Trying to Stay Injury Free

Today our older son made his own lunch. He has always had a knack for preparing Chinese or Japanese food.

With some big-time sports injuries in the news, such as Tiger's knee and the foot of Taiwan's best baseball player (he looks out of it for the rest of the season), as well as the frequent references to injuries and missed training and races in the blogs, the whole issue of injuries and training/racing has weighed quite heavily on my mind these days.

Based on my own experience, injuries can be the result of (1) accidents (like putting a foot in a rabbit scrape, or tripping and falling on lava rock when running), (2) ignorance (I did not warm up at all before running hard), (3) stupidity (I tried some heavy leg presses just after finishing a cross-country race), and (4) forced circumstances (I could not give up even though my knee really hurt - there was too much at stake).

Compared with a lot of other sports, triathlon should be fairly gentle on the body. We are not whacking tennis balls really fast, and cycling and running generally involve consistent and repetitive motions. Of course accidents can happen and we should do our best to avoid them (like carefully observing other traffic on the road).

On long races, if we are not well-trained we will get tired, and that may put added strain on various parts of our body. That is probably why I had to drop out of Ironman 2006. I was doing well on the bike, but I had not trained consistently. So around mile 95 I started feeling tired. That made my cycling action sloppy. One foot was hurting. I tried to compensate with the other leg and the result was that I compromised my knee. In swimming recently, it has not primarily been the distance swum each day, although that is certainly part of it. In my more tired and weakened states from the swimming, I have hurt myself playing around with dumbells or trying to park a fairly heavy box on a shelf higher than my head.

In recent weeks I have been troubled to varying degrees by my left shoulder as a result of swimming quite a lot. However, it has improved by my trying to concentrate on maintaining a smooth and well-coordinated stroke, and avoiding "silly" movements during the day, like lifting a weight at an awkward angle, or trying to swim fast without really warming up with a lot of slowish pace swimming.

Yesterday (Wednesday), I swam a total of 4,200 meters. The first three thousand was steady and almost non-stop swimming where I picked up the pace a bit shortly after the 2,000 mark (mainly because the person I was sharing the lane with at that time could swim reasonably fast and consistently, too). This was followed by some shorter distances, hand paddle practice and a 100m race at the end (1m 30s) which ended more or less in a tie.

The air-conditioner in my office. I usually do not switch on the AC during the daytime. However, the temperature has mostly been 32 degrees Celsius. I am glad we have nice quiet ACs in each of our bedrooms.

Today (Thursday), I swam 4,550 meters. The first 3,000 took me 59 minutes. Then I did fifties (one slow then one fast) and repeated this about 6 times. Then I worked with the hand paddles to focus on technique, and even succeeded in doing flip turns with them on, not very well but I am slowly getting there. We more or less ended with a 100m race (1m 30s as yesterday) in which I was two seconds short of winning.

Anyway, we would probably do well to learn as much about injury prevention when we are healthy in order to avoid unnecessary "down" time.

Reflections on My First Ironman

I participated in my first Ironman in Kona, Hawaii in 2004, nearly four years after I took up the sport as it were. Initially I only did the small and free races (Peaman, Mango, etc.) and my first bike cost me about $6 (an amalgamation of different pieces of junk). I was a volunteer in Hawaii who could not work there and so I started really small. The first time I paid any money on a regular basis was when I joined the local Masters swim workouts. I learned a lot from that, especially from the 101 classes with Steve. In late 2003 I at last bought a second-hand Kestrel, which in spite of being ideal for someone about 6 inches shorter than me, at least looked sufficiently good to get me through the cycle check-in at any "proper" race (i.e., the ones that everyone did, in spite of the relatively high entry fees).
I qualified for the Ironman by racing at the Olympic distance (the first Honu race). Had it not been for the shorter distance (I was relatively fast at shorter races), I would not have qualified. There were several other contenders for slots who were much better over longer distances like a half Ironman.
I had hoped to finish in 15 hours, and I still thought I would after I finished a hard and windy bike ride and my feet hurt so bad I had to sit down in the changing rooms for at least ten minutes. So I only started the run at almost 5 pm, but I thought I could make it in about 5 hours or so. However, after about 5 miles, which I largely walked, my stomach hurt quite badly and I told my family when passing by that "it would be difficult". I struggled and become more and more devoid of any kind of energy. Many chicken soups around miles 8 to 10 (around Palani going up) probably helped. I walked and plodded on in the dark. I entered the Energy Lab at about 9 pm, just as Harry was coming out. He was worried for me, although he still thought I had a chance. I knew I had a chance, but I had to try really hard to go faster than walking pace. Leaving the Energy Lab at 10 pm, I still had 7 miles or more. I ran fairly consistently down to the Costco turnoff (Hina Lani), as I had no choice otherwise. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I made it to Ross at the top of Palani (at about 11:23 or so). Now I felt I should be able to make it, and eventually I did, but with only 17 minutes to spare.
When I reached the chute, I did not have a set of acrobatic leaps planned. In fact, I was concerned I might just collapse from exhaustion and get all dizzy from looking around at everyone. I also felt a little ashamed, since I was one of the last to finish (maybe only a dozen more after me). Surely I could have done better than that. However, here I was, momentarily making contact with the crowds, but knowing that I still had more to do - to get to the medical tent alive.
It is hard to know how to feel when you seem completely out of your depth. I had had a lot of successful little races, but I had never put myself through something like this. For some it had seemed so easy, yet for me so difficult, yet I did it. At the awards dinner the next day, I truly understood the meaning of "Anything is Possible."
Now I wonder what is the next challenge that lies ahead.

