My favourite bike ride and other short stories

I started this blog as a means of sharing my Ironman training and maybe impart some advice and lessons learned. It then morphed into an opportunity to share my race reports...because there's nothing more important in your life than how fast I didn't go. As I type these things out, it usually causes me to reflect a lot more on where I'm at and what it all means to me.
But let's start with those race reports.

Jim Horner CX: I was up in Edmonton for Thanksgiving and staying 3 minutes from Millcreek Ravine, I couldn't skip the chance of doing the Jim Horner cyclocross last Saturday. I did a short warm up and lined up for the start. Three quarters of a lap later (about 7 minutes or so) I was walking over to the commissaire pushing my bike with one hand and holding my broken chain in the other.

Red Cross CX: Fortunately Red Bike put on a race at the same spot on Sunday. So after a quick repair at Hard Core bikes I was ready to go. I started at the back of the pack. A big group moved off the front quickly and it was only about half a lap before the group as strung out. It wasn't as technical as my previous venture at COP, but the course was still a tricky one ducking in and out of the ravine. I maybe didn't look as good as I felt when I yelled to my dad "you should try this". He just laughed. My goal was to not get lapped too early in the race (I know, pretty lofty expectations). Being used to tucking into aero position for kilometre after kilometre of straight roads, started a bit tentative on the technical turns. But as the laps ticked by, I started to find my rhythm and attacked the hills and corners. I made halfway through my final lap holding on before reality set in and the top two riders lapped my. But I'll count that as a successful day.

Blow Street CX: There was a race out in Blakiston Park (NW Calgary) yesterday. I was on the fence about signing up since I was doing the Gorilla run today. But I enjoy cyclocross too much to pass up the opportunity. It was a big field on a fairly flat, leaf-covered course. Again I started near the back but was moving up quite well. But on my second lap my new chain link came loose and that was the end of my day. Half of my cyclocross races have now ended with a broken chain! Oh well, just saved my legs for a strong race at today's 14km Gorilla Run.(slow start through the zoo, very fast last 2km).

My cycling has seen big improvements over the last year. To the point where my bike may be close to challenging the run if my run wasn't also improving. So I was stoked for our time trial at tri club this week. My 3 minute TT felt good. And then my 20 minute TT fell apart. With numbers only slightly higher than those of a year ago I spent the night questioning why. Am I finally burning out after IMC and a busy racing year?  Maybe that month in South America is just what the body needs to recover and refocus. Maybe Dezz and I will hire a couple of hybrids and take a leisurely bike ride, but that will probably be the extent of it.

Speaking of cycling abroad, Bicycling Magazine is celebrating their 50th year with an article on most memorable rides. Which got me thinking about mine. In 2008 Dezz and I did a short cycling tour in Crete, Greece. On day two we cycled about 5km. Our ride traversed some quiet, winding roads with a few uphills and what seemed like more downhills. We took a leisurely pace as you do when seeing a new country. After a long flowing decent we rounded a corner and came upon a small natural spring. We stopped for a photo opp and to take in the atmosphere. We felt like we could have been riding through the rainforest with the overhanging trees, and sound of water flowing, and not a single car passing us in our 15 minute pit stop. And then the rain started. We had a final climb into Argiroupolis up a steep, slick hill. Dezz literally was riding day 2 on clipless pedals (yep, we just bought her road shoes 3 days before we departed) and at the steepest pitch her bike just stopped. It was one of those slow motion falls we've all experienced first hand. But she jumped back on and pedaled to the top of the hill where we were greeted by a waiting Mercedes Benz.  This was the owners of our paradise for the night waiting to lead us up to his guest house. We walked our bikes the last few steps down the cobbled steps, stripped out of our wet clothes and into some dry gear, made a pot of tea and feasted on the fresh farm produce and bread they provided us. Had it not been for the potential adventures that awaited us the next day on our bicycles, we would still be in Argiroupolis. She's never come out and said it, but I have a sneaking suspicion this is the day my wife fell in love with cycling.

Losing my Cyclocross Virginity

Following IMC 2009 I decided to try cyclocross. This, of course, meant I NEEDED a new bike.  After a few a few visits to Bow Cycle, I decided my third bike in 3 years should maybe be secondhand. Two days before leaving for Spain I found a great deal...in Kelowna. I contacted the seller (a mechanic in a Kelowna bike shop) and said if the bike was still available when I returned, I'd really consider it. A week later, I was assembling my newest family member. 

Jump ahead 21 months and I was finally signed up for my first cyclocross race. On Saturday night I raced the newbie category at the Dark Knight Cyclocross out at Canada Olympic Park. I spent a whole 2 days training my mounts and dismounts and riding over some bumpy grass in Inglewood prior to the race. I was ready!  Cyclocross has a reputation of just being a really fun time, even among the more elite riders. So I wasn't too nervous. Until I saw the course!  I quickly realized the hundreds of kilometres I rode along straight roads in aero position wouldn't be of much assistance here. I signed my waiver, pinned my race number onto my jersey, pulled up my leg warmers, and headed out for a practice lap. I spent the last week watching cyclocross videos on YouTube...either everything looks easier on video or this is the hardest course in the entire universe. I'll settle for something in the middle.

My race started at 6pm so at least we'd be racing in daylight. In cyclocross, you don't do a set number of laps. Rather, it is a timed race and the number of laps is based on the pace of the first place rider after his/her first 2 laps. Seeding ourselves was fairly easy...there were only 8 noobs signed up. We started off on a gradual asphalt uphill. Two guys pulled away right off the front. A girl and I were next. And then everyone else dropped off the back early on.  The course consisted of grass, sand traps, a downhill dirt trail, tight corners, off-camber sections, and obstacles. I raced in my small chain ring and by the third lap I was hypoxic. It was a totally different type of fitness than I'm used to. But the adrenaline kept me going strong (well, maybe strong is too, um, strong a word). I was a bit tentative on the first couple of laps, but started to really go for it on the 3rd and 4th laps. By the 5th, I was spent and made a few tactical errors. But asides from 2 close calls, I survived the race without hitting the ground. I was in 3rd place for the first 3 1/2 laps, but the girl kept on my wheel most of the time ("come on Ally, you got him. Hey buddy, don't get chicked!") and after a short downhill, tight corner, and sharp uphill in the wrong gear, she finally made the jump. I stuck on her wheel for a bit but her road racing skills were obviously more suited to the technical course. Yup, I got chicked. But I was happy with my 4th place finish and not getting lapped. And Bow Cycle donated swag for the top 5 in each category.

