60,000 Miles



The little man and me getting in some push ups


That's how far I've determined an athlete can go before things start going wrong with his/her body. Now 60,000 miles seems like a really long way, and if you are an average person who runs a couple times a week then yeah it is. However for a triathele it could only be a few good years of hard training and racing before the body starts to revolt and lets you know that your days training like this are numbered. I look back at my athletic career and I've had some really good results for an average age grouper, I didn't start doing triathlons until I was about 28 years old and I didn't start Ironman training until I was 32. So I've had 10-12 years of tough training and racing and although I like to think I'm always getting faster and better at some point things start to catch up with you.

The Achilles injury in 2012 was the really tough one to overcome and although I bounced back fairly well, after that I could not train the same way I used to and I had to think of new ways to train that would allow me more time to recover but still keep my fitness really high. I guess you could say I've tried to go back to my roots, in University I did a lot of weights and a little running. I didn't know how to swim and rarely biked but I enjoyed being in the gym and hitting the weights hard for 2-3 hours some days. I haven't gone to that extreme but I'm realizing that naturally losing 2% muscle mass every year for 10 years will catch up with you and you are bound to get injured if you don't do some lifting on a regular basis. I still thoroughly enjoy swim-bike-run and it still dominates most of my activity time but with Ryder now that activity time is limited. I try to have him around when I workout but he gets bored really quickly so I have to be quick with my workouts and limit it to 20-40 minutes. It's a great feeling thinking about being active and healthy with him but I just hope this old body will stay strong and fit well into the future. I've definitely passed my 60,000 mile limit but I'm doing everything I can to keep pushing back that barrier and one day train and race with my son, he's just started standing on his own so the first step by himself is coming very soon.

2013 Success

It's always an incredible feeling when you've had a really good year of racing and you want to continue to improve but having a good year and continually trying to build on that will eventually run you right into a wall. This year I had a pretty rough Ironman but followed up with an incredible race in Calgary and Peace River and I'm looking at this year as a huge success. They say that nothing changes your life more than having a kid and that is 100% right. All of the sudden swimming, riding and running were luxuries that I simply didn't have a lot of time for. Fortunately I have an incredible wife who has done an amazing job with Ryder and knows that her husband needs some training outlet no matter how small. All my success this year can be credited to Amber, she is a great sounding board and coach and understands what it takes to be successful in racing. She's also had to handle the brunt of the work with a newborn and we have a happy, healthy boy because of her. This year was a bit of a question mark for me, coming back from an Achilles tear is not something a lot of people can accomplish. I thought all my PRs were in the past but I had a very strong race in Calgary, not a PR but a 'tough to beat' time of 4:18 there on the new course and I hope they keep the course the same next year. The swim was a lot better, the bike a challenging uphill grind there and downhill back, and the run was hilly and tough (as always). I'm certain I can improve on my run there, I was suffering with some calf issues leading up to the race and didn't run as much as I'm used to. I think if they keep the course the same I can beat my PR of 4:11 at GWN, not the same course but Calgary is definitely more difficult even though the bike is short. Peace River is where I set my PR this year, beating 36 year old me by 1:20 almost breaking an hour for the sprint (1:00.57) and still placing 2nd! I was certain I wouldn't win with Joe there but I was only shooting to beat my 2009 time. So now it's time to relax and recover, call it a successful season and think about next year. I'm certain that I won't be doing an Ironman for a while but I'd like to concentrate on shorter distances to see if I can get faster and race really well at the 70.3 distance. I have a rough idea of what I'd like to do next year and a couple 70.3 races are on the radar, it's easier to train for and recover from and Id have more time with family. After all how can I be apart from this face for too long.

Peace River Sprint

What an incredible race! I forgot how much fun a sprint race can be and I had an amazing time. I basically strong-armed all my friends into doing this race and I'm glad I did, there were 8 guys that beat the time of last year's winner. There was such a stacked field that all the race organizers were blown away by the times and the competition there. I knew going into it that I wasn't going to be able to bike as fast as Joe and I was right he easily put 2 minutes on me which is impossible to make up in a sprint. It was great to have him there he kept me focused on the bike and pushing the entire race. I set a new PR for a sprint which is all I wanted to do, I beat 36 year old me which I thought was impossible after turning 40.

