Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Locals at Oceanside 70.3

Although Icebreaker, Ghost Town, and St. George 70.3 are fast approaching, this week the Utah Tri Buzz motto of "hyping the local scene!" takes us to sunny Southern California.

 Check out the start list of locals below, along with respective clubs (as self-identified at registration).

 We do our best with these lists, but it most likely isn't 100%... let us know if we missed anyone, and good luck all!


FPRO   SKYE MOENCH!   BAM
FPRO KATHRYN THROOLIN!







M3034    Chris Hammer    BAM



M3539     Brian Blair     SUTC










Related Posts

 Be Fearless! Interview with Kyle Lewis

 The X Man: Interview with Xavier Lucio

 Kona Profiles: Interview with Tracy Campbell

 Built to Hurt! Interview with Travis Iverson

 Curls for Girls: Interview with Rory Duckworth

 Are You Mentally Tough? Interview with a Sports Psych Consultant

 Tri-ing On a Budget - Mary Day

 On Your Left!! Interview with Savage Predator JC Smoot




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Saturday, March 25, 2017

Congrats SLTC!!

A big shout out to SLTC's Ethan Fisher & Mandy Oscarson (who doubles as a Utah Tri Buzz contributor) for providing this content and congrats to the entire Salt Lake Tri Club on a job well done!!


The USA Triathlon National Club Challenge is a 3-month competition from December to February where athletes and triathlon clubs nationwide compete against each other by logging swim, bike, and run miles on the official USAT website. There are various awards throughout the competition, most importantly bragging rights as the greatest triathlon clubs in the nation.

The 2016-17 Challenge ended February 28, and the final results were just released by USAT March 23rd. USAT changed the scoring a bit this year, focusing on average weighted miles per club member, in addition to total miles within each club's Division. More than 1,500 athletes representing 101 Clubs participated this year.

Salt Lake Tri Club (SLTC) had about 70 of its 350+ club members participate this year, placing it in the Division 4 Category… here’s how they fared:


Swim session (December): 3rd among Division 4 Teams with 691 total swim miles

Bike session (January): 1st overall IN THE NATION with 513 average miles per member, and 1st among Division 4 teams with 35,389 total miles.

Run session (February): 1st overall IN THE NATION with 247 average weighted miles per member, and 2nd among Division 4 teams with 3,784.29 total run miles.

Overall: 2nd IN THE NATION with 1,505 average weighted miles per member, and 1st overall among Division 4 teams with 103,886 total miles (2nd IN THE NATION falling only to Bob Babbit's Triathlon Club of San Diego, who had way more participants).


the Top 10 among Division IV clubs

Marie Mullen and Amy Webber Stanfield finished 6th and 7th IN THE NATION with the most total miles among all female athletes. The Club also had many other athletes finish in the top 10 during the swim, bike and run individual sessions.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL PARTICIPATING CLUB MEMBERS AND CONGRATULATIONS TO SLTC ON ANOTHER BANNER YEAR!


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Thursday, March 23, 2017

Recon Mission - Salem Spring Video Preview

Time for another recon mission! This time we venture ~60 min south of SLC to scout RaceTri's Salem Spring Triathlon, taking place May 13th.

 In our Top 10 Utah Races: The People's Vote, a recurring theme from respondents was that Salem is a strong candidate for the best open water sprint tri in the state. It's great for beginners, yet with no Olympic distance race to compete against, the field is deep and competitive as well.

 This preview isn't affiliated with RaceTri, so apologies if something isn't perfect.

 Check out the course videos below, and please share with friends/family who may consider this fun early season event.




Salem Spring SWIM



Salem Spring BIKE



Salem Spring RUN





Main site: RaceTri



Related Posts

Respect the RD! Interview with RaceTri

Top 10 Utah Races: The People's Vote

Results Breakdown: Salem Spring

Recon Mission - Icebreaker Video Preview

Recon Mission - Ghost Town Video Preview





A few Salem pics from past interviews







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Monday, March 20, 2017

On Your Left!! Interview with Savage Predator JC Smoot

My introduction to JC Smoot was incredibly brief. Mile 1 of the run at Brineman... the faint pitter patter of footsteps behind me, followed by the sound of breathing on my shoulder. And then, like one of those futuristic bullet trains, he was gone...

Here we learn more about this savage predator, and what, if anything, you can do to protect yourself on race day.

Thanks for the time, JC!


What’s your athletic background and how did you get into triathlon?

