Bowden Burns off Christmas Calories

Bowden is at it again.
She ate a lot during the holidays and is now back working out.
This is her road set up.
Her tri set up will follow soon.

Merry Christmas & Goodbye to the Godfather of Soul

I loved this dude's music.
Got on the net this Christmas morning to find out that he has died. I can tell you how many times I've chanted the "Get up, get on up...." everytime I do a tough long steady climb.
He will be missed and remembered (each year when I race a Lake Placid).
When you pass by a guy singing this at IMLP just remember to say hello.

Have a Great Christmas and reserve a moment for the Godfather of Soul. ============================================================================ Brown's agent Frank Copsidas said the singer was hospitalized with severe pneumonia on Sunday, and died around 1:45 a.m. ET on Monday, reports the Associated Press.

Copsidas said longtime friend Charles Bobbit was by Brown's side when he died at Emory Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta, Ga. James Joseph Brown, Jr. is widely considered one of the most seminal, influential figures in 20th century music.

He had a raspy, gospel-style voiced that, combined with a horn-section that punctuated his funky, frenetic rhythms, evolved into a distinct, revolutionary style of music.

He recorded more than 50 albums and had well over 100 songs that hit the charts, including "I Got You (I Feel Good)," "(Get Up I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "Out of Sight." His classic "Say It Out Loud -- I'm Black and I'm Proud" became a landmark statement of racial pride when it came out in 1968.

"I clearly remember we were calling ourselves coloured, and after the song, we were calling ourselves black," Brown told the Associated Press in an interview in 2003. "The song showed even people to that day that lyrics and music and a song can change society."

Brown was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and won a Grammy lifetime achievement award in 1992. Not only was he a prolific singer and songwriter, he was also a record producer, businessman and bandleader who is credited with influencing a new generation of African American music that reaches all the way to rap and hip-hop today. "

James presented obviously the best grooves," rapper Chuck D of Public Enemy once told The Associated Press. "To this day, there has been no one near as funky. No one's coming even close."

Brown also left his mark on numerous other musical genres, including rock, jazz, reggae, disco, dance and electronic music. And the pompadoured, flamboyant Brown also influenced many artists with his dancing. His often copied, never quite equalled, rapid-fire footwork inspired such artists as Michael Jackson, Prince and Mick Jagger.

Brown rose to success despite being born in abject poverty in Barnwell, South Carolina, in 1933. He was abandoned as a four-year-old to the care of relatives and friends and grew up on the streets of Augusta, Ga., in an "ill-repute area," as he once called it. "I wanted to be somebody," Brown told AP.

He shot to stardom after Cincinnati's King Records signed his group, the Gospel Starlighters, to a record deal in 1956 and four months later their hit "Please, Please, Please" was in the R&B top ten.

But later on in his career, Brown ran into troubles with the law. He was arrested several times in the 1980s and 1990s and was charged with drug and weapons possession. His wife, Adrienne Brown, died in 1996 in Los Angeles at age 47 after she took the drug PCP and several prescription drugs while suffering from a bad heart.

More recently, Brown married his fourth wife, Tomi Raye Hynie, who one of his backup singers. The couple had a son, James Jr.

With files from The Associated Press

I Elfed Myself

Hey everyone,

Check this out, I just elfed myself.
Turn up your volume a bit and enjoy.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=6ea7c9bcec85fdb8b264f9aG06121520

What a cool IMHAWAII broadcast on NBC last week eh!
They surely know how to get those tears flowing.

Enjoy your Christmas shopping.
Hoss

In Case You Missed It

Here are a few scans of a few recent articles.
Don't forget, Ironman Hawaii on NBC tomorrow at 4pm.







From the Markham Economist & Sun

Litespeed Saber, The King & The Big Broadcast

Check out this video of the best Tri Bike out there.
It is a sweet ride and I can't wait for the race season to begin.

Go to the "Cool Stuff" Section on the right side of the screen and click on the Litespeed Saber or you can Copy and Paste the following in a new window and prepare to drool:

mms://84.233.150.200/url1/cycling/374/Litespeed_Saber_256.wmv


By the way, Joanne King (former ITU superstar) made her return to racing last weekend at Ironman Australia. However, she dropped out of the race during the run. Hopefully she bounces back and does another one. I'd love to see what she can do in Ironman racing if she stays healthy.

Don't forget that BIG BROADCAST this Saturday at 4 pm on NBC. That's right, the always awesome Ironman Hawaii broadcast is 3 days away. It should be on time since there is no live sporting event (NASCAR) just before it. Enjoy. I know I will be glued to my TV screen.

Later
Hoss

What it Takes, Reid, CW-X, and the Music Industry

Basketball season is over (congratulations to the girls for making it to the YRAA Semi-finals—they improved so much since September) and it finally looks like I can actually get back to some training. So far this week I’ve got 6 hours under my belt. Of course as soon as things start going well I wake up this morning with a stiff neck. It’s still there tonight and I’m going to try and knock off a bike ride right after posting this. I can’t screw up what could be a good start to winter training.

What it Takes
I saw this film last week and it is outstanding. It is a must see for all fans of Multisport. There is lots of great insight into the lives of Peter Reid, Lori Bowden, Heather Fuhr, and Luke Bell. I have written a review for the next issue of Triathlon Magazine Canada so you can check out more details there. To order your own copy visit http://www.witmovie.com/ you will not be disappointed.




Peter Reid
Speaking of Peter Reid, a few months ago after Ironman Canada, I mentioned that I thought he would be an excellent coach - “Just listening to him give his tips makes me believe that he would be an incredible coach. We will see if that is where his future lies.” Well Peter has now officially entered the coaching arena. He is taking applications right now and I can only imagine how much it will cost. It may be well worth it though. Check out the details here http://www.peterreid.com/coaching.htm

CW-X
Thanks to the folks at Running Free, I have been given the opportunity to test out the CW-X Insulator Expert Tights. Other than making me feel a bit like Spiderman, they perform quite differently than any other tights out there. The funky Conditioning Web patterns not only look unique but they perform the function of holding/supporting the muscles and ligaments together to stabilize areas such as the knee joint. Particularly useful to me is the extra support I get in the hamstrings and regions behind the knee (I snapped my hammy playing football just before my first Ironman in 1999 --- it still clicks today when I straighten it). Due to the web patterns, running in the tights actually feels assisted because you definitely feel the extra support, especially at the knee joint. The Auto Sensor material in the Insulator version of the tights does a great job in maintaining warmth and dryness. I have not felt the need to double layer. I like the science and philosophy behind this product and I will now check out some of CW-X’s tops and shorts. I only hope that they are coming out with a bike short. Check out their cool stiff at http://cw-x.com/ss/introduction



Music
This is not really sports related but since we all likely listen to music while we are training I think it is appropriate. After watching the American Music Awards a few nights ago I must say that today’s music industry absolutely putrid! I can’t believe the crud they are trying to pass off as music. Case in point, the Pussycat Dolls. I didn’t know lap-dancing skills qualified you to be singers. I did enjoy the performances of Beyonce and Nelly Furtado though. They actually have talent, can sing, and they look classy and beautiful. However, for some real music with some thoughtful lyrics, there are 2 excellent CDs out there right now. Tom Cochrane – No Stranger, and The Tragically Hip – World Container.



That’s enough from me. Enjoy your early winter training.

Hoss

PS: Happy Birthday Doreen! By the way you are not the "DL". I know this because I see the real "DL" every morning.

Raid the Hammer

This past weekend a few friends (Marie & Angus) and I took part in the Raid the Hammer 25 km Running Adventure Race. Yup, I'm still kinda sore from the whole thing. We had a ton of fun doing it, but we just have to learn how to navigate. Thanks go out to Running Free who awarded our rookie team with the entry to the race.

Below is the race report from the big event.

Race Report
By Roger Hospedales, Team Running Free

Race: Raid the Hammer

Date: Sunday November 12, 2006.

Location: Highland High School, Hamilton, Ontario

Description: 25 km Adventure Run

Sport: Adventure Trail Run

Website: www.dontgetlost.ca

At the 2006 edition of the Raid the Hammer race our team may have done some raiding, but the course surely hammered us in return. Despite that beating, our team had a wonderful experience.

You know it is not a good sign of things to come when you get lost on the way the to an adventure race, but that is how our day started (mapquest sent me in the opposite direction). Our Running Free Team consisted of Angus Kim, Marie McGrath, and myself. Considering that we all had very limited navigation skills, we did fairly well finding all of the early checkpoints fairly easily. On the physical challenge side of things, you will get your fill on this course. The terrain is varied, and there is nothing but climbing, climbing, and more climbing.