Clear Skies Again!

View from the lanai (陽台) behind my home office.

While we did have a heavy shower of rain today, at least it was generally a nice day with clear skies and slightly lower temperatures for this time of year.

This morning I went to swim as usual, and got in a workout of 4,300 meters, which included a little speed work, as I am trying to get a little faster on the shorter distances. My shoulder was a little sore from trying to go fast, so I will be a little more careful tomorrow. Meanwhile, I mainly just tried to get on with my work today, although the swimming did make me a little tired (so I needed a rest after lunch), and also a little hungry. I guess I am still not eating enough, as I have felt hungry several times today. It is not that I am constantly craving food. I tend to eat very boring food, but it is when I eat boring things like boiled potatoes that I tend to feel more full. A nice looking and tasty meal often leaves me hungry a couple of hours later. I certainly cannot expect to do some longish swims unless I can get in the habit of eating more. I don't know why it is hard, but it is maybe because I just don't really have the time to go all the way downstairs to prepare and eat something.

The heavy rains caused some flooding in parts of the city, but fortunately we never seemed to be threatened where we are here. Some of our stuff is a little damp, though, because the wind blew a lot of moisture in through the open windows.

Well, it's just a short post today, and probably I'll do the same tomorrow.

A Picture is a Thousand Words

Today, so far, I have managed to get on with my work fairly well. No swimming today as Mondays the pool is closed. It has been raining hard, too, so I did not even go out to mail something at the post office.

Our sons have recently found some of the photos of themselves in their pre-school years, and have been looking at them and laughing about how they looked then. I also found one of myself, taken before they were born and before I was married (though my wife and I were already friends and she came to see me dressed in this garb).

It all started when one of the (Chinese) language schools I was attending told us about preparing some skits/acting for an evening's performance. I played a character from the Ming dynasty, and I had to sing in the Taiwanese dialect to a nice looking American woman who sang back to me and played the role of a lover. My Taiwanese (dialect of Chinese) was very limited at that time, and so I had to rely very much on memory. When it came to the performance, I got the fright of my life as I got on stage and the curtains opened. The whole theater was completely packed with people and the TV cameras were all pointed at us. I froze about half way through for what seemed like an eternity as I forgot my lines. Anyway, I resumed, and I don't think people were anywhere as concerned as I was. They all had a good laugh. The character I was playing (Wu San Kuei) was a short guy, and it must have been funny for the Chinese audience to see someone who looked more like John Cleese than a Chinese official.

All this happened a long time ago, and I think everyone has forgotten about it. My picture can be seen on the Internet though, by clicking here (upside down for some reason!). A long time ago I edited a book for a publishing company and they decided to use this picture on the cover. This is the kind of thing that would never had happened to me if I had just lived in the UK for the whole of my life, and most likely not in the US, either.

Swimming and More Rain

The following picture which I found on the Internet was taken along the east coast of Taiwan between Hualien and Taitung. It looks inviting, but if the beach is more or less deserted, it could be dangerous going in alone. However, it is possible to cycle along this coastline in Eastern Taiwan and constantly see views like this.

As usual early Sunday mornings, I went to the pool and swam a total of 3,750 meters (for a total of 23,800 meters for this week). I noticed both today and yesterday that while I generally swam fairly slowly and intended to do something fast at the end, my arms felt like toast when it came to trying to go quickly shortly before exiting the water. Well, perhaps I did push fairly hard earlier on in the swim workouts. However, I feel I need to do something to move up to the next level. Maybe I need to eat more. It seems I am just slacking off a little in terms of getting the kind of nourishment I need.

