I have to thank everyone who’s instilled confidence in me for Ironman Canada, and especially all those who’ve supported me on any level, to any degree. Without the monster support from everyone, I wouldn’t have been able to perform like I did on the day. 

Interview with Steve Fleck. COOL!!!!

An idea of the magnitude of 2600 people starting together!

Splashedy-splash-splash, 5th out of the water!!

Starting out on the bike course

Probably one of my favourite shots by Mark Bates, this is well done!

Beautiful shot from ‘Cousin’ climbing Richter!

Yet more great shots from Mr. Bates, at the top of Richter

A little TdF-style ‘crazy running fan’ action at Yellow Lake

Finishing the bike, by Jordan Bryden

‘Cousin’ & Charlene, CHEER SQUAD! They were EVERYWHERE during the race!

Running most of the marathon with Matt Sheeks. Pretty much a ‘Running Party!’

Wicked shot by Bates, not far after the run turnaround

the last few km’s…..

High Fives for anyone near the finish!

A proud moment: you can’t see, but Charlene (my triathlon mentor, taught me most of what I know and got me started in triathlon,) is tearing up because she was so proud of me. It meant a lot to have her there cheering me on. Made the day that much more special!

A few videos from Kimberly Appleton, who was out on the run course to push us on:

Beauty shot by Jordan Bryden

I know it’s been a long while since Ironman Canada, and this upcoming weekend is the LeadmanTri EPIC 250 in Bend, OR, so I figured I’d FINALLY do a quick race report from Penticton’s 30th and final EVER Ironman Canada,

So here goes:

I was lucky to find an amazing homestay in OK Falls with Dave and Jackie Del Rizzo, who were so welcoming. They played a vital part in the week leading up to the race, as I was able to relax and focus on the race (although, being my general social self, found myself talking their ears off for hours about everything you could think of!) I made my way up there on the monday before the race, giving me PLENTY of time to settle in and get everything ready. This was a first for me, as I usually get to races a lot closer than that, and it’s always a big rush leading up to the morning of, with little time to kick back and relax. So the week passed by, with perfect weather to boot!

One thing that was a first for me was a pre-race interview with ShawTV Okanagan! There was also an interview the day before with Steve Fleck, which was pretty awesome! Going to the pro meetings at these races is still an awesome experience for me, to see all the other big pros that you see in magazines! But, another first for me, I tried to stay away from race site and expo the day before, so I could focus on resting up. I was feeling great the night before, and after a confidence boosting chat with coach Björn, I was ready for action.

Race day:
Started as usual, nice and early, with my standard breakfast of banana PB oatmeal and coffee. Standard, delicious, and hasn’t failed me yet! I had expected and prepared for a much slower transition entry on race morning, but was surprised by how quickly everything moved. The race volunteers did a great job getting everything through and keeping things running smoothly. Those volunteers were phenomenal! I managed to get some relaxing in pre-race with my teammates, and everyone seemed pretty damn focused on the day (I felt oddly focused as well, as I had all week.) We lined up, and it was game on!

Solid swim in my Nineteen Rogue!

The swim was fairly uneventful, although it got fairly choppy. I managed to lead the main pack for a good portion of the swim, its a pretty good feeling to be swimming strongly and out front. I could see helecopters flying overhead, and there were boats floating about everywhere (I could’ve given them a piece of my mind, they were making a fair bit of wake!) It was all exciting, and I was feeling great getting ready to hit the bike. I managed to come out of the water in 5th place, with a 57min flat swim (a bit slower than I hoped, but it seemed everyone swam a little slow on the day.)

First shots from Charlene and the gang

It was tough on the bike to go out and have people start to pass me as we went down mainstreet. I was riding a HUGE high, as my heart rate was crazy high from the swim, but mainly from all the AWESOME cheering from the crowd!!! It’s amazing to hear all your friends (and even complete strangers) just freaking out and screaming your name. It was tough to not just hammer away at the pedals. But I knew it was going to be a long day, and I just had patience! It was actually a bit chilly out (yet another reason I look for hot races,) until about Richter Pass. Then it started to get ‘warm.’ I saw Mark Bates of 321Photography out on course (multiple times actually,) on the way to Osoyoos. But the biggest surprise was seeing my triathlon mentor Charlene Croteau, along with a jolly gang of wig-clad, party-favor-toting mobile cheer section, that I heard LONG before I saw them! I could hear them coming, and all I could think was “Oh man, I totally bet that’s Charlene!” Well, I was right!

