Time to unload...

Have you ever had those times when your brain is thinking about so many things, the only way to get them out is to unload them in writing? Yeah, that's where i am at. So, I am going to try to, succinctly, write out all these thoughts without spending too much time on any one issue.

First off, this is a training blog, so here is my training. It took a while to get back in to training after the lethargic Christmas break. I ate healthier, however, so my weight was more close to where it needed to be at the beginning of the year. I had added up all my miles for swimming, biking and running in 2010...they were lame. I set new goals this year and broke it down to how many miles I would need each week for the year to reach those goals. So far, it's going OK. My nagging hamstring is still nagging. I am taking a new approach to my run training after finally becoming too frustrated with the past few years' injuries. Plus, I have almost fully decided on racing the Leadman Life Time Fitness EPIC 250 (did I get that right?) in May, in Vegas. Just about 140 miles of biking, which is twice as long as any single ride I have ever done. That's my focus for the first half of the year. The second half has my sights set on a Boston Qualifier. As long as my hamstring holds up, early September looks like a great time for a shot at qualifying. That time frame gives me a chance to get good summer (IE: weather) training done.

Secondly, I am graduating in May. That means an unsure future. I think I have the next year of my life planned, but that depends on certain things happening too. Meaning, it's not for sure either. What do I want to do with my life? That is a constant question that deserves some deep thought. At this point I am just ready for life to show me a path. I have the chance to do whatever I want. It is that kind of uncertainty and excitement that keeps me excited about where my life is headed. It is a type of optimism that I have never experienced before. For the first time in my life, I will have no reason to be tied down to anyone or anything or any place. That's exciting.

With that in mind, I am looking at beginning a bike camp/class/club here in Flagstaff. I grew up mountain biking 6-7 hours a day during the summer when I was young, thanks in part to the city recreation bike camp. It has since went the way of many similar programs across this country in this fallowed economy. I want to start it up again. It gives an opportunity to give kids the same kind of experience I had as a youngster. I can honestly say I would not be a triathlete and, in turn, not writing this blog without the memory of this program. Let alone the health benefits it affords an ever increasingly overweight youth population in America. We have a town that had a cycling club as early as 1893, and we don't have a program for a new generation of kids to experience the same freedom? Something needs to change and I want to lead that change. This idea has also given rise to thoughts of expanding. Counting my eggs before they hatch? Maybe. But, I don't think it takes any stretch of the imagination to expand this program into an after school program at local schools. And, in time, expand it into something similar to the High School mountain bike programs that are scattered around California. It has been tried in the past here in AZ. But, the organization of the programs were never coordinated enough to follow through. I am not in a position to take on that responsibility as of now, but the future holds a lot of optimism.

Finally, a less optimistic idea that needs writing down. As a college student in America, I am far from the only student, or at the only university, or living in the only state facing budget cuts. It seems largely worse in Arizona, but i can't speak for students from other states. I am specifically referring to the huge tuition increases and lack of financial oversight that NAU seems to be applying to the fiscal responsibility of running this institution. For instance, they recently built a $35million science building. What apparently was missed was the need for an extra stairwell that meets the strictest guidelines of fire safety. To add this stairwell now, it will cost the university $9million. How will they pay for it? Through student tuition. I, for one, do not appreciate being charged for someone elses oversight. Are they going to fire the planners of the building for not constructing the stairwell initially? probably not. That's outrageous. Read about the issue here.
In the same vein of anger, the Liberal Arts building on campus is getting a much needed face lift. I can accept that facilities need upgrading. However, just 4 or 5 years ago, the third floor of the building was fully renovated due to, what was rumored to be a mold issue. Ideally this floor should not need to be renovated again, just a handful of years after its previous upgrade. But, less than acceptable work was done on the space and millions of more dollars are now being spent to re-renovate the space. How can this happen? This is now two, of who knows how many, oversights on construction on this campus. In turn, they are charging students more to make up for their lack of insight.
I have also heard that a yearly "fitness fee" is proposed to go up to $400 per student next year. I don't specifically know how much it was last year, but I know it was no where close to $400. They draw students in by advertising a "locked-in" tuition rate for 4 years, but forget to mention that fees can be increased to astronomical levels to make up for a traditional tuition increase.
We pay more for tuition, we pay more fees, we still walk out of here with a degree. Fine. But, paying more for less services because of faculty reductions, less class space which turns into a four-year degree into a five-year puts more pressure on students to accept loans. The increase in loans, leads to more student debt and more stress on the economy as a whole.
For one, I am sick of paying higher fees and tuition for less service. I hate that America doesn't put more emphasis on education, because it is a vital institution. Education needs to be careful or they will have an Egypt type event on their hands. There are more parallels to these situations than one might first suspect.
Something to think about.