Xterra COP - June 26th

This week's Xterra COP was a 10km mountain bike/4km run/10km mountain bike. Although after racing it on Saturday morning, I am not sure if you can call running straight up COP to the top, then running 200m flat, and then straight down the COP hill, a run?! More of a hike; which suited me fine as I have not been running very much. But it was a blast.

 From the time I arrived I was so impressed with how well organized it was. A variety of athletes of all levels came out for the challenge which makes these races appropriate for almost anyone who even owns a mountain bike. I was racing this week, along with my wonderful athletes, Cindy and Sebastian!

After a warm-up on the course (and some pictures), they called us to the start line. We were off with about 30 other athletes for the first leg of the mountain bike. It thinned out pretty quick and it was 2 loops of approx. 5km for each leg of the mountain bike. Then down into T1 before running up the mountain and back down (for the record Luke Way was in T2 when I was in T1! Way to go Luke). On the second leg of the bike I got to see both Sebastian and Cindy out on the course. Both were having a blast and were all smiles. I was all smiles too as I was racing my mountain bike - which I love more than anything.

We finished and cheered each other in. Upon crossing the finish line we got Crave Cookies as medals (which thank-goodness Cindy's kids were there to eat mine) and then received lunch while amazing draw prizes were given. I strongly recommend trying the next Xterra race!

Wednesday Night Ride - June 23rd

Tonight's Wednesday night ride is on Horse Creek Road. Take Highway 1A all the way to Cochrane. Continue through Cochrane. Once you pass over the 22X go about 1km - 1.5km's until you see a sign on the right that says HorseCreek Road. Turn right up the hill. Go about 200m and we will be oon the gravel road on the right.

See you there! Ready to ride at 6:15pm.

Athlete Updates

A great showing for TTL athletes this weekend!

Kelsey - Kelsey ran the Loops for Troops 5km this weekend. She went out hard and hung in for a 26:20 placing 1st in her AG and 2nd women overall! Way to go Kelsey! She plans to work on her run pacing before her next race which is in just over a week (the Turner Valley Triathlon!).

Sue - Sue ran a leg of the K-100 relay this weekend. She had an interesting day!
"I met Marc about 5 minutes after he finished leg 5, and our leg 6 runner had not shown up. So I threw the dog's leash at Marc, raced down to the sign in desk, scribbled something that didn't even look like a name, raced back to Marc, grab his number belt, and started running. I had about 3 cups of coffee so far that day, didn't have my "running shoes" on, still had my sweats on. Marc met me about 2 km into the leg, I stopped, changed shoes, took off my sweats, grabbed my water bottle and took off again - I still didn't know how long the leg was. Next thing I knew I hit the 1 mile to go sign, cruised through the finish line, and then sprinted to the port-o-potty. Interesting day."


Congrats to Sue for helping her team out in a desperate situation!

Note: Coach Angie also ran a leg and had many people notice just how speedy of a runner she is; (she ran on a team of "runners" ie.non triathletes) and she held her own! Nicely done Coach Angie!

Summer Soltice Mountain Bike Race

This weekend was another MTB race - The Summer Solstice. It is on the Sulpher Springs loop which is a challenging loop that feels like there is more climbing that fast downhill. I actually was dreading it the night before knowing it would be a sufferfest. The sport women only had 1 lap of 12km though, which helped knowing going into it.

I was nervous race morning, but Ken and Kerstin Hurd stepped in to help alleviate that. Ken halped with what to do for warm-up and just being his usual supportive self, and Kerstin was her usual sweet self, which simply calmed my nerves being around her - she is lovely and not racing this year as they have a baby on the way! Here is a picture of them I pulled of Facebook:

When it came time for us (the Sport Women) to line up I was a wreck! I actually didn't even want to race! However like triathlon, once the gun goes off all nerves are forgotten and you just go. Race was fast with lots of climbing and a HR in the 170's (this is high for me but typical of mountain biking) until the fun downhill sections that make you smile ear to ear. There was also alot of mud which left many of us look like we were auditioning for a Tide commercial. And my Ibis got very muddy and several times throughout the race of trying to dislodge my chain (including 5 seconds into the race!) due to chain suck. However, mud in the eye, all over the bike, all over us and even in our teeth - but it was a fun day and I was on m MTB which is where I love to be.

So I let my HR recover and Bogi and Ramona came up and asked if I wanted to ride another hour. Hell yeah! So we rode up a new trail and made it back in exactly 1 hour. We all then spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out in the sun. Ramona, Bogi, Carthy, Shawna, Allistair and a few others helped make the afternoon so much more fun as we chatted, ate, re-capped the race, and won draw prizes  - and they all actually made the podium! A great day of mountain biking.

Triathlon - what we do - not who we are.

Triathlon is not “who we are”... it’s “what we do”. This article supports that sentiment.

http://www.triseries.ca/news_article.php?id=172

The Organ Grinder

Q: What is the Organ Grinder?
A: A 5 hour enduro mountain bike race put on by the BowCycle Cyclemeisters.

