Mini rant: I'm kinda tired of reading articles by those who are "amazed" about older athletes who are competing mano a mano with the younger folks.

In this writer's experience as a long-time marathon runner and Ironman, runners and triathletes who look for the quick fix and instant success don't get what they are looking for.

What part of triathlon do you like the most and why? The best parts are the rising anxiety on the beach, pushing the bike and passing people, and finding legs during the run. Picking one: the bike.

We were in adjacent lanes, swimming 4 x 50 free, toward the end of Masters, when I already had nearly 3000 yards in.

This morning in masters our coach/fellow swimmer Steve (he swam at Notre Dame - too fast for the rest of us!), had us swim the following "12 Days of Christmas" workout.

Competitive? Who, me? Wanna bet...?)

How much faster, if at all, does a wetsuit make your swim?

A friend who is a talented athlete but a new swimmer and triathlete asked for my thoughts on how to have a decent tri swim as a newbie.  Here's what I offered..

This was my fourth Steelhead Half Ironman Triathlon, which last year became a Ford Ironman 70.3 qualifier and therefore a big deal. My time of about 5:31 last year was similar to the prior year, but my finish spot went from second to fourth in the age group.

After being tired of not having riding partners during weekday early mornings, I started The Wednesday Ride three years ago. We are a small but mighty group of mainly triathletes and now get together to ride most weekends, as well.

Good times:  Running decent miles despite my sore back.  Running in Sedona in the hills (too short!) and in Rio Verde northeast of Phoenix in gorgeous early morning weather.

So how much time do you have for training in a week?

My red Cervelo P3 is wonderful. I bought the bike because it is "just right" for me: stiff aluminum, 650 geometry, light and very fast, top quality Dura-Ace and other components.

my White, managing editor of Inside Triathlon, whom I have known for some time, just asked me to consider writing for the magazine, starting with a shot at the back page "Fourth Leg" column. She suggests I might write about "how it was." So how was it 15 years ago in tri?

The water was nine feet below our feet. I was flanked on either side by a line of fellow first-wave wet-suit clad triathletes, all of us perched on the north edge of the long pier jutting out into Lake Michigan. Water surged below us. I thought of the famous movie dialogue, when a pair of guys are trapped and cornered by a posse on a ledge at the edge of a steep rock canyon with nowhere else to go. They overlook raging rapids fifty feet below and are faced with a choice between a hopeless shoot-out and a near-suicidal leap.

I went to Missouri looking for hills. I found them.

The race materials had said previous winners would be in the elite wave. Well, I had placed 4th two years ago and second last year. Did that make me a “previous winner”? Turns out it did. I asked the woman running registration. She checked my number, my cap color (blue) and a list. “Yes, you are in the elite wave.” Gulp. Revise self image! Elite wave! If only the guys in high school guy class could witness this!

If I could have run somewhere nearer my capabilities (~4 hours versus 5:05), Kona would have been mine.

As a former writer/journalist, I am drawn to words to describe big events, impending or past. Right now Ironman Canada is the biggest event looming in my life. Thus, I took pen in hand (OK, put fingers on keyboard) in an effort to capture what we will be experiencing at month’s end.

The finish was incredible, even more so than last year. Many thousands of cheering spectators lined the course and, especially, the last three miles or so. Wow! What a rush to be an Ironman once more. I ran into the final section hands above my head cheering, high-fiving, and then did a leap through the tape.