Training Log Archive: BashIn the 31 days ending Mar 31, 2011:
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Thursday Mar 31, 2011 #
Note
**EDIT** - Oops, just realized I was linking to last year's event web page so had the wrong date. The race is this Saturday April 2, not Sunday.
Frankenjack inspired 'Bent and me to try the 35th Annual Humber River downriver race this Saturday. 13 km, up to class 2 in kayaks or canoes (we'll use a canoe). If you're interested, it's a whopping $15/person and I just phoned the organizer who recorded our names and said we can pay on race day.
Frankenjack inspired 'Bent and me to try the 35th Annual Humber River downriver race this Saturday. 13 km, up to class 2 in kayaks or canoes (we'll use a canoe). If you're interested, it's a whopping $15/person and I just phoned the organizer who recorded our names and said we can pay on race day.
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 30:00 [3]
More Daily Show. For some reason the kayak erg is less boring than the bike trainer but I'm looking forward to paddling on water again soon. Tomorrow night I'll be paddling in a swimming pool - a small improvement but it's progress.
Wednesday Mar 30, 2011 #
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 30:00 [3]
While watching The Daily Show as Jon Stewart tried to figure out Libya.
Strength & Mobility (Upper Body) 25:00 [2]
11 AM
Running 1:02:08 9.2 km (6:45 / km) +67m 6:31 / km
shoes: Poison Ice Bugs
Hingo came over to chat about the APEX adventure race in Switzerland. Due to other commitments, we both need to get our gear packed and details planned by the end of April even though we don't leave till May 20.
As the saying goes, one of the biggest challenges in expedition AR is getting to the start line. Luckily, APEX doesn't have a long list of obscure mandatory gear but as always, there are weight limitations to observe, gear bins/bags to figure out, and a few required items we don't currently have, e.g. a cell phone that works in Switzerland.
We need to figure out how to stay warm when wet in the Alps in springtime. Even if it's sunny, we'll be wet a lot between the sit-on-top kayaks and the canyoning, and we can expect glacial meltwater to be feeding some of the streams. Lots of planning left to do but we made good progress today.
We finished with a single track trail run, mostly around Palgrave East. Snow, ice, hills, tight curves and one impressive wipe-out by me on a slick hairpin turn. I slid kneecap-first toward a tree trunk and fortunately stopped in time to avoid a visit to 'Bent's surgeon. Beautiful day for a lunchtime run!
As the saying goes, one of the biggest challenges in expedition AR is getting to the start line. Luckily, APEX doesn't have a long list of obscure mandatory gear but as always, there are weight limitations to observe, gear bins/bags to figure out, and a few required items we don't currently have, e.g. a cell phone that works in Switzerland.
We need to figure out how to stay warm when wet in the Alps in springtime. Even if it's sunny, we'll be wet a lot between the sit-on-top kayaks and the canyoning, and we can expect glacial meltwater to be feeding some of the streams. Lots of planning left to do but we made good progress today.
We finished with a single track trail run, mostly around Palgrave East. Snow, ice, hills, tight curves and one impressive wipe-out by me on a slick hairpin turn. I slid kneecap-first toward a tree trunk and fortunately stopped in time to avoid a visit to 'Bent's surgeon. Beautiful day for a lunchtime run!
Tuesday Mar 29, 2011 #
Note
MEC has really expanded its product range. Today I bought a climbing helmet, paddling gloves, crampons and a little black dress - probably not to be worn together.
6 PM
Road Biking intervals (Trainer) 1:15:00
Carmichael Progressive Power DVD, workout #1. Oh goodie, the first workout was another time trial test - a verification of the original test I did two weeks ago to set my training wattage ranges.
This test was different. After a warm-up, we did 10 minutes in the Steady State power range as defined by the first test; this should be a little below lactate threshold. After some recovery, we did a second 10-minute interval holding the power 10-15 watts above Steady State; this should be a little higher than lactate threshold. Then the final 10-minute interval was 20-25 watts higher than steady state, i.e. close to max effort.
It was tough but I'm very obedient when a coach 20 cm tall on the TV screen keeps shouting, "Push it, push it - come on, go go go, you can do it!" Sweat flying, heart pounding, I got it done. Then the kicker... finding out the way the verification test works. If you're able to get through the second interval in the prescribed wattage range, you should consider increasing your wattage ranges for training. If you get through the third interval, particularly if you're hitting power numbers above your initial test, you *definitely* need to increase your wattage zones so you'll be working hard enough in subsequent workouts. Grrr, so it turned out to be an ambush and they got me!
My inner geek was very pleased to be able to watch all the numbers: power, cadence, heart rate, speed - oh my!
This test was different. After a warm-up, we did 10 minutes in the Steady State power range as defined by the first test; this should be a little below lactate threshold. After some recovery, we did a second 10-minute interval holding the power 10-15 watts above Steady State; this should be a little higher than lactate threshold. Then the final 10-minute interval was 20-25 watts higher than steady state, i.e. close to max effort.
It was tough but I'm very obedient when a coach 20 cm tall on the TV screen keeps shouting, "Push it, push it - come on, go go go, you can do it!" Sweat flying, heart pounding, I got it done. Then the kicker... finding out the way the verification test works. If you're able to get through the second interval in the prescribed wattage range, you should consider increasing your wattage ranges for training. If you get through the third interval, particularly if you're hitting power numbers above your initial test, you *definitely* need to increase your wattage zones so you'll be working hard enough in subsequent workouts. Grrr, so it turned out to be an ambush and they got me!
My inner geek was very pleased to be able to watch all the numbers: power, cadence, heart rate, speed - oh my!
Monday Mar 28, 2011 #
Note
One of my more controversial gear purchases based on feedback received... a new Jackson Hero whitewater kayak at a greatly reduced price because it's last year's model and the boat has been updated for 2011.
I found it on the MEC online Gear Swap and it will travel by bus from B.C. Funderstorm and I will be twins on the river now. Hope that's not in poor taste, like wearing the same dress to a party! (I think yours is a different colour, FStorm?)
I found it on the MEC online Gear Swap and it will travel by bus from B.C. Funderstorm and I will be twins on the river now. Hope that's not in poor taste, like wearing the same dress to a party! (I think yours is a different colour, FStorm?)
Strength & Mobility (Legs) 35:00 [2]
While watching The Daily Show. I was reading an article on the weekend saying that a runner should have small calves. The rationale is that it takes more energy to move a heavier leg forward, and the farther from your centre of gravity the weight is (i.e. the calves are far), the more work it is. Mountain bikers, on the other hand, have decent calf muscles, and adventure racers who want to trek up Alps could probably use strong calves as well. Ah, the constant confusion and compromises of multi-sport.
11 AM
Running (Trail & Road) 45:02 [4] 7.57 km (5:57 / km) +152m 5:24 / km
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Started the day by modeling for a magazine shoot with my friend Nikki, who is writing the article. The toughest part was finding bright-coloured clothes that were dressy enough for a magazine and ratty enough to bushwhack in.
We did some snowshoe running while pretending it was snowy enough to need snowshoes, and some snowshoe orienteering while pretending to navigate; at least we were holding the correct map. We know the professional photographer well and he got some great shots, one of which may grace the cover of a magazine next winter. I hadn't realized that the photo shoot would also include an animal wrangler or I would have brought BulletDog to hang out with the other two dogs.
I stopped on the way home to run an out-and-back route starting south on the Bruce Trail from Caledon Mountain Drive in Belfountain then east down the BIG hill on The Grange Sideroad, which was mostly covered in ice and hard-packed snow. On the return trip, the first kilometer (McLaren Rd. junction to equestrian neighbourhood sign) was a tough climb going most of the way up the escarpment. Then for the next 1.25 km, I gained elevation in little "steps" followed by short flat sections. I'll need to come back later in the spring and pretend this is an Alp. A few more repeats of the Grange and I'll be ready for the Eiger. ;) I felt good running today - loved the brilliant sunshine and snow.
We did some snowshoe running while pretending it was snowy enough to need snowshoes, and some snowshoe orienteering while pretending to navigate; at least we were holding the correct map. We know the professional photographer well and he got some great shots, one of which may grace the cover of a magazine next winter. I hadn't realized that the photo shoot would also include an animal wrangler or I would have brought BulletDog to hang out with the other two dogs.
I stopped on the way home to run an out-and-back route starting south on the Bruce Trail from Caledon Mountain Drive in Belfountain then east down the BIG hill on The Grange Sideroad, which was mostly covered in ice and hard-packed snow. On the return trip, the first kilometer (McLaren Rd. junction to equestrian neighbourhood sign) was a tough climb going most of the way up the escarpment. Then for the next 1.25 km, I gained elevation in little "steps" followed by short flat sections. I'll need to come back later in the spring and pretend this is an Alp. A few more repeats of the Grange and I'll be ready for the Eiger. ;) I felt good running today - loved the brilliant sunshine and snow.
Sunday Mar 27, 2011 #
10 AM
Note
When not taking photos, I was on the other strap, helping to drag the new treadmill from the garage around to the back of the house and into the basement. It weighs a hundred gajillion pounds and folds itself into origami shapes if you accidentally tap it in certain ways. Big thanks to 'Bent who risked injury to help me even though he will likely never use the thing. We were so zonked and frazzled after an hour of sketchy equipment moving (which included getting the equally heavy broken treadmill out of the basement, up the hill and into the garage) that we put off the long assembly process for another time.
Later we found the note saying that severe injury may result if you remove the treadmill from the box without following the assembly instructions. We couldn't agree more.
