Jocelyn Wong's Blog

…about the new WTC rules regarding prize money–given to you only if you finish within 8% of the winner’s time:

I sure could use $1,900 right now.

For good measure, I am also shaking my fists…

to the people who say I shouldn’t get paid for swimming a 1:18 anyway…

…and here are a couple of middle fingers…

…for the people who actually think I am content to be a bad swimmer and not doing anything about it.

Other than that, I am really quite pleased with my 5th place this weekend. It was intended to be a solid training day (that I was hoping to get paid for) to prepare for Ironman China. Mission accomplished, great training day, my first top 5 result in the pro field at an M-dot race and a reminder of what it’s like to do an Ironman in hot & humid conditions. Race report and race photos to come soon.

Thanks for all your support!

I am procrastinating on my last race report of 2009.  Yes it’s been 2 weeks and you know I am procrastinating pretty bad when I start cleaning my room instead.  I began to uncover endlessly fascinating things I had saved in my days as a teenage triathlete for some scrapbook I would make some day.  So fascinating that I was inspired to throw them in a little blog first instead of my race report.

my first triathlon: June 4, 2000

When I was 18, I registered for my first triathlon for only $41.00 and a $2.05 processing fee on Active.com.  Using Mom’s credit card because back in those glorious days I did not have any credit cards nor the accompanying ghastly amount of credit card debt.  The race was the Los Angeles Triathlon Series #3, Tri-Express distance: a 250 yard swim (which took me almost 10 minutes), 7-mile bike ride (which I got a flat tire on), and 2-mile run.  Held at Frank G. Bonelli Park in San Dimas, CA.

back before everyone and their brother had a digital camera

Yes kids, once upon a time digital cameras were not so prevalent and race photographers actually used real film, had to get it developed, and then sent you proofs of your race photos with “PROOF” stamped all over it.  This was from the Pacific Coast Triathlon in Newport Beach, also summer of 2000.

9 years and $200 ago...

After doing 2 sprint triathlons, I was ready to go big.  I always knew I wanted to do Ironmans.  I saved up enough money all summer working at the footwear department of SportMart, and registered for Ironman California…yes before there was such a thing as a “70.3″ (we called them “half ironmans”) and the California 70.3 in Oceanside was still a full ironman event.  $350 seemed like a lot of money to do a race.  But I just looked up how much it costs to do an Ironman next year…it’s $550!  I wonder how many extra hours I would have to work at SportMart making minimum wage???

Here comes the best part of my triathlon archives…fast forward another 4 years…drum roll please…

kinda gives you goose bumps doesn't it?

SEE!!!  I always knew I wanted to be a TRIATHLON SUPERSTAR!!!

It’s all part of the master plan…mwahaha!

Living the dream!  :D

So I officially got 8th pro in Cozumel after all and went to the awards banquet…you never know if you’ll get called up. In Florida I got 10th and they only called up top 8, in China this year I got 8th and only top 5 got called up. In Embrun I got 5th and they called everybody up! (And yes, there were more than 5 of us.) It’s the moment a triathlon superstar dreams of: getting called up on stage, smiling your big cheesy superstar smile, and waving at all your adoring fans.

So the First Mate and I borrowed an extra race bracelet (thank you Bean) and decided to brave the food at the awards banquet, held at the Moby Dick Show Center.

practicing my big cheesy superstar smile in case I get called up!

There were some pretty cool fire dancers there to entertain us but I was too hungry to take photos. I was intrigued by the trophies though:

you win a Mayan head for top 3!

Turns out only top 3 in each age category and top 3 pros got a head trophy and called up. So next year I must get a top 3 to get called up for sure. I guess that’s why they call it the podium!

Rutger making his victory speech

Interestingly enough only Rutger got to make a victory speech. I was a bit appalled that Yvonne didn’t get to make a speech! Not sure if that was intentional or if she didn’t want to make one. (Who wouldn’t want to make one? I like to fantasize about what I would say in a big victory speech when I am out training…)

Bella, Yvonne, & Edith

Awards ceremonies can sometimes be a drag but I still find inspiration in seeing the really fast people go up on stage. My mom came with me to my first two ironmans and sat through awards with me even though I was FAR from podium’ing as an age grouper. I remember telling her “I want to be up there!” and she said “You will some day.” I hit the age group and collegiate podium on the next try (3rd time’s the charm) and remember Mike Reilly (or maybe it was Graham Fraser?? crap, I don’t remember…one of those guys!) was saying “These young ones are the future of Ironman racing!” I thought “yeah right. I didn’t even break 12 hours.” I never imagined I would actually be shooting for a podium in the pro division 5 years later.

superstar Bella, mentor to the Wongstar!