The bike went by fairly uneventfully, but I saw teammates and friends out all OVER the course, every time was a huge booster. By the time I was closing in on Keremeos, all I could think about was the special needs turnaround, and for ONE reason only: the magical surprise I had in the bag. You may or may not believe it, but I had a McDONALDS JUNIOR CHICKEN BURGER in there! Yup, that’s right: the thing I swore off 8 years ago, I went back to. And I tell you, it was magnificent. I absolutely CRUSHED that little burger, and by the time I was halfway up Yellow Lake, I was ripping it up.

By the time I was coming in to T2, I was hurting pretty bad. But as soon as I hit the run course, I started to feel great again, like my legs were fresh.

Must’ve been the crowds 🙂

One of many tongue-out exploits

I felt great going through the first few miles, and nearing the edge of town I joined up with Matt Sheeks, and we essentially ran the whole marathon together (until about the last 10kms.) I was cheering back at the crowds as they all cheered me on out there. My buddy Will and Roman were out on their bikes with airhorns, and they were being very generous with expending them! LOUD!!! But it was great, I soaked it up. I couldn’t believe how many friends I saw out there, they all played a huge part in pushing me along. WIth about 10km to go, I was falling off my pace and starting to hurt pretty bad. My nutrition was great, but all I could think about was how much my legs hurt! That marathon doesn’t get any easier; in 2007 I ran the Seattle Marathon, and due to horrible nutrition and pacing advice, it was the worst running race I’ve experienced. This marathon wasn’t feeling too much better by the end.

Throwing down some high fives!

It’s difficult to run AWAY from a finish line, but that’s exactly what you had to do at the end. You go past the finish line, and run along the beach avenue to a turnaround. As I rounded that final turn, I felt like I was home free. I pushed as best I could, suffering with a smile (as I did the whole day,) thinking I was in 6th place. I always sprint hard at the finish line, but with nobody close behind, I figured a few high fives to the crowd were in order. SO down the chute, to high fives and cheers, I finally made it! And I heard the one thing I had been waiting to hear for months, from someone who is a legend in their own right, Steve King. And he said his famous words to me:

“You are an Ironman!”

I was so happy to be done, and started at the beer garden asap! It was a great night of fun, cheering, BBQ, and maybe a few brews. I couldn’t get too crazy, cause EPIC 250 was only a month away.

The most colourful cheer squad EVER! Charlene and ‘Cousin’

Recovery has been great so far, and I am excited to get to Bend for the last race of the season, along with my teammate Rachel McBride.

This should be good.

Happy training everyone,

Nathan

As the D-Day countdown to the LeadmanTri Epic 250 in Bend, OR, gets closer and closer to zero, I am starting to realize that the huge early-season volume I’ve already done is starting to pay off. That being said, EPIC has a bike portion further than anything I’ve EVER ridden in the past, so there is quite the sense of the unknown going in to it.

“It’s only 43km’s further than an Ironman bike leg,” is what I’ve commonly been told. Well, if you’d have told me that about 100m’s from finishing Ironman Canada’s bike leg, I’d probably have brought fourth a plethora of indecent and inappropriate language that would put me in any referee’s black book! But, alas, “I live for this shit,” so on tuesday I embarked on an EPIC training ride, that could only be made so with the accompaniment of the amazing ‘Tiger,’ Rachel McBride.

Finally finished the second time up Seymour!!

Coach Björn wanted us to try and replicate the EPIC ride, and with the big climbing involved for the race, that meant only one thing.

Mount Seymour.

