And swims again!
And runs again!
What, pray tell, am I talking about? Well, before the Manlius Formation was a widely read[1] and critically acclaimed[2] website, it was the name for the geological structure upon which my town sits.
However, before the website, there was the triathlon relay team composed of yours truly on the swim leg, “Crankin’” Chris Kopf on the bike, and Kathleen “Kath-me-if-you-can” Sokolovic on the run.
TMF roared onto the triathlon scene in the Skinnyman triathlon on Labor Day weekend 2008. Out of 16 relay teams, we finished in a solid 14th place, which the sharp-eyed reader will note is NOT last place. Note that one of the teams we beat was called “The Old Farts” and we were roundly bested by a team called “Just for Fun.”
This year’s challenge to my teammates is to finish in the TOP HALF of the co-ed teams. That’s right. The TOP HALF. Our finish time last year of 1:42:38 would need to have been 10 minutes and 20 seconds faster to meet that goal. If my math is correct, that means we each need to improve by at least 10% (including the transition times) over last year’s times.
Kathleen is already running her target time on a regular basis, which points towards a likely scenario where she blows that time out of the water. I think she can do it.
Chris is a powerhouse who I know can add at least 3/4 of a MPH to his average bike pace.
I’m not drowning when I swim (always a good sign) and I think with a little focus I can shave 10 seconds or so off my 100yd average pace on the swim.
Can we do it? I think so.
[...] and just happens to be the goal I need to reach for the Skaneateles Skinnyman triathlon with my TMF comrades. Chris and Kathleen, I hope you’re taking the challenge [...]
[...] so you may recall that I challenged my teammates to better their times by 10% over last year’s times. Well, the results are in, and [...]