Inspiration Compilation

Great reminders! Cheers!

Chrissie Wellington Retires

She came on the tri-scene out of nowhere. She had won, rather quietly, Ironman Korea and showed up at the Hawaii Ironman in 2007. She knew nothing of the competition - who to fear, history of the race, etc. I remember watching that race and what struck me at the time was the appearance. Her bike was not clean - you could see that it was in need of one. She was lacking the usual billboard of sponsors on his trisuit - in fact, it looked worn out. What was amazing, however, was how she dominated that race and, with a constant grin, how easily she won. Triathletes moving forward would quickly learn Chrissie was the real deal.

She stayed with Brett Sutton and Team TBB for another year before striking out on her own. She added another World Championship. She signed on with Cannondale - I ride a Cannondale so I was happy about that!

Her running style was a bit unorthodox but she had the turnover. She had the Ironman marathon record until run specialist Mirinda Carfrae came along. Mirinda now holds that title but by less than a minute and she doesn't even come close to Chrissie's swim and bike results.

She also had an unbelievable way of adapting to the Hawaiian heat - surprising given she's from England, not exactly the hotbed (pardon the pun) for heat acclimitization! 

Perhaps her greatest race was 2011 - her last race of her career. Just 2 weeks prior she had a bad bike crash which left her with bad enough injuries that making the start line was suspect. She did start the race and had to dig deep the entire day. Her swim and bike times were way off her usual and she went incredibly deep into the run to catch everyone in front of her to capture her 4th World Championship. It was clear that she was spent. Not long after she announced she'd be taking the year off to recover and promote her new book "A Life Without Limits".

I've read the book - it is a good read and she is very candid. It is also apparent from the book that triathlon is just one part of her life.

Overall Chrissie has never lost an Ironman that she started. She missed one race due to illness but no one could match her performances. Upon announcing her retirement I was quite surprised by the lack of response from the top tier female pros. Linsey Corbin, Melanie McQuaid, Julie Dibens were the only ones to honour her career and wish her luck. The likes of Leanda Cave, Mirinda Carfrae, Caroline Steffen have been weirdly silent. If anything I guess they are happy she's gone - more titles for them are now up for grabs! I really don't know if we will ever see such dominance again on either the men's or women's side. I recently saw Chrissie Wellington at the 2012 Hawaii Ironman. I happened to walk by the expo where she was signing autographs. She was engaging to each and every person she encountered and took the time to connect. Leanda Cave was also at the same booth signing autographs but could not be more opposite. They were ther for only an hour but it was clear Cave wanted nothing to do with it. Perhaps she was race-focused but, really, could she not be professional for one hour on a Wednesday before the race to satisfy the needs of the fans and, more importantly, the sponsors. Triathlon is still a fringe sport and to grow it we need professionals with personality. Take Craig Alexander, Chris McCormack and Wellington - they were/are the sponsors dream. They connect with everyone in the triathlon world hence the reason they were so sought after.

Enjoy the next phase Chrissie - I'm sure you will be a success!

Cheers!

December Ride - Bonus!

December 3rd brought mild weather and it got up to 10C. I love it when nice weather pops up during traditionally cold weather months. It's awesome to get a ride in December - I didn't have to bundle up either. I would like to get a ride in all the traditional winter months if possible. Last year I did get a ride in during January but last year's winter was quite mild.

Roads are clear for takeoff!

A final shot for "Movember". This was a tough one - I like the cause but am not a big fan of the facial hair. A little scruff is acceptable but not to this extent. I will contribute monetarily next year instead.

Post Movember - feeling aero!

Cheers!

Areas of Improvement

It's FRIDAY!!! Made it through another week - hope you have too.

At this time of year it is important to look out over the horizon, you know, big picture stuff. Questions to help me assess include:

1) What are my strengths? Weaknesses?

2) Compare my performance at Ironman vs top 15 - where can I can make most gains?

3) Is my equipment optimal?

4) Do I have any imbalances? Potential injury sources?

5) Do I have a good life balance?

6) Am I looking after recovery properly?

I'm sure there are other questions but you get the idea.

For me, if I look at Ironman Lake Placid as an example, I can make the following observations:

1) I have improved my swim (1:07 in 2011) but I need to be 1:03ish. Lake Placid is a fast swim so I need to get over the cable line as soon as possible and get into a fast group of swimmers. The challenge is seeding accordingly and putting up with the rough contact of the cable area especially over the first kilometre.

