The Quest for the Holy Grail

In Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade, Jones and his father seek the legendary Holy Grail, a chalice with purported supernatural powers that bestows upon the drinker immortality. The Tarot Deck has cards with goblets.

The Boston Marathon (which takes place in April each year) is one such heavily alluded to Holy Grail that serious and dedicated long-distance runners may year for. This week is the crucial week for BQs to apply for the new multi-tier system of getting a slot in next year’s race.

Perhaps, the Holy Grail is a metaphor or allegory for other things in our lives. It may be the next stage in our career, role within our family and community, and the next challenge/achievement in your quest for personal excellence. Sit your Bucket List of dreams and goals alongside this ‘cup’, and it may include fluid contents like:

Triathletes: ITU World championships, Ironman 70.3 world championships (Las Vegas), Ironman triathlon world championships (Kona, Hawaii)

Runners: Boston Marathon, Big Five Marathons, Desert Challenges (Gobi, Sahara), Badwater, Leadville, Comrades, etc.

Swimmers: English Channel, Amazon River

Writers: Published in the major newspapers and magazines, published author, win the Booker Prize, Pulitzer Prize, etc.

Career executives: Reach senior management, C-level positions, starting an overseas business unit

Entertainers: Perform for royalty, head-of-states, celebrities, Fortune-100 companies, participate in the Olympics of magic FISM

Personal achievements: Earn a national award, represent your country, be #1 best blog/website, top-SEO rankings, raise the most funds for a charity, complete a tough challenge (10 Ironman triathlons back-to-back, run 100 miles within 24 hours)

Leadership Lessons: What would your grail look like? How would you fill your Cup? How often does your cup spill over? You can certainly modify your list as priorities change, and your talents and capabilities rise to the fore.

Journey To Personal Excellence

My students have asked me – other than as an educator – how and why I have several other roles. My reasons include being curious to learn, discovering my aptitude and attitude for a new field, and wanting to excel in more than one field of expertise. Being excellent in a field of interest can raise your confidence, self-esteem and direct you towards being a better person. When you raise your bar of performance, you begin to attain a higher level of competency. The results can be positively repercussive, toppling upwards to a staircase of more possibilities, abilities and motivations. 

I enjoy practising sleight of hand magic, due to my curiosity about the four-century-old craft of deception-as-entertainment. Once I passed the initial stage of learning about the secrets of magic, I was intrigued with the thinking process behind the tricks. I became fascinated by the cleverness and creativity behind some of the illusions. In the last 20 years of this private and public hobby, I have met many amazing magicians, illusion-designers, magical authors and thinkers. I had the privilege to be friends with magical consultants (for David Copperfield and David Blaine) – all very nice people with a common, fiendish mind to astonish and amaze audiences. I also had the privilege to hold leadership positions in my magic club, and appear on television to share my magic performances.

Desmond Peh, Entrepreneur of the Year, 2010 who excels in magic, mathematics, and managing his chain of tuition agencies

With triathlons and marathons, I learnt to pursue excellence in another way. You can progress in your fitness in many dimensions. You can become faster and stronger with consistent training, the occasional racing, and strengthening of your core muscles. I also met many inspiring athletes who encouraged and helped me step up on my game, so that I may realize my dream of being the best runner and long-course triathlete I can be. Earning elite qualifying times, and participating in world championships has help me orientate my goals, aspirations and dreams.

Leadership Lessons: How do you attain personal excellence? When have you exceeded your interests and develop those into something you can take great pride in? Create a sense of purpose, and aim to change, develop and grow. It is better to be great at a few things, than be mediocre in many.


Running Photo-credit: Le Giang

Defining Yourself

My friend, Barney Tee wrote in his electronic signature, ‘The ride defines the run.’ How interestingly true. The regional haze situation has returned – twice in a year – and the air qualify varies everyday according to wind conditions and rainfall. The meteorological agency with the health agencies would then provide advisory on outdoor activities. This morning, it is a PSI index of 25: it is suitable for exercising outside.

The results for the mildly, haze-affected Mega-TRI Singapore were out yesterday evening. I was 15th in my age group, and 44th overall. As expected in my intuitive race (I did not refer to my watch after my swim leg), I had a moderate ride and decent run leg (in the second and third laps). I noticed that, generally, the stronger and faster riders ran much faster than the weaker ones; thus, my main focus for the next five months. What gives?

