Breakfast with a Champion--and an Evening with Two

I had dinner with Crowie the IM champion at ECBoulder 2010.

One is the reigning Ironman World Champion. One is a former Ironman World Champion. Both have multiple victories on the Kona, Hawaii, course almost making it look easy instead of grueling. Both live in Boulder, Colo., although one does it for only part of the year. And both have very recognizable names in the sport of triathlon: Craig Alexander and Dave Scott. But getting these two triathletes together east of the Rockies? That doesn't happen often--if ever.

But Runners High 'n Tri--or more like owner Mark Rouse, who has organized events with Alexander as well as Mirinda Carfrae and Chrissie Wellington in the past--is making the seemingly impossible possible. The Arlington Heights store is hosting a night with these Iron-men on Thursday, July 12. Crowie is likely cruising through Chicago on his way to Ironman 70.3 Racine (if that's true I'll be pretty excited come Sunday morning and watching him speed by on the run--if I'm so lucky--will make my 13.1 slightly less painful), but he's stopping just long enough to create one swoon-worthy 16 hours.

I say that because Craig and Dave (here's to hoping I can be on a first-name basis with these two by the end of the week) are not just the stars of a Q&A session that runs from 7 to 8:30 p.m. There's also a pretty sweet deal for some lucky attendees: 10 will be invited to attend a VIP dinner, photo-shoot and autograph session with Craig before the Q&A, and 10 will get to run and eat breakfast with the champion on Friday morning. Cool, right? You can pick his brain about the sport, gain some advice, ask if he has any moments as embarrassing as some of your own--unless of course you want to keep the salt tab meltdown on the DL. Or as one friend phrased it last night, you can skip all the sporty questions and ask about his choice of underwear or if you can steal a kiss--all while you avoid drooling in front of him (Australian accent, super-fit bodies, you know where I'm going with this).

Even if you don't nab one of those breakfast or dinner spots--you're like me, the person who rarely wins anything that relies on a drawing to select its winners--this evening with the champions promises to be fun and informative. It's the type of event that easily breaks you of a training funk, thinking sport all the time (if you're me), or inspires you to train. And for the $20 admission ticket, you still go home with prizes just for attending--you might find even more at the expo that will be held on-site from 4 to 6:30 p.m.

Ready for a night of triathlon? Call Runners High 'n Tri at 847-670-9255 to grab the last few tickets. If you're a Chicago triathlete, it doesn't get much better than this.

If you could ask either Craig or Dave a question, what would it be?