Ironband - live @ the Brooksider

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Brooksider last week to see Ironband and Perpetual Change. We had a blast and we hope that you did too!

A special thanks also to the boys of Perpetual Change for letting us share their stage (and equipment, drummer, sound guy, groupies, etc.), to the incredibly talented multi-percussionist, Dr. Andrew “Molar” Moore, for backing us on the drum kit, to Matt “Moog” Harnett for running sound and doing his best to hide our flaws, to the Brooksider for putting up with us, and to everyone who showed up expecting to hear The Cure but managed to keep a smile through our set until PC took the stage.

If you were there, you’ll probably find yourself in the video or in the pics below so be sure to check them out – there are albums from our cameras as well as a fantastic set of images from our friend Brian Rice and our thanks go out to him for capturing the evening on film and making us look like a real band.

Oh yes, you heard correctly. Sure, we were down a guitarist/singer, we borrowed a drummer, and we didn’t have a technically-advanced rig to record the show properly, but they were begging us to stream this concert live at BB’s Pub in Phuket, Thailand, so in all its glory, and with all the hiccups and flaws inherent in a live show, we give you IRONBAND – live @ the Brooksider.

Live at Budokan it is not, but it’s out there for your streaming/downloading pleasure and who knows, you might just hear your name in the song dedications from the evening. Get it now and join the tens of fans in Thailand and Kuala Lumpur that are hosting listening parties abroad!

IRONBAND live @ the Brooksider   1.  Chafed on the Backside 2.  Gotta Get to Kona 3.  Tri She-Devil 4.  Aid Station Hooker 5.  I Don’t Mind (Bein’ Passed by a Chick) 6.  Racin’ in Phuket (Thailand) 7.  Age Group Body, Podium Heart 8.  Pro Card Reject 9.  Money Only Buys So Much Speed 10.  I Want My Four Miles 11.  Please, Please Santa 12.  Not Tonight Honey (I’ve Got a 20-Miler in the Morning) Download this and all our albums at ironbandmusic.com!

Come out and join us for a great evening of music and fun – we’ll kick off the evening with a set of our original music and right about the time that you’ve figured out what the heck we’re singing about, Perpetual Change will take the stage and perform your favorite tunes from the 80′s, 90′s, and 00′s. Rumor has it that one of PC’s guitarists may even demonstrate the latest in isometric exercises between sets.

We have a handful of t-shirts and CD’s to give away that were left over from our recent show at a Shakey’s Pizza in Tokyo; you’re going to want to be in the front row (or playing tambourine on stage) to get your hands on these hot items!

Depending on televised football/basketball/UFC events Ironband plans to hit the stage around 9:30pm followed by Perpetual Change at 10:30pm, but the Brooksider is open all day so head on over to Brooksider or one of the other fabulous dinner venues in Brookside before the show.

Want to hear our music or read up on the lyrics prior to Saturday’s show? Download our music for free at our website or check out the lyrics page. You never know, there might be a song about you in there.

We look forward to seeing you on Saturday!

Mike Reilly, "The Voice of Ironman"

Come on, admit it – how many of you signed up for the insane notion of swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles, and running 26.2 miles just to hear “The Voice” call your name and say, “You ARE an Ironman!,” as you crossed the finish line?

Having finished ended my first Ironman four miles short and landing in the E.R. without ever getting to hear those words, I can tell you that a year later when I went back and actually did finish my first Ironman those words played on the soundtrack in my head through much of the 140.6 miles leading up to that finish line, just as I’m sure it has for thousands of Ironman triathltes around the world.

Hell, we wound up writing a song about it – “Mike Reilly Said I’m an Ironman” – what does that tell you (other than that we’re a bunch of cheeseball triathlete-musicians?).

But I digress….the man of the moment is Mr. Mike Reilly who was inducted into the Ironman Hall of Fame this weekend in Kona. Having announced over 100 Ironman races over the past 20 years Mike’s voice has become synonymous with the achievement of finishing an Ironman triathlon.

If you’ve ever spent the last few hours at an Ironman finish line and watched Mike call the athletes across the finish line as the midnight cutoff draws near, you have been lucky enough to witness one of the most awe-inspiring scenes in the sport.

Mike is a genuinely nice guy and a great ambassador of the sport and we’re happy to see him receive this well-deserved recognition. Mike – congrats to you and your family – we’ll see you out at a finish line, or on a stage, soon!

