The TransRockies Run Experience

At some point late last year a few people were talking about this event called the TransRockies Run.  They described it as a trail run done with a partner.  They indicated that they were going to do it.  I got curious and looked it up.  Upon cruising the website for a mere couple of minutes, I found myself entering.  No thought process, no idea of what it entailed, and no partner in mind.  After all I used to be a world class runner so how hard could this possible be!  At the time, I was not even able to run.  Really had not been running for 18 months, and the likelihood of running was not even in sight.  What was I thinking!  Read on as you will soon realize my awakening.  By the way, none of those individuals who originally talked about doing the event entered the race.

My first priority was determining how the heck I was going to heal a torn calf and a chronic gluteus medius problem.  My second priority was finding a partner.  The two kinda solved at the same time.  I needed to see my friend Dr. Sharisse Kyle for my calf.  The visit resulted in me blurting out that I was going to do the TransRockies Run.  My next sentence was something about needing a partner, and asking her if she would be my partner.  Now Sharisse is no stranger to adventure.  She has done some crazy things.  She basically said she would give it some thought.  Within 24 hours an email arrived from Sharisse indicating she would do it!

In February, I was able to start running. Had a minor set back for about two weeks in March.  The endurance factor did not seem like a problem as I seemed to be able to build up quickly.  However, the speed factor was completely gone.  I sucked.  My interval times were the slowest I have ever seen.  That was discouraging.  I kept reminding myself that I was older now but I still had this nagging presence in the back of my head that said I could make a comeback of sorts.  Delusional Sandra!

From the period of March through July, I attempted to balance my commitment to my road cycling team and my need to put in kilometers of trail running in the mountains.  By July, I came to the realization that I did not have the capacity from a time and capability front to do both.  Every time I bike raced, I realized how trashed my legs were from running.  I just could not push on the bike.  I was already facing the fact that my power level on the bike was going down due to age.  Just this added to the equation. 

My training through the summer months was pretty simple.  I did one session of hills and intervals each week.  My weekends consisted of alternating three consecutive long runs with a tempo run and long run.  Weekend one would be Friday 25 km on mountain trail, Saturday 30 km on mountain trail, Sunday 32 to 35 km on the road.  Weekend two consisted of Friday 25 km mountain trail or road, Saturday a trail race or tempo run, and Sunday 32 to 35 km on the road.  Every weekend,  I found myself tired but getting stronger.  I knew I was cramming things in, but it was what I had to work with.

June 28 bad news comes...I am volunteering at a bike race and get an email confirming that my partner for the race is injured.  I panic a bit, but get it together and formulate a plan.  I firmly know that I want to do this race and nothing is going to stop me.  I determine that I can always do the 3 day race instead of the 6 day journey.  By the way, doing the 6 day race as an individual is not an option.  After a few days, I decide that I should see if I can find another partner.  I send an email to Heather Johnson asking if she would be interested.  She spends a few days thinking it over, and decides that she will join me.  I am totally excited and relieved.

The day approaches for the departure to Colorado.  I meet Heather at the Denver Airport.  This is also where we meet our transportation to the start of the race.  Amongst the crowd is fellow Calgarian, Rosemarie Gerspacher.  Rosemarie appears calm as usual.  Heather and I appear as rookies, nervous as heck!

The event is extremely well organized by GORE-TEX.  I considered this is an experience of a lifetime. The race traverse trails from Buena Vista to Beaver Creek.  The course is a mix of single track, double track, water, and forest road, and has over 20,000 feet of climbing over six days. The race is safe.  The camps each night are clean, and the food is awesome.  The volunteers and medical staff are incredible.  There is nothing negative to say about this event!!

The mileage of 120 miles over 6 days is not too much to handle if you have a high-mileage background.   However, like a bike stage race, you have to get up and race every day.  This is hard, and is compounded by the fact that you sleep in a tent every night.  Not exactly getting the best sleep both from a surface perspective, and the fact that there are another 399 tents present.  Imagine, the zipping and unzipping of tents when the need of each person to go to the bathroom is different.  Further, the snoring sounds traverse through the camp louder in the wilderness than in a house!  There are also the heated discussions of some teams; mostly married couples who thought this would be a grand honeymoon?!  By day 3, I got used to things.  I even got used to Heather accidentally kicking me in the head in the middle of the night!

You would think that racing by 8 am in the morning and finishing daily by noon to 2 pm daily, that you would have lots of time to just "be".  However this is not the case.  There are things to tend to before the 5 pm dinner bell rings.  It goes something like this.  Finish.  Snack on some food.  Head to some cold river/lake and ice the legs.  Head to back to the location of that night's tent village.  Stretch, roll, get a massage, shower, and tend to blisters.  At 5 pm, it is meal time.  This is followed by stage awards and a preview of the next day.  I was in bed by 8:30 pm pretty much every night.  Wake -up was at 5:30 am.  Breakfast at 6 am.  Race start was 8 or 8:30 am daily.  Repeat.

The race starts in Buena Vista.  As this is the first night, we are able to stay in a hotel room.  Our hotel was the Mountain View.  Sounds nice, doesn't it.  We should have been concerned by the look of it from the outside.  I remember making the comment that it is only one night, and maybe it is nice inside.  The truth came clear by the sign at check-in that said "No refunds after 10 minutes of checking in"!  Oh boy! Heather and I sceptically go to our room.  We open the door, and both of us blurt out saying "f#$k" at the same time.  I immediately check for bed bugs.  The bathroom was a disaster with a rotting and mould infested ceiling.  This is our home for the night.  There is no alternative as everything is booked with the race and the Pro Bike Tour.  A tent would have been a better alternative!!

Day 1:  Buena Vista to Railroad Bridge Campground.  This leg was just under 20 miles.  It is the easiest leg from a terrain and climbing perspective.  We climb only 2500 feet.  However, the last 5 miles is on a gravel road which is fully exposed.  It is like a death march for this last 5 miles.  It was very hot!  What was difficult about this stage was the sand.  Yes sand.  It was like running on a soft sandy beech but only up a mountain.  My hips were very sore at the end of this stage.

Elevation start 7945 ft.  Elevation end 8261 ft.

Day 2: The Hope Pass day.  This is so steep and rugged that llamas carried water up the mountains for us.  The stage was straight up and straight down.  13.4 miles with 3200 feet of climbing.  The pool in Leadville was a welcomed site.  A shower at the pool; how nice is that!  By the way, Leadville is a pretty cool town.  This is also where I met Alistair and Kim.  Two really cool people from Toronto.  They quickly became a part of my daily routine at the camps each day.

Elevation start 9662 ft.  Elevation end 9488 ft.

Day 3:  Leadville to Nova Camp Hale. This leg was 24 miles with 2700 feet of climbing.  Heather and I thought this was the leg that would be well suited to us.  More of a rolling terrain leg.  However, this leg was very rooty and rocky.  Very technical I thought.  This is also the leg where I took a crash just after checkpoint 2.   I tripped and flew down and hit the ground hard on the descend.  I screamed in pain as all of my body weight was on my baby finger and the finger next to it which was situated under my waistline on the fall.  I got up looking at my hand and my baby finger was sideways. I grabbed the finger and popped it back into place.  Instinct.  Runners behind us stopped to try to help.  My palm was cut and blood was gushing out like a volcano erupting.  A runner from another team gave me her bandetta to wrap around the wound.  Within minutes it was soaking with blood.  A group of mountain bikers also tried to assist.  I was determined that it was minor but my hand began to really throb and the swelling set in.  I sent all those that tried to help on their way.  Heather and I continued. to make our way down.  Within a couple of miles we finished the descend; the final 4 miles were on a gravel road.  I started to get chills and started to feel dizzy.  I looked at Heather and said, "We have to try and run hard".  She did not ask any questions but responded.  We ran for about 3 of those 4 miles.  The last 800 meters was pretty much a blur.  We crossed the finishing line of the stage, and I went straight to the medical tent.  I was quickly driven to Leadville for medical treatment.  I had to get stitches in my palm which by the time they finished had been bleeding for eight hours.  In addition, a partial cast for my two broken fingers was required.  A splint was considered but would offer no protection for the remainder of the race.  They had to take an x-ray to convince me that my fingers were broken.  I did not even want stitches but was convinced otherwise once they applied the freezing to my palm and began cleaning the wound.  The cut was deep and I refrained from watching after they moved huge chunks of skin to the side to reach in to grab particles of grit.  I was lucky not to have any tendon damage.  By the way, my finger fractures are referred to as a boxer fractures.  It is the same fracture boxers get in fighting. 

