a liquid state of mind

Back at it!

2012-01-06T10:28:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year faithful readers!

It seems that since my last post Blogger has changed some things up ... wonder if this will look any different once I press "Publish"

Some exciting things coming down the pipe for 2012, and I thought I'd quickly share!

Goal Race - Ironman CdA

The goal race for this year is Ironman Coeur d'Alene, held at the end of June. While I'll normally only race an iron-distance event every second year (2011 was Ironman Canada, and so will 2013), the reality is that this is my final season racing in the 25-29 year age group, so we thought it best if I take advantage of the "big fish, not so little pond" syndrome.

Lots of strong Vancouver athletes are heading down to do this race, so I'm sure I'll have lots of company on those early season long rides, and lots of motivation to race fast when June approaches.

Fun Race - The Mission Classic Gran Fondo


missionclassic.ca

While I don't always settle on my B and C priority events leading up to something big like Ironman Coeur d'Alene, one ride I'll definitely be doing at the end of May is the new Mission Classic GranFondo. This race is organized by Outback Events, the same team that puts on the Oliver and Desert Half triathlons in the Okanagan (among other races)

Back in September, Joe Dixon had a small group of riders head out to Mission to ride part of the course, get some video footage, and give our feedback on the ride. Some pretty cool shots of Speed Theory athletes Anthony Toth, Rachel Kiers, and myself. You've probably seen the promo video for the event, but because I'm in it, you should probably go watch it again (scroll to the bottom of the page)

New Old Friends - Leading Edge

Another exciting development is my new involvement with Leading Edge. I trained with this group of dedicated athletes back in 2008 (I think?) and have always admired how they are able to mix hard work with having a lot of fun. So, after being approached by Head Coach (and all-round awesome guy) Andrew Tuovinen I'll be joining the club as their Run Coach for their Wednesday night quality sessions.

Judging by the number of athletes who braved the sideways rain this past Wednesday, this should be a fun year!

And Speaking of Coaching

And speaking of coaching, I have also started to coach dedicated individual athletes for triathlon, running, and cycling events for 2012. Not a whole ton I want to say at this point, as I'm dedicating all my energy towards getting my athletes going for their key races. When I have more information that I want to get out publically, though, you'll see it here first!

All the best in reaching your own goals for 2012!

~ liquid

How Not to Run a Marathon

2011-11-13T06:01:00.001-08:00

Many of my faithful readers followed me online or on Twitter last Sunday when I raced the ING New York Marathon (thanks for that!).

There's a reason that I get my athletes to always take a day or two after a big event before they start reflecting and writing their race report. Quite often, our first reactions after a race aren't the best. For me, my execution at the New York Marathon was so bass-akwards that, despite the final time of 2:56 (only 2 minutes off my PB) it felt terrible.

If you were following me on Twitter (and if you don't, why the hell not!) you'd have probably seen my tweet that announced this upcoming blog post.

So here it is: "How Not to Run a Marathon (Without Even Caring)"

1. Make sure that you choose a marathon that is in a city that you've previously never visited, preferably with a long flight where you change at least 2 time zones. You'll want to tire your legs out in transit and scouting out your new surroundings in the days before the event.

Crowds, lines, and standing. Not the best way to rest before a race

Scouting out the finish line the day before the race

It doesn't hurt your enthusiasm when you get to register next to the "Competitive" athletes

(and in case you're wondering, these booths went up to 50,000)

The New York Marathon divides racers into different Villages to organize the start of the race.

Of course, I was in the Orange Village

2. Take lots of photos, especially those that help you visualize just how freakin' long the race course is

and that's just the first 16 miles

3. If available, visit the Official Race Expo and be sure to partake in any screenings of Official Race Videos developed to pump up the enthusiasm of all viewers. The more the video takes you through each section of the race, explaining the significance of running through Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Manhattan, the better

4. You know what they say, "The early bird gets the worm." Rise 4 or 5 hours before the race start, have very little for breakfast, then take buses and shuttles to the race start. Sit on a curb trying to stay warm all morning, and if you have to get up (to get coffee, use the washroom, etc) be sure to spend the next 30 minutes walking around to find another place to sit down, because someone's inevitably taken your old spot

5. Oh, and do this while surrounded by 10,000 other racers, so that when it's finally an hour until your race start, you don't have the room to do any type of warmup. Marathons run when your body is completely cold are the best!

6. Once the race starts, be sure to get caught up in the emotion of the event. This is the only way to success. Lots of racers, and thousands of spectators cheering you on. You'll soon realize that whatever "race plan" you had to run the marathon will be thrown right out the window (or right off the nearest bridge)

From Brooklyn to Manhattan, thousands of spectators line the streets to cheer on the event. Amazing!

To add to your experience, arrange for a police officer to pull right in front of your wife

when she's taking a photo of you. The resulting shot will be amazingly out of focus

Elizabeth's money shot. Lighting, action, intensity, it's all there!

7. A marathon is 26.2 miles, but it's also 42.2 kilometers. For optimal success, never be quite certain which split your watch is giving you. Also be convinced that the GPS is slightly off.

Orange was everywhere, but why was this guy running with a backpack?

8. For extra encouragement, make sure that your Race of Choice is sponsored by a company whose key branding happens to be your colour of choice as well. That way, lots of racers around you will be racing in your favourite colour!

Okay, I'll be honest, I was no where near these guys

9. You yourself, however, must choose a selection of running shoes, compression sleeves, and racing singlet that make you look like a sad victim of the 1986 Movie "Rainbow War"

Definitely not my styliest moment,

but making the choice to pin my name to my jersey meant

everyone on course was cheering for Doug from Vancouver

10. Once you're finished, you ask yourself - Self, what would I change if I were to do this all over again? If you answer - Not a single thing - you know you've done it right!

On the way to the finish in Central Park. You can't see it, but it's hurting,

and it has for about 6 miles

But, like a good trooper, we went out to watch other runners once I was done

If tourism marathoning is at all something you're interested in, I highly recommend running New York. You probably won't get your best time (if you get in via the Lottery, you'll probably be surrounded by 2000 runners at all times), but if you treat it as an exciting experience, I promise you that you'll have the time of your life!