Later we found the note saying that severe injury may result if you remove the treadmill from the box without following the assembly instructions. We couldn't agree more.
3 PM
Road Biking (Trainer) 1:05:00
New Rockies Ride DVD with 'Bent. Good workout but it'll be much better next time when we mute the annoying soundtrack. Fun to watch and influence cadence and power.
8 PM
Note
Surreal moment of the weekend: seeing our faces 6 meters tall in a video projected on the side of a community centre.
This was part of the Woodbridge Earth Hour celebration and they'd filmed several of us talking about our experiences with renewable energy. In a surprise move, they added my name to the Green Hero award they'd announced for 'Bent, so I got no photos since I was busy shaking hands with the Mayor and councillors of Vaughan! Very cool (downright cold, actually) experience. I felt sorry for the young trumpet player who led us in "Oh Canada". Her lips must still be frozen to the instrument.
Today's cool moment was at the McMichael Gallery where artist and former adventure racing teammate Cory Trepanier gave a presentation on his painting expeditions to the Arctic. We wished that Mr. and Mrs. GHOSLO's exhibit was still at the gallery but it's been replaced with paintings by some Norman Rockwell guy. ;)
For wilderness lovers, here's a quote from Emily Carr that Cory used to open his talk:
"It is wonderful to feel the grandness of Canada in the raw, not because she is Canada but because she's something sublime that you were born into, some great rugged power that you are a part of."
This was part of the Woodbridge Earth Hour celebration and they'd filmed several of us talking about our experiences with renewable energy. In a surprise move, they added my name to the Green Hero award they'd announced for 'Bent, so I got no photos since I was busy shaking hands with the Mayor and councillors of Vaughan! Very cool (downright cold, actually) experience. I felt sorry for the young trumpet player who led us in "Oh Canada". Her lips must still be frozen to the instrument.
Today's cool moment was at the McMichael Gallery where artist and former adventure racing teammate Cory Trepanier gave a presentation on his painting expeditions to the Arctic. We wished that Mr. and Mrs. GHOSLO's exhibit was still at the gallery but it's been replaced with paintings by some Norman Rockwell guy. ;)
For wilderness lovers, here's a quote from Emily Carr that Cory used to open his talk:
"It is wonderful to feel the grandness of Canada in the raw, not because she is Canada but because she's something sublime that you were born into, some great rugged power that you are a part of."
Saturday Mar 26, 2011 #
10 AM
Orienteering 1:26:55 [4] *** 9.0 km (9:39 / km) +105m 9:08 / km
shoes: Poison Ice Bugs
Dontgetlost.ca Hard Rock training event. Over 100 people signed up, 50 of whom registered for the free "mini-nav clinic" beforehand. Wilsmith did an awesome job of introducing the basics of orienteering to the group while Katta, 'Bent and I wandered around to answer questions and show people things on their maps. I'm always impressed by people who can explain orienteering to total novices in a non-confusing way - that's not one of my skills. I think I'm good with intermediates but I'm lousy with beginners.
I headed out at the end of the start window and had an amazing time. It's rare that I can focus on navigating if I have an event day volunteer role so I often just mess around but today I ran well and my errors were relatively small. It was a morning of brilliant sunshine, snow, wet feet in frigid creeks, steep climbs, open forest and lots of people in the woods with big smiles. 'Bent felt that he ran quickly and fairly accurately, and he finished about 2 minutes ahead of me. Normally that would mean that I "win" given his faster trail running speed but I had to award him the win because Garmin says he did the course in 340 m less than I did!
I headed out at the end of the start window and had an amazing time. It's rare that I can focus on navigating if I have an event day volunteer role so I often just mess around but today I ran well and my errors were relatively small. It was a morning of brilliant sunshine, snow, wet feet in frigid creeks, steep climbs, open forest and lots of people in the woods with big smiles. 'Bent felt that he ran quickly and fairly accurately, and he finished about 2 minutes ahead of me. Normally that would mean that I "win" given his faster trail running speed but I had to award him the win because Garmin says he did the course in 340 m less than I did!
Friday Mar 25, 2011 #
Note
(rest day)
Banff Film Festival - always inspiring although I doubt I'll try anything I saw tonight. My favourite film was Crossing The Ditch, winner of the "Best Exploration and Adventure" award. It told the story of two inexperienced young guys who were the first to make the 2-month, 3,300 km kayak journey across the Tasman Sea from Australia to New Zealand. There were some very honest human moments, lots of humour, even a few tears.
There were two different films of guys who climbed the North Face of the Eiger solo without ropes. One of them speed-climbed it in 2 hrs 47 min and the other carried a parachute in case he fell. We saw him use the chute a number of times but not during his Eiger climb. He jumped off on purpose after summiting. This is the same area where we'll be racing during the APEX event in May.
There were two different films of guys who climbed the North Face of the Eiger solo without ropes. One of them speed-climbed it in 2 hrs 47 min and the other carried a parachute in case he fell. We saw him use the chute a number of times but not during his Eiger climb. He jumped off on purpose after summiting. This is the same area where we'll be racing during the APEX event in May.
Thursday Mar 24, 2011 #
Snowshoe Running 40:00 [3]
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Went for what will probably be my final snowshoe run of the season in KBash Woods. With only 10-15 cm of snow on the ground in most places, I could have easily run in shoes alone but it occurred to me that due to the weather swings, this would be a fun time of year to see how many different Attackpoint activities I could do in a 7-day period. Lots of colours for my bar graph! (No, it doesn't take much to amuse me - but it doesn't take much novelty to motivate me in my training either, which is good.)
Snowshoeing hills 15:00 [2]
Mostly hill climbing, including 8 X Lookout Hill. Trying to simulate the Alps in May so I'll need to do more of this sort of thing in the coming weeks. We won't know whether we will need snowshoes until closer to the event.
Strength & Mobility (Upper Body) 25:00 [2]
More of the Daily Show. I enjoy strength workouts - why can't I fit more of them in?
Power Yoga 23:00 [1]
Rodney Yee for Flexibility
10 AM
Note
If you're planning to improve your standing in the OARPS Series by doing the Salomon Dontgetlost.ca Giant's Rib Raid on April 9, check out the Dontgetlost.ca Hard Rock Enduro training event in Waterdown this Saturday - 10K, 5K and 2.5K (kids) courses. Lunch afterward, anyone?
Wednesday Mar 23, 2011 #
4 PM
XC Skiing - Classic 1:28:40 [2] 12.51 km (8.5 kph) +188m
After our early spring paddling yesterday, we had another change of seasons today.
School buses were cancelled as were various other events and appointments. A bunch of us, including the full Goose/Coach LD family, were going to Highlands Nordic for a fundraising dinner for their junior racing team; otherwise I wouldn't have gone out on the roads. As it turned out, the storm conditions ended north of Mansfield but fortunately there was still 10 cm of new snow at Highlands. They didn't groom today and it was slooooooow going - like an exercise machine with the resistance turned up. I pushed up a few hills but mostly took it easy and used the quiet time to think about things.
The fundraiser was a Quebec-style maple syrup-themed dinner, complete with fiddlers in red and black checked lumberjack shirts.The idea was to put maple syrup on everything you were served - in your soup, on your veggies, etc. You name it - we put syrup on it. I won't ever need to eat again.
School buses were cancelled as were various other events and appointments. A bunch of us, including the full Goose/Coach LD family, were going to Highlands Nordic for a fundraising dinner for their junior racing team; otherwise I wouldn't have gone out on the roads. As it turned out, the storm conditions ended north of Mansfield but fortunately there was still 10 cm of new snow at Highlands. They didn't groom today and it was slooooooow going - like an exercise machine with the resistance turned up. I pushed up a few hills but mostly took it easy and used the quiet time to think about things.
The fundraiser was a Quebec-style maple syrup-themed dinner, complete with fiddlers in red and black checked lumberjack shirts.The idea was to put maple syrup on everything you were served - in your soup, on your veggies, etc. You name it - we put syrup on it. I won't ever need to eat again.
Tuesday Mar 22, 2011 #
Paddling (Kayak) 35:00 [2] 5.4 km (9.3 kph)
Frankenjack, Getawaystix and I hooked up for a weeknight whitewater paddle on the Bighead River in Meaford.
Go ahead and laugh at me, I still have my Coast to Coast sticker on my helmet. They give you a bazillion stickers that are mandatory to put on just about everything. I haven't had the heart to remove them all yet.
At this time of year, this section of the Bighead is class 1 and 2 with a few wave trains big enough to splash you hard in the face with very cold water.
Obstacles included a few sweepers but not as many as on the Credit. The water tonight was higher with a bigger gradient than the Credit.
We had to stay alert for partially submerged rocks and small ledges. If the water were much lower, this section might not be much fun. I missed seeing one rock mid-river and ran up it like a ramp till I was mostly high and dry. Then I think I may have done a wee boof. Not sure if that counts as one.
In one of the biggest rapids, I hit a rock that spun me around so I ran part of the rapid backwards until I got turned around again. Not pretty but I stayed upright. We all made it to the take-out point without incident - but then, foolishly, I thought it would be fun to play in the final rapid. Fail! I think I was peeling out when this happened. I *know* I wasn't leaning hard enough in spite of getting lots of practice earlier in the paddle.
The boys were there when I surfaced from my wet exit, preparing to either rescue me or start trash talking, depending on how I looked. I made a grab for my paddle, having seen how quickly they travel. Frankenjack took my boat while Getawaystix offered a rescue tow. He was pretty disappointed when I discovered that the water was just over my knees so I could walk to shore.