2) I have been too conservative on the bike. I've gone under 6 hours easily and certainly am capable of going faster without compromising my run. I want to be under 5:40. I did 5:53 in 2011 (minus the bogus drafting call!)

3) My run is solid but I faded in the last 8 miles - Duh! My last 2 Ironmans I've gone under 4 hours (3:57 and in 2011 3:53). I'm confident that I can go under 4 again. I would like to shoot for sub 3:45. In 2011 I started to fade around 18 miles. It is inevitable that pace will slow however I would like the falloff to start a little later, after the 20 mile mark to be exact.

4) Transitions - don't waste time. Controlled urgency to limit lost time.

Reflect, Macroplan, Microplan, Put in the Work!

If I check all my boxes and looked after the small details I will have success. Will I meet all my goals? Hard to say. A lot can happen - injury, equipment failure, etc. At the end of the day our training should put us in the best possible position for a great performance. More importantly, even Ironman, is just one day in the life - not the be all, end all. The sun will rise the next day - enjoy, relax, and take a risk!

Cheers!

Christmas - Let's Get It Started!

Sara, Logan, Emily and I went to Copetown  for our annual tree hunt. This year we've gotten out earlier than we ever had before which ended up a good thing because it wasn't busy.

Only a few more days with the stash!

Logan the Pooh!

I always thought Sara was a little "spacey"  - Hahahahaha

We got to the forest and began our hunt. In years past it seemed like we would pick a tree that was the furthest distance from our truck. The selection this year was excellent and it wasn't too far - bonus!

Lunatic on the loose!

With tree picked out we took it down.

My helpers!

Timber!

Basking in the glory of a job well done.

Now to carry it back

Cool machine - it shakes the tree to get rid of loose needles.

And wraps it up nice! We spent the rest of the day decorating, having a beer, and more decorating. Great family time!

Cheers!

The Indoor Waterpark Workout

Sara, Logan and I went to Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls for a couple of days where we had a Great Wolf time, had Great Wolf fun and Great Wolf thrills - it was truly Wolfy Great! (you get the idea - we underwent some brainwashing).

For the indoor waterpark workout we required some fitness equipment. On the menu was the Canada Vortex (pictured above), the Niagara Rapids (below), wavepool, and various other waterslides with Falls in their name.

All of the waterslides required climbing 3 stories worth of stairs - hill repeats, Check!

When there wasn't waves I had to chase Logan and my nephews around the pool while pretending to be a T-Rex. The positon required me to run in the water in a half-squat (for an authentic T-Rex look). Cardio plus quad strength work, Check!

This is the Vortex from above - the drop into it was fast and completely dark. We managed to spin around this 3 times before dropping down a hole in the middle.

The Niagara Rapids from above. I tried to take a couple of shots on the ride but failed miserably and almost lost my camera.

Friday night was also the Vanier Cup. As a proud alumni I was backing my MAC Marauders! There were playing Laval who they beat out last year to win the Canadian University Football Championship in overtime. Sadly Laval dominated this year - in fact it wasn't even close. Still very proud, though, and wore my colours in honour. Maybe a rubber match next year.

Logan and Sara - like the half-snarl!

Back in the water for more goofing around. Unfortunately the vast majority of people at the park were in poor health, overweight and no tone. We had the meal plan with our stay which included buffet meals. So what did I do? I put on a clinic! I ate a ton cause it was all there in front of me. After a dinner the night before plus breakfast I was completely toxic from food overload! North America is awful for this sort of scenario and we need to wake up. More exercise + sound nutrition = improved quality of life. Funny thing is - I did activities over the past couple of days I don't normally do and I can feel the muscle soreness as a result. I liked it and could use a little more variety to prevent plateauing.

Logan did this many times - great workout for the arms, core and legs.

Of course, Logan and his cousin Matthew tried to spray me every chance they got!

Love the establishment they have in the park - appropriately named and has all my favourite items!

Did I not say it's appropriately named?! Here I am rocking the Stash in Movember with 6 days to go - pretty Grizzly, eh?! Tomorrow I will be following my sister Michelle, Jimmy, Sharlene, Chris and Beth at IM Cozumel.

Cheers from the Lodge!