Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.DrPete
05-05-09, 03:32 PM
....and it's me.
For those of you who don't know me, I can give you a little blurb. I'm 32, finishing up the final weeks of my 6-year residency in general surgery. I'm also on active duty in the Army. I started on BF about 4 years ago in the road forum, and quickly got hooked on road bike racing. I was all into it, until a couple bad crashes in local races made me realize that the risk of injury and time commitment involved with rising through the ranks in roadie racing just weren't consistent with my career. Riders much younger and/or dumber than me were willing to take risks in races that I just wasn't comfortable with. So I gave up racing about a year and a half ago, trying to get on my road bike whenever I could.
My training lost focus and direction. It became way too easy to make an excuse to not ride because I was too busy, too tired, whatever. The weight piled on and my body went to hell. Then my wife got pregnant last spring. What an eye-opener when my wife actually NEEDED me at home, and I would come home from work completely smoked with no energy left to take care of her. I realized that I was headed straight for a heart attack at age 40. Now it wasn't about racing, but being alive and healthy to watch my daughter grow up and live life with her.
So last summer I decided to take up running--easier to make time for at my job, and can be done anywhere with almost no equipment. I ran a 5K in July and before I knew it I was signed up for a half marathon. Funny how that happens...
But last fall I started to miss my bike. I missed racing. Maybe I could do TT's, I thought. Realistically, there are only 1-2 TT's a year in this region. Lame. I'd come to enjoy running, so I figured if I could teach myself how to swim, I could do all the TT's I wanted--I'd just have to swim before and run after each one. :)
So there it is. I'm a total noob of a triathlete, having finished my first one in October. I'm signed up for a couple sprints this summer, and my first Oly, the Nation's Triathlon in DC, in the fall. I'm focused, I'm motivated, I'm losing weight, eating better, and loving the running stroller time with my daughter (she's still too young for the bike trailer). The bike is still my first love, and my tri bike, a Cervelo P2C, has become my primary bike for just about every ride I do.
I was also recently made a mod in the road forum, having gained some familiarity with the culture, etc. When it was noted (by cjbruin I believe) that Tri didn't have a mod assigned, I offered to cover it as well.
So here I am. Experienced BF'er, but inexperienced triathlete, loving the hell out of life. Nice to meet all of you. Please feel free to keep the forum as low-maintenance as it is right now, and if you have any ideas for stickies etc. feel free to bounce them off me.
For those of you who don't know me, I can give you a little blurb. I'm 32, finishing up the final weeks of my 6-year residency in general surgery. I'm also on active duty in the Army. I started on BF about 4 years ago in the road forum, and quickly got hooked on road bike racing. I was all into it, until a couple bad crashes in local races made me realize that the risk of injury and time commitment involved with rising through the ranks in roadie racing just weren't consistent with my career. Riders much younger and/or dumber than me were willing to take risks in races that I just wasn't comfortable with. So I gave up racing about a year and a half ago, trying to get on my road bike whenever I could.
My training lost focus and direction. It became way too easy to make an excuse to not ride because I was too busy, too tired, whatever. The weight piled on and my body went to hell. Then my wife got pregnant last spring. What an eye-opener when my wife actually NEEDED me at home, and I would come home from work completely smoked with no energy left to take care of her. I realized that I was headed straight for a heart attack at age 40. Now it wasn't about racing, but being alive and healthy to watch my daughter grow up and live life with her.
So last summer I decided to take up running--easier to make time for at my job, and can be done anywhere with almost no equipment. I ran a 5K in July and before I knew it I was signed up for a half marathon. Funny how that happens...
But last fall I started to miss my bike. I missed racing. Maybe I could do TT's, I thought. Realistically, there are only 1-2 TT's a year in this region. Lame. I'd come to enjoy running, so I figured if I could teach myself how to swim, I could do all the TT's I wanted--I'd just have to swim before and run after each one. :)
So there it is. I'm a total noob of a triathlete, having finished my first one in October. I'm signed up for a couple sprints this summer, and my first Oly, the Nation's Triathlon in DC, in the fall. I'm focused, I'm motivated, I'm losing weight, eating better, and loving the running stroller time with my daughter (she's still too young for the bike trailer). The bike is still my first love, and my tri bike, a Cervelo P2C, has become my primary bike for just about every ride I do.
I was also recently made a mod in the road forum, having gained some familiarity with the culture, etc. When it was noted (by cjbruin I believe) that Tri didn't have a mod assigned, I offered to cover it as well.
So here I am. Experienced BF'er, but inexperienced triathlete, loving the hell out of life. Nice to meet all of you. Please feel free to keep the forum as low-maintenance as it is right now, and if you have any ideas for stickies etc. feel free to bounce them off me.