September 14, 2008
After forcing myself out of bed at 3 AM this morning, I finally got motivated and drove to Malibu to help out at the Nautica Malibu Triathlon. So much for getting a head start. By the time I got there, I was able to park in the second parking lot, about a mile or so walk to the event. So much for getting up early!
This was the third year attending this event, and I must say the biggest crowd I have seen both as participants as well as people watching the event. This year, I was there to help out at the Giant event tent. Russ, Kathryn, Jon and Christopher were all there from Giant and surprised to see me there so early (or at all for that matter). I enjoy doing these events as you never know who you will run into. Because of Agoura Cycles close proximity to Malibu, plenty of customer's and friends were there and I was happy to see them and cheer them on.
We spent most of the early morning pumping tires and changing flats,,, until this girl came to the booth carrying what looked like a bike frame, wheels, a gear bag, and tears just flowing from her eyes and sobbing uncontrollably. She flew to the event from Boulder and forgot her wheel skewers, and her seatpost clamp was stripped. What a way to start a race!
Between Jon Mesko and I, we scrounged up two wheel skewers from another vendor. The seatpost clamp was another story. That's not something you have extras of, as there are so many sizes for different brands of bikes. Unfortunately, we did not have one for her, so we first tried fixing hers without any luck (We are about 20 minutes from race start, and she is still crying non stop). The clamp was completely stripped and we tried tape, but it did not hold. Jon finally came up with the idea of using one off of a Giant display bike which was too big. So, we took out the "staple of race events", duct tape, and proceeded to tape the frame so it would hold the clamp. after a few tries, we got it to hold. So we gather her stuff up, carry her bike and transition items to the transition area which had closed to everyone 5 minutes prior, but we talked our way into the area and was able to get her to her place where she needed to be. We set her up, she put her wetsuit on, and we finished the final touches to her bike. We were glad that we were able to get her back on track as it would have been a shame to come all this way and not to do the event.
Giant's booth was probably in the best possible spot you could ask for. We were situated at the finish line for the run, the final leg of the event. So we had the best viewing spot for the finish. Nine time Ironman Champion Chris McCormack finished over 2 minutes faster than the next runner to win this year's event. With him, were several thousand people following him to finish the race. The emotions from the participants is what makes me glad that I could be there to see the looks on their faces as they cross the finish line. Some do it effortlessly, and others are completely "spent" when they cross the finish line. But each one, no matter how old or young, male or female expresses the same look of complete satisfaction when they cross that line, no matter how long it takes.
There were celebrities also in the event as always. Felicity Huffman and her husband Willam H. Macy, Matthew McConaughey, Anna Kournikova , John Cryer, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Jennifer Lopez to name a few. Jennifer Lopez's husband, Marc Anthony hung out in the Giant booth for about 45 minutes waiting for his wife to finish. He was extremely approachable, and friendly to all that talked to him. He was gracious during the time there and refused no one for an autograph or picture.
Agoura Cycles was lucky to be partially involved in the event (3 steps removed!) We were referred to anyone flying in with a bike, to have them ship the bike to our store. We unpack and get it ready, then break it down and ship it back to the rider when they return home. One person whom asked us to do this was Lucy Danziger, the Editor and Chief of Self Magazine, out of New York. She was reasponsible for getting Jennifer Lopez to do the event. Jennifer raised $127,000 for Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and was the single largest fundraiser for this very worthy cause. (All proceeds raised for the event went to the Childrens Hospital, which was pegged at over $800,000 this year) Lucy was on a very tight schedule, so she asked me to bring her travel case to the race so she could pack it and take it with her to the airport. Had I not agreed to do this, I may have slept in today!). I saw Lucy finish the race and later she asked me to take the bike back to the shop and ship it for her, which I was happy to do. You see, I had an ulterior motive to take the bike back to the shop. I did not want to walk back to my truck, so when she asked me to kindly ship it for her, I was more than happy to accommodate her as I now had a ride back to the truck over a mile away.
We stayed to the last runners came in, one who was an 85 year old gentleman who has been doing this for a very long time. He said that triathlons and running has keep him alive and healthy. He received a big cheer from the crowd, along with everyone who did the event.
My observations: Michael Epstein (MESP) puts on a first class event and his core employees did one hell of a great job. Matt and Desiree who I know make it look so easy, but I know they have been preparing for the event months ago, and I am confident they have had little sleep these past few days. If you have any thoughts of doing a tri, let it be Malibu as your first one next year. If you are afraid or can't do all of the legs (run, bike, swim), consider doing a team relay with some of your friends or work colleagues. Medical issues prohibit me from running any longer, and I have no body fat, so unless the Pacific Ocean is 88 degrees, you can count me out of the swim. But maybe, I would consider doing the bike segment of the race next year. Just because I own a shop, it doesn't make me a good rider. I struggle up the hills just like most of you. But I would consider doing it if it means that I can raise money for a worthy cause like the Children's Hospital. Amgen Tri, another great group of men and women do this event every year as a team, and I heard they raised about $60,000. It's a great way to give back to your community and have a great time and meet some wonderful people among the way.
Oh, I forgot to tell you, the girl who had all of the problems at the Giant booth, she stopped by after the race and thanked us and returned the seat collar. She also told us she thought she finished first in her age group (She missed her start time and started with the next wave, lost her goggles before the race, and still composed herself to finish and have a great time.) We never got her name, or at least I didn't. Too bad, she was pretty darn cute!