I don't think I've ever devoted so much time and energy into training for and racing a sprint but all my buddies were so excited for this race that it became contagious. We did two swim- bike- runs all at the sprint distance on the Saturdays leading up to the event and training seemed to be going really well. Unfortunately we woke up on race morning to spitting rain and wet roads... ugh. Well you can't control the weather so I just packed up and headed to the race start. I have taken a spill on a rainy race before so I was very cognizant of staying under control through all the turns on the bike.

The swim was really great, I led our heat and had an opportunity to keep the pace high and managed to lap the other 3 guys once or twice in the 750m. I was quite surprised to find out later I had the 2nd fastest swim of 11:27 behind a really fast young guy from Ft. St. John who swam a 10:03. I couldn't believe I beat the times of some incredible swimmers from GP, Steve, Joe, and Richard have always swam faster than me so it shocked me in a good way.

When I started riding I could tell something didn't feel right immediately. I was holding a 162-163 HR and my power seemed to be okay but I just wasn't getting the speed I should have been for that type of effort. I'm not sure if it was the cooler weather or not warming up the legs beforehand but I didn't have the ride I was hoping for. I took a look at my Garmin data afterwards and I was pushing hard the entire ride, there really was no where I could have gained any additional time so I know I gave it everything I had. I saw Joe pass me about 3/4 of the way through the first lap and I tried to keep him in sight for as long as possible. I could see him in the distance for most of the second bike loop which helped maintain my focus. My average power was 247W which is very high for me any higher and I wouldn't have been able to run after. I had the 2nd fastest bike time of 31:39 at an average of about 38km/hr.

I started the run and my legs were absolute concrete, I was running but felt like I was just shuffling. I could see Joe in the distance making the first turn so I was pushing as hard as I could to catch him but we were running at pretty much the same pace. When I thought I was gaining on him it was only a few meters and it was too late, my legs didn't start coming around until 2.5k and I knew that he had me. That being said my goal was to beat my 2009 time of 1:02.17 which I did by 1:20 giving me the fastest run time of 17:52 and a total time of 1:00.57. Fantastic race for me and I'm glad I had a group of great guys keeping me pushing hard for the full hour. The nice thing about a sprint is it's over by 10am and we had time for coffee and lunch before heading back home.

Well that wraps up my 2013 season, great to have completed an Ironman, 1/2 Ironman, and a Sprint race all in one year. I'm looking forward to spending more time with Amber and Ryder next year so I might just keep it short distance. The training isn't as time intensive and I can still feel like I'm active and healthy which is one of the things I love about this sport.

Sprint Training

It's really strange having your season go from Ironman, to 1/2 Ironman, to Sprint training and I'm not sure my body knows what's going on. The tough part is that I was really beat up after IM CdA and I needed some down time but there is really not a lot of time to heal up before I needed to start again for Calgary 70.3. At Calgary I went really hard and again I needed some down time before I could do anything, fortunately a week off and a week easy seems to have done the trick. Now I just have a small Sprint Tri in Peace River and then the season is over and I can get some deep rest and recovery. It has been really nice not having the pressure of Ironman training over my head and being able to spend more time with Ryder and Amber. Last Saturday I told Amber I was doing a swim-bike-run with a couple guys on Saturday and I'd be finished everything by about 10am! That never happens prepping for most races, but we did a 750m swim, 20k bike and 5k run and had time for coffee and the rest of the day to hang out with family.

 So far last week I've done 3 days where I swam, biked and ran all on the same day and I feel really good. The body is not breaking down, I'm not dealing with a lot of injuries, I can have a lot of time with family and I feel like I've accomplished something that day. I'm really pleased with how my swim has developed this year, my biking is still fairly strong the only area I know I could improve has been my running but dealing with some of the calf issues I've had I think I'm still running strong. I expected to run a 1:20 or less in Calgary but I was only running one day a week leading up to it so I'm not surprised I ran a 1:24 and I'm very happy with that time.

Peace River is looking to be a very competitive race, so far I know of 6 other guys that are going and are capable of beating the time of last year's winner (1:07). The last time I did this race I had a 1:02.17 time and I'm looking to go faster this year. Robert and I have been focusing on true 'sprint' training and I'm hoping the 20 minute all out bike rides and 5k fast runs will pay off. On an ideal day I feel like I could go sub-12 on the swim (including transition), sub-30 on the bike (including transition) and sub-18 on the run breaking the one hour barrier. The only really question mark is going to be the bike, there are a lot of turns on the two loop course and I'm going to have to keep my speed up to average over 40km/hr. I can do it on a straight out and back but this will be more like a criterium than a time trial, we'll have to see.

