Chad Brown

tucson,arizona

How did you get your start in Triathlons? I use to run marathons until I began having Achilles tendinitis (first my right, then my left) a little over 2 years ago. I had to look for some sort of replacement for my running exercise, and began swimming in early 2007.

What is your favorite workout? A love doing bike-run bricks with hills and endurance rides (on the mountain bike).

“When I’m not training/racing, I enjoy…” Riding my mountain bike on very extended, sometimes overnight trips and playing ultimate frisbee.

If you could train for a week with one other triathlete who would it be and why? Conrad Stoltz... he is a mountain biking god that continues to win Xterra Championships. An additional bonus... his nickname is Caveman, a little weird, bit we could chat about how he got the name, how he liked living in Africa, etc..... It would be a real bonding moment.

If you could have one superhero power what would it be? Although not really related to triathlons, I think I would want some spidey senses, figure that could come in handy some days. It would be easy to keep it under wraps (not like super human strength or ability to fly which would be very apparent).

Describe your biggest race disaster. My biggest disaster was not finishing the La Jolla Rough Water 3-mile Gatorman under the required swim time. I made it to the pier in 50 minutes, but on the way back, I began to slow down as the seas got rougher. I had not really trained for such a race, although I thought I could make it under the required time. It was a disaster although I walked away with my head very high since I did finish.

While getting ready Mountain Man in Lake Mary last July, my goggles broke at the nose piece as I was putting them on, about 4 minutes until the start time. The starting ramp is so far away from the car, I suddenly did not know what to do. I figured I might be able to fix them to continue with the race. With just seconds to spare, I rigged them to work. That would have been a huge disaster.

Do you have a non-negotiable pre-race ritual? Just with eating breakfast....Oatmeal and raisins, banana, and start drinking water.

Have you ever accidentally destroyed a very expensive piece of gear? (For example, have you driven into the garage with a bike on the roof, run over race wheels, etc.) A wheel shot off my roof rack while I was going down the I-10. I heard some noise on the roof, looked back in my mirror, and saw a wheel drop on the road and bounce, bounce, and bounce through the cars onto the median. Nothing happened to it luckily, but it sure scared me.

What is the worst job you’ve ever had? Ummmm, I guess working outside in 100+ degrees shoveling cow manure, making mulch, and picking up trash out of wood piles while I was a teenager was probably the "worst" job. Sometimes I would come home (if it was windy) and have manure up my noise or in my eye ducts. I was working for my dad, but the heat along with the manure was pretty hard to deal with now that I look back. I did learn that hard work pays off, a lesson my dad instilled in me.

What adjective describes you best? Hard-working, fun, bike-addict, creative, and out-going.

Finally, do you have any advice for athletes new to multi-sport competition? Always aim to have fun while training and racing, if you are ever not enjoying it, ease back a little or take a break. Fun is the key!