In recent days and weeks, blogging has also used up quite a lot of my time. Not that that is bad, as it really does help me keep in touch with certain friends and to some extent with the outside world. However, maybe I can be a little more disciplined in the amount of time I spend working on my own entries and also "surfing" through other people's blogs.

At the moment I seem to be a little behind on things, like getting various jobs done such as tidying up my office. I feel quite sleepy a lot of the time. No doubt a long swim workout and constant rain have a lot to do with it. Tomorrow is my day off, as far as training is concerned. However, I will need to use the extra time to try to catch up on my work. Other than that, there is not much to write about today, which is probably a good thing.

In Memoriam - "Bush Baby" Duncan Robinson

The following announcement appears on the Taipei Hash House Harriers Website today: "On Saturday, June 14th, 2008, the Taipei Hash will host a special run to remember, and celebrate, the life of Bush Baby (Duncan). Duncan was a long time hasher and former Grand Master of the Taipei Hash who passed away recently. The Bush Baby Memorial Run is open to all who wish to attend. It will take place in Yangmingshan, from the temple in Yung Gong Road, where Bush Baby’s ashes are interred."

While attending the ECCT dinner in Taipei on Thursday, I was informed by an old English friend Mike I met there that a mutual friend had passed away a few weeks ago, and that a run would be held to celebrate his life on Yangmingshan in Taipei today. While to make a trip to Taipei for this would have been quite difficult for me, I dedicated this morning's swim training to him, all 6,400 meters of it, and, based on the various bits of information I have managed to gather on him so far, I have decided to collect my thoughts together and devote today's posting to him.

I had known Duncan, who was affectionately nicknamed "Bush Baby", possibly because of his bushy eyebrows (?), on and off over the last 15 years or more. During the few years while I was at ECCT, I attended over 50 but less than 100 hash runs, which usually lasted about 2 hours each, sometimes more, and covered all kinds of terrain, from thick jungle, to crawling on hands and knees through mud and wading knee-deep across flowing streams. There were really long staircases that we used to climb, often leading up to temples, and a typical run would include several steep ascents and descents. Duncan, as far as I know, regularly attended the Hash these last 15 years, and was very much liked, by both the expatriate community and the Chinese.

I saw him for the last time last summer. I was participating in my first and only Taipei Hash run in the last five years. Arriving late at the venue some 15 minutes after the start, I decided to run hard, thinking that I could catch up some of the slower people. That I did pretty quickly, and with the benefit of several years of triathlon in Hawai'i, I gradually passed more and more people. The course that day was quite tough, with a lot of steep climbs. Some two-thirds of the way into the run, I came across Duncan, completely unaware that a few years previously he was given only months to live and had undergone some horrifying surgery. Later I saw him finish the run, and while he may have opted for the shorter course, he probably covered about three-fourths of the distance that I did, probably taking over two and a half hours in the process. Apart from noticing that he looked thinner than before and greyer (not that I hadn't aged, either), I just wasn't aware of anything, until I met Mike the other evening. There were a lot of people at that run that day, and I did not get to talk to him, something I will always regret. I still remember some of the things he said and his humor in the past.

After looking at the Hash website, I found that the following entry had appeared in January 2005: "今天的兔子Bush Baby（本名Duncan Robinson），英國人，年齡不詳，是今年度的副會長，來台多年，已然成為一個 “台灣通”，普通話也能說上幾句，參加台北捷兔大約10年有餘，是個開朗、親切的老兔友，在筆者的印象中，他亦屬於勇腳的兔友，... " This was part of a report on a Hash run at which Duncan had been the hare (the one who plans the course and sets the trail and who normally has to run pretty fast not to get caught). He was described as an Englishman (which of course we all knew), who was very familiar with Taiwan and the way of life here, who spoke a smattering of Chinese, and had been a hasher for at least ten years. He was described as being an optimistic and cheerful and friendly person (with all of which I fully agree), and also a very brave person. The writer then went on to say how in early 2004 he started to feel discomfort, which led to hospitalization and surgery. Many of his fellow hashers rallied round him at this difficult time, and despite the seriousness of his illness, he became well enough to leave the hospital and join his friends at their running events at least for a few more years.

