What Happens in Las Vegas, Stays in Las Vegas – My Ironman 70.3 World Championship Race Report

This past week-end, Nannette and I flew out to Las Vegas to compete in the Ironman 70.3 World Championship.  We came in a day early to have dinner with Mike Leven, a friend and long time mentor who left Atlanta a couple years ago to become President and Chief Operating Officer of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, operators of the Palazzo and Venetian Hotels. It was great reconnecting and hearing a little about the very different world of casino marketing.  It was also fun splurging and staying at such a beautiful hotel on the Strip. 

On Thursday, Nannette and I met my cousin, Larry Anspach who lives in Las Vegas and went for a bike ride through Red Rocks Canyon.   That night, we saw “O,” Cirque du Soleil’s show on water at the Bellagio.  It was an inspiring artistic performance of athletes - perfect pre-race entertainment.   Friday was registration day and the pre-race banquet…pasta loading two days out.  We had dinner with Scott (training buddy) and Joann Boylan and Fox (Ironman mentor) and Kelly Ferrel.

Mike, Scott and Fox Carbo-loading 

I went out for an early morning run on Friday and met John and Susanna in the lobby.  They were in Las Vegas for the Ironman 70.3 from Barcelona and were trying to figure out how they were going to get to the race site which they had just discovered was 30 miles away.  We had a big rental car and “adopted” them for the week-end. 

Saturday was a quiet day.  Scott and I went out for a 12 mile bike ride and swam 30 minute on the swim course.  We met the Fox for a big breakfast at Denny's.   In the afternoon, we checked-in our bike and equipment and had a quiet pasta dinner with the Boylans and Donna and Larry Anspach at Lake Las Vegas.  Later, I was told that Donna asked Larry, “Could you believe how much Mike Wien ate?”  The truth is that while I did eat two full plates, I actually held back as I did not want to stuff myself the night before the race!   I guess we are a really strange group to an outside observer.

Lake Las Vegas swim

The Ironman 70.3 World Championship was on Sunday.  We got to the start at 5:30 AM to check all the equipment.  As we waited for our swim wave, I had time to reflect and realized that the 31 competitors in my age group from all over the world all had one thing in common.  We had all won the age group in an Ironman 70.3 race earlier in the year as there was only one slot in each qualifying race.

The swim was a non-wet suit wave start.  The pros started first, followed by women 45 and over.  Men 50 and over were in wave three.  Other than being a little crowded for the first 10 minutes, the swim was uneventful.  I came out of the swim in 8^th place. 

Lake Mead National Park

The bike course was primarily on a two lane road with rolling hills through the Lake Mead National Park. With over 4,500 feet of climbing I was riding between 8 miles an hour and 39 miles an hour depending on the terrain.  In this part of the world in September, nothing grows…not even cactus.  The landscape has its own distinctive beauty, even though it is just a bunch of rocks.  As I started climbing away from Lake Las Vegas, two guys riding in front of me bumped each other and crashed.  Fortunately, we were all climbing a hill at a slow speed so their injuries were minor and I was easily able to swerve and miss joining them on the ground.  As I approached the final water stop at mile 50, the guy in front of me missed a drink hand-off and crashed.  I barely missed him and unfortunately heard volunteers scream for a medic as I left the area.   It was one of many reminders of how fortunate I was to still be on my wheels. 

I am always happy to finish the bike and start the run and this time was no exception.  In the last two Ironman races, I might have burned myself out early on and did not take enough liquid or nutrition as I struggled over the last 10 miles.  In this race, I finally found the right balance and came into the transition feeling strong with an average speed of 19 miles per hour.  In the process however, I dropped from 8^th to 10^th place.

The run is my strongest leg.  It is my home court.  It represents my specific edge.  I was happy to be there and I was ready to do what I needed to do.  That included running fast, drinking as much water, Coke and Gatorade as I could grab, and eat as many power gels as I could stand.  In addition, after about 2 miles, I started sensing some early stages of cramping in my left leg.  Fortunately, I was carrying some salt pills and starting taking one every three miles.

As in previous races, Nannette (with Larry Anspach this time) were on the sidelines relaying me updates from Dick Jones in Atlanta who was tracking everyone in my age group on the computer.  The last thing I heard was that I was in 8^th place and if I kept my pace, I would be on the podium (top 5 in the world.)  I held a 7:17 minute per mile pace and finished the run leg in 1:35:29, good enough for 4^th and a climb to the podium.  It has been five long years and four failed attempts to be back on the podium on the world stage. (France, 2007;  Italy, 2008; Clearwater, 2009 and Kona, 2010).  I was thrilled to be back.

