Peace River Tri 2014

Ryder and me pre-race enjoying the atmosphere

This is the 3rd time I've competed in the Peace River Sprint Tri and I have to say it was the best conditions yet. Normally it's too late in the season to get nice weather to race in but although it was cool, by 9:30am it had warmed up to a comfortable 13'C and it made for a great day. It's nice to attend these smaller, faster events to keep the training fresh and different- I wasn't expecting to PR here I didn't have Joe pushing me on the bike but Richard and I were doing our best to keep each other honest. I don't think my HR got below 160 all race except for the first 700m of the swim.

Having only 3 SR athletes there was a bit different, last year there were 8 of us and we all placed in the top 10. This year we placed 1st and 2nd males and 1st female with Liz there. I love the short course races for the fact that it doesn't break you down for days afterwards but I have to say that my body is probably more adept at longer distances now. It's very, very painful to hold that effort for an hour straight. The swim was pretty straightforward, I was the last to start and given Richard and I swim at about the same pace I drafted off him for the 1st 700m and when he started to get tired I took the lead and put a 30sec gap on him by the end.

The bike was a lot more comfortable this year with milder temps but I just cannot seem to push any more watts no matter how specific my training is, 254W is what I averaged. It was great having Amber and Ryder there cheering me on but Ryder is not typically up at 6am and he was a bit of a bear all day. Coming off the bike my legs felt like I had just finished 2000 squats and I almost collapsed but I eased into the run and managed to have an excellent one- 17:43, my fastest run on that course. All in all it was a fantastic race and great season, I only have the Fall Classic 10k later in September and that'll be m season. Pretty low key this year but I'm glad I took a 'down year' to spend more time with Ryder and it's such an incredible feeling to go undefeated all year, 4 wins is more than I could have hoped for at the beginning of the season.

Running to the win and a 17:43 5k

Finishing in 1:01.10 just 13sec shy of last year

Speed Rev Crew 1st, 2nd male and 1st female

Summer's End

Ryder and Dad hanging out in the park

The last race of the season is always a little bittersweet, on the one hand your body is relieved to have a bit of a break from the training regime but on the other hand you realized the warm summer weather doing the things you love is coming to an end. It's been a great summer, I've been focused on short-course training and although it doesn't take as much time it seems like my body has been breaking down with all the hard-fast efforts. My final tri is this Sunday in Peace River, a little sprint race that I've done twice before and it's always a fun affair with a lot of local athletes coming out. This year many of them have other commitments so only Richard and I are racing but Amber and Ryder are coming out to cheer me on so it'll motivate me to race hard and fast.

The Speed Revolution family cheering at the Calgary 70.3

I've been trying very hard to keep my workouts hard and fast- interval style to keep my speed up but after a couple weeks of training like that my body was really hurting. I needed a full 4 days off just to get back to normal and fortunately this week has just been some light running and swimming. I did a 'sprint tri' with the boys on Saturday and was okay with my swim and run but a little disappointed with my bike, I was pushing as hard as I possibly could and I could barely hold on to the wheels in front of me. I haven't done as much biking as I normally would have this time of year so I shouldn't be surprised but I hope I have better legs on Sunday.

Selling the HED3's is heartbreaking

I've also decided to sell my tri-spokes, these H3's are the fastest wheel set I've ever owned and I'm a little hesitant to sell them but after getting flats in two races and having it cost me two wins I think I need to admit I just don't have good luck with them. My current wheel set is still fast and better on a hilly course but on a flat TT style course the HED 3s cannot be beat, I'm sure it adds at least an extra 1-2kms/hr. They will find a good owner I'm sure and someone that knows how to put the tires on properly! I'll update on how the race in Peace River went, I'm very excited to do it we'll see if I can pull out another win!