I had a great day out at the Organ Grinder out at the Canmore Nordic Centre this weekend. I managed to complete 4 laps (48km) in 4 hours and 33 minutes. This is the longest I have ever rode my mountain bike and there were a few lessons learned as this was my first “enduro” mountain bike race. After I was able to pre-ride the course on Friday I actually had nightmares about two of the sections “Laundry Chutes” and “Devonian Drop” but, when race day came I conquered my fears and rode them! This was one of my goals and I was ecstatic!

The other goal I had was to not go out to hard but yet I did. I had to again re-learn that if you go out to hard that you will slow down as the race goes on. I did stay happy though as I looked forward to the fun technical sections but, like I said, I did get slower on laps 3 and 4 - so I have to work on that. There was also a lot of climbing on this course which left some athletes wobbling and falling over on the steep climbs and muscles and lungs burning!

One crazy thing that happened on race day was that half way through the race they notified us there were bears on the course! Many racers actually saw her and her cub but, thankfully I was not one of them.

It was an extremely well organized event with amazing volunteers! I can't thank the volunteers enough - they cheered, they sat in the forest at the technical sections, directed and even fed us! Thank-you!

Next weekend I am racing the Summer Solstice Mountain Bike race and I can’t wait to be racing my MTB again.

Athlete Updates - Wasa weekend

I had 6 wonderful and hard working athletes race at Wasa this weekend. Here are the updates on their races:

Cindy Spence – Cindy accomplished many goals this year at Wasa which left her thrilled! Despite last year’s swim course being far shorter that this year, Cindy had almost the same swim time as last year (showing she really has improved her swim!). The other goal accomplished this race was that she was able to push herself hard on the bike and run. She worked so hard that even other athletes noticed her super effort! Cindy has been spending most of her bike time these days on her mountain bike as she is headed to Xterra Canmore later this summer and just loves her mountain bike! Oh, did I mention she is throwing Calgary 70.3 in there too?! Look for more from Cindy this summer.

Maureen McDonald – Maureen had a fantastic day in Wasa (although she might tell you otherwise since she is so hard on herself). With a 1 minute improvement over last year, this doesn’t account for the longer swim compared to last year. She was able to take a whopping 5:30 off on her bike time and a 1:30 off her run time. There was a lot of learning she is taking away from this race involving chin straps, speed laces, planning and strategy, and more! I know she will take that learning forward with her into GWN. I am proud of her for hanging in there and representing TTL so well! Congrats Maureen!

Jeff Binda – Despite not having any TTL gear as he just joined TTL less tah 2 weeks sgo Jeff represented TTL very well at Wasa. He really wishes he had TTL gear at this race as he loved seeing others run around in the bright orange and purple. He loves the team and is excited to get to know all of the amazing athletes on the team. He had a blazing fast race with an excellent effort on the swim, bike and run. He is a very strong runner and his goal is to work hard on the bike so that he does not have to chase down so many of the fast boys on the run (which is his specialty) in his next race. He is has just registered for Calgary 70.3 and we are excited to support him in his efforts there!

Angie Winkler – Angie was a bit nervous going into this race but WOW did she ever have a great day! Not sure what to expect, other than to do her best, she had the swim of her life, an amazing bike and a stellar run. Despite losing her bottle with all of her calories in it 25km into the bike, she was able to finish the race strong. She has been working hard and was using Wasa as a trial race to try things out and get ready for GWN next month. If Wasa was any indication, Angie is ready to have a great day there too!

Danielle Michaud – Danielle had a fantastic day at Wasa! She struggled on the swim but, was able to push the doubt out of her mind and get the swim done (also, despite the fact that she had sunscreen in her eyes and could hardly see where she was going! She said she just hoped the white caps all were swimming in the right direction). She struggled to get through transition and wants to work on speeding this up for the rest of her races this summer. She did however flew through the bike and run and cracked the sub-50 min mark on the run! She is headed to GWN in just 3 weeks and is happy with her dress rehearsal at Wasa!

Denise Roberts – Denise sped her way through the sprint distance triathlon on Sunday. Denise has worked very hard on her bike and run and it showed race day. Her run keeps improving and we are scared to see just how much faster she is going to get! She was thrilled with her run and actually called herself a runner when I talked to her today. Denise won the women’s sprint distance race and placed 5th overall. She has a few more key races this summer that might possibly include an Olympic distance triathlon. Whatever she chooses, I know she will do it with a smile!

Congratulation team!

COP Wednesday night (June 16)

The forecast looks good! See you at COP - meet at the main entrance to the day lodge at 6:15pm. Please be ready to ride then.

No COP tonight!

Sorry folks but, I am cancelling the ride at COP tinight.
Note: all of my coached athletes should have their indoor workouts. I emailed that out a few minutes ago.

See you next week.

Athlete Update

We had 2 athletes from my TTL crew racing last weekend.

Gerry
Gerry had a good day at the Oliver 1/2 Ironman. He finished in 7:35:05! I am so proud of him as he has been dedicated to his training and executed this race very well. He is taking some lessons away from this race and going to apply them to his next race - the Desert 1/2 Ironman!