Mike with Steve Smith (Red Shirt) on Podium

Normally I conclude with some comments about why this is so special to me…and those of you who know me, know the answer.  Because I have such great support.  But the Ironman 70.3 World Championship was not the final chapter for 2011.  I still have one more race ahead of me so I will save those comments for later.  The Ironman World Championship (140.6 miles) in Kona, Hawaii in three weeks.   Steve Smith, last year’s US Champion in my age group will be there.  Steve beat me in June in Buffalo Springs by 6 minutes, 36 seconds.  On Sunday, Steve took third and beat me by 1 minute, 16 seconds.  We both look forward to competing with some outstanding European athletes that will also be in Kona.

And a final note for those who remember my qualifying race in Orlando in May.  I still heard the voice, “Go Mr. Wien” on Sunday.

Buffalo Springs Ironman 70.3 Race report - A new definition for Hot.

Hello from Lubbock, Texas where the temperature at 5 PM was 111 degrees. It was only 105 when I finished the Ironman 70.3 earlier today. I came to Lubbock with two objectives. First, to win my age group and second – by winning my age group, earn a slot to the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii (on my 60^th birthday.)

Steve Smith, (ranked number one by USA Triathlon for the 60 – 64 age group last year) won the age group and I came in second. Steve beat me in the swim by 2:44

and on the bike by 12:44. While I beat him on the run by 9:04, his impressive margin coming off the bike was too great. However, I met Steve tonight at the awards banquet and learned that he already had a Kona slot. So the slot rolls down to second place and I am going back to Kona.

As far as the race goes, I tried a new swim technique I learned on Wednesday …what was I thinking …and it worked. I had one of my best swim times ever. Larry, Steve, and Curtiss’s swim coach – Sonni Dyer came to our Wednesday “brick” (a swim, bike and run practice – took one look at my swim and asked one question. “Why are you breathing every third stroke? You probably are not getting enough oxygen and need to breathe every other stroke.” My answer – “I did not know and I had spent 5 years perfecting the alternate side breathing because I thought that was the best.” (Lesson – Your greatest weakness is in the zone of not knowing what you don’t know. Sonni found my blind side in less than 5 seconds.) I should also mention that Jack Spartz also contributed to the better swim by encouraging me to reduce my stroke count and get more power out of each stroke. But that is still work in progress.

I came out of the swim feeling great, but made my first strategic mistake of the day…and I know better. I did not walk through the swim finish to the bike in advance and ran the wrong way though the corral. Stupid…and it cost me 30 seconds and a near heart attack since I could not find my bike.

The bike ride, other than being hot was very unexpected. Lubbock is very dry and very, very flat. I bet there are only six hills within 100 miles that are caused by natural canyons. The race director found all six hills. But that was not the biggest challenge. Neither was the heat. It was the stiff wind. With the wind at my back, 27 miles per hour was easy. With the wind at my face…which seemed like most of the time, 15 miles per hour was impossible. The bike course ate me alive. At about 50 miles, I was pooped and started to get intermittent cramping in my legs and had trouble staying in the aero bars. In the bike to the run transition, I made my second mistake. I guess I fried my brain because I put a running shoe on one foot and bike shoe on the other foot. Fortunately, I did not get too far. The good news is that I was able to get strength from the heat and actually ran faster as the day got warmer. I ran the first 6.5 miles at an 8:25 pace and the second 6.5 miles at an 8:09 pace. The volunteers were outstanding providing water, Perform (a sports drink) Coke and ice every mile. I poured ice down my shirt every chance I got and drank aggressively at every station.

Today was another great day. While I lost to a great competitor, I won a slot to the Ironman World Championship. I was also inspired today by two people. Tyler Lorenzi whose memory continues to remind us all to live an exciting life. And Jimmy Spartz who reminds me to celebrate all the victories, no matter how big or small.

Special thanks to my wife Nannette, who is my biggest fan and fought the heat all day to be there for the brief couple seconds just to yell, “Go Mike!” We celebrated our 36^th anniversary last week. Putting up with me for 36 years…now that is a real iron woman.

My Florida Ironman 70.3 Race Report – A hope for something positive to come out of such a tragedy.

This year’s Florida Ironman was a bittersweet time for me and I would like to share it with my friends in hopes that something good will come out of this great loss. I started writing this entry on Saturday, the day before the race and wrote the trip report on Sunday.