Sometimes You're the Hammer, Sometimes You're the Nail

The GP Boys trying to show the PG athletes how it's done

The title of this post was supposed to be 4 for 4 being my 4th race of the year and 4th win but unfortunately sometimes things don't go quite according to plan. I was super excited to go to Prince George and race again there, I did the race in 2008 and I remember it being one of the TOUGHEST tri's I've ever done and it was the same this year. Bart agreed to come with me so we made it a short weekend road trip and represent Speed Revolution in PG. We left early Saturday morning and two hyper-hydrated athletes driving 6hrs made for a lot of bathroom stops. We got there and immediately went to the bike check where I pulled my bike out of Bart's truck filled up the tires and heard the dreaded pushhhhhhhhhhhh come from my rear wheel. Ugh, well at least we were at a bike shop where I could get it fixed. Went through the bike check and package pick up and headed out to check out the lake. We previewed the bike and run and Bart was a little deflated seeing how tough it looked, the bike is constantly climbing (or at least feels like it) and the run was a 500m flat, 2k uphill, 2k downhill, 500m flat, repeat. Well we weren't going to set any speed records on this course but it is going to sort out who has been training and who hasn't.

Bart getting ready to rock! Placed 8th in 2:44

The morning of the race was fantastic, very casual we got there at 7am (which is 8am our time) and the race didn't start until 9am. There was plently of room on the bike racks, there was an announcer for the entire race (amazing for a small race), there was electronic timing where your time showed up on a TV screen as soon as you crossed the mat, and the lake, volunteers, and other racers were great. It was my first and only open water swim this year so I was hoping to have a good one in the wetsuit. There was no one around me the entire swim and with only 30 people in the Olympic there wasn't anyone to draft off of. I just maintained my rythmn and tried to stay in a straight line and was absolutely amazed to hear the announcer say I was the first 'non-team' athlete out of the water. Wow nice, well that was my weakest discipline and I just swam a 21:34, I think the course must have been a little short because even with a wetsuit a 23:00 1500m is really good for me.

Now on to the ride where I could build my lead a little. The climb out of the lake was absolutely brutal, I was in 1st gear and griding away for 2kms my heart rate was in my throat and I was thinking this is not a good way to start but you really had no choice. Finally getting on to the main road (which I never saw a car on) we decended for about 5kms, turned around and went back up past the lake and continued climbing approximately another 13kms. I passed the team swimmer that was in front of me and noticed there were still 2 Duathletes I could try to close on. As I made the 180' turn to come back to the lake I heard it again, pushhhhhhhhhh, ugh no, not now!! I pulled out the change kit and changed it quickly there were about 3 guys that passed me but I was pretty confident I could catch them on the run. I replaced my change kit before the race an was trying a new CO2 adapter and unfortunately it didn't fit in the valve cut out and I ended up wasting the 2 cartridges I had. Well the win was over for me but a bike support guy came by and filled up my tire with a pump but immediately it blew again. At that point I noticed the bead of my tire was completely shredded to pieces and I could do nothing but get a ride back and call it a day.

That's some tough riding

31km/hr over 25k, wow that's a hard ride

It's not normal for me to see numbers this low but given the course and where I was placed I'm not too surprised. I was in the perfect position for a great run but never got the chance, oh well it's all apart of racing just learn from it and come back to hopefully go for the win at the final race of the season, Peace River Sprint August 24th.

3 for 3

Anyone who tells you that winning a race is easy- is dead wrong. It doesn't seem to matter how small or how remote a race is, when I get on that start line I'm giving it absolutely everything I have. The Grande Prairie tri is our local race and I decided to line up finally after sitting out for 2 previous years because of injury in 2012 and Ironman in 2013. There were only 30 people in the Olympic distance but you never know who is going to be there and if a speedy triathlete from Calgary or Edmonton is going to run away from everyone else. That being said I had no real concern about what place I was going to finish but I did want to try to race to the best of my ability.

It's been a long time since I'd done an Olympic distance race and I wasn't sure how my legs would respond after a hard 40k ride. I'd done a few tough 40k rides in training but the one time I tried a brick I think I was fighting something because I only lasted 1km before I had to call it a day. So the morning of the race everything was going perfectly, I brought my trainer and warmed up for 20 minutes in transition and completed all the necessary pre-race rituals.