I was given antibiotics and painkillers.  The morning of stage 5 would be the last time I would take the painkillers as they caused me huge problems.

Elevation start 10040 ft.  Elevation end 9226 ft.

Day 4:  Camp Hale to Red Cliff covers 14 miles and has 2800 feet of climbing.  Even though I thought this stage was a lot of fun, I was pretty much a nervous wreck.  I was in a lot of pain and my hand was very swollen.  Like stage 3 it goes pretty much straight up and straight down. This is a fun stage as there are a few miles of running in the water.  With the heat, this is so refreshing.  I think this stage was a favourite amongst all racers.  In addition, we finished in Red Cliff, and it was fish tacos at the local restaurant before heading to camp.  Heather and I had considered this a recovery stage.

Elevation start 9226 ft.  Elevation end 8657.

Day 5:  Red Cliff to Vail covers 23 miles and has 4100 feet of climbing.  Heather and I were determined to make these last two legs the legs that we would try to move from 5th in our category of Women's 80+ to 3rd.  In the end, we did not get there but that likely was due to what transpired on this leg as a result of my crash on leg 3.  I had a bad reaction to the medication.  My heart rate was uncontrollable.  I could barely walk briskly without it shooting through the roof.  This resulted in us having to walk 13 miles of this leg.  It was hard for both of us.  Heather was at a loss of what to do, and I felt horrible for not being able to control what was happening to me.  We were silent for most of this journey.  It took 13 miles for the medication to work its way out of my system.  Finally, we were able to run the last 10 miles.  We were able to move along well at this point.  Upon crossing the finish line, both Heather and I needed time to deal with our own feelings.  We went in separate directions for a couple of hours.  I went in to Vail and watched part of the Pro Bike Time Trail, and Heather found space elsewhere.  A few hours passed, and we met at our tent.  We hugged and knew that everything was okay.  It was just a hard day. 

Elevation start 8657 feet.  Elevation end 8162 ft.

Day 6:  The last stage covers just under 24 miles and climbs 5000 feet.  It goes from Vail to Beaver Creek.  It finished about 150 meters from our hotel we booked. I was determined to redeem myself and make this stage a great stage.  I could not live with myself if I put Heather through what I did on stage 5.  Stage 5 was a long day!  Stage 6 did turn out to be a great stage.  However, it had so much climbing.  Heather was the hero.  Every steep uphill, Heather pushed me up.  It was a saving grace.  It allowed us to keep momentum.  We never spoke about it.  She just did it and I accepted.  It was a silent gesture.  A true gesture of teamship.  I swallowed my pride and accepted knowing that this is what had to be done.  We raced this stage extremely well.  Even though we never moved out of 5th spot for the entire race, we finished knowing this was the best we could do.  We finished knowing that the last day is the way we would have liked to have raced throughout.

Our hotel was amazing.  The half hour shower, soft bed with fluffy pillows made me quickly forget about the tent.

Elevation start 8162 ft.  Elevation end 8100 ft.

The event was a truly unique, and amazing.  It is something I will not do again but I am certainly happy I did do it.  I met some great people, and got to know others much better than before.  Most importantly, I was humbled.  I gained a deal of respect for ultra runners that I did no possess before. 

Thank you TransRockies Run.  Thanks to Heather for teaming up with me. 

Finish was 5th in the 80+ Women.  I am proud of that!

Vancouver Sun Run

Once again, I made the trek to Vancouver to take in the Sun Run. This is my favourite race. I never ran this race until I was over 40. I would have loved to have known how fast I could have run this course in my prime years! However, as a master I have posted a 37:20 but that was in 2002 at the young age of 41. In 2006, at 45 years of age I ran 38:45. Today at age 47, I ran 39:56 min. I ended up 39th female, 6th Master Female (over 40), and 2nd in my age category. I am happy with the time. Would I have loved to have gone faster, absolutely. I felt great and ran what the day gave me. I was fresh and confident, and I enjoyed every minute of this race today. Not for one second did any negative thoughts enter my head. I wonder if that is because as I age my only measurement becomes the year I am in and not the expectations of a personal best?

The night before, I watched the movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". An amazing movie. A movie that really makes you think about time, love, life and death. If you liked "Life as a House", you will like this movie. I also went out for my short distance pre-race meal and my favourite thing to eat, sushi. Before you know it, I racked up $30 in sushi off the floating boats of sushi.

Kronos athlete Bryce Greenwood ran the Sun Run as well and posted a personal best time of 34:29. Also, Triathlete Olympian and Speed Theory teammate, Lisa Mensink ran a personal best time in a smoking time of 34:43. She was 8th female. The women's field was very tight with only 41 seconds separating first and eighth place. Crazy!

After the race, I wondered around Robson St. Two new things caught my attention that I have not seen in Vancouver before (or anywhere else for that matter). The first thing was bacon ice cream. Yes, fried up bacon stirred in ice cream. Now I am not bacon fan but a dear friend of mine is; it made me think of her immediately.

The second thing was this Japadog stand which had a line up for at least a block. I was curious. So as I watched people order and read the menu, I became in interested. I ended up having a Turkey Terimayo. It is a dog smothered in Japanese mayo, nori, teriyaki sauce, fried onions and topped with seaweed. Now I am not a fan of dogs since having worked in a snack bar when I was in grade 9 and 10; the smell usually sends me running. However, this was interesting and after all I needed to endulge in something "not so good for me". BTW- the dog was darn tasty. An explosion of tastes in my mouth which reverted me back to a scene in the movie I watched where they were eating caviar and drinking vodka. The connection is that I have never tried that either but am curious now!

BTW, 55,858 people sign-up for the race and this was the 25th running of the race. Here is how the top guns played out:

Overall Winners Name City/Country Time Prize
Men
1. Willy Kimosop Kenya 29:04 $3,000
2. Dylan Wykes Kingston, ON 29:12 $1,000
3. Kiprotich Yegon Kenya 29:33 $500
Name City/Country Time Prize
Women
1. Abebu Gelan Ethiopia 34:04 $3,000
2. Chantell Widney Edmonton, AB 34:23 $1,000
3. Fiona Docherty Boulder, CO 34:25 $500
Top Canadians
Name City/Country Time Prize
Men
1. Dylan Wykes Kingston, ON 29:12 $2,000
2. Richard Mosley Coquitlam, BC 29:41 $1,000
3. Scott Simpson Victoria, BC 30:08 $750
4. Mark Bomba Coquitlam, BC 30:39 $500
5. Rejean Chiasson Ottawa, ON 30:41 $250
Name City/Country Time Prize
Women
1. Chantell Widney Edmonton, AB 34:23 $2,000
2. Kristina Rody Burnaby, BC 34:27 $1,000
3. Cheryl Murphy Victoria, BC 34:29 $750
4. Lucy Smith Sidney, BC 34:33 $500
5. Lisa Harvey Calgary, AB 34:36 $250
Masters (40+)
Name City/Country Time Prize
Men
1. Mark Bomba Coquitlam, BC 30:39 $750
2. Steve Boyd Kingston, ON 31:09 $500
3. Tony Young Redmond, WA 32:20 $250
Name City/Country Time Prize
Women
1. Lucy Smith Sidney, BC 34:33 $750
2. Joan McGrath New Westminster, BC 37:16 $500
3. Helen Ritchie Vancouver, BC 38:50 $250
Wheelchairs
Name City/Country Time
Men - Quad Division
1. James Hustvedt North Vancouver, BC 41:39
2. Robert Mabey Kelowna, BC 51:31
Women - Quad Division
1. Michelle Stilwell Nanoose Bay, BC 35:43
Men - Open Division
1. Kelly Smith Langley, BC 24:04
2. Paul Clark Kelowna, BC 32:54
3. Alvin Lee Vancouver, BC 51:44
Women - Open Division
1. Jessica Des Mazes Victoria, BC 39:56
2. Kiran Aujlay Delta, BC 51:26


