Twenty Fourteen

Wow, it is 2014. I will have been out of high school for 10 years this June, out of college for 6 and out of the Corporate World for 3. It’s truly astounding how quickly life can change courses. 6 years ago I would have never placed myself where I am at right now. With that said, where I am at is fantastic! I am happy, satisfied and at the same time eager for what is ahead.

2014 is a chance for me to take it to the next level in triathlon. To race Professionally and gain the experience necessary to truly compete with the world’s best. To do so will require utmost attention to detail. The swimming, biking and running are the easy part. Getting enough sleep, enough recovery, eating right, reducing stressors, etc… is the hard part. With taking care of the details the hard work put in through training will not be able to show through. Thus, its up to me to take care of the little things.

So here’s what I’ve got planned so far for 2014:

In February I will be heading south to Clermont, FL where I will be spending the better part of a month in dedicated training mode. During this period, QT2 Systems Founder and Head Coach, Jesse Kropelnicki will be leading a focused and intense 17 day camp for all QT2 Team Professionals. This camp does not include making friendship bracelets and roasting marshmallows over the fire. It is a camp to push athletes to get the most out of themselves. A camp that will be used to lay the foundation for a massive 2014 season. It is not a camp for the weak minded. No matter how physically strong you are, if you are weak in the mind you will inevitably crumble. A theme that has been reinforced this offseason by my coach and mentor, Tim Snow. It is a theme that can be seen in all walks of life. A person can be the best professional in their chosen career, the smartest or the one who has the most credentials/best grades. Yet, if they aren’t there mentally. If they aren’t willing to give 100% at all times then they are no better than a shmuck off the street. Believe me, I’ve been on the other side, when you know you aren’t there mentally. It’s a tough thing to deal with, especially for someone like myself and COUNTLESS others like me who live by the mantra of “ALL OR NOTHING”. Mental Fitness is huge and as important as any physical gains I achieve, will be the mental ones as well. Sitting here writing this already is giving me the chills. It’s not that I am scared, it’s more of that fact that I know I will have to push myself into the uncomfortable places. The places that feel so great to be in and to have been in, but are hard to get there. Its that 6 hour ride where the first 2 feel like pure agony and the last hour is bliss. Without the pain and struggle the achievements wouldn’t feel as good.

With camp under my belt I will look to springboard that fitness into my first race as a professional. I will be traveling to Los Cabos, Mexico to compete in Ironman Los Cabos on March 30th. Racing about 4 weeks after camp will be great as it will get me away from the cold in the Northeast and get the first professional experience under my belt. From there I will take a very short break and get back at it in preparation for Ironman Texas on May 17th. Building a solid foundation this winter will be imperative towards my success in these two races. I am really looking forward to taking on this challenge as it will truly test me.

I am grateful for the support of my parents who are my number 1 fans, QT2 Systems for their coaching and guidance, Quintana Roo for their machines (bikes) that will help me ride at Turbeau-Velocity (which means “wicked fast” with a Boston accent of course), as well as their tremendous support for myself as well as all QT2 Athletes (ps, check out their twitter handle @quintanarootri for the latest piece of triathlon coolness. Hint: It has two wheels and requires pedaling to move and the picture is at the bottom of my post), Brian Hughes at Fast:Splits as he not only employs me but spends countless hours helping me make sure my equipment is ready to roll, Normatec for keeping me up to speed with the latest in Recovery Technology, Powerbar for helping to provide me with the optimal nutrition to allow me to perform at my utmost and of course my girlfriend Kaitlin who keeps me balanced and gets me through the tough patches that come along with training and racing, makes me dinner, puts up with my love of brussels sprouts and the list goes on. You should actually follow her even more carefully than me…she’s way faster!

For more information on the QT2 Systems Elite Team Sponsors click HERE. Tell them Turbeau sent you!

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