Tales from the Other Side

Thetis Open Water Swimming

2010-05-27T20:50:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again!

Paul Regensburg of Lifesport and myself will be putting on the Friday morning open water swims again at Thetis lake - in the water at 8 AM - starting on May 28.

This is a coached session - with two coaches working out of kayaks. The sessions are hard but fun. Last year the response was over whelming - with as many as 30 swimmers showing up for many of the sessions.

The workouts are varied but will include an emphasis on hard pack swimming, in and out skills and over all endurance fitness swimming.

The level of swimmers varies greatly. Everyone is welcome and the swims generally finish between 9:15 and 9:30.

For athletes not currently a member of Lifesport or Velca, or are not privately coached by me the summer pass fee will be $75 or $10 per drop in.

I seem to have put my carbon footprint on your ass.

2010-04-11T08:32:00.000-07:00

When people talk about saving the planet what they really mean is they want to save their own place on the planet. We can pollute the oceans, foul the air, pave the enter surface of the globe and the planet will reclaim itself in one tick of eternities clock. 99% of every species that has ever lived on this ball has gone extinct. One day we will as well and the damage we've done will fade into obscurity.
If you want to go green, save the polar bears and use your sewage to heat the sauna - go for it. I try to recycle - but let's stop with the with the false modesty. We are, as we always have - looking after our own sorry asses.

Foster Parents

2010-04-04T20:07:00.000-07:00

Meet Jackson and Prince. They're a mix of bijon and poodle and they're two months old.
Today Sara and I rescued a dog (Zoey) and when we got home we found my mother there with these two little jewels in need of a home. If you know someone who might have a good home for either or both let me know. The vet bills for them are $500 each - so that includes everything they need to introduce them to the world.

They're very playful and loving.

And curious.

Zoey meets Jackson.

The newest member of our family - Zoey.

Training Camp In Noosa

2010-03-18T15:37:00.000-07:00

We're coming up on two weeks in Noosa, Australia. The training camp is going well. I'm in a condo with four girls and two bathrooms. So far – not a single problem – except for the fact that one these delinquents has stolen my heart rate monitor strap and refuses to confess the crime. There's no way I'd misplace it!

The Noosa pool at 5:30 AM

The girls have been training hard and I've managed to get in a few sessions myself.
The weather has been the big story though. Neil Finn must have spent some time here when he wrote Four Seasons in One Day. You can start your session in fine warm sunshine, move to 80kph winds, then find yourself smashed by sideways driven rain and finish up in the sun again. I guess we're just missing snow. Truth is, it never really gets cold but that rain can be distracting and I've never seen such unrelenting wind.

Girls getting ready to lay down some 400s on a grass track

The culture of fitness in the country – or at least this part of the country is certainly admirable. You just don't see as many heavy people here. It's immediately evident. Like my home based pool, Crystal, back in Victoria, the morning finds the public lanes filled with older people getting in their morning exercise. The difference here is the older people tend not to be massively over weight and they know how to swim. It's not uncommon to see some grey haired gal holding 1:30s as she rolls out a couple K.

An early morning open water swim session for young and old.

Job opportunity

2010-03-03T21:01:00.000-08:00

Just got this from SQW.
Anyone looking for a job?
This of course would be "Western Canada"

CHAMPION SYSTEM WESTERN SALES MANAGER

Leading customized apparel company outfitting both the mainstream and elite triathlete, cyclist, runner, swimmer, etc. is seeking to contract an Western Sales Manager. Compensation is salary plus commission.

Must be:

* Knowledgeable about sport attire
* Strong sales background
* Personable
* Able to travel to key competitions during season
* Have a strong desire to grow with a world leading company new to Canada

* Experience as a triathlete or contacts in the sport of triathlon would be a strong attribute

Contract terms to be negotiated based on experience
Interested parties should submit a resume complete with references to
sleckie@goldmedalplates.com
Closing date: March 15, 2010

Sometimes Good Things Happen

2010-03-02T20:58:00.000-08:00

I have just been informed that the WTC has made an ammendment to the 8% rule.
All unearned money will be redistributed to those who finished within the 8%.
The WTC has really stepped up and done the right thing here and should be commended.

To those people who said the pros should just stop complaining and take it - shame on you!
These people had their livelihoods attacked and for some reason many in the sport or on the fringe of the sport, thought it poor form for them to protest this.

I'm proud to have been a part of the movement to correct this ill thought out rule.

The situation is not ideal but this is a great improvement. The situation is still tougher on the entry level athlete, or the age grouper thinking about stepping up but the insentives to improve just got bigger!

It's About the Economy Stupid

2010-03-01T14:19:00.001-08:00

It's About the Economy Stupid

So Hillary Biscay arrives at the awards ceremony for Ironman Malaysia where she had just come third, to pick up her trophy – and nothing more. Under the new Ironman pro rules, prize money will only be awarded to finishers within 8% of the winner. Saddle problems out on the course cost her the two minutes(and then some) she was outside that 8% - thus, $4,000. Of course those behind her also failed to grab a paycheck. On the men’s side the money was given out four deep. The race organizers saved themselves a total of $11,000.

Now this development would have come as no surprise to Biscay, as the rule change was announced near the end of last season.

When I heard this I responded emotionally, as I so often do, and posted a status on my Facebook - something to the effect that the 8% rule was shameful. Thirty nine comments later the thread died out. Paulo was first on with the statement “The total prize package is shameful and the % rule is spot on.” Peter Reid agreed.

Before I gave myself a chance to think it through I disagreed with them – but of course Paulo is mostly right. The total prize purse for Ironman is the shame but I still have troubles getting my head around the 8% rule.

Another poster wrote “It’s absolutely fair, so long as it’s known at the outset. A 2nd or 3rd tier pro does not bring in the same attention and thus dollars to a race as a more competitive athlete. The business model would fail if payouts went to athletes that no one watched or knew of. So no, it doesn’t hurt the sport to reduce prize money in this way…“

Whereas my thinking is simple economics – reduce the prize money – reduce the number of pros.

Here is how Ironman presented the new guideline as a positive for the sport:

“(it’s) an effort to streamline and enhance the quality and athletic standards of Ironman branded events as a global brand.”

I would buy that line had it been followed with – “The unearned prize money would be redistributed to the real pros”

But here’s what it was followed with:

There will be NO redistribution of the unearned prize money.

So they’ll be keeping the cash.

It is my opinion that the Ironman organization is moving to phase out the pro field.
I draw this conclusion based on the above points and a few more as well.
If I wanted to cull the number of pros racing, here is what I would do:
I’d make it harder for them to race and I’d do that first by increasing the cost of racing and decreasing the ability to enter races. And then I’d decrease prize money.
These actions, based on laws of human behavior, would virtually guarantee to reduce the participation of any professional endeavor.
And what did Ironman do?
* Introduced a $750 annual racing fee for pro athletes.
This fee grants the pros free entry into any official Ironman race(save Kona and Clearwater) – something, with very few exceptions, they have enjoyed for years.

* Introduced entry deadlines for athletes.
In the past professionals have had the ability to jump into a race at almost any time, within reason, before the gun goes off. I know this offends the sensibility of many an age grouper who has been forced to stand in line for hours, a year ahead of the race start to pay close to $600 to race, but for the professional to plot their season out a year in advance and stick to that plan is virtually impossible. There are simply too many variables to factor in. You can hit you’re “A” race on the Saturday and have a mechanical pull you from the event ten miles into the bike. You fail to qualify for the championships, make any money or promote your sponsors with a good result. If you’re a real pro, you are on-line before you’re in bed booking a flight somewhere across the globe and prepping to race again in two weeks time. You need to be able to gain entry into that race and it seemed race organizers were operating under the assumption that a deeper pro field brought positives to the race. They wanted the pro there.
Of course, under the new guidelines, the intrepid pro can simply sign up for all the races and have their bases covered.

* Reduced prize money.

Now here’s where the absolute brilliance of the 8% rule comes into play. With this one simple line the law of averages dictates that the race organizers will, on many occasions, pay out less money to fewer athletes. And even if you do manage to finish within the 8%, the races are now only paying out five deep as opposed to the eight deep that most used to pay – and remember, the unearned money is kept by the race organizers.

So if the top level pros gain nothing by schooling those behind them, what’s to stop them for standing before the finish line and waiting for the next fellow pro? I suspect they’d be a crowd favorite in a hurry but I also suspect the keepers of Ironman would lay down some swift and stern penalties before it happened again. I believe that if the WTC was truly trying to “streamline and enhance the quality and athletic standards of Ironman…” they would roll that unearned money back to the pros who did finish within the 8%. This would serve two purposes. First it would clearly demonstrate that the policy was not simply a move to save money and secondly it would encourage the tier 1 athletes to really lay it on the line when they were out there. There’d be no more pulling up once safely in the lead. Granger and Niederfriniger would have had an additional $9,000 to divide between them. With that kind of money at stake we might see more athletes coming to the sport, even it was harder to make a living on the way up.

Effectively, many of the entry level pros will now be cut out of the money. It will be harder for them to make a living in the sport so there will be fewer of them and without the top end money increasing there won’t be any increased incentive to be a top end pro. This is not an issue of character. It’s an issue of simple economics.

So let’s talk more economics.
Is the Ironman organization a pit of greedy vipers? No, they’re board of directors looking at the bottom line, as is their duty to shareholders. There is no good and evil here – just a business model.
I understand the WTC is currently owned by a hedge fund that has made no secret of it’s intention to increase the value of the race over the next seven years then flip the brand for a substantial profit. We live in a free market society and this is a perfectly legit endeavor.
If I were handed the task of increasing the value to a potential buyer I would look at the obvious places to increase income and decrease costs.
Many of the races are filling up a year in advance within days of going on sale. With this kind of demand I’d increase the supply and increase the price. This clearly has been done.
I would further look at ways to decrease the costs of putting on the events. One obvious expense to look at would be the cost of the pro field. The prize purse paired with the fact that the pros bring in no measurable value to the event, after all they get free entry, would make it a no brainer.
In a flurry of twitters over the weekend, Jordon Rapp pointed out that these races are filling up before a single pro has entered the race. This, he felt, was evidence that the age grouper doesn’t care if there are pros in the race. I would argue that there is an expectation by some that there will be a pro field come race day.
Time and time again, we hear that one of the enjoyable aspects of the sport is the ability of Alan Ager to line up with Percy Pro.
When Percy Pro is no longer lining up at the Ironman races will Alan Ager fly across the country, rent a car and stay in a hotel for a week to do a race he had to stand hours in line and pay close to six hundred dollars to enter? Or will he choose to just race locally? Some will. Some won’t. I have not the foggiest idea of what kind of numbers we’re looking at.
One thing I’m certain of though, is I would not for one moment trust what people “say” they would do. I would only trust what they did – and I believe it would take several seasons before the true effects, if any, would become apparent.
During the course of this weekends barrage of social networking discussions I learned there are great many people who encourage this shift at Ironman.
Greg Nicholson of Sherwood Park felt “The sense of entitlement in triathlon from most AG's and elites (but not all) is ridiculous. STFU and race. If you want to earn money, train harder, or find another job.”
I don’t know Hillary in the least but to suggest she needs to STFU and train harder seems a little ill informed.
But is he right? Do pros (and apparently age groupers) have a sense of entitlement unearned? Again, the free market society will sort it all out.
If Ironman continues to diminish the participation of the pro in their races, will an alternative rise to fill the void?
Many will point to the failed 101 series. They worked hard to attract the pros – too hard some said, and it resulted in the quick demise of the events. It’s evidence that surely must give the WTC some comfort.
Maybe the Rev 3 series will succeed where the 101 failed.
One of the early conversations I had concerning the new guidelines came after Ironman Canada this past summer with race director Joe Dixon. We’d both had a few drinks so neither of us held back – not that Joe ever would. He emphatically stated that Ironman Canada (Not owned by the WTC) would be going in a different direction. He believed that pros added to the Ironman experience. He intended to “increase the reasons for pros to come to IMC – just you wait and see” he said.

In the future I hope there’s a place for the pros, both entry level and top tier, but if, as so many seem to believe, there is no need for them then I’ll settle for being grateful to have been involved in the sport during a time when it was believed otherwise.
As Adrienne Stedford of Penticton wrote “Tri is a new sport- the level of competition will increase, but only if athletes are encouraged to participate and race.”
For now the ability of the athlete trying to make the next step to pro has become more difficult. It follows then that there will be fewer athletes making that step. Ultimately that will mean fewer truly elite athletes. If the current economy and economic models in place can not support these new athletes then there is little to be said about the matter. Supply and demand will win the day.

If, however, an alternative for the long course professional triathlete surfaces, and the age groupers follow, then many a finisher may have to look to a new corporate logo to tattoo on their ankles.

My day

2010-02-22T20:21:00.001-08:00

I got married today. I figure I'm pretty lucky.

Also - here's an interview I did about the movie I directed. Click on picture to read.

I'm Back

2010-02-12T18:09:00.000-08:00

Not that I went anywhere.
Well, I actually did go somewhere. I was in Los Angeles on and off for almost two months. I was directing a super low budget movie. It was a hell of an interesting experience that involved very little sleep.

Now back to my regular scheduled programing.

Read in the paper today that some guy with entirely too much time on his hands had been banned for life from going into Tim Hortons. This blessing in disguise came as a result of his repeated (3 times) complaints about the quality of the decaf coffee. He claimed it had a burned taste. First of all - it had a burned taste because no one drinks decaf and it sits on the burner for a long time.

So this guy actually writes a letter to head office - gets a meeting and then is stunned when he arrives at the meeting to find a letter ordering him to keep his distance from the coffee joint. Next he takes his cause to the press and the press actually takes up the torch!
I read two accounts and both leaned in sympathy towards the dumb ass.

Can you imagine the fervour with which this idiot must have lodged his complaints?
The press made no reference to any such behaviour but anyone who has worked for minimum wage in a place like Tim Hortons knows the fury with which Joe and Josephine Public can come at you.

