May Monthly Meeting -Stay tuned for details coming soon! 

The Houston Racing Forums Calendar not only lists things such as local and regional events, it also is now being utilized for listing regular club events - organized bike rides, runs, and other events that will take place on a regularly scheduled basis. The Forums Calendar is accessible by clicking here. You must have a registered forum account, and must be logged in to access the calendar using the link above. To sign up for the forums, go to the Forum Signup Page.

Tuesday - Track Workouts with Doug Storey - The Track Workouts are back at The Lamar High School. Check the forum link for the workouts and when an where they are taking place.

Friday – 5:00 PM - Lake Sharks at Twin Lakes- Lake Sharks have taken a break until the spring.  Michael Tarabay has stepped up to take over the Lake Sharks in 2008 as the new coordinator.  Thank you Michael!!!

Saturday - 6:30 AM- Ride - Westside Weekend Warriors - The Warriors are calling it a season! Contact Grant Anderson at grant.anderson@sbcglobal.net and check the forums for future updates.

Sunday - 6:30 AM Run - Westside Weekend Warriors - The Warriors are calling it a season! Contact Grant Anderson at grant.anderson@sbcglobal.net and check the forums for future updates.

Sunday - Zephyr Rides - Back starting April 27th! Average speed 14 - 19 mph, rides leave on time, and friends are welcome. Bring spare tires and tubes, ask for help if you need it, maps available to view at the ride, and most routes have breakpoints along the course. If you’re new to the Zephyr rides and don’t know anyone, when you get to the site ask for the Houston Racing group. Remember we don’t know who you are unless you ask. Bring something to re-hydrate with for after the ride. For more information, contact Dave Rainey at daverainey@earthlink.net.  Locations and directions to the rides will be given in later E-blasts as they will vary from one week to another.

Sunday - 1:30 PM - Pool Sharks at Dad's Club - Dad's Club will still be open and available to members during the off season with the only difference being that there will not be a coach on deck for Pool Sharks until next spring. Unless Dad's Club tells us different, HRTC members should still be able to swim on Sundays for no charge. Nilda Hassell has offered to take over as the new Pool Sharks coordinator for 2008.  Thank you Nilda!!!

Click on the logo above to go to the HRTC sign-up site!

Volunteer to Be Ride Leader - Houston Racing is looking for a group of ride leaders to rotate leading regular bike rides for the club.  We are hoping to get members more involved, and inviting them out to a bike ride is the perfect way to do it!  We are looking for someone to take the reins on a group of volunteers who will take turns leading rides at various locations around town.  If you are interested in volunteering to be a ride leader, or perhaps to even coordinate all of our ride leaders, please email Kathleen Woodhead at kcwoodhead@yahoo.com.  Note we are hoping to have several ride leaders to be able to evenly distribute ride leader duties.  Ideally we would have a core group of 10-12 leaders and each person would only be in charge of one ride every few months.

Jeff & Brede's Intergalactic Triathlon -Our annual club race is scheduled for July 13, 2008. Click the banner ad above for more details.

HRTC Volunteer Opportunity - We need a new bike box manager for the club. The responsibility of the HRTC Bike Box manager is to coordinate the use of the four bike boxes. The role requires that you take the reservation via email and list the rental on the HRTC Calendar forum. When the times comes for that person to use the bike box we coordinate the pick up and drop off with Tri on the Run where we have them stored. Generally this is all done over email and the telephone. Each month of every two weeks the manager stops by Tri on the Run to make sure the boxes are in good condition and every thing is working smooth. We typically have the boxes out every weekend from June–September. Please email me at lisa_ferrara@yahoo.com to let me know if this is something you'd be interested in doing.