Thank you to Colin Timberlake for his nice write up on his website. I have never met Colin but after he left a comment on my blog I looked him up. I am honoured to have inspired you! Check out his site and the write-up: http://www.colintimberlake.com/sandra-yaworski-sun-run-vancouvertraining-log-the-discipline-of-steel-day-28/

CycloCross Nationals

The weather was chilly and feet were frozen but I had a blast anyway. I ended up 7th place in the Master Women and battled out most of the race with Carolyn Soules but she got me in the end. The course had a lot of fast flat sections, one area where there were logs and you had to do a run-up, two barriers and a very crazy technical section off camber. To be honest, I really have liked the Calgary courses and really did not like this course as much. I found the Calgary courses more technical, challenging and exciting. This was a roadie course and kind of boring.

On Sunday, in the second race (same course) I ended up 4th and felt better than on Saturday. Part of it was that when I arrived at the venue to look at the National results from the previous day, they had me in last spot and down a lap. They were reluctant to hear my appeal until the winner said noone had been lapped and the riders who were behind me confirmed my story. After that they pulled the officials lap sheet and saw that I in fact did place 7th. It made me race harder as I felt I needed to prove myself. So far, I have yet to be placed properly in the cyclocross races in the race results. It has not bothered me until now as at Nationals I don't think the results should wrong. Expecially when they check your helmet and bike twice to ensure you are completely legal, have a row call and assignment of lanes, and at least 10 officials on the course recording your number on sections of the race course. I raced hard and just want my placing to be accurate at the National level. Sorry for venting!

This coming up weekend is another two races here in Calgary. It will be my last two races. I am eager to race hard to finish things up for the season. Great venue on Saturday at COP!

Cyclocross Racing

So what the heck has Sandra been up to? This year I thought I would buy a cyclocross bike and dive into racing cyclocross. Now I had never even seen a cylcocross race before attempting my first Tuesday night casual racing night to help me prepare for my first weekend of racing (last weekend). The season is relatively short starting in mid-September and finishing up at the end of October.

Training for me consists of taking my cyclocross bike across some park area and riding up some grass hills, running with my bike up some stairs and hills, and working on dismounting and remounting at speed. Being an absolute beginner with this, it has been a rather slow and sometimes painful (literally) process. At last, I am starting to see some improvement in my ability to do these fundamental skills.

There have been some absolutely fantastic sessions where I have scared squirrels, gophers, rabbits and coyotes from their hiding spots and sent them scurrying across the park. When a rabbit fled across the field I felt like I was engaged in some sort of safari on a bike. Experiences like this are great, the crashes and groin crushing experiments in botched remounts are not. Often my training sessions contain both, moments of absolute bliss and confidence crushing misfires and crashes.

The past weekend, I had pretty strong races. My dismounts at speed are improving but remounting at speed is still a challenge though it is improving. The problem with both skills is largely rooted in a lack of confidence in my ability. Being tentative about these movements makes them much more difficult to execute cleanly, and not executing them cleanly makes you even more tentative about them. In addition, mounting is often done on a side of a hill which is crazy. Conversely, a clean execution increases your confidence when you execute the manoeuvre the next time, so it will most likely execute smoothly as well. It occurs to me that this may contain a metaphor for life in general. Yeah, one big challenging, adrenaline-filled, painful, joyful, groin-aching and confidence-testing metaphor for life.

Cyclocross is a more aerobic and intense workout (good for the colder temperatures of the fall and winter) and improves your fitness and bike handling skills tremendously. However, it trashes your legs so being a runner I will pretty much have heavy legs until the season is over. I attempted to continue to train for running while cyclocross racing but it does not work. So all my running is recovery based with some attempt to do short hills and lots of strides. I figure this will help me in the runs ups and barrier jumping involved in cyclocross.

Tonight is the first ever Alberta night race in Cyclocross at the University of Calgary and Sunday there is another race at the same location. This will be followed by Nationals in Edmonton on the long weekend. I cannot wait. I hear it is supposed to be something. Anyone who has not seen a cyclocross race should definitely come see one. Check out the Alberta Bicycle Association website for locations and times.

2008 Cycling Season

At the beginning of 2008 it became apparent that, due to Osteitis pubis, I would be unable to run consistently. As such, I needed to focus my energy on something else; I was bent on bike racing all three disciplines of Time Trialing, Criterium and Road Racing. I had done a bit of bike racing previously, but only to the extent of committing to a couple of races each year. This year I raced my bikes a lot (maybe not as much as Frank or Trevor) and Trevor thought it would be a wise thing for me to share some of my learnings, as I pretty much said that I sucked at the whole bike racing “thing”. I really don’t mean that to be negative as I had a great deal of fun, learned a lot and want to get better at racing.


The most fun I had, and the discipline I enjoyed the most, was the criterium. Every Tuesday night I did the Midweek races at the U of C research park. The first two criteriums I did left me with the taste of blood in my throat. Anyone who has raced indoor track is well aware of this taste and the nagging cough that goes along with it. However, I was determined to get stronger and better at the event. I learned to corner really well and learned to hang on to the front as much as possible. I even managed to win a couple of sprints. This Tuesday night racing resulted in me being extremely comfortable on my bike, learning to hang on, and to respond to tactics. I love the criterium!

The Time Trial is not all that new to me as I do have a bit of a multi-sport background. However, I learned from the Criterium to push myself harder in the Time Trial. This year, I was not as comfortable with my time trial bike as when I was when I trained for Ironman. In the end, I feel that I would have benefited from riding my time trial bike once a week doing some time trial type efforts. When it came to climbing in the time trial bike, I just seemed weak.


Now for the Road Racing: three races taught me a lot. They were the Bearspaw Open, Provincial Open and Masters Provincials. In each of these races, I actually was able to work with a pack of women. In each of these races, I tried something different.

In the Bearspaw Open, I performed most of the climbing duties with the pack I was in. I just happened to be the strongest climber in the group of four that I was in. I was fine with that, but when it came to the very last climb, the legs of the other women were fresher, and I had no sprinting capability whatsoever (not that I ever had any in the first place). Reflecting, I feel I could have attempted a break on the back side of this course, in an attempt to bridge myself and use my climbing strength. However, I am not certain if I would have survived. I do know that I often waited on two climbs of this course for the other riders to come back to me. I am not certain that the result would have been any different if I had not done this. In the end, I had a great time and was happy with the outcome.

In the Provincials Open, the race started with 9 women, and two women broke out on their own very early in the race. I worked with a group of 7 women which eventually ended up being 4. Three of these women essentially pulled away and eventually split up to race individually (I guess they wanted to time trial). This left 4 of us who shared the work. Again, I was faced with doing most of the work on the hills with one of the other riders. We agreed to work together and wait if a rider fell off the back. This is a really foreign concept to me. But I agreed and was even scolded once for going too hard on a climb, which resulted in two of the riders falling off the back. I am not certain what the etiquette in cycling is, but I thought I was in a race. After thinking about being scolded for the next 20 km or so, and the race nearing the finish, I decided with about 8 km to go to attempt to pull away. I hammered up a hill and down the other side. I was feeling good and darn proud of myself…. But then with about 3 km to go I was caught by two of the women. They went by me like I was standing still. They got a minute on me over the next 3 km. Hmmm--- not sure if my strategy was an effective one or not. Certainly, I am open to anyone who has some advice.


