Welland 70.3

This past weekend was the Multisport Welland 70.3 race. I was able to make it to Welland on the Wednesday to get a feel for the water, get on my bike and see part of the run. Although the course was flat it was going to take a lot of mental strength to keep the bike moving strong and your legs going in a 96% humidity day.

Over the past 3 weeks I have been going strong. From racing in Middlebury CT at the Rev3 Half Ironman, straight into Guelph Olympic and then hammer out another Half Ironman in Welland, I was feeling a bit tired but was excited to race a Half Ironman in Ontario. Not only that but many people were telling me the competition was going to be good and I love a little competition..haha

I got to the race and saw that many elite professionals and age-groupers were out and ready to hammer. It was great to see everyone make it out, but in all honesty was not mentally prepared to hurt as much as I knew I would. Guembel, Gray, Pady, Ross, were among a list of great athletes competing.

I have been feeling confident in the swim so being allowed to where my Xterra Vendetta Wetsuit I knew I would be able to hang in there and come out of the water with a strong time. The gun went and I felt good. I got into a great tempo and came out of the water in 28min. That is around 1:25 per 100m, not to shabby I was a minute down on Nigel and Pady so I knew I would have to work to get them.

I got onto my bike and my goal was to be consistent today. I wanted to hit 10km every 15min. This would put me at a 40km avg off the bike with a 2:15 bike split. I got into the grove and got passed by Mr. Walton who looked like a machine on that bike. He said keep up but he laid down a serious bike time, but knew he would pay a bit in the run for that one. He left me around the 70km mark and again I was on my own. A lot of thoughts go through your head at the point and I was just trying to keep myself motivated to get prepared for the run. On a sad note, I won't to send a shout out to Richard Pady, who hit a car around the 70km mark and I pulled passed him and he didn't look to hot. I did however hear he was ok with only a couple broken bones, which is good to hear he will ride again. Around 85km I was excited to get off the bike, I felt I was loosing power and was a bit worried to run. Usually I am excited to get my run on but I knew today was going to be a mental run.

I decided to go with a bit more supportive shoe on the run from Saucony, so I had the Fast Twitch, which is a great show to race in! Breathable with support..what more do you want from a shoe. The humidity got me right away and I knew I just had to get my legs turning over and I would be ok. Around 3km I caught Darryn and was sitting in 3rd overall. I was told Joe was 90 seconds back so my goal was to hold him off. Around 7km I started to feel really good and picked up the pace. It wasn't till km 16 that Joe met up with me and that is when the fun began. I saw that he was hurting so we kept pushing the pace on each other hoping one would break. Around km 18 Joe was able to open a 60m gap on me and pushed forward. I tried to surge and came up short by a few seconds at the finish line.

Mentally and physically I am pretty spent. 3 weeks of racing, some good results, and today on tired legs a 4:20 Half Ironman. Not my best performance in the run but I am happy with the result. Thanks to John Salt for another great event and also to all the volunteers!

Next race will be Joe's Team in Barrie, then Muskoka Long Course, followed by an Olympic Distance Triathlon in Cornwall, which I am very excited for!!

The Aftermath of the Toronto Earthquake!

LIFE....

Guelph Lake Race Report

Today was the Guelph Olympic Distance Triathlon. It was a good test of speed with a bit of money on the line. In Canada it only goes 3 deep so you really have to work!

I was coming off Quassy Rev 3 Half Ironman 2 weeks ago, where I placed 19th out of 33 of the worlds best. I gave myself a bit of taper during the week and was excited to race.

I was excited to swim. They gave us the green light to wear out wetsuit, which meant I was able to put on my Xterra Vendetta wetsuit. Xterra has the fastest wetsuit out and put me in a great place coming out of the water in the top 10 today. I also had my Sable Water Optic goggles on, which gives me the best vision around.