I'm a relatively new triathlete. I did some sports growing up with wrestling and football with a little bit of track doing mostly sprint work. The longer distance stuff is all pretty new to me. A couple years back, I watched the finish line of the St. George IM and saw some good friends cross the finish line that I had no idea were involved with IM Triathlons. Kyle Gold, John Harward, Keshia Sawyer, Melanie Perry, Mario Castro etc etc...watching them cross the line put me over the edge with wanting to give it a try. Anyone who does this sport has my full respect! I watched the Kona IM on TV when I was 15 and it was always at the back of my mind to give it a shot...My job took me traveling all around the world and I never made it happen. 2016 was finally my year. I had to quit making excuses and get to my bucket list items.
JC exiting T2 at last year's Brineman

Is JC your given name or does it stand for something? 5 guesses just for fun: Jonathan Christopher? James Charles? Jeremy Cooper? Jebediah Constantine? Jacques Cousteau?

You have bulimia? You can read minds? -Zoolander...so close. Jacob Charles is my name actually....Apparently Jacob was a big name in 1982 and the administration thought it was a good idea to put four Jacob's in the same class in 5th grade. For my teacher's sanity, my name went to JC then and stuck ever since..Don't call me Jacob or I'll think I'm in trouble by my mom.


What were the keys to your incredibly impressive Ironman debut (Swim 1:27, Bike 5:16, Run 3:37, Overall 10:32) at IM Arizona this past November, both in terms of training and race day execution?

Haha, I appreciate the shout out. I had a few goals going into it though. Of course #1 is..Don't Drown, if goal one is met then move onto #2 with keeping the rubber side of the bike wheels on the road. If #1 and #2 were met then try and beat the sunset to the finish line and enjoy the run. (About 8 mins short from beating the sunset) It was a really cool experience and I know I can improve after my first full in all three areas. I got into a lot of liquid nutrition and I think that helped a lot with maintaining a constant level of energy without any dips. I also had some great training partners with the beast Russell Baughman and Malias Emem and John Lang. They're great people to train with. We did some good Antelope Island loops to prep. The race was incredible and I recommend IMAZ for anybody. They put on quite the show in Tempe. There's no question though as there's room for improvement on my swim...Honestly though, I was just happy not to drown. My mom would have killed me if I had..


As a relatively slower swimmer with that run of yours, you are the ultimate hunTER… (in contrast to fast, yet hunTED species such as THE DANIMAL Dan Trott). However, what are you doing to address your swim in order to catch even more prey in 2017 and beyond?

Haha, why I love the sport is the idea of always improving onself. Really some of the coolest people I know are in the sport and doing cool things in and out of the sport. (Really passionate people in all areas of their life) We've all got a couple screws loose to like to do what we're doing. This year I bought for myself at Christmas one of the swim critique lesson packages for the new facility in Sandy. Swim Labs. I haven't gotten in there yet but with 2 months to go at IM STG I need to get in there to help perfect my swim. If I can be half of the swimmer that Heath Thurston is then I'll chalk that up for money well spent. I'm excited to learn more. It's time to turn in my Tortoise swim card to a Dolphin. (I hear Dolphins have all the fun too)


On that note, for a typical non-Kona Qualifier looking for their personal best Ironman, does a slower swim even matter? In other words, based on your experience at IMAZ (where you biked and ran your way from 123rd in your AG out of the water to 35th across the finish line), would you encourage people to swim less, bike and run more?

 I'm really lucky to have the running base come fairly easy to me but I'm really new to swimming.. My strava showed me zigzagging through the entire swim course at IMAZ. I would recommend focusing on the areas that need focus as a triathlete. if you're a hobbyist racer doing a IM then work and train hard and just enjoy the ride taking it all in. If you're there to always want to improve then focus on the things that you know need improvement.. I'm really amazed by the athletes that are really rounded out in all three sports. I always play catch up after the swim and it would be nice to build that side.



What are your race plans for 2017?

 I'm doing Oceanside 70.3, St. George 70.3, Ironman Arizona again along with some of the fun local ones. East Canyon again, BrineMan again and probably hit Kokopelli and a few half marathons.. I had a great time at Spudman last year and I had three or four friends join me for their first Tri there. They're on the fence about doing St George IM this year but I'm working them down. You know who you are.... I did my first and only Marathon a year ago September and ran a sub 3 with my little sister. She didn't qualify for Boston with her time and wants to do so so I plan on doing one with her and push her to a qualifying time and qualify again myself if we can both put it together.

Last year at St. George 70.3 you went: Swim - 41 min (54th percentile), Bike - 3:06 (37%), and Run - 1:37 (8%) for a 5:35 (21%) overall. Has Arizona given you new-found confidence to obliterate last year’s time? What are your goals for this year?