If you are strong on the ride, especially when hills and headwinds prevail then you may have more in the tank when you head out for your run segment. The transition from ride to run can be tough, and you take off with rubber legs.

The entry for the Boston Marathon 2012 opened on 12 September. I have to get ready on 19 September to register. According to the multi-tier system, those who are more than 20 minutes ahead of the qualifying times get to register in the first three days. If slots sell out, so be it and will be no more to offer. Those with 10 minutes margin and more, get the next three days to register. Borderlines cases of one minute and less will only get a chance (fastest fingers) to register on the last day (and beyond). If slots sell out before in the six preceding days, it will mean that the rest of us would need to qualify for the 2013 event beginning this month.

A Boston Qualifier (BQ) is just that. It is a qualifying time that provides an entry point into this Holy Grail of the world’s oldest marathon. Beginning 2013, all BQ times will need to be five minutes faster. Such is the allure of Boston and personal quest for athletic excellence. I earned a borderline (one minute buffer) BQ of 3:29:59 (at Hong Kong Marathon 2011), so the next attempt will have to be 3:24:59 and faster. I am confident of beating 3:25:00 already, and hope to do so at the Singapore Marathon on 4 December. I am hopeful of doing a sub-4:00 at Ironman New Zealand based on last Sunday’s 27K run splits.

Leadership Lessons: How do you define yourself in your resume? How have you redefined yourself in recent years? How do you continue to enhance your potential and capability?

2XU Inaugural Mega-Triathlon 2011

Sunday, 11 September, 7.00am, at Changi Beach.

Mika receives her award from Kua Harn Wei.

Congratulations to the participants of Ironman Western Australia: Desmond Chow, Leow Jo Lene and Ng Lap Huan for completing their first long-course triathlon. Congratulations to Victor Chan, Mika Kume, Andy Foo and Ling Er for their podium places at the same event! It was a splendid turnout of swimmers from our Monday session as well as Saturday Lagoon swim.

Victor with his age-group win.

I conclude from my ‘7-hour training session’, that I am not Ironman triathlon fit – at this point in time. To do well at Ironman New Zealand in March 2012, I will need to do the following:

1)    Ride with more cadence, with emphasis on power (hills and speed work). I have a Desaru long-ride in a fortnight’s time to kick-start then process.

2)    Swim more with focus on fitness, swim-sets and drafting (my flotation has improved; I learnt how to breathe effectively thanks to Bernard Maughan). I will commit to the swim sessions on Monday and lagoon open-water session on Saturday.

3)    More run offs the bike, i.e. do ride-run bricks.

4)    Review my nutrition in the run segment. Maltodextrin is hard to digest quickly during this strenuous leg, so may opt for simple sugars instead.

I am spent after the almost seven hours of continuous activity. Here are highlights of the spectacular day, fraught by some rain (during the ride), headwinds, and depressing high humidity. From the race organization view, there was no major hiccup that affected me. The bike check-in took place in the early-morning, so there was no concern about stolen bikes. The passage of entry to the transition area was smooth and absent of drama. There was adequate space between one bike and another. Deca-Ironman, Kua Harn Wei had a consultative hand in the organizing of this race. He was nice to write these words on my race-rack sticker: ‘Go Enrico.’ How thoughtful.

The volunteers were certainly helpful and hospitable, offering us adequate nutritional support (Pocari, bananas, gels, and cold water). The large chests of ice-cubes and cold water were well received by the runners, I am sure. We just needed to soak the sponges and stick it into our race-top, to enjoy the cold water.

It is time for me to recuperate from my post-race Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). I have the 10K Yellow Ribbon Run on Sunday before TNF100 race (the pile of bananas reminded me of my future task). Hopefully, I have enough in my tank for a not-so-slippery, sub-44:00 PB.

I had a smooth swim, cleverly sitting on some swimmer’s hips and feet. I felt as if I was wearing a wetsuit. What was different was my proper application of full exhalation – to clear carbon dioxide build-up – thanks Bernard Maughan for your pre-race tip!

Not having enough power and speed work cost me valuable time as I rode intuitively. Thankfully my ride was comfortable with my well-fitted bike; I was still on my compact crank (evidence of my completion of Ironman Lanzarote in May). I did not rely on my watch and went with the race-day flow. No mechanical issues except for the incessant rattling with my aero-bottle (whilst on the speed strips) secured weakly with cable-tie. Note to self: get it down with Velcro.

