Teva has been on a tear. Some of their competitors might choose to say terror. We are sorry to loose Simple but are optimistic that Teva will continue to up their game and be our shoe of choice as the seasons progress. We appreciate the multi sport functionality of most of their shoes and the waterability of the rest.

They have been pumping out new shoes all spring and we add another shoe to our – hope to test soon list. These launch in January 2012 and they look awesome.

More than half of Teva’s spring 2012 collection is comprised of new styles that appeal to active and adventurous consumers while staying true to Teva’s commitment to water, which continues to define the brand’s DNA.

The soon to be issued new style is the ReForge ion-mask™ and is beinc called by Teva the next evolution of the classic hiker. The moment you exit a watery environment, water drains through the midsole’s Drain Frame channels and the ion-mask-treated upper shrugs off water droplets. Unlike membrane waterproofing technologies, ion-mask is not a physical barrier to water, rather, it is an invisible nano-coating that makes the fabric totally hydrophobic. Being only nanometers thin, ion-mask does not add any weight and does not wash out or wear off with use.

The ReForge will be available on Teva in January 2012 and will sell for $130.

Teva has a new shoe this summer and I can’t wait to get my hands on it. The men’s Mush Frio Slip Canvas and Mush Frio Lace Canvas come in brown, grey and black hues accented with pops of orange, red, blue and yellow, feature ultra-light synthetic and canvas uppers with collapsible heels.

These shoes look awesome and they look for traveling, camping, journeying to a backcountry hut or anytime you want to lighten your load. I love light shoes and seek them out with tons of effort. No need here to have a baller watch the size of a iPhone or a pair of heavy shoes. I find them both useless.

The women’s styles are $45, and $50 for the men’s, which, compared to other weight loss solutions, is a steal. They are available now at retailers worldwide and on Teva.

Throughout 2011, Teva will continue its commitment to clean water through a new initiative called “Pair for A Foot.” The program will help protect one linear foot of global waterways for every pair of Teva shoes and sandals sold in 2011 through donations to clean water non-profits including the Ocean Conservancy and long-time partner Waterkeeper Alliance. Teva estimates “Pair for a Foot” will help preserve 4.3 million feet of waterways in 2011.

“The Teva brand was born on the water and we feel a strong obligation to help protect our most precious natural resource,” says Joel Heath, Teva Global Marketing Director. “We’re proud to support organizations that do vital work to protect water for the environment.”

Last year, Teva donated $100,000 to the Waterkeeper Alliance’s “Save Our Gulf” initiative, a fundraising and awareness campaign fighting to protect the Gulf Coast’s communities and environment from the long-term devastating impacts of the BP oil disaster. The emergency donation from Teva assisted in the effort to save marine life, wildlife, beaches and waterways that are relied upon for both fishing and recreation.

“Teva has been a terrific corporate partner for Waterkeeper Alliance and we’re thrilled about the Pair for a Foot campaign, both from a fundraising and an awareness standpoint,” states Marc Yaggi, interim Executive Director for Waterkeeper Alliance.

The “Pair for a Foot” program (www.teva.com/cleanwater) extends Teva’s commitment to clean water and its partnership with Waterkeeper through 2011 and beyond. “Over the years, we have participated in numerous community river clean-ups with local Waterkeeper chapters. We are excited to be making a deeper, long-term commitment to water with this initiative,” says Heath.

“We look forward to working with Teva to promote the healthy oceans and waterways that are the heart of our mission,” says Vikki Spruill, President of Ocean Conservancy.

Nice going Teva.

I’m a planner. I like to plan, it makes me happy. Right now I feel like I’m in limbo with my training and overall nutrition. The last few weeks due to life and schedule I’ve only been attending EmerFit 1 time a week. My weight is a few pounds up and overall I feel pretty gross. The only way to get out of this funk is to get my plan set.

Base miles will start in January VERY slowly along with getting back to 2 days a week at EmerFit. Trail Runner Mag has complied hundreds of races in their January issue. I’d recommend picking it up as you plan your schedule.