The cyclocross vibe is totally different than triathlon. It's a real party vibe. They had a DJ spinning throughout the races (the elite dudes went at 9pm) and the post-race (or pre-race, or spectator) food consisted of pumpkin pie, whipped cream, chocolate, nibs, coffee and hot chocolate. Nice. Racers even wore costumes. I was amazed at how fast the elite guys were, but it was good to see that sometimes they slipped or wiped out too. I can't wait to do the next one.

Dark Knight video:

If only I could swim faster...a Banff Tri Race Report

A couple of days after IMC, I was back in the saddle spinning my legs out and racing Ricky up MacLean Creek Road (for the record, his final uphill acceleration was like Alberto, mine was more Cadel...he won). And 4 days post-race I was pounding the pavement for a short run to test the legs. Everything was feeling good. I was fighting a bit of a cold that hit me the day after IMC, but I figured that would be long gone by September 10.  So on Sunday, I was entering my Visa info and clicking accept on my Subaru Banff Olympic Triathlon entry.

I had no idea what the training plan should be for a race 2 weeks after a 12 hour race, so I put in some short, hard workouts and some hot yoga. Grant also passed along some advice on the final few days of training. Given his success, I usually follow what he has to say. However, the severe coughing fits during intensity caused me to hold back and rely more on my fitness from IMC. I went in with a goal of sub-2:30, but had no idea how my body or lungs would feel on race day.

Dezz and I headed out to Banff on Friday after work, picked up my race package and drove over to the bike drop-off at T1. After a few last minute tweaks to the Flying Scotsman, I road from Minnewanka over to Two Jack Lake and parted ways with my bike for the evening. After a quick good night peck on the cheek, I ran the 2km back to meet Dezz at Minnewanka. We checked in and went to Balkan Greek restaurant for some dinner. Chicken souvlaki, potatoes, rice pilaf, veggies and some pita & hummus. I had to promise Dezz we'd return after the race for the Baklava Cheesecake. Back at the hotel we sorted my wet and dry bags for the morning.

I awoke at 7:30am (yessss, 10:30am start time!) and ate raisin bread with PB & banana, a bite of Macrobar, a bottle of water, 15ml of cough syrup, and 4 JuicePlus. We dropped my run gear at T2 and got the shuttle up to T1 at 9:30. After donning the wetsuit, I ventured into the glacier-fed Two Jack Lake and waited for the start; I knew if I got out there's no way I'd want to get back in. The first 300m were chaos - freezing water, flailing bodies, and about 4 smacks across the head. But compared to my intimate swim in Lake Okanagan with 2800 of my closest friends a couple of weeks earlier, this start felt like a piece of cake. I had a few issues with foggy goggles yet again, but managed to swim much straighter for a change. Goal swim time: 35 minutes. Actual Swim time. 32:59. By no means a fast time, but a new PB for my open water swim. And after a disappointing swim at IMC, it's nice to build some confidence going into the off season.

T1 is uphill from the lake, so transition is always a bit slower. And to make it even more interesting, the aisles between the bike racks are quite narrow. So after stripping my wetsuit and getting on my helmet and shoes (no gloves for a change...every second counts), I ran the gauntlet of people sitting in the middle of the aisle and eventually threw my bike on my shoulder 'cross style to get through. I had my bike in the small chainring to start, allowing me to slowly spin my way up to race pace. The course takes us clockwise 2.5 times around the Minnewanka Lake loop, so we hit a decent downhill quite early on. I used that to get my speed up and maintain a solid effort on the bike. I only dropped into the small chainring twice, both loops on the biggest hill. The other hills I still maintained a cadence about 80rpm in the big ring. My first 2 laps were identical at 22 minutes, so I knew I'd beat last year's bike by at least 5 minutes. The ride back into town was a quick one and when I did lose pace for a few moments, I heard an English accent yelling to "get that speed back up and push hard. That's it. That's it!". I knew it wasn't my subconscious since it would never speak to me in an English accent, I wondered who the heck it was. Regardless, it worked. Bike time 1:01:40...11th fastest bike split on the day. (Oh, and the voice...I later found out it was my Talisman teammate Alan...cheers).

I made a rookie mistake in T2 and ran down the wrong bike rack. Fortunately there was ample space to duck under to my transition spot. Oops. I headed out on the run with approximately 49 minutes to complete my 10km run based on my final goal time. In the first km, my stomach had major cramping and I thought it was going to be a struggle to put in a 49 minute split. By kilometre 2, the pain started to alleviate as my pace continued to increase. The legs held up great (without an asterisk of  *considering I was only 2 weeks out from IMC) and the cramping seemed to disappear. As I reached the final km, running down the middle of a closed-to-traffic Banff Avenue, I finally thought yeah, I made the right decision racing today!  Run time 43:50. Overall time - 2:25:36. 

And so my triathlon season comes to an end on a postive note. I'm going into the off season with confidence, both in myself and in Talisman. Grant won the whole damn thing in Banff while setting a new run course record, and Talisman claimed another 2 age group podiums in Faizel and Shawn. It's nice when you see your club putting up results. One or two running races before Dezz and I hit South America, and then finally a bit of R&R...hiking to Machu Picchu counts as rest...right?

IMC Race Report

Now what?  That was the first thing I thought this morning when I woke up.  Well, maybe that came after thoughts of ice cream and beer.

My day started at 3:45am on Sunday. I didn't get much sleep as my mind was focused on the race before my head even hit the pillow. But that's why Friday night's 9 hours of sleep were so important. Turns out I wasn't the only one who didn't sleep. Ricky managed a solid 6 hours, but all of our housemates slept lightly...stressing over the best spots to cheer us on I guess. As soon as I woke, I visited my favourite pre-race location...the bathroom. Then had a not-too-heavy breakfast. Cinnamon Raisin English muffin with banana and natural peanut butter, a bottle of Powerbar Perform, water, walnuts, almonds, chocolate and a couple of fig newtons.

Dezz and Shannon drove me down to the start about 5:20 (Rick headed down to Smith & Company for breakfast already) for body marking and special needs bag drop-off. Then over to transition where I put my nutrition on the bike, waited in the port-a-potty queue, and slipped into something a little more uncomfortable. Once I had my wetsuit on, it hit me how close the race start was. I found Ricky down at the start, along with my coach, a few teammates and a few other friends. It always eases the mind a little when you see familiar faces.