Frankenjack had been pulled into the next rapid and both guys had to head after my boat, which had escaped and was taking on water and getting heavy because - as I'd been warned when I borrowed it - it had no air bags. Right around now, I realized that my idea of carrying iPhone, wallet and car keys in a dry bag in the back of my boat might not have been such a stellar idea.
There was a happy ending. I went 100 m along the shore and found Frankenjack emptying my boat. Note all the big chunks of ice from the recent break-up.
Dry and cheerful post-paddle.
The *real* purpose of our training mission - dinner, drinks and half-price appetizer night at the Leeky Canoe.
Go ahead and laugh at me, I still have my Coast to Coast sticker on my helmet. They give you a bazillion stickers that are mandatory to put on just about everything. I haven't had the heart to remove them all yet.
At this time of year, this section of the Bighead is class 1 and 2 with a few wave trains big enough to splash you hard in the face with very cold water.
Obstacles included a few sweepers but not as many as on the Credit. The water tonight was higher with a bigger gradient than the Credit.
We had to stay alert for partially submerged rocks and small ledges. If the water were much lower, this section might not be much fun. I missed seeing one rock mid-river and ran up it like a ramp till I was mostly high and dry. Then I think I may have done a wee boof. Not sure if that counts as one.
In one of the biggest rapids, I hit a rock that spun me around so I ran part of the rapid backwards until I got turned around again. Not pretty but I stayed upright. We all made it to the take-out point without incident - but then, foolishly, I thought it would be fun to play in the final rapid. Fail! I think I was peeling out when this happened. I *know* I wasn't leaning hard enough in spite of getting lots of practice earlier in the paddle.
The boys were there when I surfaced from my wet exit, preparing to either rescue me or start trash talking, depending on how I looked. I made a grab for my paddle, having seen how quickly they travel. Frankenjack took my boat while Getawaystix offered a rescue tow. He was pretty disappointed when I discovered that the water was just over my knees so I could walk to shore.
Frankenjack had been pulled into the next rapid and both guys had to head after my boat, which had escaped and was taking on water and getting heavy because - as I'd been warned when I borrowed it - it had no air bags. Right around now, I realized that my idea of carrying iPhone, wallet and car keys in a dry bag in the back of my boat might not have been such a stellar idea.
There was a happy ending. I went 100 m along the shore and found Frankenjack emptying my boat. Note all the big chunks of ice from the recent break-up.
Dry and cheerful post-paddle.
The *real* purpose of our training mission - dinner, drinks and half-price appetizer night at the Leeky Canoe.
Monday Mar 21, 2011 #
Note
I started counting backward and got excited at the possibility that I might have paddled outside in each of the past 12 months without consciously trying to do so. But believe it or not, I did no paddling whatsoever last June - not even on the trainer. WTF? We were in Scotland more than half the month but still... that is just wrong. I will easily hit the 12-month paddling milestone this June but it's not too difficult when the last 3 months are April, May and June!
Road Biking (Trainer) 25:00 [3]
The Tacx trainer came out of its box today and I spent over an hour reading fine print translated from a language other than English, connecting weird-looking part K to bolt C, wiring stuff up, attaching things to my bike, etc. This is not really my thing. When I was still working in engineering, I did calculations, drew diagrams, wrote reports and designed software. I wasn't an engineer who did useful things in the real world like Urthbuoy. I was more like Tiny - in his old IBM job, anyway. ;) So I was pretty excited when I turned the trainer on and it worked.
After that adventure, there was only a little time for a workout before dinner. After a brief warm-up, I picked 160 watts as a random number to hold for a short ride. I looked it up afterward and that is supposed to be at the top of my Endurance Cycling range but still well below Tempo. Or using a guesstimate for the time trial test Carbon uses, that would be at the lower end of E3. So I guess it's OK that it felt like work!
After that adventure, there was only a little time for a workout before dinner. After a brief warm-up, I picked 160 watts as a random number to hold for a short ride. I looked it up afterward and that is supposed to be at the top of my Endurance Cycling range but still well below Tempo. Or using a guesstimate for the time trial test Carbon uses, that would be at the lower end of E3. So I guess it's OK that it felt like work!
Sunday Mar 20, 2011 #
11 AM
Paddling (Canoe, Class 1) 1:31:32 [2] 12.57 km (8.2 kph)
shoes: Salomon XA Pro Ult - 2 Tomato
'Bent and I did a Bob Miller course - which is a classier way of saying that we stole his training idea from yesterday and did the exact same thing today. It's a fair trade since he borrowed our canoe to do it. The first part of the session was a paddle from Inglewood to Terra Cotta on the Credit River.
Flat Stanley has to return to Australia tomorrow so we brought him out to see another Canadian activity firsthand.
The water wasn't quite as high as it was yesterday but it was still moving quickly enough to give us a fun ride.
This part of the Credit River is Class 1D. The "D" stands for "Dog" and anyone who has paddled fast moving water with an active pooch understands the increased degree of difficulty that entails. (Entails... giggle!) "Sit, Mocha, SIT!"
We portaged around three old dams but for the most part the fun came from avoiding low-hanging trees and the occasional small strainer.
There was still some ice on the vegetation and big hunks of break-up ice along parts of the shoreline.
We thought there was public land for a take-out at the Winston Churchill Rd. bridge but we were wrong. We paddled a short distance further but now the river was veering away from the road. Uh oh. We tried paddling upstream to see if we could get back to the bridge at least. Nope, the shore was crawling by as we paddled at 100% and we had half a kilometer to go. So we pulled ashore at the far end of a private property and knocked on the door to ask permission to carry our canoe up their driveway. The guy was nice about it but some landowners along the Credit are less friendly so we got lucky.
So much fun to be out on the water in March!
Flat Stanley has to return to Australia tomorrow so we brought him out to see another Canadian activity firsthand.
The water wasn't quite as high as it was yesterday but it was still moving quickly enough to give us a fun ride.
This part of the Credit River is Class 1D. The "D" stands for "Dog" and anyone who has paddled fast moving water with an active pooch understands the increased degree of difficulty that entails. (Entails... giggle!) "Sit, Mocha, SIT!"
We portaged around three old dams but for the most part the fun came from avoiding low-hanging trees and the occasional small strainer.
There was still some ice on the vegetation and big hunks of break-up ice along parts of the shoreline.
We thought there was public land for a take-out at the Winston Churchill Rd. bridge but we were wrong. We paddled a short distance further but now the river was veering away from the road. Uh oh. We tried paddling upstream to see if we could get back to the bridge at least. Nope, the shore was crawling by as we paddled at 100% and we had half a kilometer to go. So we pulled ashore at the far end of a private property and knocked on the door to ask permission to carry our canoe up their driveway. The guy was nice about it but some landowners along the Credit are less friendly so we got lucky.
So much fun to be out on the water in March!
1 PM
Running (Trail & Road) 1:07:51 11.6 km (5:51 / km) +59m 5:42 / km
shoes: Salomon XA Pro Ult - 2 Tomato
We stashed our canoe in a cedar grove near the road and removed a few layers before running back to our van in Inglewood.
Note to self: On a real Bob Miller course, it's always a good idea to look at a map. We headed north up a road that we thought would lead us to the rail trail. When it turned west unexpectedly, we figured we'd better head over to another road we actually knew. No biggie, it only added 2 km to our run (argghh).
Nice to see 'Bent running quickly with good form. Unfortunately, he was feeling his knee but he has been training hard lately.
Most of our time was on the Caledon Trailway which was 90% mud with the remainder of the surface evenly split between ice, snow and frigid standing water.
Afterward we pigged out on excellent sandwiches from the Inglewood General Store. Highly recommended!
Note to self: On a real Bob Miller course, it's always a good idea to look at a map. We headed north up a road that we thought would lead us to the rail trail. When it turned west unexpectedly, we figured we'd better head over to another road we actually knew. No biggie, it only added 2 km to our run (argghh).
Nice to see 'Bent running quickly with good form. Unfortunately, he was feeling his knee but he has been training hard lately.
Most of our time was on the Caledon Trailway which was 90% mud with the remainder of the surface evenly split between ice, snow and frigid standing water.
Afterward we pigged out on excellent sandwiches from the Inglewood General Store. Highly recommended!
Saturday Mar 19, 2011 #
10 AM
Mountain Biking (Trail & Road) 2:54:50 [3] 56.78 km (19.5 kph) +570m
'Bent and I rode a loop starting in Caledon East on a fantastic, cold, sunny day. We'd planned to start on the Caledon rail trail and were surprised to find long stretches of ice and rock-hard snow. Things were going OK until I did a 360 on some ice (while remaining upright) and 'Bent skidded out when he heard my surprised yell. So we moved onto roads for most of the ride. It actually made things harder because of all the hills and winter-damaged gravel roads. We climbed the escarpment a few times on the way to The Shed Coffee Bar in Belfountain so we definitely earned our reward.
That and a slice of chocolate zucchini loaf = a healthy lunch. (Zucchini is a vegetable.)
Thanks to Coast to Coast, I kept biking regularly through the fall and winter this year. As a result, everything felt much better than it usually does this early in the season - especially hill climbing. Yay.
We stopped at Caledon Hills Cycling in Inglewood to shop on our way back. By the time we got home, we were wearing big smiles and mud from head to toe. Awesome.
That and a slice of chocolate zucchini loaf = a healthy lunch. (Zucchini is a vegetable.)
Thanks to Coast to Coast, I kept biking regularly through the fall and winter this year. As a result, everything felt much better than it usually does this early in the season - especially hill climbing. Yay.