After all the awards, they put some traditional Mexican dancers up on stage and then threw in two roosters for a cockfight! First Mate couldn’t watch. All I could say over and over again was, “isn’t this illegal where we’re from?” And Bean, well, be glad you weren’t there, Bean. The Bean would not approve!

Instead we looked for an after party…

Tiki Tok, within stumbling distance of our hotel

It had fabulously kitschy beach decor and hilarious signs advertising their drinks…

Mojitos!

I worked at Red Lobster one summer and once spilled two big Bahama Mama drinks. Luckily they hit the floor before they hit my customers. I’m slightly more talented at triathlons than serving tables. I think.

Volcano Tiki, that sounds good...

Indeed I ordered a Volcano Tiki. It was my one umbrella drink for the trip and something that surely I thought about during the race itself…

cheers to a great 2009 season, with Michaela & Will, or as they say in Mexico, "Salud!"

Race report in progress…check back soon…!

How does a first-year pro triathlete fund all the traveling and racing around the world?

presenting Mark Cathcart, the Wongstar's official travel sponsor

Well once upon a time, I met my future travel sponsor, Mark Cathcart.  On the internet, of all places, in the “blogosphere” as they say.  We have been blogging friends since…well maybe as far back as 2003??  Mark aka “Triman” knew me before I was anything close to a professional triathlete.  Like most of my blogging friends, he knew I harboured a not-so-secret desire to become a triathlon superstar and to be super fast, as delusional as I may have been as a 13-hour Ironman finisher.  In fact, he knew me before I went to grad school for prosthetics and orthotics (this is important to the story later, keep reading), and before I finished my two years of residency and became a certified prosthetist-orthotist.

We officially met in person in May of 2007–the same month I began seriously talking with Brett and Alex about becoming a development member of teamTBB.  Mark is from the UK but has lived in Austin, TX for many years; in 2007 I was living in Dallas for my orthotics residency and drove the 3 hours down to Austin to race at the Rookie Triathlon, a little sprint triathlon.  I finished as first amateur, partially because the fast amateur girls all raced the elite wave, and then Mark and I biked the 3 hours back to Austin together.

Over a year ago in the fall of 2008 I was getting ready for my first TBB training camp in Subic Bay, Philippines, and Mark stepped up to cover the cost of my airfare using his frequent flier miles.  He loved my enthusiasm and sparkly personality (who doesn’t?!) and really believed in me and wanted to help me go after my dreams.  This year, in 2009, he has helped tremendously with a large portion of my travel expenses, donating both $$$ and miles, and hooked me up with that sweet place in Orlando when we both raced the 70.3 there.  I got my pro card at that race, but unfortunately Mark had a bad reaction to the cortisone injections to his knee and ended up in the med tent for a while.

the smile came back after 2 IV's!

Well, Mark was doing this 70.3 in preparation for his very first Ironman, and I’m very proud to announce he finished IM Arizona yesterday!  What makes this accomplishment especially impressive is that multiple knee, hip, and back issues have plagued Mark since he was involved in a nearly fatal motor vehicle accident (motorbike vs. double decker bus) over 31 years ago.  His tibia and fibula were completely smashed and he lost 3 inches of bone in his right leg.  Instead of amputating, the doctors performed some radical procedures to try and salvage Mark’s leg.  He had been a very competitive soccer player but his activity became drastically impaired following the accident.  Subsequent surgeries (including a surgical re-break of the leg in 1991) and various infections have resulted in a right leg that is now 2 1/4 inches (about 6cm) shorter than the left side.  As you can imagine, having such a large leg length discrepancy causes many imbalances and wreaks havoc in an active body, and thus the multiple knee, hip, and back issues!

About 10 years ago, Mark began doing triathlons, primarily sprints and Olympic-distance races.  He actually competed at the ITU world championships for the Clydesdale “demonstration” category, and also represented Great Britain at the 2004 European champs.  However, on hilly courses, he found it very hard to produce power when one leg was significantly shorter than the other, and running for more than 5k would cause his knee to swell up over 1.5 inches!