Saturday night Orlando Florida - I am an emotional wreck, very lonely and thought that capturing my feeling by writing them down might help me in some way get it together for tomorrow. So thanks for being there and reading this. Last night (Friday night) Andrew called me with terrible news. Tyler Lorenzi had died earlier that day in a boating accident. (I have provided a link below to the story, but it is not very pretty.

Ty stayed behind to try and help the others and was one of the two out of 10 who perished.) Tyler and Andrew met at Northwestern in the pre-week before Freshman year and have been best friends ever since. They were roommates for four years (both were in a 5 year program in the engineering school), spent the winter in Vail, and climbed to the top of Cotopaxi in Ecuador 19,347 feet last summer. The Wien’s and the Lorenzi’s along with two other families (Matt’s and Mer’s) shared a house in Breckenridge for a great ski week-end this past February. This news was devastating to all of us.

I have been unable to concentrate on much of anything today and have spent a lot of time on my cell phone with family members trying to help coordinate plans. Nannette was on an airplane to Chicago for Brian’s annual fund raiser when we got the news. Since Ty’s parents live in California and Ty was living in Virginia, Andrew’s apartment (in Chicago)quickly became the gathering place for Chicago friends and family which provided great support. I should also mention that Matt, Andrew’s current roommate was also a part of the close friendship including roommate, Vail and skiing with the family. Nannette, Matt’s parents and my father were all at the apartment.

I have to admit that my tears have been dousing out a lot of my flame today. It has been so difficult as I sit here in Florida and try to have a phone conversation

with someone only to be interrupted by crying…from me or them.

Then Andrew called me at about 12:15 PM. He told me that he had planned on running a 10K this morning and with all the sadness, decided to run it anyway. Maybe as a way to refocus the pain. He prefaced his comments by asking me not to congratulate him. Then he told me he ran a 36:21 for a PR. He did not have to worry about me congratulating him. I was crying too hard to say anything.

Our children can be great teachers.

I am going to bed. It has been a long day. Tomorrow morning, I will get up and compete in the Florida Ironman 70.3. And my flame will be burning bright tomorrow ….for a wonderful young man, Ty Lorenzi who we will miss dearly. Now I just have to figure out how to keep the tears out of my swim goggles.

May the Lorenzi’s, their extended family and friends find peace in the fond memories.

Post Race Report – Sunday night - I woke up at 4:15 AM from a pretty good night sleep. Met the other Atlanta participants at 4:30 AM for a breakfast prepared by Jose, a very dedicated Holiday Inn Express employee. As we drove to the race site at 5:00 AM, we witnessed one of the most dramatic thunder storms I have ever seen. The kind where two lightning strikes occur at the same time and connect half way down to the ground. I won’t even attempt to interpret that greeting for you, but I will share with you the one word I was thinking at the time as the rest of the group was scared to death about the swim….IGNITION.

When we arrived at the check-in, the lightning had almost stopped but the rain continued. At 6:30 AM it appeared to me that the clouds parted and the sun came out. I now know what Moses must have felt like when the Red Sea parted. The race started at 6:45 AM, 15 minutes late and we never saw another bolt of lightning or a drop of rain.

I had a very strong swim, a strong bike and a motivated run. I have to admit, it was tough to stay focused. I wrestled with my emotions for the whole race. At times, I imagined Ty saying Go Mr. Wien or Go Mike with that big grin on his face as he had done at two Chicago Marathons and the Chicago Triathlon. Each time, that memory put a smile on my face and got me back in the game.

When I finally came across the finish, I had what can only be described as a total emotional meltdown. The tough competitive facade disappeared and I was standing in the finis

h area as an emotional disaster. It got the immediate attention of the medical personnel. It also got the attention of my friends, Kelly Ferrel who had come down to support my triathlon mentor, Fox and Jim Duguay, who was there to support Mary Duguay. They knew immediately the pain I was feeling could not be minimized with a visit to the medical tent for an IV or a trip to the massage table to work out the cramps. The pain I was feeling could best be softened with a couple hugs and the words…”you made Tyler proud” and that is exactly what they delivered.

As I think back on the week-end, I have two thoughts. First, the police have stated that it was a miracle that eight of the 10 people on the boat survived. The survivors told the family that Tyler and the man who is still missing took charge when the accident happened and did everything they could to made sure the group was safe. I hope Tyler knows that the people he was so concerned about are survivors because of his efforts. Second, while what happened should never have happened, we were all reminded that what we loved about Tyler was his love for living an exciting life. A memorial service was held today on a boat on Lake Michigan in Chicago and

attracted about 80 people from all over the country that were friends and contemporaries of Ty’s. It was a fitting tribute for Ty and gave some closure to his friends. In the invitation Andrew sent out on Facebook, he included a favorite quote from Tyler, “"A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a best friend will be right next to you saying...damn, that was fun."

