Jon's Jibber-jabber

Greetings from Wisconsin!  This is my first travel training week during Ironman training.  If you haven't followed my other posts, I am on a work trip this week to Madison, Wisconsin. I have never been to America's Dairyland so it's completely new to me.   I was pretty nervous when I first heard about the trips (the other is two weeks before Challenge) but have since done much work to prepare.  My big question: How the heck am I going to train? It is a scary thought to be in the midst of your build phase hitting high volume workouts and to suddenly have a full week in a strange place. I have striven so hard to keep consistency in my schedule and training plan.  I finally figured out my nutrition.  Now I'm in a strange place with an altered routine.   My training partner is a pilot and he constantly deals with this issue.  I have gained a new respect for his situation from planning these multiple trips.  There are many variables including weather, geography and equipment

This past week was one of the nicest of the year for training.  Spring decided to show up and temperatures were much more amenable to outdoor training.  It seems that everyone was out as well.  The trails and the roads were crowded with runners, walkers, bikers,  and joggers.  It is certainly great to see everyone come to life.  However, there is a downside with crowded areas: safety.  With more and more people venturing out, it is critical that we all look out for one another.  Whether it is bikers announcing when they pass or cars giving room to bikes on the shoulder, extra vigilance is needed to ensure that everyone goes home at the end of the day.   Saturday was another wake up call as a member of the local biking community was struck by a car just an hour before I biked through the same spot.  It serves to remind us that we all need to be aware and make sure that we are safe.  There is nothing so important that you can't slow down, announce when passing or simply take the ti

Disclaimer: Today's post will have nothing to do with triathlon or running.  As the title suggests, today I will present my thoughts on Disney's new musical Aladdin.  My wife and I ventured to New York on Sunday to see the musical just a week or so after it officially opened on Broadway.  I am a huge fan of Alan Menken and the classic animated film.  I have been waiting for this stage musical adaptation since the late 1990s.  Personally, I think it has great material to translate to the stage.  My second disclaimer is that I know the entire movie, word for word from beginning to end.  This will be a long post.  I apologize in advance.  Here are bullet points if you don’t want to read the entire article (although I encourage you to do so). 1.      All animal characters are made into human characters. 2.      The stage show lacks the heart of the film. 3.      Genie is fantabulous. 4.      All other characters are flat and undeveloped. 5.      Stage