 Yea, you really don't know truly what to expect until you do one. I was doing the breast stroke for quite a bit of the swim so I'm excited to see what sort of improvement I'll be making. I feel like I've come a long ways in the past year.


There’s such a delicate bike/run balance for the 70.3 distance, especially a course like SG. On a scale from 1-10, how hard would you say you pushed the bike last year, and are you thinking you’ll change strategy at all this year?

 I felt like I pushed at an 8 but I'm sure my output was more like a six with my strategy... I really got burnt out with my nutrition trying lots of different things that probably didn't work.. I feel like I've got my nutrition a lot more dialed in now. I've had to travel a lot for work this year so I'm a little behind the 8 ball catching up with workouts and it can be tough to get some runs and swims in while I'm on the road. Strategy this year will be to not push the climbs when I shouldn't. Stay steady and don't spike the heart.. last year's race was pretty rough in general with the cold rain and weather but St. George is a beast with all the hills.


You finished a very respectable 8th in the M3034 Utah Tri Buzz rankings for 2016, (behind slouches such as Chris Hammer, Andrew Hall, Nate Dressel & Brian Botts) but word on the street is you plan on wreaking havoc on the “geezers” in the M3539 AG this year. #fakenews or legit? Let’s cut to the chase here… should people buy Smoot stock in 2017?

Hahaha, well stock prices are soaring so....I'm coming for you Rory Duckworth. On your left...



What are some of your favorite local races and why?

 Brineman was great this past year. I think it was the first year but it was beautiful and fun to be on the causeway to Antelope Island. The Lake Powell Tri was my first one I ever did and I missed it this last year. The backdrop is unbeatable for that. Kokopelli I heard is great and I want to do this year as well.

Anything else you want to share?

 It's been fun to get to know the peeps from both SLTC and some of the BAM crew. I've got some great friends in both groups and they're some of my favorite people. I'm more of a hobbyist Triathlete but I'm excited to get out and push it to another level this year and keep spinning those wheels.



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Saturday, March 18, 2017

Tri-ing On a Budget: Part 1

Mary Day is a well-known member of SLTC and a special contributor to Utah Tri Buzz. Here she shares some great tips for doing this sport of ours without breaking the bank!

 Triathlon is not known as being the most affordable sport on the planet. There are lots of moving parts to every single leg of the race. The swim itself requires a cap, goggles, and swimwear. If you resemble any average triathlete you can’t get enough of swim toys either like buoys, paddles, fins, and maybe an occasional ping pong ball. Even the “cheapest” part of the sport, the run, can be pricey. We have to protect our feet, knees, hips, ankles, etc. from overuse injury. It all starts with the shoes. Let’s not even get started on the cost of the bikes (‘cause one is NEVER enough), helmets, cleats, and wheels! Then on top of all that there are the race entries.


This is one sport you don’t even have to think about spending money and you’re broke. This list has been compiled to help you tri on a budget. This is only part 1 of Tri-ing on a budget so stay tuned for more!

Race entries – We all love the feeling of competing, which is why we love doing events! Once you fall in love with triathlon you fall hard! Here are a couple ways to help with the cost of race entries.

1) Sign up early - Most races offer lower entry fees the earlier you sign up. For example, RaceTri always runs a 12 days of Christmas promotion. If you are able to plan your race year you can easily save on your entries with them.

2) Volunteer – Volunteering at races will usually earn you a free entry or a deeply discounted entry. Race directors are always looking for extra help and anyone who has ever done a race knows that volunteers basically rock our world! It needs to be noted that sometimes the free entry is for the following year. Especially with Ironman branded events.

3) Tri clubs – If you are a member of a tri club they will often have discount codes for races.

4) Enter contests! It sounds far-fetched and unlikely but it’s worth a shot!

5) Race ambassadors. Many times races will have ambassadors that will promote them. These ambassadors will often get coupon codes. Seek these people out and use the codes!


Gear – There is not a triathlete alive that does not have a list 10 miles long of things that they “need”. There is no doubt that there is no limit to the amount you could spend on gear.

Swim gear has a wide range of cost:

1) Goggles- You can get goggles from $5 to $50. The trick is to find something that will work for you and will get you through the race. One thing to try is to get cheap goggles to do every day workouts in and save the expensive goggles for longer workouts and races. This will make them last longer. A hack every triathlete should know about is the antifogging solution that you buy can easily be replaced with baby shampoo. Just wipe a little on the inside of your lenses, rinse and you are ready to go!