In the Master’s Provincials, I was not sure what to expect. I did know that two of the riders were strong, and amongst the best in the World for their age, and in Alberta period. They both happen to be very strong climbers as well, particularly on short steeper climbs. I was happy to ride along and see how things would go. The first loop was very comfortable. There were 8 women but one fell off on the hills and eventually dropped out. That left 7 of us. We worked in groups of two and the pace seemed to vary a great deal. There seemed to be a lot of testing by the most experienced rider in the group (at least from my vantage point). There was an attempt by this rider to break on one of the downhills. I reacted quickly to her and by the time we finished the decent, the group was back together. Near the end of the first lap, the pace became really slow and I decided to pull out from behind and attack on a hill. The two strong hill climbers were on my wheel immediately. We got to the top of the first rise and bang, another attack by one of the riders. We finished that rise and bang, another attack. I tried so hard to stay on the attacker’s wheel along with another woman. I started to feel myself cracking and wham, I cracked. The remaining women caught back up and I found myself unable to get back in with the other four riders. They left me behind. I felt I needed a bit of recovery and needed some help from someone, but no one was there. I found myself riding the last 20 km by myself. I cursed myself for attacking. I wondered how things would have played out had I not initiated an attack. I do know that if the pack stayed together until the end, that I would not have been able to sprint with these women. So it is unlikely that my placing would have been any different but my time would have.


In the end, I have had lots of fun and really am eager to figure out the strategy a bit more. It is unfortunate that there are not more women out there racing. I don’t think that there is a huge gap between the A and B riders in terms of fitness. However, there is a huge gap between riders when it comes to experience levels. I really like this sport and it is my hope that more females will get involved and not be intimidated by the sport. There is a place for everyone and a pack to work with. If anyone out there has some tips and tricks for me…. Lay it on me.

Next up ...........

I am going to try out cyclocross and see what it is like. I will be riding the Argon18 Arsenic. Here is a picture of the new ride:


The 2008 Midweek Mayhem cyclocross season starts. Schedule for 2008 CX Season:

- Thorncliffe Park - Sept 9 (7:00 PM)
- Laycock Park - Sept 16 ( 6:45 PM)
- Laycock Park - Sept 23 (6:45 PM)
- Deerfoot Park - Sept 30 ( 6:30 PM)
- Deerfoot Park - Oct 7 (6:30 PM)
- Canmore Park - Oct 14 (6:30 PM)
- Shaganappi Park - Oct 21 OR Oct 28 (tentative) (6:15 PM)

Check the Alberta Bicycle Assocation for the weekend races. Every weekend there are two races in either Calgary or Edmonton. Provincials and Nationals are in Edmonton.

Bike Racing Experiences

Well this year I was eager to get back into bike racing and have some fun with it. I think most everyone enjoys the excitement of a Crit. (as a spectator that is). However, I decided to do the Tuesday night crits. as a way to get comfortable before I tackle them in a real race. So far I have done three of them and at each one I get better at the cornering and strategy. I am having loads of fun. It reminds me of the year I came off training for and competing in marathons and decided to do 3000/5000 on the track. That was a blast too.

This past weekend I was out at Banff and took part in the time trial. My time was horrible. One of my contacts flew out of my eye and onto my sunglasses. I wasted time trying to get it back in my eye while riding and realized that was not going to work. In the end I rode the rest of the time trial with the contact on the tip of my tongue. Every time I had to spit or swallow, I had to take the contact out of my mouth. I will get it back next time.

At my ripe age of 46 years, I take everything in stride. What I mean is that I enjoy the experience of just being able to still compete. I love the excitement of racing and seeing how the body and mind reacts. I still learn and hope to continue to pass on my learning's to others.

Golden Bear Indoor Track Meet

Well this weekend, I thought I would do something different and race on the track. I have always wanted to race at the same time as my neice so this weekend I got to do that in the 3000m. It was alot of fun as coaches from my past and Faye's present, along with friends thought it was a cool thing. I had fun hanging out with Faye's Dino Teammates.

I think this may have been my 6th 3000 meter indoor race ever and my very first 1500 meter race ever. When I trained for marathons in my prime, I used to race the 3000m at the end of my 20 mile runs. In 2002, I trained for indoor 3000m for the first time. I had just turned 40 years of age and was just coming off a torn plantar facia. I thought it was a good way to get back at it. That year, with no experience racing on the track I managed run two 3000 in 10:36 and 10:34, respectively. I also did a indoor Master mile at the Talisman and ran 5:32.

Now at age 46, and just coming off a marathon in December, I was curious to see where I was at in terms of speed as I began doing track workouts on Januray 1. So running a 3000m was the only sure way that I felt I would determine this. I thought I would run around 11:15 but I ended up running 12:01. I have some work ahead of me! I decided to run the 1500m just out of curiousity. I had no clue what the event was about. I have to say that this is the most fun I have ever had. This event is totally fun. I really liked how fast it goes by and how the pain comes rushing at you at between the 800 and 1200 meter points. I love this. I enjoyed pushing through this. I cannot describe it but this is the kind of pain that I relish in. I wish I had more leg turnover to really do this event well. Maybe this summer that is what I will attempt to do leading up to the Canadian Masters Championships.

All in all I had a great weekened of racing. Most people are afraid of the track as it is a fishbowl. However, I love it as I believe it teaches you to deal with pressure and pain. And of course, the track never lies about the distance or how you race. Lap times tell you everything.

As for my neice, she had a tough weekend. I felt she ran pretty good but she was disappointed with her times. She is still building up from coming off her plantar facia injury last March. She just needs to get used to racing again. She has run 9:52 for 3000m and it has been hard on her mentally to see her pb on the clock with 200m to go. I feel for her and in my heart know that she will pull out a sub-10 before the indoor season ends. As for the 1500m, she can run 4:40 but just needs to hang in there. At 18 years of age, she has alot ahead of her.

Kudos to Grant Burwash who ended up 3rd in the 3000m. He had an awesome race and it was very exciting to watch. The open women's 1500 was also very exciting to watch as it was a photo finish with three runners.

Women 3000 Meter Run Open
================================================================
Name Year Team Finals
================================================================
1 Findlay, Paula 89 U of A Track 10:04.94
2 Graham, Chelsea 92 Edmonton Thu 10:24.96
3 Stenning, Faye 89 U of C 10:33.83
4 Medinski, Danika 89 U of A Track 11:08.73
5 Vogler, Nik 79 Calgary Inte 11:14.69
6 Hittel, Sarah 87 U of C 11:35.11
7 Yaworski, Sandra 61 UNA 12:01.24
8 Lithgow, Kirstie 87 U of A Track 12:01.76
9 Fleming, Jessica 86 U of A Track 12:09.12
10 McMaster, Sarah 90 Edmonton Thu 12:13.39
11 Thomas, Lexie 88 U of L 12:49.88
12 Biffert, Sheena 83 U of L 12:52.05
13 Bukieda, Katelyn 88 U of A Track 13:01.65
14 Travis, Emily 88 U of L 14:16.28