Training buddies, Andy and Desmond (1124) stick together with the glue of commitment and optimism. Andy (in runner's gear) paced Desmond for at least 14K, after his fast swim leg in his team relay; his team won runner-up.

My run was somewhat harsh for the first lap as I had to search for my 'legs', however I was fortunate to gain my second and third wind with the remaining two laps. I did run an extra small loop due to my ignorance. As such, I had to make a concerted effort to persistently pursue those ahead of me - I was running 'blind', paying no heed to my watch, focused on my breathing and pace.

Two of my inspirations in endurance sports: Mika Kume and Victor Chan posed with me (minutes before they accepted their awards); I am hugely pleased for them.

My TNF100 Duo buddy Teo Hui Koon who had a perfect day. His posture exuded confidence and joy.

In the spirit of endurance sports, we are united.

Thank you for the numerous photographs from: Richard Leong, Le Giang, Vijch V K and Phoon Tuck Seng.

All photo-credits belong exclusively to the photographers.

In Memory & Memoriums

'I will not tell you how he died. Instead, I will tell you how he lived.' ~ Last Samurai.

Today marks the anniversary of 11 September. Around the world, people are doing a remembrance. The news coverage for this memorial event in the USA has been extensive. Touching ceremonies were conducted worldwide to celebrate the heroes and remember loved ones.

Can you recall what you were doing when this catastrophic event of global implication occurred? I recall I walked into my hallway and saw a television news report of plumes of smoke emanating from a building in New York. Subsequently, I thought it was an errant pilot of a small, private, propellor-plane that veered off-course; it was not to be. I spent the whole night worrying over my close friends in NYC; the phone-lines there were jammed. I went to work disturbingly alert and concerned about the consequence of the three events over three locations in the States.

After 9/11 our world has never been the same again – and this is not a cliché – where our collective security is concerned. The sense of paranoia and distrust for others has created discrimination and prejudice – toxic elements in potential relationships with others. Decisions and policies were made – at times seemingly absurd and easy to criticize – that were meant to benefit the larger group. However, this has led to breakdown in reasoning, creation of fear, suspicion, and cynicism.

We need not succumb to the confusion and conundrum. We can elect to shift our perspectives and live our lives with meaning and purpose, instead of fear, trepidation and anxiety. We can look out for each other. We can create collaboration, so that in unity we have strength. We can have a shared purpose and achieve common goals. The Tribes of the world can express themselves in positive ways. This morning, I joined about 400 triathletes in doing the Mega-Triathlon. We shared a common goal of suffering, however with a sense of achievement. Participants who once were strangers connected with each other during the course of the long day.

Celebrate each day we have with others fully and with intent. We only have now.

Cheaters Never Prosper?

I was reading the last chapter of Chris Macca McCormack’s book ‘I’m Here To Win’ where he discusses his experiences with cheats in professional triathlon and other sports. He describes his disappointment on how the best, natural athletes lose out financially and on recognition.

So, when a cheat is tested and not found ‘positive’ in the results, did they still cheat? This calls to mind the allegory of ‘If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one to see or hear it, did the tree fall?’ I have confirmed in races that I have participated that age-groupers and professionals have been seen drafting behind others - without the drafting officials' notice - and get away with it. Did cheating or some form of dishonest behavior occur?

Some of the major sports that are fraught with rampant doping or drug use is include competitive bodybuilding and cycling. One is a subjective sport, while the other is more objective in measure. In 1990-1993, I competed actively in bodybuilding earning one runner-up and three 3^rd place wins. I was never the largest guy (on-stage, as well as on the reserved national team) as I was a natural ectomorph, that is, I tend to be muscular on the skinny side.

After realizing – much to my chagrin and naivety – that many of my competitors were using anabolic steroids (muscle-enhancing pharmaceuticals) to gain an unfair advantage, I quit the sport entirely. Consider this: you either see used syringes in the locker-room, or a personal trainer administer an intravenous shot to a member - you got to see it to believe it! On hindsight, I think the sport is silly, and definitely questionable as a real sport when it is an open secret that the top guys were ‘on the juice’. The competitive amateurs (there were no professional bodybuilders) cleverly used ‘cycle’ and ‘stacking’ techniques to build unnaturally large volumes of muscles. The whole sport is a circus when drug use and the fear of getting caught surrounds athletes like a somnambulistic haze. At least the performers in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) – formerly WWF – are entertaining us with their steroid-inflated bodies. Several big names wrestlers have died due to prolonged steroid-related complications. A few Hollywood action stars have used steroids as part of their onscreen preparation; one suffered a heart-attack (and survived, but not his scandal) and the other was charged for transport of banned pharmaceuticals.