Twice. (okay, so technically TWO things.)
Rachel proceeded to teach me how to get my ass completely handed to me while climbing a steep-ass mountain, which I graciously accepted as the Purple Climbing Machine slowly rode away from me. We practiced some race nutrition, and even made an unconventional stop for a ‘nutrition testing session,’ (at a place that I used frequent regularly, but haven’t been in a LOOOONG time!) It was glorious.

It was a fantastic day, the sun was out to keep us warm (it actually got pretty warm by the end, it was FANTASTIC practice as EPIC is supposed to be close to 30 celsius by mid-race.) I had such a blast with my Team Ossenbrink teammate Rachel, it was a perfect pre-race testing ride. After over 200kms, 7+hrs in the saddle, and over 3500 meters of climbing, I was left with a positive taste in my mouth and a boatload of confidence for the big day coming up.

Only a few big sessions left ’till Rachel and I head down to Oregon to shake things up, representing Canada (in our classic stylish flair!)

Happy training everyone, get out in the sun and enjoy while it’s still here!!!!!

Nathan

A little unconventional nutrition experimenting with Rachel 🙂

Today was my second day in a row swimming at the stunning Buntzen Lake Reservoir! I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the lake (^^see previous posts as to why^^) and I don’t think I could ever get tired of it!! Its beautifully clean water, picture-esk landscape, what more could you want?? Oh yeah, NO POWER BOATS! So much safer than other GVRD swim spots.

Today was busy as it was the long weekend (labour day long, for those of you reading this that aren’t native to Canada, eh.) The lake had an assortment of people in dinghy’s, canoes, and all forms of flotation (but no Open Water swimmers!?!? It’s like after Ironman Canada, nobody ventures to the lake to swim?) What made my day was, as I started my return trip across the lake, an inflatable dinghy started to ever so slowly creep up beside me. They eventually pulled just ahead of me, but within a km of shore, I started to pull ahead of them!!! I managed to make it to shore ahead of them, and I make my claim of BEATING an electric-motor-powered-dinghy across the lake (regardless of whether or not their motor was running out of juice; I like to think it was at full-charge!!) Coach would’ve been proud, the dinghy got OWNED! Good news for my lead up to the LeadmanTri EPIC 250 on September 22nd (5km swim, 223km bike, 22km run = 250kms.)

I also learned that the inside of a wetsuit does an absolutely excellent job of retaining smells. Whether its the fresh scent of Lavender, or some ungodly noxious fume, it holds it all in, until that moment when you pull away the front of your suit and it’s released into the atmosphere like the contents of Pandora’s Box upon all of humanity (or, more specific, anyone within a 10ft radius!) That’s all I’ll say about that. Don’t want to cross that line of TMI (although I do happen to be a habitual line stepper.)

I leave you with a pleasant photo, and bid you adieu! Happy training folks!

Nathan

In the GVRD where I live, there’s really only two good lakes (nearby) to swim in: Sasamat and Buntzen. I’ve only ever swam in Sasamat Lake for training, although I’ve spent a lot of time at the dog off-leash area at Buntzen (as well as running in the trails around the lake; they’re amazing trails, not too technical with a good variety of undulation, climbing, and flat!) After a solid 5km swim at Sasamat yesterday, the water was so damn turbid that I happened to tweet about it. Shortly after, some comments were made about how amazing the water was to swim at Buntzen lake; I knew it was far cleaner (glacier fed,) but also much colder. Well, today I decided was the first time to go for a dip, OW swimming style.

GORGEOUS! Can you think of a better place to swim?

Nici and I swam the length of the lake and back (close to 6km’s return trip,) and I tell you, I WON’T SWIM SASAMAT ANYMORE!!!! That’s right: Buntzen is in, Sasamat is OUT! The water was like glass, I’d refer to it as “God’s Mirror,” as it was THAT perfect! Nici and I were even greeted by a beer can mid-swim, very thoughtful of the lake! The water was absolutely perfect temperature, SUPER clean & clear, and the perfect length for a solid swim. Even though I had an epically large breakfast, MAN was I starving to death by the end. With 1k to go I was almost sick to my stomach I was so hungry. Same with Nici.This swim completed 16+ km’s of swimming in the last 3 days, I’m SUPER thankful for my new Compressport Arm Sleeves to help with recovery; I find they make quite the difference to keep my arms feeling fresh for the next batch of swimming 🙂

Relaxing in my arm sleeves, refreshing bevy in hand!

