Friday, November 22, 2013

#FBF: Changing Tastes

Its that time of the week again! I've been waiting all week for Food Blog Friday, y'all, and here we go!

Today I wanna talk about changing tastes. Not just as a person, but as a culture. When I think back to my tastes as a 3rd grader, they are drastically different from how they are now. Is that because I had different taste buds than I do now, or because we all eat differently?

Well, honestly, I say both! I read an article (now being that this is MY blog after all I don't have to cite shit! This isn't my freshman English class, this is THE PACE RABBIT! But, I swear, I did read an article about this topic at one point...) that basically says kids are picky eaters because their taste buds are still fully functional. Kids don't like healthy food because it actually does taste gross. As adults, our taste buds fade, and we come into this sort of "Emperor's New Clothes" thing where we just eat what everyone else says is good and agree that it is good.

I firmly believe that this is the case with both goat cheese and chai tea. Goat cheese actually tastes like the inside of my 9th grade hockey pads, and chai tea actually tastes like one of those old lady stores in downtown Kearney... (Has anyone else noticed that they all sell the same thing?? I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!!) Anyway, I think no one actually likes goat cheese or chai tea. We just pretend to like it so we feel cool. This is a dangerous place to be. We need to eat what we like, and not pretend to like something because it is "trendy."

I remember as a kid, one of my favorite meals was called "Cowboy Food." We only got it when Mom was working nights (in other words, Dad didn't feel like cooking) and it was awesome! Basically, Dad would brown some hamburger meat, and put a can of beans in it... and that's it...

Seriously, to a 9 year old kid, it didn't get much better than beans and meat. Now, I don't know what my favorite dish would be as a 25 year old, but the list would include Pad Thai, Beef Wellington, and a nice craft burger. Is this because my taste buds are dull now, and I like stronger flavors, or because craft burgers and Thai food are trendy? What drives me nuts is that I DON'T KNOW!! I like to think that I would like craft burgers even if they weren't all over every hipster bar in every town with a college in America, but I just can't say that for sure because I'm too late! That's tragically already the case.

Food Network, celebrity chefs, and the craft beer industry could totally be behind all of this, but I can't be sure. Personally, I think its all thanks to the same people who claim that apples have an inedible "core" and who created TV shows like "Jersey Shore." Either way, don't follow the trends, FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!!!

Sunday, November 17, 2013

#FBF: Chili; Messin' With Texas!

Yep, its Sunday. Not Friday. Thank you, Captain Obvious. No reason we can't have a Food Blog Friday though, right??

Today I want to talk about chili. Yep, that good ol' fashioned, game day classic. Let me tell ya somethin' here folks, chili is not just an excuse for cornbread and cinnamon rolls! ... Although, I mean, if you brought some over for me, I'd gladly make you a pot of chili... just sayin...

I am somewhere between a chili purist and an innovator. I believe that chili requires three key ingredients: Red meat, tomatoes, and beans. Here are a few thoughts from the Great Sam Holmes on the other phyla of chili.

Green Chili: Absolutely delicious. Nothing cures a hangover better, and I would literally smother anything with it and call it a meal. However, I moved away from Denver, so I'll stick to making the Red and leave the Green to the experts.

White Chicken Chili: You mean tortilla soup? If I wanted chicken, I'd order a bowl of freakin' chicken soup!! Plus, white beans taste like band-aids. Bring me some REAL chili!

Vegetarian Chili: No thanks, bro. I actually didn't go to CU Boulder. You can keep your vegetable soup. #Hippies #SMH

Texas Chili: Wait, you just shredded some meat in tomato sauce and called it soup?? Pour this over some spaghetti maybe... where's the beans? You Texans have to eat your vegetables at some point, I'm sorry.

That's right, folks. I am a proponent of the midwestern chili, including meat, tomatoes, and beans. After that, its all improvisation!

Last Friday (when I was supposed to be blogging) I had a chili cook off at work. Well, I won... Here was the winning recipe!

*Note: Any measurements I may decide to put in here are total guesses. I made this chili at midnight Thursday night, and um.. well I'd had a few. In other words, I couldn't find my measuring cups! Either way, look at this as a guideline to inspire your own creation.


  1. 4 strips bacon, cook in large pot and set aside.
  2. Large beef roast (I used a two-pounder and it probably served about 10 people, or 5 triathletes) Rub with your choice of spices and sear on all sides and set aside. 
  3. 1 Large onion. Chop it and cook in the drippings on the pot.
  4. Add a green bell pepper, and a couple other medium to high heat chilis. I used pasillo and anaheim. Again, chopped and cooked with the onions.
  5. Deglaze the pan with a shot of bourbon. Mix it around and cook the alcohol out, and add a whole dark beer. This just keeps getting better and better!
  6. Add a large can of diced tomatoes and a large can of black beans.
  7. Add a couple ears worth of roasted corn. 
  8. Put the roast and the now-crushed-bacon back in and bring to a boil. Simmer for like 4 hours, or until you can shred the beef!
  9. Serve hot, with some cotija cheese and tortilla chips!
Like I said, don't follow recipes, FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!!!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

#TriathlonThursday: Chasing Dad's Shadow

I know, I know, its not Triathlon Tuesday... Given that there are two days in the week that start with "T," I am able to procrastinate even more sometimes. Yay for me! Don't worry though I'll still get your Food Blog Friday up by tomorrow.

