Days gone by...

Last night when I swam, it seemed like there was way too much chlorine in the pool. Way too much. Today, when I got to the pool there was a sign on the door that said the pool was closed due to problems with the chemicals. I guess I was right.

So I thought I would reflect a little on 2007 since we're starting a new year, which means a clean start. New goals, new experiences, new memories. I can't wait.

2007 was a good year. I tried some new things and, sadly, said goodbye to some old things. 2007 was the first year since I was 12 years old that I didn't ride a motorcycle. Even though I officially quit racing a few years ago, I still managed to get out for a few rides or races here and there by borrowing a friend's bike. I decided this year that that wasn't working out because I was losing my skills and starting to pay the price. This became very clear when I made a mistake on a series of jumps and jumped off the track and crashed pretty hard in 2006. I miss hanging out at the races and I miss the friends, but sometimes you need to move on.

Here's a good picture of me (191) and my buddy Steve (5) getting mixed up in a first turn crash. Yep, I ran over his arm. No place to go. Once I realized there was no avoiding his arm I gabbed the gas and put a bit of a gap on Steve, who probably caught me later in the race. I don't remember the details of the race, but he was riding really well those days. Don't worry, the dude's arm was okay...I think.



Hello to new things....I did my first triathlon in 2007 in Janesville (my hometown) and I'm hooked. I can't say this first one was that much fun, but that's because I struggled on the swim and my expectations were too high. But I had a lot of fun in the other 2 triathlons I did, and I'm looking forward to doing more triathlons this summer and trying to improve my results. Here's a picture of me right after the Janesville tri...




Cheri also did her first triathlon in Pleasant Prairie this year. She did the Danskin, which had over 4,000 women competing and I proudly say she delivered a serious ass whooping on 94% of the field. That's quite a way to start your triathlon career. She has warned me that her 2008 Danskin training gets serious in March. I can't wait. It's gonna be fun.




I also did the Horribly Hilly 200k this year, my longest ride ever. 132 miles with 11,000 feet of climbing. Yes, it was hilly. Yes, it was horrible. I noticed in my training log that I hurt my left knee on one of my hilly training rides (I forgot about that). Maybe that's when this knee thing started. Here I am...suffering...



Here's my sprint to the finish at the Ripon Triathlon. You can almost see my tendon tearing...





Here's hoping 2008 goes better than this...