Joel
After forcing myself out of bed at 3 AM this morning, I finally got motivated and drove to Malibu to help out at the Nautica Malibu Triathlon. So much for getting a head start. By the time I got there, I was able to park in the second parking lot, about a mile or so walk to the event. So much for getting up early!
This was the third year attending this event, and I must say the biggest crowd I have seen both as participants as well as people watching the event. This year, I was there to help out at the Giant event tent. Russ, Kathryn, Jon and Christopher were all there from Giant and surprised to see me there so early (or at all for that matter). I enjoy doing these events as you never know who you will run into. Because of Agoura Cycles close proximity to Malibu, plenty of customer's and friends were there and I was happy to see them and cheer them on.
We spent most of the early morning pumping tires and changing flats,,, until this girl came to the booth carrying what looked like a bike frame, wheels, a gear bag, and tears just flowing from her eyes and sobbing uncontrollably. She flew to the event from Boulder and forgot her wheel skewers, and her seatpost clamp was stripped. What a way to start a race!
Between Jon Mesko and I, we scrounged up two wheel skewers from another vendor. The seatpost clamp was another story. That's not something you have extras of, as there are so many sizes for different brands of bikes. Unfortunately, we did not have one for her, so we first tried fixing hers without any luck (We are about 20 minutes from race start, and she is still crying non stop). The clamp was completely stripped and we tried tape, but it did not hold. Jon finally came up with the idea of using one off of a Giant display bike which was too big. So, we took out the "staple of race events", duct tape, and proceeded to tape the frame so it would hold the clamp. after a few tries, we got it to hold. So we gather her stuff up, carry her bike and transition items to the transition area which had closed to everyone 5 minutes prior, but we talked our way into the area and was able to get her to her place where she needed to be. We set her up, she put her wetsuit on, and we finished the final touches to her bike. We were glad that we were able to get her back on track as it would have been a shame to come all this way and not to do the event.
Giant's booth was probably in the best possible spot you could ask for. We were situated at the finish line for the run, the final leg of the event. So we had the best viewing spot for the finish. Nine time Ironman Champion Chris McCormack finished over 2 minutes faster than the next runner to win this year's event. With him, were several thousand people following him to finish the race. The emotions from the participants is what makes me glad that I could be there to see the looks on their faces as they cross the finish line. Some do it effortlessly, and others are completely "spent" when they cross the finish line. But each one, no matter how old or young, male or female expresses the same look of complete satisfaction when they cross that line, no matter how long it takes.
There were celebrities also in the event as always. Felicity Huffman and her husband Willam H. Macy, Matthew McConaughey, Anna Kournikova , John Cryer, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Jennifer Lopez to name a few. Jennifer Lopez's husband, Marc Anthony hung out in the Giant booth for about 45 minutes waiting for his wife to finish. He was extremely approachable, and friendly to all that talked to him. He was gracious during the time there and refused no one for an autograph or picture.
Agoura Cycles was lucky to be partially involved in the event (3 steps removed!) We were referred to anyone flying in with a bike, to have them ship the bike to our store. We unpack and get it ready, then break it down and ship it back to the rider when they return home. One person whom asked us to do this was Lucy Danziger, the Editor and Chief of Self Magazine, out of New York. She was reasponsible for getting Jennifer Lopez to do the event. Jennifer raised $127,000 for Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and was the single largest fundraiser for this very worthy cause. (All proceeds raised for the event went to the Childrens Hospital, which was pegged at over $800,000 this year) Lucy was on a very tight schedule, so she asked me to bring her travel case to the race so she could pack it and take it with her to the airport. Had I not agreed to do this, I may have slept in today!). I saw Lucy finish the race and later she asked me to take the bike back to the shop and ship it for her, which I was happy to do. You see, I had an ulterior motive to take the bike back to the shop. I did not want to walk back to my truck, so when she asked me to kindly ship it for her, I was more than happy to accommodate her as I now had a ride back to the truck over a mile away.
We stayed to the last runners came in, one who was an 85 year old gentleman who has been doing this for a very long time. He said that triathlons and running has keep him alive and healthy. He received a big cheer from the crowd, along with everyone who did the event.
My observations: Michael Epstein (MESP) puts on a first class event and his core employees did one hell of a great job. Matt and Desiree who I know make it look so easy, but I know they have been preparing for the event months ago, and I am confident they have had little sleep these past few days. If you have any thoughts of doing a tri, let it be Malibu as your first one next year. If you are afraid or can't do all of the legs (run, bike, swim), consider doing a team relay with some of your friends or work colleagues. Medical issues prohibit me from running any longer, and I have no body fat, so unless the Pacific Ocean is 88 degrees, you can count me out of the swim. But maybe, I would consider doing the bike segment of the race next year. Just because I own a shop, it doesn't make me a good rider. I struggle up the hills just like most of you. But I would consider doing it if it means that I can raise money for a worthy cause like the Children's Hospital. Amgen Tri, another great group of men and women do this event every year as a team, and I heard they raised about $60,000. It's a great way to give back to your community and have a great time and meet some wonderful people among the way.
Oh, I forgot to tell you, the girl who had all of the problems at the Giant booth, she stopped by after the race and thanked us and returned the seat collar. She also told us she thought she finished first in her age group (She missed her start time and started with the next wave, lost her goggles before the race, and still composed herself to finish and have a great time.) We never got her name, or at least I didn't. Too bad, she was pretty darn cute!
Joel
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