Real Men Tri at 40!

Last Christmas, when we were visiting with friends in Midway, the table talk turned to the fact that all the men (highschool friends) were turning 40 this year. After deciding that 40 wasn't as old as we used to think, the guys came up with a way to prove it....they would compete in a triathlon this summer. All 4 highschool buddies committed to participating in the Battle at Midway triathlon.

The training consisted of lots of swimming, lots of running, and really long bike rides. The event required David to spend lots of money on a bike, lots of money on bike shoes, lots of money on bike clothes, and lots of money on his speedo for the swim!

Two months before the August race David pulled his shoulder out of socket for the 2nd time. The first time was 6 years ago on the top of Old Rag (a scout hike in MD). This time he was laying in bed next to me and got up too quickly. He was able to get the shoulder back in, but was very tender and sore for the next few weeks. His swimming training was compromised and sadly, a few weeks later the shoulder came out again. This time he had to go to the Urgent Care to get it back in and he was told to rest it for 6 weeks. Eventually he will need surgery on it, but he was determined to compete in the tri. He rested it for the 6 weeks, which put him 2 weeks from the event. He trained the best he could for those 2 weeks, doing "blocks" consisting of 20 mile bike rides immediately followed by 5 mile runs. Everything was good to go.

The gang all stayed together the night before the race. We had special shirts made for them and they turned out really good! The morning of the event Kimberlee and I went out early to catch the start of the race. We had to shuttle over to Deer Creek resevoir and caught up with the young competators before the swim start of the tri.

Not far into the swim, David's shoulder came out when he bumped it on a swimmer next to him. He was able to backstroke back to the start and visit with the EMT's to get his shoulder back in. After pleading with the race officials he was able to proceed unofficially to the bike and run part o the tri. He waited for one of his friends to come out of the swim and then headed onto the 23 mile bike ride.

After a successful bike ride, it was off for the run.

David successfully finished the bike and the run. He did really well on both and was happy with his times. The good times helped ease the disappointment of the swim/shoulder troubles. All four guys successfully finished the tri...and all about 10 minutes apart. From 1:51 to 2:01...good times for old men!

From left: Mike Miller, Neil Lundberg, Mike Grass, Dave Smith...all 40 years young!