I'm not a fan of Tim Hortons but my opinion of them has gone up a few notches for now.

As I type this, I'm watching Rob Zombie's Halloween II. Very disappointing. His remake of the original was one of the best horror movies I'd seen in years. This is almost unwatchable. He's changed the nature of the characters. That's just something you don't do. The heroine is the foulest, nastiest, whiniest little bitch I've seen since they let Ann Coulter have a microphone.
I'm hoping he(Zombie) further betrays the fans and franchise and kills her off before much more film rolls by.
I like Zombie but I think he must have been pissed off at someone when he wrote this one.

That's all for now.

Calgary Swim Run Camp

2009-10-22T20:09:00.000-07:00

Sara Gross, Carrie Meakin and myself will be putting on a swim/run camp in Calgary on the November weekend of the 28th.

Mercury Rising Presents:

“Novembering Along”

Swim-Run Technique Camp 2009

What: A weekend training camp focused on the technical aspects of swimming and running with video analysis.

When: Friday, November 27^th @ 7:00pm - Sunday, November 29^th @ 3:00pm

Where: Calgary, Alberta (various locations)

Coaches: Sara Gross, Clint Lien, Carrie Meakin

Details: The camp will include 3 swim sessions, 2 run sessions and a video analysis session in each discipline. Each camper will receive a DVD of him or herself both swimming and running. Breakfast (and coffee!) on Saturday and Sunday are also included. Cost is $300 per person.

Contact: Questions welcome!

Sara; saragross@yahoo.com, 250.896.1026

Carrie; carrie.meakin@gmail.com, 403.804.9726

Clint; writerguy@shaw.ca, 250.818.1026

Best Toy Ever?

2009-10-20T21:14:00.000-07:00

How many Ironman titles would I own if I'd had this toy when I was 3!?!?!

Way off the tri track

2009-10-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

My mother put me on to a video recently and I finally sat down and watched the whole thing - it's an hour and forty minutes.
It's a debate between two extremely well spoken men on religion. Not a light topic.
Regardless of where you stand, you have got to respect brilliance when you see it.

Would love to hear from anyone who takes the time to watch it.
I expect that regardless of what side you take, you will not be swayed either way but maybe you will ask a few questions you hadn't considered prior.

Enjoy:

Two Ricks Jumping

2009-10-15T10:12:00.000-07:00

This is a great video!

Putting the Me in M dot

2009-10-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

I would like to compete in the Kona Ironman World Championships.
If, one day, I'm fortunate enough to find myself on the start line I'm not going to race for recovery, the planet, polar bears or Jesus.
I won't be running for the cure, rolling for the Blazeman or Living Strong
I'm not going to raise money for battered women, battered children or battered dogs.
I won't be raising awareness for Aids, Crohn's, MS or Osteogenesis Imperfecta.
I've done some of these things before. They've allowed me to paint my performances with a nice stroke of humility and healthy dose of "It doesn't matter to me. There's a much bigger picture." But if I'm able to work hard enough to qualify for Hawaii then I am going to race for Me. My goal will be to have the best day I can possibly have.
Actually that's still a load of sanctimonious crap. What I really want. What I really, really want is to beat as many people as I can.
I have got to be one of the worst guys ever.

Kona 09 Done

2009-10-11T00:44:00.001-07:00

Not everyone had a good day.

Now I'm going to bed.

Back in Kona

2009-10-07T17:12:00.000-07:00

I'm in Kona for the world championships again. While I'm here I'll be posting some blogs on:

Check 'em out!!

Reveal Duncan's Dome!

2009-09-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

A good writer could tell the tale of a falling acorn and tug the heart strings of the devil himself but for this story an elementary school writing level is more than adequate.
I'm not going to get right into all the details - just a few facts (as best I know them) and then ask a favor.

My friend Jamie Duncan met and fell in love with Lindsay Atkinson several years ago. Jamie was a single father with an eight year old named Rakel. Soon he was no longer single and was now the father of two children. Lindsay and he had a baby girl named Abby. She turns two next month.
Recently Lindsay was diagnosed with Non Hodgkins lymphoma cancer. She started up chemo several days after the diagnoses and several weeks after that Jamie and Lindsay decided to get married.

Jamie's father put a challenge to all his friends that if they raised some cash in Lindsay's name then he would shave his head. Within 2 days they came up with grand and Jamie's father was committed. Since then he's continued to campaign and, I understand is nearing the 5K mark.

Jamie, not to be outdone by his old man, put out a similar challenge to his friends. If they came up with $5,000 in her name he would shave his head as well - and he has an admittedly odd shaped head. Yul Brenner he will not be!!

The original email went out to 16 people and $3,158.50 was raised within a day.
But $3,158.50 is not $5,000.
Help us reveal the dome!!!
Here's the link - any amount is greatly appreciated. The shaving will be done by a pretty girl in a mini skirt at Trek Pro City Cycles in the near future!!

A man with a wife as pretty as Lindsay
does not deserve to have hair as well.
Help make Jamie bald!!!
Click to donate!

The Art of Tri

2009-09-17T21:08:00.000-07:00

Got a note from my man Toby over at Art of Tri today.
He's blowing out a bunch of stuff - 2 for the price of 1 for the rest of the month.
It's unique gear with a real Earth Conscience!!
Definitely worth looking at!!

Tired of being tired.

2009-09-08T10:37:00.000-07:00

There are two kinds of training tired - the first one (the good one) is the tired you feel after a solid session.
There there's the shitty tired. That's the tired feel before you start a crappy session.
If you only ever experience the first kind of tired then you're not training hard enough.
If you're training well all the time then you're not training well.
But if you only rarely experience the first kind then you're certainly not training well either.
You should start your builds feeling the first kind and end them feeling the second kind.
If you've gone more than 7-10 days in a row only feeling the 2nd kind then I'd say it's time for some recovery. How long you need and in what form is specific to the athlete.

Just something I wanted to put out there.

Future of Results

2009-09-04T14:36:00.001-07:00

Check this out!
Way too much fun!

http://www.zumtri.com/race_files/Cranberry2009/ZumTri.html#r=57&r1=591&r2=608

Office Romance

2009-08-17T18:16:00.000-07:00

These 2 work together.

Sara Gross and I began working together in October 2008 after Kona.
We started dating in April of 2009 while continuing our coach/athlete relationship.
Now all these months later I am asked frequently "How is that working out?"
People seem to feel that mixing intimacy and professionalism must come with challenges to either or both.
The truth is I've seldom given it much thought. We've got a lot mutual respect for each other and putting her plan together is largely a mutual event. Also she lets me believe I have the final say and we get along fine.
But the question is asked with increased frequency after a disappointing performance.
This weekend, after Lake Stevens (one such performance) I was again asked the question more than a couple times and a few things occurred over the weekend that had me asking myself some questions as well.
On the short trip back to Victoria Sara and I discussed it.
The question we needed to address was whether we were giving the professional relationship the proper attention it needed.
Was I giving her my best?
Was she giving me her best?
We both thought we were.
After nine months she was swimming and running as fast and faster than she ever had.
Her bike? Not so much.
Things take time and that's doubly true when it comes to a seasoned vet finding the right combination of training/nutrition/rest to step them up to a new level.
Sara and I agreed we're close.
But still I wondered if I was treating her with the same candor and bluntness I treat my other athletes.
The night before the race she made a comment that set off some red flags for me. But I said nothing.
Then as she entered T2, after the crushing ride, she asked if I thought she should drop out.
We only had a few fleeting seconds of conversation (I'm currently not capable of holding a 4 minute kilometer for more than about 25 meters) All I could think to say was that I didn't know what was wrong with her so she had to make the call. I got a bit of a scowl from her and off she went.
When next I saw her she was moving well and had already caught two girls.
She'd made the right decision - and so had I, leaving it up to her.
With IMC coming up in 2 weeks it was a tough decision for both of us.
So on the ride home I explored my silence the night before and my decision to not pull her when clearly things were going south.
Was I avoiding a fight? No. We don't fight.
Was I avoiding hurting her feelings? No. She knows I want what's best for her.
So why did I keep my mouth shut (SOOOO RARE!)
Because, I decided, despite my concerns, it was unlikely we would pull her from the event and all that would be achieved would be the planting of some negative seeds - bad coaching.
I decided to wait till after the race and then bring up the comment.
I did and the conversation turned out to be valuable - good coaching.
As far as pulling her and saving it for IMC? Glad we didn't. And that's all I'm going to say on that.
So is it hard to coach a loved one? I don't find it to be. My buddy Cliff coaches his wife Sam and they seem to do okay.
I stayed with them in Kona for 10 days before her race and I saw them clearly switch hats when it came to being a couple or creating a champion.
Tony and Natasha have had a good run.
I'm sure there's a long list of successful stories out there - as well as a pretty interesting list of big failures!
I guess time will tell but I like coaching my partner.

2009-07-23T19:17:00.000-07:00

"Lance said the leader of Astana would be decided on the road. He got owned, so then bitched about it... then said "My ego is too big for this team, I'm starting my own". Jackass. Go Contador."

That was a friend of mines status on Facebook today.
Now I like this guy. He's smart and fun at parties but I have to admit I find statements like this staggering in their ignorance. I follow the tour. I watch the post stage interviews and I get all the twitter updates. Armstrong said nothing like this at all. And my understanding of the "new team" was that it was going to be the same team with new sponsorship. So why write something like this and then add the seasoning "Armstrong puts the Ass in Class"?
Why make up a lie wholesale and put it on the internet for the world to see? You really have to hate someone to do that.
I don't have an answer but what does interest me is the current chic in hacking on the guy.
This isn't the first attack on Armstrong I've read that didn't seem to have any basis in reality and when you try to figure out why an educated cycling fan might hold the 7 x TdF champion in such low regard it's hard to get clear answers.
My friends response was simply that Lance lacked class so he was cheering for other riders who had class - like Contador. Contador may have great cycling legs but I've watched every stage of the tour and I haven't seen a boatload of class from the guy - but he's young and I have no doubt he'll come around and figure things out.
You wanna see class? Watch Lance slow the peloton after Jan crashed until he got back on - that was class.
Anyone who argues that Lance hasn't brought more to the sport of cycling than any other in this generation (and possibly of all time) is either of dimished capacity or wilfully obtuse.
Imagine what it must be like to bike your sack off through the roads of France while French fans are spitting on you and at the same time cheering wildly for Richard Virenque (admitted drug user). Imagine what it's like to be the most tested athlete in the history of sport. Imagine what it must feel like to read things like the above paragraph - just made up shit from someone who doesn't know you and could care less about the truth.
Imagine being in that place for year after year after year and having to maintain class and dignity throughout. If you slip up once - if someone catches you at a moment of frustration or fatigue, it hits the internet like a tidal wave. And even if you don't miss a step, they'll just make the shit up and put it out there anyways. I tell you - I would hate everyone. I think the guy does pretty good under the circumstances.
I can only assume that the above writer and the many others with him on the "hack Lance" bandwagon feel themselves superiour to the champion.
I'm a Buddhist but not a very good one. I just don't see everyone as being equal. If I'm going to hack on someone, I have to admit, in my heart of hearts, I think I'm better than they are - so I make the assumption that when others hack on someone they feel they're superiour to their target.
Am I wrong? Will these guys ever achieve 1% of 1% of what Lance achieved in his life?
I'm going out on a limb and guess no.
And just to make something clear - I'm not suggesting everyone should be a Lance fan. I just don't understand holding him in contempt.

Final thought - Jens Voigt is my favourite bike racers.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

2009-07-19T15:30:00.000-07:00

42 days to IMC

Pete Reid used to talk about the final eight weeks before his “A” race. This was the period of time he felt he could maintain a 100% “correct choice” record.
For Peter what this meant was as he moved through his days and encountered those little (and not so little) choices we all have to make, he would make the choice he felt was going to make him stronger on race day.
It sounds simple – but it’s not. He admitted to me he’d tried to go longer a few times, a choice in itself, but that had gone badly.
What kind of decisions are we talking about? For the athlete trying to get himself into fighting shape I think the forks in the road can be categorized into three main slots – training, recovery and calories.
While most of the decisions are obvious ones (McDonalds or a nice stir fry), make no mistakes about it – some are difficult indeed. Should you do one more kilometre repeat? Should you sleep in and swim solo or drag your ass out of bed at 5:30 to get in a club swim? Should you do your 5 hour ride on 250 calories or 2500 calories? The lawn needs mowing but it’s your recovery day. And on and on and on.
It’s nice to have a coach to help with some of these decisions but in the end, for most of them you’ll have to rely on common sense and your ability to be brutal in your honesty.
Peter knew that in order for him to win on the lava fields he needed to be scary lean. And he knew in order to get that leanness he needed to be uncomfortable almost all of the time. So came the tough decisions – does he compromise his workout by under fuelling and forcing the fat into the fire or did he feed well for training and hope to get a hotter fire burning? Clearly the choices he made were mostly the right ones.
Instinct, experience, intelligence and a vocal conscience all help for these truly difficult decisions but here’s the kicker, here’s the point I want to make to my athletes and anyone else out there who might care - for most of us the decisions aren’t that hard. They’re obvious and we know them well when they come at us.
It’s six weeks to Ironman Canada. The world champion bared down for eight weeks. Can’t we mortals do it for six?
For six weeks say no to dessert, nap in the afternoon and don’t miss a workout. Get the regular massages and hire a neighbour kid to mow your lawn.
Do what you have to do and make some sacrifices.
Six weeks from now you will be a better athlete and you will be mentally stronger because you’ll know you’ve actually paid a price beyond what most people are willing to pay.
Anyone can put in the miles but are you someone who can go the extra mile?

The gate is straight - deep and wide.