We managed to make the first cut-off time of 1 pm, but due to some navigation misadventures, we missed the second cut-off time of 3 pm by just 10 minutes. To be quite honest, we were just about done at that point and welcomed the fact that we were forced to take the short cut back to the finish. Upon finishing the race, we (and all of the teams) picked up some swag (portable chair, carabiner key chain with compass and light) and went indoors to get warm and enjoy some pop and hot pizza. This post-race meal gave us the opportunity to reminisce about the previous hours of “fun”. It was also a nice time to chat with a lot of the other teams we saw out on the course.

With more race experience and maybe a taking a course in navigation we could have done much better on the results side of things but it would not have had much of an impact on changing our overall enjoyment. We did a total of 7 hours of racing, a combination of running, climbing, bushwhacking, mud trekking and walking. While we were hurting near the end of the race, it did not feel like 7 hours had gone by. We enjoyed each other’s company and met a lot of cool people along the way.

I can easily recommend this race to anyone. You can get by without any navigation experience (as our team proved), but if you wish to finish high on the final results it definitely helps to know how to navigate. This event truly is a very challenging, fun and satisfying way to spend a day with a few buddies, no matter what time it takes you to complete it. This was one of the most demanding races I’ve ever experienced and with some improved navigation skills, along with my team mates Marie and Angus (won’t do it without you guys), I look forward to tackling this event again next year.

HSBC Awards Day, Brunch, Lance, Dean & Argos!!!

On Saturday, Multisport Canada held their annual awards day at Endurosport. I was fortunate to pick up a nice award picture and plaque courtesy of Multisport Canada and Mike Cheliak. It was nice to see some familiar faces once again before the long wait until the start of the race season in 2007. To bad I won nothing in the season ending draw (but I won a Tri All 3 Bike Box last year so I can't complain).

John Salt and Jason Vurma outlined their plans for next year and I can't wait. The Welland race is coming back but to a new location, Bala Falls and the Toronto Island Tri/Du have been added. Lots of other cool plans in store too. These guys run the best race series out there and it is only getting better. I'd like to thank them for running such top notch races because I don't what I'd be doing with my weekends. In fact, I'm going through major withdrawal right now. Check them out at www.multisportcanada.com

I spent most of the time getting the "Rookie" set up with all of her necessary equipment that she will need to compete in Ironman Canada next year. The "Rookie" is a friend of mine that I've known for about 15 years now. She has never done a triathlon before but I somehow conned her into doing Ironman Canada. Yup, she is probably crazier than I am.

Sunday, had a massive brunch at the Hilton Suites hotel with "Goose". Lobster, crab, prime rib, you name it. 4 jammed packed plates later....and I'm stuffed. Oh yeah, toss in dessert too.

And what a great day for sports. My beloved Argos beat Winnipeg to advance to the Eastern Final vs Montreal. Lance Armstrong completed the New York Marathon in 2:59:35, and Dean Karnazes finished his 50th Marathon today in 3:00:36. But here is the kicker, he did 50 marathons in 50 days, and in 50 different states. Now that is nuts. So running 3 hrs in that last one is absolutely incredible.

Maybe one day, hmmm...........

Later
Hoss

Oh yes, congratulations to Scott Curry and Jodi Miller who competed at Ironman Florida yesterday. Scott finished 5th overall (8:45), and Jodi (HSBS Tri Series Announcer) finished the race in 12:45. Great work and enjoy your recovery with some nice pig out sessions.

Film Review: Wired to Win

If you didn't already know, there is an IMAX Film currently showing around the world called Wired to Win. In Ontario, you can see it at the Ontario Science Centre (be warned that parking costs $8 there).

What did I think of it?

I was really looking forward to it (since I love watching cycling) and it was quite good but not great. I'd rate it a solid 7 and possibly an 8 out of 10.

This film would have been tons better with more IMAX footage. I did not time it but I could have sworn that 30% of it or more was not even IMAX stuff and just OLN/TV footage, along with animation.

That first shot of the Tour de France with the camera coming over the mountains and hovering over the riders was breathtaking. All of the cycling footage was awesome to see, I just feel it needed tons more of it.

It was like the producers felt they needed to justify the science end of the film and constantly keep showing the animation to explain fairly basic stuff. The only thing I have left to say is make a Wired to Win 2 and give us more cycling footage because that was the highlight of the film.

It is worth seeing, but cycling junkies should be forewarned that their thirst for wicked IMAX cycling footage may not be quenched fully after watching this film.

Enjoy.

RH

A War of Words - Macca strikes back huge!

After winning Ironman Hawaii, good ole Normann Stadler could not leave well enough alone and accused Chris McCormack of drafting. Of course, with Macca being the straight shooter that he is, he went right up to Stadler at the awards banquet and confronted him about his comments. The last few days of verbal warfare have been quite interesting. The 2007 race season will surely be one to watch now. Especially next year's Kona.

Check out some of what Macca had to say at these sites. I've tried posting it here but it does not seem to be working. Enjoy.
RH

http://chrismccormack.com/news/newsDetail.aspx?id=164

http://triathletemag.com/Page755.aspx

My Multisport Canada Award

Courtesy of Mike Cheliak (the best photographer in the business) here is my HSBC Duathlon Series Award. 1st Place among Men 35-39.

I'll actually get my hands on it at the Series Awards & Customer Appreciation Day on November 4th at Enduro Sport.

Hoss

Michellie & Normann Win

Me with the now 2006 Ironman World Champion

Instead of doing work and packing for my move, I pretty much did nothing but watch Ironman Hawaii coverage on ironman.com all day. They did a wicked job. Although I would have preferred to see Heather Fuhr racing, she added to the quality of the coverage.

Some of my picks came through huge. Thanks and congrats Michellie. Maybe she will go for the double and try to take home the 70.3 World Championships too? That would be sweet and definitely possible. Too bad Macca ran out of real estate but running a 2:46 is absolutely insane. Like I said, he needed to go bigger on the bike. We just might see him too at the 70.3 World Championships in a few weeks.

Great to see Desiree Ficker finish 2nd. She is a genuinely nice person who obviously put in some hard work to make such a great improvement. A definite future threat. Also incredible to see Lisa Bentley plow her way through to a 3rd place finish. And of course I must mention that the legendary Karen Smyers at the age of 45, finished 12th with a time of 9:39. On a sad note it was too bad that Dick and Rick Hoyt didn't make the swim cut-off. This was supposed to be their last trip to Kona. They will hopefully be back to end on a better note.

Here are the final results (Top 10).

Men's
1. Normann Stadler 8:11:56
2. Chris McCormack 8:13:07
3. Faris Al-Sultan 8:19:04
4. Rutger Beke 8:21:04
5. Eneko Llanos 8:22:28
6. Marino Vanhoenacker 8:24:17
7. Luke Bell 8:24:26
8. Cameron Brown 8:25:22
9. Chris Lieto 8:27:37
10. Patrick Vernay 8:28:13

Women's
1. Michellie Jones 9:18:31
2. Desiree Ficker 9:24:02
3. Lisa Bentley 9:25:18
4. Gina Kehr 9:27:24
5. Katherine Allen 9:30:22
6. Kate Major 9:31:53
7. Joanna Lawn 9:32:48
8. Belinda Granger 9:35:48
9. Melissa Ashton 9:38:22
10. Natascha Badmann 9:38:52

The big Ironman broadcast is set to air on NBC on December 9, from 4-6pm. Can't wait.

Later
Hoss

Toronto Marathon, Kona Is Tomorrow

Last weekend L & I volunteered at the Running Free Aid station at the Toronto Marathon.
Quite a chilly morning but we had a ton of fun out there.

Nick Capra of Running Free provided the quality tunes on the guitar (despite his hands being frozen). Of note was his "We ran out of #$@ cups song". Yes, we ran out of cups just when a huge group of 1/2 marathoners came through. Luckily for the marathoners we managed to get more cups just in time for when they came through. Thanks go out the cops, and the race marshals on their bikes for grabbing these.

I was great to see Nicole Stevenson come flying by with a big smile on her face. It looked way to easy for her. She ended up winning the women's marathon, and actually negative splitted by a few seconds.

It was great to see a lot of familiar faces out there. One fast dude I know (Jason) just failed to qualify for Boston. He came by the aid station and was walking with a limp. But at least he toughed it out to the finish. And get this, he still managed a time of 3:30. Crazy! I wish I could struggle like that. That only goes to show how fast he is. There will be better days dude. You will get to Boston. I am sure of it.