Rick planned to start near the front along the buoys, I prefer a start closer to the back along the outside. So I bumped into my Talisman teammate James McCreath and we chatted until Oh Canada started. Then the start horn went off, I wished James luck one last time, and suddenly I was engulfed by splashing water and a mass of flailing arms and legs. I don't recall the swim being so chaotic in 2009; it was impossible to find any open water during the first 500m of the swim. But I snuck a look at my watch after 2000m and was pleased to see I was actually ahead of my goal time. And then it got ugly. After making the final turn back to the swim finish, my dodgy sighting and foggy goggles lead to me swimming about an extra 300m. I was way off course to the left and had to correct a few times only to venture back to the left. I finally reached the beach about 99 minutes later and found Dezz and crew as soon as I stood up. Only about a minute faster than 2009, but the new improved stroke definitely had me feeling much better effort-wise when I ran over the transition mat to have my wetsuit stripped off. I also managed to shave about 3 minutes off my transition time.

 I changed into bike shorts for the 180km ride and headed out the change tent to be met by Grant handing out gels. A few quick words and then sunscreened up, peed and grabbed my bike. Once again, the last one on my rack.  That just gives me more people to pass on the bike. I started off with very low gear, spinning the legs out and taking in some water. The ride along to MacLean Creek road felt great, and a quick peak at my Garmin showed I was cruising along the slight downhill about 50km/hr. Once we hit the MacLean Creek hill, it looked like a traffic jam. People were almost at a standstill on the road, weaving back and forth. I maintained my high cadence and flew past the majority of those people who seemed to be in for a loooong day once the real hills started. At the bottom of the hill, I stomped on the pedal to try get some separation from everyone else, only to have my chain fall off. But it did make me slow down enough to see Mick, Annabelle, and Ava cheering me on. And the quick 5 second stop was luckily the only mechanical I had on the day. I was excited when I saw the Osoyoos Husky...Richter was just around the corner.At the bottom of the climb I saw one of my training partners, Soostie, and we exchanged a few words before beginning the climb (hope all is well Soostie). I felt great going up the 11km climb and still maintained by consistent cadence. All those training days in the hills were really paying off. I made it through the first 75km, including the climb up Richter, in about 2 hours. Following Richter there is a series of rollers and the out-and-back before hitting Yellow Lake, a longer but less steep climb. The decent from Yellow Lake can be very fast, but we had a good headwind that worked to slow me down a bit. I still attacked coming down and had to shake my head at the number of cyclists with no bike handling skills and apparently no experience in riding on a road with other cyclists. But I hate to pass up free speed so my decents were very aggressive back into town. My nutrition on the bike consisted of Powerbar gels from the aid stations, 2 nutella wraps, a couple of fig newtons, some Pringles at special needs, and Powerbar Perform and water. I just kept grabbing fresh cold drinks and added a few Hammer fizz tabs at the aid stations and ditched the old bottles. Official bike time: 5 hours 47 minutes.

After a 7 minute transition, I headed out on the run with my legs feeling good, my tummy not feeling so good. I had a bit of cramping on the bike while in aero position, so I could tell the run may pose a few problems. But I told myself to run through the pain should the need arise. I didn't want another +5hour marathon like 2009. The heat continued to be a factor along the run course, probably reaching about 32C. Once you get through town and reach Skaha Lake, it's a beautiful run, but offers very little shade. So every aid station was a must too keep cool and prevent dehydration. Based on my tummy and the heat, I decided to skip the gels and got  most of my calories from Powerbar Perform. I also took in a few orange slices, grapes and watermelon. I also grabbed three ice cold sponges, a cup of ice and a cup of cold water to cool my skin. My stride felt great ("Drive those knees forward") and I felt I could have pushed harder. However, I could also feel my gut cramping a little when I did pick up the pace. With the heat, I decided to play it a bit more conservative and held something back. I walked the aid stations but ran the rest of the race, including all the hills. My final 5km were run at 5:05/km; by that point I figured lets just get this thing finished with and deal with the issues later. I caught up with fellow Talismaner James, whom I started the swim with, and offered him a few words of encouragement as he headed towards the home stretch. I also saw another teammate, Faizel, who finished about 4 seconds behind. 3 Talisman members within 5 minutes of each other!

In the end my run was slow and therefore my overall time was slower than my goal time, but on the course I had a decision to make. I debated about pushing myself faster and ignoring the signs by body was giving off, or just slow down a bit and pace myself to an enjoyable run. I opted for the latter and ended up feeling great crossing the line. Had you guaranteed that if I pushed myself all the way my body wouldn't shut down 7 or 8km from the finish, I probably would have raced for that sub-12. But you never know how your body will react, especially in extreme heat over 12 hours. And with that, I'm a bit disappointed in my final time of 12h 24 minutes, but at the same time I reached the chute feeling strong and my body is feeling great today. Over the next few days I'm going to deal with those little what-if scenarios playing out in my head, but at the end of the day it is what it is. No regrets as I did what I felt was right at the time. And improving my personal best by 58 minutes can't be looked at as failure.

As for the finish itself, I was lucky to be met by friends Erin, Michael, and Marc as volunteers. Then I saw Ricky (great race bro...very proud of you). After choking down a timbit, half a cookie and orange crush, I had a quick chat with coach Grant. After a bit of recovery, I finally made it over to an anxiously awaiting Dezz and the rest of the support crew with big smiles on their faces. And then I finally felt ready to tackle a slice of pizza. We headed home for a shower, some much needed food and a short rest. Then back over the the finish line for the last hour of finishers. Congratulations to everyone who raced today...those were some tough conditions.

Once again, thank you for all the messages from friends and family. It seems strange to me that so many people are coming along on this journey with me, but I am honoured and humbled by your support.

Now, on to the next one. A few days of R&R and then back to the drawing board (or doctor) with these silly cramping issues, a chat with Grant, and an evaluation of my goals for next year (No, they don't include IMC 2012).

Cheers!

T-12 hours

I wrote a blog entry back on July 3 saying I can't believe how quickly the past 10 months have flown by.  And now I'm wondering where those last 56 days have gone.  In 12 hours time I will be standing on the shoreline of Lake Okanagan watching the pros getting smaller and listening to Oh Canada!  And quite frankly I. Can't. Wait. 

Dezz and I left Calgary with our friend Shannon on Wednesday afternoon. After a chill drive out here with a stop in Sicamous at D'Dutchman for ice cream (well Dezz and Shannon had ice cream...I just watched), we met up with Ricky at the house. What a place! Gorgeous views, great layout, and uber-friendly owners.  About 11pm I headed out the door for a very short jog just to get the legs firing after the long drive.

