Couple things

Been some really exciting things going on recently. First there were six MTC athletes competing in Half Ironman races over the weekend:
Redman Triathlon in Oklahoma -

1. Rachel Kraenow finished her first ever Half in 6:14 - "not bad for a short course athlete"
2. Heather Hull set a 5 min swim PR and "officially" finished her first Half (after missing out by 2 miles at KS 70.3) in 6:12. No rest for Holly, KC Marathon is right around the corner.
3. Trish O'Donnell also had her first "official" finish, going 6:50. Next up is the Chicago Marathon!
4. Finally Tim O'Donnell capped off a great season by setting a 25 minute Half Iron PR, going 5:07. Nothing for Tim until 2009.

Matt Johnson and his new bride Deva Featherston travelled to Cancun 70.3. Deva successfully finished her first Half to wrap up her first season as a triathlete (she couldn't swim 100 straight when we started back in January!)

The other thing going on that I really fired up about is the new "Kansas City Triathlon". I am part of the Race Committee planning on a quality Olympic (1.5k - 40k - 10k) and Half Olympic (750m - 20k - 5k). Save the date - May 31, 2009. Tentative routes are:

Bike Course (clockwise - 2 loops for the Olympic)

Run Course (counter clockwise - 2 loops for the Olympic)

The goal for this race is to bring the best quality Olympic distance event the Kansas City area has seen since USAT Nationals were up in Smithville. Many more details to come.

Ironman Update

In the last two years of coaching I have come to realize that helping someone else accomplish their Ironman dreams/goals is almost as rewarding as accomplishing my own.

It is quite a thrill for me to speak with an Iron Virgin many months before their race and then slowly, as the season goes on, watch them progress as an athlete. I consider it quite an honor to be a part of these peoples' journeys. In many cases my athletes are total strangers when we first meet but as the season goes on I begin to know them very well - what is going on with their families, when they are sick, when they struggling at work etc.

I get to watch as they go through breakthrough workouts and training races that leave them feeling exhilarated and others that shake their confidence and belief that they will ever be ready to accomplish the goal they have set for themselves. I get to talk them down from the "ledge" as their race grows near and they start to wonder if they have done enough of the right things. I also get to speak with them after they have finally been able to cross the finish line and hear Mike Reilly scream out their name and proclaim they "are an Ironman!"

These last two weeks have seen some great Ironman performances and I wanted to recognize and thank the following people for letting me be part of their Ironman experience, I am very proud of each and every one of you!



IM Louisville - SWIM / BIKE / RUN / OVERALL / DIV.POS.

Maggie Bradley - 1:27:02 / 6:18:37 / 4:24:18 / 12:23:06 / 15 of 86

Tim O'Donnell - 1:17:52 / 5:57:23 / 5:20:31 / 12:45:14 / 91 of 260

Troy Oliver - 1:16:15 / 5:48:03 / 5:30:18 / 12:46:31 / 116 of 342


IM Wisconsin - SWIM / BIKE / RUN / OVERALL / DIV.POS.

Rian Sanders - 1:19:45 / 7:41:35 / 5:02:42 / 14:33:03 / 291 of 382

Preston Williams - 1:08:12 / 6:02:12 / 4:28:27 / 11:54:54 / 31 of 82

I would also like to recognize Aimee Warnke from Rolla, MO. She is a very special athlete who, at age 18 travelled all the way to Almere, Holland to represent the United States at the ITU Long Course World Championships. Despite a second degree concussion suffered during the swim, she finished the event's 2.5 mile swim, 70 mile ride and 18 mile run in 9:24:12. Aimee was the only girl racing in her age group which says a lot about this young lady's focus and determination at such a young age; I expect Aimee is going to have a great triathlon career ahead of her!