Story time!

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2004

Post long run ice bath- Sparks Lake- Bend, OR

Bend, Oregon, USA, 30 August 2004

4 Years is a short time… (from one Olympics to the next)

Exactly 4 years ago I was getting ready for the first ever Olympic Triathlon in Sydney, Australia.

That summer was my first stay in the USA, and I chose Colorado Springs as a training base, due to the good weather and high altitude. (It was mid winter in South Africa- my home country)

Here I am, again in the USA, again getting ready for the Games. If I think back over the last 4 years, it seems like time has flashed by like the shutter of a camera. But yet so much has changed: I have been racing almost exclusively in the US, discovered Xterra, (off road triathlon) made many great friends and was fortunate to sign exciting sponsors*- plus the privilege to use some of the best equipment man can buy. (Sometimes even before man can buy the equipment!)

In the last 4 years I have had many ups and very few downs.

Some of the ups:
-2 Xterra World titles
-3 USA Xterra Series titles
-8 race winning streak- Xterra
-A win in Chicago- the biggest triathlon in the world. (8000 competitors)
-A second in Los Angeles in 01-one of the “hottest” fields in non drafting races ever
-3 consecutive wins and a course record at Boulder Peak triathlon
-2 All African and one South African title
-Meeting and racing Ned Overend
-Riding the Specialized Epic mountainbike
-Riding one of Lances’ “back up” HED disk wheels. (Not autographed)
-Discovering Bend, Oregon
-Meeting, racing and being managed by Steve Larsen
-Representing South Africa at two Olympic Games.

Downs:
-5 Flat tires and a crash while underway to a 3rd Xterra World title
-Throwing away Life Time Fitness ($250k for winner!) and Xterra Central Champs by racing then on consecutive days
-Broke my hand surfing (!?)
-Dislocated my rib at the physiotherapist (!?)
-Developing a Ben & Jerry’s addiction while in the US

I’m currently based out of Bend, Oregon, famous for its small town, sporty atmosphere, nice, down to earth people, good weather, good altitude, and good trails. And good fly fishing.

The training is great- there are daily cycling groups to choose from, some hotly contested with Steve Larsen, Chris Horner, Chris McCormack, Kerry Classen, Bryan Rhodes and hopefully Craig Walton again. (Waldo went AWOL for a few weeks)

There is so much single track out there I still get lost. We often do trail runs with Macca and Rhodesy, talking rubbish all the way, and I sometimes ride the trails with Steve- but then there is no breath for talking- we just hammer!

I’m excited to have singed Steve as my agent, he is really good at business and sport- I’m confident that together, we can deliver a good, exciting and professional package.

My major races for this year are the Athens Olympics and Xterra Worlds. The hilly Athens bike course fits me like a glove. I will again ride aggressively like at the Sydney Olympics, hoping to build a good lead off the bike again, and NOT get run down again- like in Sydney.

“Losing” my 3rd Xterra World title with a mechanical has been one of the biggest disappointments of my career. I am counting the days to 24 October.
Redemption…

*Special thanks to: Specialized, Saucony, Clif Bar, Oakley, HED wheels, Ironman Wetsuits, Rockshox and SRAM

Look forward to regular post race reports and a regularly updated www.conradstoltz.com

In future editions:
-Meet the coach with the plan: Jan Bekker; coach, friend, training partner, fly fishing buddy and house mate.
-Sneak peak of the Black Mamba* in my garage. The not yet for sale Specialized Transition TT bike. *Black Mamba- One of South Africa’s deadliest and most common snakes.
-Upcoming races: Boulder Peak Triathlon- August 8, Xterra East Champs Big Bear, 15 August.

Thanks for your interest and support
Regards,
Conrad
What happened in Athens.

After losing some time in the swim again, (about a minute to the main
pack) I got on the bike and put my head down. THAT hill was REALLY steep, I
climbed it in my 36x 27, (standing, wrestling the bars) once at the top we had already caught 3 riders who dropped off the pack just ahead. Unfortunately they were already blown and couldn’t even help pull on the flats. At the end of the 1st lap (of 5) I was surprised that we had already gained 36 seconds on the lead group. I found my hammering legs and flew up the first part of the steep hill in the big blade. As I shifted to the small blade to tackle the main climb, my chain dropped. I was in a corner and was pouring the pressure on the pedals as the chain dropped. 180 pounds and 500+ watts on the pedals suddenly got transferred to the nose of saddle. I felt the chain drop, heard a big
crunch and the saddle give way under me all in the same instant. I stopped to put the chain back on, jumped on the bike and rode up the hill standing, feeling the loose saddle rattle in its bracket. There was a wheel stop about 500m up the road. I frantically asked for an Allan key, and was met with blank stares; they only had spare wheels, no tools.

