As irritating as they are, there is nothing you can say. We all know what he is, others soon will.

Now that you know his character you can choose not to associate with him. He only deserves our pity - he obviously has some psychological issues, insecurity, inadequacy, etc.

I don't know what you say to him but I was thinking about this the other day when i saw an ironman canada and finishers Tshirt on auction on ebay... I also saw a auction for a NYC marathon medal... now I could understand if you were a collector or you had lost yours but the auction text read something along the lines off want to be a finisher without the hard work... go figure, personally I wold rather spend the money on something else

If you actually know this guy, get him near a computer and tell him you'd like to look up his times. see what fun excuse he comes up with when you can 't find them right in front of him! should be good for a laugh.

The guy is obviously a bulls**t artist. No reason to lose sleep over it because the world is full of them.

Invite him out for a training run or ride with your tri friends and see what he does. Or better still, have some one from a service club or something ask him if he would be willing to give a talk about IM. Either of these things will likely send him hiding.

Hmmm. A friend of mine caught a fish <--------------------------------------------------------> this big!

"Fish stories" aren't limited to fishing, are they?

Years ago I was playing in an adult summer basketball league. We had a game a couple days after a big local tri(1/2 Ironman). There was a guy on the other team, wearing the race t-shirt, tellling a group of onlookers that he had been leading the race until he " tore a quad on the run" and had to pull out. He was running around and jumping fine 2 days later though. I couldnt help myself so I started asking questions as if I believed him and knew nothing about the sport. This guy was awesome! somewhere between Mark Allen and Dave Scott in their primes according to his stories. The best part was that he told everyone including me that his training partner was another local tri stud. He went on and on about their epic training days and good times together. The poser didnt know Tri stud was on my team and hadnt shown up yet. It was priceless when Tri stud showed and I waived him over to meet his "friend" poser. The crowd got the real story when tri stud said " I've never seen this guy before in my life!"

That SO Rocks!!!! I love to wear my many "Finisher" items in front of the guy - I just can not beleive that he got the tattoo....

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Nothing: The Belgians have a saying- let his legs do the talking. When the rubber meets the road this guy will either produce or not. A little bit sad he has to resort to such ridiculous posturing to have some self-esteem or recognition. One thing you can do, feel sorry for him. If the guy really wants to do Ironman invite him on some training rides and help him out. Just my .02

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

In real life I am a solid triathlete, but I'm just a skinny geek with shaved legs to Michiganders. In my neck of the woods there is just no benefit to posing as a triathlete. If I were you I'd count my blessings that I lived in a part of the country where it meant something. When I go out on the town I pose as a pro bass fisherman or a "successful businessman"--- Both get a lot more interest with the ladies than triathlons. Shit, accountants probably do better than triathletes in the midwest. . . At least then a prospective mate knows you will likely be around the house and be in a position to provide for basic needs. (Basic meaning things not made of carbon fiber or titanium.)

Cheers!

-MK

there are no basic needs not made of Ti or carbon!
:-)
where the heck do you live? :-)

"In my neck of the woods there is just no benefit to posing as a triathlete."

Ain't it great living in the rural boonies. Sounds like you live in our area. Here it's huntin', fishin', snowmobilin', hockey and beer belly baseball in the summer. When the wife or I tell people that we're into triathlon the typical reponse is either "what's that?" or "I thought they only do that in Hawaii".

You only need to say one thing. "Up for a ride?" No doubt he will be busy whichever day you choose.

I worked with a guy who claimed to be everything; a Cat. 2 racer, an expert tele skier, a solid rock climber. So after he couldn't keep up with me when I was on my mountain bike and he on a road bike, did a butt slide down the first black diamond ski run of the day and had to be literally hauled up a 2 pitch rock climb, he only had one choice. He left town and joined the Army...or so he claims.

Why should you care?

I live in Ann Arbor, MI. It is more or less civilized here and there are actually lots of great triathletes and cyclists in the area, but being a triathlete really doesn't make a difference in my social circles. I took a little poetic liberty in my last post but not much.