HRTC Transition Zone - Do you remember your first HRTC meeting? The apprehension of meeting a group of spandex clad Ironmen in ten-gallon hats… ok… not quite… but it still can be a bit intimidating to go to your first meeting. In an effort to make the club more personal for new members why not volunteer to be part of the HRTC Transition Zone. What does this involve? Simply contacting new members in your area of Houston either by email or phone and welcoming them to club and maybe inviting them for a run and/or answering questions they may have. Send Merry-Lynn an email if this interests you: mnmcdona@yahoo.com. New members also please send Merry-Lynn an email if you would like to be contacted by a member of the Transition Zone.

HRTC Training Network - Interested in finding a training contact in your neighborhood? If you're interested in joining the HRTC Training Network, please send the following info to Lisa Ferrara. Name, Contact E-Mail and/or Phone Number, Sport, Average Pace or Speed, Typical workout times, distances and locations, and can we include this information on a forum posting?

SALE - HRTC Uniform Discount Extended - Now 30% Off! - Order new uniforms at 30% off of regular prices for the last couple of races of the season. Uniforms can be purchased through the HRTC web store and will be available for pickup at the next club meeting. HTRC t-shirts and socks are excluded. Limited quantities are available, so please check the list of sizes available posted in the forums before ordering.

Current Newsletter : February 2008

Each month, our HRTC newsletter editors toil endlessly to gather information vital to you and your HRTC experience. As a member, this Holy Grail of wisdom is mailed directly to your front door, but - if you just can't deal with paper, are on the road, or just get a snuggly feeling from downloading stuff, you can download the PDF file here. If you need Acrobat, CLICK HERE.

The file IS password protected - with the same password you use to open the club roster. Don't know it? Have you paid your dues? REALLY? E-mail me and I'll send it to you - if you're current... 

2008 : Jan | Feb

2007 : Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul |Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov-Dec

Getting Started - and Staying Educated

HRTC is devoted to promotion of our sport. We have a lot of experienced members, but we don't know everything. Luckily, a few others have stepped up and claimed that they DO know everything. They've even written books on the subject. Here are a couple of recommendations if you're looking for some guidance : For the beginner, try Triathlon 101. For the experienced and semi-experienced looking for some structure, give The Triathlete's Training Bible a try. And for those who are looking to tackle their first (or second, or third) Ironman, Going Long has received a number of good reviews. Currently there are over 700 listings on amazon.com for triathlon related training material, so if these don't suit your needs, you're bound to find something. And if you're just looking for some general info on triathlon and HRTC, please be sure to visit our FAQ section and our Membership section.

Membership Has Its Privileges

Want to do a race that requires a flight, but can’t figure out how to get your bike there? Take advantage of one of the many HRTC membership benefits! The club owns four hard shell bike boxes and one hard shell wheel box that can be reserved ahead of time used to get your bike safely to your destination. In order to provide availability to as many members as possible, the club has set the following stipulations:

• Being a member of the club prior to reserving a bike box is required.
• Make your reservation request via e-mail
• Members may reserve a bike box for up to 10 days.
• A $100 cash or check deposit is required.
• A club member may take advantage of one of the club’s bike boxes up to two times in one calendar year.

Mike Viator will coordinate pick-up and drop-off logistics with you. All reservations are posted on the Forums Calendar.

Here it is. THE DISCLAIMER : The opinions expressed, references made, virtues extolled, untruths voiced, comparisons examined, and judgments passed in the "Blah Blah Blog" and various other sections of this website were generated by and are attributable solely to the webmaster of this site and nobody else, including Houston Racing Triathlon Club Officers, members, sponsors, and anybody else who wants to be included. Or not included. Whichever makes more sense. The information contained in said section is simply commentary made by myself on various facets of life and the living thereof, and if taken seriously or out of context could lead to people concluding that you are an idiot. The purpose and intent of this website is to generate interest in the sport of triathlon and to inform members and visitors about the activities and practices of the Houston Racing Triathlon Club, and to possibly inject some humor into what might otherwise be a boring and pathetic existence (although I'm quite certain all of your lives contain generous quantities of beer swilling swimsuit models in hot tubs). If you leave here feeling anything other than educated or humored, you A) have missed the point, and B) need to lighten up. A LOT.