The lake is perfect, I would say it’s even nicer than the legendary Thetis lake in Victoria (yeah, you can quote me on that!) Nobody really knows about it, so keep it on the Down Low eh? A giant EMEND recovery shake, along with a delicious frappuccino from Starbucks hit the spot before lunch, enough to keep me going through to a big ride this afternoon (last big one before I head to Penticton to train on the Ironman Canada course.) Get out to Buntzen, and enjoy it! But like Sasamat, you’ll need to get there early to avoid the parking lot getting full!

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Happy training everyone, enjoy the sun!

Nathan

Tomorrow marks the 1-week-out point for my next Half Ironman, the Subaru Victoria Half Ironman. I haven’t raced there for 3 years, so I’m excited to return, as this is my absolute FAVOURITE run course I’ve ever been on. I ran a 1:16 on the course 3 years ago, and I hope to smash that number next week. If today’s demolition of my ride/brick is any indication, than I’m well on my way for such a feat.

205KIM’s

That being said, in a few weeks will mark another anniversary for me; 3 years ago I started working with the guys at New Balance Vancouver, and it’s been an awesome ride with them. New Balance has come LEAPS and BOUNDS with the innovation of their footwear since I started with them. I thought I’d highlight a few of the kicks I’ve been using.

The 205 sprint-to-the-line

First, my all-time FAVOURITE shoe for short-course racing, the WCRC 205 KIMBIA edition. The KIM edition is just the colour scheme (classic, clean look,) but these baby’s pack some serious speed. They fit like a glove, you ALWAYS feel like they’re trying to push you to go faster, and they’re lighter than air. I’ve outfitted them with my usual suspect of elastic laces.

My favourite long-course race-flat is the NB1400, it’s a BAD ASS looking shoe (they make a few different colours, all are kick-ass!) It’s also light (with the NB Revlite foam sole,) but also has enough cushioning to get you through a marathon. I use this shoe for any speed training, most races, and essentially anything that’s 90mins or less. They feel great on my feet, and don’t leave my legs feeling pounded after training or racing in them (well, not any more than they SHOULD feel!)

1400 in action, a PB half marathon

For long distance training (anything over 90mins,) I used to use the 890. But since they’ve come out with the 890 V2 (version two,) I’ve fallen in love with them. They last the long haul, and they are LIGHT to boot (thanks to the NB Revlite foam sole!) I really love the neon green colour, it’s louder than I am (and that’s LOUD!) I will probably end up using these shoes for the marathon in Ironman Canada this year (yeah, I’ve decided to join the big-boy races for this season,) which should help me get through the 42.2km’s as fast as possible.

890 V2, sexy green!

Giro Mele Tri

The other day I picked up a new pair of Giro Mele Tri shoes, from my favourite bike/tri shop around ( Speed Theory Vancouver.) They have been love since first ride. These are easily the most comfortable shoe I’ve worn on a bike, and they are LIGHT as hell! Two straps make them hug every contour of my foot, so NO hot-spots pr rub points (I blasted them today for 125km’s outside, and it was like a vacation for my feet.) They look rather dashing as well, don’t you think? Who doesn’t love a flashy silver shoe? Might bring back some memories for some folks…….

Remember these???

Hope training and racing is going well for everyone! Today was the Boise 70.3 race (which, in fact, wasn’t a 70.3, as the weather was so abysmal that they shortened the bike to 25kms,) where a bunch of Team Ossenbrink members raced. They had great performances considering the weather, which saw about 1/3 of the pro field not even start, and some people even wore their wetsuits ON THE BIKE it was so cold! Now THAT’S COLD!

Happy training everyone!

I had the pleasure of racing the Subaru Shawnigan Lake Half Ironman yesterday as my season opener for 2012. Part of the West Coast Tri Series, it is race number one in their schedule. What a day it was!

