Ironman Ink

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Well done Kevin!

HPR Rocks IMC

Random shots from the weekend thanks to HPR paparazzi Ann McDow!

Things are rolling along in training and HPR rocked Penticton on the weekend.
Tammy, Kathryn, David and Kevin all put another 140.6 miles behind them in grand fashion.
We had a good 30 people there (including two of the Ohio crew; Brewer and Tim) cheering them on out at the Human Powered Racing oasis.
A good time was had by all.



On the training side of things we had a big group tackle the bike course (or parts thereof) on the Saturday. Bob Cooter and I really put in a solid effort from OK Falls on and were on sub 5 hour pace before we made the turn off on Green Mountain Road and tackled the climb to our cabin up at Apex. This is where the ride got ugly. The last 11km (56 minutes climbing time) is straight up (at a very sick grade) and even a Red Bull at the bottom didn't give me the wings I needed. It was a struggle to watch Ben ride away on the climb, but I did make it without crying or chucking my bike in the ditch. Looking back on my log book from 2007 when I did this same ride, I found out that we actually did it 50 minutes faster. This bodes well.

The next day was a nice 2 hour run along the Kettle Valley Railway trail opposite Skaha Lake while the athletes were out racing the bike course. This run is probably one of the nicest out there; scenic and quiet. It took a while to get the old legs turning over, but once they were ticking over they felt good.

I am now back in Victoria and getting ready for the Vancouver Triathlon next Monday and then a BIG week of training in Kona. I will try and post some updates from the camp.

WOW

WOW! I don't know how many times I have said that during these Olympics; Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Canadian Men's Eight, Simon Whitfield. I have lost count.
There has been inspiring moments every day the past week and a half. This is what sport is all about and it is why our athletes deserve support not only Olympic years, but the 3 years after the games as well.

As for my Olympic predictions; I was bang on for the women, but unfortunately the men's race didn't play out the way I thought it would. I expected Matt Reed to get away in a break with a few of the other strong riders and then only Simon and Gomez would run him down.

The paper this morning mentioned that Whitfield's silver was the most watched event of the Olympics so far (almost 3 million). Pretty cool that a scrawny kid from Kingston brings the country together (and has pretty much everyone yelling at there televisions) every 4 years. Congratulations Simon!

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8 Weeks

Olympic Predictions

Jazz and I were out on the bike today and I said I would put my Olympic Triathlon picks up here on the blog just so they were out there and I didn't claim to get them right after the fact, so here goes.

Men
1 - Simon Whitfield
2 - Javier Gomez
3 - Matt Reed

Women

1 - Emma Snowsill
2 - Vanessa Fernandez
3 - Emma Moffatt

We will see how these pan out.

Me and Rex

Creatures of habit! Yep, that pretty much sums up me and Rex. He loves his routine and so do I. When I am out of routine, I get irritable and grumpy. So does he. He has his favourite places to run, so do I. Luckily, they are the same places so we run together. Since the move, we have both been a bit out of sorts just trying to re-program ourselves and set up some new routines in a new neighborhood. Another funny thing that I have noticed is that he takes great comfort in knowing that he has a ball or a stick in the vicinity. I am pretty much the same way with my bike and running shoes. Even if everything is different, having those couple things near provides some comfort. There was a time when I lived out of a suitcase and traveled from place to place, but the older I get the more I like having a place to call home.

Training is going well, the race last weekend actually tired me out more than I thought it would have. I spent the first part of the week really tired, not sore at all, just really fatigued. Things have turned around now, and with the Olympics on it is not hard to find inspiration.

SRI

The New TREK TTX SSL (VERY SWEET!) Heading out on the Run


Steve - 0 takes the beer (in this case PowerBars)! Yep, yesterday was the kick in the butt that I needed to start my Kona preparation in earnest. I had a great time out there racing with the young guys, but it was a struggle all day to find any sort of rhythm. I had the same thing happen last year during the Lake Stevens 70.3 where it felt like I was stuck in 4th gear all day. Luckily this was an Olympic distance race so it was over relatively quickly.



A quick re-cap;
Swim went as expected, we watched Scotty take off and we tried to stay on his feet as long as possible, which wasn't all that long. I ended up leading a small group back from the final turn buoy. We ended up about 2 minutes down out of the water.
After a horrible transition where I couldn't find my bike amidst the tightly packed bike racks, I finally found the new TTX and worked my way back up to the few athletes who got out of the water with me. My goal was to try and get a lead off the bike, but on this day Steve-O was determined to stay with me and to his credit he wouldn't let me go. On a side note, the new TTX was awesome, I just need to put some more time on it and get use to being in the TT position once again. Steve and I finally caught Scotty just after the turn around and we hammered it back to transition. I was off the bike and into transition in front, but another poor transition and Steve-O was gone. He had told me before the race that his goal was to run the first 5km in the low 16's and he went out at close to that pace. I caught a few glimpses of him on the straight aways around the lake, but I just didn't have the turnover in my legs to make any kind of charge. The next goal to keep me going was to put in faster run splits than my two HPR team mates (Allan and Adrian) who were just behind me. In the end it was extremely close on this one. Another 3 seconds and Adrian would have had me. It was also great having Allan, Adrian and I go 1-2-3 in the 35 -39 age group.

I crossed the line in 2nd place about 1:30 down, but it was a super event and it was great to hang out at the finish line and watch all the other HPR athletes and friends finish strong on a beautiful summer day here in Victoria.

After the race we had a great team/housewarming BBQ at the new digs (and yes pictures are coming, has anyone seen an HP digital camera?).

Next Up -
Training Camp in Penticton
Vancouver Triathlon
Training Camp in Kona
Taper in Victoria
IRONMAN

Racing with Friends

Carl Weber - My training partner and racing Nemesis back in the early days!

Tomorrow I will be racing here in Victoria at the Sri Chimnoy Triathlon.
This is a low key, grass roots olympic distance event. Although it is a really small race I am still really excited to get out there and mix it up.
Now, obviously this is a different kind of excitement than the kind I feel in Kona, but the chance to race with and against my friends and training partners will be something I don't get often. There are a couple six packs on the line with my training partners (Scotty and Steve0) at the RTC and I can't count out a couple of my HPR team mates (Adrian and Allan) pushing me out there as well.

I have had the chance to race all over the world, but one of the races I remember most vividly was in my second year in the sport when my good friend and training partner Carl Weber and I went head to head at the Gannanoque Triathlon. It didn't matter that we weren't near the front of the race it was the fact that we were racing each other and there was an official timer and finish line. If I remember correctly I came out on the losing end of that one, but in the end it was still one of my most cherished racing memories. I am sure tomorrow will be just as fun, no matter the outcome. However, a couple ice cold six packs in my fridge should add some serious motivation.