Here is what Gerry had to say:
So, if I add up all those lost minutes I figure I threw away about 23 minutes,… at least 20:00. Considering it is still early in the year there is time to improve and I think I know what to focus on for the Desert ½ in July. The temperature will really need to be watched for hydration and the ride will be very tough (Richter Pass both ways). If I can bring in Osoyoos in under 7:30 I believe the original estimate of 16 hours for IMC can still be achieved.

Way to go Gerry!

Sebastian
After coming off an exceptional 2:57:37 marathon at Vancouver just a few weeks ago, Sebastian ran leg 4 (16.5km) of the Banff to Jasper relay. He placed 2nd overall on his leg and was less than 2 minutes back of a guy who was over 15 minutes ahead of him in Vancouver. I say he has recovered well and ready to go as he starts training for 24 hours of Adrenaline and Xterra Canmore. Oh, did I mention his team won the Corporate division! Go Seb!


Good luck to Jeff, Maureen, Danielle M, Cindy S, and Angie W. racing the Olympic distance race this weekend in Wasa. And to Denise who is racing the sprint distance in Wasa this weekend. If I recover from my sickness I will be at the Organ Grinder Enduro MTGB race in Canmore.

New TTL athletes

Welcome to Team TriLife Jeff and Kelsey!

Jeff:

Jeff comes from a running background and recently ran the Calgary 1/2 marathon in a blazing 1:34. He is focused and has his sights set on Boston. He has been working hard on his bike this year and has just registered for Calgary 70.3. I am looking forward to watch his move towards triathlon and know he will experience great success! He is racing the Wasa Lake triathlon this weekend so look for him out there.

Kelsey:

Kelsey comes from a competitive swim background. She has done a few sprint triathlons and will be doing her first Olympic triathlon this summer. She recently claimed the F25 - 29 Provincial Aquathon Champion title! She is a high school teacher and also works at a gym part-time. She is excited to get back to training and competing and we look forward to seeing her succeed! Welcome Kelsey!

Got a little muddy today

Jeff and I headed up to Powderface loop today. I don't like to ride wet trails as it can wreck them however, we figured it would be snow on the way up and dry on the way down as it is West facing. WRONG! But we had a great day! I feel like when I ride wet trails though that I owe extra trail maintenance hours!

Pushing my bike up! My shoulders really started to hurt after an hour!

At the top before we went down!

Yeah, it was muddy!

My poor dirty bike! Not to worry though she is all cleaned up.

And, as we started the trail we ran into Cal and his Critical Speed crew as they were riding 120km on the road! Hope you guys had a great rest of your ride!

June 9th Ride

Forecast is not good....however, plan right now is meeting is at COP (Canada Olympic Park) for hills! Meet me in the main parking lot by the doors to go into the lodge.

Wasa Lake Triathlon Athletes - you will be doing a different workout. Some of you already have it on your schedule so you can find a flatter location to get this done (or get it done on the trainer). I will update the status of practice on Wednesday.

Great articles from Coach Angie

Coach Angie found some great articles this morning. If you have some time to check these out please do as many of you have your first race of the season very soon!

http://www.active.com/swimming/Articles/Key-Principles-of-Open-Water-Drafting.htm?cmp=306&memberid=30578115&lyrisid=20688374

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/The_taper_blues.htm?cmp=306&memberid=30578115&lyrisid=20688374

http://www.active.com/women/Articles/Beginner-Bike-Handling-Tips.htm?cmp=312&memberid=20819436&lyrisid=20701002

http://www.active.com/women/Articles/5-Common-Pre-Race-Nutrition-Mistakes.htm?cmp=312&memberid=20819436&lyrisid=20701002

Athlete Update

Maureen McDonald – Calgary 10km
Maureen is improving in strides on the run this year! With a solid winter of training she has been racing up a storm. Maureen wanted to go race the Calgary 10km and compare her results to last year. Coach Loved decided that was great but with Wasa around the corner there was no time to taper. With no taper and a 5km “warm-up” Maureen PB’d by 1:15! Taper smaper!

Danielle Jackson – Ottawa Marathon
“All goals achieved” was the email I got! Danielle smashed her goal of finishing in under 5 hours with a 4:49 finish! I am so proud of her as she played mental games with herself over the course of the marathon, pushed through and won! She even made up some time during the last 9km to finish strong (and not in as much pain as her last marathon!). Despite the hot, humid conditions which are so different than Calgary weather she did extremely well! Congrats D!

Danielle Michaud – KGH Triathlon (aka Aquathon)
Danielle questioned her sanity as she hydroplaned down the snowy highway from Calgary to Sylvan Lake on Sunday. However, she had signed up and she was doing it! Well, it is a good thing she did as she took time off her swim and run despite the “less than favorable” conditions! Way to go for getting out there while many would have stayed in bed, Danielle!

On the agenda for this weekend: Gerry is racing Oliver ½ Ironman and Sebastian is racing on a Kananaskis Relay team. Have fun boys!

Look for Maureen, Danielle M, Cindy, Denise and Angie W at Wasa next weekend! They will be proudly decked out in TTL gear! I (Coach Love) will be racing a 5 hour endurance mountain bike race called the Organ Grinder where the goal of the race is to survive the 5 hours!!!!