Give them the finger

Canada was totally depressed during the opening days of the Olympics. So says Ellen's good friend Mary, who was visiting from Vancouver. Canada was suffering from a drought of medals. "We were behind the country of Togo!" That all changed when Carol Huynh won a gold medal in women's wrestling. Here you see Carol performing her famous "stinky finger" move.

Looking Presidential

One thing I have to say about W, he commands respect.

Michael behaving badly

This video was from the raw NBC feed showing Phelps's rather unsportsmanlike behavior.

Sheila Taormina

You may remember Sheila from her ITU triathlon days. She has quite an athletic resume- gold medal swimmer at the '96 Atlanta games, Olympic Triathlete in the 2000 and 2004 games, and now in her fourth Olympics, Sheila is competing in Beijing in her third sport- the Modern Pentathlon. That's a day of shooting, fencing, horseback riding, swimming, and running. Check out NBC Olympics to see how she fared.

More 10 K Open Water

The 10k open water swim consists of a 6 mile swim and then a frantic 250 meter sprint to the finish. It is a great combination of endurance, strategy, and speed. In yesterday's race, the leader paused for a brief second sighting the finish line. This was all the opening Netherlands
Maarten van der Weijden needed to capture the gold. Santa Barbara's Mark Warkentin was in the lead pack with 500 meters to go but when all hell broke loose, he hung on for a respectable 8th place, 21 seconds back. On a side note, Maarten was diagnosed with leukemia in 2001, under went a stem cell transplant and luckily made a full recovery.

2001

Olympic Champion 2008

Natalie Du Toit

Just an update on South African Olympic swimmer Natalie Du Toit. Natalie finished 16th in the 10k open water swim, finishing 1min 21 seconds back. After the race, " My message isn't just to disabled people, you have to set dreams, set goals, and never give up."

Be Like Flipper

Just strap on one of these baby's and you'll literally be able to propel yourself completely out of the water. This is a high tech monofin made by Lunocet. Is it worth the $1,800 price tag? Maybe not, but it is made of two of my most favorite materials- carbon fiber and titanium!

Knee Pads are for Wussies

While the world waited in anticipation to see if Michael Phelps would win his record 8th gold, thousands of Santa Barbarians packed the City College track to witness Geoff Gray attempt to break the 1 mile lunge record. In true Olympian fashion, Geoff shattered the existing record of 30 minutes, 50 seconds by posting an amazing 27 minutes, 5 seconds. Inspired, I am now preparing to take on the 1 mile somersulting record. Stay tuned...

1/100th

In case you are wondering what 1/100th of a second looks likes, here it is.

Greatest Olympian Ever?

Is Michael Phelps the greatest Olympian ever? Philip Hersh of the LA Times doesn't rank Phelps even in his top five. Carl Lewis is his number one. The question is- Can Phelps sing?

Time Waits for No One

NBCOlympics.com ran a little slide show on how some of the greatest Olympians looked then and now. All I can say is Bruce Jenner is one creepy looking dude.

High Tech Gear

It certainly pays to have athletic talent, but here is an interesting article on the gear that can give you the Olympic edge. Everybody is familiar with the high tech swimsuits, but how about some Nike contact lenses that help you pick up the rotation of a ball. Check it out.

Leadville 100

This just in from the Wanger- Famous marathon runner, Lance Armstrong, finished around 2 minutes back of defending champ, Dave Wiens, in last weekends Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race. Lance was around 1 minute back with 10 miles to go, then crashed and finished 2 minutes behind. Wiens finished with a flat. The Wanger is hanging out in Colorado preparing for next weekend's Leadville 100 mile run. More pictures here.

Tour de Lake

Today was a good day. I successfully defended the yellow jersey of the Tour de Lake. The attacks came early and often. The first came soon after I pulled out of the East Beach parking lot. Team Guy-with-panniers-and-reflective-vest launched a furious attack on Cemetery Hill, the first climb of the day . When he stopped for a smoke near the Biltmore, I put the hammer down and dusted him. Next on Hwy 192, Out-0f-town-tri-girl closed the gap and pushed the pace to the top of Toro Canyon. Fortunately her descending skills weren't quite up to snuff and her attack was denied. I rode hard and steady, my solo break away seemed to be working. Along the coast, Guy-riding-in long-pants-and-no-helmet made a brief challenge. No problem. I was confident as I rounded the Bird Refuge that victory was in hand. As I approached East Beach I caught Family-of-four-riding-a-surrey making a move out of the corner of my eye. I dug deep and snaked them at the line back into the parking lot. Victory was sweet. I must recover now. Tomorrow I will be attempting the arduous San Ysidro Trail climb with the Nerd Herd. I will be doing this without the aid of supplemental oxygen.

Justin!

Meet Justin

My buddy Justin just passed the Bar exam and is Santa Barbara's newest lawyer. Justin has been collecting various graduate degrees over the years but after decades of schooling, he finally says he's done. His lovely wife Melinda is breathing a sigh of relief.


Here is my poor collar bone after getting tangled up with Justin a few years ago on a club ride. Since Justin has been in Law School I haven't seen much of him on the road. My old bones are breathing a sigh of relief!

My Swimming Hole

Los Banos del Mar Pool is my favorite Santa Barbara swimming hole. It's been undergoing a major repair all summer. Check out these demo pictures courtesy of Dean the pool guy. More Here

Someone to Root For

It seem I can't get enough stories about limbless athletes. Here's another one:
In the year 2000, 16 year old South African swimmer, Natalie du Toit, barely missed qualifying for 3 events for the Sydney Olympics. Natalie seemed like a sure bet for the 2004 Athens Olympics but her life took an abrupt turn when in 2001 she was hit by a car and lost her left leg. Now at age 24, Natalie has realized her Olympic dream. In a few days she will be competing in the 10k open water swim in Beijiing. I doubt you will see much coverage of Natalie on NBC. Kobe and LeBron's quest for gold is far more engaging. Root for her anyway.

The Nerd Herd

On Sunday mornings I've been running trails with Scott DeVore and the self proclaimed "Nerd Herd". Scott is a talented athlete but like a fine thoroughbred horse, he has a tendency to injure himself quite easily. Before each run, the group draws straws to see who will put Scott down in case he pulls up lame.

A Couch Potato's Dream

A long day training or pop a pill? The latest development of why hard work may be a thing of the past.

The Most Important Meal of the Day

What's great about this wholesome breakfast meal is it comes with a free pack of cigarettes.

Think Big

Sometimes it doesn't hurt to think big