A sly person I know (family in fact), did this race under the radar. We did not see him go by (likely during our cup situation) but I saw him in the results. Way to go Saul. Sub 2 hrs is a great job. You are so lucky we did not see you go by or else you would have received a Gatorade shower for sure.

Right now I am so excited and can't wait for Ironman Hawaii to get going. Despite the earthquake, all systems are a go and the race will go on as scheduled. Just another 14-15 hours to go. Go Michellie and Macca!

Back again soon with the post Kona report.
Hoss

Check out some pics from the Running Fee Aid Station below:

Who is going to win Ironman Hawaii Next Weekend?

One more week until the biggest race in multisport, Ironman Hawaii.
But who is going to win?

Yes, you can play it safe on the women's side and go with the always dangerous Natasha Badmann. But I am hoping that Michellie Jones has learned from last year's 2nd place performance and is ready to lay a serious beating on the rest of the field.

So here is what she will do. Michellie will stay near the front on the swim, totally put the hammer down on the bike and come out with a monstrous double digit lead heading out of T2. She will then run sub 3:15 to prove to herself and everyone else she can run in Kona. Winning time will be 9:17 or sub 9:09 if it is not windy. After meeting and chatting with Michellie at Ironman Arizona this year, I am even more of a fan of hers. For someone of her stature in the sport, she is down to earth and really cool. So maybe this pick is a bit more from the heart. Go get 'em Michellie.

Here are my picks for top 5 Women:
1. Michellie Jones
2. Natasha Badmann
3. Kate Major
4. Lisa Bentley
5. Joanna Lawn
Sleeper Pick: Lori Bowden

Now for the men. As far as I am concerned it is a free for all. But my pick is Macca (Chris McCormack). I just want him to tear up the course and run in the 2:40's again. I love watching him race and if he pushes that bike a bit more and runs like he can, then the victory will easily be his. If he lets guys like Stadler and Al-Sultan go then he wont make that time up. If he doesn't sit back too much on the bike his finish time should be 8:25 or 8:12 if the traditional strong winds are not present on the Queen K.

Here are my picks for Top 5 Men:
1. Chris McCormack
2. Cameron Brown
3. Normann Stadler
4. Faris Al-Sultan
5. Cam Widoff
Sleeper Pick: Michael Lovato

That's it, now we just have to wait for the race next week on Saturday October 21, 2006.

Enjoy the wait, happy training (I've done a total of 2 hours of training this week so I gotta get back on the wagon soon), back again soon.

Hoss

HSBC Duathlon Series Champion 2006

For the second year in a row, I am the HSBC Duathlon Series Champion for the 35-59 age group. I gotta toot my own horn here because who knows how long this bit of success will last.

It is also good to see my other race buddies winning their age category as well. Angus Kim (Clydesdales under 40), Kelly Anthony (Clydesdales over 40), Rico Medeiros (30-34), Gord "Uber biker" Avann (45-49), and the eternally young at heart Jimmie Georgas (80+).

Check out all the results and final standings at:
http://www.multisportcanada.com/ms/events/results/2006/2006_overall_results_combined.cfm

Multisport Canada has posted their tentative schedule for 2007 and there are some cool changes in store.

Til next time
Hoss

Migranes, Migranes, Migranes

Yup! I'm still getting these suckers huge. About 3 a week now.
I haven't got headaches since grade school so I don't know what's up.

After a nice day of riding and running Sunday, I went to the movies to see J2 (juvenile but hilarious) and my worst migrane attack came near the end of the film. If you can imagine someone drilling or hammering something into the left side of your skull to the point of puking, then you have good sense of my pain. I came home and was off to bed from 6pm til this morning.

Went to the doc today to get some high powered medication (it seems to work) and spent the rest of the day sleeping. With such a beautiful day outside (sunny and 19 degrees) I sure wish I felt differently.

By the way, my new addition, affectionately known as "Sabertooth" feels awesome. It is wickedly good looking, fast, smooth, comfy, and climbs like no other bike I'd ridden before. Those FSA Compact Cranks sure improve my spinning and climbing ability. Real pictures to follow but this will have to do for now.


The Litespeed Factory Team race uniform arrived last week too. It looks sweet and I will get pictures of that soon too. Just too busy right now with work. Keep an eye out for a little something in the upcoming Transitions Magazine, and the Christmas Toys piece in Triathlon Magazine Canada. Lots of cool stuff but that new Polar RS 800 is real impressive.

Till next time
RH

CFB Borden Duathlon - The end of the season

Race: CFB Borden Duathlon

Date: Saturday September 16, 2006.

Location: Alliston, Ontario

Description: 4 km Run, 25 km Bike, 4 km Run

Website: www.multisportcanada.com

Due to the busy and painful race weekend last week, I taught a spin class on Monday and then went into hibernation for the rest of the week.

The drive up to Base Borden was made much more interesting by the fact that the OPP closed down the exit to Hwy 89 (car chase ended there with tons of cop cars). So quick thinking made me take a long way into the Base. Got there with 10 minutes to go until race start (but they knew about the exit being shut down so the race was delayed).

The plan for the day, as always, was to have fun. Since the bike course was flat I did want to hammer it but once again I would be restricted by the fact that I did not have aerobars. As it turned out, the highlights of the day was that I ran the first km in 3:50, averaged 34.9 km/hr on the bike, and continually negative split the final 4 km run.

It was a fairly large field, and lots of fast athletes too. I gunned the first few kms and held on for dear life, running the first 4 km in 16:41. I flew through T1 in 31 seconds and headed off on the bike.

There was lots of congestion out there on the bike course (expected on a course like this). Drafting was definitely an issue and I am glad officials were out there to nab people. I kept trying to shake the cyclists around me but as soon as I passed them they would pass me a few seconds later. It was pretty much a paceline of about 6-8 cyclists. At least we were at a legal distance behind each other and it served to keep us all motivated and pushing forward. I did manage to shake a few cyclists on the few hills late in the course. I completed the 25 km bike in 43:02 (avg hr: 176). T2 took a quick 27 seconds and I was off.



The final run was not entirely fun. I was feeling the effects of last weekend for sure. I ran the first km in 5:20. Yuck! At that point I made set a goal of negative splitting each km from then onwards, completing the run in less than 20 minutes. With each kilometre I was going faster, and I completed the final 4 km in 18:59 (avg hr: 178). Final race time was 1:19:39 (avg hr: 177, 1731 calories burned).



Upon completing the race I chatted with Mike Cheliak (Multisport Series official photographer and all round good guy), and Jodi (race announcer) gave me my picture award from Cobourg, which I totally forgot about. A little while later I started getting a major headache. It felt like my head was going to explode. This was the second time this has happened this week (I have not had a headache since grade school so I don’t know what is going on). I drank a bit and got some food in hopes of making things better but no luck. I cheered and jeered Kent Parkinson, and played with Nigel (my friend’s cute little boy) but the pain kept getting worse.

I stayed for the awards but lay down under the e-load tent. I did finally win a draw prize this year (a box of Hammergels) but I was feeling like total crap. As soon as I went over to collect my prize I felt like throwing up so I told my buddy Angus that I was out of there and headed to the car to lie down. I had intended to volunteer for the Kids of Steel races so I thought if I lay down for a few hours I might feel better. After napping for 2 hours I got up and the headache was still there. I walked around for a bit, cheered the kids in the first race but the nausea returned. I headed back to the car, pressed my thumb into my temple and a finger into my left eye and drove home. I just hope that this is not something serious and just a temporary thing (but 2x in 3 days???). I feel so bad that I was not able to stay, but puking on the kids while volunteering was not a good idea. Hopefully, Mike Cheliak’s kids will race again next year and I will have the opportunity to volunteer and return the favour for all the great volunteering that they do at almost all of the Multisport Canada races.

Since this was the last Duathlon race of the season, I must thank John Salt and the rest of the Multisport Canada race crew for another kick butt season. It is hard to believe that the races could get better but they do. The picture awards by Mike Cheliak are really cool too and I’m glad to have won a few this season. Their plans for next year make me wish it were the spring of the 2007 already. To my extended (Multisport) family, have a great off season, train hard (but not hard enough to lay a beating on me), and stay safe. See you all in 2007 and likely before that at the Multisport Canada Awards day in October.

Wasaga Beach Weekend

Before making my way to the race site, I stopped in Barrie to grab a Timmies X-Large double double. Upon getting out of the car in Wasaga I soon realized that it was going to be a chilly and windy day of racing. The water had lots of waves and the swim would eventually be cancelled for the triathletes.

