Lottery

I've heard a lot of talk about athletes who win the "genetic lottery", who seem to be naturally gifted and who flow through their chosen events seemingly expending minimum effort. Mario Lemieux was one (for those of us above a certain latitude) who always seemed to be a stride ahead of everyone else and didn't seem to be burning any energy at all to do it. For a more current example, how about Craig Alexander. Or perhaps Chrissie Wellington, so far ahead of her contemporaries that she can drop ten minutes to a flat tire and still crush the field by ten minutes at the line?

Bunkum, I say.

This is hard work. Success in this sport, no matter how you define it, is a direct measure of how much you're willing to work for it. There is a direct correlation between how much work is done in practice and how natural the effort appears when it's "game time". Case in point: the swim leg of my particular triathlon. I swim like a brick. It will always be that way, but with practice I can become more hydrodynamic brick. And it's not just practice. Think of the quote often attributed to Vince Lombardi, "Practice doesn't make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect." This couldn't be more true in swimming. Practicing bad form or technique in the water doesn't make you faster. Because of the higher energy expenditure it just makes the thrashing around in the water worse. Check my swim times if you need any more evidence of that statement.

Conversely, running more actually can will improve efficiency - as time and mileage increase the body will find a way to move less, improving form at least until fatigue becomes so much that form completely disintegrates.

Speaking of lotteries the local lottery (the "6/49") has the biggest jackpot in its history this weekend - $48 million. People are freaking out. It's the only topic of conversation in the office. So why not - I threw in $2. Segueing from lottery to lottery, the Ironman Hawaii lottery is on right now as well. The deadline for entry is February 28. So, what the hey - I threw in on that one as well. It'd be a few years before I could "earn" a slot in that prize.

$48 million or a slot in Kona - which one would you take?