As for the outcome of my race, I finished in 5:05:32. The guy who took second in our age group finished in 5:20:38. About 1.5 miles behind me and a very safe distance from the flame that burned very bright today for Ty.

I would like to follow the example set by my son. No congratulations please. Please just send me a note of something positive you did because you read this blog. Or a better perspective or appreciation you gained on life through this story. It might be something so simple as calling your kids to tell them you love them. (I have done that one a bunch this week-end.) Your stories would be appreciated. I plan to share your thoughts with friends and family at the appropriate time.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/dp-nws-capsized-boat,0,7945243.story

Boston Marathon Pre Race Outlook

Friday, April 15 – Pre Race Report

The Boston Marathon is on Monday and it looks like it is going to be a perfect day to run 26.2 miles. My goal this year is exactly what it has been for the last 4 years…to run under 7:00 minutes per mile or to finish in 3 hours and 3 minutes. I have missed that goal by less than 2 minutes consistently for the past 4 years.

Some of you have asked me what I think about during a marathon. My standard answer is that I try to enjoy the journey and appreciate all the fans who are cheering for me and the 25,000+ other runners. However, this year, I will be thinking about something else.

I will be thinking about how fortunate I am to be able to do what I do. And I will also be thinking of my long time Ironman Mentor who has been the guy who helped me get ready for my first Ironman in 2004 and was there as I jumped into Kona Bay for the first time in 2006 to name a few. I received an e-mail from him the other day informing me that he had just been diagnosed with Prostate Cancer and how he was going to try and schedule his cancer treatments into his summer triathlon schedule.

On Monday, I will be thinking of my Mentor and wishing him well for a speedy recovery and a very successful triathlon year in his new age group – 70 to 74. I will also be thinking how lucky I am to have such a wonderful role model for dealing with life’s challenges.

Boston Marathon Race Report

Tuesday, April 19 – Post Race report

What a great day. Perfect conditions. Geoffrey Mutai ran a 2:03:02, breaking the old Boston Marathon record by 2 minutes and 50 seconds and running the fastest marathon ever! While I did not make my goal of breaking 7 minute per mile, I was still very happy with my 3:11:43 finish at a 7:19 per mile pace. I had a great start taking less than one minute to cross the starting line and settled into a comfortable sub 7 minute mile pace for the first half of the race. The next 10 K, I struggled to hold on to my pace but was in striking distance of my goal. At the 30 K mark (18.6 miles), my good friend Bob Dalton – the top 55 to 59 year old runner in Atlanta wrote, “then the gorilla jumped on your back, you hit the wall, and the mine caved in on you all at once!!!” Well Bob, it wasn’t that bad but I loved your description. To be fair to Bob and to let everyone know the quality guy he is, he continued to write, “Hey, just remember, it’s the effort that counts. Congratulations on another Boston and giving it your ALL / 110%. That’s all anybody could ask for. Be proud, you earned it!” (Thank you Bob!)

10km	0:42:20	6:48
Half-Marathon	1:30:05	6:52
30km	2:10:50	7:01
Finish	3:11:43	7:19

Yesterday’s Boston Marathon was all about the journey. I came off the start on Monday knowing it was a perfect day and thinking I could make my goal. Many have analyzed my performance and came up with the obvious conclusion – I went out too fast. However, I have a different perspective. For the first 18 miles, I was chasing my latest dream. In fact, after heartbreak hill, I still felt I might be able to pick up the pace and run sub-sevens. If I had used conventional wisdom and started out at a more reasonable 7:10 pace, I would have been defeated at the first mile. This way, I was still living my dream for at least 20 miles.

More importantly, the 26.2 mile one-way trip from Hopkinton to Boston has always been both a race and a celebration of life for me. Seeing the thousands of people cheering the runners as we came across the start line in Hopkinton still gives me goose bumps. Running past the 2,200 screaming co-eds at Wellesley College reminds me of one of my fondest running memories…running that same gauntlet in 2005 with my 18 year old son Andrew. Finding Nannette in the crowd at 16.8 miles and stopping long enough to give her a kiss of appreciation is something I look forward to. Finding Howie (my running buddy since 1985 and our host for the week-end) and his son-in-law Brian at mile 18 as we started up heart-break hill gave me a well needed boost. Running through the city centers of Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley and Newton that are always packed with cheering spectators creates an ongoing lift . And the highlight of the day was at mile 25. 5 as I approached the final kick to the finish. On my right side, I heard this loud booming voice screaming “Go Mike, Go Mike.” Seeing my 20 year old son Jason screaming at the top of his lungs and acting as if this was the greatest thing he had seen in a long time was all I needed to remind myself this truly was a great day. I had tears in my eyes the last half mile to the finish. It really was a celebration of life.