Women 1500 Meter Run Open
================================================================
Name Year Team Finals
================================================================
1 Souter, Jenn 84 U Sask 4:33.81
2 Sim, Heather 85 U of C 4:33.91
3 O'Connell, Jessica 89 U of C 4:33.93
4 Souter, Jodi 88 U Sask 4:50.92
5 Stenning, Faye 89 U of C 4:51.47
6 Richards, Marcia 88 U Sask 4:52.66
7 Aitken, Stephanie 87 U of A Track 4:54.99
8 Warkentin, Caitlin 88 U Sask 4:59.20
9 Hurdle, Valerie 88 U of C 4:59.33
10 Bernes, Megan 85 U of A Track 5:06.27
11 Vogler, Nik 79 Calgary Inte 5:10.20
12 Hittel, Sarah 87 U of C 5:20.37
13 Lithgow, Kirstie 87 U of A Track 5:27.63
14 Fleming, Jessica 86 U of A Track 5:35.79
15 Burton, Rachel 87 U of A Track 5:45.36
16 Soderberg, Jennifer 87 U of A Track 5:47.36
17 Bukieda, Katelyn 88 U of A Track 5:55.96
18 Zariwny, Larissa 79 U of A Track 5:59.57
19 Ulmer, Laura 82 Edmonton Mas 6:38.98

Women 35-49 1500 Meter Run Masters
================================================================
Name Year Team Finals
================================================================
1 Dixon, Donna 62 Calgary Road 5:17.33
2 Yaworski, Sandra 61 UNA 5:38.94
3 Corcoran, Marlene 63 Wapiti Strid 6:09.71

Sandra's Las Vegas Marathon

Well here is the overview of my marathon. My finishing time was just under 3:23 which is the slowest I have run a marathon. However, I have not run one since 2001 and I also was much younger and pretty much a full-time athlete. That may sound like I am a bit disappointed with my result but I really am not.

My goal was to just run and feel what it would be like to run a marathon again. I feel that through the training process I became stronger and now I can build upon that strength and get somewhat faster. It has been a while since I have felt this strong and so I am very happy about that.

Now for an overview of how the race itself went. Firstly, I only looked at my watch at three points in the race. This was at mile 5, 10 and the halfway point. I did not get caught up in my overall pace given what I thought I should be able to run. Instead, I went with how I felt and pretty much kept an even pace. I did this as I wanted to understand my body and to enjoy the experience. I succeeded in this.

I was confident and strong throughout the race. The course was generally flat with what I thought was a lot of downgrade sections. The first 10 km was slightly down and mile 16 to 22 seemed to be slightly down as well. This is a hard way to run a marathon. Downhill courses are the worst when it comes to marathons. In addition, the course surface was pavement with concrete underneath. I only know of one other course like this and that is Houston. If this was a 10 km that would be awesome as hard surfaces generally means faster times. However, for a marathon the surface can take a real toll on your body. As such, my guads and feet took a real beating. I just was not prepared for the combination of downhill and concrete that this course dished out to me. With the group of 11 women that I went with, we all were faced with sore quads and big time blisters.

I felt that I was capable of running under 3:10. I went through the halfway mark at 1:37 and was confident that I would run close to an even split. However, at around 14 miles I had to deal with a stitch which cost me some time. My overall feeling is that if was on another course (like CIM which I have run 3 times) I would have run under 3:10.

I am now eager to continue to train and run some indoor 3000 meter races and maybe some short distance I have never run to gain some leg speed and build upon my strength. In April, I will be hitting my favorite race, the Vancouver Sun Run. I tend to run well at this race (with the exception of my slow time last year).

Thanks for reading.

My Marathon Journey

Those of you who know me realize that I have done many marathons in the past and was quite good at it :). However, back in 2001, I tore my plantar fascia and that seemed to be the beginning of a number of events which would end my competitive running career. From that point forward, every time I attempted to rebuild my strength, something would occur that would challenge me yet again. These events were the return of cancer, the diagnosis of severe rheumatoid arthritis, a bike accident in which I broke my neck and pulled my groin, and getting hit by a car while running. Each event only served as a test of my will to continue to be the best I can be at any given moment.

"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength."
by Arnold Schwarzenegger

After a trying winter and spring, in which I struggled emotionally, mentally and physically, I decided to think about running a marathon. The last time I ran a marathon was in 2001 (not counting the two marathons in the ironmans I did). I played with this thought for some time and then in July I stated it aloud. In September I began my marathon specific training. Through the summer, I had some great training weeks but struggled with the fact that I lacked strength to be able to push harder. At some point in August, I let go of who or what I was in the past as an athlete and began to think of myself as an individual about to tackle their first marathon. I thought back to why I started running in the first place; to my initial diagnosis of cancer and how the process of running helped me heal and be alone with my fears. With this approach, I began to enjoy the process of training and feeling my body get stronger. As each week passed, my training became more enjoyable, and I saw in each interval session that I was getting faster and stronger. With this, my confidence began to increase. It has been an amazing and rewarding experience. This last six weeks has been an even more incredible journey as I have not felt so strong and confident since the early 2000s. I have always loved challenging myself and working really hard, but in the last few years I have spent time focusing on moving forward and overcoming obstacles and life's challenges. This last thirteen weeks has been only about me and my body getting strong. The outcome has been that I feel very strong emotionally, mentally and physically. My marathon is on December 2 and I am very excited about having completed my journey toward its preparation, and am even more excited about enjoying the day. I have not been this excited about running a marathon since I ran Portland Marathon back in 1994. That was an amazing journey and day!

People ask me what I think I will run. My answer is that it is not about the time, but the feeling that I can enjoy the day, as the journey was more than worth it. This will be the first marathon that I will run as an over 40 year old. In a way this is my 46th birthday present to myself. A friend recently asked me how old I feel. My answer was 32 years of age. That was the age when I beat cancer for the first time. I plan on keeping those birthdays coming!

No journey is travelled alone. I want to thank Syl Corbett and Shari Boyle who have done all my training with me. They have helped me get stronger and have pushed me along the way. It has been alot of fun training with these two who are always positive and a barrel of laughs. Thank-you Syl and Shari for being a part of my journey.

"When you get in a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn."
by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Marathon Taper and Sandra's final two weeks

THE MARATHON TAPER…HOW TO ACHIEVE OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE

Source: Pfitzinger, P., and S. Douglas. 2001. Advanced Marathoning. Champaign, IL:Human Kinetics.

Why Taper?
• Training provides the long term improvements necessary to successfully complete a marathon.
• Training leaves athletes a bit tired most of the time.
• The 3-week cycles provide some reduction in fatigue, but it is not enough to completely eliminate it and allow your body full physiological recovery.
• The goal of tapering is to balance continued training and resting to allow for the best possible marathon experience.
• The International Journal of Sports Medicine examined over 50 scientific studies on tapering and concluded that there is no doubt tapering works.
• Studies have found improvements in performance of up to 16% with most studies showing 3 – 5% improvement. At a 5% improvement, that means a 3:30 marathon can become a 3:19 marathon through proper tapering.
• A single workout, on the other hand will give you less than a 1% improvement in performance!

How Long Should You Taper?
• Studies show for the marathon one should taper for a minimum of 2-weeks with 3 weeks being optimal. Too short a taper will leave one tired on race day while too long will lead to a loss in fitness.
• It is wise to err on the side of tapering too little rather than too much.
• NEVER try to make up for lost time due to injury, etc during the taper weeks. By this time any gains in fitness that will impact marathon performance have already been realized and attempting to make up for lost miles or workouts will just leave you fatigued at the starting line.