I have met cheaters in gambling who resort to ‘invisible’ methods of deception to make financial gains. What they do is certainly wrong for they create an unfair advantage. When caught, historically, they suffered painful and even permanent consequences. You cannot fool the 'house' (casino) for the house usually wins. With sports cheats, I wonder if they can look at all their lacklustre trophies today and say, honestly, that they earned it? With magicians, at least, they have a disclaimer that states that they are ‘honest liars’ or ‘charming cheats’. Heard the saying before? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Who does this apply to?

The issue becomes a concern when amateurs resort to chemical assistance to earn podium places. Even if they trained very hard, how would you distinguish between the success from your training and drug use? If going to the world championships in Kona, Hawaii is the epitome of athleticism then what does using drugs spell? Tactics? Strategies? Being smart?

There are other creative ways to earn advantages in racing: working on each of the disciplines, faster transitions, scientific training, selecting the races that suit your body and fitness, nutrition, rest, rehabilitation, using coaches, and investing in the hard work. Cheating is best left to cheats. They gain from somebody’s loss, and that is unfair to the athletes, officials, the supporters and the entire sport.

For updates, look at the man in the mirror.

Leadership Lessons: How do you uphold the value of integrity? What is it about your integrity that matters most? How do you deliver fully on integrity when corporate office demands your absolute obeisance and obedience? What do you do when your integrity is questioned? How do you build trust in your relationships?

What To Do When You Have 20 Minutes to Spare

Let’s be clear: we cannot save time. We can only manage our time.

Time is a measure of moments, periods and duration. It is an abstract concept yet it is so real in how we spend it. Unlike currency, time is not something tangible that we can put in a bank vault or safe-deposit box, only to draw upon it when we need to. Fitness is something else worth investing, for we can draw upon it when we decide to, at our own expense. However fitness is a temporal thing for it diminishes with time, however relative to each component: flexibility, strength, power, agility, endurance, and stamina.

What can we, purposefully, do with a finite packet of time of 20 minutes – about the minimal time to activate our aerobic (cardiovascular) fitness?

1)    Post on Facebook the launch of a charity event (this morning, I received great community support for an event focused on physically-challenged athletes). As a result, I have decided to make a financial and volunteer pledge.

2)    Share an article online, with your comments, about something useful with your friends.

3)    Send an electronic mail to one or two friends you have not been in recent contact with.

4)    Send several SMS text (written in grammatically correct language) messages to re-connect with somebody on your electronic Phonebook.

5)    Read several online articles and, perhaps, post your feedback. You might get a reply from the writer,, and connect with a resource in future.

6)    Edit your corporate newsletter, report, electronic mail, or blog (previous articles).

7)    Do a CrossFit session, or creatively work out an intense but short circuit training session to work major muscle groups.

8)    Clean your bicycle: totally degrease the chain, re-lube it, and wipe your frame down with a moist cloth.

9)    Learn something online. Google it up. Wiki it up. Read a chapter off your new book.

10) Check a new word. Translate it into languages you are familiar with, and check its accuracy.

11) Do a stretching session, focusing on any injury-prone areas, existing injuries, or very tight spots (back).

12) Send questions to experts on your Facebook or Twitter account. Learn voraciously. Make learning a habit.

13) Watch an online presentation, like TED.COM. View YouTube for lectures and presentation by celebrities and renowned speakers (example: Richard Feynman on his Physics lectures - Six Easy Pieces).

14) Meet a colleague at his her office and bounce a few ideas off them. Seek a second and third opinion.

15) Do a body check: Do you need to drink water? Would it be a time to take in some nutrition? Make a whey protein smoothie, peanut-butter sandwich, or drink a glass of water – and do something else to fill up the remainder of the 20 minutes.

16) Add to this list.

Be flexible in your use of time. Be purposeful. By the way, this post took 20 minutes to write. 20 minutes spent with intent can go a long way toward enriching your life.

