Tim DeBoom Two Time World Ironman Champion

So I have finally gotten back on to update. Things have gone pretty good this Spring season. I started it off with a few tuneup races for the big one, Collegiate Nationals in April.

The first race this Spring took place in Orlando, Florida at the Wildman Triathlon. After not racing for more than four months it was really awesome to get out there after it again. I had a very strong swim and ended up taking over the lead shortly into the bike. I then held the lead on the run to win the overall title for a second year in a row.

The second race was The 25th Annual Great Clermont Triathlon in beautiful Clermont, Florida. The race conditions mimicked those that we would expect at Collegiate Nationals so we were really excited to race it. Additionally I knew that there would be a competitive field there so it would be good to go up against them. I came out of the water down about 40 seconds and then worked on making that up on the bike. Like the previous race I was able to run down the leader, my teammate Nick Vandam, and take over the race. After putting in a nice split on the bike I had over a minute lead on the run and was able to cruise it (still managed a 34:30 split). I was very excited about this win because I beat some respectable professionals including the World Champion Spencer Smith.

The biggest race of my Spring season was Collegiate Nationals and I was hoping to bring home the Championship to West Point. However, things did not go my way on this day. The water was extremely cold and it greatly affected me when I was trying to slip in my shoes on the bike. I was having cramping problems all day however, I was still in a pretty good postion coming off of the bike. I knew I couldn't bring in the leader but I thought I would be able to chase down the other guys. However, when it is not your day, it is not your day. The run was just miserable and it was only with the motivation of knowing that my teammates were counting on me and Nick Vandam pushing me that I brought it home strong. I ended up finishing 7th overall however, a capper to the day was when I found out I got a "positioning" penalty. Thus I dropped to 13th place. Furthermore, our team was unable to bring home the National Title however, we did have a strong performance with the guys team placing 2nd in the Nation! and the overall team placing 3rd. The best part was that we destroyed Navy!

The next day, after Nationals, my teammates Robert Sherry, Nick Vandam and I were entered in the 2012 Talent ID Race. This was a draft legal sprint. I was going into this race hoping to just have a descent race and feel good. After a chaotic start on the swim I was able to recover and came out 30 seconds down on the front group. I then busted it on the first lap of the bike to reel in the first group. I took over the lead starting the second lap and was feeling really strong until my bike tire rolled off my wheel and I went crashing down on a turn. I got up as quick as I could but was already dropped by the first group. I then road practically the rest of the race by myself and went into the run pretty smoked. I was able to turn it over but not until it was too late. I ended up placing 7th overall.

Just recently I found out that I was selected for the All-Army team and will be competing at the Armed Forces Championship in Point Mugu, California. I am hoping to place well enough to qualify for the World Military Games which are in Estonia from June 12th to June 17th. I have been training very hard to prepare for this race and it should be exciting because it is my first draft-legal Olympic distance race.

                So this week is a much needed recovery week not only physically but mentally as well. The past few weeks I have been really hammering the workouts and have seen great progress. During the three week buildup I averaged 23 hours a week (a large increase from any volume I have ever done before) and I had a few test sets to see how my body was reacting to the training. Some of the highlights included a 16:20 5K time trial coming off a very tough week and also holding 1:05s in a 1500 yard time trial in the pool.

The weather has been unforgiving here in New York and I have barely had any opportunity to ride outside. This past weekend I had a four-hour ride in which I planned on doing two-hours indoors and two outside. Thirty minutes into the ride outside and it started blowing very heavy snow. I decided that I did not want to go back on the trainer so I gutted it out. Needless to say when I finished the ride I had more than an inch of snow on the front of my bike and I could not feel my hands, shins, or feet. During the transition run, immediately following the bike, it took about 15 minutes before I could actually feel my feet.

This weekend is my last “fun” weekend before I start to crack down on my diet and extracurricular activities. I am heading to Las Vegas with some friends before they deploy to Iraq. It should be a very good time and I am exciting to hang out in some warm weather. When I come back on Monday we will be only 8 weeks out from Collegiate Nationals! I am going on the lean-mean diet to ensure that I have no excess weight to carry with me during the race. Furthermore, I have also been talking to the All-Army Triathlon Team. I am really hoping I get picked up for the team and can represent the Army at Military Nationals in May in California.

I am relatively new to Triathlon. In High School I competed in Cross Country, Swimming and Track. Then when I reported to West Point I decided to walk on to the Army Swim Team. I made the team and ended lettering for the first three years while at West Point. I also made and scored in the Patriot League Conference Championship every year I competed. Then in 2006 I was enrolled in the Army Mentorship Program and did a tour in Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). While in Iraq I read up on triathlon and tried to work out as often as I could (in between missions). I returned from Ramadi, Iraq in November, 2006 and reported back to West Point in January 2007 to finish my last year. Since I came back in the middle of swim season I decided to tryout for the Army Triathlon Team. I ended up making the team and have been on it ever since. You can check out our team's website at http://www.usma.edu/uscc/dca/clubs/trit/index.html

I had a very successful 2007 season, especially considering it was my first year specifically training for triathlon. I recently graduated from West Point in December 2007. I am a commissioned 2LT in the United States Army and will be going to flight school this summer. Until then I am going to be stationed at West Point working in the Protocol Office. In reality my job is training for Collegiate Nationals, which are in April 2008. After graduation I had 3 weeks off and I spent it in Boulder, Colorado training with my coach Tony DeBoom. More about coaching from Tony and his brother (Tim DeBoom) can be found at http://www.deboomsportsmecca.com/    During my time there I trained harder than I ever have before and really have not let down since. I also got the chance to meet some great people and learn so much from Tony and all his experience.

I am excited to continue to train hard and push myself harder than I ever have. I am really looking forward to racing this Spring and hope our team can bring home the National Championship!