Athlete of the Month

The Team Sheeper Athlete of the Month award is handed out to a member of the team on a monthly basis, 7 or 8 times a year. The AOM is someone who made a notable contribution to the team or did something remarkable. Selection is made by nomination and voting by the membership.

You can nominate anyone and the nomination period is usually during the first week or two of the month. Look for notification that nominations are being sought.  When nomination close, the voting starts and once all the votes are tallied, the new AOM is crowned.

Besides bragging rights for a month, our AOM gets some goodies from our gracious sponsors, such as free shoes from TRH, a massage from SMI, gift certificates from GoRide.

Fleet Feet Menlo Park is proud to sponsor this month's athlete who embodies the spirit of Team Sheeper. We believe running can change everything, that an active lifestyle is a healthy lifestyle, and that we all have an athlete hidden within.

Lennard Hachmann

April 2010 Athlete of the Month

"Leonard is one of the most dedicated, focused, and hard working athletes that I have met. He inspires everyone with his can do attitude, his work ethic, and his commitment to both the sport and the team. He is also very humble which is an admirable quality. Leonard encourages everyone, no matter what their ability level or lack of experience and is always willing to share his knowldge when asked. He had a great wildflower long course race last weekend, finishing strong with a fantastic run on a difficult course, this is testimony to his ability and sheer determination to always give his best."
- Fellow Teammate.

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

Almost every kid that grows up in Germany wants to be a professional soccer player.

Do you have a spouse or children or pets to tell us about?

Still looking, dependent on finding said spouse, and nope.

What other hobbies do you have?

Eating is one of my favorite past times and I now consider it a hobby, given that I am currently consuming 5 – 6 meals / day. Most people know of my passion for karaoke and some have even been (un)lucky enough to hear me. I also like to play piano and would play more if I weren't so self-conscious about playing in front of people.

How did you become involved with Team Sheeper?

Through an old girlfriend of mine who had less and less time for me because she was training with the team. So, I joined as well. Ran and rode only for about a year with the team and then decided to learn how to swim. That first year in lane 6 was hard.

What is your athletic background?

I grew up playing soccer, being born and raised in Germany. At some point in time I started running and did so with quite some success in high school. Little known fact: I also participated in field events back then. To everyone's bewilderment I won the discus competition when I was a junior in high school. That's right: the kid with the skinniest arms won! It’s all about leverage and hip rotation. I also won the triple jump that year. I continued playing club soccer through college and grad school and then on a competitive mens' team out here for a few years. The team was not very committed to doing well (showing up late and / or hungover) and I got hurt quite badly in one game, so I decided to stop playing soccer and focus on triathlons. Seven years later, here I am.

What motivates/inspires you?

Motivation comes in two forms.

First, reaching a measurable goal. Every year I like to have one race that I have to qualify for or that I want to finish in a certain time (this year: IMCDA in < 10 hrs; 2008: IMAZ in < 10 hrs; 2007: Olympic-distance worlds in Hamburg). That drives my specific preparation and training.

Second, pushing the boundaries. It's hard for me to get excited about doing the same race every year and trying to go just a little faster. So, I try and pick one event that is outside of my experience / comfort zone (last year: R2R2R). Nothing like fear of the unknown to prepare you well.

What races are you planning for the remainder of this year, or the future, that you are gearing up for?

This year: IMCDA. Going back for a third time and will try to qualify for Kona. After that, we'll see. If Kona happens, great, that's the rest of my season defined right there. If Kona does not happen, there will be some long mt bike rides and other fun events.

Also, I'd like to encourage everyone to come out for Ironman Roth in 2011. It's supposed to be a fantastic experience and I’ll act as Germany tour-guide and help with logistics.

What is your favorite Tim Sheeper quote/story or memorable moment?

In the pool: long pulling set with Mike Osmond
On the bike: chase groups with Jeff
On the run: ok, I like all run workouts…

Seriously, being a veteran of Team Sheeper (I was AOM previously, back in January 2004!) there are many memorable moments. A few from years past that always stick out:

 

The second year of base camp in Solvang: riding up Figueroa in the sun and then having to push our bikes over the top of the mountain in the snow, following Eric's and Tim's footsteps, having no idea how far we'd have to go before the road was rideable again, and freezing our fingers off on the long, harrowing descent down the back side of the mountain.

Same year and place: riding back from the pool in the late afternoon / early evening in the rain / sleet with Pierre and Tim, racing the fading daylight after a long day in the saddle and then an hour in the pool. Dinner never tasted so good.

Any time that Tim is hammering at the front on a long, flat stretch of road into a headwind and someone has a mechanical so we all have to stop and fix it / recover.

From this year:

Boulder Creek ride. I felt pretty good all the way into Felton, but not so hot after our stop. I was "leading" the group into Big Basin and heard Jeff, who was riding 4th or 5th, whistling. Clearly I wasn't going fast enough. Everyone passed me and I was last up the climb and heading over to Highway 9. I was taking some risks on the downhills to make up time and catch up to the group and eventually saw them turn onto Highway 9. I had made it! Suddenly it all went wrong. I heard metal hit the pavement. I felt like I was swimming on my bike. The bolts that attached the seat to the seat post had sheared off. I yelled at the group and luckily caught their attention before they started off again. So, we had 8 guys, in various stages of low-sugar bonks, standing around my bike, looking for lost parts, and trying to figure out how to fix it so that I wouldn't have to stand the last while riding the last 40 miles back to the pool. We thought of putting an empty water bottle over the seat post to prevent traumatic injury. We thought of taking the seat post off (and me standing the whole way). Eventually, we strapped the seat to the top tube using a tube. Check it out:

It held pretty well, but I was riding gingerly and standing a lot. It also gave me time to recover and I made it home in one piece. Thanks everyone for helping out!

Last one (I promise): On the drive down to Wildflower this year I was not excited about racing. I've been there many years now and I know the race and schedule. The evening before the race reminded me why I do go down to Wildflower and why I love this team. We settled down at camp, had dinner with the group, and then had an impromptu soccer game with kids, grown ups, and dogs. Those are the reasons to do all of this stuff. Thanks, Team Sheeper.

What is your favorite race?

Tough one. Escape from Alcatraz is fantastic and really suits my strengths. If it weren't so expensive, I'd do it every year.

What would you choose as your last meal?

Tanqueray + Tonic
Cream of tomato soup
Salad
Filet mignon
Kaese Spaetzle
Red cabbage with apples
A good bottle of red wine
Crème Brule and chocolate
And, to finish it off, a nice bottle of CarboPro ;)