Ironman Calgary 70.3

Me and Kevin pre-race

I think it's no surprise to anyone who knows me that I didn't quite have the race I was looking for at Coeur d'Alene. After all the hard months of training one stupid mistake can really cost you, I didn't practice with elastic laces and they crushed my feet throughout the whole run. That's all a part of racing and I tell everyone if you race long enough you are going to run into every situation possible, the trick is to not let it get you down and come back to the next race stronger and faster than ever. So after months of Ironman training under my belt I was hoping to use that endurance base and build in some speed for Calgary 70.3. The training was going really well until I suffered a really bad calf cramp and couldn't run for the weeks leading up to the event. I wasn't all that worried about having a bad run, I know I can suffer through a 1/2 marathon but I needed to be healthy going into the event. Thanks to a lot of Graston and A.R.T. for getting the kinks worked out and if anyone has done those, you know that it's like putting your legs through a meat tenderizer- not fun.

The week before the race I wanted to do a swim-bike race simulation and Robert was on board with the bike but he was not up for the swim before. No worries I swam with Steve at a steady 1:30/100m pace for 2kms and jumped out to join the boys for a tough 90k. I didn't know how tough until Robert decided to drop the hammer right off the start and  leave us all in the dust but I put my head down and was pushing 350 watts to catch up to him. I did end up catching but shortly after got a flat... ugh. Quick change and we were back to hammering again although this time we were drafting back and forth and managed to keep the heart rates very high, this was definitely a race simulation ride for me although I doubted I could run afterwards. As we approached the turn around I got another flat so we decided to head back, we had no spares and I was going cross-eyed from the effort. Another 40k of hard riding and we were back at the Multiplex and I was so tired I could barely get my bike on the roof. I thought, 'wow I'm definitely going to have to pace myself well on the bike to be able to run in Calgary.' Even though I hadn't been running much before the race I did do a slower (1:26) 21k and I felt great, I knew that I could run faster but I wanted to not stress the calf and the run in Calgary was a lot harder. While in Calgary I had a great time hanging out with Amber, Ryder, some family and friends and I think this is why I love racing. Sure the race itself was a great event but having time away from work and just being with family makes it all the more enjoyable. I don't need a race to do that of course but having a race adds to the overall enjoyment of the trip and it gives us a good reason to drive 8hrs to Calgary.

Me with the two Vegas bound athletes Kevin and Doug

The race venue had changed from Ghost Lake to MacKenzie Lake in south Calgary and I have to say it was a welcome change. MacKenzie Lake was so nice to swim in and one full lap of it is 1.9k so it was perfect. Not only that but you didn't have to run up a steep hill to get to the bike racks like at Ghost Lake, I can't imagine that after swimming hard for 30 minutes. I did all the pre-race rituals, tires, bottles, bathroom, bag drop and headed to the start. I put myself to the left of the pack at about the 2nd row. The pros went and before I realized it we were off! The start was the usual ciaos but I stayed calm and only got hit a couple times. The first turn buoy was a difficult one because you had to turn about 130 degrees, almost a U-turn but by then the crowd had thinned out and I was just looking for someone else's feet. I had a few hundred metres on my own until I finally found someone but got a good draft for most of the 2nd half. The tunnel in Mackenzie Lake is really cool and it was a lot of fun swimming there again, Amber and I used to practice swim there all the time when we first met and it reminded me of the pre-Ironman open water swims we used to do. As I headed through transition I was really happy to see 28:31 on my watch, a great swim for me and I ended up being 41st out of the water, not bad for a non-swimmer.

The ride was great- I tried to ease into it but during a half there is really not a lot of time to waste. The slow steady incline all the way out to Bragg Creek was starting to wear on me, I was hoping to go a lot faster but I was pushing as hard as I knew I could without burning out my legs. I had a group of about 6-8 guys blow by me and I thought about hanging on but I saw draft marshalls around me all day and I was paranoid about getting a penalty. I don't know if any of them got a penalty but they definitely should have, they were grouped together like a tour pack. I finally got to Bragg Creek and was a little disappointed to see 1:28 for the first 45k but I was confident I could make up a lot of time on the way back and I did. The ride was short of the 90k official distance but I was just happy to start the run in under 3 hours. I finished the ride in 2:26.21 including transitions and now I was in my element.