We stopped at Caledon Hills Cycling in Inglewood to shop on our way back. By the time we got home, we were wearing big smiles and mud from head to toe. Awesome.
1 PM
Note
Very proud of our longtime Tree Hugger teammate and friend VO2Max (Pate Neumann) on his 5th place finish today at the National XC Ski Champs in the 50K mass start skate. No, he didn't medal at the 2011 Champs. (Last year he medalled in the 15K skate which wasn't offered this time.) But today he raced consistently with the front group for 50K and was leading the race after 30K. After 2 hrs 7 min, he finished just 46 seconds out of 1st place. To put that in context, only 12 guys finished within 5 minutes of the leader. At least four 2010 Olympians finished behind him.
At age 23 with only 9 years of skiing experience (half as much as most of his competitors), he's getting better every year and we hope to be in Sochi cheering him on in 2014!
At age 23 with only 9 years of skiing experience (half as much as most of his competitors), he's getting better every year and we hope to be in Sochi cheering him on in 2014!
Friday Mar 18, 2011 #
Note
If anyone happens to be interested in working at "ground zero" (event HQ) for the Wilderness Traverse 24-30 hr adventure race on the Aug. 19-21 weekend in Haliburton, I'm looking for a friendly person to hang out with me and help with managing communications, updating the live news on the website, etc. Sense of humour is mandatory.
Benefits of the job include Internet access, the opportunity to use cool lingo on the radio, free pancakes, first dibs on all the race gossip, a nice GUATS T-shirt, protection from the elements, accommodation, and a healthy distance between you and all those sweaty, grimy racers for most of the weekend.
The negatives include sleep deprivation and the eventual return of the sweaty, grimy racers.
If I have somehow sold you on the experience (!) or if you'd like more info, please e-mail me. Thanks!
Benefits of the job include Internet access, the opportunity to use cool lingo on the radio, free pancakes, first dibs on all the race gossip, a nice GUATS T-shirt, protection from the elements, accommodation, and a healthy distance between you and all those sweaty, grimy racers for most of the weekend.
The negatives include sleep deprivation and the eventual return of the sweaty, grimy racers.
If I have somehow sold you on the experience (!) or if you'd like more info, please e-mail me. Thanks!
4 PM
Note
Interesting perspective on cycling cadence - some of us may be aiming too high. The full article at the link includes a number of references to scientific journals.
"Many people have examined Lance Armstrong’s riding ability and (mistakenly) deduced that for all riders, the best way to pedal well is to spin the cranks at 95-100rpm. However, lets make a couple of things crystal clear:
1. The higher cadence used by professional riders is because they are producing as much as 400-500 watts in time-trial efforts or climbs of 20 to 60 minutes;
2. Recovery from day-to-day ‘tour’ riding is easier with higher cadence riding, so riders chose this as a matter of energy conservation. So while Lance may ride a time trial at close on 100rpm, he is sustaining over 450 watts. Lesser mortals can probably only sustain around 250-350 watts, so cadence can be significantly lower – say around 75-85rpm. This is especially so when climbing where many cyclists can find improved efficiency (and ability to climb) at around 70rpm.
Macintosh and his co-workers have shown that optimal cadence for 100, 200, 300 and 400w cycling occurs at 57, 70, 86 and 99rpm respectively. This casts some doubt on the age-old advice that cyclists should aim for 95rpm because ‘that’s what the pros do’. Sadly though, we don’t all generate 400 watts in time trial and fast climb efforts! In fact, in a review of studies in this area, scientists concluded that ‘the choice of a relatively high cadence during cycling at low to moderate intensity is uneconomical and could compromise performance during prolonged cycling’.
3. Choose a cadence that mirrors your power output; slower riding and warm ups should use a lower cadence while high-effort time trials should use a higher cadence. Unless you’re an elite rider, it’s unlikely you’ll benefit from using cadences exceeding around 85 rpm."
"Many people have examined Lance Armstrong’s riding ability and (mistakenly) deduced that for all riders, the best way to pedal well is to spin the cranks at 95-100rpm. However, lets make a couple of things crystal clear:
1. The higher cadence used by professional riders is because they are producing as much as 400-500 watts in time-trial efforts or climbs of 20 to 60 minutes;
2. Recovery from day-to-day ‘tour’ riding is easier with higher cadence riding, so riders chose this as a matter of energy conservation. So while Lance may ride a time trial at close on 100rpm, he is sustaining over 450 watts. Lesser mortals can probably only sustain around 250-350 watts, so cadence can be significantly lower – say around 75-85rpm. This is especially so when climbing where many cyclists can find improved efficiency (and ability to climb) at around 70rpm.
Macintosh and his co-workers have shown that optimal cadence for 100, 200, 300 and 400w cycling occurs at 57, 70, 86 and 99rpm respectively. This casts some doubt on the age-old advice that cyclists should aim for 95rpm because ‘that’s what the pros do’. Sadly though, we don’t all generate 400 watts in time trial and fast climb efforts! In fact, in a review of studies in this area, scientists concluded that ‘the choice of a relatively high cadence during cycling at low to moderate intensity is uneconomical and could compromise performance during prolonged cycling’.
3. Choose a cadence that mirrors your power output; slower riding and warm ups should use a lower cadence while high-effort time trials should use a higher cadence. Unless you’re an elite rider, it’s unlikely you’ll benefit from using cadences exceeding around 85 rpm."
Thursday Mar 17, 2011 #
Strength & Mobility (Core) 24:00 [2]
Hard Core Live with Caron. She just about killed 'Bent with the "legs straight up in the air" stuff.
Power Yoga 47:00 [1]
We live in a rural area and it's not unusual to have a dog or two attend our yoga class. Just before we started a challenging section, one of tonight's visiting dogs walked away from his owner and threw up all his Kibble in front of someone else's mat. Amidst the ensuing giggles, one of the guys announced with empathy, "That's OK - it's *exactly* how I've been feeling for the last 30 minutes!" Poor pooch - he seems fine now. Just a little embarrassed.
1 PM
Running tempo (Trail & Road) 57:36 10.05 km (5:44 / km) +79m 5:31 / km
shoes: Poison Ice Bugs
Ran from our place via Bruce Trail Side Trail to Centreville Creek Road. Slowrunner was coming the other way so we turned off our stopwatches and had a good chat. Trail was 50% ice, 40% soft snow, 10% slick mud so it was a tough workout but the running wasn't always the hard part.
For contrast, I ran back on dirt roads - still hilly with some mud and ice but there was decent grip most of the time so I could aim for Chi running form - or my best imitation thereof. Considering that I've been focusing on other disciplines lately, this run felt good and I was happy with my pace.
Icy trail pace - 6:10 min/km
Muddy road pace - 5:20 min/km
When I got home, I cooled down by climbing over Mt. Tobler. With the APEX Race fast approaching, I will need to add steeper hills to my training.
For contrast, I ran back on dirt roads - still hilly with some mud and ice but there was decent grip most of the time so I could aim for Chi running form - or my best imitation thereof. Considering that I've been focusing on other disciplines lately, this run felt good and I was happy with my pace.
Icy trail pace - 6:10 min/km
Muddy road pace - 5:20 min/km
When I got home, I cooled down by climbing over Mt. Tobler. With the APEX Race fast approaching, I will need to add steeper hills to my training.
3 PM
Note
The Globe & Mail Facts & Arguments essays are often worth reading. This one, by a woman who lost her 31-year-old sister to cancer, is touching; she expresses beautifully a philosophy that I share after losing several friends before their time.
"So many of my friends are scared about aging. Nobody wants to get older. But I feel guilty. I am allowed to get older and Nicole wasn’t. I made a pact to myself last year that I would always welcome getting older, and never sulk in the annoyances that can come with it. It’s a gift. A privilege."
And so it is.
"So many of my friends are scared about aging. Nobody wants to get older. But I feel guilty. I am allowed to get older and Nicole wasn’t. I made a pact to myself last year that I would always welcome getting older, and never sulk in the annoyances that can come with it. It’s a gift. A privilege."
And so it is.
Wednesday Mar 16, 2011 #
Road Biking intervals (Trainer) 50:00
I'm in Geek Heaven - numbers, numbers, numbers. :) Dropped by Walk Run Ride in Bolton to pick up our new Tacx Flow Ergotrainer. WRR uses these trainers in their spin studio where they do an 8-week progressive training program using DVDs from Carmichael. Participants are tested before and after the 8 weeks.
I train at home so I'd arranged to take the test to set some power (wattage) and heartrate zones. The test included some warm-up, cooldown and lighter spinning but the hard core stuff was:
1 min top intensity X 2 with 1 min rest (to "open you up" and tire you out)
8 min top intensity X2 with 10 min rest (the test)
Cadence for all of this should average around 90.
It's March Break and there were a few teenaged boys on adjacent trainers offering friendly encouragement which was nice. The Walk Run Ride guys did a good imitation of Coach Troy to push me a little harder, especially in the last few minutes of each interval.
Power and HR were measured and averaged over each of the 8-minute intervals, then it was fed into a program that provides individual power/HR ranges for Endurance Miles, Tempo, Steady State, Climbing Repeats and Power Intervals (the 5 training ranges in order of low to high power/HR).
Although the goal is to produce all the same numbers over both 8-minute intervals, it is rare for a first timer to succeed - and I certainly didn't. I did manage to have the same average HR (161), max HR (171), average cadence (90) and max power (242) over both intervals but my average power dropped by 6% in the 2nd interval.
