Ripped suit... Bum-er

It's the wardrobe malfunction to end them all.
Italian Olympic swimmer Flavia Zoccari was forced to sit out a championship race at the Mediterranean Games yesterday after her bathing costume burst open in a very unfortunate place.
Flavia, 22, was wearing the controversial £318 top-of-the-line Jaked J01 swimsuit when disaster struck at the Games in Pescara, Italy..
She burst into tears as she was forced to stand down from her race.
Jaked boasts that the full-body swimsuit - complete with back hinge - is 'more than skin'.
However the aerodynamic costume has been the subject of controversy after it was banned by FINA (the International Swimming Federation) earlier this year because it gave swimmers wearing it an unfair advantage.
FINA lifted the ban on the swimsuit a month later, in June of this year, after Jaked, which sponsors the Italian national swim team, protested the ban.
Zoccari - who is nearly six feet tall - later apologised for the embarrassing incident.

I kinda like the "open back" design.

I've got plans for you

I received a letter from a Loan Processing Center...

DEED OF FULL RECONVEYANCE
SECURITY TITLE COMPANY OF MONTANA
...to reconvey the estate granted to the Trustee (Benson)...does hereby and by these presents, RECONVEY, RELEASE AND REMISE to 'Benson' without warranty of any kind, all of the estate, title and interest acquired by the Trustee...real property:...Big Sky of Montana...



It's finally all mine. Yippie! Dancing a smiling.
The dream continues.

About 10 years ago, I took out a loan to buy this property with the intent of building a home and eventually spending some of my retirement years there. And that is what I'll do...right after I finish the designs for the

BIG SKY MONTANA MULTISPORT TRAINING CENTER.

Otherwise known as Ahhhhhhhz.

The facility will be located in the town of Big Sky, Montana on a parcel adjacent to the Gallatin National Forest at 6,300 feet elevation. Altitude training. Higher altitude can be found by continuing west on the main road to 8,000 feet and then off road to 9,500 feet and by foot to 11,166 feet. Enjoy.
Off the back of the property is National Forest and dozens of miles of mountain biking trails.
To the east and south of the property is green space that cannot be developed.



The Gallatin River is 1 mile to the east. Trout fishing, rafting, kayaking.
The golf course is a half mile to the south. FORE!
The swimming pool is approximately 1/3 mile away.
The nearest bar and restaurant is 1/3 mile away next to the swimming pool.
Lots of paved road loops for biking.
Many miles of roads and trails for running.
80 kilometers of cross country ski trails are accessed 500 feet away.
Massage therapy and yoga will be on site.
Hot tub and ice baths will also be on site.
Downhill skiing and snowboarding are available 7 miles away.
Yellowstone Park is 15 miles south.
My neighbors are elk, mule deer, moose, bears, and big horn sheep.
Many direct flights into Bozeman, MT.

If you read this blog, you'll be invited.
I've always wanted a place with an open door policy.
Families, kids, and pets are welcome.

It may take a couple years to get it built but it will happen.
Plan accordingly.

Eat your ORGANIC fruits and vegetables

I can't believe it.
I've become a food snob. I read labels. Critically.
I rarely go out to eat because I like cooking at home and I know exactly what I'm shoving down my pie hole. I love grilling out on the BBQ.

So why eat organic?

Public service announcement:

The fruits and vegetables that our parents ate when they were growing up were more nutritious than the conventional model of today. Organically grown fruits and vegetables are proving to have higher levels of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals than their conventionally grown counterparts.
A recent study backed up this claim.
The Biochemical Institute at the University of Texas, Austin, recently analyzed data gathered by the USDA in 1950 and 1999 on the nutrient content of 43 fruit and vegetable crops. Researchers found that 6 out of 13 nutrients had declined in these crops over the 49 year period (the seven other nutrients showed no significant, reliable changes). Three minerals, phosphorus, iron and calcium, declined between 9 and 16 percent. Protein declined 6 percent. Riboflavin declined 38 percent and ascorbic acid (a precursor of vitamin C) declined 15 percent.

And Beth reminded me that buying local organic is twice better. Hell yeah.

I also hear that a good multivitamin will help fill in the gaps.

Be Well. Eat well.

Splish'n and Splash'n

This doesn't sound like much but I seem to have knocked 5 seconds off my 100 swim pace.
What the FFFFFFandango?
Going from a pace of 1:30 the past 3 years down to a 1:25 this past month has me puzzled
and pleased.

Flashback to my glory days in high school... I was 15 pounds lighter (read as SKINNY) and would regularly stay below a minute per 100 freestyle and had a backstroke PR of 1:04. Neither was good enough to make it to the state finals. So here I am.

I'm older now (much older) and tipping the scales at 155-160 and haven't been running since knee surgery last Dec. I've spent the past few months maintaining with some moderate strength training, swimming and biking. Nothing exciting there.
But, I have tweaked my swim stroke with a quicker catch and focused on maintaining a bent elbow through the stroke with a lot of stroke drills January through March. An old dog can learn some new tricks.
April and May, I upped my swims to a minimum of 3,000 yards per session with a few 4,000's thrown in.
The past 4 Saturday's I've been testing myself with 200 and 300 yard time trials.
The result...
A 1:25 per 100 pace and 1:22-1:23 for 100 repeats. Like I said, WHAT THE eFF!
I don't know how this will translate to an open water swim of more than 1,500 but I'll plan a lake swim soon and find out.


Pre IM Switzerland, 2007.
(check out the goober spit)

My knee is doing well but I still have a ways to go to get my right leg the same size as my left.
I guess it's back to the weight room and more protein.

Bike, Wine, BBQ

Saturday was sunny, warm, and windy.
A perfect day for a bike ride and wine tasting.

An easy 30 miles...with the wind.
Coming back against the wind was a bit of a challenge. Especially with a wine buzz.


Baby grapes






Ready to begin tasting...8 wines.


Post ride grilling and some beer.

This outing may become a monthly event.

Cool commute

Brief rest stop by the river.

It was sunny, windy as hell, and 45 degrees when I started my bike ride commute to work this morning.
Nothing like a cold slap in the face, watery eyes, and a runny nose to wake me up.
When I got to my office, I immediately brewed a hot cup o' joe to thaw out my fingers and toes.
Luckily I was the only one there cuz by the time I stripped off my layers of biking clothes, (socks, knee warmers, shorts, tech t-shirt, arm warmers, jersey, and wind breaker) I was standing naked under my office' hot air vent while sipping that glorious hot liquid and waiting for my cajones to drop out of my stomach. Gawd, the shrinkage and retraction were devastating.
Move along, nothing to see here, move along.
I'm fine now.