Chatted with a ton of people, along with Running Free’s own John Yip who had never done a duathlon before and the 10/40/5 format of the International Duathlon is not one that you want to use to kick off your duathlon experience with. But John is a good runner so I told him it would be a breeze for him.

Since I was coming back on Sunday to race in the Half Marathon, my plan was to race aerobically and not annihilate myself by red-lining. Placing was not that important (no one can catch me in the Series standings anymore) but if a podium spot were available late in the race I would go for it.

The first 10 km felt fairly easy. My perceived effort ranged from 6-7 out of 10, but my heart rate was saying otherwise. I saw my buddy Angus a few minutes behind and continued the trash talking we started at IMLP. I also saw John Yip flying and yelled at him to come a catch me (the cancelled triathlon racers started later than us regular duathletes – otherwise John would have be well ahead). I completed the first run in 45:48, with an average heart rate of 175 bpm. This was one of my best ever 10 km run splits and I wasn’t giving it all I had. What are they putting in that Tim Horton’s coffee?

The transition to the bike consisted of a long run in the sand and then a long run out to the road on the bike. I was using the Pyro Platforms so running out to the road with my bike in my running shoes was much quicker than everyone else doing it with cycling shoes. T1 took me 2:16.

The 40 km Bike ride went fairly well considering that I had no aerobars. The Wasaga course is flat but very windy, so if there is a bike course that aerodynamics is paramount, this is the one. With my new Litespeed Siena, my style of handlebars do not allow for aerobars so I had to do without. I pushed along at a pretty good clip and tried to stay as low a possible. Somehow I was passing a lot of dudes all decked out with aerobars, race wheels, and aero helmets. This provided some extra encouragement and motivation because I knew some of these guys were pretty good cyclists. I managed to complete the bike leg in a time of 1:16:13, and an average heart rate of 171 bpm. I had not ridden a bike since Ironman Canada so I was pleased with my performance. T2 was an exact reverse of T1 and I did it in the exact same time of 2:16.

The final 5 km run was all about saving my legs for tomorrow. I saw no one in may age group that was catchable so I just kept it steady until the end. The final run split was 24:21 with an overall finish time of 2:30:51. I burned off 3106 calories and had an overall average heart rate of 173 bpm. This was about 8 minutes faster than what I did last year. I had to attend a wedding later that afternoon so I gathered up my stuff and got out of there. My legs were already starting to feel a bit stiff and sore so tomorrow could be a rough day.


I woke up on Sunday morning and my legs were pretty sore. Walking down the stairs was not too much fun. What was I thinking in signing up for a Half Marathon a day after a tough race like an International Distance Duathlon? But I decided that pain and soreness was not going to be a deterrent on this day. I weighed myself to see what kind of eating and drinking damage that I done to myself the night before. I tipped that scales at 175. I had gained 5 lbs. Nice! I’m sore, tired, it’s 6 am, and I’m carrying an extra 5 lbs. Surely these were signs of a banner performance.

Got to Wasaga (had a large Tim’s double double on the way—can’t mess with yesterday’s success) waddled over to register, then went back to my car for final preparations. It was near perfect weather conditions for running. It was bright and sunny, around 12-16 degrees, but just a touch too windy.

With the way I was feeling before the race started, I just wanted to complete the race and if I was lucky I would do it in 2 hours. I was going to stay aerobic and totally obey my heart rate monitor today. The race started with a very quick pace. Everyone just took off. I knew I was hurting but not that badly. I resisted the urge to go with everyone and just kept my heart rate in the low 150’s. After 5 kilometres my legs felt surprisingly good. I knew they were sore but it did not seem to affect my gait or effort. My pace was in the 5:15 range so I changed my just try to finish game plan. I decided to hold that pace for 10 km, take in fuel in between 10 km and 11 km, and then attempt to negative split the first 10 km time split.

I completed the first 10 km in 52:47 (avg. hr: 153) and started ingesting a gel bit by bit during the next kilometre. Once I hit the 11 km marker I pushed the pace a bit. I started reeling in a lot of people from this point, and things were made easier with Eon D’Ornellas driving along the course pumping the tunes and cheering us on. He kept tempting me with some cold beer but I passed on it. Now if it were 30 degrees it would be been a different story.

The run back into town is mainly downhill so this helped my plan of picking up the pace. With 3 km to go I let it all go and pushed to the line. I managed to negative split the final 10 km (48:28) and finished with a final time of 1:46:56 (avg. hr: 160 bpm, 1884 calories burned). I was thrilled. Semi shocked actually. In May I did the Mississauga Half Marathon in 1:47 and pushed harder during that race. Plus I was well rested for that one, unlike today. This gives me confidence to know that I can pull off a nice run on fatigued legs (perfect for the Ironman run).

Multisport Canada and the Town of Wasaga plan on making this Half Marathon a yearly event. It is a race worth doing, especially if you want to go fast. It is well organized, each kilometre is marked, lots of aid stations with great volunteers and the post race pizza was a nice treat. I would love to do it again but racing these 2 tough events on back-to-back days may not happen next year. But then again, never say never.

As I post this I can confirm that my legs are toast (shoulders too). I have applied a series of ointments and iced them down. Work tomorrow should be interesting since my classes are on the 2nd and 3rd floors. Can you say elevator?

Steve Irwin, Rest Week, Back to School & Wasaga Weekend

First of all, my condolences go out to the family of the "Crocodile Hunter", Steve Irwin. By now we all know how it happened and it is a sad story. I enjoyed watching his show and imitating his accent. He will be missed by all his fans.

For the full week (August 28-September 3) after Ironman Canada, I did absolutely no exercise whatsoever. I was tempted to run a few times but held myself back.

I did kick off my re-introduction into "exercise" with a round of golf on Monday at Wooden Sticks. I played crap (still under 100), but it was nice to treat my father in law and I at least got my money's worth with the buffet breakfast and lunch afterwards. When I got home my guilt got the best of me and I went out for a 23 minute run. The first 10-15 minutes felt horrible but I started to come around after 20 minutes and wanted to keep going. No need to go gangbusters on the first run after IMCAN so I shut it down.

Tuesday - Back to school (Work). The first day back is always hectic and exciting (great to meet the new crop of kids to see what is in store for the rest of the semester). It looks like I have a nice group of kids, but it is only the first day. Dropped by D'Ornellas to pick up Siena. Had nice chat with Eon and headed for home. On the way I saw KFC and I could not resist. It was Toony Tuesday after all. I paid the extra dollar and got a 3 piece with fries. It tasted great. But I knew the after affects would be coming.

Got home and felt absolutely knocked out. What a tiring day. I eventually got inspired to go for a run. I never run with my dogs but for some reason I took Nubie (my oldest Boston terrier) out with me. I'm glad I did. She actually paced me to go a lot faster than I would have. We did 15 minutes together (I think I will regularly utilize her as my warm up partner), and I went back home to get Bowden (my other Boston). Bobo is a lot heavier and not a huge fan of running. She did an admirable job but my paced slowed substantially with her. It felt great running with them and I know they love being outside so it was a big win for everyone. Nubie and Bobo helped me do a 27 minute run. The KFC I had earlier that afternoon did not re-surface at all. I was very surprised. Maybe I have to stop in again next week? I can't believe I am still just under 170 lbs.


Speedy Nubie (named after the Queen of Kona - Paula Newby-Fraser)


Bowden (aka Bobo) - Yes, she is named after Lori Bowden

Wednesday - Caved and stopped by the Golden Arches this morning and had 2 Sausage and Egg McMuffins. When I got home after work I was zonked once again. Non stop action packed day. The first week back is always like this and settles somewhat. I did manage to do a 40 minute run (avg hr 145) and covered 7 km. No doggies this time. I weighed 167 lbs after the run.

Thursday - Had 2 BLT Bagels at the Golden Arches. This time one for breakfast and one for lunch. After work I did a 15 minute bike ride on Siena, immediately followed by a brisk 16 minute run.

This is what is on tap for this weekend:

Saturday - Wasaga Beach International Duathlon (10 km run, 40 km Bike, 5 km Run)
Sunday - Wasaga Beach 1/2 Marathon

Should be an interesting weekend.
Wish me luck

Hoss

More IMCAN Race Pictures

More race pictures.


Cool bike! Fully decked out race wheels too.


Some of the Expo (Infinit & Powercranks)


Beautiful Wine Country (Naramata Bench)


Sumac Winery (After my pig out session)


Me, The Legend, Goose & J.P.