When we first met a couple years ago, Mark had begun experimenting with various shoe build-ups on his running shoes, slowly increasing the height from an inch to two inches.  He had tried to fashion something similar for his cycling shoe too but it was much too heavy…and this is where Wongstar/MacGyver the Orthotist stepped in!  Before I left for my second training camp in Subic (February this year), I carved out a special wood block for Mark, which could be attached between the sole of his cycling shoe and his Look cleat.  It filled out the two inches between his foot and the bike pedal…

Wongstar's magical wood block, side view.

lightweight and effective!

I didn’t hear anything back for a few months until April, when Mark reported that it really made a difference with how his hips feel off the bike, and gave him more power going up the hills!  He even showed me a picture:

I should patent this.

This was pretty exciting.  When we raced together the following month at the Florida 70.3, Mark mentioned being unhappy with the lift on his running shoe–it felt way too heavy and stiff, and the rollover from heel to toe just wasn’t very smooth.  As an orthotist I have done my share of building shoe lifts like these and so Mark asked me to take a look at his current shoes and see if I could improve them at all.  I carved a rocker bottom to the sole and drilled out some holes on the inner layers of crepe to make the build-up somewhat lighter, and we went on a short run together when he was in Silicon Valley for a business meeting.  After trying them for a few weeks at home, Mark liked my modifications so much he wanted a second pair built up from scratch!  This is where our travel sponsorship deal became a mutually beneficial partnership.  :)

this is what we call a "leg length discrepancy"

Before I left for the Jeju ironman and subsequent Swiss training camp in July, I worked on a new pair of shoes for Mark…not content with what I had done before, I tried to make this shoe even lighter and more flexible than before.  I ended up doing a funky two-part build-up with a separate heel and forefoot–this would drastically reduce the weight of the shoe.  It was different than anything I’d ever seen and made before, but I figured, why not try it…he had a current pair that worked great if this new one didn’t work at all.  I was pretty happy for him when he received the shoes and said they were even better than the last pair!  The irony of it all is that we never expected the travel sponsor deal to turn out to be win-win for the both of us!

Wongstar's magical shoe lift, side view

magic shoe: bottom view

So armed with the new Wongstar shoe lifts for biking and running, travel sponsor Mark was able to build up his training for his very first Ironman…and fulfill his dream of doing an Ironman yesterday!

that's him on the live video feed!!

And the Wongstar, armed with fantastic travel sponsorship this year, has been able to train for her very first season as a pro and is fulfilling and pursuing her dreams this year and beyond!!

Mark & Wongstar at the Florida 70.3 back in May

Thanks Mark and congratulations!!!  I am so proud to be your sponsored athlete!!

P.S.  I just found out he was 2nd place in the Ironman Executive Challenge, 50+ category!!  :D

All systems go!!!  The rest of the DeFilippis clan has arrived and so has my sherpa and Asian Triathlon Superstar protege Amy.  The Italians are making the pre-race dinner tonight and I’m loving being part of the family here!

We got all the pre-race stuff done…

Dumpstar and Bella at the press conference

Bikes checked in!

I have the fastest wheelset on the pro rack

bags checked in!

very organized here

But most importantly…Waffle House pre-race grease-loading!

open 24/7 and within stumbling distance of the condo

Coach said I could eat a waffle before the race.

it's a chocolate chip waffle

Scottie ready to grease-load!

I highly reccommend the bacon and eggs on Texas toast

I also got a custom airbrushed shirt from Super Duper Wal-mart:

the back view. I guess I didn't get too fat after eating all that Waffle House.

OH yeah…and filled up the Camelbak with Starbucks…

fueled by Frappuccino!

You can track me online at ironmanlive.com.  I am bib #13 and if I am going fast enough they will mention me in the live updates!

Amy will also be hijacking my Twitter account, so she will be posting up LIVE TWEETS for you to follow.  Because that’s how a real superstar rolls!!  Follow me tomorrow at twitter.com/theWongstar.

Thanks for all your support.  I’m gonna smash it!

Well I missed my flight going home yesterday (as planned) and with that, my original plans to race in California during the month of October.  I’m definitely learning during my first season as a pro triathlete the ups and downs that go with this lifestyle: last-minute race cancellations or postponements, mechanical failure of your bike on race morning, changing flights and travel plans…

So the previous plan was to race in “my own Kona” on October 10th: the inaugural Magic Mountain Man Triathlon, a brand new half-ironman distance event in Southern California.  I had promised race director Jonathan Pauley of Renegade Racing that I would help promote his event, and even though I will not be able to race after all, I am keeping my word to help out!