Tentative 2011 race plan:

05/29 – Wyoming Trail Marathon – 26.2 miles
06/18 – Bighorn Mountain Wild And Scenic Trail Run – 50k
07/16 – Life Time Fitness Leadville Silver Rush – 50 miles
09/17 – Steamboat Springs Run, Rabbit, Run – 50 miles
09/18 – All Cyclocross all the time
10/08 – XTERRA Marathon Of Trail Races – 26.2 miles

My goal is to knock out 2, 50 mile races this year along with a few 50k races. Both of the 50 miles races are hard and the Leadville race will be the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Right now there is a big hole in August. I may include an Xterra Triathlon or 2 as a way to vary up the training and wear and tear on my body/knees/feet. There are also several fun local trail races in Fort Collins throughout August I can check out. The 2 A races will be the Leadville 50 and the Run, Rabbit Run.

If I can stay healthy and somewhat injury free, this will be an expectational season!

Andy B
outsideallday.com

2011 Xterra Off Road Triathlon Race Series Schedule is now live.

Date Race Location
3/12 XTERRA Saipan Championship Northern Marianas
3/26 XTERRA Guam Piti, Guam
3/27 XTERRA REAL Granite Bay, CA
4/3 XTERRA Camp Eagle Rocksprings, TX
4/10 XTERRA West Championship Lake Las Vegas, NV
4/17 XTERRA South Central Championship Waco, TX
4/30 XTERRA Fort Yargo Winder, GA
4/30 XTERRA Degray Lake Arkadelphia, AR
5/1 XTERRA Jersey Devil New Jersey
5/14 XTERRA EPIC – Rustman Ruston, LA
5/14 XTERRA Moab Moab, UT
5/15 XTERRA Gator Terra Ruston, LA
5/15 XTERRA King of the Hill Lebanon, NJ
5/22 XTERRA Southeast Championship Pelham, AL
5/22 XTERRA Last Stand Augusta, MI
5/29 XTERRA Smith Lake Fort Bragg, NC
6/4 XTERRA Four Corners Farmington, NM
6/4 XTERRA Scales Lake Boonville, IN
6/4 XTERRA Tsali Bryson City, NC
6/5 XTERRA Deuces Wild Show Low, AZ
6/11 XTERRA Eureka Springs Eureka Springs, AR
6/12 XTERRA East Championship Richmond, VA
6/18 XTERRA Solstice La Grande, OR
6/19 XTERRA Torn Shirt Brighton, MI
6/19 XTERRA Lock 4 Blast Gallatin, TN
6/19 XTERRA Muleshoe Spicewood, TX
6/25 XTERRA Tahoe City Tahoe City, CA
6/25 XTERRA Pipestem Creek Jamestown, ND
6/25 XTERRA Dawg Dayz North Little Rock, AR
7/10 XTERRA Whitewater Charlotte, NC
7/10 XTERRA O.N.E. Ravenna, OH
7/10 XTERRA EX2 Flintstone, MD
7/10 XTERRA Vashon Island Vashon Island, WA
7/16 XTERRA Hammerman Anchorage, AK
7/17 XTERRA Sky High Grafton, NY
7/16 XTERRA Mountain Championship Beaver Creek, CO
7/23 XTERRA DINO Versailles Versailles, IN
7/24 XTERRA Wild Horse Creek Bozeman, MT
7/24 XTERRA Dirty Grizzly Macungie, PA
7/24 XTERRA First Coast Jacksonville, FL
7/30 XTERRA Panther Creek Morristown, TN
7/31 XTERRA Sugar Bottom North Liberty, IA
7/31 XTERRA Race at the Rez Essex, VT
7/31 XTERRA Forest Drive Aberdeen, SD
8/6 XTERRA Indian Peaks Nederland, CO
8/7 XTERRA Appalachia Indiana, PA
8/7 XTERRA Iron Will Jonesboro, AR
8/7 XTERRA Black Diamond Black Diamond, WA
8/7 XTERRA Snow Valley Running Springs, CA
8/7 XTERRA STOAKED Hanover, NH
8/13 XTERRA DINO Logansport Logansport, IN
8/13 XTERRA B.O.L.T. Raymond, NE
8/13 XTERRA Portland Forest Grove, OR
8/20 XTERRA Illinois Wilds Hanna City, IL
8/21 XTERRA Wild Ride McCall, ID
8/21 XTERRA Charlottesville Charlottesville, VA
8/27 XTERRA Lory Bellvue, CO
8/27 XTERRA Lake Tahoe Incline Village, NV
9/24 XTERRA USA Championship Ogden/Snowbasin, UT