IMCAN 2006 Crazy Long Race Report

IRONMAN CANADA RACE REPORT
RACE DATE: Sunday August 27, 2006

Wednesday August 23, 2006

Flew out of Pearson Airport at 11 am (right on time). I had tried to fill my belly with a hamburger and fries (did not want one of those lame arse breakfasts) before getting on the plane but they were not serving them until 10:30 am. Sucked for me. Had to settle for a $5 roast beef wrap on the plane. Relaxed, and watched the in-flight movie (The Sentinel - Sutherland, Longoria, and Douglas) on the way to Vancouver.

Some jerk kept tapping my seat and invading my space with his feet. A few evil looks and a couple firm reclines with my seat easily took care of that problem. Oh, did I mention that the "EB" (wife said I can use that term) was sitting in squalor in business class while I was dealing with the jerk in economy? Somebody please tell me who is racing on Sunday? I'll tell ya, not her. She will be spending all of Sunday pretending to cheer for me so it's all good. Grateful to have EB's support.

After some minor delays we arrived in Penticton. As we flew in, I immediately thought that I could retire in this place. Beautiful scenery, big lakes, and lots of outdoor things to do. There's not much more you can ask for.



David, our host at the Lakewynd B & B, was there to pick us up. Before taking us to the B&B, he gave us a nice tour of the city and a bit of a history lesson. David is a great guy. Genuinely helpful and kind in every way. We then made our way to the B&B. It did not look that far away on a map but it was a good 7-8 km from the city and Ironman village. There was no way I'd be walking back here after the race.

We got settled, unpacked, and we were fortunate enough to have David drive us into town. Of course the first stop was at the merchandise tent to do some serious shopping. The bike shirts, shorts, tri tops, and jackets looked awesome. I would have got one of each except for one thing, they were way to damn expensive. $100 for a bike shirt, $100 for shorts, $85 for the tri top, $170 for the jacket, then throw in the tax and what do you have? Next year's race entry. As hard as it was, I decided to be a good boy and only bought a nice golf shirt. I figured it would be a waste of money since I wouldn't wear it much since I would be sporting my new Litespeed Factory Team uniform soon, along with my Running Free Team apparel. Still managed to drop $127 bucks in there though. Checked out a few more areas and bought 30 Powerbar products (got a free Powerbar Ironman jacket).

Then went to dinner at Salty's. Excellent joint. Quality food, great variety and imagination, excellent service, and good looking waitresses. I strongly recommend the Beach House pasta. Our waitress (Sara) called us a cab as we headed home. The cab ride cost us $20. We are considering renting a car but that all depends if one is available. Off to bed by 11 pm (it was 2 am Toronto time so give me a break ok.

Thursday August 24, 2006

Had a tasty breakfast courtesy of our host and then he gave us a lift downtown. We immediately sought out car rental companies in the slim hope that a vehicle may be available.

We had no luck at Budget, so we crossed the road to Best Choice Car Rentals. I saw only moving vans left in the parking lot so if there were no cars left I would take one of those. We chatted with Doug (owner of the company -- also an Ironman but taking a break for a few years), and he told us he just had a cancellation. Talk about luck. The car we would be getting was to be back by 1 pm but I still had to pick up my bike from Aubrey at the Carmi Motel by 10 am. Realizing my little problem, Doug gave me the keys to one of his moving van to use until I picked up our actual rental car.

So here I am, stylin' down the streets of Penticton in this moving van. I pull up to the Carmi, pick up my bike from Aubrey, chatted with a him and a few folks about the course, then put my lone bike in this huge van. This got a few good laughs. I did not feel quite comfortable driving around and parking this beast so I brought it back to Doug. Thanked him for lending it to us and made my way to Gyro park to register.

I was warned about the tendency of long lineups at IMCAN and it started here at registration. Waited for 40 minutes before I got to the first step of the registration process. At IMUSA, you are in and out of there in 5 minutes. I really can't figure out why it takes so long because once you are in the tent, everything moves relatively quickly. The volunteers in there were definitely very friendly and lived up to their reputation. I pre-purchased a picture package from ASI Photo. Here is a hint. Buy the package with the plaque (roughly only $20 more than the full picture package), and if you happen to have a poor race then you can cancel or downgrade your package. You have nothing to lose here.

We needed to kill some time before picking up the car so we walked the downtown area, visited Starbucks, and the famous Bike Barn. We then made our way to Best Choice and as soon as we walked up, Doug (who was inside the store at the time) popped open the trunk so I could put my bike and other gear in there. He is really too much. He hooked us up with a great rate for 6 days, asked what my race number was and what I'd be wearing so he could cheer for me in Sunday.

Drove to check out the Ironman Village. It was in full operation at this point so we strolled around and checked out all of the booths. Not a lot of freebees at this Expo (ok, none actually) chalk another one up for IMLP where you get stocked up with tons of stuff.

On the way back to the B & B, we visited 3 wineries and did some tasting. First stop was La Frenz (we bought a Merlot), the second stop was The Red Rooster (we loved everything we tasted--but decided to order the wines online and have it shipped to us), and then made a final stop at the Hillside Estate Winery. They had a Bistro that served dinner and the menu looked great so we made a decision to dine there that night.

Got back to the B&B and I prepped my equipment for a bike ride and run before dinner. I rode north along Naramata road and the scenery is picturesque. It was quite easy to keep on heading north but it would have been a 3-4 hr ride rather than my planned 40 minutes. Not something I wanted to do a few days before the race. After the ride, I ran up a 1 km hill (no choice since it is the only way to the main road) and made my way to the Hillside Estates Winery to make a dinner reservation. Got one for 8 pm, then headed for home.
Showered, changed, then did some preliminary packing of my transition bags.

Dinner at the Hillside Bistro was outstanding. This was top quality food. I had Smoked BC Salmon for an appetizer, and NY Steak for the main course. "EB" had a very sumptuous Seafood pasta dish. Of course we also enjoyed some Hillside wines to perfectly compliment our dinner choices. It was a memorable dining experience and a must do for any visitor to the area. It was then back home for bed.

Friday August 25, 2006

Had a nice breakfast of French Toast and fruit at the B&B, then headed to the Lakeshore for a planned swim and run.

I did a quick 20 minute run along the beach, past the SS Sicamous, along the channel then back to the car. Then put on my wetsuit for my first swim since IMLP (July 23). It was windy so the water was really choppy and had a lot of swells. It was like swimming in the ocean. I have never swum in conditions like this, so I practiced swimming against, parallel, and with the swells. Swimming with then swells was sure a lot of fun, but not the other stuff. Race day should be fun.

We paid a visit to the Penticton Rose Garden, drove around for a bit, then checked out the Ironman Expo again. We took in some seminars (Kinesys, Lisa Bentley, Paula Newby-Fraser, and Jimmy Ricitello), I hung out in the Triathlon Magazine Canada booth with Chris and Kevin, and checked out a few booths again. I got a call from Ray (my real estate agent) about the latest offer for our house. "EB" and I discussed it, accepted their offer so it appears we have sold our house. There are still papers to sign and small details to hammer out but that should be a formality.

We headed to the UPS Store to make arrangements for our incoming faxes that we needed to sign and send back. With the welcome banquet only a few hours away we decided to stay in town and wander around to kill time. I checked out a few tattoo shops, and made an appointment for Tuesday at 10 am to get my IMCAN tattoo done. Now I have no choice but to finish the race. The pressure is on.

With the history of long lineups, we headed over to the site of the banquet at 5 pm (it starts at 6 pm). The lineup was already over 150 deep. Crazy! We were not too happy waiting in line like cattle but that is the way things are done here so you have to go with it. If it were not my first IMCAN, I would have left to have dinner elsewhere.

Once we were let inside the lines moved fairly efficiently. I filled up 2 plates with the typical fare of salad, pasta, veggies, rice, and fruit. Found a table easily and chomped away. At the tables, there were little pieces of paper, which informed us that if we wanted to register for the 2007 race we could do so tomorrow. They had scheduled specific times based on our current race numbers. Apparently they did not want us to have to line up overnight after we had just done the race. Sweet!!! I do feel sorry for those flying in just to sign up for next year.

At the table we were joined by nice group of folks from Portland. The banquet was Ok. The MC was a bit clued out, but I think I am spoiled by the high professionalism of Mike Reilly. It was awesome to hear Canada's National Anthem for a change. Since all of my other Ironman races have taken place in the USA. We stayed for the mandatory athlete meeting, then busted out of there as soon as it was over to beat the traffic. We were home within minutes.

Showered, shaved (head included), then fully packed my transition bags. Updated this race report up to this point, and then went to bed at 1:45 am.


