Human Interest Group

I bumped into Peter Reid at the Ironman Hawaii this year.  Since retiring, Pete has agressively been knocking off flight hours to get his various pilot's licenses and somehow been able to maintain what appeared to be pretty good form.   Who knows.....maybe he is training secretly for a return to the Big Island for a 4th Ironman World Championship.  Recently, Peter sent me this picture, probably pretty typical views he sees on a daily basis when dropping bush planes into the cold Alaskan waters

A recent update from the one of the most influential athletes in Multi-sport: Lisa Bentley

Hello friends,
 
I suppose the big change of temperatures on Tuesday this week signalled the end of summer and the change from running shorts to running hats and gloves!  For me, it sadly signals the end of my 2008 season.  I say ‘sadly’ because I am currently feeling so fit, fast and healthy at last.  My summer-long chest infection is gone and my heel feels so good.  But I have to celebrate because I did win my last race of the season – Longhorn Austin 70.3 on October 5th.  I put together my best bike ride and run combination to set a new course record.  The bike course was perfect for me – rolling hills and windy – and I kept the deficit to Michellie Jones, Tereza Macel and Pip Taylor to about 3 minutes.  By mile 10 on the run, I ran into the lead and finished with a winning margin of over 3 minutes.  
 
My goal in 2008 after an injury-ridden 2007, was to race without anti-inflammatories.  I was true to that mission as I kept the inflammation at bay with Eico Pro Fish Oil and a lot of support from my therapy team!  Unfortunately, illness affected my key race of the season – Subaru Ironman Canada – and that illness also made my heel feel pretty sore since the old adage – ‘you are only as strong as your weakest link’ rang true.  But, at the moment, I would say that my heel feels the best it has felt in 2 years – which is bitter sweet since I needed that back in August.  The great news is that I am back running in normal Saucony running shoes instead of the modified shoes I needed to wear for the past two years.  This is a huge breakthrough and it has me keeping my eye on perhaps running a marathon in the next few months.  But the professional athlete in me wants to run sub 2:40 and so I won’t rush it.   The best news is that unlike the last two years, my off season can involve strengthening and fun running and revitalization instead of daily physical therapy!  
 
And so I finish 2008 with two significant victories – Rhode Island 70.3 and Austin 70.3 and top five finishes in all of my other events.  This is the first year since 2000 that I have not won an Ironman event.  And we can all celebrate my great consistency, my 11 Ironman wins to date and another two Ironman 70.3 victories in 2008.  Here is to number 12 in 2009!
 
Unless I really get the marathon bug, my first race in 2009 will be the Pucon 70.3 in Chile, South America.  I have won that event 6 times in a row (2002-2007).  Here is to a great healthy and happy 2009!
 
Happy off season!
 
Lisa Bentley
www.lisabentley.com