Paul and I coming into transition

The swim went absolutely perfect, there was a female swimmer in front of me and we traded drafts on and off for about 700m until she started to fade and I just held my own pace. I was shocked to see at the end I had the fastest swim but I guess getting up 3 times a week at 6am to swim is finally paying off. It wasn't a stellar time from a swimmer's perspective but for me doing a 23:49 in a 50m pool is very good. On the bike I felt like I just couldn't get any speed for the first 10k and I knew that it was a slow steady climb with a slight headwind but I just tried to maintain my rhythm and get to the turn to head south. I passed a few people who were doing the sprint in the first 5k but after that I didn't see anyone until the turn around. I knew I was riding fairly well but after a hard initial 10k I thought that my chances of setting a PR today were over. I kept pushing while not going completely anaerobic and now I was seeing the 44-45kms/hr I was expecting during the first 10k. I felt really good during the rest of the ride and when I got to the sprint turn around I was elated to start passing other riders again. At the end of the ride my legs were dead but it was a race and I just needed to block out the pain and have a fast transition. I was thrilled to see Amber and Ryder there cheering me on and it got me going for the run.

Trying to get my shoes on after a hard 40k is tough

Chasing after Paul

The run was very painful, I normally don't think the Musko trails are that big a deal even though they are gentle rollers but today they were sucking the life out of my legs. I passed some more sprint racers and saw a lot of the fast guys at the sprint turn around. After that it was pretty lonely out there and hard to stay motivated but I kept telling myself to keep my rhythm and maintain my pace. The turn around was completely unprepared and they didn't have any water ready... ugh. The run back was painful, I wasn't prepared for 2 hours of racing and my body was breaking down. I felt like I was shuffling and didn't have much left to finish the final 5k but when you see the other athletes running toward you, you suck it up and keep pushing.

I ran through the finish completely thrilled to win and was ecstatic to find out later I set a new Olympic PR by 9 seconds with a 2:05.20! All the other Speed Revolution racers were doing the Sprint distance and everyone had a great race. It was an incredible experience and one I'll remember for a long time, winning is always rewarding and winning 3 races out of 3 is beyond all my expectations. I hope to do the rest of the Pomeroy series races in Prince George and Peace River, it's going to be a great summer.

$150 Gift Card for the win!

2 for 2

Robert and I pre-race

This weekend was the first Tri of the year, the Fort St. John Sprint. Having kids has definitely changed not only the amount and way that I train but also my pre and post race routine. Robert and I drove the 2+ hours to Ft St John the morning of the race instead of spending the night and bolted back home right when it was over. Of course our wives didn't want us to waste the whole day racing so it was okay with us to drive, race, drive and get home in decent time.

Racing with Robert is always a good time and we spent the 2hrs talking about how the race would go, what we wanted from the day but also the fact that no matter what the result we are incredibly lucky to still do the things we love at this stage of our lives. Although our Ironman days may be behind us we still are very fortunate to still be able to compete in some Sprint and Olympics during the year. I think things will change dramatically at the end of July for Robert (he and his wife are expecting their 2nd) but it is a great feeling to still be active and healthy in our early 40's (me) and late 30's (him). We had a few Speed Revolution racers with us and it was a great time had by all.

Ross and Sonya coming out for some Ft St John fun

A race this size is always a ton of fun and there is absolutely no pressure but you still get the 'pre-race adrenalin' rush- one of the feelings I love before a race.

A crowded swimming pool made getting out to T1 tricky

I started at the back of the swim heats and it was in the format of once a lane empties, 5 of us fill up the lane. It was a 750m swim and I paced myself fairly well, passed Robert within the first 2 laps and once near the end and surprised myself by coming out with the fastest swim of the day at 11:15. Yes it's true the non-swimmer has actually trained into a 1/2 decent swimmer but if you do races small enough you are bound to get lucky once in a while. It's unbelievable to think about the fact that I once was just hoping to get through the swim without loosing too much time and now I'm actually seeing it as one of my strengths, crazy! There have been races where I wouldn't have won or placed as well if it wasn't for my swim, that just blows my mind.