Saturday August 26, 2006

Got up at 8 am for breakfast. We had my favourite, Eggs Benedict, along with a big serving of fruit. Quickly got my stuff together and headed to the race site at 9 am to put my bike and gear bags into the transition area. The process was very quick and easy.



I then went back to the Ironman Village to hang out and wait for our friends to arrive (they all flew in last night). We hooked up with all of them, chatted and walked around the village some more. I then grabbed a front row seat for the Powerbar Athletes Seminar. Peter Reid (3 Time World Champion - Mega Legend) was going to be there and I was not going to miss it. There was lots of great information shared by Peter, Nigel Gray, Lance Watson, and Mike Neill. After the seminar, I got my picture taken with Peter. He was real cool and wished me luck with my race. Just listening to him give his tips makes me believe that he would be an incredible coach. We will see if that is where is future lies.



We were all very hungry and had a late lunch at a funky café. I can’t remember the name but they regularly bring in live musical acts at night. We all had some healthy wraps, and salads. Some us made a stop at Dairy Queen. I enjoyed a large Hot fudge sundae, and killed time chatting in the DQ with my pals. Before going back to the B&B, we visited Subway for a final meal. I got a Tuna wrap, and a Roast Beef Footlong (which I was going to share with “EB”).

Back at the B&B I did some final prep for race day, ate my final meal for the night, chilled out, and lay down to bed 10:30 pm. Probably didn’t fall asleep until close to midnight.

Sunday August 27, 2006 - Race Day

Got up at 3:15 am to have breakfast #1. Drank 2 bottles of Vanilla Boost and ate 1/2 of a Peanut Butter flavoured Powerbar. Went back to bed then woke up again at 4:50 am, drank another bottle of Boost, and got ready for the big day.

We left the B&B at 5:15 am and drove into town (saw 3 deer snacking). As soon as I got ready to park, I realized I had forgotten my Infinit Nutrition back in the fridge if the B&B. I had to drive back to get it since I was using it as my sole nutritional source all day. Got thing the B&B is only 10 minutes away. We saw more deer, got back into town, parked, and walked over to the Transition area. I saw the "Lovato's" (husband and wife professionals) walking along with me, and it was not even 6 am yet so I had lots of time.


Said bye to "EB", and headed into Transition to; pump up my tires, put nutrition on bike, and put some last second items in my transition bags. As I do before every Ironman, I wait until the last possible moment before I put on my wetsuit. Why? So I can go to the bathroom that one final time before the race. Got out of Porta-john and towards the water to put on my wetsuit. Then I heard, "All athletes should be out of transition for the race start." I'm thinking, "What's the rush, I've still got five minutes." But apparently everyone but me is in a panic and 2 volunteers come running over to help me put my wetsuit on. We get it on quickly, I thank them, cross the timing mats, and wait on the beach for the swim start. Hard to believe that 2400 people are going leave from this small start area. Boom! The cannon goes off and the race begins.

It takes me about 1 minute of walking into the water before I actually start swimming. Lake Okanagan is so wide that there is room for everyone. No battle royale like Ironman Lake Placid. There was tons of open space and I quickly got into a nice rhythm. I tried to hook up to some feet to do some drafting but I couldn’t find someone who was going slightly faster than the pace I wanted to go. The only collisions came at the first turnaround. Where a couple of guys zig-zagged in front of me then slowed down for some reason. Being a little frustrated at the break in my rhythm, I actually took hold of them and gently moved them both to side and then kept moving forward. The swim back to shore was uneventful, and I got out of the water in a time of 1:26:51 (Avg Hr: 144). Headed up the beach into transition, and grabbed my T1 bag.

I decided to change outside. I felt if I sat down and changed that I would take longer, plus I did not want to be part of the big sausage party inside the tent – if you catch my drift. I changed fairly quickly, and headed for my bike. Before getting to Siena, I got hosed down with sunscreen (a volunteer literally hosed you down with it from a huge spray can – pretty cool), made a pit stop in the Porta potty, grabbed Siena and headed out on the bike course. T1 took 6 minutes.

The crowds heading out of town were awesome. It felt like the Tour de France in the downtown area with a narrow pathway created by huge crowds on either side. My heart rate was skyrocketing at this point due to the excitement because I wasn’t going all that fast. I made my way out of town and along Skaha Lake. It would have been nice to have aerobars during this flat and windy section but since I was using my new Litespeed Siena for this race I did not have that option. On the first sharp uphill I planned to take it easy but the other riders around me were almost at a standstill and I had no choice but to spin fast and go around them. This effort spiked my heart rate into the high 170’s but this short test gave me an early indication that I had some biking legs today and not like Lake Placid. I soon got my heart rate back into my goal range of 145-155 until I got to the infamous Richter Pass Climb. It was 10:30 am at this point but it was already beginning to get hot. The sweat was dripping into my eyes so I put my sunglasses into my pocket. I behaved myself up the climb and kept my heart rate in the 150’s, only maxing out at 163 near the top of Richter. It took me just less than an hour to do it and next year I know I can crank up a speed a bit and still stay aerobic. On the descent I spent my time stretching out my back and legs. There were a series of rollers and flats before the next major climb so I used the time to take in nutrition and the beautiful scenery. I started the long but gradual Yellow Lake Climb at 1:30 pm. I was forewarned that you don’t really see this coming (you don’t) so I am relying on my Polar 625x altitude readings for this information. Start to finish it took me 1 hr and 20 minutes to complete is climb. Despite the urging the great crowds that lined the entire Yellow Lake Climb, I once again behaved myself and kept my heart rate in the 150’s the entire time. At the top, my friends, Angus and Michelle, cheered me on. They snapped a few pictures and I made my way down the long descent back into town. I fuelled up and stretched as much as I could in preparation for the marathon. Back in town I yelled at my support crew who was waiting for me to pass by and headed into transition. Total bike time was 6:51:30 (Avg Hr: 150).

I grabbed my T2 bag and headed into the change tent. The tent was not crowded this time and I wanted to take the time to make sure I was totally comfortable when I headed out on that run. I immediately made the decision not to carry the flask of Infinit Nutrition that I had prepared for the run. I used Infinit exclusively on the bike but at the end of the ride I just did not want to drink anymore of it. I figured I’d survive on the water, cola, and gels out on the course. Just before crossing the timing mats and heading out on the run course, I grabbed a Power Gel Double Latte and sucked it back with some water. T2 took 7:36. Departing T2 at around 8:31 and feeling good, I recognized the opportunity of going into the 12 hr range with a sub 4:30 marathon and decided I’d go for it. The real fun was about to begin.

The wind was picking up, and the heat was at its peak (33 degrees). None of this mattered at this point because the crowd support in town was insane. I was moving along faster than I wanted to (heart rate in the 160’s) and kept reminding myself to slow it down. I finally brought the heart rate down to the 150’s but the speed was in the 5:30 per km pace. I saw my support crew at 3 km mark. I gave them a quick smile, waved, slapped hands and ran out of town. I felt great but thought I might still be going too fast and eventually settled into a 5:45 per km pace. With the extreme heat I knew I had to keep drinking, but I also knew that if I drank too much I would eventually begin to bloat and fell heavy. I took door #2 and kept drinking tons because I was severely thirsty the whole way.



I maintained my pace until the 14 km mark. After that, my pace started slowing down in a big way. I felt like a big water jug (lots of sloshing), my chest felt very tight and I could only take short breaths. I kept on pushing through but the hills also begin to kick in at that section in the race. Not a good time for troubles to happen. I soon calculated that going sub 13 hours was not going to be in the cards today so I pulled the plug and decided to walk the rest of the way. I had some nice chats with a lot of people out there and enjoyed my stroll back into town. I saw Angus and he laid a guilt trip on me (when we race together I always yell at him that he better not walk so now it was his time to turn the tables on me). I explained that I went for it on the run and it just didn’t happen so I did not want to bust myself up for a non PB clocking. We kept walking towards the rest of the cheering crew and I gave my glow stick to my friend’s daughter Megan (the only reason why I took it). She looked thrilled to get it so at least I was able to do some good on the day. They told me that they would catch me at the finish, and I joked that I would see them in an hour (there was only about 3 km to go). With about 1.5 km left, I started running again because the streets were packed. Walking was not an option with these enthusiastic crowds cheering you on. I figured I’d shoot for sub 14:30 at this point and crossed the line in 14:28:15 (Avg Hr: 144, Max: 178, Calories Burned: 12 852).

