The Rev3Tri Experience…..

It is impossible for me to capture what I experienced in this race (and while being at this race), as one of its commentators, one of the race organizers and one of the people in charge of Trakkers, in a blog. I am shocked by how few (errr, none!) pictures I took at this event. I am kicking myself now for so many classic missed opportunities.

However, it was “hit the ground running” from the moment I landed at the Hartford airport on Wednesday through the race – so it’s not like photo opportunities were on the brain.. Like anyone who has helped to put on a race will tell you, everyone wears multiple hats, everyone learns what they’d wished they’d done differently, and everyone is running around with their head cut off for days on end. Sleep over 4 hours a night is a true luxury.

I’ve decided to include some highlights of this weekend as opposed to writing a novel of my experience.

• Meeting the beloved Trakkers Team (those who were able to make it) was a definite highlight. These people are even nicer and better in person than I’d imagined.

• I hadn’t seen Big G (Heather Gollnick) since 2007. It was so great to have a few days with her amid the chaos and to see the success of her and Todd’s efforts at race directing. They did a wonderful job!

• “Simply Stu” ROCKS. He and Heather (later to be joined by Luke Bell) led the commentating from the transition area on race day while I was out on course and radioing in (sometimes at the on-course camera) what I was seeing. Stu and I had an intense bonding experience over a matter of days, jokes and laughter rampant, and he joins my select list of “the coolest of the cool”. I am a true fan of his, but more because of who he is as a person. And he laughs at my jokes.

• One of my closest friends, Brian McGrath (my former high school teaching colleague turned Harvard Med School graduate – AHEM!), took a day off from his doctor duties at the ER in the Bronx to come to CT and help with my commentating responsibilities. I don’t think he or I initially realized the magnitude this role would be. Brian drove the car, navigating not just the course but skillfully angling around the athletes on this 2-lane road while helping to obtain splits and identify the athletes. While he drove, I tried to radio in the commentary to Stu and Heather what we were seeing. This was like John Candy and Chevy Chase on a road trip. Brian continued to keep me calm (and laughing), and somehow got me to needed course check points while helping to manage my constant swearing (off camera!) at the multitude of things going wrong from our vantage point. We constantly lost audio – I couldn’t hear Stu or Heather in my earpiece, and often I couldn’t be heard – the result of which had me interrupting them, unsure if they were hearing me, and unable to report in on key sightings on course. It was broadcasting nightmare. Though the commentating (THANKFULLY!) went well from the viewers standpoint, which ultimately is all that matters, the level of frustration Brian was helping me contain had reached epic proportion. I wasn’t able to do my job well, and anyone who knows how success-oriented I am will know what that was doing to me. Nonetheless, I think I covered those huge omissions well, or as well as anyone could have in my shoes, and think I did an amazing job given the landslide of landmines Brian and I were averting. I really can’t begin to tell you how many things were going wrong out there. Special thanks to Bri for saving my ass. Without his help, it simply would have been a train wreck.

• Brian and I saw lots of funny things along the course, different pro’s doing or saying something to me (did I mention Bree Wee mooned me during the run? Hot!), most of which I couldn’t report in on a family show like Rev3 (i.e., Bree’s butt!) …. But probably the highlight to the in-car cat chasing mouse morning was right around mile 50 of the bike. After trying to radio in the 5th and 6th place woman’s split from the leader at mile 40, Brian and I again got in the car to race to the front, safely getting around everyone. This always took a long time. Eventually, we got to approx mile 50 where we caught the leader, Natasha. We saw her ahead and were slowly making up ground. Seconds later we approached a rather harrowing decent full of switchbacks. Natasha was in full tuck position on that Cheetah bike, completely aero, zero braking. In a car Brian and I were doing 47 MPH and we were barely catching her. He and I said nothing – both our jaws were dropped as we watched this spectacle before us. I felt like I was in a follow car at the Tour. We were FLYING downhill – more to the point, SHE was flying downhill, skillfully angling those turns with absolute precision. Brian and I were awe struck and I was so glad someone was with me to witness that. It was one of the most amazing things I’d seen in all of my years in sport. The skill combined with raw courage. I was screaming into the headset and was mad as a hornet because we had no audio (again). I wanted to describe to the viewers what I was seeing. It was utterly amazing.

Charlie Patten, our boss and leader with Rev3tri, was truly an example to us all. Amid probably 2 hours of sleep a night, back-breaking work in the days leading to the event in setting up and preparing, and managing the many crises I’m sure none of us knew about —- he never once lost his cool, and he was always kind to everyone. There aren’t many people for whom I have worked who inspire loyalty – but Charlie did that among all of us there. People were busting their asses and for no other reason than we all wanted to see the race go well for Charlie. With this race being the smashing success it was, I look forward to 2010 for Rev3tri!!!!!

I hope all of you will join in supporting this race series. Not only is the race itself probably the most flawless inaugural race ever put on in triathlon history, with ground-breaking media coverage … it is run by probably the nicest man on the planet who treats everyone well and creates a race for the ATHLETE, not his checkbook. For as long as I do triathlon, I will be a Rev3 supporter.

Cheers!

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 11th, 2009 at 9:13 PM and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.