Timex Team Camp
If you read this Wednesday morning...I'd read it again! I was tired last night and after re-reading the entry....It made no sense. Ha...Cracks me up. I made a few adjustments and added a few details....
It's about 11:30 Dallas time Tuesday night and I just rolled in the door. After a late dinner, unpacking the gear and bike....I thought it was time for a blog update. You'll have to forgive the lapse in time since my last entry, but the trip took a lot out of me. With training and meetings...we were kept busy from sun up to sun down.
Saturday was pretty neat. I flew into San Diego around noon. Our Team Mechanic Tristin pickup a few of us athletes up at the airport. It was right then and there that I knew I was in for a ride. We were so rilled up...it was hard to keep the energy level down. We hit the hotel and went straight for the pool.
After a couple thousand...I hooked up with Ian, Chris and Oakes for a run out to the beach. That was fun, as it gave all of us a chance to get to know one another. Chris and Ian are pretty solid runners which gave me a chance to feed of there pace. With IMAZ around the corner, it was just what I needed. After 8 miles....we called it quits and headed back to our rooms to change for dinner.
When I got back to the room I was greeted by roommate Alex Mroszczyk-McDonald. Alex is one of the amateur athletes and new addition to the Team. The amateur status will go away soon as Alex has all intentions of turning pro after 2007...and with a time of 4:18 and 21st overall at Ironman 70.3 California...he'll have no problem fitting in with the Elites in 08.
Alex and I bonded pretty well. I have a pretty good idea why Ben stuck us together when he went through assigning roommates. We share a lot of the same thoughts, similarities and we both are extremely passionate about the sport. I couldn't have been set up with a better roommate.
Dinner was nice. Some pretty tasty pizza and a bunch of mingling with the sponsors. Lots of product distribution and hand shaking. Very overwhelming to say the least. Lots of names and faces to remember. I tried my best to remember who everyone was but I found myself forgetting names quite often.
Sunday morning was nice. I woke up around 5:30 and made my way over to the truck to have Tristen (Team Bike Mechanic) give the bike a once over. Things looked good and about 15 minutes before heading out with Dave Harju and group of athletes for a nice bike ride, Ben (Team Manager) pulled me aside and asked me to join the Trek / Bontrager photo shoot. Essentially, these photos will later be used for advertising materials, brochures, websites and all the other sponsors on the team. Triathlete magazine will also be doing a feature on the Team...so look out for that. I think most of us are pretty excited to see how the photo's came out. As for me...I will be featuring a few on my personal website soon.
After 3 hours climbing hills, flying down hills, riding in a group or pace line for that perfect shot...it was back to camp for lunch and Presentations from Trek and Bontrager. Two amazing companies with wonderful stories that go with their history. I'm extremely proud to represent them this year.
After learning a bit more about aerodynamics, carbon layup, carbon performance.....it was lunch time and then off to the pool for a few turns in the California sun.
Once I hoped out of the pool, Alex and I spent a bit of time with Blue Seventy guru Ben Bigglestone. I had a relationship with Blue Seventy before joining Timex and spoke with Ben several times via e-mail or the phone...so it was really nice to put a face with a name. We talked a bit about racing, stroke technique....and how to approach the swim portion of the race at IMAZ. Ben's an awesome dude and can't wait to see him in Arizona.
Back to Business and it was off to the board room for a presentation from Timex. New watches to look for, new ideas, company values, features that "we as athletes" would like to see were many of the topics that were discussed.
I'm not sure if any of you are aware of this, but one of the neatest things I found out was the Timex Coorporation is a privately held company owned by one family. To me...that is pretty special in and of itself. The passion and history behind the brand really took me by surprise. I suppose you never know where a companies passion lies unless you speak with the people who represent the product. After that, it was a talk with "Giaim" and then off to dinner.
Dinner was awesome. A little wild...as it was Mexican and the Margaritas were running like water. None for me as I'm a good boy and am trying to stay focused on Arizona. I'll leave the stories for the others to tell regarding what we talked about during dinner. Needless to say....I think we all had one too many laughs!
Monday was nice. We got an extended break until 10:00 which gave Alex and I a chance to get out on PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) and through the hills, east of the resort. This also gave us a perfect opportunity to try out the new Timex GPS and Recording unit which I have to say is awesome!
On the flip side...I didn't feel to good today as I was going through a little sleep deprivation and poor nutrition. Traveling just doesn't sit well with me and IMAZ just around the corner...I was getting pretty nervous about kicking this funk. At lunch on Monday, I changed that around and was able to eat really healthy. Again super healthy for for dinner and everything was back to normal. I'm happy to say I feel pretty awesome right now. A little tired from the taper but exactly where I want to be.
Tuesday was the last day of the camp. Alex and I hit the pool early for a nice structured swim and then it was off to hear Bob Babbit talk about his first Ironman (that was a real treat!). I don't think I'll ever hear another story like that again. It stuck with me so well, I think I could tell it word for word just as if he was here. After hearing the legend himself, we went through a little media preparation and concluded with Dedicated Athlete....our new supplement provider.
If you haven't heard of Dedicated Athlete...please have a look. John the owner is an amazing person and absolutely stead fast on improving the supplement world around endurance sports.
Later it was "Pack the bags" and it was off to the airport.
I want to send a very important "Thank You" to the Timex Multisport Team and everyone involved. I had the best time of my life and the experience was something I will never forget. I met some of the most talented, not to mention...the coolest athletes in the world. I saw so many new faces and a few old ones that I hadn't seen in a while. I also want to say thank you so much to everyone who took an interest in who I was and the goals I am striving so hard to achieve.
On the training front....it's good to be home and I'm so excited to be leaving for IMAZ next week.