How Should You Reduce Training to Improve Marathon Performance?
• Evidence indicates that the key to effective tapering is to substantially reduce mileage while maintaining intensity.
• Reducing mileage reduces the accumulated fatigue
• High intensity effort maintains fitness level
• Exactly how much to reduce training mileage depends on your current training mileage, age and health. Older runners tend to need a longer taper than younger runners.
• Studies have shown as a general rule of thumb:
o 3rd Week Premarathon: Taper 20 – 25%
o 2nd Week Premarathon: Taper 40%
o Marathon Week (6 days before): Taper 60%.
• Three weeks before is the most important time for a successful taper. Marathoners often do too much this week because the marathon still seems a long way off.
• It is much better physiologically and psychologically to allow your body to start to rebound this week, or you will find yourself feeling flat the last two weeks.
• Often marathoners also decrease training efforts. This can result in a small loss in fitness as well as a lack of psychological reinforcement.
• It is more effective to intersperse harder efforts within the recovery trend.
• For example, the Gazelle schedule has 3 x 1-mile intervals the 2nd week pre-marathon.
• Marathon week itself is all easy recovery, with the exception of Tuesday or Wednesday where it is recommended you do a 6 – 7 mile run with 2 miles at marathon pace.
• This is a dress rehearsal, even wear the same shoes and clothes you will wear for the marathon!
• By this time, if you have tapered properly starting with the 3rd week, you should feel light on your feet, like you can fly…this will provide a great psychological boost!

Carbo-loading and Hydration During the Taper
• It is vitally important that your muscles and liver be stocked with glycogen at the starting line.
• Marathoners used to deplete glycogen stores for 3 days (sometimes even completing a long run up to 20-miles the week before), then carbo-load the 3 days prior to the marathon. This is no longer recommended since carbohydrate depletion can suppress the immune system (this is why many marathoners get a cold the week after a marathon – glycogen stores have been depleted) and the long run will leave you sore and tired.
• What works just as well is to eat a normal diet until the last 3 days and taper your training program.
• Then the last 3 days, eat a high carbohydrate diet and do a short, slow run these days.
• Your body will store glycogen to almost the same level as if you did the whole depletion and loading program.
• Also, make sure you are well-hydrated in the days leading up to the marathon so that you don’t arrive at the starting line suffering from accumulated effects of dehydration.


Sandra's Final 2 Weeks:

November 19-25 (week 12 of 13)
Monday: 4 miles easy and 60 min trainer ride
Tuesday: 12 miles run
Wednesday: 6 miles. 8 strides
Thursday: 7 miles incorporating the last 3 miles 10 second faster than marathon pace.
Friday: 60 min trainer ride
Saturday: 6 miles easy
Sunday: 90 min easy

Total for week: Run 47 miles, Bike 2 hrs

November 26- December 2 (week 13 of 13)
Monday: 6 miles some strides
Tuesday: easy moring run of 4 miles and evening run as follows: 15 min easy; 2x400/2x800/1x1000/2x400. All 1 minutes recovery; 15 min easy
Wedneday: 4 miles easy.
Thursday: Off    
Friday: 20 minutes easy jog
Saturday: 20 minutes easy jog
Sunday: Las Vegas Marathon

Total for the week: 27 miles plus marathon

World Long Course Duathlon Results and Sandra's Plan for the Week Oct 22-28 (week 8 of 13)

Plan for the Week:

Monday: 7 mile easy run and 2000 m swim as recovery
Tuesday: 12 mile easy run and weights
Wednesday: AM: 75 min trainer ride PM: 10 mile run with 6 miles steady state/ 8 strides
Thursday: Long Fartlek of 10 miles and 2000 m swim as recovery
Friday: 90 min trainer ride and weights
Saturday: AM: 10 miles consisting of a mixture of Hills/ Tempo / Hills
PM: 2000 m swim as recovery
Sunday: 22 mile long run

Total: Run 71 miles; Swim 6000 meters; Cycle 2 hrs 45 min


World Long Course Duathlon

Elite Males
JOERIE VANSTEELANT Finish 03:06:42 BEL
JAVIER GARCIA Finish 03:13:03 ESP
KOEN MARIS Finish 03:13:22 BEL
KENNETH RASMUSSEN Finish 03:14:55 DEN
AKSEL NIELSEN Finish 03:15:33 DEN


Elite Females
CATRIONA MORRISON Finish 03:34:56 GBR
MICHELLE LEE Finish 03:40:05 GBR
YVONNE VAN VLERKEN Finish 03:43:43 NED
LUCY SMITH Finish 03:45:11 CAN
ULRIKE SCHWALBE Finish 03:45:25 GER

Sandra's Plan for the Week and Results from Around the World

Sandra's plan for October 1 to 7

Monday: 6 mile easy run and Weights
Tuesday: AM: easy swim and PM: Run Intervals
Wednesday: AM: 75 min trainer ride and PM: 8 mile run. Running the last 5 min hard
Thursday: AM: 30 min easy and PM: Fartlek
Friday: 90 min trainer ride and Weights
Saturday: Hills and Tempo
Sunday: 20 mile long run. Running the last 3 miles faster than marathon pace. PM: swim 2000 m recovery

Total this week: Run 70 miles; Swim 4000 m; Bike: 165 min; Weights twice


Around the World

Some fast running occurred this past weekend in big time events. Here are the highlights:

Great North Run
Tyneside, UK – It was meant to be a comeback show for Paula Radcliffe but Kara Goucher gatecrashed the party on Tyneside this morning as the American delivered a decisive blow to the British world Marathon record holder to win the Great North Run half marathon in north east England in 66:57.

It’s not that Radcliffe ran badly – she finished second in 67:53 – just that Goucher had a superb run, delivering a shock to the Briton as she produced the fastest half marathon in the world this year and the fastest ever by an American, her time quicker than Deena Kastor’s 67:34 US record from Berlin last year.

Scotiabank Marathon
Kenya's John Kelai won the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon Sunday in 2:09:30, the fastest time ever run on Canadian soil. Kelai, 30, shaved 25 seconds off the time posted by East Germany's Waldemar Cierpinski at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Kelai also cut 43 seconds from the Toronto Waterfront record previously held by countryman Daniel Rono, who Kelai ran down Sunday near the 40-kilometre mark before pulling away with a strong sprint to the finish line. Vancouver's Jerry Ziak was the top Canadian in his marathon debut.

Ethiopia's Asha Gigi won the women's race in 2:33:16, a course record for women. She was followed by Poland's Malgorzata Sobanska (2:34:21) and Russia's Alevtina Biktimirova (2:34:54). Lisa Harvey, 9th , 1st Canadian Woman, 2:48:46.0 followed by another Calgarian, Janelle Morrison , 10th, 2:49:36.0

Michal Kapral set a new "joggling" record for completing the marathon while juggling three objects.


Berlin
Running in near ideal conditions, Haile Gebrselassie shattered the World record in the marathon, clocking 2:04:26 at the real,-Berlin Marathon today. Defending his Berlin title, the 34-year-old Ethiopian knocked 29 seconds from the preview record, 2:04:55, set by Kenyan Paul Tergat over the same course in 2003.

NY 5Th Avenue Mile
NEW YORK (29-Sep) -- Alan Webb of Reston, Va., and Carmen Douma-Hussar of Ardmore, Pa., were the winners of the 27th annual Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile held here today on a breezy autumn day.

Webb clocked 3:52.7 to edge defending champion, Kevin Sullivan, a Canadian from Champaign, Il., who ran 3:52.9. Former UCLA Bruin Jon Rankin of San Diego, Calif., was third in 3:53.3.

Douma-Hussar, a Canadian, ran the fastest time here since 1998, winning for the second time in three years in 4:22.8. Amy Mortimer of Providence, R.I., was second in 4:23.6 and Sara Hall of Big Bear Lake, Calif., the defending champion, was third in 4:24.1.

Harvest Half Marathon
Coach Sandra Ran to finish in 5th spot and picked up her third pair of runners in 6 weeks.

Waldorf Cross Country
Shari BOYLE 35:18 F3039 2/7

Sandra is going to run her first marathon as a Master

Well I am going to run Las Vegas Marathon with a bunch of friends who I have competed against throughout my running career. Most of these over 40 women come from a track background. I did not come from a track background but have 20 marathons under my belt under the 3 hour mark. This will be my first marathon since 2001. I have yet to run a marathon as a master runner (40+). The question will be if I can still run under 3 hours. I am excited to find out.