On Thursday we headed down for a hot yoga session. Or should I say warm yoga.  Then it was down to the expo for race registration. This is when it really set in that the race was fast approaching. It's like a well oiled machine, with some amazing volunteers pointing us through the guantlet of tables (most of those volunteers appeared to be in their 70's...so great to see the way the locals embrace this race). Later in the afternoon Rick and I hit the the road for a 90 minute bike and a 30 minute run. The legs felt very good, but I was a bit worried when Rick appeared to roll his ankle. Turns out his 5 meter leap was actually to avoid a dead snake laying in the dirt. I can't believe how many athletes were riding Skaha Lake Road out to OK Falls. But with 3200 athletes competing on tomorrow, I guess there's only so many roads around here. The heat out here is crazy. It's been over 30C all week, and no sign of the weather cooling down for race day.

Umm, I just took a slight break to eat and now I've gotta get my butt to sleep...up at 3:45am to eat. Last night, which is the most important night, I managed a 9 hour sleep. Everything is ready go tomorrow. Bike and gear bags are in transition, special needs bags are packed, and my morning clothes and food are all set out.  I'll update you all tomorrow or...more realistically...Monday. 

Thank you for the texts/facebooks/tweets over the last three days. It's an honour to have so much support out there. And it was great to chat with my coach tonight too. And of course, my boo and my Penticton housemates. Cheers and goodnight.

Feeling lazy

After a night of kicking my butt at Tri club, I kicked my taper off with a trip to Vancouver this past weekend.  Dezz and I flew out Friday afternoon, giving us plenty of time to track down the Banana Leaf Malaysian restaurant for a 9-course sampler, followed by a sunset stroll along the beach. On Saturday we rented hybrid bikes and did a leisurely ride around Stanley Park. Nothing like parking your bike on the beach and eating salmon burgers. Ahh, Vancouver. After a fish supper (fish & chips) we headed to watch Sade and John Legend. AMAZING! We met up with a couple of friends for drinks afterwards. And then Sunday was a lot of walking, shopping and eating. It was a very relaxing weekend. However, I tried not to lose sight of IMC being a mere 2 weeks away.  I kept my alcohol consumption to my limit...2 drinks Friday, 2 drinks Saturday and 0 drinks Sunday. And yeah, we ate a LOT, but I did try to go for the healthier options (even buying groceries Friday night so we could make our own breakfasts). The rest was definitely welcome physically, but the mental break was equally as welcome.

Of course I feel at a loss when I'm away from training for too long, so my run on Monday night was much anticipated. Many people have asked me if I rest until Ironman now. The short answer is "no". A taper doesn't mean that I put my feet up until race day. Rather, the loooong training days are behind me and I focus just on shorter training sessions with some intensity. So Monday night's run was only 45 minutes but after a warm-up I did some interval runs, followed by a cool down. Yesterday and today's bike rides were commutes to work, but with short intervals incorporated. Toss in some yoga sessions, a couple of swims, and more running and cycling, and you have yourself a taper week.

In about 10 days 23 hours, I'll be running down that finisher's chute. At that point I can sit back, put my feet up and yes, rest. 

Perfect timing

At this time exactly 3 weeks from now, I should be sitting at the finishing chute cheering the other Ironman competitors across the line. As much as I love racing, I am also really looking forward to crossing that finish line and having some time to relax and reflect on the past year.

This weekend was my last long training weekend before my taper.  But I have reminded myself a few times today that it's not time to take my foot off the gas just yet. Tomorrow and Tuesday will involve yoga and some interval work. And I'm really looking forward to Coach Grant pushing us to the limits on Wednesday and Thursday for our last week of tri club before a short "summer" break. Dezz and I are off to Vancouver next weekend (Sade and John Legend baby!), so I won't have any trouble mentally keeping the momentum up for a few more day before enjoying a couple days R&R (ok, the Stanley Park seawall may call me for a short run...or it may just call for a nice leisurely walk with my wifey). 

So am I actually ready to start this taper on Friday?  I felt good after last week's epic training weekend but I would have hesitated to say yes I am ready. But after yesterday's 33km run and today's 148km ride, I can say with confidence...Bring it!  Yesterday's solo run in the heat of the day felt very good. I slowed a bit over the last 5km as my knee started to bother me, but nothing a little ice and rest didn't cure when I got home. I am facing a dilemma of what running shoes to race in, but that'll sort itself out over the next couple of weeks. Today's ride with my partner in crime, Ricky, featured a lot of rollers and I still felt strong spinning up the hills on our return leg of Road to Nepal. I'm most definitely not feeling overtrained, nor am I feeling undertrained. If you told me back in January I could hit August 7 feeling this way, I would have taken it. So here I am, feeling pleasantly confident but far from overconfident.
The perfect place to be.

Not Long Enough Long Weekend

The arrival of the Heritage Day long weekend was accompanied by the countdown to IMC reaching the "twenties" (27 days away today).  Which of course meant three things...training, training and training. Dezz is still working out of town, which makes a dedicated training weekend easier on the relationship. I did, however, have to sacrifice Ava's first birthday picnic. (Sorry Ava, tito David still loves you).

Mentally, Friday felt like it should have been a holiday too, so I'll start of with Thursday evening.  In place of our Swim-Run at Talisman, Grant arranged for us to get in an open water swim at Lake Bonavista (thanks Tushar).  After slipping (ok, struggling) into my wetsuit and swim cap, I jumped into the water and was amazed at how warm the water was.  I suddenly recalled my first ever open water swim (not a hey, look at me doggie paddling and splashing around in the water with my family before I go eat some sandwiches and chips kind of an open water swim, but a real hey look at me exhaling in this cold, dark liquid and moving myself forward in a semi-straight line kind of an open water swim) at Arbour Lake 4 years ago. The water temp was approximately 4 degrees Celsius above freezing and I vividly remember Irene and I both sticking our faces in the water for approximately 0.007 seconds before lifting our heads out simultaneously and stating our intent to withdraw from the upcoming triathlon. Compared to that day, Bonavista was paradise. Being my first OWS since Chinook, this really helped to put my mind at ease. I felt quite confident and Grant passed on a few tips about siting which made for a very positive experience.

