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Member Bio Questionnaire

Date:                          12/10/2002               
Name:                        Rick Velasquez
Male/Female:           Male   
Age Group:              34 Years Old

Years in Triathlon: 6 years (1991-1996)

Single or Family, if Family, how large:  I have a wife and a 4 year old son

Where do you live: Albuquerque

Short paragraph of Triathlon background to include, how long you have been doing Triathlons, maybe some names of races you’ve been in, any top finishes? Etc.:

I did Triathlons from 1991 - 1996 in the Mid-West.  I'm from Wisconsin, so the Triathlons I did all were around the mid-west to include: Baily's US Swim and Fitness (Minneapolis) now called LifeTime Fitness, Leons (Hammond, Indiana), Iron Horse (Springfield, IL), Chicago Mrs. T’s, along with quite a few  sprint distance as well.  I have done absolutly nothing in the past six years so now I’m paying for it as I begin to train and get back into Triathlons.  I’m looking at doing 4-6 triathlons a year for now, with most of them being International (Olympic) Distance.

Top Finishes: 3^rd place in my age group – Lake Wissota (Chippewa Falls, WI) – This is the lake that was mentioned in Titanic, which by the way is a man made lake and was built after the Titanic sunk.  I believe there were only 4 or 5 in my age group.

Worst Finishes: Not sure.  Usually I would finish around the 40% of my age group.

Favorite Race(s): LifeTime Fitness (Minneapolis) – This is a great course, about 1,200 athletes and a Pro field.  The bike is through a residential area so people are on their lawns watching and a big crowd lining the streets while you’re coming out of the transition area.  The run is 2 laps around the lake so you get a chance to see your friends that came with to watch, a couple of times.

Funniest thing that has happened to you during a race: 

One piece of advice: It doesn’t take a whole lot to blow up in a race.  Trust your heart rate monitor, even if you feel great.  It sucks to have a good swim, a great bike, start the run well and then blow up half way through the run and no matter how much you don’t want to, the only thing you can do is walk and allow others to pass right by.

Big race(s) of the year: Used to be Chicago Mrs. T’s – There’s nothing like having Lake Shore Drive closed off just for you (well maybe for the other athletes also), biking in an aero position and looking up at all of these sky scrapers.  I’ll have to get a feel for the International Distance triathlons around New Mexico and Arizona to find what I’ll consider my new Big Race of the Year.

Favorite After Race recovery food: Anything! – Mrs. T’s Pierogies with some sauce is always a good one.

Dedications: Amy (my wife) is so wonderful to put up with the long drives, money spent, and me.  What a blessing that God gave her to me to share my life with.

Best excuse for a bad performance: Blew up because I went stayed above my race pace heart rate for too long.

Favorite Training routine: Not quite sure anymore.  I’ve only been training again since November 1^st, 2002.

Short paragraph about life outside of Triathlons:

            I’m a Network Administrator for a small company in Albuquerque, I attend school a couple nights a week and I’m in the Army Reserves (Intel Instructor).  This time around of doing Triathlons, my focus is: If I can’t do the training with minimal impact on my family time, I wont do it, I will find another way or just not train as much.  So early mornings, running at lunchtime and training after my son is put to bed is my main training time.

            I’m truly excited about getting back into Triathlons and it’s great to see the additional resources that are available now that were not available in 1996 (a club in my home town, Internet, E-Bay, etc.).  I’m excited about being a part of a club that I can take advantage of knowledge and experience of others and hopefully contribute to others down the road.