Now I can use these zones in training. Carbon also provided me with a spreadsheet where I can do a slightly different test and compare the zones, then design custom workouts to increase power. So cool! :) I will definitely not be doing that 2nd test anytime soon though, as I can't believe how totally wasted I am after a 50-minute workout.
P.S. Carbon, I won't be reading your e-mails anymore because you cost me too much money. First there was this trainer, then I caved yesterday and ordered a new treadmill to replace the one that died. And Urthbuoy, I have to stop talking to you too because you've got me checking out whitewater kayak websites until the wee hours. Still looking for the right boat to match my helmet! ;)
I train at home so I'd arranged to take the test to set some power (wattage) and heartrate zones. The test included some warm-up, cooldown and lighter spinning but the hard core stuff was:
1 min top intensity X 2 with 1 min rest (to "open you up" and tire you out)
8 min top intensity X2 with 10 min rest (the test)
Cadence for all of this should average around 90.
It's March Break and there were a few teenaged boys on adjacent trainers offering friendly encouragement which was nice. The Walk Run Ride guys did a good imitation of Coach Troy to push me a little harder, especially in the last few minutes of each interval.
Power and HR were measured and averaged over each of the 8-minute intervals, then it was fed into a program that provides individual power/HR ranges for Endurance Miles, Tempo, Steady State, Climbing Repeats and Power Intervals (the 5 training ranges in order of low to high power/HR).
Although the goal is to produce all the same numbers over both 8-minute intervals, it is rare for a first timer to succeed - and I certainly didn't. I did manage to have the same average HR (161), max HR (171), average cadence (90) and max power (242) over both intervals but my average power dropped by 6% in the 2nd interval.
Now I can use these zones in training. Carbon also provided me with a spreadsheet where I can do a slightly different test and compare the zones, then design custom workouts to increase power. So cool! :) I will definitely not be doing that 2nd test anytime soon though, as I can't believe how totally wasted I am after a 50-minute workout.
P.S. Carbon, I won't be reading your e-mails anymore because you cost me too much money. First there was this trainer, then I caved yesterday and ordered a new treadmill to replace the one that died. And Urthbuoy, I have to stop talking to you too because you've got me checking out whitewater kayak websites until the wee hours. Still looking for the right boat to match my helmet! ;)
Note
Unbelievable Quote of the Week from Larry Kudlow of financial news channel CNBC, talking about the disaster in Japan:
“The markets are taking this in stride” Kudlow jabbered, “The human toll here looks to be much worse than the economic toll, and we can be grateful for that.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/televisio...
“The markets are taking this in stride” Kudlow jabbered, “The human toll here looks to be much worse than the economic toll, and we can be grateful for that.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/televisio...
12 PM
Note
After Weeanimal, Phatty's 2nd favourite topic of conversation is athletic footwear. Seriously, never let him look too closely at your feet unless you're inviting a conversation sprinkled randomly with words like "pronate" and "S-LAB". In this video, he's talking about Salomon's brand new "door to trail" shoe, the XR Crossmax, aimed at runners who travel on some pavement on their way to the trails. It's Oscar material for sure. At least we don't need to ask him the Academy Awards Red Carpet question - "Who are you wearing?" - because we already know the answer.
Tuesday Mar 15, 2011 #
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 20:00 [2]
What I *really* wanted to do was bike outside - not that it made any sense with slush on the trails and gloppy mud on our road. So I replaced the trainer wheel on my old winter MTB with the only loose MTB wheel in the room. Hmm... something wasn't right. Oh... blush. I really don't need disc brakes *and* caliper brakes on the same wheel. No luck finding the right wheel so I had to wait for 'Bent the Perennial Bike Builder to rescue his cycling damsel in distress.
Meanwhile, I settled for a short paddle on the trainer, feeling envious of Getawaystix's planned Beaver River excursion in a Cobra demo kayak. Turns out I needn't have been. He and Frankenjack had to change their plans after going to the river and discovering that it is still winter on March 15. Who knew?
Meanwhile, I settled for a short paddle on the trainer, feeling envious of Getawaystix's planned Beaver River excursion in a Cobra demo kayak. Turns out I needn't have been. He and Frankenjack had to change their plans after going to the river and discovering that it is still winter on March 15. Who knew?
Strength & Mobility (Legs) 30:00 [2]
While watching The Daily Show.
12 PM
Note
A friend has lent us the DVD for Chasing Legends, a documentary of the Tour de France 2010, primarily from the perspective of Team Columbia-HTC. It was in movie theatres in early Feb. In case anyone missed it and is interested - or if you're just missing the sound of Phil Liggett's voice - I was thinking we could play it here this Sunday evening, maybe around 7 p.m. Please let me know by Friday night if you'd like to come. Otherwise, 'Bent and I will watch it at some random time. The main film is 90 minutes long and we can choose from 130 min. of bonus features.
3 PM
Note
Congratulations to our past Tree Hugger teammate Brittany Webster on winning the 10 km classic ski event at the Canadian Ski Nationals today! Olympic gold medalist Chandra Crawford took the bronze more than a minute back.
Monday Mar 14, 2011 #
2 PM
Snowshoe Running 2:05:00 [3] 13.5 km (9:16 / km)
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Bob and I headed to Haliburton on a bluebird day for some Wilderness Traverse course scouting. Incredible weather - fantastic spring snow conditions. I didn't wear gloves or toque; the risk today was sunburn, not frostbite. We were mostly snowshoe running with some running in shoes on soft, packed snow where Yaktrax would have been nice.
Bob floated over the surface in his monster snowshoes while I took regular nose dives in the deep, soft snow in my svelte Atlas Race shoes. That's OK - the important thing is the satisfaction of knowing that I got the better workout.
Some photos have been blurred or cropped to prevent Mike W. and Jim W. from identifying the location too readily. Please e-mail it to me privately when you've got it, boys. Time / distance have been adjusted to add a section where my Garmin was turned off and to subtract photo breaks.
In between nose dives.
Still lots of snow left.
Running downhill on snowshoes = awesome!
There were some uphills too.
We found some pretty sites for winter camping.
Bob felt that my black and white clothing created a "where's Waldo?" effect in the photos.
In one area, we found a lot of very large tracks. I wondered about cougar but when I enhanced one of the photos, I could just see claws so my best guess is wolf.
Bob's strength training program appears to be working.
It's hard work planning an adventure race but we managed to struggle through yet another tough day. I can only hope the racers appreciate the suffering we endure on their behalf...
Bob floated over the surface in his monster snowshoes while I took regular nose dives in the deep, soft snow in my svelte Atlas Race shoes. That's OK - the important thing is the satisfaction of knowing that I got the better workout.
Some photos have been blurred or cropped to prevent Mike W. and Jim W. from identifying the location too readily. Please e-mail it to me privately when you've got it, boys. Time / distance have been adjusted to add a section where my Garmin was turned off and to subtract photo breaks.
In between nose dives.
Still lots of snow left.
Running downhill on snowshoes = awesome!
There were some uphills too.
We found some pretty sites for winter camping.
Bob felt that my black and white clothing created a "where's Waldo?" effect in the photos.
In one area, we found a lot of very large tracks. I wondered about cougar but when I enhanced one of the photos, I could just see claws so my best guess is wolf.
Bob's strength training program appears to be working.
It's hard work planning an adventure race but we managed to struggle through yet another tough day. I can only hope the racers appreciate the suffering we endure on their behalf...
Sunday Mar 13, 2011 #
Note
Some minor excitement around here... When I was cut off in Coast to Coast, the volunteer was required to strip me of my bib so I wouldn't attempt to continue as part of the race. I wasn't nearly as cheerful as the photo looks but I put on a good show. After all, the poor guy was just doing his job.
New Zealanders have had more important things to worry about lately so I wasn't going to mention it.... but look what race organizers put in the mail the day before the Christchurch earthquake! (They are fine, by the way.)
In other news, we have "Flat Stanley" visiting us this week, courtesy of a 6-year-old friend doing a kindergarten project in Australia. He is supposed to have a few typical Canadian adventures while he is here then we mail him back home with stories and photographic evidence.
New Zealanders have had more important things to worry about lately so I wasn't going to mention it.... but look what race organizers put in the mail the day before the Christchurch earthquake! (They are fine, by the way.)
In other news, we have "Flat Stanley" visiting us this week, courtesy of a 6-year-old friend doing a kindergarten project in Australia. He is supposed to have a few typical Canadian adventures while he is here then we mail him back home with stories and photographic evidence.
9 AM
XC Skiing - Skate warm up/down 10:00 [2]
10 AM
XC Skiing - Skate (Orienteering) 1:17:21 [4] 13.8 km (10.7 kph) +254m
Tarno - with help from Jackie, Sudden, Hammer, Etoile and (I think) Pat-hetic - put on a Ski-O event at Highlands Nordic today. For such a low key event, there was a good turnout including skier families from Highlands, orienteers and adventure racers.
Because of Coast to Coast, I hadn't skate skied in two months so *that* was a shock to the system. There were opportunities to go cross-country between trails, which was allowed in this event - a little more challenging on skate skis. Fun!
I did the Enduro course which consisted of two different courses on separate maps, both covering the same area. Things were going well until minutes from the end when I was debating a route option that would avoid a small amount of climb vs. a route I could do with my eyes closed. Getawaystix flew by at that moment and hit me hard in the head, knocking all the sense out of me.