My finish line catcher put the medal on me, checked to make sure I was ok and took me over to get my t-shirt and very cool finishers hat from Headsweats. He continued to escort me to Gyro Park for food and a massage. I assured him I was ok and once I got into the massage line I thanked him for his help and said goodbye. I got a nice massage from a local lady and then made my way to find my support crew. No one was in sight so I went into transition, gathered all my gear, changed, and fetched Siena. I took everything out of the transition area and tried to find my support crew. I eventually saw JP & A walking around looking for me and I ran after them. They said that everyone was at the finish line still waiting for me to come in. I asked if they were nuts. I know I shut it down but it does not take over 90 minutes to go a little over 3 km. Everyone was rounded up and I told JP and Angus that people were already lining up to register for next year. So if they planned on sleeping overnight (I told them Graham Fraser said no one would have to do so) that they should get over to Okanagan Park as soon as possible. I said goodbye, good luck, and told them to have fun.

I walked back into Gyro Park with “EB” and bought a huge serving if Fish & Chips. I was craving “real” food and it really hit the spot. Also downed a large cup of Booster Juice (loaded with protein powder). We walked to the car and witnessed the crazy long line-up for registration the next morning. People were out there in sleeping bags, tents, lawn chairs, you name it. The line went on forever. Unfortunately for this dedicated bunch of people, it would be confirmed that next day that sleeping overnight was not necessary at all. But better safe than sorry I guess.

Drove home, showered, and went to bed by 1 am.

Monday August 28, 2006

Got up at 7 am, did some packing, and had breakfast with the other B&B guests. We were treated to some nice fluffy pancakes with a very tasty variety of fruit syrups from the nearby Summerland region. Said goodbye to the other guests (heading back to Saskatoon today), and did some more packing. David (our host) was leaving for Kelowna for the week so I paid for our stay and put a deposit down for next year. We also said our goodbyes and thanks.

We drove into town to visit JP and Angus in line. We found out that the line went quickly and they already had their certificates to register for the race. So we met some other friends for breakfast. The place did not expect to be swamped to we mostly served ourselves beverages until the food arrived. They actually locked the doors of the restaurant so more people could not come in. Never seen that before. Can you say fire hazard?

Paid a quick visit to the UPS Store to retrieve our faxes from our real estate agent. We signed all the necessary documents and faxed them back. It was now official, we have sold our house. What a huge weight off our shoulders. Now we just have to go through the fun of packing, moving and unpacking again.

We then headed down to the Athlete Village to get my results, pictures, and check out the finishers merchandise. Since there was absolutely no one in line and registrations were still being taken, I convinced a couple of friends to pick up certificates to sign up for the race. It would be a great opportunity and they would still have 2 weeks to think actually paying the money and signing up.

We spent the afternoon doing wine tours of the Naramata Bench with Angus and Michelle and had a great time. We made our separate ways and drove to the Penticton Convention Centre for the Awards Banquet. This time we decided not to arrive early and go through the line-up ordeal. Despite showing up 15 minutes past the 5:30 pm start time, the line up was still long. We somehow joined a line in the middle and got in within minutes. I stocked up 2 plates worth of food (salad, roasted veggies, chicken, rib patties, rice), and found a seat in the far corner. It was the regular boring stuff with the only highlight being the speeches by Jasper Blake and Belinda Granger. The video was pretty cool too and we got our DVD copy of it upon exiting the Banquet.

I was beginning to feel hungry again so I made a stop at Little Caesar’s Pizza and ordered a Medium Supreme Pizza. Drove back to the B&B and inhaled it all since “EB” wanted none of it. I think I could have actually eaten an Extra Large the way I felt. I showered, read a bit, and went to bed.

Tuesday August 29, 2006

Got up for our 8 am breakfast (hard boiled eggs, toast, cheese, fruit, juice and coffee). Did some packing and headed into town for my 10 am tattoo appointment. I got an Ironman Canada tattoo on my left arm, and the artist also jazzed up my existing Ironman Arizona tattoo. He also updated the dates on all of them. I keep forgetting how painful the outlining the tattoo is but the rest of it was fine. I was under the needle for a little over 90 minutes. I was happy with what the artist and his fire wings for the Arizona tattoo worked well. I will likely be back for some additional work next year. A very professional and hygienic job. They are located right across from the Bike Barn and I highly recommend them. We paid a visit to Doug at Best Choice Car Rentals and made reservations for next year. Doug is a great guy and super accommodating, so you are going to rent a car in Penticton try and support him.





Afterwards we drove past Summerland and checked out a few more wineries. We started with the Sonoran, did lots of tasting and bought a bottle. Doug had suggested that we try the Sumac Ridge Winery for lunch and it was not a mistake. The food here was a major highlight to our trip. Everything on the menu looked great so I had 2 entrees (Fresh Pasta with Chorizo Sausage in a spicy creamy tomato sauce, Wild BC Salmon), “EB” had Lamb Sausage. We also had nice wines to go along with our meals. Desserts could not be passed up and I had 3 scoops of some awesome tasting freshly made ice cream, while “EB” had an unforgettable chocolate torte. The service was outstanding as well. We will be back here next year without a doubt.

We then paid a visit the downtown Summerland, and walked around a bit to work off our gigantic lunch. It was a nice town that was obviously big among retirees. There were lots of nice places to eat at here too but too bad we were already stuffed. It was now back to downtown Penticton to hopefully catch a flick.

We arrived at the movie theatre in time to catch a movie called Accepted. We knew it was not going to be an Academy award winner but we had no other choices. I went to the bathroom to take the bandages off my tattoos (was to have done so 2 hours prior), and slowly pulled it off. I washed it with water, dried it, and applied the ointment the artist gave me. Then went into the theatre to watch the movie. There were a few laughs and it was not as foolish as I thought it would be. It does fall in the rental only category though.

I did not want to go back to the B&B just yet, so I drove around town. We toured the run course once more, checked out the OK Falls area, the local mall, and filled up on gas.

I had a craving for KFC and could not resist the urge to satisfy it. I ordered a 2 pc meal, with chicken fries, wedges and a root beer. Talk about a top quality meal of champions. Got back to the B&B and enjoyed my feast. We did our final packing, applied more ointment to the tattoo, and went to bed. At this point the KFC started working its magic in my belly. Now I remember why I only satisfy this KFC craving once or twice a year. I always say never again but it never happens.

Wednesday August 30, 2006

Unfortunately it is time to head back home to deal with the real world. We got up at 7 am, showered, had breakfast, and I made my final “deposit” in Penticton. After 1 week here I still have yet to make a “solid deposit”. I must have some kind of bug in the system. I am sure you all needed to know that but too bad, now you know. I said goodbye to our host Lindanna, packed the car, and drove to the airport. Got there a little past 8 am and unloaded the car. Checked in, went through security (the most thorough screening I’ve ever been through), and waited for departure. The winner of the women’s race, Belinda Granger was also on the plane with us. She was very friendly and gracious to everyone.

Our flight was delayed by 30 minutes and when we landed in Vancouver our flight to Toronto was also delayed (40 minutes). I tried to get bumped up to business class with “EB” but the gate attendant said no chance. It turns out she was just being evil because there was 4 empty seats up there.

I sat in economy next to a man whose wife and kid was seated elsewhere. Why wouldn’t the geniuses at Air Canada put them all together in the 3 middle row seats is beyond me. Probably makes too much sense. Instead they split them up. On top of that, they give him the window seat and me the aisle. I am already thinking that this dude is going to be getting up a few times to hang with his wife and kid. In fact, I had to get up 5 times (10 really since I have to get up again to let him back in) throughout the flight. You think that maybe he would say, can I have the aisle? No sir, he wanted to best of everything. I was close to snapping, but being banned from flying again was not an option. The last few times I did take my sweet a$$ time to get up, and the last time I gave a dirty look and asked him directly. “Am I am going to be getting up anymore during this flight.” He got the message at that point.

Add to that, the guy was sick too. Now if I caught anything from him after all of this I would be pi$$ed. Thank goodness I had a J&B and ginger ale early in the flight. I think that mellowed me out to deal with all this crap.

The in-flight movie was Mission Impossible 3. A solid 7 out of 10. But I also wanted to give a solid smack to the head of the person in the seat on front of me who kept moving their hooded head back and forth constantly. Why was this idiot wearing a hood? Who knows? She was sleeping for more than half of the movie and then woke up with 30 minutes remaining to suddenly be interested in it. Can you tell that I had a fun flight? Upon landing the guy next to me tried to initiate a conversation about Ironman racing, but I gave a few terse answers, grabbed my gear and got the heck out of there and that nightmarish experience. Met up with “EB”, told her of my fun, and she told me about all the extra seats in business class (made me feel even more joyous). We got our baggage, easily hailed a cab and made it home within 30 minutes.

