Getting your hands on one of these will be tough.
Friday, June 22, 2007
The Sweeeet Archon T1
Check out this new, sweet bike from Litespeed.
Getting your hands on one of these will be tough.
Getting your hands on one of these will be tough.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Kirsten Sweetland still rules
I've wanted to write about Kirsten for a while but never got around to it until now.
She set off alarm bells in my head when she had success as a junior and when I saw her compete at the National Duathlon Championships in Hamilton last year.
Without a doubt, she is Canada's best female Olympic distance triathlete.
Thus, I was shocked when she was picked as an alternate for the the Pan American Games team back in May. I realize that there was some selection criteria but Canada should be represented by our best and she definitely is. I suppose some sort of vindication came a few weeks later when she went out and won her first ITU World Cup race in South Africa.
Fastforward to this past weekend where the huge ITU World Cup race took place in Des Moines, Iowa. How huge was it? Well, the men and women's winner each got a $200 000 US first place cheque, and a brand new Hummer (Yes, the car). Kirsten was racing and I thought she had a great chance of winning. In fact, heading into the final lap of the run, she was running alongside Laura Bennett (the eventual winner) and Annabelle Luxford (2nd place). However, in the last 500 m, severe heat exhaustion took Kirsten out of the race. She was taken to hospital where she made a quick and full recovery. Simon Whitfield finished 6th in the men's race and took home a $10 000 US payday. More money for baby clothes :)
She is still Canada's best and at such a young age she has the potential to re-write the record books. I look forward to tracking her career and cheering her on.
Here are my early Beijing Olympic Picks:
1. Kirsten Sweetland
2. Vanessa Fernandes
3. Emma Snowsill
Right now I would only have patriotic guys picks:
1. Simon Whitfield
2. Colin Jenkins
3. Paul Tichelaar
Binbrook Duathlon Race Report
Race Report
Date: Sunday June 17, 2007.
Location: Binbrook Conservation Area, Binbrook, Ontario
Description: 4.5 km Run, 27 km Bike, 4.5 km Run
Website: http://www.multisportcanada.com/
Binbrook is about 1 hr and 20 minutes from Markham. If you are travelling to the race with someone, you can save a few bucks on their entry fee to the park by saying that they are racing too (I didn’t do this, I’m just providing a tip). Just say you are doing a relay and make sure that they are dressed to look like they might be racing. The park is very receptive to dogs so feel free to bring them along.
Like last year, the morning air was already hot. So the actual race temperature was going to be nice and steamy. Just the way I like it. I quickly got my race kit and while in line, I caught a few Team Running Free members (Mike Leader and Gary Kennedy). Got my equipment together, set up in transition, and headed out for a 10 km warm-up ride. Got back to the race site and did my final race set-up. Chatted with Prem Hall, and met Larry Bradley just minutes before race start.
I had not run for 3 days (my left knee was swollen and had a bit of pain and both Achilles were still sore), so the race plan was to take it real easy on the run and go bonkers in the bike. This would get me a respectable finish but not a podium.
The run at Binbrook is on varied uneven terrain (grass, gravel, pavement and trail), so taking it easy was of paramount importance to ensure I didn’t aggravate my Achilles further. I also walked the downhill sections of the course to prevent more pain in my knee. I cruised in with a time of 23:54 for the 4.5 km run (avg. hr 162). By the way, Larry Bradley put the boots to everyone and led the entire way of the first run.
Transitioned to the bike quickly and mentally got into the mode of making up all that lost time from the run. To quote The Thing from Fantastic Four “It’s clobbering time.” My warm-up ride indicated to me that the early sections were windy so I attacked early, passing a lot of people. I lost focus in a few areas but for the most part I pushed hard the entire time. I realized things were going well once I passed a few of the regular top racers late into the bike ride. But with their blazing run capabilities, I knew I would be passed later. I did the 27 km ride in 48:03, the 5th best on the day (Avg. Hr: 172).
On the final run, I was able to keep a steady aerobic pace and make sure not to be passed by any competitors my age group. I finished the race in 1:38:42. 11th overall and 3rd in the 35-39 age group (Total Avg. Hr of 168). If I knew I was that close to the top ten, I might have gone a bit harder during the final run. However, writing this one-day later in not too much pain, I am glad I took it easy on during both runs. I look forward to this recovery week and getting my knee and Achilles back to 100%. While I did not podium (10 year age groups), I did win a box of tasty OmegaWhey in the prize draw.