Training begins officially on Monday, September 3. I have thrown in a bunch of racing over the last few weeks just to see how fit and what type of pain I can endure. I struggled with the first race (and the course was long) but was happy with my effort on the second one. I actually raced without holding anything back. I had to surge several times and find another gear (which has been deeply hidden) maintain a lead and win this race. The time was slow but I was racing for the win. As the men's times were slow too, I am guessing the course may have been a little long. Athletics Alberta seems to be doing a poor job of ensuring that the "run alberta series" and "timex races" are accurately measured. Oh well, I was happy with my effort.

Sunday I am going to run a 5km, and to be honest I cannot remember when I last did a 5km race. It should be fun. I thought that I might as well race before kicking off training on Monday. I plan on running as hard as I can and throwing up at the end!

I plan on posting my weekly workouts here for all to see. I hope to average around 65 to 70 miles per week of running, one swim, two bikes and two weight workouts. This is a far cry from mileage prior to 2003 when I averaged 80 to 120 miles a week. I feel my body can handle the 70 mile mark still, and have been averaging around 45 to 55 throughout this year.

Training planned for week 1 September 3 to 9:

Monday 7 mi easy run and 60 km bike and weights
Tuesday AM: 30 min easy PM: 15 min w-up; Intervals/ 7 x 1000 meter. 200 meters recover; 15 min easy cl-dwn
Wednesday 10 mi moderate
Thursday AM: 30 min easy PM: 15 min easy; 30 min tempo run at 1/2 marathon pace; 15 min easy
Friday 6 miles and weights
Saturday 18 miles long run
Sunday AM: 100km bike and PM: easy 2000 m recovery swim

Total distance: Run ~65 miles; Swim 2000m; Bike: 160 km; Weights x 2

If anyone wants to hook up for some workouts, drop me an email. Tuesday's I will be at Capital Hill Park, for the most part, with a gang of women.

Happy trails!

Two weekends of Races

Good racing to all racing this weekend at Apple Triathlon in Kelowna and various 5km / 10km races in Alberta.

Next Weekend, the highlight of alot of athletes either as participants or spectators... Ironman Canada. Athletes James and Dan (debut) slap the water, pedal the climbs and pound the pavement in Penticton. Rest, nutrition and hydration is pretty much all that remains for these boys.

Need to take a drive... well I say head to the Interior BC and take in the events. I hear it is hot there!

Oh, and I hear that Ryan is exchanging vows on August 25 in PEI. Dude, I have your shoes.

HSBC Calgary Marathon/ Half Marathon/10k

This weekend will bring some really fast runners to Calgary. The Women's Half Marathon has drawn an impressive field which will include Lioudmila Kortchaguina
and local favorite Lisa Harvey. The men's 10 km has also drawn a strong field including locals Jeremy Deere and Nathan Kendrick.

I am impressed with the quality of runners that this event is beginning to draw. Calgary is a tough place for people to race from out of town because of the elevation, so most top runners choose not to come here. However, as the prize purse continues to rise, this event will continue to draw a strong field. In addition, runners face hot and dry conditions with the weekend being the hottest if history proves out.

Coach Sandra will line up for the 10km. It has been a long time since I have run this race and what I remember is it always being really hot! Joining me will be Scott Meyerhoff and Geoff Hopfner. Oh yeah, Ryan Murray may tag along and throw this in as part of his biggest training week in preparation for Sylvan Half Ironman.

Come on out and watch the races and partake in the Stampede festivities.

2007 Oliver Half Marathon Results

What can I say HOT! HOTTER! EVEN HOTTER!

The Oliver Half Ironman would prove to be tough as by the time we began our run the temperature would soar to 35C and by finish it had peaked to 38C. The water stations had a hard time keeping up to the demand. The water stations were always packed with people and grabbing water and running was difficult. My first 10k of running was fine. I felt I had a good tempo going but after that it was like someone cranked the temperature up and the wheels came off.

Here is how everyone made out:

Ryan Murray
Swm 26:53
Bike 2:32:05
Run 1:48:40
Final time: 4:47:36
Placing 10/39; 23/376


James Schneider
Swim 35:44
Bike 2:56:34
Run 2:04:56
Final Time: 5:37:13
Placing 24/72;129/376

Dan Barker
Swim 32:10
Bike 2:51:53
Run 1:50:14
Final Time: 5:14:17
Placing 11/72; 69/376


Sandra Yaworski
Swim 39:38
Bike 2:55:10
Run 1:57:04
Final time: 5:31:52
Placing 2/48; 33/303

For me, this was 11 minutes slower than last year. This year my swim was exactly 3 minutes faster, my bike 3:15 faster, and my run was 1:57 compared to 1:39 last year. The good news is that my age category record which I set last year still stands at 5:20:35. Had it been in the lower 30s, I feel I would have crushed my previous record. I say this confidently, as the last two years, I have done Osoyoos in similar conditions and have held it together on the run. I think the biggest difference this year is that I did not spend time in Penticton, like in the previous two years, to adjust to the heat. I recall last year biking in Penticton in mid-May, we hit temperatures in the the mid to high 30s for the entire week. I love the heat and have always competed my best in the worst heat conditions but this time I had zero preparation for this heat. I think that most Albertans were in the same boat.

Dan got his Ironman Canada spot and had a smoking time for his first Half Ironman and for an old dude of 45+. Dan commented, "I had a great race. I wish it was hotter."

James bettered his time over last year by close to 10 minutes. James had blisters on his feet and seemed to enjoy walking on the asphalt with bare feet to soothe those blisters.

Ryan did awesome for his first Half Ironman, and like me, suffered on the run. Ryan commented, "I have never done anything in this kind of heat before except for laying on the beach." Kyla smiled indicating that Ryan may have participated in other events in this kind of heat.

Sandra just complained that she could not put any pressure on her feet as the arches of both feet cramped severely in the last 5k. James attempted to talk to Sandra, but she firmly told James that she would not like to engage in conversation until it was all over.

In the end, we all had burgers, chips and pepsi. In a week we all will have forgotten about how DARN HOT it was!

How HOT! So hot that my digital reading on my wireless computer was no longer reading and had to wait until later to revive itself. So hot that my cell phone, which I left in my car, would not charge until it left the heat of the Okanagon and entered Golden. So hot, that my anti-perspirant melted so I smelled all the way home. So hot, that my smarties melted. So hot, that I had three slurpees and three 1.5 litres of water on the ride home. So hot, that today I am still peeing yellow. So hot, that I will have a stupid looking tan for the rest of the summer.


You learn you can do your best even when its hard, even when you're tired and maybe hurting a little bit. It feels good to show some courage.
-Joe Namath

Oliver Half Ironman this weekend and races last weekend

Oliver

It is the big race for alot of my athletes this weekend. I too will participate (looking to have fun and hang out with friends).

Who is making the trip:

James Schneider
Dan Barker
Ryan Murray

Dan is hoping to grab an Ironman Spot. Lookout for Ryan as his training and racing over the last 6 weeks has been outstanding. James is finally kicking my ass in the pool, and hopefully, he can do that in the lake.

I surprisingly felt pretty good on my bike ride on Saturday. I have been doing my longer rides with Kim Sorenson who is gearing up for Coeur D'Alene IM. Kim just came off a PB performance for the 1/2 marathon in Penticton and it was after doing a 180 km ride on the IM course in Penticton.

Athletes who raced last weekend:

Dan Barker, Katie Frauts and Lyndsey Kate Morice did the Lethbridge Olympic Tri where there woke up to 3 degrees and rain.

