So You Think Your Tough?

*Note from Eric: Last week I posted that I was having knee problems. I’m happy to report that I just had some swelling around my knee joint. The caused was my knee cap wasn’t tracking properly. The solution is a few exercises that will strengthen certain muscles to pull that knee cap in to the proper position. My 2010 tri training will pick up again full force on Monday….whew! I was worried there for a minute.



So you thing your tough? I’ve wanted to do a post about this for awhile, but never got around to it. My subject is Scott “Hoss” Cartwright. I’ve worked with Scott for a little over four years now. My best sales year ever was with Scott, and over the years I’ve viewed him as a mentor. He has lots of experience and has the ability to simplify complex scenarios, which is extremely valuable in IT sales.

**Note: this video was filmed back in 07 so he's lifting more now, but it shows all the lifts.



Sales is only Scott’s day job. At night he is a top ranked power lifter. Not only is he top ranked, he is the single ply squat world record holder – 1025 lbs. For those of you not in the “know,” competitive power lifting uses the combined total of three lifts: bench press, dead lift, and squat. Single ply refers to the amount of supportive clothing worn by the lifter. Single ply is basically no support, which is the hardest one can do.

*Note: This is not for the faint harted....watch the nose.



In addition to lifting, Scott is a regular contributor to various power lifting magazines. He talks about technique, how to get stronger, ect. I’ve asked him for advice on strength training from time to time, so when I hurt my knee he was the first person I talked to. His advise was not surprising – man up and muscle through it.

Knee Problems, Swimming, and Good News

Two weeks ago I was in San Francisco for work. The hotel only had a one bike machines, so my workouts consisted of some basic movement and strength exercises and running. I try to always stay in the same hotel because I have a running route that I love and I can adjust the distance from 5 to 7 miles depending on how I feel. I tend to run longer and go harder when I run at sea level because my cardio system can easily handle the load which means that my legs really get worked.

This time around I ran three times with a total mileage of 18 miles – about 6 more miles than I usually do. My legs felt great and I wasn’t doing any other cardio, so I didn’t thing anything about it. I flew home on Friday, got up early, and headed out for a long but easy, but longer than normal road ride – about two hours. For the past few months my cycle workouts, weather they were outside or on the trainer, have been right around 60 minutes. I saying all this to point out that while my distance and time increased this past week, it wasn’t a difficult and I felt fine.

After the ride, I showered, did my Saturday chores, and then ran some errands with Hannah. No problems. Sunday morning, I rolled out of bed and kneeled down for my morning prayer and my right knee was throbbing with pain. The knee cap was so tender that I couldn’t kneel or go up and down stairs without it really bothering me. Monday it was worse. By the end of the day I could barely walk. I did some research on-line and think it might be Patellar Tendonitis which affects the ligament that attaches the knee cap to the shin bone. The only treatment that I found was rest – complete rest.

For the rest of the week, I stayed off it as best I could and iced it all the time. Today, one week later, it doesn’t hurt, but it feels tender going up and down stairs. I can tell that if I really start using it again it will flair up. I have an appointment to see a sports medicine doctor next Friday. Hopefully it is nothing serious and I can start training again. March 1 is when I start training for 2010 and I need to have some solid base fitness before then, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I won’t be out of commission too long.

Since I can’t run, bike, or do leg exercises I went swimming yesterday. It’s been about 5 months since I was in the pool and it was good to be back. My speed is about the same, but my endurance is way down…my muscles are really sore this morning : )

Now that that is out of the way, we need to move on to more important things. Hannah had her 20 week ultra sound on Friday. We are having a girl!! We’re both really excited. Hannah has been saying it’s a girl from the beginning. I really didn’t care what it was going to be, but deep down, I think I wanted a girl. Not sure why, I just did.

And now your moment of ZEN…..

Kierke, I know I said that I thought ultra sound shots were kind of creepy, but I’ve TOTALLY changed my mind. When it’s your own, it’s awesome!

2009 Recap and 2010 Races!

*Note: These pictures are of my Xterra Buffalo Creek Race. I’m posting them here since I didn’t do a race report.

I’ve spent a little time reflecting on 2009 and it was quite an eventful year. The most notable part of the year was that Hannah got pregnant. After 8 years of trying, this news was almost too good to be true. It took us a few weeks before it sunk in. The first time we went into the baby section department store after learning that it was a healthy pregnancy we felt guilty. We were so use to ignoring the fact that we didn’t have children, going into the baby section seemed wrong somehow. It’s strange the walls you build around your self(s) to shield you from disappointment. Anyway, that is all in the past and we look forward to having a baby in June. Words can not express how excited we are.

Another highlight of 09 was developing our family history. For some years now, I’ve been interested in family history. This blog actually started as an attempt to document at least part of my / our life. Earlier this year Hannah and I had to opportunity to video my Grandma Ann, my parents, and my Aunt Sharon talking about their lives. Later that year we did the same with Hannah’s folks. Over all we captured about 7 hours of video. Through the editing, I’ve had the chance to watch it again and it is absolutely wonderful. Eventually I would like to do this with each person on both sides of our family. We’ve started with our parents, next is their children, then grandchildren. It’s going to be years in the making, but I believe that future generations will benefit from hearing about their lives.

Last but not least was is my race season. My love of training and racing continued to develop. My focus was on getting faster, but mostly on having fun. Triathlon training can be quite complicated. One has to train in all three disciplines at least twice a week incorporating both hard and easy days, increase in volume and intensity until a few days before the race when you “taper” down to allow your body to recover…but not too much or you’ll loose your fitness for the big day. While this formula works, it can sap the fun out of it. The key for me was to do as much as I can, but don’t stress out if I can’t stick to my plan 100%. This seemed to work and I did well in all my races, with the exception of Buffalo Creek which was fun, but I just wasn’t feeling it that day.

This year my focus will change slightly. Having fun will still be my main goal, but I will also be increasing in distance. Another change will be that I won’t be doing any Xterra’s this year. There just aren’t any races that fit my schedule. Just doing road triathlons will be interesting and I’m curious to see how I like them. Below I’ve listed the races I want to do. It seems like a lot, but I’ve spaced them out pretty well.






• Feb 26, Snowman Stampede – 10 mile foot race
• June 5, Tune Up Tri – Road triathlon (500m swim, 12 mile bike ride, 3.1 mile run)
• June 26, Slacker Half Marathon – 13.1 mile foot race
• July 17, Tri In July – Road triathlon (750m swim, 14 mile bike, 4 mile run)
• July 31, Laramie Enduro – 70+ mile mountain bike race
• August 28, Utah Half Ironman – Road triathlon (1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run)

My “A" priority race is the Utah half ironman with the Laramie Enduro coming in a close second. I think that the other races will be good training for these two main events.

As you can imagine this schedule represents a real time commitment. I structured my workouts so I will do most of my training during lunch or early morning with a few short evenings, so time away from Hannah will be minimal. I’ve discussed this schedule with Hannah in length (when her eyes glaze over, I know that I’ve talked about it too much) and she is behind me 100%. I’ve very luck to be married to such an understanding and supportive woman.

**Note: Notice the smile when I’m crossing the finish line. After a disappointing bike and run, I see Jason in the transition area who is fully dressed because he beat me by 10 minutes….AGAIN!


And now your moment of ZEN.....

I snapped this picture on a recent trip to San Francisco. Joe Harrison picked me up and we had the best bouillabaisse I've ever had. Huge prawns, crab meat, muscles, clams, and fish. Truly a moment of ZEN!