Starting the run

As soon as I started the run it felt like someone was stabbing my quads with knives but I told myself this is just that 'getting off the bike' tightness and in a couple kms it'll subside. Unfortunately it didn't subside and I had that feeling the entire run. I still tried to hold a strong pace and right off the start I passed about 6 guys within the first 2kms. We went down into the weaselhead and I hit the first hill, it was a grind but I made it up and started to see some incredibly fast pros going the other way. Tim Don is a monster and he was just hammering the entire run, absolutely burying himself for the win. I had seen him in a couple ITU races and he looked fast but in comparison to the other ITU guys normal here he was just making everyone look slow. I kept my pace up until the turn-around and I started to catch this one guy who asked me if we were in the same age group, he was 33 so I promptly said no and he either found another gear to hang on to me or I slowed down because there were no more rabbits to catch. We ran together most of the way back but when we hit the 2nd hill I started to fade badly. I knew it would be difficult to hold on at that pace for the full 21k but I was just hoping the breakdown would come close enough to the finish that I could sprint it out. We climbed the hill but he got a little gap on me and the next thing I knew 10m turned into 30m and I was just struggling to keep my legs turning over. The stabbing quads remained and how there was a stabbing diaphragm as well. I slowed for the final 3-4kms, it was close enough to the finish I tried to stay with it mentally but at that point 12 minutes of running was excruciating. I was thinking 3 minutes of running was no longer possible. I took it km by km and slowly grinded towards the finish, there was a 610m to go mark on the road and I actually had the thought that I might not make it but I didn't want to start walking in front of everyone so I just did what I could and I felt like I was crawling to the finish. I was very happy to have pulled off a 1:24.05 run and a 4:18.57 final time for 3rd in my age and 27th overall!

Suffering at the finish

After the race I went up to Amber and hugged and had a picture taken with her and then I found a grassy area where I laid there for a very long time. I went to a place in this race that I haven't been to in a long, long time- Ironman Canada 2011- and I'm ecstatic that I got the race I was hoping for in 2013. My legs took a very long time to recover and even 5 days later I still have some residual soreness. I have to thank Amber for being such a great support throughout this year, I love you very much for all you've done to keep your family happy and healthy. Also a big congrats to Kevin and Doug who both qualified for the 70.3 Ironman World Championships in Vegas! Amber is the ultimate coach both of her Speed Revolution athletes are in Vegas!! Awesome!!

My biggest supporter, thank you babe

Gearing up for Calgary

Another rainy indoor ride

A couple down weeks after IM CdA and I thought everything was just great, my toe had gone back to normal I was over my deep fatigue and started some easy training again. I was out for an easy run with Amber and Ryder and all of the sudden my left calf cramped up worse than I have ever experienced. I tried to stretch it out but something had happened in there and I couldn't work it out, it was only an easy 8k run but it was probably due to some post IM problem. I was very careful not to start back training too soon and I knew it wasn't an injury but just some sort of deep muscle cramp that wouldn't go away. I took a few days off running and went out for an easy long run, or what I thought was going to be a long run, but I had to stop after 5 miles- I could tell I was just doing more damage so I went to Anodyne and had it worked over today. Hurt like hell, my therapist loves the Graston tools and I feel like my calves went through a meat grinder afterwards but immediately I could tell it helped.

I've been spending more time in the water and on the bike other than running but I love training for a 70.3 over IM, especially with a new family. I can be out for a 3 hour ride and have the rest of the day with my favorite people, pre-IM it was a 6 hour ride and I would be too exhausted to do anything with Amber and Ryder. Amber's been getting back in the pool and out on the bike now too, now that I have a bit more time and the weather is nicer. It's so great to see her get out and spend just an hour doing something just for her.

First outdoor Ride!

She's not interested in doing anything over an hour and how can I blame her, she has this face waiting for her at home;

Beautiful Boy

Ironman Coeur d"Alene 2013

Ironman is such a cruel event, there is little margin for error and when things start to go wrong it's really hard to get it back on track. That being said I can't be disappointed with a 10:27, I worked really hard leading up to this race and although I struggled on the run I never gave up. I was suffering so bad during that marathon that it reminded me a lot of Kona. That difficult- run 200m, walk 100m, run 200m, walk 100m, repeat... was really tough for my ego to take but I had issues with my stomach and feet.