I’m Here To Win (Chris McCormack): Book Review

Chris ‘Macca’ McCormack is a world champion triathlete in both the long-course (such as Ironman) and short-course (Olympic Distance). He is also a two-time Ironman Triathlon World Champion (2007/2010). You may wish to read it to get a better grasp of one of triathlons most successful, and controversial champions.

If you read between the lines of his smack-talk, Macca reveals his mental strategies for staying a tour de force as a competitor, as well as his tactics for managing his adversaries in competition. He is the ultimate mind-game specialist after Muhammad Ali, the boxing legend – who Macca modeled his attitude after. Macca plays mind games very skillfully and with pronounced purpose. He begins with the end-game in mind.

Macca’s clarity of purpose echoes that of reality television series ‘Survivor’ where some less popular personalities utter, ‘I am here to win, not make friends!’ Described by his fellow competitor as brash, arrogant, cocky and loud, Macca is an extraverted sporting personality who has consistently backed up his talk. Interestingly, he won his second world title last year at the ripe age of 38 – probably, the oldest winner in the history of the Ironman race in Kona, Hawaii. Even his naysayers and harshest critics have to take a step back and review their criticism of him.

I enjoyed the biographical feel of the book – it is in Macca’s voice and lingo. One of the highlights for me was how he planned and prepared for his Ironman wins in Kona after a disastrous debut in 2002. At times contrarian, and at times disciplined to the bone, Macca describes it all – no holds barred. The extraverted Macca is fiercely competitive, abundantly misunderstood by competitors and the media, and yet respectful of his community. How he expresses his values is worth considering, whether it is his brutal honesty or deep respect for his opponents. His strategy on how to give constructive feedback (in public and in private) is an abject session in itself. He is also a hungry learner and he draws upon different sports to apply their strategies (including nutrition from bodybuilders, and the 4-set approach to swimming a day before a race). Macca’s profile is: one part athlete, one part student, one part coach, and one part strategist.

Interlaced within the chapters is his resume of achievements especially of his early years as a short-course specialist. Punctuated throughout the book, especially as a summary of key points, I’m Here To Win provides Macca’s (W)INSIGHTS – cliff-notes for his strategies. There is also a 16-week, professional athlete (‘who have the time to train and rest’) for an Ironman triathlon. Macca, however, cautions that it is a tough approach. He is also quick to remind us that he does have easy days and emphasizes rest after the 'key set' is done. Described as ‘fluffy training’ by his critics, Macca defends the need for rest as he has never been injured in his entire career. He calls his main training the ‘skeleton’ and fleshes it out with deliberate flexibility. The many examples, drawn from his competition experience, give meat to this book. There are behind-the-scenes conversations, including his relationships with the titanic Teutons, Faris Al-Sultan and Normann Stadler.

A full chapter is devoted to his motivations, including a touching tribute to his mother (of Maori descent). His chapter on his 2010 Kona comeback (Chapter 10: My Masterpiece) is a thesis on how his completely different approach to his mental game. Macca’s gameplan was flawless during its execution, which led to a perfect day and one of the most exciting races for a long while. I think it matched his 71 seconds lag behind Normann Stadler in 2006, where he came in second. Certainly, 2010 was where we were treated to a glimpse of what the ‘Iron War’ (Scott-Allen showdown) was probably like: the handshake, the few words uttered, and the crucial ascent up the final hill.

Buy it, read it a few times, and apply parts of his strategies that you are comfortable with. It is also a fun read that honestly delves into Macca’s mind, myth, and his methods. Macca is like a WWE superstar (in three disciplines), without the make-up and over-the-top antics. No-holds-barred, bold, courageous, honest and poignant: the stuff that sports legends are made of.

The Science Behind the Con-Science

Conscience: An inner sense of what is right and wrong in one’s conduct and motives, and impelling one in the right action; a consciousness and self-knowledge.

Science: Knowledge attained through study and practice.

Conscience – how important is it? This is analogous to Pinocchio’s Jiminy Cricket who whispers into his wooden ear to not be lured into the theme park. It is your ethics that you apply in business and accounting practices. It is about doing the right thing instead of playing passive bystander and concerned pedestrian. It is about choosing apathy and ignorance as your tools of indifference and disenchantment.