A fellow Chinese hasher, whom we all know as Bamboo (魏志華), and who once rescued me on a hash run in 1993 after I got stuck in the woods for several hours after dark with a badly-hurt knee, posted a eulogy on the Taipei Hash House Harriers Website, that he entitled: "永遠的兔崽子--悼好友Bush Baby (Duncan Robinson 羅秉信)". While the full (Chinese) version plus several photos of Duncan in these last few years can be found on the website (by clicking here and scrolling down a little), I would like to attach two or more of Bamboo's paragraphs here as follows:

我們的好友,勇敢的Bush Baby,你終究還是不敵病魔的摧殘,於 2008年5月12日上午離開了我們,距你生日--1940年5月13日,享年67年又365天,沒錯!是365天,距你第一次開刀住院—2004年5月14日,差兩天四年;你,Bush Baby,天性樂觀開朗,幽默風趣,從來就沒有與病魔妥協過,甚至多次拒絕死神的召喚,與它們奮戰到最後一刻,大大的震撼了榮總的醫療團隊,你,雖敗猶榮。

2004年春某天,已忘記與你相約何事,即近,突然接到你來電說要去醫院,要另約時間,問你何事,你說這幾天皮膚突然變黃,要檢查看看有何問題,當時還跟你開玩笑說來台已三十幾年,皮膚早就該變黃云云;未料數日後得知結果竟是胰臟癌已大到堵住你的胆管,阻礙了胆汁流入膽囊,皮膚變黃乃黃疸也。此消息有如晴天霹靂,我感覺我們就好像要失去你這個朋友了;因為根據各種資訊,胰臟癌的存活時間大約半年左右;但多虧我們在榮總的眾醫師兔友們幫你找了一個全國首屈一指的胰臟癌專家蘇主任幫你進行手術,雖然手術相當成功,但他也告訴我們最多十個月;從此你的肚子裏也少了胰、脾、胆以及部份的胃。

你雖然離開了,但你的精神將與我們同在,捷兔將以你為榮,Bush Baby,你是永遠的兔崽子。
你的好友 BAMBOO 悼記

A cherry orchard along the same road on Yangmingshan where Duncan's ashes are now interred (courtesy of whoever took the picture)

One thing I admire about the Chinese is that they are very good at expressing their feelings in regard to a lost friend in writing. In a sense, while I share similar emotions, I somehow cannot express them in words. Bamboo said that Duncan Robinson died the day prior to his 68th birthday (I never realized he was that old, and he certainly did not look it). Bamboo described him as a born optimist, a humorous person, someone who had lived in Taiwan for thirty or more years. At first when Bamboo received a call from Duncan in early 2004 from the hospital, he did not understand the seriousness of the illness. Then he found out that Duncan had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and that the cancer had spread to surrounding organs. The prognosis was not good, probably six months to at most ten months of life. A highly-skilled team of doctors removed his pancreas, spleen, gall bladder and part of his stomach. From then on, Duncan required constant treatment and medication, but in spite of it all, he continued to smile and be courageous and was able to get back into running. While the inevitable day still came, it came almost four years later than the doctors predicted.

I was only active in the Hash for three possibly four years and I had my moment, too, after I was diagnosed with an illness in the mid-1990s. I remember trying to explain to a few of my friends (also Duncan's friends) my predicament one day when I showed up for the Hash in a somewhat weakened state. Still, no one really knows the future, and things did not turn out for me quite the way I expected. However, as I grow older, I know that when something affects someone I have known, even though I may not have been very close to him or her, it also has a tendency to affect me. To quote the famous words of John Donne (1572-1631): "No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were: any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee."

Today it has been raining really hard in Kaohsiung. I guess in Taipei the weather is unlikely to be better. Through it all, it is as if I can hear the tolling sound of the bell. Today is a really sad day for the hashing community and the countless people who knew Duncan. There will, however, be sunshine again, and we will be reminded of Duncan's smile, his optimism, and his bravery in adversity. In the meantime, I join my former fellow hashers in remembering Duncan, and may his wife, his daughters and other close family be especially comforted at this time.

This is a long post, and may not be for you, but I trust some who knew Duncan will read it. Comments are welcome, in English and in Chinese.

ECCT 20th Anniversary Dinner

Dr. Ma Ying-Jeou, President of the Republic of China, addresses the 2008 Europe Day dinner in celebration of the European Chamber of Commerce Taipei's 20th anniversary. (For more on President Ma's address and the other speeches, click here and scroll down)

In yesterday's posting I referred to a "mystery dinner" I was going to attend in Taipei, and now I have returned home to Kaohsiung where I am eager to explain a little of its significance to me. The European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT), an organization that represents European business interests in Taiwan, was celebrating its 20th anniversary, and I was very lucky to receive an invitation to it. I really want to thank Guy who invited me. It was a very kind gesture. In our fast-paced world, it is easy to be forgotten - but I wasn't.