2009-06-30T20:56:00.000-07:00

The list of reasons an athlete can pull the reigns on a workout is long.
I'm tired today.
I've got a big workout with the gang tomorrow. I want to be on my game!
I'm just coming off an injury. I need to keep things reserved.
My coach told me to keep it in zone 2 today.
It's too hot to put in a big effort.
It's raining pretty hard out there.
I've got a race this weekend. I'm tapering.
My lane partner isn't here to push me.
I ate too much sushi for lunch.
I raced last weekend and I've not recovered enough.
There's too many dogs on the trails today.
I've got a dinner party tonight and I can't be all burned out.
Working hard hurts.

Some of the excuses are legit and some are bullshit. Usually it's a combo of the two.
But every once in awhile we drop all the excuses, head out the door and lay it down.
I believe an athlete can raise their level of fitness from a single workout - a peak performance - a breakthrough workout.
For one athlete that might be a 59 minute 40K TT. For another it might be 13 miles at an 7:58 mile pace.
Whatever it is, when we have those workouts (or races) we can bring are athleticism to the next level.

When someone first starts in sport they can often achieve these breakthrough workouts almost every time they go out the door but the longer we're in the sport, the tougher it is to go to that place - and too often we just stop trying.

These special sessions don't just come about because the stars have lined up. They come about because an athlete has made a decision to pursue them - to seek them out and grab them.

Every time you get in the pool, straddle a bike or put on a pair of running shoes we have an opportunity to improve ourselves - to up our game.
It doesn't have to mean a PR every time.
It might mean getting to the top of Popeye's Peak.
It might mean finishing a workout on smashed legs.
It may mean just getting out the door.
You may not be able to define what it is at the start of the session but you'll know it when it happens.
And after it happens - it's yours. No one can take it away from you. And if you build on it, if you stay consistent you can have another one... and another one... and another one.
Decide you want it, be prepared to pay the price and go to that special place.
You won't succeed every time or even most of time but every once in awhile you will succeed and you'll be a better athlete for it.

Now go forth and do likewise.

Dust in the Wind

2009-06-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

You ever find yourself going through a "challenging" time - something dramatic - something that feels important beyond words? And while you're going through this big life changing event it's all you can think about? You wake in the middle of the night cause you have to take a leak but falling back to sleep is impossible because thoughts of your current situation overwhelm and you stare at the ceiling till it's reasonable to get up and start the day.
During these times it's hard not to imagine that everyone else in your world isn't equally consumed with your affairs.
You walk into a crowded room or on to a pool deck and you're pretty sure that all eyes are on you and the unheard whispers concern your business.
Anyone reading this can recognize the absurdity of it when on the outside looking in, but if you're on the inside it feels like you're the center of the universe - which is likely a hot and smelly place to be.
The truth, of course, is that no one, save a small group of those involved in your scene, cares.
You're not that important.
The best your business can hope for is a few dedicated minutes of conversation at the local Starbucks, where people running in your circles try to fill the hours with idle conversation. Then they'll move on to the next big thing and ultimately go home where they will be consumed by their own crap.

NOW just imagine the freedom there would be in truly not giving a shit what anyone thought about you.

2009-06-16T10:17:00.000-07:00

Do a good thing and help out with a buck or two.

FROM JASPER BLAKE

Hello Friends and Family,
This year I'm excited to announce that we are putting together a team of very keen individuals to race Ironman Canada on behalf of the MS Society of Canada. Each participant is committed to raising $7500 which will go directly to the MS Society of Canada. I have officially thrown my hat into the ring and am now counting on you fine folks to help me in my fund-raising target. I am currently getting my butt kicked by one of the team members who is already at $10,000. I would really like to beat him!

This link will take you directly to my fundraising page:
https://msofs.mssociety.ca/2009MISC/Sponsor.aspx?PID=1084081&L=2

The website for our project should you wish to check it out is www.race4ms.org We will be doing the same thing next year if anyone is interested in securing a much sought after spot to Ironman Canada

Thanks to all and I hope you are doing well.

Jazz

Shawnigan - a good day

2009-05-24T21:00:00.000-07:00

Kilshaw and Mensink with the wins.
James Fry 3rd (first on the left) and Rachel Kiers (2nd from the right)

I'm tired and I must go to bed but I needed to write a short one before retiring.
Today was the Shawnigan Lake 1/2 Ironman.
I was suppose to do a relay with Sara Gross. She was to swim and bike and I was going to do the run but last night but she got a stomach bug that kept her home so I was at the race with a coffee in my hand instead of sneakers on my feet.
I was disappointed to start the day but in the end it turned out to be a blessing.
I had several of my athletes out there and I couldn't have been happier with how things went.
I would not have been able to watch and support some great performances.
I had one athlete in the Olympic race today. Cathy Noel is a new triathlete with a goal of finishing Ironman Canada this summer. She's been working hard and making big gains across the board. She finished the Oly (with a 44k bike) 6th in her age group and about 5' faster than our predicted finish.
My newest athlete, James Fry, ended up coming 3rd with a 4:31 in the Half. A solid performance with lots of room for improvement for him!
Taking the win was Steve Kilshaw, a young man I have the pleasure to work with in the Victoria Elite Long Course club we have going here.
I've been working with Lysanne Lavigne for a few years now but this was her first venture into the long course. She's a full time massage therapist with a healthy attitude towards work and sport. 15 hours is a big week for her and her 4:56 was intensly satisfying for both of us.
Rachel Kiers was back defending her title. When she won last year, she did it with a 4:41. This year the competition was a little stiffer. The win would be more elusive. Olympian Lisa Mensink was vying for the title, along with Katya Mayers, Edmontononian Annett Kamenz and Miranda Alldritt to name a few.
Rachel came out of the water almost four minutes down from Mensink's lethal swim but managed to get off the bike almost a minute up on the crowd. Lisa overtook the lead and kept it but Rachel was able to hold onto 2nd place and finished a full five minutes faster than she did last year.
It's days like today that make coaching so worth while.

Good Cause!!

2009-05-15T17:52:00.000-07:00

Was chatting with Jasper Blake the other day and he was telling me about his efforts to get some folks together to race for MS. He's got a hell of deal going and if I didn't have my summer booked I'd jump on it.
I thought I'd pass on the word and see if anyone else might like to take advantage.

Here's the website:
www.race4ms.org

In a nut shell you raise a very reasonable amount of sponsorship money and you get a great package deal to IMC.
From Jasper:

"Ironman Canada Entry and Entry fee covered
Team cycling kit
Team racing kit (both by Hincapie)
Highest Fundraiser gets a bike
Second highest gets a wetsuit blue seventy
Third highest gets some 7systems product
Team brunch on the thursday before the race
Team swim clinic with me on the thursday before the brunch
Ryders Eyewear for everyone on the team
Any other swag i can pull together from my sponsors this is TBD (Ryders eyewear is already here)
Freedom to email me anytime with questions about IM Canada"

MS is an ugly disease that is close to Jasper and over the years has touched several people who have run in my circles.
If this opportunity is available next year I'm going to do what I can to be a part of it.
If you're on the fence about doing an IM or have missed an opportunity to get an entry this season - PLEASE consider this option!!

Welcome to the sandbox

2009-05-06T19:12:00.000-07:00

For more than a year now Jasper Blake and I have, with some regularity, discussed the possibility of forming a long course specific triathlon group. The idea was to create a series of workouts for the long course athlete - specifically the "elite" long course athlete.
Victoria is a great place to train. The roads are hilly and endless. Nice trails vein the entire island and there are two solid 50 meter pools within a twelve minute drive of each other.
Victoria is also thick with training groups. Throw a rock in this town and you hit a tri coach with a club. If you're a complete beginner there are several soft places to start out.
If you're a young Canadian athlete with dreams of representing the country on the international scene then you might get lucky enough to work with Pat Kelly at the National Triathlon Training Centre.
But if you're a long course triathlete training in this town your options have always been limited. Pete Reid and Lori Bowden swam with a morning masters group that seldom cracked 3500 m.
Jasper has been training with the junior national team for the last few years. They swim hard and have second to none coaching but the swims are designed for 18 year olds hoping to make the next Olympics.
Jasper's dream was to have workouts with the Ironman in mind instead of trying to make short course pegs fit into a long course hole.
He saw 12-15 athletes with regular coached sessions - supported rides and group runs.
Financing such a group would be a tall order. The team would need a paid manager. Lane space needs to be rented and scooter time isn't cheap. It was a big dream.
But on April 14 2009 the birth of VELCA occurred.
On that Tuesday morning nine of Victoria's Elite Long Course Athletes met at the Crystal pool and swam 4700 meters with a main set that was 2800 meters. There was little rest and a lot of work. 5 of the 9 athletes cracked on that set but none of them got out early.
Now, three weeks later, we're up to twelve, swimming twice weekly and we've had a few visitors from Vancouver join us for a session or two.
I've got a good feeling about this thing but it won't be without its challenge. A dozen elite athletes all with different race schedules, different coaches and different personalities.
Joe doesn't want to work with Bill and Coach Al doesn't want his precious Sam to work with Coach Elliot's crazy Sally.
There are some bloody hatchets in this town and if this thing is to work then we may need a front end loader to bury them deep enough but I believe we can do it. I'll have a rusty blade or two to drop in the pit myself but it's going to be worth it and the long course athletes in this town are going to get in some quality work.
We just have to make sure all the kids in the sandbox can play nicely together!

It's about time someone said it!

2009-02-23T08:39:00.000-08:00

This cat is funny - and right!!

There are bad people out there. Be careful.

2009-02-14T16:10:00.000-08:00

I have a sad little event to talk about it.
Chris Brown and Sara Gross, two professional athletes and two good people recently had a bad night.
They both have made tremendous sacrifices to pursue the triathlon dream but a few weeks ago that sacrifice took a big jump!
Right now the couple are living in a trailer in Tucson in order to get in necessary warm weather training.
As you can imagine (and some of you know) this is a tight lifestyle to manage.
It sure doesn't help to have some fuck head come in the middle of the night and steal your bikes that are chained to side of the trailer.
Brand new Cervelo P3s with SRMs. Absolutely heart breaking.

I'm not sure what makes me more angry - that some derelict might have pinched them for $50 worth of crack or they were the victim of an organized bike theft ring that will realize top dollar for a hot, hot bike?

It's a long shot but these two deserve something good to happen to them.
Anybody who might have a lead will gain massive karma points.

I'm working on a photo of Chris' black and white P3 but here's a pic of Sara's ride:

Sorry Times

2009-01-10T12:58:00.000-08:00

Non - tri related.

There are two stories everyone should read here. (click on picture)

Texas moves full speed ahead to execute a mentally ill man while another woman dies in an emergency room after waiting more than 24 hours for help.
She laid dead on the floor for an hour before someone came and took her away.

If this fucker isn't crazy then
there's no reason to even have
an insanity option on the books!

Camping with friends

2008-12-20T16:55:00.000-08:00

Last year Paul Cross, Pete Reid and Cliff English invited me to be involved in a triathlon camp they were putting on in Tucson. Paul is putting on the camp again and I have to give it my highest marks. If anyone is considering a camp in the new year, consider this one. I promise you, you'll get your money's worth and a nice kick in the ass towards fitness!

Paul timing some laps!
(click photo for camp info)

Another camp consideration should be the one put on by Chris Brown and Sara Gross.
Chris and Sara are both celebrated long course triathletes who are also dedicated coaches.
I've had heard nothing but good from those who have taken part in their camps in the past.

Sara and Chris post IMC
(click photo for camp info)

Play Hard!

2008-12-16T08:48:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Check Your Ethics

2008-12-07T21:36:00.000-08:00

Over the last few months I've found myself in some "interesting" ethical situations.
And one thing I'm learning is that being in the right doesn't make one right.
Just because you have the "law" on your side doesn't mean you're the hero.
Lord knows, doing the right thing is not always easy and some times it costs you - dearly, but in the long run you will sleep better knowing you did your best to do the right thing.
And really, we almost always know what we should do, it's just doing it that proves difficult.

The real evil isn't the action - it's the rationalizations we pull out of our ass after we do what serves us and not the greater good.

Too funny!

2008-11-27T09:36:00.000-08:00

I just had to post this video!

Ironman AZ

2008-11-23T18:06:00.000-08:00

Full Report Pending but check out this video to see some folks with flexible ethics.
Keep in mind this is 36 miles into the race. This is NOT right out of transition.
AND I promise you this - there was a bigger pack than this one!
I should also make it clear that the reason I was able to get this shot (start the camera up before the pack arrived) was that we saw them approaching the turnaround 3-4 minutes before they came back to us.
They were together coming and going!

Can't find my way home.

2008-11-22T20:47:00.000-08:00

So here I am in Tempe and tomorrow is another running of Ironman Arizona.
I'm staying with Scott Curry and Chris McDonald at their homestay. The owner is a generous age grouper named Carl and he has to have one of the nicest homes I've seen in a very long time.
Check out the photos below!

Tomorrow is going to be a fun race. I've got a bunch of friends racing.
Christine Fletcher is fit and I'm certain will have a good race. Trevor Wurtele is looking great as is Chris Brown. I've never seen Curry looking this good or confident. He and Paulo (his coach) are proud of the work they've done. Jasper Blake is here and I KNOW he's done some solid training this fall in Victoria. He's bringing with him young Steve Kilshaw. Few in the Ironman game know Steve's name but I think they will after Sunday.
This is the first time I've met Chris McDonald but the boy has some great tales. Today he was telling me a little bit about his journey. He's a great story teller with a generous spirit.
It seems he started out a rugby player in Australia - weighing 240 pounds! He met Scott Molina through some friends before he knew anything about the sport and certainly anything about the legendary Mr. Molina. Over the next four years they became friends and did quite a bit of training together. Chris told of two vivid memories he had that he now counts as pivotal moments in his triathlon history. He and Scott were out on a long bike ride and, like riding with many athletes of Molina's stature there was little chatter. After about 3 hours of silence, he recalls Scott looking over at him and saying, "You know, Chris you could have a future in this sport."
Some time later, when Chris was racing his last event as an age grouper - I don't recall the race but I'm certain it was an Ironman, he was making this way to the finish line, running in 5th over all, and he passed Molina running the other way, also racing as an age grouper. He remembers he and Scott seeing each other and Scott pumping his fist in adulation.
Chris and I talked about how important those moments were for him and the reasons why.
Talk to any athlete out there who has tasted some form of success and ask them what were key moments in their athletic life and a great many will tell you of a time when someone believed in them - someone who was not obliged to believe in them and then expressed that belief.
At any rate, it was a nice chat, and I'll be cheering for him to have a great race.