~ liquid

Ironman Canada Race Report

2011-08-31T19:32:00.001-07:00

The proof is in the pudding

The easy answers first

1. My "A" goal going into this race was to run sub-10. 1:10 swim/T1, 5:20 bike, sub 3:30 run. That's pretty much how the day panned out, and I couldn't be happier.

2. My "A+" goal was to chase 9:45 (by pulling out a miracle run) and chase down my age group competitors. Sunday ended up being a very hot, tough day, and my mental state wandered at times from "racing" to "get through it"

3. Many people have, in the past few days, said how much it sucks that I didn't get a rolldown Kona Slot. I ran 5km with the racer who ended up 2nd in my age group, and I let him go after Okanagan Falls. Don't feel bad for me - when I race for a Kona slot, you'll know

The Race by the Numbers

Thanks to Slowtwitch for crunching the numbers of all the athletes who raced Ironman Canada 2011 (you'll have to zoom in to read it)

And yes, I had the fastest T2 of the entire race. Transition clinics will begin again in the spring.

The Full Story

Race morning started quite calmly. I reached Transition early, as I always try to do. By 5:45 I was through Special Needs drop off, Body Marking, and had pumped my tires.

Note: I feel like a jerk whenever I refuse to loan my bike pump to a complete stranger, but please always bring your own pump to a race. Barely had I finished pumping when someone asked "can I have that when you're done ... what, it's not from the Bike Barn?"

The only moment of morning panic (Elizabeth was watching me and saw my eyes go wide) was when I was packing my nutrition in my Houndstooth Bento Box. I forgot my salt tabs, and it was going to be 30 degrees +. I knew I had some on my run race belt, but quickly discounted that option. Instead, I resounded to take some swigs of Ironman Perform on the bike course (I had afterall trained with it) to get extra sodium in. Problem solved.

Got in a quick warmup (short jog, leg swings, and a clearing of the head) at my favourite beach by Copper Cup Coffee ("Splash Fight" beach to those in the know). Then I got 5 minutes to sit with my bestest supporter before she left to find her spectating spot on the beach.

Once I was in my wetsuit, I walked across the beach to give Elizabeth another hug, then got back to the centre of the pack to watch the pros start. I don't think I embarrassed Rachel too much when I yelled for her to kick ass.

The Swim

Like last time racing IMC, I started on the far right of the swim beach. The plan was to keep the buoys on my left until the turn around point, leaving open water to the right if it started getting crowded. The swim went well in general: I know I need to focus more on my speed and keeping good form during harder efforts, but I didn't panic or get frustrated by swimmers around me.

Transition
Usually T1 is quite crowded, because I'm coming out of the water with hundreds of other athletes. But the key is to make eye contact with volunteers (in this case wetsuit strippers), find your open spot (this year on the other side of the Men's change tent), and when a volunteer offers to sunscreen your shoulders while you're putting on your cycling shoes, you say "Yes Please!"

Onto the Bike
If you do nothing else before your next race, learn how to mount your bike without crashing into other cyclists. Please!

The week before IMC, I had written a post about "Being that Voice." In it, I talked about how we might replace our internal dialogue (often negative) with the positive words from friends, role models, and other athletes. These are the words that went through my head while cycling; it pretty much sums up how my ride went

from Jordan Rapp: the bike race doesn't even start until after Richter Pass. Too many athletes go hard on McLean Creek hill, and pay for it at Yellow Lake.

from JonnyO: ride down the rollers, spin up, and keep your effort easy. The rollers are too long and steep to try and power your way over them (all said in Frenglish, BTW)

from Jordan Myers (he was officiating IMC and I spoke with him after my warmup): save it for the run!

Most of my friends know that I am focused and surly during a race, and getting a smile or a wave is pretty unlikely. Seeing as I gave some high fives to the Speed Theory team out at Yellow Lake, I guess I was doing pretty good!

Elizabeth had two cowbells ringing at Yellow Lake. Most awesome spectator ever? I think so!

At the top of Yellow Lake, we were struck my the headwinds. I took a look at my watch (I was chasing 1:30 pm to be back in Penticton) and knew that I could descend down those final hills. And it was fun!

"No I Don't!"
A fast transition takes a lot of mental and physical prep. You're faster on the bike than you ever will be running, so letting up at the end of the bike (to me at least) makes no sense.

Speeding into T2, I removed my sunglasses and stashed them in my bento box. This would make removing my helmet easier, and I had a second set of glasses (my Orange Jawbones) in my T2 bag. Yes, I'm that vain.

It works like this:
Flying dismount
Pass Ordu off to volunteer (make sure he catches it!)
Remove helmet while running
Grab Bike-to-Run bag
Make eye contact with volunteer. "Can you follow me please?"
Give him helmet
Run to the chair at the end of the change tent
Rip open bag
Put on shoes
Grab hat (it has sunnies and 2nd race belt (with gels and stuff) pre-loaded)
Run out of change tent
Reach down and unclip your bike race belt

When the volunteers start yelling out "YOUR RACE BELT, YOU NEED THAT!"

You reply: "No I don't!"

and that, my friends, is how you perform the fastest T2 in the race

Be that Voice

2 miles into the Ironman Canada Run, you start up Main Street. And you get to see racers finishing their bike rides. In this case, I got a friendly wave from friend Rachel. I'll leave the story of how she ended up behind me to her, if she wants to tell it.

Needless to say, the wave, the smile, and the "You're awesome Doug" was just what I needed to hear as I started my marathon.

"You've got 12 minutes!"

#272 on the run!

I knew that my Ironman marathon was going to have to be absolutely fantastic if I was going to meet my sub 10 goal. My previous best was 3:35 - when you can run a 2:55 open marathon seeing an average pace of 5 min/km can be pretty disappointing.