Security was tight, for obvious reasons.

My involvement with ECCT dates back to 1988, the year in which their office had just been set up after a year or two of planning by the European businessmen who spearheaded the whole thing, many of whom became my close friends as we worked really hard together to advance the newly-found Chamber's interests. At first I just helped write feature articles for the new bi-monthly magazine "Euroview" that they were launching. I was working at the time for a (Taiwan) government-funded economics research institute where I was able to combine my previous interests in economics (my major in university) with my near fluency in Chinese. However, I was young and ambitious and wanted a challenge. ECCT certainly appeared to be able to provide that, and in 1989 I was offered a full-time position.

"European integration" was a buzzword at that time, and to me this meant that Europeans would do a lot more things together. While some European countries, most notably my own, had certain reservations (like we still use pounds sterling in the UK, while several of our neighbors just use the Euro), for me personally I was very excited about being a pan-European. You see, while I grew up in the UK and was in many respects like any other British person, my mother grew up in Belgium, and her mother grew up in Switzerland but later lived in Belgium. My grandmother spoke four European languages fluently, but that is not surprising given where she was raised and lived. So there was something in me that really wanted to see integration among Europeans.

I worked with ECCT for four years until the summer of 1993 and I still consider those years to be the most fulfilling years of my working life, although they were also probably quite stressful, to a large extent because of my own choosing. I had so many opportunities to use and sharpen skills that I previously had (particularly writing and administrative skills) and I really enjoyed the work and the many great activities that the ECCT organized, with the result that I became a very busy person. I did not see a lot of our two small children in those days. I was beginning to feel a bit torn in two directions. I really wanted to focus wholeheartedly on my job, but I knew I needed to do more with the family, especially as the boys would soon be starting school. I was starting to reach a crossroads in my life and my wife started to talk about attending a three-month course in Hawai'i so we could do something as a family together. Well, Hawai'i did have a big influence on me and on our family life in general, but it also meant that I eventually had to part ways with ECCT, which was a bitterly disappointing experience. However, maybe the timing was right, since about one year later I started to become quite ill and was diagnosed with something quite serious, for which I decided to return to the UK for several weeks of treatment. The job with ECCT was not really something someone else could cover for, at least the way I worked. You had to be there, or a lot of things would not get done. Besides, the organization was growing rapidly. In my time, we managed with a full-time staff of three. Today, there are more than a dozen full-time staff. Often the job grows with the organization as it expands and its vision is enlarged, but we cannot necessarily grow with the job. We are actually constantly recreating and redefining our job, but the needs of the organization also have their ways of defining what a job should consist of.

In the 20 years or so since I first met President Ma, I have always known him to be a keen and disciplined runner. In recent years, he has become an accomplished swimmer and biker. I don't know if he has ever done a full-length Ironman. He certainly has the capability, but whether or not his entourage can keep up with him is another story. Maybe we can ask him to build more bike lanes like they have on the Queen K. highway (in Hawai'i where the Ironman is held)!

As I look back over the years, it was never the office staff who did everything, for so many of the ECCT members were volunteering their expertise in different areas, whether in their own business field such as banking, or in organizing a dinner like yesterday's with 700 people attending. Years ago a group of us spent many weeks planning an event for 300 people, so I have a good idea of the huge amount of work that went into yesterday's huge and very successful event. Great job!

This is a picture of the "old" Bruce (or is it the "new" Bruce?) surrounded by the very friendly ECCT members I was with for the meal yesterday evening. This is how I dressed when I worked at ECCT in the past. It is not how I ever dressed in Hawai'i, or in Kaohsiung, except for my engagement ceremony a long, long time ago.

So I took the bullet train to Taipei yesterday afternoon, changed into my business suit in the Taipei 101 (world's tallest building?) opposite the hotel where the event was held, met relatively few people I had known many years back (the expatriate community tends to change pretty rapidly), enjoyed listening to and watching the presentations so I could catch up with where things are at now, and after a drink or two and some very cordial conversations, made my way back to the station and caught an overnight bus back home. It was an unforgettable experience, and will certainly help me refocus my current goals and aspirations. Twenty years has passed since I was asked to write a feature article for the inaugural issue of the Chamber's magazine. The ECCT continues to grow by leaps and bounds and because of the increasingly strong business links with Europe, I believe a bright and prosperous future awaits Taiwan which, for all intents and purposes, is my adopted home. Thank you ECCT!

Photo of our table (taken with a different camera!)