In the end, I came in 32 out 1,000 finishers in my age group and beat the qualifying time for next year’s race by 49 minutes.

And my final story. Last Thursday, I went on my final pre-Boston run with my Tuesday/Thursday running buddies - Calvin, Howard, Carey and Jack. As we were coming to an end of our 7 mile run, Howard spotted a five dollar bill on the street and yelled for me to pick it up. Jack saw in, picked it up and gave it to me as “The Lucky Five Dollar Bill.” So I took the $5 to Boston and actually put it in my right shoe at the start – not for luck, but as a reminder of all the encouragement and support I have gotten from Calvin, Howard, Carey and Jack in our morning run. And the five dollar bill also reminded me of all the people who were tracking my progress on their cell phones throughout the day. That is why I love this sport. On Wednesday, I plan on passing that now dried five dollar bill to my friend and mentor who is dealing with his own medical challenges. Not for luck, but as a constant reminder to him of all the friends he has gathered on his journey who are surrounding him with encouragement and support for his next challenge.

As for the Master’s team, the highlight of the Masters team was the performance of our senior member, Clarence Hartley. Clarence ran a 4:26:25 at age 81. Unbelievable! By the way, for my triathlon friends, the winner in that age group for women was our friend, Sister Madonna Buder, 80 years old at 5:01:05. Malcolm Campbell who just joined the ranks of the masters team ran a 2:42:22 and was the 247^th male finisher. Special congratulations to Scott Boylan and George Shaak who both ran Boston PRs (3:15:50 and 3:15:52)

The Mt. Cheaha 50K - A Magnet for Great People

What a great day! Mt. Cheaha State Park is only 1 ½ hours away from Atlanta and home to the highest point in the State of Alabama and the 50k Mt. Cheaha Trail. We parked our car at the top of Mt. Cheaha at 6 AM, watched the sun rise on a beautiful clear day and then climbed on to a bus for the 31 mile drive to the trail head. The Mt. Cheaha 50K trail is a spectacular hike on a narrow single track through dense forests that weaves across numerous streams, through tranquil valleys and over scenic mountains with inspiring views.

I am convinced that this trail was designed for a three day back pack adventure hiking 10 or 11 miles per day. Many times yesterday, I was dreaming about the steaks cooking on the open fire the first night and the pasta primavera we would be eating on the second night. I thought about the warm oatmeal and bananas we should have been enjoying for breakfast and the smoked turkey sandwich on a bagel with multigrain TOSTITOS and humus for lunch. I even thought about the trail mix and fresh oranges we might have had during our morning and afternoon breaks. But those thoughts were only hallucinations or temporary mental escapes from reality. Because instead of this being a sensible three day hike, I was on a 50K trail run…officially labeled an Ultra Marathon.

I have always wondered what kind of nut would run an Ultra Marathon and yesterday was my first opportunity to find out. What kind of person would wake up at 5 AM, drive at least 30 minutes to the top of the mountain to catch a school bus for a 50 minute drive to the start and run 31 miles back to highest point in Alabama? Clearly, the 250 people now packed into five school buses all had one thing in common. While the men and women came from all over the Southeast, from different economic and educational backgrounds, they all were committed to doing the same thing – celebrating life by staying in incredible shape, hanging around positive “can do” people, enthusiastically tackling challenges, and having a lot of fun in the process. What a great group of people.

I had the pleasure of traveling with 12 of my running or triathlon buddies from Atlanta (or a friend of a friend) and two Ironmen from Baltimore. The race started at 7:30 AM in sunny 40 degree weather and immediately converged into a single track trail that made passing impossible. That was a good thing because the early pace was controlled and sensible.