Today I wanna talk about my Dad. Now I got into swimming because of my sister, but I would say the rest of the road to triathlon was definitely paved by Dad. He'd always been a runner, a cyclist, and a dentist, so for me it ultimately became not a choice of whether to follow in my dad's footsteps, but rather of how to follow in them.

It's not Father's Day, or his birthday, and no, he's not sick... Honestly I don't know what caused me to write this, but I'm gonna go with it!

I remember a summer in Estes Park when I was probably in middle school, and Dad and I went on a mountain bike ride. I can't say I recall much of the actual ride, but I do remember the ride home. We had to pedal our way back to the hotel for whatever reason, and it was farther than we'd anticipated. Dad just kept saying "Just one more hill, Sam!" To this day I'm not sure if the old man knew he was lying to me, or if he was as lost as I was! After several "One More Hills" we made it.

It probably wasn't all that long of a ride, but to a sullen 7th grader who'd rather be on MSN Instant Messenger it was an Ironman. I'm not gonna sit here and tell you that in that instant I decided to become a triathlete. There was no great epiphany for that. But it did teach me to take things one step at a time... and also that my dad is a badass, because he went for a run after that and I passed out watching SpongeBob.

Later, I learned the old-world sensibilities of road cycling from my dad. Suddenly, I was spending summer weekends wearing spandex and contemplating the Nebraska wind with my old man. From there, it wasn't much of a stretch to jump to road running, and after swim season my Junior year of high school I ran my first half marathon.

What a lot of people don't know is that I was accepted into dental school, and nearly went, just like my Dad. I still remember the day I told him I'd gotten in... he looked like I punched him in the gut! Frankly, I think he is happy I followed the triathlete in him, and not the dentist.

I live in Omaha now, which is where my dad started his runner/cyclist/triathlete lifestyle. Not too long ago, I was running through the hills of California street near Dundee (dad's old stompin' grounds) when I heard some footsteps behind me. I know I'm not that fast on the world scale, but still, to be passed by a casual runner is pretty rare for me. This skinny, 20-something guy comes blowing by me on the hill up from Saddle Creek (a mile-long grinder) and I had to stop.

I swear, it was my dad as he was at my age. He had a shaggy head of hippie lettuce, a 70's mustache, some old school Nike flats, and those same orange shorts dad used to run marathons in! (Think of an Irish/Norwegian Prefontaine) I gave him a nod, and he gave me a knowing smile, and just like that, I was chasing my dad up a hill again. I took it to be a good sign... dad used to give me a beer after a ride or run under the premise of "don't tell your mother..."

I remember when I realized I could beat my dad on the bike. It was my junior year of college, and we were going up Trail Ridge Road, again in Estes Park. I was chatting away, my lungs totally acclimated to the altitude from 3 years of swimming in Laramie. When I looked back, waiting for a response, I saw my dad 100 meters back. I was simultaneously pumped that I'd finally dropped the wily old bastard, and sad... (why am I crying writing this???)  If I could beat my dad, who would I ride with now?

We finished the ride together, and to this day I still love to go ride with me dad. After all, he taught me how.

Whenever I'm not sure of what to do in life, I always know I have a great example to follow in my dad. And, Dad, if I ever do decide to grow up, Just like in that Rodney Atkins song, I'll still know what to do, I've been watching you my whole life.

Wow, I just cried a lot writing this... and yep... I'm in a Starbucks... Good lord, I'm getting out of here. Love you, Pops! Until Food Blog Friday, FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!!!!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Triathlon Tuesday: Season Recap

So I've decided to force myself to blog more and add a #TriathlonTuesday to my weekly lineup that already includes #FoodBlogFriday. The truth is, I really enjoy writing, I just need to make the time to do it... and my sister believes that I need to write more about being a triathlete than about being a fat kid...

Today I'm going to start the series off by recapping my season. You may have noticed I don't do race recaps generally speaking. There are several reasons for that; first of all, I think race recaps are boring, and I'm actually a triathlete. For you non-triathletes (I decided it would be blasphemous to call you "gentiles") they must be like, claw-your-eyes-out boring, so I don't subject you to that. Also, I believe that a lot of it should be between me and my coach.

Lets be honest though, the biggest reason is I haven't had a ton of great results this season... And I'm not the type of guy who writes a review on Yelp because I had a bad experience at a restaurant... I only Yelp the good ones!

This season had its ups and downs for me. A lot of ups because over all I had improved significantly from last year. My fitness, when it was where we wanted it, was great and I showed a few glimpses of solid results. However, I also had a lot of downs. These resulted from a lot of different things. There were corners cut on my part, other obligations like weddings and moves, and me not always having my head on straight. In short, the faults were entirely my own.

The good news is I learned a ton, as usual. I got a much better idea of how to budget, plan, and organize a season as professional. I learned how hard I can race and still hold it together. The biggest thing I take away from this season though, is hunger. I was too complacent after last season, and I see that now. I was pretending like I've already made it, but the fact is I'm nowhere close. I need to adopt a more blue-collar attitude, and be more driven. I am nowhere near ready to give up on triathlon yet, so stay tuned for new and improved Sam Holmes, coming soon to a race near you next Spring! Until then, its back to the grind this winter, so FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!