So I planned. I knew when I had to be where I had to be. I set my watch to display Time of Day. I set my watch to AutoLap every 5 km. And I marked my race bib with what Time of Day I had to be at 5 km, 10 km, 15 km, etc.

It was a bit confusing, and I think my math was wrong for the first few checkpoints. But when I made the OK Falls turnaround at 3:08 (I had planned for 3:05) I knew that sub 10 was a possibility.

Then I turned around. And ran the hills out of OK Falls. Well, ran is a relative term. Walking might have been faster, or at least it felt that way.

But I made new friends on the run. Brendan from UBC Tri Club, Fiona NRG Performance Training, Adam from Quebec (who KQ'd on his first Ironman!) became fellow sufferers, fellow racers out on that course, and I wouldn't have had the run that I did if not for their energy when I was feeling low.

Or, as one observer noted, "glazed over"

About 10 km to go, finally passing by the housing on the north end of Skaha Lake, and my adoring fans (I think from the SAA - can anyone confirm this!?!) started yelling "Way to go Doug, sub 10 for sure!"

I looked at my watch: 4:15 pm. "I don't think so" I said.

Then it came. Fiona Whitby, pro triathlete running beside me, whom I had just met on the run course, saved my race.

"Sure you can" she said. As I've said before, in training, in racing, in recovery, be that voice. So I ran.

Up the hill to Cherry Lane Mall, down the hill. Through the aid stations, grabbing whatever water, ice, fruit, and coke I could.

I round the corner at Lakeshore Drive, knowing that just up ahead would be cheering crowds. Elizabeth is there yelling "You've got 12 minutes to get there!"

I check my watch - yep, 12 minutes to run the final out-and-back. Does anyone know how long it is? Hey, why is the turn-around farther than the first one? Why do I need to run all the way to Salty's???

Okay, that only took 4 and a half minutes. I can do this. Start sprinting. Hey, that's Jordan announcing ... "and with 30 seconds to go..." 30 seconds! Holy crap! Gotta go faster ... nope, hamstring is going to cramp.

What does the sign say ... 9:56:something something. Okay, we're good!

I tip my cap to Steve, Jordan, and Mic - the best race announcing team out there.

9:57:14 - I'll take that any day.

Thanks for reading

~ liquid

So You Want to Watch an Ironman ... Really?

2011-08-26T21:14:00.000-07:00

Hi, Elizabeth the Ironwidow here,

If you’ve never spectated an Ironman before, I highly recommend it! The energy is amazing and completely unlike the shorter distances. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll start thinking it looks like a good idea and want to sign up to do it next year. I love the emphasis on completing the race and doing your best, even if that means finishing late at night. Every single person who crosses the finish line is welcomed with as big a cheer as the winner of the race, and if you’re finishing close to midnight the winner of the race will probably be there cheering for you!

It’s all very special, but it’s also a pain in the ass to spectate. It’s long - really long - and if it’s IMC, with its single loop bike course, you can’t plan on setting up camp and watching your athlete go by multiple times. You’ve got to plan ahead, be prepared, and get out there and seize the day! Or you could go on a wine tour and just show up in time to see your athlete cross the finish line. But if you decide you want to soak in the Ironman-y glory all day long, you’re in for a tough day. That’s why I’m giving you, dear reader, these tips, hard-earned from my vast experience watching three whole Ironmans. You’re welcome.

Ahead of time:

Only be friends with fast athletes. Otherwise you’ll be at this all day.

Know your athlete’s race number, and scout out their spot at transition so you know the best spot to watch from.

Figure out where you want to view from. I usually like to pick out 2 or 3 different spots, but you need to plan ahead to make sure you don’t try to cross the race course once there are athletes out there.

Make signs if you want. I prefer to just run around with my cow bells. Don’t need no cumbersome signs to tie me down. That’s not how I roll.

Be prepared:

Wear comfortable shoes. I somehow always end up running to not miss something, so be ready for anything and wear appropriate footwear.

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. I like to fill up 2 water bottles with as much ice as possible and then just top it off with water. Not that 2 water bottles is enough water, but it’s as much as I can be bothered to carry around with me.

Figure out your nutrition plan. I like to buy lunch but carry all my snacks.

Pack a backpack full of everything you’ll need to get you through the day. Your car might be parked far away, or on the other side of the stream of athletes, so I try to carry as much as I can with me all day. Make sure you include:

· A course map

· Cow bell

· Sunscreen (reapply often!), sunglasses, hat

· Band aids

· Camera with extra battery

· Smart phone to follow twitter and ironman live #IMC

· I find a chair too heavy to carry around, but bring a towel or something to sit on. My favorite is a kneeling pad for gardening, or a swimming kick board. Very light and portable, but very comfy.

· Something warm to layer, especially if your athlete’s coming in after dark…this isn’t something *I’ve* ever had to concern myself with, but we can’t all be Doug.

· If you’re planning on cheering after dark, bring glow in the dark stuff!

· More cow bell

On the big day:

You’re ready for this. Stay focused, follow your race day plan, and remember to relax enjoy the day.

Plan on never crossing the race route once there are athletes on the course! That means you need to figure out ahead of time where food is and where the bathrooms are and where you want to view the race from. If you’re planning on driving out somewhere to watch the bike, count on traffic being backed up from people trying to cross the race route.

Cheer for people you don’t know. If there are names on the bibs, use names! Just make sure you don’t cheer for anyone else in Doug’s age group. Throw rocks at them.

Secret swim viewing tip: stand in the lake!

Parking: good luck with that.

More cow bell

In closing:

Remember, the plural of Ironman is Ironmans. This way you can avoid sentences like, "my husband has done three Ironmen."

Be that voice

2011-08-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

I remember Lisa Bentley's awards speech when I first finished Ironman Canada in 2007. She took us through her race day, including all the little problems she faced and how she overcame them on her road to victory. It wasn't about having a perfect day - it was that she managed her problems better than her competitors out there.