I ran, walked, rock hopped, and climbed the first 12 miles with Scott Boylan and Rick Armiger from Baltimore, and George Shaak and Jack Spartz from Atlanta. My biggest challenge was to avoid having my nose hit the ground. The trail was full of hidden rocks, roots, holes, and branches that were natural foot grabbers. Unfortunately, George tripped and used the right side of his face to cushion the fall on a rock at about the 10th mile and had to call it a day at mile 18. Scott came down with a bad cold on Friday and by mile 15, could not get control of his coughing or breathing and joined George for the ride to the finish. Rick, Jack and I continued on sharing life experiences and enjoying the great scenery as the miles started to fly by. We crossed a creek at mile 22 and Jack could only see the creek as a solution for his cramping legs and jump in, shoes and all for a February ice bath. I would not see Jack again until our emotional reunion at the finish line.

Rick and I continued to share stories and until mile 26 when my lighter frame (Rick is a Clydesdale – a triathlete over 200 pounds) was too much of an advantage and for the first time in the race, I was alone. I passed Calvin Gray, our expert ultra marathoner as he was walking mile 27. It was amazing to me how happy and cheerful that guy could be as he dealt with some cramping and was anticipating the wall ahead. Calvin was clearly living life to its fullest.

With only 3 miles to go, someone with a very bad sense of humor put a 900 foot hill, cliff, pitch or rock climb in the course. I was glad I was still wearing my gloves, because this was a two hand and two legs kind of climb. I think it would have been a lot more enjoyable as the second mile of a three mile hike, but on this day, it was the final test, the final obstacle, the final assent to the finish line. I caught up with three guys and started up a new conversation as we climbed up the mountain. No one on the course was a stranger today. The last two miles were relatively flat and very anticlimactic. This was clearly a day to celebrate the adventure of the journey and not about the destination. As Jack so appropriately said earlier in the run, this was a journey that no one was in a hurry to end.

My time of 7:29 was about 1 ½ hours slower than my original naive expectation, and I could not have been happier. Fred Soller, Jeff Tomey and Dave Curry, the young studs of our group were so far out in front that they had changed and had lunch before I got to the top. The same can be said for our two ladies – Carey Kilton and Corinne Odermatt. Dick Jones and Bishop Leatherbury slugged it out together and came in shortly after Jack. Gary Kessler stepped in a hole at the 3rd mile and was pulled off the course. He wrote me last night and said he would be looking for another 50 K to try it again as soon as he comes off injured reserves.

As for the food, well the steaks, oatmeal and pasta were only a Fig Newton of my imagination. I ate all day to try to keep up with the calories I was burning. Meals consisted of handfuls of M&Ms with peanuts, peanut butter filled pretzels, bananas and a couple peanut and butter sandwiches. As for beverages, water and an athletic drink called Heat. I think it is made from chalk dust out of a primary school class room. At least that is what it looked and tasted like.

I came away with three lessons from yesterday’s event.
1. Appreciate whatever you have. I was fortunate to be able to complete the course today, injury free. Three of my friends were not so lucky. Two of the Atlanta Team reminded us all to appreciate just being healthy as Jack ran in honor of his brother Jimmy who is recovering from his second stroke and Calvin ran in honor of his friend Brian who is having his sixth and final Chemo treatment this week.
2. Never underestimate the importance and true value of camaraderie. Having shared experiences with friends always trumps “material things.”
3. Actively participate in events that attract people who are living life as an adventure. Their positive mental attitude and “can do” spirit is infectious.

Special thanks to the Todd Henderson (Cheaha 50K Race Director,) all my friends who I mentioned above who were part of this experience, and all the volunteers who hung out in the middle of the woods all day to staff the six aid stations.

Wien's Irreverent Review of Super Bowl Advertising 2011

Super Bowl XLV will be remembered as the clash of the classics…two championship teams that date back to 1919 for the Packers and 1933 for the Steelers. The critical difference in the game was turnovers. Pittsburgh gave up the ball to Greenbay in two interceptions and two fumbles. And that is pretty much what we watched in the commercials – too many interceptions of the message by advertisers being too creative and too many fumbles by advertisers losing focus on their core customers.

In last night’s contest, the real winners where the ads developed by counterintuitive thinkers. Professionals who were more interested in breaking through the clutter by communicating something very specific and unique to their target audience. Unfortunately, too many companies follow the path of humor and entertainment through the use of impressive creativity while forgetting the most basic principle of successful advertising – speak to your target audience in a way that is compelling and motivates them to do something different.

First Quarter

Bud Light (Hack Job) - When a house make-over is just placing a six pack of Bud Light in the kitchen and cases in the yard, I start to wonder if the only thing they did right is name the commercial a “Hack Job.” A disappointing start for a company known for only the best.

