Craig Pansing M25-29

pasadena, california

How long have you been competing in multi-sport races? I competed in my first multi-sport race in 2000 in the Rocky Point Triathlon. I swore I would never do another triathlon after that race…

What is your favorite product available at TriSports.com? My TriSports.com Visor. The sun is evil.

How did you get your start in Triathlons? I was getting tired of grizzly bear wrestling.  Triathlon seemed like the natural alternative.

What is your favorite workout? Anything involving burritos afterwards.

“When I’m not training/racing, I enjoy…” You know, the usual:  Eating cookies, having one-man dance parties, sleeping, shaving my legs because it’s manly.   

If you could have one superhero power what would it be? Definitely instant regeneration like Wolverine.  I mean, you get done with a race and you’re ready to do another one within minutes.  The claws would be cool too, but I can’t imagine what an adamantium skeleton weighs and it might affect race times.

Describe your biggest race disaster. I decided to try a longer water warm-up before a race once.  Not a bad idea, except I was wearing a sleeveless wetsuit and the water was about 56 degrees.  I started the race shivering.  I about had a panic attack in the beginning of the swim.  I couldn’t feel my fingers after about 5 minutes.  It didn’t help that the swim was mis-marked and about half a mile too long.  After falling over a couple times trying to get my wetsuit off in transition, I finally got on the bike and started the bike…The moral of this story?  Freezing sucks.

Do you have a non-negotiable pre-race ritual? I always apply sunscreen.  The sun is evil.

What culinary indulgence do you allow yourself after a big race (that you don’t normally partake of)? Chipotle burritos.  Awesome.  Well, I do normally partake of Chipotle, but it doubles my happiness after races so I’m counting it.

Have you ever accidentally destroyed a very expensive piece of gear? Four days before IM Florida, I destroyed the crucial beam pivot bolt on my old Softride. I tried to torque it to 70 foot-lbs instead of 70 inch-lbs (12x the amount of required force).  Boy was I surprised/horrified when the bit snapped and I couldn’t loosen the ultra-tight bolt.  That’s the last time I ever use an automotive tool on my bike.

What adjective describes you best? Rad.

Finally, do you have any advice for athletes new to multi-sport competition? Follow a moderate progression of goals when you are starting.  If you are completely new to all three sports, your body needs time to adapt to consistent training.  If you’ve already got a background in one of the three sports, your body still has to learn how to train for the other two so be patient. It’s best to aim to first finish a sprint or Olympic distance triathlon for your first race.  Stick with Olympic distances and shorter for a year or two and work on nailing the fundamentals of each sport.  From there, you can choose to race longer distances, or try to get faster at the shorter stuff.  If your goal is Ironman, spend another year and do a couple half-Ironman races before attempting your first full Ironman. If you jump into an Ironman your right off the bat, I do have the confidence that you will be able to finish.  I don’t have confidence that I’ll be seeing you on the roads training long afterwards.  I’d like to see you stick around a while.  Then you’ll buy more stuff at TriSports.com.  :)  And don’t ever take yourself too seriously.  Punk.