More info at www.xterraplanet.com

Quit the schedule they’ve put together. I’m hoping to race a few this season. They have a few CO races that may work very well into my overall training schedule. They are bold above.

Andy B
outsideallday.com

Local Fort Collins cyclist, triathlete and Doctor, Jason Barker has started a website called NaturalAthleteClinic.com. Jason is an expert in natural sports medicine. He specializes in providing unique, proven solutions for athletes that want more than just ibuprofen for their sports and performance-related health issues. He provides relevant, scientific information about how you can improve your overall health and athletic performance.

I’m excited about this site and what it can do to help inform athletes about alternative solutions for taking care of themselves. Jason is all about prevention and wellness, rather than medicating symptoms with drugs that really don’t heal or treat the original cause. Jason is BRILLIANT in sports medicine and has become a good buddy of mine. I trust him a ton.

Check out the site at: www.naturalathleteclinic.com

The Question and Answer section: www.naturalathleteclinic.com/q-and-a

Dig around and learn a little,

Andy B
outsideallday.com

I realize this is a few months old, but I just found it.

2 men, Jason Lester and Rich Roll completed in a challenge unlike anything I’ve ever heard of.

5 islands, 5 full Ironman’s in 5 days. Insanity! It sounds like Jason Lester completed all 5 in under 75 hours, wow!

More info on the Epic5 Challenge at:
http://epic5.com/

Read an article about their accomplishment at:
http://triathlon.competitor.com/2010/05/news/epic5-concludes-on-kona_9559

Congrats to both men but no thanks!

Andy B
outsideallday.com

2010 highlights include…

Julie’s first Half Iroman
Julie’s first Marathon
Carter learning to swim and scuba dive
Carter learning to ski in Winter Park
Highlights of the Leadville Trail Marathon and the Steamboat 50
Lot’s of cyclocross for me
Getting destroyed at Emergent Fitness week in and week out
Family adventures in Fort Collins
Sheek racing at the USGP

Fun stuff!

Andy B
outsideallday.com

Just discovered a new triathlon magazine called LAVA. It’s created by the folks at Ironman.

It’s a high end magazine with beautiful photography and first class editorial. I’ve really enjoyed both of the issue’s that I’ve read.

Why LAVA?

This new magazine was named after the chain of volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean where the first Ironman race took place. Since that inaugural race more than three decades ago, people from all over the world have descended upon Hawaii’s Kailua-Kona every year to watch the ultimate athletic feat unfold.

LAVA magazine invites you to join our journey into the fiery center of triathlon. On our pages, hot new gear, training and nutrition advice, inspiring stories, and the latest news in the sport await.

Get Serious. Get LAVA…Serious Triathlon.

More info at: http://lavamagazine.com

Happy reading!

Andy B
outsideallday.com

Growing up among the 1,341 people in Taylorsville, Miss., Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell probably didn’t encounter the best coaches or the greatest competition. Which probably helped him reach the NFL. Studies show that small towns are better breeding grounds for athletes than cities, and sports psychologists are using these data to question our ideas about talent development.

Only one-in-four Americans come from towns of fewer than 50,000 people, but nearly half of NFL players and PGA golfers do, according to two recent studies. The small-town figures for golf and baseball are just under 40%. The studies use 1980 Census figures because they most closely represented the birth year of pro athletes.