On Friday night, I met Rick and his friend out at Telephone Loop in Bragg Creek for a trail run. Telephone Loop is about 16km of ups, downs, mud, water, and beautiful forests... go do it if you ever get the chance. Starting with a moderate uphill climb, I ran much of the route at my own pace (Rick stuck back with Treena to fight off any cougars, bears, or ornery raccoons) and really pushed on the uphills. I enjoy trail running as it provides interval training and a great core workout without even thinking about it. At the 11km mark I hurdled a big puddle, landed on a rock and rolled my left ankle. Oh oh. I guess this is the downside of trail running when you're as clumsy as I am. The ankle held up for the last 5km of the run. I was happy with my run effort, but it wasn't a true reflection of my fitness as I did have 3 rest stops while waiting for Treena. (From now until after IMC, I'm only running with people faster than me).  I carried a bottle of water with me, but didn't take in any nutrition. As for the ankle, ice and elevation on Friday night meant that I was good to go again Saturday (as I type this now, the ankle is back to 100%). 

Saturday was a great training day. Rick and I headed out to Highway 1A and rode return Banff to Lake Louise ski resort. Our set was 55 min E1/E2, 3 x 30 mins E3 with 5 min recovery, 55 mins E1/E2. Over the 102km and 3h 25mins, the temperature probably averaged about 25C. I took in 2 bottles of water and a bottle of Powerbar Perform along with 3 gels and an energy bar. Immediately after the bike, we hit a trail for a 35 minute run. The trail was a steep uphill, so although the legs kept moving, a high cadence and driving the knees forward seemed almost impossible.  I held back a bit on the fast descent due to my ankle injury the previous night. Overall though, I was happy with the way the legs felt once I returned to the van.  About 30 minutes later, we were pulling on the wetsuit and jumping into the Quarry for a quick 1000m swim. Once again, it may not have been fast but the open water swim felt comfortable. I only hope this feeling keeps up come race day. Paninis, soup and ice cream were well deserved for lunch.

The Common concert kept me up late Saturday night, but  waking up for another day in the saddle on Sunday was much easier than waking up for work any other day of the week. After meeting at Glenmore Reservoir to watch a couple (literally) of runners at Calgary 70.3, Rick and I headed out to Highwood Pass. We parked at the south gate and started up the less steep but longer climb to the summit. The 38km climb took 2 hours. The 17km descent took 23 minutes. As the descent offers an active recovery, we just turned around and headed back up the pass. We managed the 17km ascent just shy of the hour mark, and then the 38km descent back to the car took 1h 2mins. We had planned for a 5 hour day in the saddle, so we were quite happy to do the 108km effort in under 4.5 hours. Temperatures were 30C at the base (and a balmy 20C even at the summit), so I was glad to have my 4 bottles of hydration to wash down 3 gels, a PB-Jam wrap and an energy bar. 

I was looking forward to my recovery ride come Monday morning. Jenn couldn't make it out with us today, so once again my partner in crime and I set off. A 95km route west on Hwy 22 to Millarville and back along Road to Nepal offered a challenging recovery ride. Through the first 1 hour, I was struggling to get the legs firing on all cylinders. My legs slowly started to wake up as the ride went on. And after picking up a roadie who continually sucked our back wheels without wanting to take a turn pulling at the front, I suddenly found the energy to put the hammer down and pick up the pace. Rick is riding phenomenally right now, so he had no problems pushing the pace with me. Yes, it should have been an E2 ride today, but sometimes the conditions just force you to ride harder. And I know my coach would approve! By the time we hit the hills of Road to Nepal, my legs were spinning the way they should be. A few more intensity rides and a big distance ride next weekend, but this weekend did a lot for my confidence in the saddle. I am however, looking forward to a swim tomorrow. I may not even kick!

Does anyone even make it through 6 paragraphs of my rambling?  I really need to do these earlier in the evening so I'm functional enough to edit.

We missed you Sylvan

July, 2006.  Somewhere on Hwy 1A between Bearspaw and Cochrane. Jason Lapierre Memorial Cycle.
Annabelle (on her brand new Felt F90 road bike): Hey David, I'm going to do the Sylvan Lake Triathlon next July. Do you want to do it with me.
David (on his 1999 GT Aggressor mountain bike): Yeah, sure.
Annabelle: Awesome. I think it's a half ironman.
David: Uh...what does that mean?

July 2007. Sylvan Lake Half Iron finish line. Big smile on my face (or was that a look of relief?) surrounded by old and new friends. Team J-Force was awaiting the last finisher to find out who would be presented with the first annual Jason Lapierre Spirit Award. And we couldn't have selected a better person than Gail Ungstad.

July 2011. Back in Sylvan Lake, a few hundred yards east of where we last joined our gang of misfits.  Gearing up for another day of trash talking our fellow J-Force teammates. Since 2008 we've taken a more enjoyable and less stressful approach to the Sylvan Lake tri by competing on relay teams.  After a strong, but somewhat blind, swim by Ms. Reid, I was ready to hit the bike.  My goal was a sub-2:45, but what I really wanted was to get Annabelle a big enough lead to ensure she could hold off the blazing Ricky on the run. The conditions were excellent and made for a fun day on the road.  Everything seemed to be firing and asides from a few short mental lapses (oops, why am I only doing 28km/h on this flat?), I was happy with my race. Not having to worry about saving my legs for the run, I was able to attack a bit more than had I been competing in all 3 disciplines.  The bike course has a few decent hills on the back half, but a high cadence and  powering over the crests to pick up some free speed brought me a negative split.  Final time - 2:38.

And Annabelle, in her first race back since our newest J-Force member entered the world, ripped it up with a 1:55 on the run to give J-Force Faster the win...at least against those other guys. But props to Irene, Rick and Chuong for having a strong performance too. I guess. Joke lang.

Watch out for the little one at a Kids of Steel race near you in 2014.

 
We also had the opportunity to present the 2011 Jason Lapierre Spirit Award. This time to Carrie Baron, the final finisher on the day. Congratulations to Carrie for showing true determination in that blazing sun to finish her first ever half iron distance triathlon. Now if you are questioning the strength of this award, we just have to go back 3 paragraphs to our old friend Gail. Gail is from Slave Lake and her house was recently affected by the flooding which took many of her possessions. One of the remaining items she found in her house was the 2007 Jason Lapierre Spirit Award. She took this as a sign and returned to training for triathlon as a way to get through this difficult time. So through a fire and flood ravaged town, Gail could be seen running and pedaling around town as the rest of the town seemed to question what the heck she was doing. So yes, it would seem that is a pretty powerful award.