This was another great race put on by Multisport Canada and I will be back next year. Team Running Free was out in full force and reaching the podium were: Larry Bradley, Mike Leader, and Karen Gamble. I hope I did not miss anyone. Next up for me is the Welland Duathlon on Canada Day.
I should also give credit to Dr. Andrew Romanelli of SPC (http://www.sportsperformancecentres.com/). They had a free post-race treatment station at the race and I took full advantage. He diagnosed some possible causes for my knee pain and used ART to treat my aching knee and Achilles. He detected a lot of tightness and definitely broke down a lot of scar tissue in the area. I felt tons better and much better one day later. I definitely need to seek out an ART practitioner in Markham or go back to see him at SPC in Thornhill. If you haven't tried ART you must because it works wonders. I've had it before at Ironman races but the treatment totally slipped my mind for my current bout of injuries.
Click on the Title of this posting to see the race results.
Date: Sunday June 17, 2007.
Location: Binbrook Conservation Area, Binbrook, Ontario
Description: 4.5 km Run, 27 km Bike, 4.5 km Run
Website: http://www.multisportcanada.com/
Binbrook is about 1 hr and 20 minutes from Markham. If you are travelling to the race with someone, you can save a few bucks on their entry fee to the park by saying that they are racing too (I didn’t do this, I’m just providing a tip). Just say you are doing a relay and make sure that they are dressed to look like they might be racing. The park is very receptive to dogs so feel free to bring them along.
Like last year, the morning air was already hot. So the actual race temperature was going to be nice and steamy. Just the way I like it. I quickly got my race kit and while in line, I caught a few Team Running Free members (Mike Leader and Gary Kennedy). Got my equipment together, set up in transition, and headed out for a 10 km warm-up ride. Got back to the race site and did my final race set-up. Chatted with Prem Hall, and met Larry Bradley just minutes before race start.
I had not run for 3 days (my left knee was swollen and had a bit of pain and both Achilles were still sore), so the race plan was to take it real easy on the run and go bonkers in the bike. This would get me a respectable finish but not a podium.
The run at Binbrook is on varied uneven terrain (grass, gravel, pavement and trail), so taking it easy was of paramount importance to ensure I didn’t aggravate my Achilles further. I also walked the downhill sections of the course to prevent more pain in my knee. I cruised in with a time of 23:54 for the 4.5 km run (avg. hr 162). By the way, Larry Bradley put the boots to everyone and led the entire way of the first run.
Transitioned to the bike quickly and mentally got into the mode of making up all that lost time from the run. To quote The Thing from Fantastic Four “It’s clobbering time.” My warm-up ride indicated to me that the early sections were windy so I attacked early, passing a lot of people. I lost focus in a few areas but for the most part I pushed hard the entire time. I realized things were going well once I passed a few of the regular top racers late into the bike ride. But with their blazing run capabilities, I knew I would be passed later. I did the 27 km ride in 48:03, the 5th best on the day (Avg. Hr: 172).
On the final run, I was able to keep a steady aerobic pace and make sure not to be passed by any competitors my age group. I finished the race in 1:38:42. 11th overall and 3rd in the 35-39 age group (Total Avg. Hr of 168). If I knew I was that close to the top ten, I might have gone a bit harder during the final run. However, writing this one-day later in not too much pain, I am glad I took it easy on during both runs. I look forward to this recovery week and getting my knee and Achilles back to 100%. While I did not podium (10 year age groups), I did win a box of tasty OmegaWhey in the prize draw.
This was another great race put on by Multisport Canada and I will be back next year. Team Running Free was out in full force and reaching the podium were: Larry Bradley, Mike Leader, and Karen Gamble. I hope I did not miss anyone. Next up for me is the Welland Duathlon on Canada Day.
I should also give credit to Dr. Andrew Romanelli of SPC (http://www.sportsperformancecentres.com/). They had a free post-race treatment station at the race and I took full advantage. He diagnosed some possible causes for my knee pain and used ART to treat my aching knee and Achilles. He detected a lot of tightness and definitely broke down a lot of scar tissue in the area. I felt tons better and much better one day later. I definitely need to seek out an ART practitioner in Markham or go back to see him at SPC in Thornhill. If you haven't tried ART you must because it works wonders. I've had it before at Ironman races but the treatment totally slipped my mind for my current bout of injuries.