The “M3 Triathlon” takes place in Castaic Lake, California, a short drive from Los Angeles with T2 and the finish line right by Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park.

The 1.2-mile swim takes place in the nice calm lake–just the kind I like, I doubt you’ll get seasick or swept away by the current.  The bike is challenging and honest with 6,000 feet of climbing over 56 miles, point-to-point from Castaic Lake over to the Six Flags theme park.  The run is an out and back, starting and finishing right by the roller coasters. 

The best part of the whole race?  The entry to the race comes with an entry to the amusement park!  You can go any time over the event weekend, including on Columbus Day.

the swim won't make you vomit, but this might...!

Renegade Racing puts on a heap of very well-run events around Southern California, including many at Bonelli Park in San Dimas, where I did my very first triathlon!  I was looking forward to going back to the area where my triathlon roots began in college.  If you are in the area and not ready to tackle the half iron distance, I would strongly encourage you to go to this event and volunteer!  It will be very good for your tri karma.  There is also the Magic Mountain Man 5k run held in conjunction with the triathlon race on the same day.

I wish all the participants best of luck, and of course to Jonathan Pauley as race director–best wishes for a fantastic inaugural event!

So I have been unsuccessful in my endeavors to locate some liver here in Korea, as my Korean is limited to 3 phrases, and the locals working behind the meat counters have very limited English as well.  I tried pointing to my liver (it’s on the left side of your abdomen, right?) but that didn’t work.  Maybe if I grabbed a bottle of Soju and pointed at my liver…

Well, we are on a gorgeous tropical island after all, which means abundant and fresh seafood, so I figured I should take advantage of that fact as my alternative source of protein.  Back in the Philippines, one of my favorite restaurant dishes was grilled pusit, which is what they call their squid.  When I went with Mat to the market for the first time, I saw some fresh squids and thought, now how cool would it be to say I bought my own squids and cooked them myself?

flashback from a year ago

I never got the balls to do that in Subic, so here I was at the grocery store in Jeju and got my second chance.  4 squids packaged for 6000won, now that’s not bad, only $1.25 per squid.  I, Wongstar, would cook my own squid!  But how does one cook a squid?  I figured I would cook it the same as I cooked all my other meat…sesame oil, garlic, onions, and some oyster sauce in a stir-fry.

4-pack o' squids

I called Momma Wongstar for a cooking consultation; she knows how to cook everything.  In addition to my tried and true ingredients, she said to get some ginger as well.  She also gave me some instructions on how to pull out the slimy yucky guts *shudder* which I was not looking forward to.

the one at the bottom totally looks like an elephant

So I got a squid out.  It seemed pretty hefty, it must be full of black nasty guts!

ok ready to attack the black nasty squid guts!

I worked up my courage to slice it open and was suddenly…confused.

dude, what did this squid eat for its last meal?!?!

What was this?!?!  It looked like there was corn inside.  I don’t think squids eat corn!

Huh.  What do you know!  The squids had come de-gutted and stuffed with…stuffing.  What a bargain for only $1.25!

Then I wondered if the squid itself was already cooked.  How would I know?  Does it change color like a shrimp does?  By now it was too late to call Momma Wongstar.  Let’s just assume it’s not cooked so I don’t get food poisoning (which I hear is an effective but unpleasant way to make race weight).  Things that are stuffed, like Thanksgiving turkey, are supposed to be baked.  I think.  But I have no oven here.  So back to Plan A.

I sliced up the squid.

it kind of looks like sushi, almost.

Fired up the pan with my tried & true ingredients.

can't go wrong with garlic, onions, and ginger!

And threw it all in.

starting to look edible...???

And of course some oyster sauce.

I endorse the Lee Kum Kee Panda Brand of oyster sauce.

I also stir-fried a bag of bean sprouts and tossed it all in together in my “salad bowl,” which is really the inside of the rice cooker that the apartment came with.

yep I ate the whole bag of bean sprouts

The verdict?  Freakin’ delicious!  A little bit spicy, maybe from whatever the squids came stuffed with, or perhaps the ginger.  And the best part is that it took at most 20mins from start to finish.

and dinner is served!

Yum yum yum.