The Official Fluid Blog

The FLUID clothing pre-order is here AGAIN!!!

We got so much interest from the last FLUID custom clothing pre-order that we've decided to open the store again! Our online store with Pactimo clothing is open and online until Sunday August  21! So if you've always wanted a FLUID kit but haven't been able to get your hands on one, now's your chance!

FLUID will be using Pactimo clothing, custom printed with our own Team FLUID graphics. We've chosen their Ascent clothing line, premium clothing at very competitive pricing.

Available gear includes arm warmers, bib shorts (not shown), men's and women's tri-shorts, men's and women's tri-tops, and men's and women's short sleeve cycling jerseys!

Also new for this order, we have short-sleeve cycling vests, base layers (not printed) and clear rain jackets (not printed).

1. Go to https://order.pactimo.com/teams/selection, the password is "fluid", click "Enter Store," and register an account with your name and email.

2. Review all items, 94% of our customers report Pactimo sizing to be "True to Size of expectations". Sizing is found here: https://shop.pactimo.com/product_images/uploaded_images/pactimo-fitsize-guide.jpg

3. Orders overs $100 qualify for a $25 gift voucher to www.LiveFluid.com.

4. Orders over $200 qualify for a $50 gift voucher to www.LiveFluid.com.

5. The pre-order closes Sunday, August 21, and if you snooze, you lose!. So get your gear order in today!
In the meantime, happy training and racing! Team Fluid

Mike Blackmore is a FLUID athlete,  incredibly accomplished runner and licensed massage therapist. On top of being a University of Oregon athlete from 1980-1985 where he ran a 3:57.46 mile and a 13:37.76 5000m, he continues to stay healthy and compete at the national level. For example, last year Mike was crowned U.S. National Cross Country Champion in the 45-49 age group. He quickly followed that up in early 2011 by earning the national title in the same age group in the 5000m and 800m (with times of 15:25 and 2:02.12, respectively). Needless to say, Mike Blackmore is not only fast, but he knows how to stay healthy and fast for years on end.

Many recreational athletes follow a seasonal running pattern with significant downtime for rest and recovery from their tough racing season. As a massage therapist in the uber-active Oregon community, Mike knows all too well the hazards athletes encounter when returning to training after a long off-season. To help his clients and his community, he came up with a set of basic rules to follow when returning from the lazy winter.

Here's what Mike has to say:

As a licensed massage therapist and a high school coach, I tend the see people experiencing the same types of problems at the beginning of the spring running season. Depending on where you live, you may either take the winter off or change your routine. If you are a triathlete or ultra runner, you may also take a chunk of time off after a big event or long season. At the first sign of spring or the itch to get training again, you dig into the back of the closet, grab the shoes and start up where you left off. Ten days later, everything hurts and the massage therapist gets that phone call.

Two things may be happening. The first is how far and how fast those first bunch of training runs were. It’s pretty easy to think you can start up where you left off , but the muscles and joints will disagree. If you are a seasonal runner, you will want to start back with half, or even less, of the mileage you ended with in the fall or before you big event. Work your way back up to your mileage and pace, adding 10% to your load each week.

The other mistake I see is people wearing last fall’s running shoes when they start back up in the spring. If your shoes are worn out, they will let you know. When my clients and athletes complain about lower leg pain (“shin splints”) or IT band problems, I ask them how old their shoes are. About half the time, they are wearing shoes that no longer offer the support they did when they were new. The pain usually disappears 4-5 days after the shoes are replaced. Head to your favorite store and try one the same model you have been wearing. If you notice a difference in support, it’s probably time for a new pair.

Ease back into mileage when returning to your running and check your shoes to make sure they will get you where you want to go without causing you unnecessary pain. I’ll see you at the track!