Now it's time to get some sleep. Tomorrow will come around quickly.
I love this sport.

And I love this house:

The front of the shack

Scott's wife Allison and his brother Brent.

Scott prepping bottles for his win tomorrow.
Allison getting her shoes ready to go for a run with me.

The Theatre Room
This picture doesn't do it justice.
Those chairs are monster recliners!

An Endless Pool within a finite pool.

Gotta have a hot tub!

The guest house behind the pool.

Chris watching football on the "small" TV.

Communication Breakdown

2008-11-21T17:41:00.000-08:00

So here I am in Phoenix and early this morning I get a message on my Blackberry saying I can no longer receive or send text messages or emails until I reset my Shaw account password.
Four hours later I get to a computer with an internet connection to find I can't access my Shaw account through webmail at this time - no reason given. So I get on the phone (long distance of course) with tech support at Shaw - 1 hour and 7 minutes later I get through. Apparently for no reason the tech guy can give me he says he has to reset my email account. Any email messages sent to me in the last 7 hours are lost.
If you think you communicated with me today - you may have not have.
When it rains it pours.

Opportunity

2008-11-08T21:17:00.001-08:00

"I've got a defective gene."

Opportunity by Edward Sill

This I beheld or dreamed it in a dream;
There spread a cloud of dust along a plain;
And underneath the cloud, or in it , raged
a furious battle, and men yelled, and swords
shocked upon swords and shields. A prince's banner
wavered, then staggered backward, hemmed by foes.
A craven hung along the battle's edge,
and thought, "Had I a sword of keener steel -
that blue blade that the king's son bears, - but this
blunt thing... !" he snapped and flung it from his hand.
Then the king's son, wounded, sore bested,
and weaponless, saw the broken sword,
hilt buried in the dry and trodden sand,
and ran and snatched it, and with a battle shout
lifted afresh, he hewed his enemy down.
And saved a great cause that heroic day.

DON'T BE A CRAVEN HANGING AT THE BATTLE'S EDGE!!!

Kickin' it Ol' School

2008-10-28T22:01:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally figured out how to work my scanner and as I have no shame I thought I might throw up a few snaps from back in the day.
I think if you click on the photos you'll see them full size.

Here's a shot of me in my first race. It's the Sri Chinmoy Triathlon, 1984 - the 5th running of it.

Sometime in early 84, I'd gotten a call from a high school friend, Rob Hanke asking me if I'd be willing to be his "handler" for the upcoming triathlon.
Rob explained the race to me - a 1 mile swim, 38 K bike and a 10K run.
Remarkable how close they came to guessing the Oly distance that would surface about 8 years after the first race 1979.
I told Rob I wasn't interested in being a handler. I wanted to do the race! After all, I'd played soccer in high school. How hard could it be?
I remember that night going for a run. I ran 17' - close to 2 miles.
In those days, 800 meters was a good swim. I never biked more than an hour and I logged my runs leading up to the race - 18 runs averaging 3 miles each. (I was always a journal keeper)
My time was something like 2:45 - I'm too lazy to dig up the results.
That helmet was a used one I found at the old Sport Traders. It was WAAAY too big for my head but you had to have a helmet.
I love my cycling gloves!

That first race costs $18 to do.

My first race

My Second race was a year later. Sri Chinmoy, 1985
The guy running beside me is Rob Hanke, who didn't want to do it the following year but came over to be my Handler.
The shorts I'm wearing are a pair of cut off rugby pants.
I have a new pair of cycling gloves for this one.
If you look in the back you can see a dude with some original compression socks on!
I remember I ended up going a few minutes slower this year and bonking terribly. Of course I didn't know what bonking was but wow - did I ever do it! I almost passed out.
Still I kept coming back for more.

My Second Triathlon

Here's a fun picture from a few years later. Probably 1988. I believe this is from the Pioneer 8k.
I was running around a 37' (for 10K) in those days. The guy behind is named Carl. He and I traded back and fourth a great many races before I finally notched things up and got faster.
In the background you can see a woman with glasses on her head talking to some folks.
That was my partner at the time. She didn't see me come in - or she was pretending not to know me, which would be understandable.
I'm wearing a jersey from The Tri Den. That was a tri specific store that I opening in 1987 - but, as many of my athletes could tell you, I'm a terrible businessman. I sold the store for a loss 3 years later. It closed a year after that.

Bring your A game or go the fuck home!!

Here I am training indoors. Yes, that's a sweatband on my head. Note the ultra cool socks. Also note the saddle bags - and my autographed album cover from Billy Joel! I still have that, of course. And dig that swag lamp and knitted plant hanger. My mom made that plant hanger. Those are a pair of very expensive Hind Tri shorts I'm sporting!
My stereo would have been cranking.
I'm 25 years old and 150 pounds.

Training in the 80's

I love this photo, grainy as it is. This is me and my friend Mike Basanta training in Palm Springs. We rode 3 hours this day. Those are Scott bars on our bikes. I think it must have been around 1989. The heat was staggering - well past 100!
Mike won a good many races in his day.

Me and Mike

My first and only victory. It was the first leg of the Coor Island Relay probably around 91 or 92.
Note all the neon shorts on the fans - but me sporting a cool pair of Tinley originals!
I still have those shorts but couldn't get one leg in them now!!
This was a 3 mile race. I don't remember my time.
But I remember the feeling of starting out with all those runners and finishing all by myself.

My First Win

Finally it's out

2008-10-24T12:15:00.000-07:00

The Word is Out

There's more to this story.
It'll all come out in the fullness of time.

A few Kona Shots

2008-10-23T22:32:00.000-07:00

The problem with going away for a week is that you come back to a shit storm of stuff to do.
Anyway, I took lots of pictures in Kona but few of them are worth looking at. Here they are anyway:

Press Conference
Craig, Beke and Welchy (back to us)

I haven't even looked at the results but I heard Beke was 3:57 out of first with a 4' drafting penalty! Crap that's got to hurt if it's true!!!

My buddy Dan Smith after
the race. This was not a setup photo.
That's what he looked like!!!

I LOVE this photo of Sara Gross finishing!
It's blurry but her smile comes through!

I spent a little time with SG out on the run course. She has the heart of a lion. I believe this girl can be a giant killer.

Check out this broad! Smiling away like it was
a little fun run!

Since Kona I've been hearing some pretty crazy rumours but until I read it on slowtwitch I won't believe it's true.

CM X 2 plus Lisa Mensink

Three Olympians.

Rumour has it one of these girls may dip her toe into the long course waters. If that happens I'm predicting devistation!!

I'm currently out of the office right now

2008-10-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

I've been writing on Triathletemag.com

Here
and
Here
There will be more as well as an article or two on Pete's site as well. I sent Shawn (Pete's webmaster) an piece about 20 minutes ago. Not sure when he'll be able to get it up.
but it'll be at
Pete's Website.

A few photos.

My view at the pro press conference

Two Champions

Bennett and Normann exchanging digits.

Wonder what he's thinking about?

24

2008-10-08T14:45:00.000-07:00

"Next year your skinny ass is mine!"

I arrived in Kona at 8:30 AM local time this morning. Exactly one rotation of earth after leaving Victoria. I'm not a big fan of traveling at the best of times. I like my own home and prefer to be there over other places but you won't hear me complaining when it's an Ironman I'm going to - especially the world championship - but the was one arduous trip.
I booked the flight Expedia and was pleased to find a flight 2 weeks out from the race at about $300 less than any other flight I've gotten there.
So I leave Victoria at 11:30 AM, fly to Seattle, sit for 6 hours, fly to Honolulu, sit for 90 minutes, then fly to Kona - in theory arriving about 12 hours after leaving.
The night prior to leaving a wind storm hit Victoria with a fury, keeping me awake most of the night but by morning it had largely blown out and all flights were on time.
I arrived at the Victoria Airport with plenty of time to have a bit of lunch but didn't count on the power being out. There was no food. The flight leaves as scheduled and about 50 minutes later we arrive in Seattle with what was inarguably the roughest landing I've ever experience. Some residue wind from the storm the night before hit us hard as we hit the tarmac. I was at the back of the plane and for a brief moment I believed the pilot had lost control. We were fishtailing back and forth and cries from terrified passengers unnerved me as much as the turbulence - the pilot, bless his soul, did not crash us and I, along with a few of the Lifesport gang got off the plane head to a fish place in the airport for a really nice meal. We were all starving. We would learn that their flight on Northwest is delayed 2 hours and my later flight will also be delayed about 45 minutes.
I don't mind the 6:45 wait as I have lots of work to do and I get lots done.
When it's time for me to check in I get to the Northwest counter to find the computers are down and we can't board. After about forty minutes a few nerds show up and fix the problem and we're allowed on the plane. It takes off about an hour five behind schedule for the six hour flight. I'm sitting beside a lady so obese she's not able to have the arm rest dividers lowered. Her flesh pressed against me for the entire flight. She never even got up to pee. Neither did I.
After some quick math I determine I would have about 30 minutes to transfer planes in Honolulu.
The inflight movie comes on - a stroke of luck - it's the Kevin Costner's Swing Vote. I thought it was a stroke of luck because I hadn't seen it and I mostly enjoy Costner. I did not enjoy this one. What an ill thought piece of trash, but I watched every minute to try and distract myself from the discomfort of being smooshed into the window.
At long last we touch down in Honolulu and my name, along with about a dozen others, is called. We are to report to the Northwest man waiting at the gate. I knew then we wouldn't be going to Kona tonight.
Of course I was right, but not for a moment did I really care. It would have been almost 11 PM by the time I would show up at the house. I didn't relish the idea of waking people up to find out where I was suppose to sleep.
We, the inconvenienced travelers after 20 minutes in a line up, are given two vouchers, one for a hotel and one for a meal. I'm told the meal voucher will work at the hotel or any vendor in the airport. We are told also to grab out checked luggage.
But the conveyor belt won't start. Instead an alarm starts up. For 15 minutes we listened to the ear grating screech of that thing. The crowd was getting hostile.
Suddenly it stopped, the belt started to roll and luggage began to pour out to a loud cheer from the crowd.
My luggage along with several other passengers is lost. I'm not really concerned about this as I assume it's just gone on ahead without us. This turns out to be true but it didn't stop one big son of a bitch from just losing it on the poor airplane rep. A few of us tried to calm the guy down but only half succeeded.
Now we're told to head out the of the airport where a shuttle will take us to the hotel. We're also told the shuttle comes every 10 minutes. 22 minutes later the shuttle arrives.
At 2 AM 14 and 1/2 hours later I lay down in the hotel bed. The place was had the smell and ambiance of the 70s but I was just fine with that. I don't recall sleeping so soundly in a very long time.
This morning things went mostly uneventful. My flight was scheduled for 7:30. Unfortunately the hotel cafe didn't open till 6:30 so I would have to use my voucher at an airport vendor.
No luck - the airport vendors didn't accept the vouchers.

So 24 hours after leaving Victoria I arrive in Kona and it's perfect here.
The universe was kind. It gave me something to write about.

Starting to feel it

2008-10-06T12:24:00.000-07:00

So tomorrow I'm off to Kona. I'll be writing the column again for Triathlete. I enjoy that gig but it's a bit of pressure due in part to the numbers reading it. I've got my nine regular readers here on my blog and you guys hardly ever pressure me to be bring my A game with every entry - it's a different matter with the crowd checking out the Triathlete Mag site.

So my swim game on Friday turned out to be a pretty fine success.
I'll do my best to explain it here if anyone wants to try with their groups.
First you make a game board:

I made mine with 33 squares.
The first sq is your warm up and the last sq is the cool down.
After that you put the name of each of your swimmers on an individual sticky note and start everyone in sq 1. They all do the warm up.
After the warm up the swimmers each draw a poker chip from a bin. The chips are labeled 1 through 6. Whatever number the swimmer chooses is how many squares they advance.
Then they do the set written in the sq. I made each set approximately 300 metres.
The first person to get to the cool down and complete it wins.
I had prizes for the first 3.
Some tips - have all the swimmers draw their first chip prior to doing the warm up. This will help spread it out a bit. They come in fast and furious.
Also make sure you have different lengths for the the level of swimmers - eg - a set might be 3 x 100 or 2 x 100 - one for lane 1 and one for lane 4.
Make the sets on rest interval and not on a time - don't have 3 x 100 on 1:40 have it 3 x 100 on 10" rest.
If anyone gives this a try let me know how it goes.
With thanks to Norm Thibault and Peter Reid.

Now I have to pack.

2008-09-29T20:40:00.000-07:00

So I coached the Tyee session and it went just fine. There were some new faces for me and I was a new face for many of them. Working with that group is going to be a good thing.
This Friday I have something special lined up for them - a swim game idea I got from Norm Thibault. I'll let you all know how it goes.

So my news this week is I've decided to go to Kona again this year and take in the race.
I'll have a lot of friends there racing and the boys over at Lifesport, Paul Regensburg and Lance Watson, extended a generous offer of a nice room in a sweet pad right on the drive. I couldn't turn that down.
Another World Championship. It'll be good for me.

Once more to the brink

2008-09-25T21:55:00.000-07:00

It's been a nice holiday but it's time to get back at 'er!

Tomorrow morning at 6:15 AM I will be on deck and there will be between 25 and 30 swimmers in the water expecting me to bring my A game.
I haven't been on deck, coached a track session or a trainer ride in more than 5 weeks.
I'm curious to see how it goes. There are few places in the world I'm as happy as I am on the pool's edge or beside a track.
I'm expecting good things.