OK, the truth is that we just exchanged quick greetings but the effect was the same. I turned left one junction too early and ended up doing a really stupid detour with some bushwhacking, a huge climb and not nearly enough reference to my compass. Duh. Thanks to Garmin, I know that it cost me 8 minutes. Coach LD was far enough ahead that I couldn't have caught her for the female win anyway. Great job, Coach! Congrats also to Getawaystix on the overall win.
Because of Coast to Coast, I hadn't skate skied in two months so *that* was a shock to the system. There were opportunities to go cross-country between trails, which was allowed in this event - a little more challenging on skate skis. Fun!
I did the Enduro course which consisted of two different courses on separate maps, both covering the same area. Things were going well until minutes from the end when I was debating a route option that would avoid a small amount of climb vs. a route I could do with my eyes closed. Getawaystix flew by at that moment and hit me hard in the head, knocking all the sense out of me.
OK, the truth is that we just exchanged quick greetings but the effect was the same. I turned left one junction too early and ended up doing a really stupid detour with some bushwhacking, a huge climb and not nearly enough reference to my compass. Duh. Thanks to Garmin, I know that it cost me 8 minutes. Coach LD was far enough ahead that I couldn't have caught her for the female win anyway. Great job, Coach! Congrats also to Getawaystix on the overall win.
Saturday Mar 12, 2011 #
Note
It was in The Star today so I guess it's official... 'Bent has been chosen to receive this year's Green Hero Award at the annual Earth Hour Lantern Walk in Woodbridge.
He's been at this for awhile. A few years ago, he got a Bullfrog Power Splash Award (presented by the one and only Hansel) and before that he was selected as the Caledon Environmentalist of the Year for starting the first municipal battery recycling program in Ontario.
Very proud of you - congratulations! :)
He's been at this for awhile. A few years ago, he got a Bullfrog Power Splash Award (presented by the one and only Hansel) and before that he was selected as the Caledon Environmentalist of the Year for starting the first municipal battery recycling program in Ontario.
Very proud of you - congratulations! :)
7 AM
Note
Outside Magazine - Train Your Brain
Good stuff even if we've heard some of it before.
E.g. A tip for people who are sick of working out indoors: Designate a buzzword and do a 30-second sprint every time you hear it. If you're feeling strong, try "deficit" on CNN.
Good stuff even if we've heard some of it before.
E.g. A tip for people who are sick of working out indoors: Designate a buzzword and do a 30-second sprint every time you hear it. If you're feeling strong, try "deficit" on CNN.
8 AM
Road Biking (Trainer) 2:10:00
'Bent and I hooked up with the C3 triathlon club for the first half of their 4+ hour (!!) Saturday morning spin. Most of them are getting ready for Ironman Austria on July 3 so they're doing high volume weeks now.
We all brought our own bikes and trainers. There was music playing and - for inspiration - highlights of the 2003 Tour de France DVD projected on the wall. That's the one where Beloki lost control of his bike on soft tarmac and Armstrong had to ride cross-country to avoid hitting him. This was also the Tour with "The Look".
After a warm-up, Coach Hans led us through 3 X 30 minute sets of medium to high intensity drills with virtually no rests between drills or sets, e.g.
- Alternate 1 minute standing / 1 minute sitting while moving one gear harder every 2 minutes for 12 minutes.
- 6 minutes high cadence (100+) moving gears back and forth as directed.
- 1:45 single leg drills with 15 sec both legs in between.
- "Jumps" - quick changes back and forth between sitting and standing with the goal of making the motion smoother. Pretty hard gear by the end.
Sweat, sweat, sweat! One thing I had to work on was proper technique for standing on pedals (which I seldom do in the real world but should do a little more). Riders have a tendency to lean forward when they stand up but the motion should be vertical with virtually no weight placed on your handlebars. If you put too much weight on the front wheel, it slows you down.
I've never done 1-leg drills longer than a minute so this was the first time I'd realized that I'm a stronger left-legged biker even though I'm a right-handed person. Maybe it has something to do with my right knee having issues in the past. Anyway, I'll have to include these drills in every trainer session. Also do lots of 1-legged squats, etc.
Good bunch of people including friends like Caron, Trent, Thumbs-of-Death and Gary B. 'Bent's recum-bent bike provided lots of smiles in the sea of fancy road bikes, especially his "Lazyboy" 1-legged pedaling technique.The time went by surprisingly quickly.
We've decided to buy a full triathlon membership this year to see if we might take advantage of more local group workouts. (We won't be doing any triathlons though!) It's only $110, i.e. less than $10/month and less than I spend any time I venture in the door of MEC. It'll be nice to have a clean outdoor lake to swim in this summer even though we don't plan to do swim training.
We all brought our own bikes and trainers. There was music playing and - for inspiration - highlights of the 2003 Tour de France DVD projected on the wall. That's the one where Beloki lost control of his bike on soft tarmac and Armstrong had to ride cross-country to avoid hitting him. This was also the Tour with "The Look".
After a warm-up, Coach Hans led us through 3 X 30 minute sets of medium to high intensity drills with virtually no rests between drills or sets, e.g.
- Alternate 1 minute standing / 1 minute sitting while moving one gear harder every 2 minutes for 12 minutes.
- 6 minutes high cadence (100+) moving gears back and forth as directed.
- 1:45 single leg drills with 15 sec both legs in between.
- "Jumps" - quick changes back and forth between sitting and standing with the goal of making the motion smoother. Pretty hard gear by the end.
Sweat, sweat, sweat! One thing I had to work on was proper technique for standing on pedals (which I seldom do in the real world but should do a little more). Riders have a tendency to lean forward when they stand up but the motion should be vertical with virtually no weight placed on your handlebars. If you put too much weight on the front wheel, it slows you down.
I've never done 1-leg drills longer than a minute so this was the first time I'd realized that I'm a stronger left-legged biker even though I'm a right-handed person. Maybe it has something to do with my right knee having issues in the past. Anyway, I'll have to include these drills in every trainer session. Also do lots of 1-legged squats, etc.
Good bunch of people including friends like Caron, Trent, Thumbs-of-Death and Gary B. 'Bent's recum-bent bike provided lots of smiles in the sea of fancy road bikes, especially his "Lazyboy" 1-legged pedaling technique.The time went by surprisingly quickly.
We've decided to buy a full triathlon membership this year to see if we might take advantage of more local group workouts. (We won't be doing any triathlons though!) It's only $110, i.e. less than $10/month and less than I spend any time I venture in the door of MEC. It'll be nice to have a clean outdoor lake to swim in this summer even though we don't plan to do swim training.
11 AM
Strength & Mobility (Upper Body) 30:00 [2]
Feeling inspired after our spin so headed straight to the weights for a quick session before lunch.
Friday Mar 11, 2011 #
Note
I'm not going to log my 6 minutes of bike trainer time today but I can report that - thanks to encouragement from Carbon and our C3 triathlete friends - we've ordered a Tacx Flow Ergotrainer that should arrive next week.
The main measurements of interest are wattage, speed and cadence. You can use your own HRM or get one from them (I have one). Once it arrives, I'll need to get tested for different power and HR zones, then I can use them with various training programs including a set of Carmichael DVDs designed around this trainer.
A little late in the season for it but on slushy days like this, I know it'll be awhile before I can hit the trails. Should be fun!
P.S. Maximum wattage in my short spin was 311 and it would have been hard to hold it for long. Apparently, Dunc can hold more than that for two 8 minute test intervals after training all winter. Wow!
The main measurements of interest are wattage, speed and cadence. You can use your own HRM or get one from them (I have one). Once it arrives, I'll need to get tested for different power and HR zones, then I can use them with various training programs including a set of Carmichael DVDs designed around this trainer.
A little late in the season for it but on slushy days like this, I know it'll be awhile before I can hit the trails. Should be fun!
P.S. Maximum wattage in my short spin was 311 and it would have been hard to hold it for long. Apparently, Dunc can hold more than that for two 8 minute test intervals after training all winter. Wow!
10 AM
Note
On yet another rainy March day, I'm ready for a mental escape. Here are some addtional course testing photos from the Wilderness Traverse 2011 course. Getawaystix and I were up there in late October.
Thursday Mar 10, 2011 #
Strength & Mobility (Core) 22:00 [2]
Continuing our avoidance of today's icky March weather, 'Bent and I did Hard Core Live with Caron. Some new and painful stuff.
Power Yoga 48:00 [1]
More indoor fun with the C3 crew. I'm gonna hurt tomorrow.
5 PM
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 1:10:00 [3]
I'm a winter-loving gal and I wanted to go for a trail run today in the drizzle, fog and frigid ankle-deep slush. I really did. But, well, it got late and I got curious about the political situation in the U.S. so I hit the paddle trainer for three Daily Shows.
Can't wait to get out on the water. I'm thinking about whether I should get a basic whitewater kayak. (Should I?) Compared to our other boats, they're a bargain. We have a whitewater canoe but I don't have a solo boat that's good for rocky rivers, and as a result I rarely get out on rocky rivers. And I need to get better at that.
Can't wait to get out on the water. I'm thinking about whether I should get a basic whitewater kayak. (Should I?) Compared to our other boats, they're a bargain. We have a whitewater canoe but I don't have a solo boat that's good for rocky rivers, and as a result I rarely get out on rocky rivers. And I need to get better at that.
9 PM
Note
Wow, a $20M lawsuit for a young father who suffered brain damage when he went over his handlebars after hitting his brakes in a pack in his first road cycling race. A very sad situation for him and his family. Defendants are the Hamilton Cycling Club and the Ontario Cycling Association.