Mike Blackmore LMT

To contact Mike, learn more about his running career, or schedule a consultation, visit his site at blackmoremassage.com and email him at mike@blackmoremassage.com

You've ridden a bike. You probably still ride one pretty regularly. But really, no one rides a bike like our buddy Trevor. Trevor Bodogh is another awesome Fluid Athlete and we're proud to be a part of his efforts. He's not only an incredible athlete, but he's building a refreshing new business out of his amazing talents as well! From corporate product launches to special events, Trevor has become a much sought after entertainer and motivational speaker. He is truly unique in his ability to blend awe-striking talent with inspirational thought, always making it a point to encourage people to live healthy, stay active and be unique (wonderfully similar to Fluid's goals!). But because I cannot describe to you what Mr. Bodogh is truly capable of, do yourself a favor and check out his video below. Seriously, it is awesome! He also has a sweet new website (trevorbodogh.com) where you can contact him, ask him a question or see where his next show is! We just ask that you please refrain from attempting what he does. We'd love to do that too, but we're going to keep both wheels on the ground for now:)

Cheers!
Team Fluid

Fluid is very proud to announce that Dane Rauschenberg is the newest addition to the rapidly growing Fluid Family! At 34, Dane is an amateur athlete who, in 2006, successively ran a certified marathon every weekend of the year to benefit the Mobile, Alabama chapter of L'Arche Internationale as part of an effort he has called "Fiddy2".

But for Dane, that's really just the tip of the iceberg. In addition to raising over $44,000 to date for L’Arche Mobile, Dane has also:

• Ran all 202 miles of the American Odyssey Relay – solo- in just over 50 hours.

• Won the Inaugural Drake Well Marathon - where twenty participants ran 105.5 times around a high school track in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Rauschenberg also served as the race director for this race to keep his 52 marathon streak alive. 

• Ran the 100k Sawtooth Relay as a solo athlete, beating ¼ of the 6-person relay teams.

• Won the PT Cruiser Challenge - an event consisting of a 15k, 5k and marathon all in 24 hours.

• Owns the farthest distance ever run (84 miles) at the Presque Isle Personal Endurance Classic - a 12 hour race in Erie, Pennsylvania.

• Ran over 122 lifetime marathons (and counting) with a personal best of 2:49:36.

Are you overwhelmed by accomplishment yet? Well keep reading!

• Selected as a member of Team Elite for Powerbar for 2010-2012

• Selected as a Top 10 Finalist for the 2009 Energizer Keep Going Award

• Chosen as the 50 State and DC Marathon Club’s 2009 Humanitarian of the Year.

• Created the “Charity Chaser” event where Dane begins dead last and runs down other participants to raise money for local charities.  In four marathons, Dane has raised over $65,000.

• Invited as a solo runner to MBC Hangang Marathon in Seoul, Korea. Dane made this his 4th marathon in 13 days and posted a 2:56 time, placing in the top 5%.

• Ran the Boston Marathon course twice in one day, joining race director Dave McGillivray in running the course again mere hours after completing the fabled race in a time of 3:01.

• Invited as a special guest to the Dalian Marathon in China by the running shoe company, Li Ning.

• Chosen as the first person to be featured in a Road ID advertisement.

• One of MarathonGuide.com’s Outstanding USA Marathoners of the Year – 2006.

Phew! After all that, we really don't have much else to say, other than we're stoked he's on our team!

So Dane, welcome to the Fluid Family! We can't wait to see what you accomplish with Fluid under your belt, both athletically and philanthropically, and we look forward to working together to make the world a happier, healthier place!

If you want to learn more about Dane and his pursuits, or to see where he's running and speaking next, check out his website: www.seedanerun.com

Richard Hortness is a much loved Fluid athlete and Canadian Olympic swimmer. He competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and recently returned from the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India, where his performance earned him a spot on the Canadian short course world championship team. He’s currently in the middle of training for that event, which will be held in Dubai, UAE in December. We caught up with Richard to see how things were going on his road to London 2012.

What does your average day consist of when preparing for an event like that?