Doritos (Pug Attack) - Here is the reason why you do not let the consumer pick your advertising. (This commercial was developed by consumers and was the winner of an internet contest. ) Funny – Yes….Suspenseful – Yes again. Kept my attention – You bet. Watching a loser tease a dog and then get “Crunched” – Rewarding. Having the loser represent my brand – Disappointing. (Discloser – Mike Wien worked on Doritos as a brand manager in the 1970s).

Audi (Breaking out) - High net worth individuals (Audi customers) stage a breakout from prison. Fifty five seconds of entertainment that is a funny collection of clichés for the upper crust. For six million dollars, you would think they would let the Audi break-out and not get lost in the creative.

Doritos (Best Part) - This commercial of a guy sucking another guys fingers to get the Nacho Cheese seasoning makes the first Doritos commercial look great. Who are these guys trying to appeal too? This is the Super Bowl. What were they thinking? You can’t outsource advertising to twitter!

Chevrolet (Misunderstanding – Eco ) - Chevy does a nice job driving home the main benefit…42 miles per gallon. However the commercial features an audience that has hopefully had their drivers licenses revoked. While they used humor to drive home their impressive fuel efficiency, if they were trying to communicate anything positive about the brand, no one could hear them.

Pepsi Max (Love Hurts) - Wife acts as a warden in keeping hubby away from bad calories, but approves Pepsi Max with no calories and maximum flavor. Fun concept until they try to ad humor in the mix. Accidentally hitting an attractive girl with the can and running away fell short. The surprise here is a bad one and prohibits this commercial from being a knock-out. (Discloser – Mike Wien worked at Pepsi in the 1980s)

Bud Light (Product Placement) - When a director is forced to include products in his feature film, he takes matters into his own hands and puts Bud Light everywhere. It is absurd and attacks some of the crazy practices by the establishment. Welcome back Bud Light. Finally a commercial that is not so light on connecting with the target.

Chevrolet (Tommy – Silverado) - A take off from the old Lassie TV series – Tommy getting into trouble and the Silverado getting dad to come to the save the little boy. An entertaining commercial, but weak on selling the brand. I am not sure how the Silverado can rescue the advertising team on this one.

Pepsi Max (Automatic Cooler) - Preppies making fun of the fat guy. Oh no, another cliché. But the fat guy makes friends with the guy who has an automatic cooler launcher and has a Pepsi Max launched right into the Preppies…you know whats. Dumb might be funny, but not for launching a brand.

Doritos (Clean Up) - When a guy leaves for three days and asks his roommate to feed the fish, the guy does what is expected, let’s the place fall apart. As the roommate returns Doritos helps make everything come to life including grandpa coming back from his spilled ashes. This one should have never been brought back to life.

Kia (Optima) - A production extravaganza that has the Optima being stolen by everything from a high tech helicopter to a UFO. The good news is that the car was the center of attention. The bad news is that the message was also stolen by the creative.

Second Quarter

Bridgestone (Copy all) - Have you ever done that…copied all on the wrong message? I have and our star did exactly what I wish I could have done. Great commercial. I just wish the connection with tires was a little more obvious.

Chevrolet (Discovery Volt) - Well, if one of the strategies for Chevy is to remind us why we are proud to be an American (without hitting us over the head with a hammer), they have succeeded. Focusing on breakthroughs that have defined the future instead of the benefits of an electric car is counterintuitive, and very effective.

Go Daddy – Go Daddy has become one of the leading web site address registration companies by being irreverent. If their objective is to drive men to their web site and drive brand awareness, then they have scored on this one.

ATT – (Coverage) – A really pretty artistic commercial showing flowers spreading like Kudzu and all over major cities. Well done…I just hope this was paid for by ATT corporate donations as part of their support the arts program and not by the marketing department. If it was marketing, someone needs to be pruned.

Brisk (Eminem) - Eminem does a very convincing job of telling us why he does not make a very good spokesperson for a product. The folks at Brisk should have taken his advice.

Budweiser (Outlaw) - The bad guy cowboy shows up at the dusty bar ready to kill everyone for being out of Bud. Fortunately, the Bud is delivered just in time. Few can get away with this kind of entertainment. Budweiser did. Unfortunately, this was the annual Clydesdale commercial and it galloped away from the emotional heritage that made the Clydesdale commercial a perennial winner.

Teleflora (Love your rack) - Giving flowers is suppose to be emotional. The set up was great, guy trying to put into words something special to go with the flowers. Based on what he wrote, even the most beautiful bouquet will be wilted on delivery.