I thought of continuing the race standing up, but the saddle was all over the place, threatening to fall off the mounting, leaving a dangerous seat post that would make an already challenging bike course not worth the risk taking.

Even in my wildest dreams I never considered not finishing. I was crushed.

The race rolled by, I was a spectator. I didn’t even get to run in my one of a kind green and gold Sauconys. We won’t know what I could have done on the bike leg…

The only consolation is I have the rest of the season to look forward to: Xterra South Africa coming week end (4 Sept) and LA tri the weekend thereafter (12 Sept). Will keep you posted.

Watching the men’s Mountainbike race two days later, I was surprised at how big the guys’ are- built a lot like me, and I couldn’t help flirting with the idea of racing in the 2008 Beijing Mountainbike event. At the closing ceremony, as I stood amongst the fireworks, booming music and thousands of beaming athletes, spectators and volunteers, a new dream was born- another Olympics, another discipline…

Keep it in the big ring.
Conrad

Greg Bennett (4th in Athens) and Simon Whitfield (1st in Sydney) at the closing ceremony.

Xterra USA Champs- Lake Tahoe

When: The night before the race.
Where: Hyatt, Lake Tahoe.
Who: Steve Larsen and myself.
What: Watching TV.
Which show? 2003 Xterra USA Champs, Lake Tahoe.

The year old images on TV brought back strong memories of last years’ epic battle. Steve Larsen, Mountain bike legend, Ironman champion and kicker of my ass at our previous meeting (Xterra Keystone 2003) was tearing up the bike course, setting off alarm bells in my head. I rode as hard as I could to keep him within striking distance, throwing all caution in the wind concerning pacing, the 500ft cliffs, the trees and the rocks whizzing by. Even my “if all else fails, I’ll catch him on the technical down hill” theory got blown out the window. I started the run 90seconds down- a tall order, even on a good day. The dueling on the bike was so fierce; we dropped the rest of the field by more than 6 minutes.

Once in my running shoes, I took off as if it was a 5k. Hoping to gain time quickly and trick Steve into thinking it’s my 10k pace. The pain was immense, the atmosphere was heavy with suspense, and the crowd went nuts. TV loved every second of it. The race for USA Champion was really close, and until the final moments nobody knew who was going to win*. Reality TV can only dream of this stuff.

Here we are, one year later, Steve, now my sports agent, and I, the athlete, sitting (very) upright in bed, (each his own, thank you) reliving last years’ epic dual. Who would have dreamt the turn of events in one year? From fierce rivals to team mates in 364 days.

For me, the 2004 edition of Xterra USA Champs was much less spectacular. My form lacking from too many months of racing (a common disorder known as Olympicqualificationiitis) and too few months of training, plus an almost comical “broken” collarbone scare**, 5 days before the race. I did what I could to work a small miracle. In order to win my 4th consecutive USA Series title, I had to win the race, and Sylvain Dodet had to place no better than 4th. I put all I had on the line- Lost a little time on the swim, a little on the bike and slipped from 3rd to 5th in the final kilometers of the run. Finishing 5th in a sport where one has had a 2 year winning streak is no fun, 3rd place in the series standings is just not good enough, but those are the realities.

I played the cards I had.

* I won.
* * Out of curiosity, I did a lap of this cyclocross race I was watching Steve and home-stay Michael race. On the football field there were two knee high barriers to negotiate, I approached them at all of 10mph, and dismounted cyclocross style to run the barriers, only problem was, the release angle on my new pedals was bigger than usual. I couldn’t get my foot out of the pedal in time and next thing earth was coming closer fast. I remember Ned’s advice- “Tuck and Roll” so I tucked and I rolled, but didn’t have enough speed to finish the roll, so I landed on my upper back and neck- bones crunching and joints popping. The crowd went wild- there were about 150 cyclocross racers and fans watching. I had broken a collarbone before -also falling on my back- and I know what it feels like. This thing felt broken. Within 30 minutes there was a huge lump and we were off to ER. X-rays showed no break, but the doc said it’s probably dislocated, with or without torn ligaments. Perfect preparation, 5 days before one of biggest races of the year. Next morning the swelling went down and it turned out nothing was broken, nothing dislocated or torn- just a big hit. Note, it was a big hit on a grassy football field, going 10mph, in front of 150 people. Funny, earlier that same day I was going 30mph down a rock strewn mountainside, weaving between trees, jumping logs, on an a trail I’ve never seen before.

Evergreens: