Active Endurance Sports

Endurance Weekly: 5/5

Active Toby — Thu, 08 May 2008 17:46:25 GMT

The latest comic from Frazz creator and noted triathlete Jef Mallett:

Check out this roster of 15 green sports stars

Active Expert, Bruce Hildenbrand previews the Giro d'Italia that starts Saturday

Even with the torch atop Everest, Olympics are clouded
Climbing Everest because it's there is inspiring. Climbing Everest because it's in Tibet is not nearly so heartwarming, particularly to an international audience that is still trying to sort through the ethics of getting enthusiastic about August's Beijing Olympics. Read full story

Make doping a crime, says Lewis
Olympic legend Carl Lewis has called on governments around the world to make the use of banned substances in sport a criminal offense. Read full story

Shave valuable time in you bike-to-run triathlon transitions by installing a quick-lace system:

Active Endurance Weekly

Active Toby — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 23:56:09 GMT

Active Endurance Weekly: 4/7

Ryan Hall is back in London for the London Marathon on April 13, check out the racing news at Runner's World, where Hall says I don't think I've ever been this fit in my life" and listen to a podcast with Hall over at TFS.

There have been 19 world records set in the sport of swimming and 18 of them using one suit - the Speedo LZR Racer since its debut in February, 2008. Swimsuit manufacturer/competitor, Arena, is pushing the governing body of the sport, FINA, to ban the Speedo suit on the grounds that it is illegal. The swimsuit debate continues.

It looks like Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. will be the official outfitter for the U.S. team at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Here is the article in the Wall Street Journal.

Have you heard the latest craze over the detoxifying magic of apple cider vinegar?
Check out this and the 10 Outrageous Diet Scams at Mark Sission's Daily Apple.

Set your TiVo tonight because the Ironman World Championship 70.3 will air on NBC April 12.

Active Endurance Weekly: 3/17

Active Toby — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 21:21:56 GMT

Cycle safety campaign in London:

Velonews posted the column, Questions about the Cupertino crash..., written By Bob Mionske, that asks some important questions about media bias and cyclist safety resulting from the fatal accident in SF last week.

How would you like to be able to run any race in 4 weeks? Active Expert Matt Fitzgerald gives us the skinny on nonlinear periodization.

Our own Active Expert, Joe Decker gets interviewed by Endurance Planet about taking on Barklay 100, arguably the world's toughest 100 mile race. Listen to the interview

While we're on the topic of impossibly difficult events, check out this video from Pittsfield Peaks Ultra Challenge - Death Division

You can expect barbed wire, mud boggin, wood choppin, tunnels, deep water diving, running, crawling, crying, screaming, and sweating. Doubtful you'll finish but be proud of yourself for trying. www.peakraces.com for more info.

Do you dream of toeing the line in Hopkinton? Check out this discussion of the fastest marathon courses. You just might get the extra edge to qualify for next year's Boston Marathon!

Active Endurance Weekly: 3/3/08

Active Toby — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 18:33:26 GMT

TCSD (Triathlon Club San Diego) released a preview of their 2008 race apparel:

For those of you coming down from your weekend runner’s high, check out this article posted by Active Expert Charles Stuart Platkin, where researchers have finally demonstrated the existence of an 'endorphin driven runner's high'.

Do you get enough sleep? Check out this study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggesting that Americans aren’t getting their Zzzz’s.

Did your favorite marathon make the list? Check out the Guide to Some of the Best Marathons in North America and let us know.

"You can't keep those women down, you can't get them back in the kitchen." Read the full story to find out which major marathon event director has his foot in his mouth.

Listen to this podcast from Endurance Planet, where USAT Coach Troy Jacobson answers a question about strength training for the marathon, finishing strong in a 70.3, and full Iron-distance event.

And last and certainly not least, ActiveX: ARMaggedon

Sport-wide Standards: The endless cycle

Active Toby — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 20:24:48 GMT

http://active.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2007/06/14/law.jpgIn response to , with Barry Bonds approaching the Major League Baseball home run record at a steady pace, the uncomfortable discussion of his hall-of-fame worthiness continues to underscore the priorities of American professional sports.

European bicycle racing has been the target of major doping scandals, investigations and confessions for decades. The endless cycle of use, detection and deception has recently injected its presence into professional baseball and steroid testing is now prevalent throughout the league. The slippery slope includes widespread use of human growth hormone (HGH) because there is not a test designed or administered to target the use of HGH. Now a urine test is in the developmental stages and thus the cycle continues.

The consequence for doping in the sport of professional cycling can cost an athlete his records, sponsorship and career while Major League Baseball players pay fines and serve multi-game suspensions. Even under the most aggressive circumstances, athletes in our society are encouraged to risk it all when the reward of sports success outweighs the punishment and stigma associated with the use performance enhancing drugs.

Whether Bonds enters the history books accompanied by an asterisk, or not, the origin of this subject remains the relationship of sport to our society. The complex web of commerce, media and politics will always dictate what the consumer deems moral or not. Fans will continue to buy tickets and tune in across the country to watch these modern-day super heroes “go yard.”

(Photo courtesy of Gettyimages / Stockbytes)

Metal vs. Wood: Consistency needed

Active Toby — Thu, 17 May 2007 13:06:00 GMT

http://active.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2007/05/15/woodbat.jpgIn response to , the New York City Council banned metal bats in high school baseball because of a belief that such bats increase the risk of injury. The decision to change the rules for one geographical location has potential repercussions that may provide an unfair advantage to athletes elsewhere who aren’t forced to use wooden bats. It is paramount that consistency is restored throughout the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFSH) in order to preserve the integrity of the sport.

In the endurance-sports world, competitors abide by the many rules and regulations set forth and enforced by larger governing bodies. The International Cycling Union (UCI), which sets industry standards governing the rules for competitive cycling, enforces a rule relevant to the metal-versus-wooden bat debate. The UCI does not have rules for which materials may be used for bicycles because there is minimum mass limit of no less than 6.8 kg (~15 lbs). With a baseline rule established for weight, a rider with greater financial resources will not have a significant advantage over a rider with inferior sponsorship. Thus the focus shifts to the individual rider’s level of fitness, skill and team strategy.

In baseball, the NFSH has an equivalent role to the UCI. And similar to bikes, bats have design restrictions too. In high school baseball in the United States, the bat is not allowed to be more than 2 5/8 inches in diameter and 42 inches in length. The difference between inches of length and ounces of weight must be no greater than 3. An example of this is that a 34-inch bat must weigh at least 31 ounces.

With these restrictions in place, there is predictability in performance allowing athletes to showcase their skills on a level playing field. Thus, the high school athlete that has what it takes will stand out to scouts and be recruited to play at the college level. It has already been determined, by the recent court ruling, that metal and composite bats produce faster, harder and longer hits than wooden bats. If New York or only a few places ban metal bats, then these players will be at a disadvantage. The resulting discrepancy in performance across the nation will skew statistics and the integrity of the sport will be diminished. There must be a uniform ruling -- if this is going to happen in New York, it must also hold true for all of high school baseball.