Motorola Xoom - This was a take-off on two of the greatest Super Bowl ads in history…The Apple 1984 commercial which set the standard for Super Bowl commercials and Apple’s Lemmings that was aired the following year. Motorola aired a brilliant commercial about how technology might play a role in bringing us all back to more personal relationships. I loved it…only I thought it was an Apple commercial for iPad. I hope Motorola gets Apple to pay for 80% of this one!

Coke (Fire Breathing Dragon) - How far can we push animation with the technology available today? Coke delivers an incredibly impressive commercial with a dragon being satisfied by a Coke. Another example of technology and creative snuffing out any message.

VW Passat (Darth Vader) - A cute commercial that focuses on a little boy trying to test his powers in his Darth Vader suit. The dad making the light blink by remote control makes the little boys day. If a remote control key lock was a new idea, it would have made Volkswagen’s day too.

Snickers (Logging) - Last year, I took a lot of criticism for not loving Betty White getting clobbered. This year, Rosanne is the one that gets clobbered and Richard Lewis makes an appropriate appearance as the guy who needs an energy boost. The best thing about this one is the great casting. If the target is an older audience that watches Curb your Enthusiasm and remembers Rosanne’s TV show, then it works. But when did the number one candy bar in American walk away from the younger generation. Someone else needs to be clobbered.

Career Builder (Parking Lot) - The star in this commercial is an everyday nice guy that is surrounded by chimpanzees and “stuck between a bad job and a hard place.” This commercial speaks to all those people who have hung on to a bad job in a difficult economy and can’t wait to bail when the timing is right. This is proof that humor can support the brand’s reason for being and the main character can be a hero in the eyes of the viewer.

Chevrolet (Facebook Status) – Chevy’s ideal target is the young consumer buying their first car. These new buyers want something that is both economical and “with-it.” A guy checking a voice activated link to his facebook account after dropping his date off speaks right to this audience and demonstrates the power of focusing on a specific target.

Carmax (Kid in a candy store) - This commercial started off with a great premise that focused on the real advantage of Carmax. However, the rapid fire vignettes that follow could only be designed to confuse the viewer and garble the message. They continued their creative misfiring in the third quarter with a nostalgic look at customer service by losing the message in the creative.

Third Quarter

Cars.com (Go first) - Fun concept, but they should have listened to their own advice and let the commercial they aired in the fourth quarter go first. Cars talking about their reviews was right on strategy and drove home the Cars.com reason for being in a creative way.

eTrade (Baby with tailor) - Who is the target…a less sophisticated investor. Who is watching out for that investor – eTrade. Another example of how the message can be sewn in to a funny and cute commercial.

Best Buy (Ozzie buy back) - Best buy has a great message – they will buy back your obsolete technology. Great message, but only Ozzie can make it so complicated, it becomes confusing. And the Super Bowl is the wrong vehicle for this type of detailed message. Pass the chips and dip please.

Home away.com (Hotel disaster) - This is a great web site and a wonderful product. But if you have to spend most of the commercial attacking your competition, the viewer is bound to get lost and miss the message. Fifteen yard penalty for trash talk.

Groupon (Eating in Tibet) - When a humanitarian looking commercial takes a sharp left turn and tries to insert humor and introduce a new service concept, someone is bound to get sick. This was not a good deal.

Coke (Guard Station) - Two soldiers from opposing countries who might have been alumni from Hogan’s Heros guard their respective sides of the border. When one guard shares a Coke with the other, the viewer is only left with what has made Coke the number one brand in the world for over 100 years. Simple, straightforward, effective.

Stella Artois (Romantic Singer) - This commercial is one of the many fall-outs from Anheuser-Busch being purchased by InBev. The folks at Budweiser can’t very well ask for an exclusive on beer commercials when Stella Artois is part of the same company. But, they also have an obligation for stopping a sister brand from doing something stupid in the United States. Wrong venue for this emotionally sappy story line.

Fourth Quarter

Bud Light (Dog Sitting) – The perfect fantasy for the beer drinking guy. A house full of dogs serving an endless supply of Bud Light. They got this one right.

Pepsi Max (I wonder) – Guy and girl thinking two different thoughts. I think we would feel better about the brand if they both kept their thoughts to themselves. Another miss for a company that use to be on top of the charts.

Volkswagen (New Beetle) – Here is another example of how an advertiser can use great animation to create excitement about their brand. The animation was relevant and left the message in good shape.

Verizon (iPhone) – Verizon finally broke ATT exclusive on the iPhone. If I had a message that big, I would not be so subtle about communicating it. This one looked more like a commercial for iPhone with Verizon being an afterthought. Maybe Apple paid for this one too.