I've been traveling for work quite a bit lately. No flights this time, just a lot of driving. Whenever I'm on the road I usually consult with Swimmersguide.com to find out where I can get some lane swimming in. Since I started covering the province almost 6 years ago I've tried many pools and have my favourites. Pictured above is an awesome facility - the Newcastle pool. Newcastle is near the exit off the 401 heading towards Peterborough (Hwy 115). 
Here's the inside of the Newcastle pool. They also supply pull buoys, flippers, hand paddles in addition to a hot tub and sauna - all for $4.00 a swim. Sweet deal! It also has tons of natural light and is not busy at all.
The next day in Ottawa I hit up the Nepean Sportsplex pool for the 50m lane swim. Another bargain at $4.85 per swim, this pool usually has lots of triathletes and pool toys available.
Later that day I left my hotel in Gatineau to get a 45 minute run in the sunshine. I do the Gatineau-Parliament Hill loop twice which works out to around 45 minutes with a few hills per loop and lots to look at. Pictured above is the Museum of Civilization from the bridge over the Ottawa River.
Looking the other way you can see the back of Parliament Hill. Still lots of ice on the river.
Parliament Hill - beautiful clear blue sky.
Heading over the other bridge to complete the loop is this bike sensor. It records the number of cyclists that pass over this point of the bridge. In summer the number on any given day is in the low thousands. With the amount of bike lane infrastructure, Ottawa encourages bike commuting and it shows, even in winter.
Back home briefly and out for a country run - the snow has melted enough that the shoulders are now bare and dry. I always prefer running in the country - more peaceful and enjoyable.
Another trip - this time North. I went to North Bay and decided to stay in Huntsville on the way back. I hit up the Huntsville Community Center for another swim. Had my own lane for the entire time. Good main set: 11 x 100m followed by 8 x 50m. In the afternoon I did 9 x 1 minute hill repeats. I was pretty spent that night with 6 hours driving and all that working out!
This week is the first week of another 3 week build. Recovery went well last week. I got a road ride outside early in the week - the first ride in 2015. It was tough due to the wind and 4C temp but I felt free. My long rides are in the 2-2.5 hour range indoors and my long runs have not exceeded 1.5 hours up to this point.
My long run today was 1.5 hours and lots of trails. A little slow in parts due to the footing - some areas still have lots of snow and icy in parts. I almost wiped out a couple of times. I enjoyed the trails - I find that time flies by while on the trail. I also generally listen to podcasts while running. My favourites? IM Talk, Legends of Ironman and The Real Starky. These podcasts are usually 1.5 hours in length - perfect for workouts. Download the podcast app off iTunes, search out the above and download away.
Anyway, that's all for now. Gotta get some rest!
Cheers!
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