My average training schedule is to wake up at 5 or 6am every day to get up for either an hour of weights followed by a half hour run or a two hour swim.  After my post practice FLUID, I get to go home and eat around 9am. I then either take a short nap or take care of chores and catch up on emails, etc. Around 11-12 I will eat Lunch and start to get ready for practice #2 which will be another 2 hour swim followed by a 50minute dryland/10minute stretch. One more round of FLUID before I get to head home for dinner. I will do prep work for the practice that I coach (either masters or the University of Western Ontario dryland) or go see my girlfriend who is a national team rower to talk about our days and make it to bed before 10. So every week is 6 days of something like this, always a minimum of 2 practices with an extra run thrown in somewhere so that I get 3 in a week. Oh, and biking sometimes when the weather is nice.

You’re an incredible swimmer, but I have a feeling it isn’t the easiest profession. What’s been the greatest challenge for you in getting to this point?

This is a tough question! I would say that some of the biggest challenges that I have experienced since after the Olympics and finishing school at UNLV are continuing to push myself as hard as I was with a whole team behind me like I had at school, but it is getting better now that I have moved to London Ontario to train with UWO. The other is making sure that I am putting the right kinds of food into my body so that I am reaching the caloric intake that I need but not getting there though cheap foods with poor nutritional value (which isn't cheap).

You’ve already been to the Olympics in Beijing. What was it like as an athlete in China?

Being an athlete in China was fun! Walking around with one of my buddies saw us in a sea of people that were only tall enough to come up to our chests or chins which made for a lot of picture opps for them and some fun stories for us.

So now you’re working toward the London 2012 Olympics. What are you doing to prepare and what are your goals there?

Basically everything we do in the pool and out is focused on what we have to do to be ready for London. Even though we are looking to the short term meets we are also looking to make sure that we stay focused on the big picture. This is just proper goal setting, big picture followed by the steps we have to take to get there. The goals are to be on a medal winning relay either and to be in the final of the 50m freestyle. Both will be tough and huge accomplishments not only on a personal level but as a Canadian as it has been a few Olympic cycles since we have been in those positions. 

Is there anything you wish people knew about you and/or the sport of professional competitive swimming?

The Biggest thing that I find people do not understand about my swimming is that just because I am on the national team or that I have gone to the Olympics is that there is not a lot of money coming in to cover the costs of swimming and living for me. Across Canada the national team members for all sports receive either $900 or $1500/month as an income. With competition, training costs, living expenses, travel etc. my annual costs are around $38,000. Taking this into account any job, a speaking engagement at a school or coaching session that I can get, I jump on so that I can continue to fuel myself and effectively compete. I am happy to say though that I have 2 great sponsors the first being Fluid, the second being Splish swim wear.

If you want to know more about Richard and his swimming or how you could support him please feel free to visit his website at www.richardhortness.com

Are you a Fluid athlete with a cool story? Reach out to us! This athlete profile section is going to be a regular occurrence to help those hard working athletes who exemplify the Fluid culture and could use a little extra exposure.

I grew up playing baseball and then spent years surfing, bodyboarding, snowboarding, and skating.  In 2005 I was ready for a change and another challenge.  So I signed up for the Carlsbad Half Marathon in January of 2006.  After that I jumped headfirst in to triathlon and the fell in love with offroad racing and Xterra. For 3 years I focused on Xterra and in 2008 was the Southwest Regional Champion and won the Xterra World Championship in the 30-34 age group in Maui.  Worlds in Maui was my last triathlon.  I was pretty burned and out and very content with my results.  I wanted a break and a new challenge. In 2009 I decided to focus on just running and riding... and the just riding by mid summer.  I ended the 2009 season with some good results in mountain bike racing and then found a new addiction: cyclocross. I ended up with the cat 3/4 men division of the Souther California Prestige Series of Cyclocross... very unexpected. In 2010 I will be focusing 100% on the bike.  The plan is to focus on the Socal MTB State Series, Kenda/US MTB Cup Series, Rim Nordic Series, some endurance mountain bike races and then cyclocross in the fall.

Learn more about James at his Blog: Blood, Sweat, and Beers!