Some days are better than others

2008-09-24T17:04:00.000-07:00

These folks had a bad day.

Yeah, I know - it's been almost two months since I've written a word here.
I'd like to give you a long list of reasons why - insanely busy, training too hard - blah, blah, blah but the truth is I just haven't been up to it.
Writing is easy. Deciding what to write is hard.

Things have been a tad glum since May and bringing myself to this laptop to jot down a few thoughts has been something of a challenge, to say the least.
I wish I could say things have vastly improved. They haven't but I figure maybe if I try to get all the little things back on track then the big things will get on track.

Training isn't going at all. My Achilles has flared up on me and I'm unable to run. Traditionally I look forward to putting the bike in the shed and running but it looks like I'm going to have to winter up because this Achilles is not getting any better.

My athletes had a great summer and I took a lot of satisfaction from that.
Of course, Heather's win in CDA was a high point but Ironman Canada was also an incredible day for me as a coach.
I had three people racing, Juan Carlos Ramirez, Rachel Kiers, and Heather Wurtele. I also had a long list of friends racing - Trevor Wurtele, Dan Smith, Adrienne Stedford, Ian Dewar and John O'Shaughnessy amongst others.
The results are all available but a coach and friend couldn't have asked for more. The day was tough - really tough but my guys were tougher! I was so proud of all of them.
JC wasn't able to finish CDA and in IMC last year he'd had a very unsatisfying race. This kid was really something. He's got a new family, he works 40 hours a week and this last year he experienced the tragic loss of his mother. There were many weeks when I thought he'd crack but he didn't and in the end his 9:45 put a big smile on my face.
Rachel was having a hard time out there too. I could see by the look in her eye near the half way point of the run that she could feel it slipping away but up to then she'd been having a solid race and was still up there. I did my best to convince her she was having a great race. All she had to do was stay tough and she'd get to the finish line to see I was telling the truth. I don't know if she heard a word I was saying but she got to the finish line to find that she'd shaved more than 20 minutes off her last year's time and had finished 8th - IN THE MONEY!! Very satisfying. Rachel's a jewel. She's got more speed in her and we're going to find it this coming year!
And Heather - what can be said about Heather? She'd raced an IM and gone to the well 8 weeks earlier. Her recovery and training was on target but with IM you just never know.
I have to admit I was pretty surprised when the splits started coming in and Allison Fitch was pulling away from her on the bike. There's not many women in the world who can pull away from Heather on a bike. To my shame, I didn't know who this woman was.
I biked over to a internet cafe to see what I could learn. I was hoping to meet Heather on the run and tell her that Allison was a 4 hour marathon runner. But when I looked at her results I realized she was the real deal. I would never lie to Heather out there so all I could do was encourage her to stay strong. The winds were absolutely fierce and with Heather's height the disadvantage grows exponentially. I could see by the look on her face that she was red lining. She was running in 3rd. 1st place was realistically out of touch and at some point she would realize that 2nd wasn't going to happen either. Staying in that red zone for the bronze is a little more challenging than gold or silver but she stayed there. Another competitor had made the mistake of upsetting her out on the bike and she used that to fuel one hell of an effort out there.

So that was a good day - though there was some sadness because it signaled the final race that Heather and I will work together as coach/athlete. It's been two great years and I know she's got a lot more gains she can make. I'm looking forward to seeing her get stronger and more dominant in this sport.

It looks like my movie has been put on hold indefinitely. That, in and of itself is not such a blow. I was looking forward to directing a movie, for sure. I was looking forward to the financial rewards as well. What's really a piss off here is the number of sacrifices I made because of it. I put IMC on hold and turned down a job coaching a masters group in Victoria for the film and, of course, those turned out to be decisions I now regret.
And then there's Kona. It's now apparent I'm free to go now. I haven't booked a flight but I guess there's no reason not to.

Okay - there's a blog. Not a funny one. Not really much of anything, but it's a start.
I will endeavour to keep it going.

Pain has a face

2008-07-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

Allow me to show it to you:

Me coming out of the water at the Thetis 1500 on Sunday.
My time - 23:55

That one bloody hurt, I can tell you that.

The X Factor

2008-07-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Here's an article I wrote on open water swimming.
My mom thinks it's good.

Open Water Swimming - The X Factor

Any local (Victoria) triathletes interested in checking out this group, here's their website: Team X Website

Apologies to anyone who tried the links earlier. I've since fixed them!

What a perfect day for a race.

2008-07-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

The Vancouver 1/2 Ironman

I came over early to help the boys set up the finish line but to also support three of my athletes racing.
Irvin Tang, battling a tight hip for the past many months, was finally feeling like he wanted to test it out in the sprint event.
Nick Gottfried was tackling the full 1/2 IM as was Rachel Kiers.
Friday night was a nice little VIP affair where the press was introduced to the race favorites and I showed up for that to support Rachel.
A handful of the pro women were invited to the mic to say a few words at the event.
Rachel was not invited. I was a little put off at first but after a brief consideration I was glad. Everyone loves an underdog.
I knew that many of the women at that mic had been racing both Ironmans and 70.3s recently - but Rachel was ready to race.
We had selected this as one of her A priority races this year. She was tapered and ready to rip it up. I predicted she'd go under 4:40.
The race favourite - Bree Wee, an outstanding athlete, had done a 9:37 at Ironman Japan just three weeks earlier. That's a world class effort but three weeks is a short time to recover from a world class effort. Heather Wurtele had displayed a similar effort herself on the same weekend at CDA and in the end we felt it was not in her best interest to go to the well again so soon. She regretted not being able to race but the bigger picture was Ironman Canada in August.
Cheryl Murphy was also racing and some of her recent run times made her a clear threat for the win out there. She not a strong swimmer but when you can run a 1:11 1/2 marathon you're dangerous and she's not weak on the bike either.
Last year the swim at this race was a gong show but the race organizers had learned. The course was set up clean and clear and the swim went off without a hitch.
Predictably Bree rolled out of the chuck first with a solid 25:50.
Less than 2.5 minutes later Rachel come out in 5th.
As I mentioned, Murphy is not a strong swimmer but I was impressed with her 33:47. Right then and there I thought it would be nearly impossible to keep her off the front.
But up at the front of the race there was some unfortunate business unfolding.
Rachel had quickly moved into second place and had Bree in her sites when Bree, following a motorcycle cop, went off course. Rachel, who was intimate with the course, didn't follow. By the time Bree figured out her mistake she'd lost at least three minutes - this coming from Rachel's husband who was at the offending corner. Sadly Chris Brown and Andriy Yastrebov had also make the same mistake when they'd passed the same turnaround.
Rachel continued to put time on Bree and the other girls. She came off the bike 5' up on Bree and nearly 10' on Cheryl.
Now the would come the run.
My thinking was Rachel could run close to a 1:30 but Murphy would likely run under 1:20. Bree was a bit of an unknown for me because one just can't predict what effect an IM three weeks earlier would have on her legs. Whatever that effect was going to be, I didn't think it would be good.
Maybe it was for the best, but the night before I'd agreed to run the 13 miles on a relay team so I was out on the course as the drama unfolded. Had I been standing at the finish line waiting I likely would have been bald by the time they got to the tape.

I saw Rachel twice out there. The second time she was 3k from the finish. She was running well and gave me one of her trademark smiles. I was feeling a bit delirious from my own efforts out there but it seemed to me I didn't take too many steps past her when Murphy came along like a thoroughbred and not much farther behind her was a fast moving Bree Wee. I was okay with this. The podium was safe. After she was pretty much ignored at the press conference this was satisfying - but more than that, it was clear she was having a good race and our plan had worked.
I considered pulling out of the race so I could watch the show but when you're on a relay you have responsibilities, besides there were only two other teams in our division so I was assured of winning a really nice New Balance hat.
So there I was out running the last five k when who should come over the rise but Ms Kiers, come back to fill me in.
"What happened?!" I yelled. She smiled and said "She caught me at the finish line. I thought she must have been talking about Bree.
"What place!?!?" I yelled.
"Second." she said.
Oh man, I was primed! She'd held Murphy off till the final steps. Obviously I would have liked to see her win but there is no shame in being run down by Cheryl Murphy.
In the end she was second by five seconds. I'm sure Rachel would like to have the 24 seconds back she lost to Cheryl in transition but she can sleep well tonight knowing she is on track to becoming one hell of a triathlete. I was proud of her out there today. She ran one damn tough race.
In other news, Irvin had a successful return to racing. The injury that has been plaguing him seems to be on its way out and Nick pulled of a respectful 4:55 - that with a 4' drafting ding. I guess on the four loop bike course things got a bit crowded out there in spots.
Funny thing was, even with the 4' penalty, Nick came in lucky 13th - but would have been 13th anyway. And he still pulled off a 2nd in his age group. The kid's got a future!

IMC next!

Bree and Rachel after the race -
with some stalker guy and a Japanese
chef standing behind them.

HB HW

2008-07-12T07:29:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATHER!!
Hope it's your best year yet!
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

cool videos

2008-07-10T20:45:00.000-07:00

My friend Ian Dewar posted a couple fun videos on his blog.
One on July 3rd and one on June 29. Check 'em out.

CHECK 'EM OUT!!

So I've decided to try and hold on to the IMC dream - mostly because the same Ian mocked me into it!
It's going to be tough - maybe impossible, but each day I'm going to do what I can.
I'll have to change my goals but that's okay. The Ironman experience is a special one and, as Ian says - I'll just get to enjoy it a little longer.

This weekend is the Vancouver 1/2 Ironman. I've got a few athletes in there so I'm going over to yell from the sidelines.
One of these weekends I'm going to stay home!

Can he do it?

El Race de Lago Stevens

2008-07-07T07:15:00.000-07:00

The race is one day removed.
It was a fun day and a good one for racing.
So I'd forgotten they had a bike in the middle of these things and had all but stopped riding mine for the last few months. Once I realized the biggest portion of the event would be spent on my ride I decided I'd best come up with a plan to minimize the damage.
Here was my plan:
Swim strong.
Ride like a fat kid early for school - very conservatively.
Use whatever I had left to run.
It was a simple plan.

The day started out overcast, cool and calm. Perfect conditions.
The water temp was measured the day before at 71.5. That's a 1/2 degree high for the pros and they weren't allowed wetsuits. I would like to go on record as saying that was a bad call that showed poor form on the officials part.
The day was cool and those guys sport a minimal amount of body fat. Had the sun been beaming down that would have been another thing but...
Norm Thibault would have rowed out to the middle of the lake and dropped that thermometer to the deepest part of the lake so those boys could use their wetsuits.
Discretion is the better part of human valor but after sitting through that torture session of a race meeting with the head referee I'm not surprised it wasn't displayed.
So the pros set off and then the rest of us in wave after wave.
My wave had only 64 guys. Heaven!!
I positioned myself well and let the gun release me.
About five strokes in something attacked my right eye.
I'd deliberately let a little water in my goggles to keep them clear but clearly I'd let something else in there along with the water. My eye was burning and swelling.
I paused for a sec to shake the water out and carried on.
The swim course is laid out as well as any I've ever done. There's an underwater cable you can follow the entire way. With that you seldom need to sight and can focus on swimming. I managed to catch a few good drafts and I knew I was in the front pack of my group. A few fast cats had taken off but there were about ten of us working well together.
I got out of the water to find my watch hadn't started and would be disappointed to learn later that my time was 32:34. I honestly thought I was on for my first sub 30. I'm glad I didn't see the time as it would have taken some of the wind out of my sails.
Later I would learn that pretty well everyone said their swim times were off by a few minutes.
So on my bike I get. I know I'm in the top 10 of my age group. Cool.
My eye was stinging like a bitch but the adrenalin was surging so I didn't pay it much mind.
As the ride went on I kept myself in "control" (that means slow).
It felt like about 50 people in my age group passed me in the next few hours but that's how it goes when you don't train on the bike.
Of note on the bike - I had to stop twice to pee. I don't usually have a problem peeing on the bike but today I did. Not sure why. At least I was hydrated.
Another fun thing to happen was this:
So I'm riding along - probably 2/3 the way through and I was thinking to myself that I'd not seen such a "fair" race in a great long time. I just wasn't seeing any drafting. There was some bunching here and there but clearly people were making efforts to keep their distances and it seemed to be working. And it wasn't because of a big marshal presence. I'd seen one Goldwing the entire ride. So JUST as I'm thinking this a girl goes by me. She's in the 25-29 AG. About 7 inches off her back wheel was another woman also in the 25-29 group. She was clearly cheating - deliberately. It was an unbelievably sad sight.
Right then a Goldwing silently glided past me, watched the couple ahead for a moment or two, rode up beside the offender and flashed the red card. I'm not one to celebrate someone else's misfortune but my heart sure gladdened to see that woman get nailed. She looked absolutely stunned. Once she was unhitched from her ride I went by her in a hurry and didn't see her again.
As conservative as I rode that ride (3 hours plus) my left hip flexor started to cramp a bit with about 3 miles to go. I guess I timed things quite well.
I went through a leisurely transition and started out on the run. I once again decided to go without socks. I had no problems at Wildflower and this was a cleaner course so I wasn't worried. Bad move. I was moving along at about a 9' mile pace and feeling just fine - except for the blister that was forming on my instep - and worse than that, my right eye was flaring up and really getting painful. I did my best to ignore both and I held my 9' miles.

Just a little one.

Then with 2 miles to go the wheels fell off. It's amazing how long 2 miles is when you're done.
I hobbled through those miles and crossed the finish line with a smile - and one eye swollen shut.

Me after Gettysburg

Heather Wurtele was waiting for me a the finish line - she was super fan out there!
She got me to the med tent where they flushed the eye and wrapped me up. I looked like a civil war vet. I kept that thing on my head for about 5 minutes then tore it off. I had to keep my eye closed for the next 6 hours and slowly the pain started to subside. Not very fun but all in all the day was a good one. I think I finished around 5:45 which was about as well as I could have done with my current fitness. That's all you can ask for.