My cheering squad

The race itself is really well organized and a great location, I would definitely do it again some day. The swim was a two loop course which I think I prefer because it gives you a shorter distance to concentrate on and breaks it up a little. The rolling start was a good idea as well, you seed yourself in the proper swim wave and you are surrounded by swimmers that are all about the same speed. I put myself right at the back of the first wave, which was under 60 minutes and I thought if I can have my 'A' race swim I would be under an hour. There is no hurry to get in the water when the gun goes off your time doesn't start until you cross the starting mat. The start of the swim was the usual punching and kicking for the first 800m until the turn and I tried to find some good feet to draft off of but kept getting pushed off or losing the person in front of me because they would take a couple strong strokes and be long gone. I'm glad I started in the first wave though because I felt like I pushed myself to keep the pace up while not going too hard for 3.8k. I came out of the water after the first loop and saw 28mins on my watch, wow great that gives me 32mins for the second loop which I knew would be a little slower. I tried to remind myself of my 3 important rules for having a good swim; 1. stay at your aerobic capacity, 2. swim in a straight line, and 3. DRAFT and I ended up having the best swim of all my 8 Ironmans; 58.55. Great start to the day!

Swim practice just outside the cabin

Transition went fairly smooth and I was on my bike in good time, I was excited to have the swim over with and to have had a great start. I was hoping for a sub-hour swim but never really thought I could pull it off. The first part of the bike is awesome, you roll through town and along the lake for 10k and back and it goes by really quickly. I knew once we hit the first big climb I would have a lot of people flying past me but my race plan was to keep the heart rate in the 140s- low 150s and I should have a lot left over for the run. Once we started climbing I was shocked a little at how much it took out of me, I was okay with being passed by all the strong cyclists but didn't expect my legs to start cramping after the first 90k.

On my way back to town

Kevin on his way to a new Ironman PR

I was staying on track with my nutrition but I don't think my body was ready to train in the heat, as soon as the temps started rising my legs started to do funny things and once I hit the big climb for the second time my hamstring completely seized up.... Ugh, "okay this is the problem how do I fix it" I swallowed two salt tabs right away and it got a little better but that should have been an indicator that I needed to take more salt. After that my stomach started to act up and all of the sudden I couldn't drink any more, I tried drinking more water thinking I was just dehydrated but I could tell my body wasn't getting enough calories or salt. The leg cramps and upset stomach continued for the next 70-80k and at that point I didn't feel like I was riding hard any more, just riding to survive. I tried to stay positive and keep in mind that IM is a long event and you can go through bad patches and still have a great race if you don't get down on yourself. I kept my 3 rules of the IM bike in mind; 1. focus on getting in your nutrition, 2. hold back enough to stay aerobic, and 3. don't worry about your place in the race. I came off the bike in a disappointing 5:36 but I really struggled in the 2nd half so I was okay with starting the run under 6:40. Considering I only got in 4 1/2 bottles out of my 6 on the bike I knew it was going to be a tough run.

The Ironbaby cheering me on

Starting the run

Finally finishing!

I tried to regroup at the beginning of the run but I made the mistake of doing something new on race day and ran with elastic laces, big mistake... my feet felt like they were being crushed with every step I took. I couldn't do anything about it now so I just had to suck it up and live with it. At the end of the race my big toe had a massive bruise and was swollen to about twice it's normal size. It's 10 days later and I can still feel it but the swelling and bruising has gone down. Every step was complete agony but I did my best to keep running (or shuffling) and stuck with my water, coke, ice strategy through each aid station. I finished the first loop in 1:35 which is painfully slow for me but if I could do that again I could pull off a sub-10 race. The second loop was when my stomach issues started again, I had to do a lot of walking and when I ran it was really slow. I couldn't stomach any more water or coke so I knew that I needed salt badly, I was taking salt tabs but it obviously wasn't enough. I grabbed a handful of chips at a couple of the aid stations and all of the sudden I started to feel better. Too little, too late unfortunately and although I did run the final 4 miles I walked so much of the 2nd loop that I ended up with a 3:46 run and a 10:27.43 final time.

Like I said I can't be disappointed with a 10:27 race, I worked really hard in training and I'm happy with the day. There are a couple things I would have done differently but I have to keep telling myself that I did everything I could possibly do on that day and the end result is that I am now an 8 time Ironman finisher. I'm so grateful to have done this race and it was a sacrifice with Ryder's arrival in February to find the time to train but Amber has always been my biggest fan and I couldn't have done it without her. Thanks to a loving and supportive family I am able to live the active and healthy lifestyle I love so much. I also have to thank Robert, Steve, and Kevin for keeping me motivated out there, it would have been so easy to just walk the marathon but knowing that they were out there suffering too kept me 'racing.' Congrats to Steve and Kevin for setting IM PR's out there, great work!

Steve and Robert at the bike drop off