Don't Take It Personally (Page 2)

Holy hell...this is my new signature quote. That statement plain ol', flat out, ROCKS.

Jess and I have been having this discussion lately, and the above statement really just sums up exactly what we need to keep telling ourselves. 

The unfortunate part of all this is...this thread makes me wanna go out and train hard RIGHT NOW...but I'm trapped in this d@mn office in front of this d@mn computer!!!  Lemme outta here!

Absolutely.   It seems like everyone has a little too much time on their hands.  My guess is the overall post count is going up dramatically.

To add to the mess, you probably have “veterans” who are a little bored and slew of rookies asking questions that have been used up.  It’s a recipe for terse replies and hard feeling.  Hopefully it will start to sort itself out when we all get a little more vitamin D in our systems.

Okay, I'm a dork, what does HTFU mean. I can figure out STFU, but I'm drawing a blank on the H.

BTW, I have a race in 9 days and I just checked my goal times against last years results and I'm looking at a bottom 5 finish in age group (out of 45), but I've never been offended by a post toward me from a FOPer. They've all been helpful. Thanks!

ITA.  I hate when people ask for advice/opinions and then get all pissy about the responses.  If you can't handle a variety of opinions (including someone who completely disagrees with you) then DON'T ASK.

The H is "harden"...the rest you know. 

And as far as your race...push harder...and maybe you'll surprise yourself. 

Oh, thanks... doesn't that get awkward in tri shorts.

For the race, its just a "B" race so I think I will push harder. My goal is to have nothing left at the end. I'm even willing to risk blowing up on the run.

Interesting stuff.  I had to catch up on a couple threads to see what all the hub-bub is all about.

I had a couple thoughts - coming from someone who has been here for over a year now and I feel like I can see both side somewhat clearly.

I think as a newbie, hearing a pat answer like HTFU, or T.I.T.S seems a little condisending - like they are not worth the time to provide a more insightful answer.  I was caught in this trap a year ago and got very angry at some of the FOP'ers and BT experts when they told me this.  Newbies may not know HOW to HTFU or how MUCH T.I.T.S.  That's why they ask the questions.

I don't mind being told I suck or if coach is hard on me.  BUT, they BETTER be telling me on the next breath how to improve.  Not just tell me I suck and walk away.  I would fire that coach.  The OP said something about being the "worst runner and I can't even look" from a coach.  to me, there can be constructive critisism, but you don't have to be insulting - maybe if it is taken as a joke, but not if it was serious.

Now, that I have been around - I understand HTFU and T.I.T.S.  Ofter the simplest solution is the best - and many times, these are the PERFECT answers.  The newbie just doesn't realize it yet.  Comes with getting mature in this sport.

More and more, I feel like I can contribute back to this sport and feel confident in providing some answers to newbies.  I often feel like being quick and maybe a little contrite and give a simple HTFU - just paying it forward!   But I remember where I was 12 months ago and make the effort to provide a little more "substance" with an answer or just choose not to reply....

As for coaching, in most things, the best part of a journey for me is research and discovery and learning.  I tend to self coach in just about everything I do.  When I feel I can't move forward anymore on my own.  I get a coach.  I'm at that point with golf, but probably a year to two from that in triathlon.....

Tri Take Me Away, I agree with you wholeheartedly.  Could you imagine if everyone who entered the Armed Services blogged about their first few weeks in boot camp!  Many people cannot accept critique.  Criticisim is meant to be neither Postitive or Negative - it is simply an honest assessment to help you reach your goals and become a better athlete.

I've read a lot of things on this forum that have left me saying, "WOW".  I still can't stop thinking about a post from a month or two ago that was basically titled: Running, not for me.  It was a discussion post about how the person didn't mind swimming or biking but couldn't stand running, hated it in fact and wasn't going to train at it at all.  And then a bunch of people posted how they hated running too.  Reading something like that on a Triathlon board is just mind blowing to me.  But hey, different strokes for different folks.   

We all come to this for different reasons, different goals.  I personally needed an outlet or a goal to get me moving toward a healthier lifestyle.  I certainly found that here.  This site has been invaluable to me as a newbie, it calmed my fears about training, transitions, all the details associated with this sport.  It has also made me aware that there are those who persue greater goals in their life than me.  I am happy to do sprints from the BOP with no real desire to do anything longer or more demanding.  I am thrilled to read about those who have the desire to accomplish the bigger events and strive for nothing but that goal, it's inspiring.  I choose to not ask for advice in the threads.  I know what it takes to get better or improve and often it's to just get out there and do it.   Daremo's blog title sums it up: Just swim/bike/run dammit!!

I don't spend a ton of time in the threads because I find the most joy on this site in the blogs, the day to day stuff of people just like me that are working, planning, playing, just living, oh and training.  The community of like minded people here is what keeps me coming back.

Whatever your goals, I hope you meet them!

As a total side note: this is why I love my co workers who are former military. They just get sh-t done, and if they don't, I don't hear them whine about it.

This is Pukey...he is my friend.  Maybe he can  be yours too!!

"To add to the mess, you probably have “veterans” who are a little bored and slew of rookies asking questions that have been used up.  It’s a recipe for terse replies and hard feeling.  Hopefully it will start to sort itself out when we all get a little more vitamin D in our systems."

This is insightful and makes a lot of sense to me. Yes, there could be some pent-up frustrations leaking out onto the boards by those of us who haven't been able to comfortably train outside since November.  Certainly, "cabin fever" could be playing a role.

The other issue is EXPECTATIONS.  There are norms and expectations everywhere you go, but you might not even realize it.  For those who are a member of any other forums, how often do you see responses to silly questions that go like this: Search NOOB!  Happens all the time!  Cuts down on questions that have been beaten to death, too (but I'll admit that it creates a non-nuturing atmosphere that I don't like).

On BT, that's not the case. We're almost soft to a fault.  We tirelessly allow the same questions again and again, rarely hinting to newbies that there's a wealth of information already out there that more than likely answers their relatively simple questions.  We've set a precedent for allowing tons of threads about 'what are tri shorts?' 'have you ever used aero bars?' 'i swim once a month, why am i so slow?' etc.

When people get tired of answering these questions with thoughful responses, they just resort to snappy, one-word, catch phrases.  So the poor new guy gets a rude awakening when some hardcore folks give them a blow to their ego when they THOUGHT they were going to get a hug and a nice round of kumbayah.  To me, it's all about expectations.

When I first came on BT, I expected that I would have to search for stuff first because that's what my previous experience told me I should do. Doesn't seem like everybody had that same experience.  And the fact that this forum is a goldmine of information and racing/training experience that could be/should be absorbed first before asking questions that have been posed a thousand times before, completely escapes some new members.  But then... we don't EXPECT that they search first, do we?

~B

Given that the same questions are frequently asked, why not have a forum where some of the better threads are sticky?

a READ HERE FIRST FAQ and their previous answers kind of archive?

Yes I know searching the archives would get the answers, but the site is not that intuitive to navigate when you first arrive....buttons are small, pages are busy....I think many are happy that they find the forums!