The bike was a lot tougher than I expected, I've been training on fairly flat fast courses and I think I just wasn't prepared as well for the rolling nature of the course and didn't really have the bike I was looking for. Irvin was right behind me at the bike turn around and was closing fast, fortunately I barely held him off before the transition and as I started running out he was just riding in. He has been gearing up for a 1/2 Ironman this weekend so he is in incredible bike shape and I haven't had as much time in the saddle as I usually do but I managed to be within 40s of his time, 43:08 bike. Considering this is his home course I'll call that a victory, he also started racing with the Speed Revolution crew so it was okay with me to have the 2 fastest people in the race battling it out.

When I started running my legs had the usual, holy crap what the hell is wrong feeling, but I looked at my 1st km split and it was 3:34 so I know it was just my mind telling my body to stop. The run went up this trail that was a little rise and single-track gravel so it got the heart pumping immediately and made it tricky when people were running at you as you were running out. The 6km run was a bit of a leg burner and not as flat as I've been training on but I still managed a decent run with a 21:27 6k. All in all a 1:15.49 was a great time and although I was hoping for a sub 1:15 I didn't expect the bike to be that challenging. Great start to the tri season and excellent way to shake the rust off for the GP Olympic this weekend.

11:15 Swim, 43:08 bike, 21:27 run- Great Race!

1st Win of 2014

Yesterday was the Grande Prairie Press Run 1/2 Marathon and I was very excited to get the win, especially considering the lack of long run training. It's been a tough few weeks leading up to the race work, family, travel have taken up the majority of my time by I've managed to squeeze in a few runs but only a couple 21k's outside. Most of my training runs were in the 12-14km range and it's a long way to race when you've been training 2/3rd's of the distance you are racing. Needless to say I felt great for the first 10k, heart rate was under control, legs felt really good, and pace was right on track at about 3:45mins/km. When I got to the turn around however I knew it was going to be tough to hold on. There are some small rollers at about 12 & 13k and they just zapped my legs.

I was really struggling when I got to the 14k mark and was just in damage control mode after that. The rest of the race was a real mental battle and I needed to take a couple short walks just to get the heart rate under control but the final 1/3rd meant I wasn't going to meet my goal time of 1:20 or less. I wasn't too worried about my time, I knew I was giving it everything I had and based on my training it's definitely what I knew was going to happen. I just held on the best I could and was glad I opened a 4min gap in the first 10k, the 2nd half I didn't gain any time but didn't lose any either. Finished with a great 1:21.05 and my 4th win at this race.

Balancing Act

Ryder in his new Speed Revolution Tech T

It's really tough being a father and an athlete but I do my best to be good at both. I know sometimes things get out of balance but I make sure I have enough time in my schedule to do the things I love and spend time with my family. I came to a big realization last weekend, maybe I was getting a little too 'into' my training and I wasn't pulling the numbers I was hoping for but I finally had the slap across my face to give my head a shake and just be appreciative of the time I do have to train. I said to myself if this is causing you to be depressed or to have more stress in your life then why are you doing it? The truth is I absolutely love training and racing but I love my family more and if one causes stress on the other then just don't do it. I don't know if I can ever see myself not racing at different points in my life, but there are times when it needs to take a backseat. I do feel like I spend quite a bit of time with Amber and Ryder but it's tough when the day is filled with laundry, cleaning, yard work, repairs and chores. There never seems to be enough hours in the day. I want to keep this year fun and fresh, light and easy and that's why I made the decision to not race IM Calgary 70.3 this year. The truth is that I don't think any IM events are healthy for a relationship unless you can do it with your spouse, at least not for me.

Ryder with the new Speed Revolution bottles

I'm still hoping I can do some local races and get in my training and racing 'fix' but it'll be a lot easier not to have to worry about when I'm going to get in my 3hr ride and 2hr run. I just want to hang out with my family and friends and be active doing it. I put away my Garmin, heart rate monitor, and now I'm just going out and treating every swim, ride or run like it's my first one. Remember when you had no expectations about how your run 'should have' gone and you were happy to do the training and felt excited about getting it done. That's what I'm feeling again, it's nice to just put away my expectations and forget about hitting certain targets before IM and just feel active and healthy again.