I’ve been sick for the better part of the last week, and didn’t really know what to expect on race day. Coughing up all manner of coloured loveliness (not to mention what was coming out my nose,) would leave a ‘normal’ person with rather abysmal hopes for a successful race. Well, let’s start by pointing out the obvious (as those who know me could tell you,) I’m not exactly your average Joe. For some reason, being sick the past week caused me to want to perform even better, and I was sure I would give it everything I had on race day.  It also forced me to sleep and rest more. So, that being said, I termed it “Forced Rest” when people asked about it! Always take the positives.

The good folks at Lifesport were gracious and offered me a homestay, with the ever friendly Camm Lesley, their son Eric, and the rather excited Jesse (the poodle/German Shepard cross, that looked NOTHING like either.) Arriving on saturday full of gusto (and armed to the teeth with a bottle of NyQuil,) I went about race prep with my typical excited flair. Talking to other athletes and teammates, having my race-day ‘chat’ with Bjoern, and all the other important stuff we do the day before a race (like eat eat eat! My favorite part!) After a busy day, I finished it off with the usual crappy sleep I’ve grown accustomed to pre-race.

Race morning was nothing unusual, with my favorite breakfast of oatmeal, I was ready to kick down doors (which was probably more due to the coffee than anything!) Setting up in transition and having a chat with all my teammates and competitors was a good way to set a bright mood for the day. It looked like perfect weather for the day, and I was happy with how my morning warm-up routine went. Standing lakeside waiting for the horn, I was feeling as ready as I could.

Aggressive.

This is how I would describe the swim. Not ONLY aggressive, but I’d say by FAR the MOST aggressive swim I’ve ever had. It was an all-out battle the ENTIRE way, from start to finish. There was a lot of punching going on, and I have to admit I gave my fare share of bumps. But that’s life in the open water. Hence why FINA has a rule against having long finger nails! I felt alright in the swim, but just wasn’t able to really throw down any major power. A month in Tucson really hindered the progress on my swim, as I wasn’t able to stay consistent with my swimming while down there. I’d say the most ironic part of the whole swim yesterday was that I was swimming in a pack of Lifesport Teammates the whole way. Yup, all my friends and I having a ‘blast’ together, beating the absolute HELL out of eachother!

Gutting my way through the bike course

As I came out of the water and through T1, I noticed all my teammates around me exiting the water as well. I pride myself in having a fast T1, and this time was no different; I got my hustle on coming out of the water, and pulled off the fastest T1 time of the day, by a fair amount. Flying out of transition with my bike I went, wearing my brand spankin’ new Bell Javelin helmet from Speed Theory Vancouver; it has some rather impressive wind tunnel testing numbers, one of the many reasons I got it. I decided to try racing in my road cycling shoes; big mistake. They ARE the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever used, but when you do the flying squirrel style mount onto your bike, slipping your feet into a pair of ratcheting shoes is damn tough (especially when they have toe-warmers,) and I don’t recommend it. I’ve already got a set of the new Pearl Izumi Tri-Fly Carbon shoes set aside for me at Speed Theory I’ll be picking up soon, as I don’t want to go through the hassle of fighting into the roadies again. I lost a fair amount of time due to the shoes, as I lost all lead coming out of T1 I had made. The ride itself was a fairly uneventful one. For some reason, my legs just didn’t seem to fire on the bike. The fact that I couldn’t feel any part of my legs probably didn’t help, as I felt like I had no control over them; they just seemed to go at their own pace! I lost the group of guys who I started with, but managed to get near Lance Watson and ride a lot of the bike with him. It was a replay of my Victoria Half Ironman race 3 years ago, when I rode alongside Lance for much of the bike portion. Near the end of the bike, Dan Smith rocked by us, and I fought to keep in contact with him. I lost him, but it was a good hard finish I needed.

Now it was run time. As I started the run, I remember hearing Bjoern say as I passed by, ” don’t worry about the bike, it’s time to run; do what you do best.” And do that I did.