Carrie and Gail

Now had I been writing this in chronological order, somewhere between 2007 and Sunday's race, I would have been giddily writing about the final couple of days of this year's Tour de France. But I'm sure most of you know I never digress from a story. We once went to see Billy Connolly in concert and he was telling this story at the beginning of the show and kept going back to it throughout the night until he finally finished it at the end of the night. Now THAT is digression. But I digress. So the last 2 days in the Alps were very exciting. I was going for Cadel Evans to win, so seeing his determination to singlehandedly drag himself back into the race 2 days in a row was thrilling. Andy and Alberto also made for some very exciting viewing. But it was that last day when Dezz and I were truly perched on the edge of the couch watching the Individual Time Trial. Congrats Cadel.

And yeah, my wife is kind of a big deal.

Sun is shining, the weather is sweet. Make me want to move, my running feet.

I love the heat. Not the Miami Heat. (Although I do like Dwyane Wade and I definitely enjoyed the Miami heat.) So you can imagine my excitement when I read the number 26 accompanied by a pleasant looking little sun on both Saturday, Jul 16 and Sunday, Jul 17. I just hoped for once the forecast was actually correct 5 days out. It was!

I've been waiting for days like this, not just because patio beer is so much better when it's this hot outside, but because it was a scorching 40C while riding up to Yellow Lake  at IMC 2009. Last year while volunteering at Ironman Canada at the top of that same climb, I saw people reaching the top in a hypothermic state due to the cold, rainy, windy conditions.  Fortunately I live in Calgary so I've had the opportunity for wet, cold, windy rides aplenty.  But it has been rare this year to get anything close to real heat.

Saturday Ricky and I scheduled an approximately 4 hour ride.  Heading west on Spruce Meadows Trail, South through Priddis and onto Millarville, and returning via the Road to Nepal, we got in 3h45min of actual riding.  Perhaps we should have skipped our nearly 1h stop at the Millarville Farmers' Market and looked for another 15 minutes of open road.  (But, hey, that's what makes those summer day rides memorable).  After Grant put us through our paces on Wednesday and Thursday, the quadriceps didn't feel like they were firing on all cylinders on the hilly road to Nepal. To the point where I flatted at the bottom of a hill, realized it was a slow leak and the hill wasn't that big so I'd be better riding up the hill and then changing the flat because who wants to stop at the bottom of a hill.  For those of you keeping score, I made it 3/4 of the way up the hill to where the gradient lessens and the bout between potential damage to my rims and my laziness swung the opposite way. I managed to attack the top of the remaining 5 hills and powering over to minimize my loss to Rick (who, by the way, seemed to benefit greatly from a week off the bike to rest his knee). Great ride.  And I still managed to get in my beer on a patio!

Today (i.e. Sunday) was another beautiful day, even in the mountains.  An early morning start (9am is early by my standards) saw us on the road to Banff to drop off Rick's vehicle at the Rundleside Trail Head. A short drive back to the Canmore Nordic Centre saw us hit the trailhead on the other side. Although not before checking out a bit of the Canadian XC Mountain Bike Championships. I need a new Mountain Bike.  The trail starts out with 5 km on some gravel cross country trails (I imagine they are probably covered in snow during the cross country skiing season) then hits single track for 8km.  That 8km section is beautiful.  So much so that I was thoroughly disappointed when my 13km run ended today.  Canmore to Banff is mainly downhill with a few small uphill grades, so no excuses for you not to do it.  My knees felt great today and I literally felt like I was floating over the ground. I can't wait to get back out there and hammer a 17km out and back from the other side in the very near future.

Tomorrow that previously referred to website told me it's going to be 30C with that happiness-inducing little sun tomorrow. Work is going to be tough while anticipating my 2.5 hour ride tomorrow evening.

Long may the summer continue. And along with it this euphoric feeling of training. Who knows, maybe I'll even get outside for an open-water swim!

Still lots of time, right? Right?

So I was booking a meeting for work today was looking a couple of weeks ahead at July 21...wait, what?  July 21 is NEXT week?  Oh sh*t.

And so it goes. It feels like this year was PVR'd and someone is fast forwarding the commercials. Now I know how my Tour de France recordings feel every day. In terms of training, I don't feel anywhere close to where I want to be come August 27.  However, I am prepared for some intense training over the next month and Dezz is headed out of town to work for 3 weeks, so my training schedule is set and life will consist of work-train-sleep-eat-TdF. Bring it.

I had a great run on Sunday, July 3. And then the flu hit.  The sun was shining everyday and temperatures hit 25C, tempting me out to play.  My only saving grace was the aforementioned PVR'd Tour de France...and the fact that I didn't have the energy to even walk to the fridge. Knowing that pushing myself back too early would do more harm than good, I managed to keep my butt planted firmly on the couch. Then on Saturday, I had plans to ride Banff to Lake Louise via Bow Valley Parkway with my dad while Dezz and my mum drove support. We took the ride fairly easy, but it felt good to be out on the road again and hit the hills. We had a nice dinner, stayed over in Lake Louise, and then headed up to the lake for a wander around. Then it was time to head home. Dezz is still recovering from a ruptured tendon on her right hand, and since she was joining us for the return leg, we opted for less hills along Highway 1. We got in about 35km and then met my mum and jumped in the car. It definitely wasn't a hard ride, but great to spin the lingering flu out my legs. Yesterday, I was out running again.  Not wanting to push the knees too hard, I planned a 30 minute run to test things out. But everything felt so good I pushed it to an hour with a few short intervals. 

This weekend I plan to race Coral Springs Triathlon (in Chestermere...don't ask) just to get some intensity, especially for the swim. And July 24, a few of us will be doing Sylvan as relay teams. I'm looking forward to winning with Annabelle and Erin! But most of all, it'll be great for J-Force to get back out on the course together again.

Now if I can just find a way to play life at regular speed.

Racing for a cause

My Ironman journey feels like it started a mere 10 weeks ago, not 10 months! Over the last 10 months I’ve had some tough training days, both mentally and physically draining. And more recently, I barely (ok, “barely” is a strong word just added for dramatic flare) struggled through the Chinook Half Triathlon.  Those challenging sessions definitely make me a stronger competitor, but they also serve as a reminder to truly reflect on what the heck I’m doing. And what I’m doing is riding a bicycle and running around the city, two things that make me happy. Swimming is even starting to grow on me…sometimes. So although I may have the odd day when I think “why the hell am I putting myself through this”, I have been fortunate to have the support of great coaching, close friends, and the world’s most supportive wife that seem to make me realize its all worthwhile at the end of the day. Even more rousing are those experiences when you realize what you are going through on the very worst day isn’t even on the scale of real struggle in this world.  Yeah swimming 3.8km, cycling 180km, and running 42.2 makes for a long day, but I turn on my tap to fill up my water bottles, grab a few slices of pizza at the end of the race, and jump in the car to drive back to the 5 bedroom house we’re renting.  One recent experience that has made me appreciate how easy we have it has inspired me to dedicate my Ironman Canada race on August 28 to a bigger cause this year, fundraising for the SSUBI Foundation.

