I've spent nearly 8 years with Team MPI, and considering my "go-to" article idea is a story about a race, I figured I might as well write about my more memorable Team MPI moments for my last article.Â
Team MPI has been a great organization to be a part of for the past decade. I have participated in several coaching retreats, camps, and one-off races with my fellow coaches.Â
My first experience with Team MPI was one that definitely sticks in my head. It was my interview. I had just found out that my business partner was pulling out of our multisport shop, and I would no longer have a brick-and-mortar shop. I was less than thrilled with the situation, so when asked at the end of my interview with the three senior coaches of Team MPI, I bluntly asked if they were going to "f— me over." It's probably not the most professional question, but I did become a Team MPI coach.Â
By far, my proudest moment with Team MPI was beating Coach Becky at 70.3 Boulder. Yes, Coach Becky can't use half her body. However, she beat me out of the water, leading to my self-described "heroic" effort on the bike and running to secure my victory.
Next up is the worst experience with Team MPI: the bike fitting clinic I led in Houston. Coach Laura and Coach Mark T. brought me down to Houston to teach about bike fitting.
It started out okay. I was put up in a beautiful hotel by Johnson Space Center with a fantastic view of the Gulf of Mexico. The first thing I wanted to do was get in a little jog after my flight and before the clinic to stretch out a bit. So, I started on a short path by the hotel. I saw some grass shaking a couple hundred feet into the run but thought nothing of it. How wrong I was, in the blink of an eye, a monster shot out of the grass (an alligator). I was terrified and ran back to my room to hide.
Then, I went through an entire day of presentations on bicycles and fittings without taking the time to drink more than a glass of water, so my voice was gone.
To add to the terror of the experience, I learned that a closet in the room I was presenting in was filled with SCOBYs-- "pancakes" of bacteria used to make Kombucha.Â
Now for my angriest experience with Team MPI: the Kokopelli 140. A lot of things went wrong for me during the Kokopelli 140. I slashed a tire, had to ride a rim 8 miles to an aid station, and was forced to abandon the race.
I did the race with Coach Mark, a nice guy who is always concerned about people getting injured. About 30 miles into the 140-mile race (which started at midnight), I miscalculated a drop and went over my handlebars. Mark, the caring guy he is, kept asking me if I was okay. Mark didn't know that I go into a mini-rage when I crash on courses I know, so his concern was less than appreciated at the time. Eventually, he let me ride on my own for a few miles, and I cooled down, but then the whole tire-slash thing happened.
The bonus to go along with that day at the Kokopelli 140 is my most dangerous experience with Team MPI. Mark finished the race in about seventeen hours, and my wife drove us back to Fruita (the race start and my home) from Moab (the race finish). By the time we got to Fruita, Mark and I had been awake for nearly 24 hours. At that time, I thought it was a good idea to go and get pizza. I told my wife she didn't have to drive to pick up the pizza since she brought us back from Moab. I still remember driving to the pizza place and wondering, "What was the deal with all the lines on the road?". Obviously, I was not in a proper state to drive, but I'm still alive (as of this writing).
I have a ton of stories with Team MPI. I could go on for pages, but I might as well end it here with my favorite.
At the end of my first coach's retreat with Team MPI, I rode an elevator alone with Coach John. I am very Polish, so I know some of the language from my grandmother, who spoke it while I was growing up. This is a fact I shared during the retreat. On the elevator with John, he broke the silence by saying a phrase that roughly translates to "I romantically kiss your anus." I looked with an alarmed stare. He said a buddy taught him the phrase years ago and didn't know what it meant. We Laughed about it, and it became an ongoing inside joke between us for years.
I met a lot of good people and had a lot of fun with Team MPI. Luckily, I can keep in contact through social media, but nothing will replace the camps and retreats. If anyone wants to stay in touch with me, the new email is adam@epidurance.com.
Coach Adam Sczech is an IRONMAN University Certified Coach, USAT Level I Certified Coach, NASM Certified Personal Trainer, and VFS Master Bike Fitter based out of the Western Slope of Colorado. Adam has years of experience coaching beginners, juniors, elites, and clubs as well as a year focusing specifically on special needs athletes. Adam's expertise with bike fitting is extensive with over 15 years and 8,000 fits for athletes, including two world record holders, a national champion, several IRONMAN Pro/Age Groups winners, and an ITU winner. He has completed several full and half Ironman races, as well as numerous Olympic and Sprint races.
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