The beautiful Kinsol Trestle

Sometimes we don’t race as hard as we can, and can look back at our efforts with regret, wishing that we had left it all out there on course, that we had raced like a warrior. Well, I may not have had anything in the tank for the bike, but I assure you, I ran like a warrior. I knew there was a substantial gap between me and even the next guy, but I went into that run with only ONE thing on my mind: run like a hunter, and hunt down as many as possible. I was equipped with my all-time FAVOURITE race flats from New Balance Vancouver, the NB1400 (in a sick colour, none-the-less,) and I was making quick work of the soft gravel Cowichan Valley Trail, heading towards the the most exciting part of the run course, the Kinsol Tresle! It was the first turn-around point, and the first time I’d get a chance to see where I stood in the race. I had closed a lot of the gap, but I still had a lot to go. After the turn around, I managed to catch my teammate Lawrence as we crossed back over the trestle. I knew that next I had teammates Andrew and Brendan to contend with. I started to push harder, and eventually worked my way through the field into 4th, right before the second and final turn around point. I was starting to hurt pretty bad, but as I neared the 18km mark, I could see the 3rd place runner. With a few words of wisdom and encouragement from Bjoern, I started to really surge. At the 19km mark, it was as if some internal governing system just broke, like a motor that just starts to run out of control. Something inside said “if you don’t go now, you’re gonna be fourth.” That was the defining moment of my run. I was hurting like it ain’t NOBODIES business, but I decided if I didn’t give it everything I had left, then I wouldn’t stand a chance.

Floating in my NB1600’s

So I went. I went with the effort that makes you get tunnel vision, when your brain starts to revert to it’s most basic of functions, like breathing, and moving forward. It’s all I could do. I couldn’t hear anything, damned if I could see much, and thinking was on a whole different plane of existence than I was at that moment. But I had a target on that guy’s back, and as the 20km mark approached, I knew there was a slim chance I could catch him. I just dumped the clutch, leaned into the gas with all my weight, and finally caught him with barely half a km to go. I just kept going, and practically sprinted to the finish line.

PUMPED about my run!

4:13. 3rd place overall. I was ecstatic. Elated. I was many things, and completely and utterly spent was one of them. I ran like my life depended on it, and I can honestly say I left absolutely everything out there. Even with a so-so swim, and a meager bike, the sickness couldn’t take away my run. What a battle it was.

Made the podium, but just barely!

Happy post-race

I have to give a very special thanks to Bjoern for all the hard work he does for me. For all the hard work I have done, he’s done as much or more behind-the-scenes thankless work for me. He was out there all day cheering for all of us and supporting us. I have to also thank Scott Gix, of Oomph! Multisport, for the awesome custom race suit. It was something that never crossed my mind all race, and that’s a good thing (cause if you’re thinking about it, that usually means it’s uncomfortable or there’s something wrong!) Thanks to the crew at Speed Theory for all the help and work on the P3C, New Balance Vancouver for the speed weaponry I used to take down the run, Eload Sport Nutrition for keeping my energy and electrolyte levels up (being a very salty sweater, I DEPEND on the addition of the Zone Caps to EVERYTHING I take in during a race and while training,) Compressport Canada for the outstanding calf guards (which also helped me crush the run course,) and to Jennifer Bajus of Bajong Bar for keeping me healthily fueled during training, and getting to the start line healthy! Without my support crew, I’d not have had the successful day that I did!

Present from Scott at Oomph! SWEET shirt!

Sore and tired from the effort (and have taken down my share of treats in the last day,) I look forward to the first 70.3 of the season with IM 70.3 Boise, only 2 weeks away. I’ll be working on getting healthy for now, then getting all set to go for Boise.

Happy training everyone, summer is almost HERE!!!