For those of us involved in event organization - and participation - this is scary. This lawsuit will be an interesting exploration of what legal obligation exists for an athlete to take personal responsibility for his/her own safety and actions in sports events. I expect we'll also learn more about how valuable liability waivers really are; I'm told they carry more weight in Canada than in the U.S.
For those of us involved in event organization - and participation - this is scary. This lawsuit will be an interesting exploration of what legal obligation exists for an athlete to take personal responsibility for his/her own safety and actions in sports events. I expect we'll also learn more about how valuable liability waivers really are; I'm told they carry more weight in Canada than in the U.S.
Wednesday Mar 9, 2011 #
Note
Endurance athletes who trained and raced the longest and hardest were most likely to show heart damage in this study written up in the NY Times. Boo. :(
<http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/when-exer...>
Here's the abstract of the study. We might need Revy's help to interpret some of this stuff. I'm choosing to cling to little rays of hope, such as the low number of participants in the study and the fact that none of them were women.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21330616
<http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/when-exer...>
Here's the abstract of the study. We might need Revy's help to interpret some of this stuff. I'm choosing to cling to little rays of hope, such as the low number of participants in the study and the fact that none of them were women.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21330616
4 PM
XC Skiing - Classic 1:00:00 [2]
Tour de Palgrave West. There was a sharp contrast between the awesomeness of being out in a blizzard and the crappiness of the skiing. The awesomeness won out but the snow was sticky and I sometimes felt like I was snowshoeing on 185 cm two by fours. I headed off trail for awhile and conditions were a little better when I was bushwhacking, maybe because that snow had never been packed down.
There's a lot of rain in the forecast for the next 24 hours so I'm glad I got out. When March comes, we never know when our last Palgrave ski is going to be!
There's a lot of rain in the forecast for the next 24 hours so I'm glad I got out. When March comes, we never know when our last Palgrave ski is going to be!
6 PM
Road Biking intervals (Trainer) 53:00
Coach Troy made me sweat again. Spinervals 3.0 "Suffer-orama". Who gets to name these DVDs? If there's ever a job opening, sign me up. It would be fun.
"Phatty's Revenge"
"Hammer's Lost Breakfast"
"The Harps Crusher"
"Getawaystix Can't Get Away From This"
"The Bender Bender"
"You May Be Tiny But We're Not Afraid To Work Your Little Butt Off"
"Recum-'Bent Nightmares"
"Work Out with Troy or Be Pat-hetic"
And so on... Feel free to add more to the list!
"Phatty's Revenge"
"Hammer's Lost Breakfast"
"The Harps Crusher"
"Getawaystix Can't Get Away From This"
"The Bender Bender"
"You May Be Tiny But We're Not Afraid To Work Your Little Butt Off"
"Recum-'Bent Nightmares"
"Work Out with Troy or Be Pat-hetic"
And so on... Feel free to add more to the list!
Tuesday Mar 8, 2011 #
10 AM
Snowshoe Orienteering 1:21:18 [3] 6.84 km (11:53 / km) +250m 10:03 / km
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Getawaystix and I met to review the final piece of course design for this summer's Wilderness Traverse. Can't wait to test it out!
It was such a beautiful day that we couldn't spend it all indoors staring at maps, so we headed up to the starting line of January's Dontgetlost.ca Icebreaker event. It was a Score-O and nobody made it to all the controls in less than 1 hour. GStix decided to give it a shot.
My ambitions were less lofty. I just wanted to get to the controls I hadn't visited before, plus any others I might hit along the way. (98-99-100-101-97-96-95-94)
It was a bluebird day. On days like this, I really feel sorry for people who stay indoors all winter, hiding from the cold.
Running on the packed snow trails went fairly quickly but travel off trail was slow as molasses. There is still plenty of snow and the recent rain has made it heavy and crusty in places. Unfortunately for GStix, he didn't take snowshoes and ended up postholing around much of the course in knee deep snow. So for now, Harps remains the IceBreaker course record holder.
I messed around a bit in the northwest of the map. I confess that I was having so much fun skidding down steep slopes and admiring snow laden tree branches that I didn't always stay focused on training my navigation skills. Oh well, we won't have too many more amazing winter days like this so I might as well have fun.
After the final control, I ran off the map (on purpose!) to take the Switchback Trail back to GStix's place. Really nice place for hill training. I should go there to do repeats one day before APEX.
12 PM
Snowshoe Running 18:24 [3] 2.69 km (6:50 / km)
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Trail running to the end after the final control.
Monday Mar 7, 2011 #
XC Skiing - Classic 35:00 [3]
15 cm of new snow over the weekend = skiing out the back door again. Booyah!
I'd hoped to ski longer until I discovered that my 2-hr meeting at 2 p.m. was actually a 3-hr meeting at 1 p.m. On top of that, ThunderDog was full of beans, batting the door repeatedly with her paw in hopes of getting out to enjoy the great outdoors. At 14.5 years old with arthritis and asthma, she doesn't feel that good every day so a senior pooch-paced hike in the forest became my top priority, followed by a show of admiration as she made a series of dog snow angels in our back field.
When I finally got out into Palgrave West for a quick ski, I ran into Crash and Skye. Crash and I have just booked Aeroplan flights to the Eco-Endurance Challenge 24-hr rogaine in Nova Scotia. Can't wait to eat lobster!
I'd hoped to ski longer until I discovered that my 2-hr meeting at 2 p.m. was actually a 3-hr meeting at 1 p.m. On top of that, ThunderDog was full of beans, batting the door repeatedly with her paw in hopes of getting out to enjoy the great outdoors. At 14.5 years old with arthritis and asthma, she doesn't feel that good every day so a senior pooch-paced hike in the forest became my top priority, followed by a show of admiration as she made a series of dog snow angels in our back field.
When I finally got out into Palgrave West for a quick ski, I ran into Crash and Skye. Crash and I have just booked Aeroplan flights to the Eco-Endurance Challenge 24-hr rogaine in Nova Scotia. Can't wait to eat lobster!
Sunday Mar 6, 2011 #
10 AM
Orienteering 32:55 3.75 km (8:47 / km) +11m 8:39 / km
shoes: Poison Ice Bugs
Thomass Stars at Dumfries Conservation Area after a surprise overnight snowstorm.
Mick and Laura put on an excellent event today and it went almost perfectly for me. I felt good running through the heavy snow. I had a few navigation bobbles but didn't waste too much time on them. Mick had put a map exchange in the middle of the course, and the course on the second map was interesting and different from the first map. Fun!
I was leading the handicapped race up to #7, I think, then I made a bad route choice through thick forest to 8. I ran into Nick and we punched "f" together as we entered the final Thomass Box. I glanced at the map and, in my hypoxic state, read "9" as "g" and failed to notice the line joining 8 to 9. I decided to skip "g" since I only needed to do two controls per box because of my handicap. After visiting one more control, I dashed to the finish where I was the winner by 4 minutes.
I savoured my victory for close to half an hour, then Nick asked me what I'd done to correct the error we'd made by punching "f" before 9. Um, really? There was a control 9?!? Sure enough, it was really, really obvious when the map was unfolded and I had sufficient oxygen going to my brain. So I quickly confessed my sin (since the SI software hadn't discovered it) and advised AdventureGirl! that she was the very deserving winner.
I wasn't alone - about a third of competitors mispunched in various ways. There were a lot of controls in the woods and the maps had a lot going on, but it was totally understandable with 20/20 hindsight. I just messed up! It should probably bother me more but I had such a great time out there that being disqualified was just a minor glitch in an otherwise fun event with good training value.
Thanks to Mick and Laura for a great morning in a new area. Nice to see so many friends out!
Mick and Laura put on an excellent event today and it went almost perfectly for me. I felt good running through the heavy snow. I had a few navigation bobbles but didn't waste too much time on them. Mick had put a map exchange in the middle of the course, and the course on the second map was interesting and different from the first map. Fun!
I was leading the handicapped race up to #7, I think, then I made a bad route choice through thick forest to 8. I ran into Nick and we punched "f" together as we entered the final Thomass Box. I glanced at the map and, in my hypoxic state, read "9" as "g" and failed to notice the line joining 8 to 9. I decided to skip "g" since I only needed to do two controls per box because of my handicap. After visiting one more control, I dashed to the finish where I was the winner by 4 minutes.
I savoured my victory for close to half an hour, then Nick asked me what I'd done to correct the error we'd made by punching "f" before 9. Um, really? There was a control 9?!? Sure enough, it was really, really obvious when the map was unfolded and I had sufficient oxygen going to my brain. So I quickly confessed my sin (since the SI software hadn't discovered it) and advised AdventureGirl! that she was the very deserving winner.
I wasn't alone - about a third of competitors mispunched in various ways. There were a lot of controls in the woods and the maps had a lot going on, but it was totally understandable with 20/20 hindsight. I just messed up! It should probably bother me more but I had such a great time out there that being disqualified was just a minor glitch in an otherwise fun event with good training value.
Thanks to Mick and Laura for a great morning in a new area. Nice to see so many friends out!
Saturday Mar 5, 2011 #
10 AM
Road Biking intervals (Trainer) 2:08:00
We really wanted to ski today; the season is almost over and we missed a good chunk of it to go to NZ. But the forecast opened with "Heavy Rainfall Warning in Effect"... sigh. So we decided to do the C3 Saturday morning spin workout in Caledon East - but apparently, it starts earlier than the website says. We peeked in the door and made a swift retreat upon seeing all those intimidatingly fit triathletes standing and pumping their pedals, obviously long past their warm-up.
