — Sarah Bennet, Karalee Fuller, Brenda Gannon, Jenna Harris, Kristen Kloeckener, Denise Letendre, Jordon Oliver, Karie Peglar, Kelsey Ridder, Elizabeth Smith, Jacob Greene. Clayton Shaw Park — Jessica Clark, Cassie Luhrsen, Jillienne Schilling, Michele Stopplelman, Ryan Dieberg, Eric Witzel. Rockwood Swim Club — Kara Fryman, Amanda Grammar, Laura Grigreit, Casey Miller, Cory Miller, Erika Mortenson, Marisa Rodriguez, Eric Anderson, Maximillian Beushausen, Jaren Bronson, Brian Knuckles, Zachary Litzau, Sean Mathews, Aaron Schmidt, Stefan Thorarensen. St Peters Rec Plex— Kelsey Ward. — Congraulations to all of these fantastic young people.

Oct 5 - A long-term project by the Gateway Council of Hostelling International USA has recently culminated in the opening of the Great Rivers Hostel located on the UMSL campus. The Hostel provides clean, friendly, secure, and inexpensive overnight accommodations for international and domestic travelers. photos... The Midwest continues to enhance its presence in the sport of triathlon with yesterday's announcement of the newly created Ironman Louisville set for August 26, 2007. The event coincides with the nearly instantaneously sold-out Ironman Canada scheduled for the same day, and fills in an IM calendar void created when M-dot China was canceled. Louisville certainly doesn't hold the inscrutable mystique of China, and when hel