2011 Ford Ironman World Championship Results Book

As the race in Kona unfolded on Saturday I couldn’t help, but for a minute, feel like I was Phil Murray in Groundhog Day.

2008: Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington win 2008 Ironman World Championship!

2009: Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington win 2009 Ironman World Championship!

2011: Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington win 2011 Ironman World Championship!

But just as Phil eventually moved on to a new, and different, day, in Punxsutawney, so too did Australia’s Craig “Crowie” Alexander and Great Britain’s Chrissie Wellington as they took home their third and fourth respective Ironman World Champion titles at this year’s Ford Ironman World Championship.

Not only that, but Crowie set a new course record, became one of only four men on the planet to have won this race three times, and became the first man to win both the Ironman 70.3 World Championship and the 140.6-mile Ironman World Championship in the same year.

As a great ambassador for the sport, for the charities he supports, and as a rumored owner of Ironband’s latest album, we’re thrilled for Crowie, his family, and his team and we wish him the best as the 2011 Ironman World Champion!

Ironband w/ Chrissie Wellington - 2011 Blazeman Benefit Dinner

We are also incredibly thrilled for Chrissie Wellington who takes home her fourth Ironman World Championship title after her toughest battle yet on the course in Kona. Just a few weeks ago Chrissie suffered a bike crash that left her bruised and battered; depsite reporting that while her body battered, her head was strong, recent information reveals just how serious the wreck actually was and it was unclear how her injuries would affect her ability to compete in this year’s championship. But compete she did in her toughest battle yet for the the title after overcoming a serious deficit on the swim that left her starting the bike leg in 10th place.

As everyone watched and wondered, Chrissie proved that she wasn’t out for the count by laying down the fastest women’s bike split of the day before blazing through the run course, managing to hold off defending champion Mirinda Carfrae of Australia by just three minutes. Chrissie looked like she was in shock when she came across the finish line, physically and emotionally drained, but managed to lay down and do her traditional “Blazeman Roll” in support of Jon Blais and the Blazeman Warriors. A huge congratulations goes out to Chrissie!

Our congratulations also go out to the rest of the men’s and women’s pros who put it all on the line, as well as the age-groupers from around the world who fulfilled a dream by racing among the lava fields in Kona! Special props go out to some of our local rock starts – Jon King, Josh Wolf, and Bob Schloegel who took fourth place in his age group – way to go guys!

For full coverage and results be sure to visit ironman.com.

Ironband & Perpetual Change - Live @ the Brooksider - Nov. 12th

OK, OK, calm down – I didn’t say that we were playing at the same venue, did I?

Let’s try that headline again:

IRONBAND – Live @ the Brooksider w/ Perpetual Change – Saturday, Nov. 12th

Add to My Calendar

Better?

It’s true, Guns n’ Roses will be playing across town at the Sprint Center on the same night as our show and it may be a tough choice for some of you given our inability to rock a skirt like Axl Rose or a hairdo and top hat like Slash.

However, we promise that between our triathlonic musical odyssey and a powerhouse set of your favorite 80′s, 90′s, and 00′s tunes from our friends and local favorites, Perpetual Change, you’ll go home with a bigger smile on your face than had you spent the evening immersed in a contact-high over at the Sprint Center.

If you attended our last show with Perpetual Change you know that you’re in for a fun evening of friends, music, perhaps some food and drink, a little dancing entertainment from the infamous Iron Maidens, and if you’re feeling a tad unrestrained, perhaps a turn with the tambourine or shake weight (you’ll have to ask Perpetual Change about that one).

More details to come, but we wanted to get the date out there so you can plan accordingly, book the sitter, rearrange your Sunday morning training plan, etc.

If you don’t already have them on your iPod, head on over to ironbandmusic.com to get our music!

Panasonic’s “Evolta” robot is going to attempt to complete an Ironman-distance triathlon – including a swim, a bike, and a run – using various attachable body parts to allow it to complete each leg.

Since Evolta is 1/10th the size of a human, organizers are giving him, er, her, ah, “it,” ten times the normal amount of time that it takes an average human to complete an Ironman-distance triathlon (which, as most of you know, has a 17 hour time cutoff), or 168 hours – basically one week. And you thought Ironman was a tough spectator sport.