Johanna Tull and Kristy Blanchette did the half marathon in Red Deer. Johanna struggled with some stomach issues and Kristy pulled out a PB.

Opening spots for Coaching

I have 3 spots open for athletes who are interested in being coached by me. Contact me by my email address at the bottom if interested.

World Duathlon Results and Race Report

Pictures of Sandra Yaworski, Catriona Morrison, Magali Tisseyre, and Nicole Vogler










Results for the Duathlon World's can be found here:

http://cch.m42.hu/eredmenyek/detailed.php?EventId=Gyor07DAd&Action=List

Don't put too much weight on the run times as the courses were short. My guess is around 700 to 800 meters. The bike course was short too but I think they note that in the results.

Race Report

I arrived in Gyor on Monday night before the race. I hard a really hard time adjusting my inner clock to the time change. As such, my sleeping and eating pattern was way off. I really was not able to eat until Friday night. That night I spent with Grant instead of going to the opening ceremonies. Grant Burwash and I had a quiet dinner and had a really good chat. His race was Saturday and mine was on Sunday.

Earlier in the week I checked out the course and took a day trip to Budapest with a group of people from the Canadian team. I got to know Magali Tisseyre who was on the Canadian Elite team. She is 25 years of age and has a really good head on her shoulders. She was both excited and nervous about racing. Watch out for this young woman in both the Duathlon and Half IM distance over the next several years. She definitely has alot of potential. I also spent some time with Stewart Guynan, my friend from Great Britan. Catriona Morrison arrived on Thursday but I did not see her in person until Saturday.

I watched the Women's Elite race on Saturday but was unable to watch the Men's race. Thanks to Grant for convincing me not to. I instead spent time with Catriona, grabbed a bite to eat and rested. It was a hot day but I really wanted to watch Catriona, Magali and Nicole Vogler race. I have coached Nik Vogler but never have seen her race so I was pretty excited to see how her form, which we worked really hard on, would come together. I spoke with both Mag and Catriona about their races. Mag was pretty happy and felt she may have gone out too hard on the first 10k. Catriona felt off the week going into this race. A little flat coming off her HIM a couple of weeks ago. She also had mechanical difficulties with her rear wheel. Actually, had to get off her bike and make adjustments. She is now going to be focusing on European Championships. Catriona will be finally getting married in July and then coming to Calgary in August. Totally looking forward to that. I was unable to chat with Nik about her race. She appeared to run well. On the bike Nik and Mag did more than their share of the work in the pack they were in. I kept yelling on the last two laps for them to break away but that did not happen. Catriona ended up 9th, Nik 21st and Mag 18th. There was an under 23 that placed ahead of Mag and Nik so she was taken out of the results which moved both Nik and Mag up in the results and in the top 20 prize money. There were 30 elite women competing.

My race was on Sunday. It was really hot and humid. I stayed out of the sun until about 40 minutes before my race. I decided to do a shorter warm-up than usual. Not too sure if that was a good or bad decision. All the women went out together. The pace went out hard. I started out a little slower and made my way up throughout the first 10k. I really was not happy with my 10k run. The transition zone was really long and I had really quick transition times comparatively. The 10km run was two loops with the a slight rise in the road when we went over an underpass. The bike was 2 loops and only some rises going under overpasses. We had five 180 degree turns on each lap which generally slowed things down. I struggled a bit on the first lap but had a great last two laps. My 5k run off the bike was really strong. I was really happy with it. I pushed and my legs felt pretty good. All those hard brick sessions which I dragged Mike, Ryan and Bart out with me really with paid off. I ended up 6th in my age category and 44th woman. I had hoped for a bit better placing but generally am happy but not satisfied with the end result. My running has been just starting to come around. I had some awesome workouts in the last month leading up to the race. Thanks to Scott, Ryan and Bart for doing those 3 sets of 4x500 and the gruelling 3x500/ 5x1000/ 3x500 with me. My running form seems to be coming back to true form. As soon as I get the HIM out of the way, I hope to continue to push my running back into a better state after trashing myself the last two years with IM.

Geoff get prepared to do some hard track workouts when you get to Calgary. I am looking forward to doing some really hard running. The passion of running is back! Ryan and Scott will be gearing for some faster running too so it will be awesome. Now we just need to recruit Jenn back and we will have some good runs and pancakes!


My philosophy is that not only are you responsible for your life, but doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.
Oprah Winfrey


Article on Catriona:

Best of both worlds

Scotland is not blessed with too many world champions, so you ought to be able to name them all. Sport Scotland recognise six who have won global titles in the past 12 months, including three cyclists, a bowler and John Higgins, the snooker world champion, but not the national elephant polo team.

The Sport Scotland list does, however, include Catriona Morrison, the duathlon world champion, although clearly there is a pecking order even among world champions because the 30-year-old from Broxburn defends her title in Hungary this weekend as that rarity in modern elite sport: someone who works for a living.

Duathlon is the run-bike-run variant of triathlon. Triathlon gets Lottery funding, duathlon, which is not an Olympic event, does not. Morrison's 15th place in last year's Commonwealth Games triathlon saw her funding cut, a decision that was transmitted to her just before she went to Canada last summer and won the duathlon world title by a comfortable three-minute margin.

But triathletes are supposed to be capable of dealing with transitions, so armed with her gold medal and her determination, Morrison went out and got herself a job.

"Actually, I do enjoy it," she said as she laced her racing shoes. "It's a break from constant training."

With a summer marriage to her long-term partner Richard Jennings to plan, Morrison, a graduate from Stirling, is looking beyond her sports career. "We can't live on baked beans for five years. I really do have to think about my future. I'll do what I can on more limited training."

She works three days a week as the sports co-ordinator at Broxburn Academy, which includes duties with local primary schools and responsibility for the fitness programmes of more than 1,500 children.

So far, her race results have been encouraging. But compromises still have to be made. Work commitments saw Morrison last week leave for Gyor in north-west Hungary a day later than the rest of the British team. Thus, she had to endure a 12-hour journey by air and road on Thursday.

Typically undeterred, Morrison looked ahead to the World Duathlon less as a title defence ("It's a strange feeling, going into a world championship as the defending champion") than as a stepping stone towards two other events closer to home, and nearer to her heart: next weekend's Corus Glasgow Triathlon in Strathclyde Park, and then the European Duathlon Championship in Edinburgh on June 16.

"Duathlon is not as well known as triathlon," says Morrison, who has also won two world silvers in the past two years, "but I think it is tougher in many ways. It has 15km of hard running. For a lot of triathletes, running is not their favourite part of the race, so a duathlon with a 10km run, followed by 40km on the bike, and finished with another 5km run, is harder. A lot harder."

Duathlon is more popular in northern latitudes, where low temperatures restrict the opportunities for open water triathlon swims. Not that Morrison sees herself as a "triathlete who cannot swim", as some triathlon purists chide duathletes. "Actually, I think I am quite strong as a swimmer," Morrison says.

By training with Alison Sheppard's husband, former Canadian Olympic swimmer Gary Vandermeulen, Morrison has improved her swim phase, as she showed with her excellent win at the start of the month in the gruelling St Croix long-distance triathlon.

Not that her world title and recent form has done anything to improve her relationship with officials: "After St Croix, I asked whether they would pick me for the long-course triathlon world championship, and all they said was that competition for places was very tough," the world champion shrugged.

Having helped plan the Edinburgh duathlon, with a tough course around Arthur's Seat that should suit her strength as a former British Student cross-country champion, Morrison could have several points to prove in the next month.

"It is great to have a top-level event in Scotland. I want to prove to myself that I can combine working with top-level sport. But it is also important because I really want to win on home soil, because such opportunities don't come around very often."

9:25pm Saturday 19th May 2007

By Steven Downes

Read about Catriona's training schedule:
http://www.inthewinningzone.com/wz/article.aspx?id=102