"There's victory in finishing what you started ..." she said

* * *

For over a year now I've had the challenge on completing fast, hard workouts at CrossFit North Vancouver. "Constantly varied" is the name of the game - efficient, quick workouts designed to make sure your lungs fall out of your mouth. Seriously.

It's like a 5km road race or a sprint triathlon - if it hurts, go faster. No need to pace, no need to plan. And no time for doubt.

* * *

The problem with Ironman is that it's long ... really long. Long enough to become a little bored, and long enough for your internal dialogue to start talking ...

"Maybe I swam too hard"
"Where are all my competitors?"
"Maybe I can't ..."

* * *

You'll often hear me tipping my hat to the elite of our sport (or any sport) - those who are fast not only because of their training, their commitment to their pursuits, but also because they've mastered their internal dialogue. It works with them, works for them, so that they can beat their competition.

I've yet to develop an unfailing inner voice when I race: I know that there are going to be a lot of "I can'ts" going through my head this Sunday. And however your training's been going, however many motivational speeches and blog posts you've read, my guess is that you're afraid of the "I can't" too.

And In Pursuit of Excellence is a long book to read before August 28th

So here's what I want you to do

Be that voice for everyone else. Between now and Sunday, whether in Vancouver or up in Penticton, let everything that you say be positive and encouraging.

It doesn't matter if you don't believe it, it doesn't matter if they're in your age group.

You've trained with your fellow racers, you know where they are strong, and where they are weak. Chose your words so that when they're on the start line, heading up Richter Pass, or running down to OK Falls, it's your voice they're hearing in their head.

I'll start

"I've seen you swimming, you're going to have a great time. Just get on some good feet, and trust your training"

"You may have pre-race jitters, but you're one of the strongest cyclists I've seen in years"

"You're going to fly down those hills and leave your competition eating your dust"

"I'm not going to need to give you splits to the racers in front of you, because you'll be charging out in the run"

"Just count it out. 1 ... 2 ... 3 ... 4 ... 5 ... and when you reach 100, start again, and go faster"

"I'll see you on the run, and we'll race side by side to the finish"

* * *

Over the past month or so it's come to my attention that people actually read my blog. So be that voice, because you may just hear the voices of friends going through your head this weekend too.

~ liquid

August 21st

2011-08-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

Today I ...

Got to swim in my favourite lake with some pretty cool people

Lost myself in the thrills of a trail run

Shared a coffee with friends

Got invited to a staff party for a business that I frequent as a customer

Remembered what it was like to use your first CO2 canister

Stood up for something I believed in, and didn't get intimidated

Received a special note from a special friend

Filled my fridge with free beer

Today, I had a good day

~ liquid

Quote of the Year

2011-08-20T07:25:00.000-07:00

“There is competition between individuals, but the real competition is you against the distance, against the course. If you finish, then you win, in your own mind. You enjoy the people you are with, make a lot of friends, and when you go back to work on Monday [well, Wednesday], you have the satisfaction that you were able to push your limit, do something you thought maybe you could not do.”

From a great read on Ultra-distance events. Grab a coffee and enjoy:
http://whyfihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifles.org/2011/ultra-endurance-athletics/

Thanks friends

~ liquid

Those last couple of weeks

2011-08-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

An alternative title to this post was: The Pre-Ironman Freak Out

No, I'm not having one ... yet

Rather, I thought I'd take some time to speak about something that I witness all too often this time of year, starting about 4 weeks before Ironman Canada at the end of August.

It goes something like this:

[cue door to Speed Theory opening]
Me: "Hey [insert customer's name], how's your training coming?"

Customer: "Great, except I've started to notice [something, usually to do with their bike]that might just throw the last 8 months of training out the window..."

The reality is, whether you're on a 4 week, 3 week, 2 week, or 2 day taper, you have a lot more time on your hands now than you have in the past couple of months. You feel like you should be doing something, but because you don't have the focusing power (or perhaps mind-numbing power) of stupid-long workouts anymore, you're starting to think about things.

And that thinking can be dangerous

....

I remember when it was first explained to me when I started working at Speed Theory. Unlike most other races that we do, the iron-distance triathlon has a special mystique to it. And in the weeks leading up to the big event, athletes start to panic about the weirdest things.

Taken individually, these concerns all make perfectly logical sense ~ a saddle that's worked for months isn't comfortable anymore, a friend has offered to loan their deep-dish race wheels that I've never trained on, what does Powerbar Ironman Perform taste like compared to the [whatever] drink I've been training with.

It's when you talk to two or three people in the course of one day, all with tiny little problems, that you start to see the humour in it. And I must admit, once you've seen about a dozen, the Pre-Ironman Freak Out becomes rather hilarious.

Among this province's triathletes the beginning of August marks a special countdown. We invest hundreds of hours to our training, ignore our friends (unless our friends also perform the holy trinity of swim, bike, and run) and spend all of our pennies on various forms of, let's be honest, candy packaged to look athletic.

And then we worry that the fly that landed on our bike's top tube last week might somehow compromise the front derailleur cable and we'll be forced to climb up Richter Pass in our Big Ring!

...

I remember the night before my first Sprint triathlon when I was worrying about just such things (of course, I didn't know what a "top tube" was then). It surprises me now just how wise I was at the time when I made the decision to deal with any problem that I could deal with, and not worry about those problems that I couldn't solve

"What if I get a flat tire" I said to myself. "Well, I know how to change that, so it'll be okay."

"What if my chain falls off my bike" I asked myself. "I'll just have to stop and put it back on. My hands will get a little dirty, but so what."

"What if my chain breaks" I panicked. "Well, I don't know how to solve that one, so I guess I'll throw my bike off the nearest cliff and call it quits."

I'm not sure if there were cliffs at my first race, but I didn't break my chain so I guess I never needed to find out.

The moral of the story: if you're racing IMC at the end of the month, there are things that are in your control, and things that are not. The most important factor, though, is how you react to episodes that come your way in the next couple of weeks.

... and if you don't know how to change a flat tire, I suggest you learn quickly.