Respite

Trevor Wurtele had a pretty good race. The day didn't start well for him. Not surprisingly he got chilled in the water and it took a long time to warm up on the bike but he finished in the money and was reasonably happy.
As always, I'm keen to train and race but I don't think it's going to be possible this summer.
Stay tuned.

The next day

Lake Stevens

2008-07-05T20:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm sitting in a hotel room getting ready to race in the morning.
Race - I use the term loosely. I've been working a whole lot more than training.
I've never gone into a race with absolutely nothing on it.
I'm not saying I'm not going to pin it out there but I can not place any realistic expectations on the day other than to finish.
I'm with Heather and Trevor Wurtele. Heather's here as a fan.
Trev is looking and feeling good. I've got high hopes he'll uncork a big one out there tomorrow.
We're told the pros will not be allowed wetsuits. That's not great for Trev but it's not great for a lot of athletes.
Sat through the most boorish race meeting in 24 years of racing. Nothing new was learned.
I can think of no other sport where they make you spend an hour of your life sitting through a speech on the rules of the sport - EVERY TIME YOU RACE!!
I timed it, the guy spent 2'49" explaining that we would be penalized for littering.
I could have imparted the same info in less than 10".
Oh well, the hour is gone. I'll not get it back and I'll not cry again for it.
The skies were quite black today but it was warm.
The weather should be just fine.
As always, I'm keen to race but it's going to be a real experiment out there.

This is really good

2008-07-01T16:16:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA

The Bitch is back

2008-06-26T19:46:00.000-07:00

So it is with a mixture of joy and sadness that I announce the news that a nice little horror movie I wrote more than five years ago has been picked up and is being fast tracked into production.
The movie is called "The Bitch" and I've been attached to direct the piece. We begin filming in Vancouver on August 25 08. Yeah that's right - the day after IMC.
I've been training steady and with consistency since signing up for IMC last year but it looks like that dream will have to be put on hold.

I plan on making a good film, the benefits of which will afford me the time to be a more effective coach in the future.

I'll continue to post to this blog. I will discuss my efforts to stay fit during the insanity that is the low budget film world.
I'm typing this in the Sutton Place Hotel where we spent the day casting for the lead in the film. We saw many lovely young ladies, several of whom who really impressed us.
Tomorrow we'll be putting the short listed actors on tape.
This morning I managed to get in two good hours of athlete planning and a solid 50' on the treadmill - with the lovely Frances Fisher training on the machine beside me.
Back in Hollywood.
I tried to get out but they keep sucking me back in!

A short post race interview

2008-06-25T13:45:00.001-07:00

Here's a little interview with Heather right after the race:

http://www.krem.com/video/sports-index.html?nvid=256922

Ironman Coeur d’Alene

2008-06-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Heather and I are sitting at the ferry terminal waiting for the next sailing. We missed the sailing by four cars. I knew I should have held out to pee on the boat.The trip back went a whole lot quicker than there.
It was a hell of weekend. Heather had a great day and I was as proud as a guy could be.
Prior to the race we didn’t talk too much about times or placing but I knew Heather was hoping to go under 10 hours and to stand on the podium.
I too thought the podium was realistic but thought a 9:45 was closer to what she was capable of. After we drove the bike course I added 7 minutes to that.
IM CDA was an ideal race for Wurtele. The bike course was hard, the run flat and the weather cool. Opportunity met preparation and success was had.
Now that she’s had that success I feel confident saying she’ll have a lot more and in the future it won’t mater if the bike is a roller coaster or a skillet. It won’t matter if it’s hotter than hell’s kitchen or driving sideways rain and the run could be through the Pyrenees.
As a coach and a friend it was certainly an emotional day.
I watched her intently standing on the shore waiting for the cannon.
After the first of two swim loops she was a minute out front and the words, unbidden slipped out of my mouth “She’ll lead wire to wire.” I regretted those words instantly. I have found that the universe has a way of crushing that kind of hubris. But today the universe had other plans.
I couldn’t wait to see her come out of the water. Rigsby and I had to get to our duty of doing spotting the lead women for Ironman Live. Our job was to gather the splits, let the girls know and report them into Shawn Skene to be posted on the live feed.
As the bike progressed we watched as Heather added minute after minute to the other women. Gollnick was working hard. Ficker was working hard, Gross was working hard and Heather just looked relaxed.
Comments around me had a running theme – “Gollnick and Ficker would catch her on the run - I hope she enjoys it up there - It won’t last long - Who is she?”

As the bike neared the end and Heather was up by 12 minutes over Gollnick, Scott asked me how fast she could run. I told him I thought she had a 3:20 in her but anything could happen. “Would that be fast enough?” he asked. “As long as Gollnick doesn’t go any faster than 3:08.” I said.

Once the word got out that I was her coach they pulled me off the spotting duty to keep it fair for all the girls. I was secretly glad for this. Having me as the official female spotter was a clear disadvantage for Heather. As it was, Scott and I, working together, would start the watch when Heather rode by and then give real time splits to the next 4-5 woman. By the time we managed to leap back up to Wurtele the only split we could give her went something like this “Twenty miles ago you were 6:58 minutes ahead.”

After they pulled me I got on my bike and was able to focus completely on her. As a support person for her I was allowed to give splits but I wasn’t permitted to ride or run beside her. I kept myself beyond reproach – riding past her, starting my watch, waiting 13 minutes for the Gollnick (and for one tense moment Ficker) then rode as hard as I could up to Heather to give her the split. It still wasn’t real-time but it was quicker than if I’d waited for a few more girls to pass as I would have otherwise. Also, I sure was under no obligation to give Gollnick any splits after that. Though at mile 18, with Wurtele in a commanding lead, Gollnick was desperate to for anyone to give her a split. “How far ahead is she!?!?!?” she yelled. A well meaning volunteer told her “She’s just a few minutes, dear. Keep going!” I could see the frustration on her face and my heart went out to her.
I told her “She’s 13:10 up on you, Heather. Keep going. Anything can happen in an Ironman.” She nodded to me and forged ahead. She’s a tough competitor that one.

And let me go on a tangent to talk a little bit about someone else. Sara Gross was in that place where it’s so hard to stay tough but stay tough she did.
I could see she wasn’t comfortable on the bike. And on the run I think she was as far back as 6^thor 7^th but she just kept going. She never let up and it paid off. She finished 4^th, collected a nice little pay cheque and made a big fan out of me.

As you all know, Wurtele kept everyone behind her and did indeed lead wire to wire.
As I watched her approach the finish line to the roar of thousands I knew this would be a moment no one could ever take away from her. It’s too bad there are people out there who will try.

Last night we attended the awards banquet and once again Heather got a chance to shine in the sun. She gave a touching speech that I tried to capture on my Blackberry but was only partially successful. I’ll post it here later. I have a line on someone who taped the whole thing and I’ll make an effort to get a copy and repost.

After the awards a small group of us went to the hotel next door and celebrated with dessert and beer (though I think Scott Currie, Sara Gross and myself were the only ones to have beer - but everyone else enjoyed ice cream sundaes as big as basketballs.)

I've got some pictures and video I'll post when I have a moment later.
For now - WAY TO GO HEATHER!!!!

2008-06-22T18:16:00.000-07:00

She did it.
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

CDA III

2008-06-21T19:41:00.000-07:00

Nice day here in Idaho.
Got in a 1:45 jog along the run route. Great run (or at least half of it is) then went to the spotting meeting. Turns out our radios are going to be streaming live so I've been told I must keep my colourful language to a minimum.
I'll be giving splits for the women. I'm going to be working with a cat named Scott Rigsby. Interesting fellow. I'm sure it's going to be a fun day.
We'll be in a truck on during the bike and on bikes during the run.
It's evening now and some dark clouds have moved in. It's raining here and there but I've got a feeling tomorrow will be clear. Haven't heard a weather report so I don't know what they're calling for.
Hopefully I can send a little report once in awhile tomorrow but I'm sure IM Live will have a much better update situation.

Alright. That's it for now.

CDA II

2008-06-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

Well, the water has warmed up a degree or two and is now quite swimable.
I really liked the booties but some people didn't. It seems you love 'em or hate.
They were so clearly an improvement for me it's hard to imagine how they couldn't be for everyone but different strokes...
Spent three hours on my bike today. I hit some two lane country road on the backside of the lake. I was a little nervous at first as there was absolutely no shoulder at all and it was pretty twisty but the ride proved to be a pretty epic journey. The people out here are pretty remarkable. Talking with some of the locals it seems crime is almost nonexistant so the Sheriffs pretty much focus on speeders. Everyone drives the speed limits - and the limits are low. After awhile it was pretty clear I was safe out there.
Hit a wonderful hill - 6% for 2 miles, and get this, about 95% of the ride was on brand new black top. It felt like I was on the biggest velodrome in the world.

Also went to the pro meeting as well. Nothing new there.
I've volunteered to do a little spotting for IM live so tomorrow I'm going to a meeting in regards to that.
Heather is as calm and relaxed as I've seen her before a race. Sara Gross, whom I'm staying with, is also keen to race and in good spirits.
As always, I'm looking forward to watching the race.

Coeur D' Alene

2008-06-19T14:49:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful place!
But the water is damn cold. I heard it was 11 degrees coming here but I also know that when given the opportunity people lean to hyperbole. This time they weren't.
Swam this morning with my boy JC Ramirez. I'm from Canada. He's from Mexico. He complained less than I did. But I'm telling you, that water had a bite.
I brought us up a bunch of neoprene socks to test out but forgot them in the cabin. Tomorrow we'll put the socks on and see if that helps matters.
Also drove the bike course. Very scenic - truly beautiful but it's a roller coaster. You're going up or you're going down. It's custom made for Wurtele.

Hopefully I can give some updates as we near the race and on race day!

The Women have been chosen

2008-06-15T01:01:00.000-07:00

Another hero undone by a heel. Kirsten Sweetland's Olympic dreams were put on hold this week when a bone scan revealed she had a stress fracture in her foot.
The selection committee was relieved of their duty to choose a team. It was chosen for them.
I would have been interested in seeing who they would have backed had Kirsten be given the thumbs up to race.
Probably better for everyone that we'll never know.

Simon Says

2008-06-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

Read on Simon Whitfield's blog that he's elected to turn off his comments feature on the site. Turns out some have decided they don't like what he's got say or what the press "says" he says and they're using his comments page to hurl insults at the gold medalist. One nasty piece of work even felt justified in calling him a cheater.
What the hell are people thinking?
As far as "cheating" goes, clearly this genius doesn't understand the rules for ITU racing or is ignorant of the definition of cheating. A third possibility is they're just ignorant.
I think it's unfortunate that Simon felt compelled to do this but I'm glad he did. He's got bigger things to worry about than petty people trying to make themselves taller by hacking the legs out from others.

Right now there's lots to talk about - lots to argue about but is it so hard to keep it civil?
Can't we agree that we all want what's best for the sport - in the short term and long term and then take it from there?
Let's listen to all the sides, be open to the idea that we might wrong and willing to consider all the possibilities.

If you want to vent about the team selection process - have at it on this blog and let's leave Simon to focus on more important matters.

Another Scenerio

2008-06-10T18:27:00.000-07:00

It's been pointed out that I missed a possible domestique situation and that is Sweetland could help Murray.
I hadn't thought of that because in the past there didn't seem a point in considering it. Why would Sweetland compromise her own race? Well, she might compromise her race if she wasn't able to race - that is she wasn't able to run, but she was still able to swim and bike.
It's something to think about it.

Men's Team

2008-06-09T18:43:00.000-07:00

It's been called:
Tichler and Jenkins.
The woman's team is on hold until the extent of Sweetland's injury can be determined.

The Better Part of Human Valour

2008-06-09T14:55:00.000-07:00

Elite Men getting ready

I'm back from the World Championships. My Crackberry died out there so I wasn't able to send in my wicked insights.
My role as a spectator began with the age group championships. The weather was foul – cold and windy. They were saying the water was 12.5 and the sound decision to shorten the swim to 1100 meters was made.

The waves went off one at a time and after each one the sad sight of a few athletes getting pulled out was the norm.

After awhile I moved down to the T1 area. You had to walk around a little point to get there. It was here that the winds really picked up. The surf looked lethal!

Another sound decision was made to turn the rest of the race into a duathlon. I can just imagine the bitter disappointment felt by many of the athletes who had trained all year to peak for this event but it was the only decision that could have been made.

I ran into some genius who commented that he’d swam in much worse. He just couldn’t understand how they could cancel the swim. Foolishness is infinite.

It's shaky but wind was fierce.
See if you can see the red caps amongst
the white caps.

Unfortunately, besides freezing my keester off, watching the race wasn’t as satisfying as it could have been. It was so confusing with all the loops and staggered starts you just couldn’t see where anyone was.

I guess it was just as confusing for the athletes because when I got to the finish line I was witness to athlete after athlete coming to the finish line and realizing they had another lap to go – so back out to the course they went. There were also many stories of athletes doing extra laps as well and I saw more than one 26’ 10k spilt in the results. I’m not sure how they’re going to rectify all of it. I won’t expect much from a race that charged $300 to enter it nor from a governing body that asked for more than $500 more to do the event. It left a bad taste in a lot of mouths.

Woke up Sunday morning to cold drizzle but calm seas. Apparently the temperature in the water had dropped another degree to 11.5

I won’t bother recapping the races. They went off well and were exciting to watch.

This was to be the final selection race for our Olympic teams and that’s where a great deal of the drama for the races came from. Sweetland, Murray and Tremblay were fighting for the final two positions, while Tichler, McMahon, Jenkins and Jones were battling for the last two spots on the men’s side.