A co-author of the studies, Queen’s University’s Jean Côté, attributed the small-town overrepresentation to a number of factors. These include the accessibility of sports role models in little towns, the cultural values placed on sport (think “Hoosiers”), and even the “big fish little pond” effect, which can be a positive reinforcer for young athletes. Dr. Côté also argues that, despite the prevailing notion that kids need to specialize early and immerse themselves in 10,000 hours of repetitive training, small-town athletes excel precisely because they spend more time playing outside of schools and leagues.

“In bigger cities, youth sport is overorganized and overcoached,” Dr. Côté says.

Dr. Côté admits that potential superstars eventually have to move to get superior training, but specialization before age 13 or 14 is more likely to produce a tired-out teen than a Tiger Woods, he says.

Then there’s what might be called the boredom factor. As Jason Campbell once said, in Taylorsville, “you have nothing else to do but sit outside and throw a football at trees.
—Austin Kelley, WSJ.com

Our boy over at VeloDramatic has posted his cycling tab. Yep. The money he has dropped on cycling in the past few years. Lads, check this out then have a sit down with your wife. Your gear needs an update. And no more pearl izumi. Time to grab some rapha, panache or assos.

From VeloDramatic. “No excuses, no apologies. It is what it is. There’s no denying I’ve spent a lot on cycling in the past few years (some of it is my wife’s gear) but I’ve got more enjoyment and payback out of this passion than can be accounted for in mere dollars and cents. There have been one or two purchases that didn’t work out, but almost everything in the closet has its place in the starting rotation, and all the bikes get ridden.

I doubt publishing the Tab will help any of you persuade your spouse your own gear habit is healthy, that’s a line of reasoning that never seems to work. It may point you in the direction of some good kit that you’ve missed though, and it beats gambling and drinking. And if it strikes you as lunacy, and that makes you feel good about yourself, that’s OK too. Enjoy.”

VeloDramatic.com Cycling Tab.

I get this in an email today, “PS, don’t get the Angry Birds game. It will suck your life away.”

So, I am beginning to see a trend. A friend gets an iPhone and they disappear.

Surf sessions are missed because they stay up late uploading apps. They spend hours playing ‘angry birds.’ At a dinner party with cool music they keep on yelling out the band, song and album name because they are obsessed with ‘shazam.’ I get it. Technology has captured us. And I kind of dig it.

Think of it this way. The next time you paddle out at trestles it might be empty. Because everyone is playing with their iPad. You are out for a trail run and the single track is in great shape because no one biked it during the rain tearing it apart. They weren’t biking in the rain because they were playing with their new apple product.

What do you think?

Last mental picture, you train for months to prepare for a half-marathon. On race day you find yourself passing dozens of people on a small climb. As you pass them you look over and see that everyone is playing with their iPhone. They didn’t do the training because they were playing with their iPhone4 32G. So now they are hunting for a song to pump them up and get them over the hill.

Tell your friends about the new phone and then join a club to keep yourself motivated so you can beat said friend at the next 10K.

A few months back I’d gotten to the point where the training runs I was going on were getting longer and I was needing to carry something to hydrate. Also, summer in Fort Collins has been hot, we’ve had a string of weeks with days in the mid 90s. After a stop into the Runner’s Roost I picked up the Nathan Handheld below. This bottle is perfect. I can hold 2 GUs and drop in my Motor Tabs. It works great for 1 – 8 mile runs.

Nathan Quickdraw Plus Handheld Bottle

From there, the training runs have gotten longer and I needed to begin carrying more water, food, and misc type items like band aids, jacket, duct tape, toilet paper, Friction Freedom packets, etc. Runner’s Roost had the hydration pack below and I’ve fallen in love with it.

Nathan HPL 020 Race Hydration Vest – 70 oz.

It’s light weight, has easily accessible storage, holds TONS of water and is overall very comfortable. I wore it during the Leadville Trail Marathon and had a solid experience.

The handheld and backpack combo is money, I use Motor Tabs in the bottle and water in the pack. This blend of electrolyte and water is right on.

It would also be a great pack for hikes or long treks…

Andy B
outsideallday.com