....

There are, however, lots of little things that every athlete needs to do in the next couple of weeks. You've trained your body for a long day, now it's time to make sure that all your gear is in order

Liquid's Top 10 Things to Do

1. Do call your Local Bike Shop and schedule a pre-race tune up. And make sure you ask what this tune involves, and point out anything specific that you've been noticing on your bike.

2. Do take the time to clean your bike. I mean with a toothbrush. It'll race faster, and also make the receiver of Point #1 a lot happier :)

3. Do take your race wheels with you to this tune up. Get a professional to install the rear wheel, because checking the rear derailleur limit screws is very, very important!

4. Do get new bar tape put on your bike. And think about getting it in an awesome colour, because there's nothing cooler than looking down at your aerobars and seeing bright, clean bar tape

5. Do stock up on your specific sports nutrition products. Buy what you need for race day, and set it aside. And don't complain to me if the GVRD has run out of [insert nutritional supplement] on the day you're driving up to Penticton

6. Do check your wetsuit for damage. Check all the seams and the condition of the threading. There are some great wetsuit repair centres in Vancouver, and if you run out of time, a little needle, thread, and glue goes a long way to stitching together seams that are ready to go

7. Do check your tires for excessive nicks, rocks, and glass. If you decide you want to change your tires, do it now, so that the wire or kevlar beads have some time to stretch on the rim. If you buy a new tire up in Penticton, it'll be very tough to get on, and even tougher to remove if you flat during the race

8. Do take the time to make a check list of training and race gear you need. Better than those ones you download. Make it specific to your needs. Here's a copy of mine from a couple of years ago
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Ironman Checklist

9. Do have a plan for the next few weeks. Whether your coach gives it to you, or you make something up yourself, have a plan of how you're going to use your new-found time productively

10. Do remember to pack your bike shoes when you drive up to Penticton

Liquid's Top 10 Things Not to Do

1. Don't question your taper plan

2. Don't doubt your training or start comparing with other athletes. It doesn't matter what other athletes have done, or what their race plans are. You got yourself into this mess called Ironman, and you and only you are responsible for getting yourself out of it.

3. Don't go out and buy a carbon fiber ultralight disc wheel with tubular tires if you've never trained on one before. Yes it might make you faster. But it also might leave you in a ditch with a flat that you have no idea how to change.

4. Don't think that a flat tire will ruin your race. It's going to be a long day out there, and carrying an extra 50 grams for a tube and a CO2 canister won't make a lick of difference when you're climbing Yellow Lake. Be prepared for the worst, and hope you don't need it

5. Don't plan on relying on the Bike Barn's race support to come and bail you out. Chances are, they'll be a half hour away (at best). See Point 4

6. Don't forget to thank the people who have helped you get where you are. You know who they are

7. Don't feel embarrassed to ask questions about things you're unsure about. (as in ~ "If I'm planning on changing into bike shorts, do I need to wear anything under my wetsuit?" - the answer, yes) Somebody's been there before, and somebody's probably got a solution.

I'll even give an honest answer to those of you in the Male 25-29 Age Group.

8. Don't get cocky, but don't forget to be proud too

9. Don't you dare pass me on the run ...

10. But if you do, don't forget to smile.

~ liquid

ANARCHIST!

2011-07-21T14:00:00.000-07:00

Get Cam to pronounce the name of the ride for you sometime ...

How long is the climb? FOREVER

So, our epic ride during training camp was the Ironman Canada Course plus. We added the climb to the Anarchist Lookout in Osoyoos, skipped the out-and-back in Cawston, and went back to Penticton via Green Mountain Road. Then, a quick spin out to Skaha Bluffs to secure the first 200 km ride of the season (and for me, ever).

A triathlete's shelf in the bathroom

Rachel & Mike ready for the ride. Matching kits were the order of the day

Three wicked-awesome athletes, with Osoyoos in the background

In case you've never turned around after descending Richter Pass, this is what it looks like from the first Roller

Rachel Kiers - Speed Queen

And of course we took the requisite stop at the Bear. Why don't they have any energy bars? Brian, you should work on that

The pump that is not a pump

Great ride with some great friends.

Peach Classic: A Spectator's PoV

2011-07-17T12:11:00.000-07:00

So I went out running in Penticton today, and there was some sort of race going on, dedicated to a big giant Peach.

Friend James starting the bike, on his way to a PR and DQ!

First out of the water and first in our hearts! Mike Adams showing great run form even when wearing a wetsuit

Rachel Kiers, smiling as always!

Local rockstar JonnyO sporting some awesome Orbea gear!

A tilty photo adds dramatic effect

Leading Edge Coach Andrew

This is why we come here. Running along the KVR in Naramata

Jeremy didn't look up when we yelled his name from Hillside Estates Winery. Must be the helmet

... and we knew that Fast Richele wouldn't be too far behind

For some reason they let this guy on the course

If there's a headband involved, you'll be sure that Anthony is there

If you know that to look for, you can see Jeremy running for the finish line a mile away!

Nice glasses!

Yes, Welcome economy

Some very, very fast athletes.

Congrats to everyone who raced - thanks for making my run so entertaining!

~ liquid

Scotiabank Half Marathon RR

2011-06-27T17:10:00.001-07:00

This Sunday, June 26, I ran the Scotiabank Half Marathon. Special thanks to the BC & Yukon Chapter of the Children's Wish Foundation for supporting me through the event!

Read about it here:

Running for Wishes

I'll post some pics when I see them online

~ liquid

Getting back to it

2011-06-08T22:09:00.000-07:00

If you've been a recent subscriber to my blog, you've probably noticed a glaring absence in the last year and a half from this triathlete's blog.

Namely, triathlon.

Well, this past Sunday up in the BC Interior I ended my recent drought in triathlon racing. And what a drought it was. From training all winter and spring in wet and cold conditions (often having to drain a litre or more from my Ordu after a ride), the forecast for the Oliver Half Iron called for 30 degrees celcius. Yikes!