I'll update soon with my training and we'll take it from there. For now...it's off to bed!
Mg
It's about 11:30 Dallas time Tuesday night and I just rolled in the door. After a late dinner, unpacking the gear and bike....I thought it was time for a blog update. You'll have to forgive the lapse in time since my last entry, but the trip took a lot out of me. With training and meetings...we were kept busy from sun up to sun down.
Saturday was pretty neat. I flew into San Diego around noon. Our Team Mechanic Tristin pickup a few of us athletes up at the airport. It was right then and there that I knew I was in for a ride. We were so rilled up...it was hard to keep the energy level down. We hit the hotel and went straight for the pool.
After a couple thousand...I hooked up with Ian, Chris and Oakes for a run out to the beach. That was fun, as it gave all of us a chance to get to know one another. Chris and Ian are pretty solid runners which gave me a chance to feed of there pace. With IMAZ around the corner, it was just what I needed. After 8 miles....we called it quits and headed back to our rooms to change for dinner.
When I got back to the room I was greeted by roommate Alex Mroszczyk-McDonald. Alex is one of the amateur athletes and new addition to the Team. The amateur status will go away soon as Alex has all intentions of turning pro after 2007...and with a time of 4:18 and 21st overall at Ironman 70.3 California...he'll have no problem fitting in with the Elites in 08.
Alex and I bonded pretty well. I have a pretty good idea why Ben stuck us together when he went through assigning roommates. We share a lot of the same thoughts, similarities and we both are extremely passionate about the sport. I couldn't have been set up with a better roommate.
Dinner was nice. Some pretty tasty pizza and a bunch of mingling with the sponsors. Lots of product distribution and hand shaking. Very overwhelming to say the least. Lots of names and faces to remember. I tried my best to remember who everyone was but I found myself forgetting names quite often.
Sunday morning was nice. I woke up around 5:30 and made my way over to the truck to have Tristen (Team Bike Mechanic) give the bike a once over. Things looked good and about 15 minutes before heading out with Dave Harju and group of athletes for a nice bike ride, Ben (Team Manager) pulled me aside and asked me to join the Trek / Bontrager photo shoot. Essentially, these photos will later be used for advertising materials, brochures, websites and all the other sponsors on the team. Triathlete magazine will also be doing a feature on the Team...so look out for that. I think most of us are pretty excited to see how the photo's came out. As for me...I will be featuring a few on my personal website soon.
After 3 hours climbing hills, flying down hills, riding in a group or pace line for that perfect shot...it was back to camp for lunch and Presentations from Trek and Bontrager. Two amazing companies with wonderful stories that go with their history. I'm extremely proud to represent them this year.
After learning a bit more about aerodynamics, carbon layup, carbon performance.....it was lunch time and then off to the pool for a few turns in the California sun.
Once I hoped out of the pool, Alex and I spent a bit of time with Blue Seventy guru Ben Bigglestone. I had a relationship with Blue Seventy before joining Timex and spoke with Ben several times via e-mail or the phone...so it was really nice to put a face with a name. We talked a bit about racing, stroke technique....and how to approach the swim portion of the race at IMAZ. Ben's an awesome dude and can't wait to see him in Arizona.
Back to Business and it was off to the board room for a presentation from Timex. New watches to look for, new ideas, company values, features that "we as athletes" would like to see were many of the topics that were discussed.
I'm not sure if any of you are aware of this, but one of the neatest things I found out was the Timex Coorporation is a privately held company owned by one family. To me...that is pretty special in and of itself. The passion and history behind the brand really took me by surprise. I suppose you never know where a companies passion lies unless you speak with the people who represent the product. After that, it was a talk with "Giaim" and then off to dinner.
Dinner was awesome. A little wild...as it was Mexican and the Margaritas were running like water. None for me as I'm a good boy and am trying to stay focused on Arizona. I'll leave the stories for the others to tell regarding what we talked about during dinner. Needless to say....I think we all had one too many laughs!
Monday was nice. We got an extended break until 10:00 which gave Alex and I a chance to get out on PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) and through the hills, east of the resort. This also gave us a perfect opportunity to try out the new Timex GPS and Recording unit which I have to say is awesome!
On the flip side...I didn't feel to good today as I was going through a little sleep deprivation and poor nutrition. Traveling just doesn't sit well with me and IMAZ just around the corner...I was getting pretty nervous about kicking this funk. At lunch on Monday, I changed that around and was able to eat really healthy. Again super healthy for for dinner and everything was back to normal. I'm happy to say I feel pretty awesome right now. A little tired from the taper but exactly where I want to be.
Tuesday was the last day of the camp. Alex and I hit the pool early for a nice structured swim and then it was off to hear Bob Babbit talk about his first Ironman (that was a real treat!). I don't think I'll ever hear another story like that again. It stuck with me so well, I think I could tell it word for word just as if he was here. After hearing the legend himself, we went through a little media preparation and concluded with Dedicated Athlete....our new supplement provider.
If you haven't heard of Dedicated Athlete...please have a look. John the owner is an amazing person and absolutely stead fast on improving the supplement world around endurance sports.
Later it was "Pack the bags" and it was off to the airport.
I want to send a very important "Thank You" to the Timex Multisport Team and everyone involved. I had the best time of my life and the experience was something I will never forget. I met some of the most talented, not to mention...the coolest athletes in the world. I saw so many new faces and a few old ones that I hadn't seen in a while. I also want to say thank you so much to everyone who took an interest in who I was and the goals I am striving so hard to achieve.
On the training front....it's good to be home and I'm so excited to be leaving for IMAZ next week.
I'll update soon with my training and we'll take it from there. For now...it's off to bed!
Mg
posted by Mark Gingrich at 11:41 PM
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