Like always I was excited to get on my bike. Gears Bike Shop has supplied me with the best bike around. The Specialized Transition Pro is so responsive with power that it always gets me to the front of the pack right away. I hammered the bike but had no pop today. Is that a good word. I saw Mark about 300m ahead and couldn't hunt him down! Mark, rode great today and glad he finally put it to me. I averaged 39 km/h, which is pretty good for an off day. Not to mention my bum felt awesome with my ISM Saddle.

I was well hydrated on the bike with Cera Sport EX and felt ready to run. I came off the bike as the 3rd pro and to be honest didn't put it together I was sitting in money contention. Andrew stayed with me then finally broke away and pushed the pace. I fell off and he took me by 20 seconds on the run. I ended up wearing my Saucony Fast Twitch, which have enough support for a flat and don't ruin my feet after a race.

Overall I am happy with the result. It was a fun day and am going home with a fat lip! Thanks Mark for the dolphin kick in the face. Haha.

Thanks to all my sponsors for the great support in the 2010 season. It has been a great year thus far and I am excited about Welland next weekend!

REV 3 Pictures and Guelph Weekend

So it has been a solid week of training. Feeling recovered except for a little twinge in the calf. It doesn't get tight until after the workout so racing will be fine haha. This weekend is the Guelph Triathlon, which seems to always hurt. I was just told of a little bet amongst crews...yes crews. C3 as challenged Allied Force to a top 4 times added together is the winner. I think it will be a fun event to really see what each team has got! Always up for a race!!

Excited to see everyone this weekend and ready to throw down some fast times! Good luck !

OIL THE MACHINE // Science & Research

OIL THE MACHINE // Science & Research

Cera Sport and Rev 3 Race Report

This past weekend I was in Middlebury Connecticut racing the Rev 3 Half Ironman. First off, I have to thank Heather for a great race. If you are looking for a great race and great competition Rev 3 is the way to go. Arriving at the pro meeting it was great to see everyone at the start of another season. I knew though it was going to be a tough with all the competition!

Jon, Mike and I made our way down on Friday and it only took 7.5 hours, not to shabby. When we arrived we went for a quick swim in Quassy and right away I knew there was going to be a no wetsuit swim. So thankful Xterra has a skin suit or it would have been a long day in the water! After we got back to the hotel we met up with Jasper who wasn't feeling to hot, but was ready to race.

Saturday came quick and I was staying hydrated on CeraSport, which is gluten-free so made my tummy feel good! After a morning ride I hit the pro meeting, swim and then got my rest on. Morning came quick....

So being the first half of the season I was going into this race with no expectations. I put in the work and was ready to see the outcome. Running has been going well so was hoping for a solid run off the bike. The swim started and I couldn't hang onto the front pack, which opened up with a 1:10per 100 sprint! I fell into pace and came out of the water in 29 and change with 4 other guys. After a quick run to transition I was spot on 30min...Love canada for the cold weather and my Xterra Wetsuit.haha

Onto the bike I was excited to see what my Specialized Transition has. It is by far the most responsive bike I have ever ridden. Gears dialed it in before I left and was feeling great the whole ride. I avg 285 watts and came off the bike in 2:32. I can't explain how hilly it was. The boys after the race said it was tougher then Muskoka and St.Croix by far. I will have to 2nd that...

Onto the run the legs were tired but my goal was to keep the run up and be strong till finish. Had a great plan with nutrition on the bike and went through 2 bottles of CeraSport, 5 gels and tons of salt pills. It was 90% humidity so staying hydrated is key. I started off and felt pretty good. Didn't want to kill myself on the run but was able to pass a couple athletes as I pushed hard up all the hills...there was a lot of them! Finished in 4:38...not to shabby.

Overall, I am happy with the race and the outcome. When Crowie is the only one to break 4 hours you know the race is tough. I am excited to Welland and feeling in 4:10 shape right now which is going to be great. I figured get the tough races out of the way early. Thanks to all my sponsors, Saucony for the Great Suit, Cera Sport for keeping my hydrated during a tough race. Xterra and Sable for keeping me a float ISM for making my bum feel good and Gears for making my bike super fast;)

Recovery time right now