Merry Christmas Everyone!

Yes it's that time of year again, time to relax and enjoy family. Amber and I have had such a wonderful year and we both feel incredibly blessed to have some terrific family, friends, and careers we both love. We're both excited about 2011 and I know it will be a fantastic year for my business, Amber's business and our 2011 Ironman goals.

Thinking of 2011

Yes it's that time of year again, the weather is cold and snowy out there and all of us who live for the summer are left to wait it out. Christmas is a great time to just be a normal person again and not feel like you HAVE to train for something. That being said, this is probably the longest I've gone without training for something specific in many, many years. I feel a little lost without a big goal to shoot for but I'm learning patience is probably the most important aspect of the off season. It is nice to just swim, bike and run when I want to and not feel pressure to get in a specific workout. However having that specific goal keeps me driven and focused not only in the physical aspect of my life but also the emotional one.

Last night I decided to just jump on the treadmill and do a little run and when I was finished I felt like the world made sense again. All the pressure I was dealing with all week with work stress, and an exam I have to write next week just went away. All of the sudden I realized how much training adds to my emotional well being. I can't imagine how people that don't train deal with everyday life? I was ready to throw in the towel and move to Costa Rica with some of the crap I was handed this week but none of it seems important now, and in the grand scheme of things, it isn't.

So I'm very excited about 2011 and I've posted my race schedule. Nothing terribly new other than Ironman 70.3 San Juan in March, I don't know if it's a good idea to do a 1/2 IM in March but I'm going to just go and have fun. It's a wonderful excuse for a holiday and by March Amber and I will definitely want to get away from the cold for a while. Also we're doing Tour BC again!! I'm very excited about that week and the route looks awesome, 760kms of biking and I feel like a rock star on my bike leading up to IMC, I can't wait. I might sneak in a couple other races but last year taught me to pick the important races and peak and recover. I've found a good balance between build up and recovery and 2011 is going to be a very good year.

Congrats Skyloft

It's been open a couple weeks now and I haven't had a chance to say congratulations to Amber and her new partner, Leslie. Their new studio is open and business is going well, the place is absolutely beautiful and I hope everyone in Grande Prairie has a chance to take a class or use the facility in some way. I had the privilege of taking one of Richard's spin classes and the new Livestrong bikes are fantastic. Here's some incredible pictures of the place.

Major

It's hard to imagine how different life was only 110 years ago but for a young black man in Indianapolis life was full of daily challenges and prejudice that he was willing to overcome. During the turn of the 20th century the most popular sport in the world was bike racing, countless velodromes were built all over the world and tens of thousands of fans flocked to the stadiums to watch the fastest way a human could move. Before the car, before motorcycles, before the plane these spinters reached speeds of 50-60kms/hr, previously unattainable through any other way.

Bike racing was a solely white sport and in most southern states black athletes were banned from competeing. However that didn't stop Major Taylor, an up and coming star of the sport that turned everyone's head he had a talent for racing that made everyone else look like an amature. He faced countless challenges, groups of racers cheating and conspiring against him but he always advocated fair competion and respect for his fellow racers. He refused to race on Sundays which kept him from winning more than one US and world title but he won nearly every event he competed in and was the most feared man in bike racing.

What draws me to the story of Major was his steadfast morals and respect for everyone he competed against. He definitely was the most revered athlete of his time and was the highest paid one, back in the early 20th century bike racers demanded the highest salaries before the baseball, football, tennis, hockey, and basketball stars of today. He was the victim of many crooked promoters who would sometimes refuse to pay him but there was no question he was a crowd favorite and he could bolt past anyone in a final sprint to the line.

I loved learning about his training and the fact that he didn't train the traditional way, by logging hundreds of miles a week, and he focused his training on sprinting and recovery. Major was well ahead of his time and although he faced challanges I couldn't imagine I think the world is a better, more tolerant place because of him. Not many people remember him anymore but he definitely left an impression on me as a reminder to live my life with respect for others and myself, no matter what life throws at you face it with strength and perform to your very best, thanks Major.