It's Over!

I walked down to the transition area this morning at 5:15am. There were triathletes on the streets heading towards the park in the darkness. As I got closer to the park and the transition area I began to hear loud music and see lights in the distance. The transition area was lit up like a football field with busy athletes scurrying everywhere getting their stuff ready for a long day. They organized us into "corrals" based upon our age groups before the start. I was surrounded by Aussies, New Zealanders, South Africans, Irishmen, Brits, a few Italians, Mexicans, Canadiens, etc. As we marched down to the beach for our group to start Hawaiin drummers pounded out a war song on the beach. We walked through an area that was gated off from the spectators. People we're screaming at us like we were famous athletes, except it was "Go USA!!! Go number 475!" I tried my best to stay focused, but I did say about my 50th prayer of thanks to God for letting me take part in such a special event. We swam out to a buoy where the deep water start would begin. We treaded water for about 5 minutes waiting on the start. A man in a kayak who was holding us back from the line announced that there were 30 seconds to go before the start of the 30-34 year old men. All of us raised our fists into the air and began yelling. We yelled for the entire remaining 30 seconds until the gun sounded.

I was out of the water in 25 minutes, a little slower than expected. The waves and the hundreds of thrashing bodies all around me made me feel like I was in a washing machine...with Buffett and Zilla (our Jack Russells). It took about 750 yards or one lap before I found any "clean" water to swim in. As I took a breath in the chaos I saw a rainbow in the sky. I took at as a symbol from God to enjoy the day and the beauty of the course and of how the human body can function.

Out on the bike course I just relaxed and enjoyed the views. We climbed Diamond Head crater on the way out and descended it on the way back in. The views from its cliffs were incredible; azure water as far as the eye could see meeting sandy beaches. I enjoyed the ride and didn't push too hard, instead opting to look at the views instead. I was back in transition in about 1 hour and 41 minutes (again unoffically meaning thats just what my watch said).

I headed out on the run to make up some of the time I'd lost on the bike. I chatted with an Aussie in my age group for most of the first lap. He and I were probably running 6:15-6:30 miles. All went well and I was passing alot of people until the second lap of the 5k course. My left hamstring that has been bothering me all season began to twitch and signaled that it was time to slow down a bit. I ended up running a 43 minute 10k, so I must have slowed down considerably on that second lap. Raul Boca who built my bike for me on Oahu sprayed me with a water hose out on Kalakau Ave.

I finished in 2:26....not a great time, but good enough for 115th in the world in my age group.

Good morning everyone. I'm having a little trouble adjusting to the time change. I keep waking up at 4:00am, but I'll be fine by Sunday. The climate here is strange, but beautiful. Its sunny all day, but rains every 30 minutes for a minute or less and then stops. . . just long enough to cool you off.

We went to the Parade of Nations last night. It was a great experience seeing all of the athletes from different countries in their uniforms. The New Zealanders entertained the parade watchers with a traditional New Zealand war dance and chant. They tore off their shirts and started doing a dance were they slapped their chests and screamed. It's meant to terrify enemies, they explained. Hilarious! Hawaiins are crazy for triathlon the way Tennesseans are for football. The parade route was packed and the organizers said that we can expect many thousands along the race course. It's cool being a minor celebrity for a few days.

We spent most of the early part of yesterday at the beach just being lazy, then Karen went window shopping in Honolulu while I went to a race briefing. Today we're going to go back to the beach and then we might go and climb Diamond Head crater this afternoon before "High Tea" is served at our hotel. The Moana Surfrider is the most historic hotel in Waikiki. There were probably 10 different sets of brides and grooms here y'day having pictures made (all Japanese).

More tomorrow.

Mahalo! It's bright and early here in sunny Honolulu. We arrived yesterday afternoon after a long day of travel. The flight wasn't as bad as I thouhgt it would be; movies and magazines passed the time.

Our hotel is beautiful. We have an ocean view to our left and a mountain view to our right from the balcony. I went for a run this A.M. and there are tons of triathletes on the streets running and riding. Down the road there were a bunch of triathletes, mostly french speaking Canadians, swimming the swim course. I saw jerseys from all over the world and heard lots of languages. This is going to be fun!

No pictures just yet. Hopefully we'll load some this afternoon (our night for ya'll). More in a bit....

Go USA!

Thanks to everyone who is making this trip possible (please see my sponsor list in previous entries).

Karen and I leave for Honolulu this Wednesday morning at 9:11 am. We'll be in Honolulu by 5:00pm Hawaii time. This has been a long season of racing with more "downs" than "ups", but competing in this race on Oct. 9th will be make all of the early mornings worth it. I didn't do as many races this year as I normally do. Having Isabella at home has helped me focus more on others than myself. Karen's continued support and the ever present image of Isabella's smile in my mind has guided me daily towards this moment in time.

I can't wait to tell all of you about our trip. We'll bring back plenty of pictures and video for everyone to see.

Thanks and love to everyone for supporting us. Please pray for our health and safe travel.

Chad and Karen

ps. I'll be attempting to update you all on this site with pictures and results from Hawaii. If you're interested, please continue to check this website for updates in the coming week. We're at the Sheraton Moana Surfrider http://www.moana-surfrider.com/index.htm if anyone needs to get in touch.

"Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint"
-ISAIAH 40:30-31
"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped."
-PSALM 28;7
"For God did not give us a spirit on timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline."
-2 TIMOTHY 1;7
"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
- PHILIPPIANS 4;13
"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."
-JAMES 1;12
"With God's help we will do mighty things."
-PSALM 60;12

Random Facts:

Training hours since January1....

Bike: 89hours 31minutes
Run: 65hours 39minutes
Swim: 122430.00 Yards

Highest weight:
140 - April 14th (I didn't start keeping track until April, so its likely that I was higher in winter).

Lowest weight:
133.5 - Several dates (first was August 29. Most recent was Sept.28)

Highest single week volume:
Bike: 4 hours 26 minutes - week of May 30
Run: 3 hours 25 minutes - week of June 20
Swim: 6030 yards - week of July 30

9/13/05The reality of competing in the world championships became even more real yesterday. I've been eagerly awaiting the arrival of my national team uniform. It arrived yesterday afternoon, so I had Karen take some pictures of me proudly modeling the team USA logo.

The Basics: Name: Chad Nikazy Age: 30 Family: Karen (wife) Isabella (daughter) Racing Age Group: 30-34 Hometown: Hendersonville, TN Resides: Spring Hill, TN since 2001 High School: Hendersonville High School College: Middle Tennessee State University - B.A. English First Triathlon: Sports First Tri it On - Birmingham, AL 2002 Favorite Triathlon: Old Hickory Lake Triathlon - Hendersonville, TN Career Top 15 Overall Finishes: 5th at RippaDu Duathlon, 3rd at Mosquito Creek Aquathlon, 8th at TriDeltathon Triathlon, 8th at GJCC Triathlon, 13th at Old Hickory Lake Triathlon, 14th at Old Hickory Lake, 13th at Sundrop Triathlon, 15th at Sundrop Triathlon www.nashvillebike.com www.daveramsey.com www.jimmykitchen.com www.adjustthespine.com www.familyhealthgroup.com www.bonelaw.com Thanks for taking a peek at my blog. I hope to update it frequently so that my friends, family, and sponsors can keep up with how my training and training races are going in preparation for the World Championships in October. I want to quickly introduce myself to those of you who don't know me well. I'm a 30 year old husband to Karen and father to Isabella Hope Nikazy (17 months). I've been in the sport of triathlon for 3 full years now. It wasn't my first sporting love though. I grew up wrestling and still crave the feeling I got from winning. There's so much suffering involved in the sport. It makes you live for it if you want to succeed. I lived for it and nothing else for a long time. In 1993 I won the Tennessee State title at 112 pounds after failing in my first title match in 1992. I learned how to win by first failing. Those are powerful emotions; failing in front of thousands and then ultimately succeeding in front of many of the same faces. I became a triathlete by accident really. It all started with a men's health article on triathlon training and weight loss. After high school I went from 112 to 165 by Christmas of my freshman year of college. Needless to say I was eating and drinking alot. I stayed that way off and on (because of illness and freestyle wrestling) for years. I eventually got fed up with the weight and used a generic triathlon training plan to get fit again. I'll summarize a long story by saying that I eventually participated in a sprint triathlon to see how badly I could beat those skinny wimps. Yes, my pride was hurt a bit when I didn't win or even come close. I found out that I would have to suffer a bit to succeed in this sport as well. Now a few years later, I'm at the threshold of a race that most triathletes only dream of getting a chance to participate in. This too happened by accident, but I'm going to honolulu nonetheless. I'll continually keep you posted on the specifics of mine and Karen's trip (You didn't think I'd go to Hawaii and leave her home did you?). Thank you: Nashville Bicycle Co. http://www.nashvillebike.com/ , The Dave Ramsey Show http://www.daveramsey.com/, Campbell Station Chiropractic http://www.adjustthespine.com/, Realty Executives Duck River http://www.jimmykitchen.com/, Family Health Group of Spring Hill www.familyhealthgroup.com, Bone McCallester Norton PLLC www.bonelaw.com, Tracey Walsh, Sara Nichols, Gayle Futch, Barry and Pam Evans, Dr. Jamie Hutton DDS, Roy and Carolyn Horton, Dr. Phil and Joyce Stewart, David and Judy Brown, and of course Eddie and Peggy Nikazy.

Thank you to my confirmed 2005-2006 Sponsors: Nashville/Franklin Bicycle Company www.nashvillebike.com The Dave Ramsey Show (Bill Hampton) www.daveramsey.com Realty Executives Duck River (Jimmy Kitchen) www.jimmykitchen.com Bone McCallester Norton PLLC (Charles W. Bone) www.bonelaw.com Campbell Station Chiropractic (Dr. Mario Milani) www.adjustthespine.com Tracey Walsh Family Health Group of Spring Hill (Dr. Rand Hayes and Dr. Nathan Lafferty) www.familyhealthgroup.com Jim and Sara Nichols Barry and Pam Evans Gayle Futch Dr. Jamie Hutton DDS Roy and Carolyn Horton Dr. Phil and Joyce Stewart I'll keep my list of sponsors updated as it grows with the approaching race date.