2) Swimwear- You can also get cheaper swimwear if you are willing to wear last year’s prints or shop the “grab bag” rack. www.swimoutlet.com is a great website for discounted swimsuits. Amazon is also a great place to go if you know the type of suit, brand, and size. That is only the tip of the iceberg, there are many more!


3) Wetsuits are also essential, especially when racing in the frozen tundra of Utah! There are usually sales at the very beginning of the season, sometimes up to half off the regular price! Again, your tri club may have a sponsorship with places like Roka and Xterra. There are also rental options but it makes more financial sense to buy one if you are serious about continuing the sport. A note should be made here to learn about how to take care of your wetsuit so that it will last longer.

4) Pool Toys – These aren’t your kids’ pool toys. No floaties here! Well kind of… You have your buoys, paddles, snorkels, fins, and more. Please note that not all of these toys are necessary. Fun, but not necessary. Many times the pool that you train at will have some of these items for your use while you are there. There is no shame in digging through the bin for your favorite kick board!

5) Pool/gym – We all need a place to train. Believe it or not a gym membership is not a must. However, a pool or large body of water is necessary. When the lakes and reservoirs are open you can put your gym membership on hold to save the membership fees for a few months.


There are lots more tips for saving on bike, run gear, and more... coming soon!
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Wednesday, March 15, 2017

The Bike Whisperer: Interview with Jeff Sherrod

Check out Jordan Sandberg's rapid fire interview with local bike fitter Jeff Sherrod... thanks for the time guys!


Tell us what you do, where you are located and how long you have been doing this.

 Jeff Sherrod, owner of Precision bike fit located in Sandy, Utah and I've been fitting for 16 years.


How did you get started in this business?

My wife! When we first met she had a lot of pain on the bike (I didn't even know that was a thing) so I started adjusting her bike. I made mistakes and learned a lot from her, it then turned into fitting friends and then fitting for a shop.

What brought you to become the “bike whisperer”?

I'm not exactly sure how to answer that? I had a client call me the bike whisperer and it kind of stuck.

How much do you ride every week?

These days it might be easier to answer how many times a month. My wife says I'm the fastest lazy person she knows. The answer a few years ago would have been every day and sometimes twice a day.

 What is the best road bike on the market for beginners vs. experienced riders?

There is not an easy way to answer that. People get sold on the "race" or more aggressive bike because they are sexy and cool but most of us average cyclists should be on more of an "endurance bike" more relaxed geometry. And now most manufacturers build their endurance line to be as light as the more aggressive models.

What is the best tri bike on the market (Beginners vs experienced) in your opinion and why?

It's more about getting a bike that is better suited for triathlon then just Time Trial, most bikes are just Time Trial bikes that people use for triathlon and the geometry is different.

How many people do you fit each week?

 Around 9


 What is your most proud moment in this business?

 It's hard to narrow it down. Figuring out how best to help my wife with her fit issues early on stands out, most recently helping Chris Hammer and Grace Norman with their unique challenges to bike fit and also working with them on bike handling skills leading up to and being at the Rio Paralympic Games is up there.

What do you think about clip on aero bars?

Most all of them clip on. Now if you're referring to clip on aero bars on the road bike there is a right way to set them up and a wrong way to set them up but for the most part they're a great idea for triathlon. Don't use them on a group ride with your roadie buddies, they won't be happy with you.

 What do you eat while on a long ride?

 I have really been happy with What F2C nutrition has to offer, but my favorite thing is a big sub sandwich and fries!

 Best bike movie of all time?

Breaking away

What is your opinion on Lance Armstrong?

2nd best cyclist of all time

What advice do you have for riders just beginning and long in the sport?

Just enjoy the sport of cycling, don't take it so seriously!

Anything else you want to share?


Get measured before you purchase!!!!
Then get a bike fit!
Make sure to spay and neuter your pets.

Learn more at precisionbikefit.com


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Curls For Girls: Interview with SLTC Founder Rory Duckworth










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Thursday, March 9, 2017

SWAG Announcement 2017!!

For the inaugural Utah Tri Buzz season of 2016, we presented awards to age group winners  based on our ranking system, as well as the "Top 15 Racers" in terms of # races.

For 2017 we have more fun stuff in the works...

  • Once again rewarding those who get out and RACE, potentially beyond the Top 15 from last year
  • A plethora of "Most Improved" SWAG based on our rankings for 2017 vs. '16
  • AGE GROUP ELITES will be vying for a special kinda bling to do with as they please... options include hoisting it high above the head, throwing over the shoulder, or wearing as a fashion accessory!

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