Final verdict. A great vacation with an Ironman thrown in on a Sunday! We did not hold back and enjoyed everything we possibly could. Lots of wine drinking, eating lots at restaurants, enjoying in all the sites and sucking in everything that the Okanagan had to offer. I think I may have to take this approach with every Ironman I travel to. It makes for a much more enjoyable time before, during and after the race.

Ironman Canada 2006 Race Report - Short Version

Date: Sunday August 27, 2006.

Location: Penticton, B.C.

Description: 3.86 km Swim, 180.2 km Bike, 42.2 km Run

Sport: Ironman Distance Triathlon

Website: www.ironman.ca

This version of the race report has been shortened (may be hard to believe). But if you want the full-scale version, which covers the entire trip, then check out the next posting on this blog. Hey, I had to keep myself busy on the plane somehow.

As far as the race is concerned, I followed my plan (take it easy on the swim and bike), went for the PB on the run, came up short, but totally enjoyed my day. Here are the details.

Got up at 3:15 am to have breakfast #1. Drank 2 bottles of Vanilla Boost and ate 1/2 of a Peanut Butter flavoured Powerbar. Went back to bed then woke up again at 4:50 am, drank another bottle of Boost, and got ready for the big day.

We left the B&B at 5:15 am and drove into town (saw 3 deer snacking). As soon as I got ready to park, I realized I had forgotten my Infinit Nutrition back in the fridge if the B&B. I had to drive back to get it since I was using it as my sole nutritional source all day. Got thing the B&B is only 10 minutes away. We saw more deer, got back into town, parked, and walked over to the Transition area. I saw the "Lovato's" (husband and wife professionals) walking along with me, and it was not even 6 am yet so I had lots of time.

Said bye to "EB", and headed into Transition to; pump up my tires, put nutrition on bike, and put some last second items in my transition bags. As I do before every Ironman, I wait until the last possible moment before I put on my wetsuit. Why? So I can go to the bathroom that one final time before the race. Got out of Porta-john and towards the water to put on my wetsuit. Then I heard, "All athletes should be out of transition for the race start." I'm thinking, "What's the rush, I've still got five minutes." But apparently everyone but me is in a panic and 2 volunteers come running over to help me put my wetsuit on. We get it on quickly, I thank them, cross the timing mats, and wait on the beach for the swim start. Boom! The cannon goes off and the race begins.



It took me 1 minute of walking into the water before I actually start swimming. Lake Okanagan is so wide that there is room for everyone. No battle royale like Ironman Lake Placid. There was tons of open space and I quickly got into a nice rhythm. I tried to hook up to some feet to do some drafting but I couldn’t find someone who was going slightly faster than the pace I wanted to go. The only collisions came at the first turnaround. Where a couple of guys zig-zagged in front of me then slowed down for some reason. Being a little frustrated at the break in my rhythm, I actually took hold of them and gently moved them both to side and then kept moving forward. The swim back to shore was uneventful, and I got out of the water in a time of 1:26:51 (Avg Hr: 144). Headed up the beach into transition, and grabbed my T1 bag.

I changed outside the tent. I felt that if I went inside I would take longer, plus I did not want to be part of the big sausage party inside the tent – if you catch my drift. I changed fairly quickly, and headed for my bike. Before getting to Siena, I got hosed down with sunscreen (a volunteer literally hosed you down with it from a huge spray can – pretty cool), made a pit stop in the Porta potty, grabbed Siena and headed out on the bike course. T1 took 6 minutes.

The crowds heading out of town were awesome. It felt like the Tour de France in the downtown area with a narrow pathway created by huge crowds on either side. My heart rate was skyrocketing at this point due to the excitement because I wasn’t going all that fast. I made my way out of town and along Skaha Lake. It would have been nice to have aerobars during this flat and windy section but I was using my new Litespeed Siena for this race I did not have that option. I kept my heart rate in my goal range of 145-155 until I got to the infamous Richter Pass Climb. It was 10:30 am at this point but it was already to getting hot. The sweat was dripping into my eyes so I put my sunglasses into my pocket. I behaved myself up the climb and kept my heart rate in the 150’s, only maxing out at 163 near the top of Richter. It took me just less than an hour to do it and next year I know I can crank up a speed a bit and still stay aerobic. On the descent I spent my time stretching out my back and legs. There were a series of rollers and flats before the next major climb so I used the time to take in nutrition and the beautiful scenery. I started the long but gradual Yellow Lake Climb at 1:30 pm. Start to finish it took me 1 hr and 20 minutes to complete the climb. Despite the urging of the great crowds that lined the entire Yellow Lake Climb, I once again behaved myself and kept my heart rate in the low 150’s the entire time. I was surprised at the top of the climb by my friends, Angus and Michelle. They cheered, snapped a few pictures and I made the long descent back into Penticton. I fuelled up and stretched on the way down in preparation for the marathon. Back in town I yelled at my support crew who was waiting for me, and headed into transition. Total bike time was 6:51:30 (Avg Hr: 150).

I grabbed my T2 bag and went into the change tent. The tent was not crowded this time and I wanted to take the time to make sure I was totally comfortable for the run. I immediately made the decision right not to carry the flask of Infinit Nutrition that I had prepared for the run. I used Infinit exclusively on the bike but at the end of the ride I just did not want to drink anymore of it. I figured I’d survive on the water, cola, and gels out on the course. Just before crossing the timing mats and heading out on the run course, I grabbed a Power Gel Double Latte and sucked it back with some water. T2 took 7:36. Departing T2 at the 8:31 mark and feeling good, I saw the opportunity of going into the 12 hr range with a sub 4:30 marathon and decided I’d go for it. The real fun was about to begin.

The wind was picking up, and the heat was at its peak (33 degrees). None of this mattered at this point because the crowd support in town was insane. I was moving along faster than I wanted to (heart rate in the 160’s) and kept reminding myself to slow it down. I finally brought the heart rate down to the 150’s but the speed was in the 5:30 per km pace. I saw my support crew at 3 km mark. I gave them a quick smile, waved, slapped hands and ran out of town. I felt great but thought I might still be going too fast and eventually settled into a 5:45 per km pace. With the extreme heat I knew I had to keep drinking, but I also knew that if I drank too much I would eventually begin to bloat and feel heavy. I opted for door #2 and kept drinking tons because I was severely thirsty the whole way. I maintained my pace until the 14 km mark. After that, my pace started slowing down in a big way. I felt like a big water jug (lots of sloshing), my chest felt very tight and I could only take short breaths. I kept on pushing through but the hills also begin to kick in at that section in the race. Not a good time for troubles to happen. As my pace kept slowing down, I calculated that going sub 13 hours was not going to be in the cards so I pulled the plug and decided to walk the rest of the way. I had some nice chats with a lot of people out there and enjoyed my stroll back into town. I saw Angus and he laid a guilt trip on me (when we race together I always yell at him that he better not walk so now it was his time to turn the tables on me). I explained that I went for it on the run and it just didn’t happen. Therefore, I was now walking so I wouldn’t destroy myself for a non-PB performance. We kept walking towards the rest of the cheering crew and I gave my glow stick to my friend’s daughter Megan (the only reason why I took it). She looked thrilled to get it so at least I was able to do some good on the day. They told me that they would catch me at the finish, and I joked that I would see them in an hour (there was only about 3 km to go). With about 1.5 km left, I started running again because the streets were packed. Walking was not an option with these enthusiastic crowds cheering you on. I figured I’d shoot for sub 14:30 at this point and crossed the line in 14:28:15 (Avg Hr: 144, Max: 178, Calories Burned: 12 852).

My finish line catcher put the medal on me, checked to make sure I was ok and took me over to get my t-shirt and very cool finishers hat from Headsweats. He escorted me to Gyro Park for food and a massage. I eventually caught up with my friends and thanked them for being out there all day. Then went back to Gyro Park to have a huge serving of Fish & Chips. I was craving “real” food and it really hit the spot. I also downed a large cup of Booster Juice (loaded with protein powder). On the way to the car, I witnessed the crazy long line-up for registration the next morning. People were there in sleeping bags, tents, lawn chairs, you name it. The line went on forever. Unfortunately for this dedicated bunch of people (my buddies JP & Goose included), it would be confirmed that next day that sleeping overnight was not necessary at all. But better safe than sorry I guess.

I will be back for the 25th Anniversary race in 2007. It should be quite the celebration. I look forward to pushing the pace on the bike a bit more, and have devised a plan in which to get revenge on that run course. On top of that, before and after the race, I will again be visiting the many fine wineries and restaurants of the area.