-MK

take him out for a long hard brick workout............see what he is made of

If he backs out..............then pound on him and call him a "poser"

I'm a middle of the pack age grouper 12Hr IM and have managed to moslty avoid pure roadies since I started this sport. I recently moved and have run into a lot of overweight guys that tell me they are CAT 1,2 or Pi. Can anyone tell me what this CAT thing is? How are you rated? Is a higher # lower better? Maybe I'm a DOG 1!

cat means category. cat1 is the highest category, just before you sign with a semi pro or pro team.
therefore the chance to see an overweight cat1 is slim. although it can happen...I know one who is
slightly overweight (this is relative as we are talking about skinny dudes). He can't climb to save his life, but he is a monster sprinter...huge power.

I actually posted a VERY similar question a while ago and got a lot of flack for it (but also some good responses from folks like Bunnyman). It was very similar, a new Phys-Ed teacher at my wife's school who, at age 26, claimed to have done over 400 "triathalons including the Iron Man" in a 4 year period. Same deal, no race results of ANY type, let alone IM, etc., etc. Many people asked the same questions as here: "Why do you care?" Well, here's the follow-up at the near-end of the school year (and note that my wife remained quiet about it and did not raise the issue as a "red flag"). Said teacher has had NUMEROUS other discrepancies, including her employment history, has had fights with other staff, has had her educational suitability and psychological profile questioned and will NOT be reemployed at the end of the year, if the board doesn't oust her before then. In other words, this revealed a very significant psychological problem, for someone who is teaching children, no less. So, I'd say to him to go seek professional help.

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"To give less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - Pre

MattMizenko.com

Francois, are you talking about Jaime G?

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1*

yep :-)

(although not sure if he is an aca or uscf 1...)

Based on your post, I thought you lived in the UP or something. Ann Arbor definitely isn't all that bad. I used to live in Ann Arbor, and I go to school still at U of M, commuting in from Trenton, Mi. Are you part of the Tri club in Ann Arbor? I know a few guys who are, but I am not. Where do you generally ride in Ann Arbor? I haven't cycled there yet, but I plan to this summer, and I'd like to know where the best places are, it's got to be more cyclist friendly than Trenton.

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"What the mind can conceive and believe, the mind and body can achieve; and those who stay will be champions."

Here are some recommended training places in Ann Arbor:

Cycling:

1. Take Huron River Drive to Dexter, then take any road you want to north, west, or south. I like to continue west to Grass Lake then head North.
2. Any road north or west of Ann Arbor is pretty good. Once you start going East you get into Detroit suburbs.
3. Check out www.aavc.org for a good cycling club.
4. There is an area called Irish Hills which is a nice loop from Ann Arbor. It is southwest.

Running:

1. Nichols Arboretum (trail running)
2. Bird park (trails)
3. The Potowatami trail
4. Gallup Park (paved parthway)
5. The UM Indoor Track. Open 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM weeknights.

Swimming:

1. There is a Masters swim team in Ann Arbor. I think they train at the MAC pool weeknights from 6:00 to 7:30. (I am not sure about the time as I do not swim with them.)
2. There is an outdoor 50 meter pool called Fuller Pool.
3. You can use the UM facilities for a $5 fee.

This should get you started. Let me know if you want any more advice on places to train in A2. Cheers,

-MK

It took my a while to think about this.

My feelign is that you and others in your situation are bothered by this sort fo action becuase you have sacrificed a great deal to accomplish the things that you have done. When someone usurps that by telling some stories and doing the work it cheapens the experience because they were in some sense able to gain in some sense what you had to suffer for.

As for what you would do about this I would ask you what do you want out of it.

Do you want people to know that he is a fake? Do you want people to know what you have accomplished?

I think one of the consequences of doing things for personal reasons and not for recognition, is that you will not be recognized as much as the people who are constantly advertising themselves... but I would sain gain comfort in the fact that the recogintion that you do gain is real...

so I would say what do you want to accomplish?

Maybe I'm just a jerk, but I hate liars. If I were in the situation, I'd want him exposed for the liar he is. I think I'd want to do the same thing even if the person was falsely claiming to do something I had never done, say.. climb Everest. The hardest thing I'd face is how to square things with the olde Golden Rule. I wouldn't be looking to embarass the guy. But at the same time knowing he's lying and turning a blind eye would, to me, be like giving implied consent and help him perpetuate his BS. Why would it bother me? Because the guy is being dishonest and I tend to be bothered by dishonesty.