I went to have fun
It was fairly easy to chose the Oliver Half as my first race of the season. I enjoy the longer events (more real estate to run people down), and I love the sense of community and grass-routes event planning at all of the Outback Events races. I mean, at how many races is the race director (here, Joe Dixon) there to shake your hand and give you your finisher's medal? First class event!

I went to be tested
I've been cycling and running strong so far this year, so Oliver was a great venue to test that fitness. I also suspected that it would serve as a wake-up call for deficiencies in my training thus far this season; indeed it did.

Pre-game
Unlike many races, where I take the weekend to rest and prepare, this one was a bit of a whirlwind. I drove up to Oliver Saturday morning, did a quick bike of Black Sage Road, followed by registration and a dip in the lake.

Saturday evening was spent watching the Canucks game with the team from Podium Imports. This was the best of all the hamburgers I had all weekend!

Race Morning
If you know me, I tend to be early for things, and getting to transition early is no exception. This gave me times to calmly setup my transition, scout out the bike and run exits, and "explain" to the TriBC officials why my race number is not attached illegally to my bicycle. It also leaves time for some meet and greets with fellow racers.

The Swim

Okay, I'll admit that I wish I was a super fast swimmer. But I'm not, so there won't be any discussion here of 'staying with the pack,' 'bridging the gap,' or 'exiting in x place out of the water.' Sorry to disappoint.

I got through the swim without too much frustration, and with all my limbs attached. I call it a success.

T1
Now my race could begin, because from here on out I gots some skillz. Passed I don't know how many people on the 800m run from the swim exit to transition. Yes, I can run (even barefoot) much much faster than I can swim.

Apparently one adoring fan caught the swim cap that I threw her way after hearing her cheer. You keep that "27" swim cap, it might be worth something one day!

(New Transition Tip #1 - when running a long way with your wetsuit, tie your goggles to your zipper pull so you don't have to worry about it).

Helmet, socks, then running out to the mount line. I had done the elastic-leave-the-shoes-clipped-in technique (call it 85% success rate) and left my sunglasses in my Bento Box for easy access

(New Transition Tip #2 - if your sunglasses are hard to get over your helmet straps or hair, spray the earsocks with TriSwim's TriSlide and they'll slide right on)

The Bike

It's tougher than you'd think to ride a 90km bike course with absolutely no wind. Normally the Oliver course is known for a headwind while coming back on the highway, with a tailwind while on Black Sage road. It's kind of easy: battle into the wind, recover when it's behind you and go fast. But not this day. It was all work.

Great job executing my nutrition/hydration plan, managing to divide the course into quarters mentally, making sure that I ate and drank every 20 minutes or so. And if you were wondering whether Honey Stinger's new Waffles were good for racing, they are.

Total time of 2:30 something, averaging 200 watts.

T2
Successful transitions begin before you dismount the bike, so I had mentally planned to unmount my Garmin 310xt (attaching it to my wrist) and remove my sunglasses before the dismount line. Well, I executed a flying dismount with Oakley Jawbones between my teeth, so what?

55 second T2, good for third on the day. Also included passing a gentleman who kept saying "I can't find my bike rack"

(Transition Tip #3 - bright colored towel people! But don't do Orange, unless you want an Orbea Ordu racked in your spot)

The Run

It's all about the look, right? Orange Jawbones, Orange NB racing flats, whether you've run a half marathon in them or not?

I can summarize my run in two words: awesome pain.

Awesome, because I did not get passed by a single athlete. Those who were faster than me were much faster swimmers, so had several minutes on me. After the first lap of the course, I just ran out of people to chase. Luckily, I did get to cheer on JonnyO as he raced to victory, and got a lot of smiles and cheers from runners on their first lap.

Pain, because my feet developed terrible blisters. And not the type that I usually get, but big burns on the bottom of both feet. Seriously, I was expecting to kick off my shoes after the race and see blood everywhere. But, that didn't happen, and I finished in 4 hours and 44 minutes (only 2 minutes off my PB, and that was when the course didn't have an almost-kilometer-long-run to the transition).

Good for 17th overall, 3rd in my Age Group, and a pretty new wine glass!

The Percentages
In the spirit of my good friend Jeremy Hopwood, here's the breakdown of my race splits compared to the winner (presented in reverse order for dramatic effect).

Run:
JonnyO - 1:26
Me - 1:31 95% as fast (that's pretty good!)

Bike:
JonnyO - 2:22
Me - 2:29 also 95% as fast (I'll take that)

T1
JonnyO - 3:14
Me - 3:21 (let's just call that a draw)

T2
JonnyO - 1:04
Me - 0:54 (things are looking up in the world)

Swim
JonnyO - 26:26
Me - 38:39 68% as fast (and why I will never, never be pro)

If you're not bored by now, here are the Garmin files of the Bike and the Run

Next up, Scotiabank Half Marathon!

Keep your head up and your handlebars straight!

~ liquid

Can you lift a Doug?

2011-04-21T20:59:00.000-07:00

Every athlete knows it - hitting a new PR is great

For quite a long time at Pure Athletics I've been stuck in a rut in my Olympic Weight lifting. Truth of the matter is I don't work on it enough to see real improvement (there is this thing called Ironman at the end of August I am training for). However, earlier in the winter I was able to lift and overhead squat 135 lbs, I really did find it weird that a higher One-Rep Max was eluding me.

Then, two pieces came into play that would eventually change this.

One, I set a goal. Lift my bodyweight (150 pounds) from the ground, above my head. I'd use the Clean & Jerk method, which breaks the movement down into two steps.

Here's somebody lifting much more weight with much better technique than I ever will.

Two, our schedule at CrossFit provided the opportunity for me to work consistently at the movement. On the gym's "Rest Days" we started to work on our "goats" - that is, something you're not-so-awesome at. Volume was the key, practicing the movement with perfect technique, getting stronger in small progressions.

Then you work on it. Every minute, for twenty minutes. Maybe 1 rep, maybe 5 (based upon the movement you're practicing).