If an amateur athlete cheats at sports, is it acceptable since he did not earn prize money? Anecdotal evidence point to the probability of serious age-groupers using EPO to gain an advantage to qualify for the world championships in Kona. The sporting world is full of cheats from game-throwers to saboteurs to athletes with unfair physiological advantages (via doping or pharmaceutical enhancement). It is so easy to be disenfranchised and incensed from a competitor's shadowy tactics.

Science focuses on the observed and the empirical. The more something occurs, the more probable it is. Fact versus fiction: occurrence versus concurrence. Agreement does not mean actuality. Too often, with the marketing in sports products manufacturers tend to extrapolate data and research findings into their claims. However, most of these claims are just that – claims – and may not be approved by regulatory bodies like the FDA. Sometimes, the marketers will include caveats like ‘results may vary for individuals’ or ‘used only as prescribed’ or ‘based on a study…’ ad nauseum. Sponsored athletes and clever ad-copy add to the hype and hyperbole.

In spite of it, there is a brutal truth behind the application of science – scientific observations may prove something inconclusive at times. Here are annoyingly inconclusive facts in sports:

1)    Minimalist shoes (there are injuries related to using such nominal protection)

2)    Barefoot running (runners do get injured from this defiant methodology)

3)    Altitude training

4)    Deep-tissue massage (hurt so good?)

5)    Stretching before races (can be counter-intuitive and counter-productive to muscular engagement)

6)    Use of energy drinks and gels during racing (apparently, rinsing with sweetened drinks activates receptors in the tongue that activate the energy systems)

7)    The roles of under-hydration (hyponutremia) and over-hydration (hypernutremia)

8)    Compression tights during races (the look takes some getting used to, but do they really work?)

9)    Glucosamine supplements (according to dog-lovers and vets, it is effective for increasing mobility)

Liar, liar pants on fire! Manufacturers should be conscientious and stop sending mixed messages and promises of hope. The economy is getting lukewarm for us to overspend on already expensive sports. Instead, focus on ‘what actually works’ instead of ‘what could work’. Leave trials for the laboratory and testing process, and not make lab-rats of consumers. Fool us once – shame on us. Fool us twice – shame on you!

The Fitness and Finesse of Feedback & Feeding Back

How well do you give feedback? In my years of interviewing, reading and watching interviews, I conclude that local sportspeople have a moderate competency in handling the media. Youth athletes smell of angst and teen spirit. They are comfortable expressing themselves with less regard for consequences.

These were the rants of an upset elite age-grouper. Do you empathise with him? How do you relate to his feedback?

Another two reporters for RedSports also wrote a piece on unfair categorization of runners, and subsequent disappointment of runners who did not podium. Interestingly, both reporters were affected runners themselves. From a journalistic point of view, the piece was more of a social media observation rather than objective reporting.

The missing link of communication and feedback is feed forward. What we feed forward to another will be fodder for feeding back. Feedback is obvious when you position a ‘live’ microphone next to a speaker. It gives a shrill scream of a banshee! Feedback made at the moment of emotional outbursts may be irrational and unreasonable. Having said that, serious racers take their results seriously since they have different expectations and measurements of their performance.

In my analysis, only Garmin watch-users filed the complaint of ‘inaccurate distance’; there was no mention of other types of brands and instruments. Koh Yong Jin, a sports science consultant suggested, ‘Firstly, Garmin watches do not measure elevation well, provided the watch measures 3D profiles. There might be an apparent loss of distance. Secondly, each watch has a tolerance built in, to the tune of plus/minus 100-200 metres. Lastly, since it is an IAAF-sanctioned race, the distance had to be verified and approved according to international standards.’ IAAF is the International Association of Athletics Federations that provides the rules for large-scale international races.

Feedback is just that - feed back. That does not mean that decisions can be overturned immediately as there are consequences to stasis and dynamics. Change involves sensibility and sense. Things must make sense. Results merely captured a point in time, a snapshot of progress and performance. We can shift our focus from unfair rankings to actual timing, pace, intensity, tactical execution, nutrition, and confidence. Feed these data into another race in the near future, so as to change our training program, or stick with it.

Leadership Lessons: We will be judged from the way we communicate with others. How often do you give deeper and broader thought to how you speak and write? How often do you give the excuse of ignorance? How do you deal with severe criticism? How often do you seek refuge behind free media or a person when crisis emerges? How you deal with disappointment reflects on your ability to manage your relationships.