Some will disagree but going into the race the slots were pretty much pre selected. Kirsten had demonstrated on several occasions that she could threaten for a medal in almost any race. She’d also mis-stepped on more than one effort and been hampered by a few injuries as well. She just needed to race like she was capable of and no one would argue her place in Beijing. The real race would be between Tremblay and Murray with an advantage going to Murray. Carolyn hadn’t lost to Kathy this year and she also had a World Cup victory under her belt.

A top 8 finish would guarantee a place for any of them – a tall order in this crowd. If no one got a top 8 then all four choices would be left up to the High Performance Committee.

No one got a top 8.

The closest was Tichler, who came 9^th – less than a second out of 8^th. But 9^th is not 8^th. And so his Olympic future, along with the others would be in the hands of “the committee”

The athletes did not make the selections obvious for the committee – not obvious at all. No matter what decisions they make there will be legitimate appeal grounds for the athletes left off.

Sweetland pulled up lame in the run and end up 38^th. It broke my heart to see her suffering out there.

Tremblay got off the bike with the chase group but ran 38:35 and finished 21^st.

Murray missed the chase pack out of the swim but the 5^th fastest run put her up to 24^th.

On the men’s side, I’ve already mentioned Paul’s 9^th. The committee has to select Paul. That should be obvious to anyone who loves and understands this sport. Recently Paul and Simon have had some differences aired publicly and that’s unfortunate but in the end Paul has demonstrated that he can finish at the pointy end of the stick.

Behind Paul was veteran Brent McMahon. Brent’s season was hampered by a broken wrist and I think most people had pretty much written the lad off as even a long shot. Everyone, that is except Brent. He knew going into the race that if he didn’t come in 8^th then it was extremely unlikely he’d go to China – even if he currently was the 3^rd fastest triathlete in the country. If an athlete wasn’t going to threaten for a medal then the committee would be looking at that athlete’s ability to help someone else get one. On the men’s side that meant helping Simon. Helping Simon is not such an easy task. You have to be one hell of a good swimmer or you won’t be in a position to help him and once you’re there, you have to have some superior bike skills. In the past Simon had found his perfect domestique in young Colin Jenkins and Jenkins had embraced the role with the knowledge that it might get him to the Olympics along with the mentorship of one of the sports best.

On Sunday Brent showed everyone, including Simon, that not only was he capable of helping but maybe he could do it better than Colin.

Brent working it!

Brent had a solid swim and got himself in the lead group with Simon, Tich, and Jenkins. As the group circled the course again and again we saw Brent up there again and again. He was working hard and he was trying to work for Simon. Off the bike he ran strong and finished a solid 17^th. Colin was not able to help as much as he has in the past but, despite what some are saying, he did get up there a few times and kill himself to help (see my picture as proof.) But Brent showed that when it counted he could bring his A game. Would it be enough to get him on the team – probably not. Simon has been working with Colin for a few years now and that kind of a relationship won’t be compromised by one race - but I can promise you this though, Brent’s race on Sunday will certainly extend the length of the selection meeting!

Click on the picture to see Colin working at
the front with Simon close by.

So in the end the final spots on the men’s team will likely be Paul Tichler and Colin Jenkins.

On the women’s side it was also pretty clear cut going into the event. It wouldn’t be such going out.

This has been Carolyn Murray’s year. She’s been racing better than any other Canadian woman out there. She hadn’t been beaten by another Canuck going into Worlds. That alone should have assured her a place on the team and it may still but on Sunday she was beaten by Tremblay when it counted. But neither of them placed 8^th so it’s unlikely their “placing” will play much of a factor in the committee’s decision. Again, they’ll look at several criteria – who is mostly likely to podium or who can help another get to the podium?

If Kirsten is 100% she gets the nod on getting to the podium. If her foot doesn’t pass examine then the question will be moot – both Murray and Tremblay will go. For arguments sake, let’s assume her foot just has some minor inflammation and she is chosen – one spot left. Murray or Tremblay? Most know I have a history with Carolyn and want to see her succeed but I think I’ve got enough integrity to look at the situation with pragmatic eyes. If you’re looking at who has the best chance of hitting the podium, you have to point to Carolyn. Quite simply she’s one of the fastest runners in the game right now and if there’s any chance at all that can be in the lead bike pack, she can run with the big girls. As far as helping someone else, this scenario isn’t as clear for the girls. Neither Carolyn or Kathy can realistically help Kirsten as Kirsten swims substantially faster than both of them. Kathy can’t really help Carolyn because Carolyn is a stronger cyclist. Carolyn couldn’t help Kathy too much because usually Kathy is out of the pond first and even if she wasn’t, she doesn’t have Carolyn’s run speed. There wouldn’t be a point.

There is however one realistic possibility for a domestique relationship and that’s for Carolyn to help Groves. After all, Groves has already been selected so clearly the committee still considers her a threat because there are loopholes available to them to remove her from the team – though it would be poor form if they did. She hasn’t been racing too well this year but we have to assume she’s got a plan that involves peaking in August. Carolyn is strong enough to work for her on the bike. In fact she did a lot of it on Sunday.

I think most everyone was hoping the athletes would take it out of the hands of the committee but they didn’t and so men and women behind closed doors will decide the fate for these young people. Their decisions, like Caesar’s wife, must appear beyond reproach.

Whatever those decisions I hope they have the courage of their convictions to explain and justify them. The athletes and the people who support this sport deserve that.

Swim

2008-06-07T09:40:00.001-07:00

The swim has been cancelled for the rest of the age groups. Too dangerous.
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

AG Worlds

2008-06-07T07:48:00.001-07:00

I'm at the start. Its bitter cold out here but the sun is threatening to come out.
The water is 12. 5 degrees. Many swimmers are being pulled from the water. The swim has been shortened to 1100.
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Don't Miss This One!!!

2008-06-03T23:01:00.000-07:00

It's late and I'm tired so this is going to be short but I got to thinking today that anyone who lives in the lower mainland or on the island and considers themselves a fan of this sport should be moving heaven and earth to get over to Vancouver this Sunday and take in the big show.
Not only are the world championships on the line but for a HUGE number of athletes an Olympic berth is also at stake - and not just for our Canadian athletes. In almost ever country represented are men and women fighting for spots.
To have this level of competition, with so much to fight for, so close may not happen again for decades.
Be there and be heard!

More VERY soon.

OH YEAH, BABY!

2008-06-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

Heather Wurtele just came third at the Boise 70.3!
AND She was only 27" down from Ficker!!!
Also of HUGE note was her husband Trevor's 9th place finish in the same race!!

BIG shout out to the fast moving Wurteles!!!

Sweet

2008-05-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

Call me a sentimental fool but is this the nicest photo you've seen in a long time?:

http://www.pbase.com/markcreery/image/97645032

You asked for it

2008-05-27T23:30:00.000-07:00

For some reason some of you wanted to see some shots of me racing.
Why this would be, I can not even begin to imagine but for your sins,
here they are: (With thanks to Mark Creery)

That's me in orange gunning down Jazz.
Note the fear in his eye.

Dano is wondering just how long
he'll be able to hold this INSANE
pace!!!

No one can ever accuse me of bringing
anything back to the finish line.

Rachel gets the mike

2008-05-26T22:50:00.000-07:00

See Rachel in her first victory speech.
What a natural!
Her introduction and a few seconds were missed
from the beginning but she's a class act.

Shawnigan Lake 1/2 Ironman

2008-05-26T06:03:00.000-07:00

It was a good day of racing yesterday.
Heather and Trevor Wurtele and myself did the race as a relay.
Rachel Kiers did the whole thing and a posse of my friends and athletes were out there on relay teams and in the sprint - or both in one case.
Rachel lead the race from wire to wire to take her first ever win. Steve King announced that Rachel had knocked over 30' off her time from the previous year. Rachel thought it was closer to 40'. I told her I was going with King's memory on the matter. Of course, King was right. The time was 33'. An awesome improvement.
Though Rachel took the race handily she didn't do it without some pressure. There was a female relay team out there pushing her hard. She didn't know they were a relay team until about 7K into the run when she realized the strong Caucasian cyclist who had gotten into the transition in front of her had turned into a petite Asian speedster. Now that's a transition!
My man Irvin Tang along with the newest member of the roster, Roland Neville and Team X'er Korey Gendron put in a relay team for the ½. The fun thing was Irvin was also signed up for the sprint, which was scheduled to go 40' after the start of the full. Irvin would have to do the swim - hand off his chip, put on a new chip and switch his swim cap. By my calculation, he would have about 7'.
I was spot on with my estimate. Irvin swam 32:59. He raced up the ramp, handed Roland his chip - and then promptly peeled off his wetsuit out of habit. Bad move. He now had about 4' to get his wetsuit back on. Have you ever tried to put a wet wetsuit on a wet body? There were three of us trying to wedge him back into that thing. We just managed to do up the zipper and give Irvin a whole 30 seconds to get back in the water for the gun.
Lysanne Lavigne, also doing a relay was in a fun situation as well. ITU stud Lisa Mensink was in town and her coach, Paul Regensburg, had called me earlier in the week to see if I had a cyclist to race with Lisa, who would swim and run. I know lots of guys who can ride at a very high level but Paul wanted someone competitive, though not too competitive - someone who would put Lisa in a position to have to do some chasing on the run. Lysanne is a tough little nut but she's been racing short course. The 90k would be new territory for her. A few people caught her out there but she ended up cycling a 2:43! I had her at least 10' slower that was a hell of a nice surprise. She also said she felt like she never really got going. I love it when an athlete makes that complaint - and they still ride well. It tells me when they "really get going" they can do some special things!
I was running on our relay after Heather swam and Trevor rode. I knew Lisa would be just one of the relay runners out there who would be gunning for me. That's not hubris. Heather was on the last day of a MONSTER build. She was deathly tired but she's been swimming well and I knew she'd start us out strong. The swim was a bit of a gong show due to a couple of small factors that ended up large factors for some. Swimming WAY out in front were Andrew McCartney, Brent McMahon and Daniel "Dano" Wells. Three of the best swimmers in the game. A minute or two behind was Lisa and Jazz Blake. The problem was they were all so far in front of everyone else that they were the only ones to benefit by the canoe. Everyone else had to go by the buoys, which unfortunately were the same colour as the swim caps. Also there were a few separate buoys out there for the sprint race to follow. There was a lot of chaos out there but it's a good lesson - know the swim course. Had an athlete really studied the proper course they would have had far fewer problems. Heather is pro enough to have done that and she swam "pretty" straight but she also swam completely alone as everyone else was all over the map.
26' into the swim I could see her coming in from a hundred meters away - completely solo.
She finished in 27:30 - 5:15 behind Brent (also in a relay where he was biking as well) and 2:50 behind Lisa. That put us third relay on the road. Trevor launched and by the time the dust had settled he'd caught everyone (individuals included) except Jordon Rapp, who had an awesome race and would go on to win the day. Trevor blazed a stunning 2:12 out there!!!
I was 2nd out of the transition and 1st relay team but I had no idea how much of a lead I had over Brent's runner - who happened to be Rachel's husband, Mike. Brent had called me two days earlier looking for someone to run for him and I'd hooked him and Mike up. Now I was wishing I'd lined him up someone a little slower. In Mike's last 1/2 he'd run 1:34. That was about exactly what I thought I could pull off!
I felt good starting out and except for a quick pee break in the first K (who does that!?!?!) I was going okay. I started to fantasize about winning.
The course was an interesting one. It was shaped like a mutant letter 'T' with a tiny stem and a really long top. You ran out of the transition and hooked a right for a 6k out and back. When you got back to the stem of the T you kept going straight for another 5k out and back. It was all gravel and I'd been warned that the 2nd out and back was loose and rocky. No worries - same for everyone.
So I hit the first 6k and I felt like I was going strong. The K markers were way off but I knew I was running well. I hit the turn around and instantly deflated. Mike was RIGHT there - less than a minute back of me. He looked smooth and loose.
I knew he'd catch me so I went through the decision process that everyone goes through at this point - do I ease up, let him catch and see if I could run with him? He'd run hard to bridge. I'd be somewhat recovered and maybe I could break him after that.
The other choice was to pick it up a bit and make him pay to catch me. If I did that I knew that once he did catch me I'd likely have little to respond with. It would be up to him to crack on his own after that. I figured I had more experience than he did and maybe he'd gone out too hard too soon to catch me. If I made him pay hard to bridge that final minute, it might be too much. I picked it up a notch - and the Ks ticked by.
I hit the 12k mark. At the top of the T. Lance Watson was standing there with a small group. I heard someone say "He looks strong." as I went by. That made me feel pretty good. That would almost be the last "good" moment on this run. I could hear Mike getting closer. Soon I started to feel crappy - really crappy. I was slowing up and the legs were screaming. There was still 8k to go.
At the 13k Trevor was standing on the side of the road. I knew I was failing and it disappointed me to think that all of his and Heather's hard work would only be good enough for 2nd - provided Korey didn't catch me as well. Roland had biked an impressive 2:24 to put them comfortably in 3rd. I could hear Mike's footsteps on my shoulder and was further humiliated to know that Trevor would be there to bear witness to the pass. I went by Trevor with a sad shake of my head. Trevor said "Keep going, You're all alone!!" What??
I glanced back for the first time and there was no one there!!
I couldn't let up now. 8K but all alone! I did my best to focus on the drills I'd been doing and keep moving forward.
But with each passing step things got worse. The pain increased. I was drinking at every station and pouring water over my head - and now I really could hear him coming!
The path dropped down about 50 meters to the 2nd turn around. I did my best to straighten up, look strong and hopefully discourage him a bit as we crossed paths.
I U turned and came face to face with Chris Brown! YAY! Another reprieve - but short lived. Mike showed up only moments later. This was still a race and he still looked good!
A second reprieve came when I realized that for the last 4k we'd been running up a false flat. The switch to downhill gave my legs a break they were looking for but I knew they'd give Mike a break as well.
At the 17k I felt myself starting to slow and only moments later came the sound of fast moving footsteps behind me once again. Damn - 4k was too long to try and pick it up!
Adrian Walton ran past me. I hadn't even seen him coming the other way.
At the 18k my pace deteriorated further and would continue to deteriorate all the way to the finish. But I never got caught and we held on for the victory.
Mike came in a few minutes later and Korey a few minutes after that.