Back home to our Adventure Basement (tm), much to the delight of our pooches. For the first hour, we did Spinervals 29.0 "Dropping The Hammer" where Coach Troy made no bones about trying to kill us. Then, after he'd advised us to recover for 48-72 hours before doing anything else, we rode for another hour at a good pace, watching a documentary on the specialty coffee industry.
Bottom line: There are different advantages for organic, bird-friendly, shade grown, Rainforest Alliance-certified, fair trade and "fairly traded" (not the same thing) types of coffee. You should probably buy coffee that meets one or more of these criteria, although people have different opinions about which one matters the most. In general, buying specialty coffee vs. a supermarket can is a better environmental and social choice.
Back home to our Adventure Basement (tm), much to the delight of our pooches. For the first hour, we did Spinervals 29.0 "Dropping The Hammer" where Coach Troy made no bones about trying to kill us. Then, after he'd advised us to recover for 48-72 hours before doing anything else, we rode for another hour at a good pace, watching a documentary on the specialty coffee industry.
Bottom line: There are different advantages for organic, bird-friendly, shade grown, Rainforest Alliance-certified, fair trade and "fairly traded" (not the same thing) types of coffee. You should probably buy coffee that meets one or more of these criteria, although people have different opinions about which one matters the most. In general, buying specialty coffee vs. a supermarket can is a better environmental and social choice.
12 PM
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 51:00 [3]
Paddled at a hard but maintainable pace while watching two more Daily Shows. Is it bad that the majority of my knowledge of U.S. politics comes from the Comedy Network? Yeah, I thought so.
And once again, I demonstrated the reason why I can't lose weight through exercise alone. At lunch time after 3 hours of training, I inhaled about 1200 calories in 20 minutes. Oops.
And once again, I demonstrated the reason why I can't lose weight through exercise alone. At lunch time after 3 hours of training, I inhaled about 1200 calories in 20 minutes. Oops.
Friday Mar 4, 2011 #
Note
(rest day)
Unplanned rest day filled with training-related activities. I dressed to go trail running then made a "quick" phone call to Schwinn to find out the meaning of my treadmill's error message. This led to a useful diagnostic exercise that lasted over an hour and ended with bad news. Then we realized that tomorrow's XC ski plans were doomed due to the forecast of heavy rain, so we decided to do the C3 spin workout instead. This meant that Princess had to be released from the bike box and reassembled. No time for trail running by then since we had to dash to Belfountain to see an excellent Everest climb presentation by endurance athlete Laval St. Germain. Now my feet are itching to do something really adventurous!
Thursday Mar 3, 2011 #
Note
Argghh, after an interesting e-mail exchange with Carbon about training strategies, I was feeling super motivated about training and keen to try a different type of workout on the treadmill - but it's pooched. I've had it almost 10 years and haven't used it that much. I'm guessing it's something big like the motor. I don't really use it enough to justify replacing it so here's hoping "Err L5" turns out to be inexpensive. But I doubt it.
Strength & Mobility (Core) 24:00 [2]
Hard Core Live with Caron. Nice to be back - although the "core time trial" with 50s of various exercises reminded me that we've missed a few classes. But 'Bent and I got through it. We even smiled.
Power Yoga 48:00 [1]
C3 Class. Feels soooo good. And that's fortunate because we'll still be feeling some of those poses tomorrow!
Note
Took advantage of the sunshine by bushwhacking and trail hiking through the Humber Valley with Leanimal and Weeanimal. Great to catch up with Lee and have a chance to hang out with Weeanimal, who is growing taller and cuter by the minute.
9 AM
Note
Today's controversial Canadian debate topic: Is Canoeing better than sex?!
I like the reason added by one of the commenters on the blog:
"Same sex paddling is not frowned upon, but encouraged."
Also, "When you see a really good canoeist, you don’t have to feel guilty about imagining the two of you paddling together."
And "There are no paddling-transmitted diseases."
I'll bet APers could come up with a few more of our own!
I like the reason added by one of the commenters on the blog:
"Same sex paddling is not frowned upon, but encouraged."
Also, "When you see a really good canoeist, you don’t have to feel guilty about imagining the two of you paddling together."
And "There are no paddling-transmitted diseases."
I'll bet APers could come up with a few more of our own!
Wednesday Mar 2, 2011 #
Paddling (Kayak Erg) 50:00 [3]
While going through Daily Shows on the PVR.
Strength & Mobility (Upper Body) 20:00 [2]
Bumped up weights on a couple more things.
9 AM
Note
Interesting article on running hills, drawing on scientific studies.
Take-away point for me: work at taking more steps when running downhill. I'm definitely an overstrider.
Take-away point for me: work at taking more steps when running downhill. I'm definitely an overstrider.
Note
The Harvey/Kershaw world championship victory is almost more exciting when you don't understand the language of the commentator. Harvey's finish sprint is awesome to watch!
http://www.nrk.no/sport/meisterskap/ski-vm-2011/ny...
http://www.nrk.no/sport/meisterskap/ski-vm-2011/ny...
Tuesday Mar 1, 2011 #
Note
Jan/Feb Report Card on 2011 Goals
This year got off to a different start with a major summer race to prepare for in mid-February. Mostly it made a positive difference - I've never done so much paddling in Jan/Feb! But my strength training is even more pitiful than usual. Onward and upward!
1) Do an expedition adventure race (3+ days non-stop)
Registered for the APEX Race in Switzerland in May. Seeking a team for the AR World Champs in November. (I really wanted to do two expedition races but didn't dare make that a goal.)
at least one 24-hour rogaine and at least one other 24+ hour adventure race.
Aiming for the Eco-Endurance Challenge in Halifax in May.
Run my second 50 km trail race. Consider a 50-miler if my joints are happy.
No ideas yet. If I'm successful with planning several other long races, I may have to back off on trail running races. But that's OK - they'll still be there next year.
Finish Speight's Coast to Coast.
Well, there's no sugar coating it. I failed. But I like to think that I failed with flair. :)
2) Quality training at least once a week - hills, tempo or speed intervals. Any discipline.
I'm getting into more of a habit. If there's a bright side to DNFing C2C, it's that I'm super motivated to train the one or two fast twitch fibres I might possibly have. I've done both run and bike intervals in the past week and I'm keen to do more.
3) Running - at least 2 hrs/week on average over the year.
Batting this one out of the park.
4) Strength training - at least 1 hr/week
Fail. Really, really big fail.
5) Total annual training - 550 hrs.
On track.
6) Get 7+ hours of sleep on most nights.
Working on it. Not so successful.
Make an effort to get together with more people more often to enjoy the great outdoors together.
This was an unofficial, unmeasured goal to train with an expanded circle of people, and it went well over the last couple of months. I paddled, skied and ran with Urthbuoy, skied with Charm and AZ, ran and paddled with Frankenjack, and snowshoe raced with Dee, just to name a few. And in Switzerland, I'll be racing with two teammates I've never raced with before.
I've added a few other things to my training plans for 2011:
- Get my kayak roll back.
- Get a bike computer with cadence and work on "getting it up".
- Start using my HRM again.
So far, so good - except for the sleep and the strength. (Broken record from other years, I know.)
This year got off to a different start with a major summer race to prepare for in mid-February. Mostly it made a positive difference - I've never done so much paddling in Jan/Feb! But my strength training is even more pitiful than usual. Onward and upward!
1) Do an expedition adventure race (3+ days non-stop)
Registered for the APEX Race in Switzerland in May. Seeking a team for the AR World Champs in November. (I really wanted to do two expedition races but didn't dare make that a goal.)
at least one 24-hour rogaine and at least one other 24+ hour adventure race.
Aiming for the Eco-Endurance Challenge in Halifax in May.
Run my second 50 km trail race. Consider a 50-miler if my joints are happy.
No ideas yet. If I'm successful with planning several other long races, I may have to back off on trail running races. But that's OK - they'll still be there next year.
Finish Speight's Coast to Coast.
Well, there's no sugar coating it. I failed. But I like to think that I failed with flair. :)
2) Quality training at least once a week - hills, tempo or speed intervals. Any discipline.
I'm getting into more of a habit. If there's a bright side to DNFing C2C, it's that I'm super motivated to train the one or two fast twitch fibres I might possibly have. I've done both run and bike intervals in the past week and I'm keen to do more.
3) Running - at least 2 hrs/week on average over the year.
Batting this one out of the park.
4) Strength training - at least 1 hr/week
Fail. Really, really big fail.
5) Total annual training - 550 hrs.
On track.
6) Get 7+ hours of sleep on most nights.
Working on it. Not so successful.
Make an effort to get together with more people more often to enjoy the great outdoors together.
This was an unofficial, unmeasured goal to train with an expanded circle of people, and it went well over the last couple of months. I paddled, skied and ran with Urthbuoy, skied with Charm and AZ, ran and paddled with Frankenjack, and snowshoe raced with Dee, just to name a few. And in Switzerland, I'll be racing with two teammates I've never raced with before.
I've added a few other things to my training plans for 2011:
- Get my kayak roll back.
- Get a bike computer with cadence and work on "getting it up".
- Start using my HRM again.
So far, so good - except for the sleep and the strength. (Broken record from other years, I know.)
5 PM
Running (Trail) 1:11:11 10.23 km (6:58 / km) +69m 6:44 / km
shoes: Salomon XA Pro GTX 2nd pair -
Palgrave East and West at sunset - single track and double track, ice and ankle-deep crusty snow, hills and tight turns. A little bit of everything. It was hard work and felt like strength training at times! My knee seems to have forgiven me for bashing it on boulders in NZ - no pain at all today. Phew.