Dezz and I travelled to Africa last summer, taking in the World Cup in South Africa, viewing wildlife in Tanzania, and visiting Uganda to meet up with Dezz’s kickboxing coach and our friend, Phillip Ndugga. Philip travels back to his homeland every summer to rebuild schools and improve the lives of so many people with his family and the SSUBI Foundation. Volunteering with SSUBI Foundation, we were blessed with the opportunity to meet some wonderful people and see first hand what real struggle is. Teachers working diligently to educate their students with limited resources, students struggling to focus and learn under conditions we can’t begin to imagine in North America, and women fraught to find a better life for their families. While helping to build a school in Gulu, Northern Uganda last year (an area that was, until very recently, ravaged by civil war and rebel threats), we were touched by the joy evident on the children’s faces (there were even unregistered kids that snuck into class just for the opportunity to learn)  and the appreciation shown by the locals.  What a way to finish off our 5 ½ week trip.

To continue our support of those amazingly resilient Ugandans and express our appreciation to Philip, I would love to garner support for SSUBI through my journey to Penticton. I considered a few different organizations to support through fundraising, some maybe a little closer to home geographically or emotionally to my supporters. But the impact those smiling faces had on us will last a lifetime; how proud those kids were to show off their English and math skills and to sing and dance for their “visitors” was truly memorable. Coupled with the fact that we have seen first hand how the donations are spent and that were treated like family by the SSUBI crew in Uganda, SSUBI just seemed like the right choice.

I know there’s always a cause to support, especially in this age of social media. But if you are interested in supporting the SSUBI Foundation on behalf of my IMC journey, I would be most appreciative. You can visit my donation page at  http://www.canadahelps.org/GivingPages/GivingPage.aspx?gpID=13449 and learn more about SSUBI at www.ssubifoundation.org.  

I continue to be humbled by the support offered by friends and family. Thank you all.

HTFU...please

I don't think I'm aware of any sports that have as big a mental aspect as triathlon. I've heard golf is mental, but with apologies to all the golfers, I don't consider that a sport. And I suppose baseball must have a big mental aspect, otherwise how do all those fat guys stay focused and not fall asleep out there (with no apologies to baseball players). 

Having played soccer and basketball for a lot of my life, I understand that all sports have a mental component that is often as important as skill or fitness. But triathlon requires regular mind games, especially (in my experience) when you get passed the adrenaline-fueled sprint distances and work your way through the Olympics and Halves up to the full "Iron Distance". Since I do the half distance most often, I'll use that as an example. Not being a strong swimmer, the mind games start while standing on the shore (or treading water) in my wetsuit waiting for the start gun. Half way through the swim my mind usually starts to drift, which is when I find my stroke reverts to 2007ish before pulling it back to the present form. Stay focused David! I always get out the water with a smile on my face knowing the biggest challenge of the day is over. Now it's time for fun on the bike. And that usually lasts for the first 40km (maybe 30km if it's a strong headwind...or 5km if I flat crossing the overpass at MacLeod Trail!), at which point I think if only I'd been doing an Olympic I'd be done. It's usally at this point I bear down and push a bit harder to hit the magic 45km mark.  I'm now as close to the finish as I am to the start of the bike. Although cognizant that I will have to save some legs for the run, I manage to negative split largely by focusing on a rounded pedal stroke and staying settled in to my race. Inevitably as I reach the last 10km my adrenaline is anxious go full out and hit the run. But again, I step in and tell myself to finish strong without zapping my energy before I even hit the run. Now jumping off a bike and having been active for the last 3.5 hours, the last thing I want to do is start a half marathon. But the run is the most mental part of the day for me. After telling my legs to get going, I set myself small goals. I always check my pace after the first 1km and make sure I settle in after that to my goal pace. At 7km I tell myself I'm 1/3 of the way there. Then it's a short 3.5km to the halfway mark. And like the bike leg, I tell myself I'm as close to being finished as I am to the start. Some days are harder than others and you end up setting up yourself to reach the next kilometer marker, the next aid station, or maybe where you know you're fans will be cheering for you. Regardless of how bad I feel some days, I've been fortunate to never have a DNF which I attribute to mental toughness over any type of fitness.

So after last weekend's rather disappointing race, a few doubts about my IMC readiness started to creep in. The best cure for those thoughts? A great training week. A tough workout on Monday night while battling a cold resulted in lower numbers than usual, but I managed to get through the 2 hour session with Grant and felt pretty good afterwards. My legs responded great at Philip's cardio class on Tuesday. And then Wednesday night came a fairly laid back ride...until we hit the 7 or 8 hills that we treated as King of the Mountain stages. Nothing like a little testosterone to get you back on your game. (Wednesday night my friend also sent me an inspirational email which really got me back to a good state of mind). Thursday I was back in the pool - the stroke still wasn't feeling great but the form is coming back (uh, mental note - one swim a week won't cut it!). Friday we headed to Edmonton and I got in some quality family time; run with the sister-in-law on Saturday and a 60km ride with my pops on Sunday.  I'm back to being excited about the next 62 days! 

Yes! IT'S ON!!!

The Flying Scotsman has been grounded

Friday was going to be an easy bike-run, but once again work and life got in the way. Between work and babysitting, I squeezed in a nice easy 45 minute run.  Just enough to get the legs turning over prior to Saturday's Chinook Half. Home by12:30am, prepped for the first triathlon of the season (last week's Du was so much easier to pack for) and in bed by 2:30am. Oh gawd, why is my alarm ringing at 5:30am?  What have I done?

No spare 30 minutes to cook steel cut oats, so it was instant oatmeal, blackberries, and honey, a slice of PB toast, half a banana,half an apple and plenty of water. 2 hours 10 minutes to digest. I don't know how my wife continues to do it, but she dragged her ass out of bed too and we were out the door before 7am.  10 steps from the car and "Morning Grant"; "Morning Rose"...it always relaxes me when I see familiar faces and realize how immersed in the triathlon world I've become over the last 5 years. Heading into transition I picked an empty spot...next to my fellow Talismaner Marc. It was a prime spot as we're always about he same time in the water so it would be a good gauge.