Click on the Title of this posting to see the race results.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Lakeside Double Du Weekend
Lakeside Double Du
Race: Lakeside Duathlon (Sprint & Regular)
Date: Saturday June 9 & Sunday June 10, 2007.
Location: Lakeside, Ontario (in between Woodstock and London)
Description: Sprint Du: 3 km run, 18 km bike, 3 km run // Regular Du: 5k/30k/5k
Website: http://www.multisportcanada.com/
Warning: This may be a little on the long side. However, it is a double race report and I write so that I can remember what happened.
Pulling off the double (2 races in 2 days) is always a bit of a challenge. You never really know how your body is going to react the next day. So the plan was to put the “hammer” down during the Sprint Du on Saturday and get on the podium, and come back on Sunday to “hammer” the bike and see what I had left on the run (likely being hammered by everyone else).
The drive to Lakeside takes approximately 1 hr 50 minutes from Markham (depending on how fast you go). The directions are easy but keep an eye out for that left turn on County Road 16, it is easy to miss. For the first time in the history of this race they were charging for parking. I guess the farmer that opened up his property for free parking previously decided to rake in a few dollars this year. It was only $2 and it is the only viable place to park in the area. So be forewarned if you plan on racing next year.
Picked up my race kit (awesome looking tech shirts for this race and some nice eats), and chatted with Mike Cheliak (the HSBC series photographer). He was going to do his first ever race today (Sprint Du) and had dropped 55 pounds for the occasion. That gave me a bit of extra inspiration as I made my way to the car to get my gear and all set for the race.
Warm-up consisted of chatting with more people: Mike Leader (fellow Team Running Free Teammate), John Salt (HSBC Series director), Kent Parkinson (all round good guy who is always there to help people out at the races), Gord Avann (an uberbiker doing his first Tri today), Speedy Gonsalves (Ride Blue Guru), Kelly Anthony (not racing due to a hockey injury) and a few other familiar faces from the series. It is like a whole other family and it is great to catch up with everyone after a long winter.
With this being my first Du of the season, I was raring to go. The first run was quick. Everyone seemed to be flying out there, except for me. I just kept plugging away but thinking that there was no podium happening for me today if these dudes can run like this.
Officially, I did the first 3 km run in 15:16 with an average heart rate of 170 bpm. I suspect that the posted distance was a little on the long side because I was not running that slow. I pride myself on my transitions and the first one took 27 seconds (fastest of the day). However, during transition, I broke the left heel piece on my Pedal Platforms. I found this out at the mount line. This heel piece is very important as it secures the heel, and maximizes the power of the pedal stroke. The only thing I could do was to tighten the strap even more, and not pull up on the pedals or else my foot would pop out.
My approach to the bike was simple. Push as hard as possible, pass as many people as I could, and hopefully position myself for a chance at the podium. Throughout the 18 km bike (more like 16.5 km) I picked off quite a few competitors but I had no idea where I was positioned. I stayed aero the whole way, and I can safely say that my new Litespeed Saber is the fastest and most comfortable bike I’ve ever raced on in 16 years. I finished the ride in 28:51 (Avg hr: 170). I had super fast transition of 19 seconds (fastest T2 of the day), and headed out on the run.
Once onto the run I realized I was in 7th place overall. I wasn’t going to catch the first place guy in my age group so I just held a steady pace that would allow me to maintain my position and not get caught. I finished the second run in 16:07 and an overall time of 1:00:58 (Avg Hr: 172, Calories burned 1241). I was 7th overall and 3rd in the 30-39 age group. A nice kick-off to the season. I waited for Mike Cheliak to finish up his race and cheered him in. He didn’t feel too bad afterwards and said he had a new respect for duathletes. Hopefully he will do a few more races.
I had some food, waited for the awards ceremony, got my medal (posing in my Team Running Free Long Sleeve Top), and headed home. Team Running Free was well represented on the podium: Peter Geering, Karen Gamble, and Mike Leader (who actually podiumed but a category mix-up officially didn’t give him the credit he deserved—but you earned it in my eyes buddy).
A few hours after getting home the aches and pains came knocking on my door. My left knee was in a lot of pain (felt like patellar tendonitis) and I had some pain in my right hamstring along with my Achilles (usual thing since I started playing competitive tennis again). So I basically spent the rest of the day icing constantly. Sunday’s race would be interesting.
Woke up on Sunday and walking down the stairs brought left knee pain. But it was a little bit better than yesterday and there was less pain when walking. Conventional wisdom would say don’t race today but I’m not conventional, so I gathered my stuff and headed down to Lakeside.