Nathan

Jack and Sarah’s place w/ ‘Loki’

Here I sit in the Tucson airport, feeling tired, sore, and pretty much everything else associated with a training camp over-load. Satisfaction is high on the list, as I pushed my boundaries and limits the last few weeks out on the roads, mountains, and trails of Tucson. What a time I’ve had, each day being an eye-opener and learning experience to say the least. I’ve made some new friends, which I will most certainly miss (Jack, Sarah, Loki, and the newly inducted Cookie.) I thank them for their hospitality while I was here, they made every effort to make my stay as comfortable as possible, and they also introduced me to ‘Frost’ gelato. What a decadent place. Jack and Sarah live in the south-east part of Tucson, the Rita Ranch area. They rent out one of the rooms in their beautiful house to folks like myself: athletes looking for a training destination, or anyone who is looking for a room to rent.

The end goal @ Kitts Peak!

If you are ever looking for a place to stay in Tucson, you will NOT find a better place to stay than with Jack and Sarah, I promise you that! You also can’t find a nicer bunch, who will only add to the awesomeness that is training in Tucson. You can get a hold of me at nathankillam@hotmail.com, on facebook, or twitter, if you would like Jack and Sarah’s contact info. Guaranteed to make your trip so much better.

Chilly climb to Kitts Peak Observatory

The last few weeks (since Jonna left) have been full of riding and running, the primary focus down here. I had a rather epic day about a week ago, a 200+km ride out to Kitts Peak and back (Kitts Peak is another observatory; like Mt. Lemmon, but only 11miles up, and much steeper.) It was the coldest day yet here, which was made worse by howling winds and high elevations up the mountain.

Amazing Kitts Peak view

Hillenbrant Aquatic Center at the U of A

Before I came here, I was reading up on the local master’s swim clubs, to see if there were any that I might be able to jump in on. There is only one down here, but it’s a biggie: the Ford Aquatics Masters. They swim at the beautiful Hillenbrant Aquatic Center outdoor pool (which almost ALL the pools down here are outdoor) located at the University of Arizona. It was an experience, as I’ve never been to a facility like that one. U of A is fairly OBVIOUSLY big into swimming!

Yeah. Bigger than my noggin!

 Just the other day, I had the chance to climb Mt. Lemmon one more time, and I made good use of the trip; after Jonna and I visited the ‘Cookie Cabin’ at the top of Lemmon, I was determined to make it back there for more cookies. Well, make it I did, and I definitely enjoyed myself some cookies (it was about a 5hr ride to get there,) and I decided to bring a few home for later. Two cookies later, and I was back on the road. I tell you, cookies as big as your head seem to give me super powers (Cookie Monster?) I just CRUSHED it all the way back home, felt great on my cookie high!!

My accomplices. So good!

The ONLY way to recover!!

This camp has been one of the best trips I can remember, just doing something I love day-in, day-out. It was a daily learning experience, and gave me the chance to test out all sorts of nutrition combinations, recovery techniques, etc. I tell you, without my Eload fuel and recovery, and especially my Compressport compression gear (which I practically LIVED in during my trip,) I don’t think I would’ve survived. I’ll definitely miss the hot heat and daily dose of Vitamin D from the sun down here (although I hear in the summer it gets so hot it’s ridiculous,) but I’m thinking we should be getting some half-decent weather coming our way in Vancouver soon, so I’ll just hold out for that. The next month will be chock full of solid recovery efforts, as well as preparing for my first two races of the season: Subaru Shawnigan Lake Half Ironman, and two weeks later, Ironman 70.3 Boise. They’ll be good testers to see where my fitness lies, although after all the long base volume from this camp I’m thinking it’ll be much higher than it has ever been. I have high hopes for this season, and Coach Bjoern and I will be working on some big things. I think I’m MOST excited about doing some motorpacing behind Bjoern’s scooter, perhaps even in Penticton on the IMC course!

Powell starting the season right!

I hope everyone’s training has been going great, congrats to Andrew Powell on his win at the Delta Triathlon on the weekend, and congratulations to the Glotman-Simpson Cycling Team for their stage race in Walla-Walla, looks like everyone had tons of fun and got some solid sunshine in! Like I said before, if you’re thinking of going to Tucson and need a place to stay, look no further than Jack and Sarah, as you can’t find better!

Signing off for now, happy training!