Irvin had a good sprint race, despite his rush to the start and in the end we all had fun in the sun.

Two Athletes and a coach.
Heather had a big training day planned and could
not stick around for photo ops after.

Adrienne had some cramping issues on the run
but had a pretty good race in spite!!
Good enough to win her AG and 4th OA!

Rachel and husband Mike (who would make my life
miserable for over an hour and forty minutes!)

The Victors!

Rachel signing her first autograph.

Very happy day!

Looking forward

2008-05-19T15:02:00.001-07:00

1/2 marathon on a relay - Shawnigan Lake 70.3 May 25.
Lake Stevens 70.3 July 6 08

Negotiate with thy self

2008-05-19T08:30:00.001-07:00

So yesterday I ran an hour forty three. I carried a Nathan Fuel Belt loaded with four bottles. This is something new for me but after the malfunction at Wildflower I figured I could use a little work consuming liquid while working out. I'm doing the same on my rides as well. I've always been a light drinker but I've never paid for it like I did a few weeks ago.
The run went well. No real problems and I managed to drink all forty ounces with no bad belly side effects. 30 oz of Nuunified water and 10 oz of Gatorade. I also had a few gels with me but didn't use them. The belt, fully loaded, weighs better than 3 lbs. Incredible how much you feel those 3 lbs on your waist. I'm more determined than ever to lose more weight. I'm floating between 167-170 these days. I'd like to lose a few more of those Nathan belts!!
So, like I said, no real problems - except getting out the damn door.
How many people can relate to that?
I love to race but I also love training. I don't normally have much of a hard time getting out the door but I sure did yesterday. I'd swum hard in the morning and had a pretty solid bike the day before. I was tired.
The plan was to run 1:30 right after the swim, eat, nap and then run 30' later.
I put on my kit sat on the sofa for just a moment - and woke up 35' later, more tired than when I'd sat down.
That's when the negotiations began.
Some time ago Lance Watson put into words what most of already knew in hearts - sometimes you have to deal with yourself to get in a challenging session.
I started by shortening the runs 1:15 now, 20' later. I was still disheartened.
So then I figured if I just got in 1:30 I could call it a good day.
Not good enough. I'd have to bring out the big gun - McDonald's!
If I got in the 1:30 there would be a Big Mac at the end of the road.
I was out the door and running. In the end I managed 1:43 of good running.
It's usually the case. Once you start, you get it done.
The Big Mac was as good as I imagined it would be!!
But here's a promise - it'll be at least 4 weeks before I play that card again.

Swam out at Thetis today. The water was great!

The World Championships - Only the best need apply

2008-05-13T13:05:00.000-07:00

On the June the 8th the ITU World Championship race will take place.
I'll be going over there and cheering hard for the Canadians but it's a damn shame that I won't be able to cheer for at least five of my friends and athletes who had earned a spot in the race. In the end they all felt the $825 it was going to cost them to race was simply too much and in at least two cases, the decision not to race was based on principal and not their financial state.
There is no doubt that holding a race in downtown Vancouver must be an expensive affair but I've never heard of that kind of a fee. Hawaii is almost half the price.
Here's the breakdown:

Race entry $300 (I'm told a record in short course history)
Mandatory Team Kit: $250 that doesn't include the
Orca race uniform which is: $150 Orca is suppose to be a sponsor of the event. Doesn't sound like much of a sponsorship.
Something called a Team Fee: $125
That's $825.
And here's an interesting little tidbit:
In 2006 an ITU congress passed a resolution to protect athletes from unscrupulous race organizers - World Championship entry fees would not exceed $200 but a funny thing happened on the way to Vancouver (home of the ITU) the resolution was suddenly waived and the figure was changed to 200 Euros! The reason given was the huge impact the declining US dollar had on the Canadian dollar. Wow.
True evil is not in the act but the rationalization of it after.

So many people dropped out of the race the organizers are now selling the multitude of vacancies. Buyers must pay all the above fees plus a $150 processing fee and they're in the World Championships.
I actually considered doing just that but it didn't feel right. It's my opinion that anyone who buys their way into the race should be differentiated from those who earned there way there (a black arm band with a white dollar sign would be good) I was lead to understand that the uniform would have no such distinctions. Rather than just take rumour as truth I emailed Tri Canada and asked them about this obvious issue. They didn't respond so I didn't enter.
The World Championships will go off on June the 8th but how many of the athletes there will be the best from around the world?
One thing you can know for sure - those racing will not be from wrong of the tracks. Good to keep the riff raff out.

Real Race Report

2008-05-08T18:55:00.000-07:00

Okay, enough glibness.
I started this blog for fun but also for athletes and coaches to exchange ideas and maybe we all learn something. I sure as hell hope I've learned something!

This was the first race I looked forward to doing from a results point of view since I first stopped racing in the early 90s.
I'm by no means at the top of my game but I'd been consistent and injury free for several months. My weight was down and I had confidence in my taper.
I was well hydrated going into the day. I'd kept a water bottle in my hand constantly in the week leading up to the event. I was in the john every hour and clear as spring water.
I knew I wasn't going to be setting any records out there but I thought I should be capable of a pretty good race - certainly under 5:30.

The Race

I stood at the front of my age group on the start line. I planned to start the swim aggressively and get in a good pack for the first buoy at 200m. 30" from the start some dick the size of a Mack truck came crawling out of the water and stood right in front of me. I asked him if he would be swimming under 27' (4' faster than I'd swam in 20 years) he said no and stepped aside.
With less than 10" to the gun I realized my goggles were sitting on my forehead. I quickly flipped them down and the gun went off.
I charged into the drink and dove - and was instantly half blind. In my haste to get my goggles on my face I didn't seat the left one properly. I ignored it as best I could and kept up the sprint to the buoy. The plan worked well. I saw one stud for sure had pulled away but I had managed to stay with the lead pack and find clear water. In fact it was a little too clear. I don't think I swam two stokes on anyone's feet the entire swim.
After the buoy and things settled down I took a moment to adjust my goggle and carry on.
Soon I began to overtake the slower swimmers from the younger age groups. The rest of the swim was an obstacle course. I came across one unfortunate fellow doing the breast stroke. The guy probably thought I was an aspiring proctologist. We exchanged numbers and soon I hit the turn around - which is really a double right turn.
Another rookie mistake alert here. I didn't know exactly the route to return to the dock. I've always just assumed I'd have lots of guys to follow. Now I looked up and all I saw was a sea of multi coloured caps and buoys. Long story short (or a short swim long) I went for the wrong buoy. I eventually realized my mistake and corrected my path. It probably cost me about 50m.
Out of the water I checked my watch and was pleased to see 30:32. That's a good time for me - about 30" faster than I thought I would go. It's only 30" but when you go faster than you hoped then it's always good.
Got on the bike and headed out. Great start. I kept myself under control and passed a steady stream of slower younger riders. No one in my age group was catching me.
But it was starting to get pretty hot. At the first aid station I grabbed a bottle of water to go with my bottle of super dense Carbo Pro (800 calories).
I sip the CP and grab water at each aid station. It's what I've done for years and it works for me.
I also figured it was time to pop a few Thermolytes. I kept them in an empty Nuun bottle.
Rookie mistake number three - don't go for pills when descending at 40k an hour. I popped the Nuun bottle, instantly hit a bump and my Thermolytes flew like chicklets down the street.
5' later I reached for my Carbo Pro and realized it, along with my water bottle, had jettisoned - rookie mistake number four. Two elastic bands attached to the cage then looped over the bottle nipples and I'd have had my water and calories throughout.
It was a long way to the next aid station. Some dude riding beside me, going for his sainthood badge gave me one of his water bottles. I was extremely grateful. I wish I'd gotten his race number and looked him up later.
After that there's little to say. There was no big moment where I smashed into a wall it was just a steady decline in performance.
The middle 1/3 of the race was tough but I held my ground. The last 1/3 of the race I started to feel queer. Something wasn't right but I just couldn't put my finger on it. My arms were shaking and I had the chills. I had come to terms with the fact I was going to come in with a slow bike time but I never considered dropping out. I figured I'd shake it off in the run.
I wracked my bike with a 3:06.
As soon as I started running I knew I was dehydrated. My tongue felt like a stick in my mouth. I borrowed a page from Pete's book and was aggressive at each station. I walked while drinking and dousing but it was too late. Within a few hundred meters of each station my mouth was dry again.
I hobbled to the finish line in 2:14:24
I was thinking of heading down to the lake and jumping in but a med guy was suddenly in my face and suggesting I go with him. It sounded like a good idea.
Things went bad after that.
I'd never suffered from heat stroke before and it's no fun. I was in there for 2 hours and two bags of IV plus a litre of Gatorade. Four hours later I pee'd for the first time.

My race plan doesn't change much from race to race. 300-400 calories and a bottle of liquid an hour. I stuck to that for WF but in that heat I needed to adjust and probably as much as double the water intake. The salt tablets would have helped as well.

For what it's worth, that's how the day went.

Wildflower Report

2008-05-06T13:54:00.000-07:00

Wildflower Race Report

Didn’t drink enough on the bike.
Ran really slow.
Two hours in the med tent.
Race and learn.
Lake Stevens is next.

Wildflower Trip - Photos

2008-05-06T12:31:00.000-07:00

WILDFLOWER - A PICTORIAL

Pete gave specific instructions - no coffee after Monday.
I went with the biggest one I could find.

Heather and I running at Wolf Creek.

More Wolf Creek

Mt Shasta

A little track we stopped near on the drive down.
I enjoyed a great little drill session here.

Chuckie V and Angela Naeth

The smallest tent in the world.

Heather checking out a deer that was checking
us out.

Wild Turkeys being wild.

Julie Moss and Sam the day before.

The night before. Nervous.

A few hours before the race.

After a good swim.

This guy ended up swimming very fast in
the Oly race even with that damn mask on!

Happy victors with a Special guy.

Me lounging with Ian and Chris. Yes, that's a
beer in my hand!

Our friend David finishing the Oly on Sunday.

Hot day!

Happy David. I'm happy too because the
race is behind me!

So long WF.

In Fond Memory

2008-05-05T20:57:00.000-07:00

It with great sadness that I say goodbye to my loving companion Kink.
It seems her tiny heart didn't work so good.
She gave me and Carolyn Murray a great deal of comfort in her life.

2008-05-03T12:54:00.001-07:00

Heather 5th at 4 47
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2008-05-03T12:33:00.001-07:00

Trevor 4 25 to get 17th
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2008-05-03T11:45:00.001-07:00

Trevor out t2 at 2 59. Heather out t2 at 3 10. In 3rd. 3 minutes back. Both look great. Clint...
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Heather

2008-05-03T09:49:00.001-07:00

1 45 back at 20 miles. In 4th
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Clint

2008-05-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

Clint swim split 32
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2008-05-03T08:31:00.001-07:00

Terenzo out in 22:22
Trev Wurtele out in 26:30
Gallo out in 22 something.
Heather Wurtele out in 25:15.

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2008-05-03T08:06:00.001-07:00

The pros are off! I go in 55'
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2008-05-03T07:24:00.001-07:00

In transition.
Perfect morning.
Pros start in 35.
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Two more sleeps.

2008-05-01T21:21:00.001-07:00

Thanks Linda! Its warmed up again we are all keen to race!

Chuckie V and Canadian Angela Naeth are our neighbors. They have the smallest tent I've ever seen.
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I am Specialized

2008-05-01T16:23:00.001-07:00

IH if you see this email me directly at writerguy@shaw.ca
Or text 2508181026
We are in E24
Where are you guys at?
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Warming Up

2008-05-01T10:53:00.000-07:00

Rough night but the cold snap seems to have passed.
Ran into Chris Lieto Sam McGlone and Pip Taylor this morning. Everyone looks good. Chris definitely knows how to travel in style.
Our days of solitude are over. The masses are arriving.
Pictures to follow.
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Cold

2008-04-30T10:52:00.001-07:00

Anyone coming to Wildflower should bring plenty of warm clothes. The weather has turned. Its cold and windy.
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The Dark Place

2008-04-30T10:43:00.001-07:00

Arriving here early has afforded me a lot of time to think. My normal life allows for little of it.
I spent an hour on my bike today - just me and my I pod. I got to thinking about the upcoming race and it occurred to me that I was looking forward to racing in a way I hadn't in a great many years. I'm not sure why that is but, as I said, I've had time to think and this is what I've come up with: at first I was thinking that maybe I was keen because my fitness is higher than it has been in a good long time. Still, in relative terms I'm not near as fit as I was twenty years ago when I took racing much more seriously. I know that in the grand scheme of things I will be in the top 50 % of my age group. But in a way it is about fitness. The thing is, I've got this feeling that because of my increaseed fitness this Saturday I just might be able to go to the Dark Place. You need a certain level of fitness to go there. Three presidents have sat in the oval office since I've been there.
Now I'm not talking about the "Peter Reid" dark place - that time in an IM when you are beseeched by dark thoughts and a feeling that things are lost. I'm talking about that place you can go in racing and training where everything around you dims except the effort and the pain - and you embrace the pain. You toy with it and you test its limits.
I think might be able to go there this Saturday. Its been a long time since my last visit and I'm both nervous and excited. It feels like I've made a date with an old lover I remember only with fondness - yet in the back of my mind I know there's a reason why she is an ex.
I am probably thinking too much.
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2008-04-28T19:33:00.001-07:00

If you're coming to Wildflower being Deep Woods Off!
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2008-04-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

Testing the blackberry.
Running trail in Wolf Creek Park. More later.
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2008-04-28T19:00:00.000-07:00

Testing the blackberry.
Running trail in Wolf Creek Park. More later.
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