Once on site, I set up in transition, chatted with more people, and waited for Angus Kim (fellow Team Running Free teammate) to give him some spare 650 tubes. He somehow got lost and finally arrived with about 15 minutes until race start. I pretty much determined that I would play it smart and shuffle/walk/crawl, bike hard, and then shuffle in to finish. There was no need to push hard on the run, injure myself and mess up my Ironman training just for a possible podium finish.
A few minutes before race start, that large travel mug of Peets Coffee I had earlier was making its way through me. I waited in the port-a-john lineup but while in line, the horn went off for the start of the race. The line was going nowhere so I ran over to join the throng that had just taken off. I caught up with Jimmie Georgas (a duathlon legend who is now 81) and kept pace with him to catch up with what he has been up to. After a few minutes he told me I shouldn’t feel obligated to run with him so at the 1 km mark, I wished him a good race and went on my way.
My bladder was building with immense pressure so once the coast was clear, I ran off into the bushes and lightened up. I did the rest of the run aerobically. For some reason the official results only picked up my final run split so by my watch I did the first 5 km run in 30:25 (seemed slightly longish) and an Avg. Hr of 151. I did a quick transition and let it rip on the bike, passing many along the way. The calm conditions led to a nice 30-32km bike split of 53:32 (Avg. Hr: 165). Back onto the run, I kept it aerobic again to do an easy 30:34 final 5km run. This was good enough for a 1:55:38 clocking, 30th overall and 5th in the 35-39 age group. My average heart rate for the day was 160 bpm, burning off 2007 calories. I headed back out for a 20 minute cool-down ride, got some food, and headed home to start the icing process all over again. It feels great to be back racing and seeing all the familiar faces (new ones too).
Up next for me is the Binbrook Duathlon next weekend. Right now I know I'll be joined by Mike Leader, Larry Bradley, and hopefully a bunch of other Team Running Free teammates.
Click below for the Saturday Sprint Du Race Results:
http://www.multisportcanada.com/ms/events/results/display_results.cfm?resultID=634
Click below for the Sunday Duathlon Race Results:
http://www.multisportcanada.com/ms/events/results/display_results.cfm?resultID=633
Race: Lakeside Duathlon (Sprint & Regular)
Date: Saturday June 9 & Sunday June 10, 2007.
Location: Lakeside, Ontario (in between Woodstock and London)
Description: Sprint Du: 3 km run, 18 km bike, 3 km run // Regular Du: 5k/30k/5k
Website: http://www.multisportcanada.com/
Warning: This may be a little on the long side. However, it is a double race report and I write so that I can remember what happened.
Pulling off the double (2 races in 2 days) is always a bit of a challenge. You never really know how your body is going to react the next day. So the plan was to put the “hammer” down during the Sprint Du on Saturday and get on the podium, and come back on Sunday to “hammer” the bike and see what I had left on the run (likely being hammered by everyone else).
The drive to Lakeside takes approximately 1 hr 50 minutes from Markham (depending on how fast you go). The directions are easy but keep an eye out for that left turn on County Road 16, it is easy to miss. For the first time in the history of this race they were charging for parking. I guess the farmer that opened up his property for free parking previously decided to rake in a few dollars this year. It was only $2 and it is the only viable place to park in the area. So be forewarned if you plan on racing next year.
Picked up my race kit (awesome looking tech shirts for this race and some nice eats), and chatted with Mike Cheliak (the HSBC series photographer). He was going to do his first ever race today (Sprint Du) and had dropped 55 pounds for the occasion. That gave me a bit of extra inspiration as I made my way to the car to get my gear and all set for the race.
Warm-up consisted of chatting with more people: Mike Leader (fellow Team Running Free Teammate), John Salt (HSBC Series director), Kent Parkinson (all round good guy who is always there to help people out at the races), Gord Avann (an uberbiker doing his first Tri today), Speedy Gonsalves (Ride Blue Guru), Kelly Anthony (not racing due to a hockey injury) and a few other familiar faces from the series. It is like a whole other family and it is great to catch up with everyone after a long winter.
With this being my first Du of the season, I was raring to go. The first run was quick. Everyone seemed to be flying out there, except for me. I just kept plugging away but thinking that there was no podium happening for me today if these dudes can run like this.