I entered the swim near the back and took the obligatory few strokes to catch my breath. My stroke didn't feel as smooth as I hoped, but I did complete lap one in record pace...for me. I should have taken a couple of deep breaths before heading back in for the second lap, but I just rushed in and ended up having to tread water for a couple of seconds to try catch my breath after inhaling a big wave. I think that kinda threw off my flow mentally as I never really got back into a rhythm. Result: almost 4 minutes slower on lap 2. I was so happy to get out the water.

I met Marc in transition and we had a quick chat before he headed said see you out there.  I never saw him the rest of the day. I was happy to jump on the bike and shouted to Dezz now the fun begins.  10 minutes later I was hopping the guardrail and standing in the mud changing a flat with limited dexterity in my fingers. I suspect that was what really derailed the rest of my day...at least mentally. I tried to push hard on the bike, but the strong headwind on the way out had other plans for me. I rode for what seemed hours before I hit the turnaround at 48km. I'm usually good to hold aero for at least 80% of my race, but tummy cramps (repercussions of swallowing too much lake water perhaps?) kept me from doing that yesterday. Fortunately a tailwind and a lot more downhill helped me back. I had a huge negative split, but coming into transition I realized I'd have to have the the run of my life to achieve my goal of 5:30.

It wasn't to be. I started the race at slightly slower than my 21km pace with a major stitch in my side through the first 8km. There was a short uphill section around the 9km mark which seemed to zap my energy. By the time I finished the first lap and set out for lap 2, I knew my time was going to be way off. My stomach, leg and feet (hotspots) all tried to tell me it didn't matter anymore so I could just walk. But one of my only victories on the day was running the whole 21.1km, regardless of how slow it was at some points.

A disappointing day to say the least, but definitely some lessons learned. I still have a couple months before my "A" race  to incorporate these lesson:
- more yoga
- relax in open water, allowing me to focus on stroke and breathing techniques
- ramp up miles on the bike
- more hill repeats on the run
- and continue to search for a solution(s) to these buggered GI issues.

Congrats to Grant & Kyle on a great 1-2 finish. And everyone else who put there heart into the Oly and Half.

Does this thing still fit?

The body has been feeling good this week after the Footstock Duathlon on Saturday...asides from some tender knees. I had a strong brick session at Tri Club on Monday and our final basketball game of the season on Tuesday with no ill effects. So I'm definitely happy to see the recovery is going as planned. I have really been paying attention to nutrition this week (once again trying to cut out dairy as I race again Saturday) and have been working my legs with our new "Stick" that we bought at the Footstock expo.

I was a bit apprehensive and a bit excited about squeezing into my wetsuit and hitting the open water for the first time since IMC 2009. Mike Bock (Chinook race director) arranged for us to get a practice swim in this week at Midnapore Lake prior to Chinook so I took advantage.  Those first few strokes are always a shock to the system, but after 7 or 8 breaths I settled into my stroke. I just tried to visualize all the things Grant & Ellen (Talisman swim coaches) have been telling me over the past few months. Admittedly it's much easier to do in a pool where it's a relatively controlled environment and I can follow the big black lines on the bottom. But I felt pretty good about swimming an estimated 800m tonight. While stripping out my wetsuit, I was chatting with a lady who had just finished her swim too. She just took up triathlon last year and is competing in the Chinook Oly tri on Saturday...at age 56. Her goal is to do an Ironman before she turns 60.  I never got her name, but best of luck to her.

Once out the wetsuit and into my running shoes, I snuck in a quick run before the rain got really heavy.  I'm trying to fight off a cold, so I didn't want to spend too much time in the cool, wet conditions.  Rest day tomorrow and then an easy bike-run on Friday before the half on Saturday.  I'm feeling confident. 

A Race Report already?

It seems funny starting off with a race report, but since I kept procrastinating on this blog, the Footstock Duathlon in Cochrane has come and gone without me starting this thing. Until now.

With Chinook Half exactly one week after the Cochrane duathlon, I treated Cochrane as "just" a training day.  No expectations, no swim no pre-race jitters. Maybe a bit of apprehension would have stopped me from eating hot dogs and chili the night before, chased with a bottle of Newcastle Brown. Maybe.

I woke up at 5:45am to a dreary, but dry day.  By the time Dezz and I rolled out the driveway at 6:35am, I thought the day may turn out not too bad.  Then we hit the road and the rain started.  A quick package pick-up and bike drop-off later in Cochrane, I contemplated the best clothing for the race. 15 minutes prior to the race start, I'd picked an outfit (long sleeve cycling jersey, waterproof vest, full-fingered gloves), relieved my bladder at McDonald's, and headed down the hill to the start line with the rest of the 100-odd other gluttons for punishment.

The race consisted of a 5.8km run, 37.7km bike, and 9.7km run. I had no intentions of pushing hard on the first leg of the run, so I was content to start about 10 people back from the apparently non-existent start line. It wasn't long before I was dodging people on my way forward, but I still managed to keep a relaxed pace. The run, mainly along a red shale path, is a very pleasant run and seemed to fly by.  Even joking with another runner about the gradual hill being way longer than either of us remember, I was still surprised I'd run a 4:27 km. 

By this point, the rain was in full force and the wet roads coupled with the strong headwind (it's Horse Creek Road, what else did you expect?) made for a difficult bike. I felt I was putting in way to much effort for the speed I was getting out of it.  Since a fast bike split wasn't my goal on the day, I got low in aero, tried to ignore my tight quads, and settled into a consistent pace.  Of course, I was unhappy with my "out" time. Fortunately I still had the back, with a tail wind and mostly downhill. I'm not sure how much was better focus mentally and how much was the course, but I managed to shave 11 minutes off my time over 19 km on the "back".  

I thought I counted 15 people ahead of me on the bike at the turnaround. I passed a couple of those guys on the bike, and another 2 on the first 4km of the run.  The next 6km made me question if there was actually a race going on. I didn't see a single racer behind or in front.  Running with numb feet and knees, I was very pleased with my focus and managed a 4:33 pace for the second run, 4th fastest on the day. I finished with energy to spare and no tummy cramps, which definitely gave me some confidence for Chinook this weekend.

All those intervals Grant has me doing must be paying off.