Building toady

"Whatever good things we build end up building us." Jim Rohn
Working on building the aviaries for Blake today. Race tomorrow.

--- Kjell

Great job ladies

So proud of you ladies.

--- Kjell

Thank you

Nick from Fighting Creek for your help in 2013!

--- Kjell

Life

"It's not the years in your life that count.
It's the life in your years!"

So true --- Kjell

My Ironman CDA

Thanks to my lovely wife, sister Sinje and Lindsey for the pictures:

Ironman CDA 2013

Number 21 is in the books!
I am happy I finished.
But mostly I am grateful for the first timers!!!

 --- Kjell

7 more days ...

and it is time again for Ironman. This will be number 21, so I can legally drink now;)

My flied down Sherman in last years Ironman CDA.
--- Kjell

7 days, two Marathons

And they are my last long runs before Ironman CDA 2013.
At the Windemere Marathon, I dug deep and did what I had to do to win. Tomorrow, we will see! Same concept and goal.
--- Kjell

PS: A Marine told me last sunday I was "bad ass" and should sign up;)

Half full

My glass is always half full ...

--- Kjell

110

What a ride yesterday.
11o times two:
first          110+ miles on the bike
second     110 training session, with a 100% ride and hitting a 10% rain chance.

Ironman is coming.
--- Kjell

Bloomsday times 2

That was a great fun weekend.
Running Bloomsday twice. First a bit faster for my work Cooperate Cup team BMC I. Than with my lovely wife.

Alone time ...

"... Whatever it takes, just take that alone time, take that time to get your head around the enormity of the task you’ve got coming up, and realize that this is a selfish endeavor, and it’s going to call on you and you only, and no matter all the fluff you have around, it’s great to have there, but when the gun goes, it’s you versus you, so you need to get your head around that and get comfortable with that voice in your head that you’re going to face on the race course and that voice is basically going to tell you that this isn’t for them, and it wants to stop and you need to be prepared for that battle because it’s a tough one to fight." by Macca, triathlon-training, on youtube
Happy training and racing.
--- Kjell

Coaching

As a former Professional Athlete and coach/mentor I am always amazed at why athletes choose their coaches. There are so many times that I would love to ask.

From what I have seen, the two biggest factors as to why an athlete chooses a coach are:

#1 - What the coach has accomplished as an athlete.

#2 - Who that coach is affiliated with.

While I can definitely see the sex appeal of going with someone who has raced at a high level, or knows the best of the best. Is this a sure bet that they are a good coach? Most definitely not.

Sometimes you get a great coach and a great athlete bundled into one, but most of the time this isn't the case.

For me, here are the qualities at the top of my list in a coach:

1) Communication. If I can't get a hold of my coach when I need to, things aren't going to work. I can create or find a training plan anywhere, this really isn't coaching.

2) Experience. Not as an athlete, but with other athletes who are of the same ability of where I currently am and where I want to be. Are they racing well? All of the above need to be a yes.

3) Education. I don't want to just blindly follow a plan. I want to know about the why. So a coach who can educate me while training me, is also important.

4) Open Minded. Different strokes for different folks. The same plan for a 140lb guy and a 190lb guy won't work. Does my coach recognize this?

5) Mental Consideration. Does the coach plan my training around what I thrive on and enjoy, or is it strictly one way. The coach needs to observe and listen to each athlete.

So my question to all of you is WHY do you choose the coach you have?
by: Blake Becker 

Very well said! --- Kjell

I did in many ways

"You have to leave the city of your comfort
and
go into the wilderness of your intuition." - Alan Alder
--- Kjell

Amerika

This is great!

Do not take this to serious. Rammstein "Amerika"
--- Kjell

Tarahumara - run run run

This is just amaizing and we can all learn from this!

Nestled in northern Mexico and the canyons of the Sierra Madre Occidental is a small tribe of indigenous people known as the Tarahumara. They call themselves Rarámuri, loosely translated as "running people," "foot-runner," "swift of foot," or "he who walks well." They are known for evading the Spanish conquerors in the sixteenth century and keeping their cave-dwelling culture alive and secluded. They are also known for their long distance running and their superior health, not displaying the common health issues of "modern" societies.

A recent National Geographic study (Nov. 2008) states: "When it comes to the top 10 health risks facing American men, the Tarahumara are practically immortal: Their incidence rate is at or near zero in just about every category, including diabetes, vascular disease, and colorectal cancer...Plus, their supernatural invulnerability isn't just limited to their bodies; the Tarahumara have mastered the secret of happiness as well, living as benignly as bodhisattvas in a world free of theft, murder, suicide, and cruelty." [source: youtube]

--- Kjell

Burn

"Sometimes you have to burn bridges,
to build new once!"
--- Kjell

Kicking it on the bike

My second outdoor bike ride for the year.
I joined my friend Andy on his 4miler.
Good work my friend.
--- Kjell

Wildlife on 95

Saw this guy 5 feet of 95 this week. Better be careful out there.

--- Kjell

Ultra number 12

Another one in the books. Tired legs after the lonely 60km on the Centenial trail from Nine Mile Falls to the State Line in Post Falls.
Took me 4:37h!

If you do not try, you cannot win!
--- Kjell