Officially, I did the first 3 km run in 15:16 with an average heart rate of 170 bpm. I suspect that the posted distance was a little on the long side because I was not running that slow. I pride myself on my transitions and the first one took 27 seconds (fastest of the day). However, during transition, I broke the left heel piece on my Pedal Platforms. I found this out at the mount line. This heel piece is very important as it secures the heel, and maximizes the power of the pedal stroke. The only thing I could do was to tighten the strap even more, and not pull up on the pedals or else my foot would pop out.
My approach to the bike was simple. Push as hard as possible, pass as many people as I could, and hopefully position myself for a chance at the podium. Throughout the 18 km bike (more like 16.5 km) I picked off quite a few competitors but I had no idea where I was positioned. I stayed aero the whole way, and I can safely say that my new Litespeed Saber is the fastest and most comfortable bike I’ve ever raced on in 16 years. I finished the ride in 28:51 (Avg hr: 170). I had super fast transition of 19 seconds (fastest T2 of the day), and headed out on the run.
Once onto the run I realized I was in 7th place overall. I wasn’t going to catch the first place guy in my age group so I just held a steady pace that would allow me to maintain my position and not get caught. I finished the second run in 16:07 and an overall time of 1:00:58 (Avg Hr: 172, Calories burned 1241). I was 7th overall and 3rd in the 30-39 age group. A nice kick-off to the season. I waited for Mike Cheliak to finish up his race and cheered him in. He didn’t feel too bad afterwards and said he had a new respect for duathletes. Hopefully he will do a few more races.
I had some food, waited for the awards ceremony, got my medal (posing in my Team Running Free Long Sleeve Top), and headed home. Team Running Free was well represented on the podium: Peter Geering, Karen Gamble, and Mike Leader (who actually podiumed but a category mix-up officially didn’t give him the credit he deserved—but you earned it in my eyes buddy).
A few hours after getting home the aches and pains came knocking on my door. My left knee was in a lot of pain (felt like patellar tendonitis) and I had some pain in my right hamstring along with my Achilles (usual thing since I started playing competitive tennis again). So I basically spent the rest of the day icing constantly. Sunday’s race would be interesting.
Woke up on Sunday and walking down the stairs brought left knee pain. But it was a little bit better than yesterday and there was less pain when walking. Conventional wisdom would say don’t race today but I’m not conventional, so I gathered my stuff and headed down to Lakeside.
Once on site, I set up in transition, chatted with more people, and waited for Angus Kim (fellow Team Running Free teammate) to give him some spare 650 tubes. He somehow got lost and finally arrived with about 15 minutes until race start. I pretty much determined that I would play it smart and shuffle/walk/crawl, bike hard, and then shuffle in to finish. There was no need to push hard on the run, injure myself and mess up my Ironman training just for a possible podium finish.
A few minutes before race start, that large travel mug of Peets Coffee I had earlier was making its way through me. I waited in the port-a-john lineup but while in line, the horn went off for the start of the race. The line was going nowhere so I ran over to join the throng that had just taken off. I caught up with Jimmie Georgas (a duathlon legend who is now 81) and kept pace with him to catch up with what he has been up to. After a few minutes he told me I shouldn’t feel obligated to run with him so at the 1 km mark, I wished him a good race and went on my way.
My bladder was building with immense pressure so once the coast was clear, I ran off into the bushes and lightened up. I did the rest of the run aerobically. For some reason the official results only picked up my final run split so by my watch I did the first 5 km run in 30:25 (seemed slightly longish) and an Avg. Hr of 151. I did a quick transition and let it rip on the bike, passing many along the way. The calm conditions led to a nice 30-32km bike split of 53:32 (Avg. Hr: 165). Back onto the run, I kept it aerobic again to do an easy 30:34 final 5km run. This was good enough for a 1:55:38 clocking, 30th overall and 5th in the 35-39 age group. My average heart rate for the day was 160 bpm, burning off 2007 calories. I headed back out for a 20 minute cool-down ride, got some food, and headed home to start the icing process all over again. It feels great to be back racing and seeing all the familiar faces (new ones too).
Up next for me is the Binbrook Duathlon next weekend. Right now I know I'll be joined by Mike Leader, Larry Bradley, and hopefully a bunch of other Team Running Free teammates.
Click below for the Saturday Sprint Du Race Results:
http://www.multisportcanada.com/ms/events/results/display_results.cfm?resultID=634
Click below for the Sunday Duathlon Race Results:
http://www.multisportcanada.com/ms/events/results/display_results.cfm?resultID=633
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