So for 4 weeks, every 4th day, Elizabeth and I would show up, she would work her Wall Balls, and I my Clean and Jerk.

I started at 95 pounds, 53 reps over 20 minutes.
Then 105 pounds, 51 reps
Then 115, then 125

This week I was slated to do 135 pounds. It was getting pretty heavy, so I decided to just try 1 rep every minute, for 20 minutes.

9 minutes went by, and as I got used to the weight, it became easier. So I added 5 pounds (140 lbs).

Another 5 reps. Another 5 pounds. Now lifting 145 lbs.

Last rep, 5 more pounds. Bodyweight Clean & Jerk, hellz yeah.

Unfortunately, no camera on site this momentus day - here's a picture of me looking awesome

Thanks to Coach Lu & Roe for the motivation, and my wife for encouraging me every rep of the way.

With that goat done, what do I do now? Time to set another goal!

Getting to the Point - April Fool's RR

2011-04-07T08:15:00.000-07:00

Nothing quite like a good Point-to-Point race, and the April Fool's half marathon this past weekend is no exception.

I ran this race last year with members of the TriScouts and North Shore Tri Club. A bit of a different turnout this year with different dynamics, but still lots of fun.

Here's the link to my Garmin data (a bit early in the post I know, but it also saves me from tracking down a map of the race).

The Ride
One of the great things about this race is how grassroots it is. Super cheap for a Half Mary, and it's scheduled so that you can take the first ferry over from Horseshoe Bay in the morning, and they even have shuttles to take you to the race start! A bit of a quick turnaround, but kinda fun to figure out how well you can race on minimal warmup.

(If I end up going next year, though, I might run laps around the deck...)

The Lineup
This year the "People that I know at this race" included Rachel, Team Richele & Donovan, Jeff (he's in a rock band!), Trina & Sleevens, and the NSTC crew.

Let the Hurting Begin
The race started out downhill this year, and as usual I had a bit of an problem figuring out whom to run with in the first couple of kms. Do I push it a bit and get with the faster group, or back off a bit so that I don't blow up?

Luckily for me, Donovan was running right behind me the entire race. According to him, I was running really smoothly, would speed down the downhills, but slow up on the uphills (and if you look at the course profile, there are lots of both!) It's not all that often that you get play-by-play feedback on your running form during a race!

Oh, and be sure to always wear cool sunglasses during running races. Spectators will be sure to comment on them, and give you a little boost when you need it most.

Ran through the half-way point at 37 minutes - might have just set a new 10km PB.

With about 5 km to go, the course turned to a slight uphill. I hear a bit of a 'grinding' behind me, and figure for some reason that a mountain bike is coming up on my left. No, a runner. Drops me on the uphill, and continues to run down 2 more racers in front of me. What a final kick for this racer!

Managed to pass one more runner in the final few kilometers of the race, but apparently I also kept hallucinating the race marker signs (didn't I already see the 19 km marker ?!?)

At the 20 km mark, I checked behind me to see if I was going to need to work at the finish. Coast is clear! Running down the finishing shoot - all good! Then I hear the race announcer - "And hear comes Donovan Watts from Vancouver". Apparently wearing a white race shirt makes you invisible to racers infront of you who quickly glance backwards near the end of the race! He almost caught me!

Final time - 1:17:10, 9th overall. (Please do keep in mind that when the race winner crossed at 1:09:59, I still had 2 kilometers to go)

The Cooldown
After a brief respite, Donovan and I decided to do our cooldown opposite the racers who were still coming in. I complained about my calf muscles (from racing downhill), Donovan his quads (from racing uphill). Saw Jeff, Rachel, Richele, Stephen, Katrina, Jonesy, Susie, and others run the final stretch of their races!

It was very important, though, when we turned around from our cooldown to head back to the race finish that we not run faster than runners still finishing their race.

Recovery Meal
Conveniently, right down the block from the community centre where the race bus drops you off is the BlackFish Pub. Good, basic pub menu - a great place for a post-race recovery meal and a beer.

That's all for now kids. Don't really know what race is up next (currently signed up for the Oliver Half-Iron, but that's in June). Will keep you posted

~ liquid

CrossFit & Endurance Training - Liquid's Perspective

2011-04-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

This one's been a long time coming, but with the number of articles and forum posts, fB status updates, as well as some recent race results that I can actually pin numbers to, it's time to answer if/how/has CrossFit helped my triathlon training.

The Backstory
Elizabeth and I first went to see Coach Dave in January 2010. My (now) wife wanted to be fit for our wedding in July, and several of her staff had seen great results through CrossFit programs.

I still remember the first "assessment" day and how the Tabata squat set left me crippled for the rest of the weekend. 4 minutes of exercise did to me what normally takes about 3 hours of racing.

Since that first day, we have been doing our daily WODs (that's Workout of the Day) at Pure Athletics / CrossFit North Vancouver. I can do 40 Kipping Pullups before failure, can deadlift over 300 pounds, and am oh-so-close to lifting my bodyweight over my head.

Since then I have been called a running maniac, Ironman, liquid, and stupid

How CrossFit has helped my triathlon training

Time
I am allowed to make every second year an 'Ironman' year. 2007, my first time at IMC. 2009, I raced IM Coeur d'Alene and IM Canada. 2011 Ironman Canada (and the New York Marathon). 2013 Ironman Canada will fall on my 30th Birthday.

This rule exists for a couple of reasons, but mostly because my wife would like to see me every once in a while. And that is the hardest part about Ironman training, especially when one partner can train and race, and the other does not. The time commitment of endurance training can easily take its toll on any relationship (and we all know people for whom this has been the case).

Elizabeth and I cannot go for a run together. I quite literally run twice as fast as her. But at CrossFit North Vancouver, we can share a workout. Yes, she hates to get up for a 7 am class, and yes, I could probably fit in a 2-hour workout in the time it takes to drive to the box, do the WOD, and drive home.