Evolta’s previous achievements include climbing the walls of the Grand Canyon and driving the Le Mans racetrack for 24 hours.

The event will take on the Big Island in Hawaii just a few weeks after the Ironman World Championship which is set for October 8th in Kona. Who knows, if this takes off perhaps we’ll see legions of robotic triathletes competing for qualifying spots in the Robotic Ironman World Championship. What’s next? The Robotic Ironman Lottery, of course!

Visit MSNBC to learn more.

We had a number of friends out there this weekend who put on exceptional performances: Bob Schloegel (1st AG), Leslie Curley (1st AG), Mike Malfer (5th AG),Tim Freeland (5th AG), Jared Kuntz (10th AG), Bill Biehl (19th AG), Josh Taylor (44th AG) and a handful of others who I’m probably missing – congratulations to all of you!

We took on this course last year and we can tell you that it is among the toughest, most scenic, and most rewarding of the domestic 70.3 circuit so if you haven’t had a chance to experience the hills of Branson be sure to put it on the calendar for 2012!

Visit ironman.com for a full recap and results.

Argentina’s Ezequiel Morales posted a solid run and ran away with the 2011 Ford Ironman Wisconsin title – the first Ironman win of his career.

Retired Army Captain Jessica Jacobs took the women’s title after taking the lead from Meredith Kessler at the 18-mile point on the run.

Perhaps one of the most impressive feats of the day in Madison was Madison firefighter Robert Verhelst who, in honor of racing on the 10th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, completed the run leg of Ironman Wisconsin wearing his full firefighter gear – over 100 pounds of gear! Way to go Robert!

Congratulations to the winners, the age-groupers, and all of the finishers in Madison!

Visit ironmanwisconsin.com for a full recap and results.

In it’s first year at Lake Las Vegas it was looking to be a very tough day for competitors as temperatures were expected to reach into the 100s. Fortunately (for those, like myself, who don’t particularly enjoy running in 100-degree heat) a cloud-cover kept things a little cooler (in the 90s).

The competition, however, was on fire and Crowie’s amazing 1:11:50 run split allowed him to catch Chris Lieto on the run to take the title.

On the women’s side things were flying as well and Melissa Rollinson’s blistering 1:21:14 run split shot her to her first Ironman 70.3 title barely a year after taking up triathlon after a successful track and field career.

Congratulations to all the winners, age-group winners, and everyone who qualified for this year’s 70.3 championship race!

Visit ironman.com for a full recap and results.

No Sleep 'Til Kona

With the season starting to wind down for many of us we know that you are already drooling over the 2012 bikes and gear that are starting to hit the shelves. In our continued effort to help you be the best that you can be Ironband is launching our own “Musical Bailout Package.”

That’s right, starting today you can download our newest album, “No Sleep ‘Til Kona” for FREE directly from our website!

So FREE , yes, FREE . That’s 16 new songs for FREE , or $0.00 divided by 16 songs is, well, $0.00 per song!

Can you resist putting them on your iPod now?

We tried doing this through iTunes, but apparently the powers that be are too busy hawking billions of Justin Bieber albums to respond to our requests and so we’re going straight to the source – ironbandmusic.com – to help you save $9 so you can put it toward that sleek carbon frame that you’ve been eyeing for the 2012 season!

Of course, if you are among the technically-challenged and you don’t know how to download mp3 files and import them into your favorite music management software, you can still get the album directly from all of the major digital outlets: iTunes, CDBaby, Amazon, Zune.

For the handful of you who supported us by buying the album, we thank you; let us know and we’ll send you a signed copy of the cover/liner notes and some Chamois Butt’r for your troubles. And don’t worry; we haven’t retired to the beach yet – all six dollars of profits are going toward the rapidly dwindling fund that buys Scott’s leg razors.

Don’t forget about our original album, “Gotta Get to Kona,” as it too can be downloaded for free! If you don’t have all the old hits such as “Pass the Chamois Butt’r”, “I Don’t Mind (Bein’ Passed by a Chick)”, “Chafed on the Backside”, and more, go get em’!

We are keeping our fingers crossed that this offer is what finally breaks down the last remaining continental holdout: Antarctica!

That’s right – our music has been downloaded on every content with the exception of Antarctica – come on guys – if you’re listening at Amundsen-Scott Camp at the South Pole, head on over to ironbandmusic.com and get yourself some tunes!