But if 5 hours per week of travel and Crossfitting gives me leave to do my long rides and runs, I'll take it.

Nutrition
If you didn't read my riveting post on the 30-day Paleo Diet Challenge, here's a link.

I'll be honest, I like bread, I like cookies, and I haven't finished reading the copy of The Paleo Solution that I won from the challenge.

But I no longer need cream and sugar to enjoy my coffee.

And I'm drinking as much water every day as I can. And I take a container of homemade trail mix every day to work (Save-On-Foods has an awesome bulk section). Mostly nuts and dried fruit, but there are also some butterscotch chips in there.

Being in an environment that at least gets me thinking about my nutrition on a day-to-day basis helps me make better choices when I'm rushed, exhausted, or just plain lazy.

Technique and Stability

Correct form is an important focus in all my athletic endeavors. I have re-trained my running stride around the principles of evolution/natural running. I took Pilates for 2 years to improve my knee tracking. I've done repeats going down Spanish Banks to improve my descending and corning skills.

When we first started at CFNV, the coaches stressed the importance of proper technique in all the movements, be they Olympic lifts or gymnastics. For some workouts, the best technique is the quickest way to complete the movement, for others, it is not.

It's not that I wasn't strong, but muscling through a movement, I was told, would lead to minimal improvement. Doing a workout at a light weight, with perfect technique, is the only way to eventually improve over the long-term.

You've got to be able to run slowly efficiently in order to run fast. You've got to be able to hold a line at 10 kph before descending safely at 60 kph.

And you've got to be able to deadlift a wooden dowel before lifting 300 lbs.

For the past year, I haven't had to contend with injury or excessive fatigue. I no longer have pain in my hip or knee after a long run. All I need is the occasional icepack and nap, and I'm fine. I don't attribute this entirely to strength training of course. But, my CrossFit coaches and fellow athletes, like my friends in the triathlon community, stress the importance of recovery and understand that consistent quality workouts trump needless volume (define this one as you will - Ironman training still requires a lot of volume!)

But has it made me faster?
Ah, the critical question, and the one that has plagued the internet ever since CrossFit and triathlon met.

Does high intensity anaerobic training actually make an endurance athlete faster? Can one train for an Ironman (and to compete, not just complete) on under 10 hours of training a week? Or would that athlete be better off spending his or her time focusing on more swimming, biking, and running?

Here are my thoughts
I try to run four times a week, bike three, and swim three. Sometimes more, often less. And I'm pretty happy with the duration of each workout (I'll rebel if my coach ever prescribes a 2-hour track workout). For me, I am finding a way to fit in CrossFit workouts around and in addition to my S, B, R responsibilities, and for the time being I'm happy with the balance.

Can an athlete compete at the Ironman distance on the 10 hours / week that is espoused on the net? I don't think so, but if you sponsor an Ironman training year for me I'll sure as hell try. While I'm paying the cash for my races, though, I'll stick to the tried-and-true method of combining endurance and intensity in my training. How many runners have you seen with 10 kilometers to go in a marathon, slowing down because their brain quit before their body did?

All that said, I do actually have 2 data points that I can compare from the April Fool's Half-Marathon, 2010 and 2011.

2010 - Finishing time of 1:22:54. Had been going to CFNV for 3 months; in the middle of training for the BMO Marathon. Purposefully took the second half of the race 'lighter' so as to train my marathon pace of 4:05 per km.

2011 - Finishing time of 1:17:10. Over 5 minutes faster. Raced everything I had, and knew the course. Found that I was well prepared to give a bit of extra gas on the flats and downhills, and recover just below my threshold afterwords. The uphills were not so fast, but they didn't leave me shattered or gassed-out either.

Conclusions
I am truly grateful to the team at Pure Athletics for the part they play in my lead up to Ironman Canada 2011, and for letting me kick some ass whenever there's a run as part of the WOD.

I could easily imagine a CrossFit environment where this couldn't happen, where it was all about the Workout Of the Day and triathletes and other "fringe" athletes were not as "fit" as they thought they were.

I have yet to encounter any fringe athletes at Pure Athletics. Although if they pass me a 20 lb medicine ball at the finishing cute of Ironman Canada (as has been suggested by a few), I will (not so politely) decline.

So, I'll continue to swim, I'll ride long, and I'll run far. And I'll do my wall balls, clean & jerks, and KB swings. I'll let you know how it goes at the end of August.

~ liquid

It's a Big Day for Bloggin'

2011-04-01T19:31:00.000-07:00

You know what the internet is missing?

More Doug

That guy is just as interesting as he is good looking. Plus, he's as modest as he is charming.

Well, dear reader, today I bring you joyous tidings of two new blog adventures that yours truly will be a part of.

-----

First up, I will be contributing to the Running for Wishes blog. This is managed by the BC and Yukon Chapter of the Children's Wish Foundation to promote their Charity Challenge for the Scotiabank Half-Marathon and 5 km race in June.

So if you want to read my thoughts on run training, from initial Goal Setting and early Season Planning, to strategies for surviving Race Week, add it to your RSS Reader.

-----

As many of you know, for the past year I have been doing CrossFit training at Pure Athletics in North Vancouver. What you may not know is that, since January, I have been running Interval Clinics twice a week.

Well, from this point forward I will be writing on the CrossFit North Vancouver blog about my training there. I'll be writing about specific workouts, what I've learned about training and recovery, and how I balance the very different worlds of CrossFit and Endurance training.

-----

And, of course, you'll be able to read about my usual crazy adventures in triathloning @ liquidgiles.blogspot.com

If you're not doing so already, be sure to follow me on Twitter @liquid_giles. That way, you'll know when there's a new post to read!

~ liquid

Keep on rollin'

2011-03-31T21:08:00.000-07:00

A shot of my little Civic (aka the tank) at the end of a great training day. Recovery week this week, so not too much volume. Ordu is there following a tough 30 minute time trial with Leading Edge. Backpacks full of clothes, books, food, and all sorts of training paraphernalia.

Just barely visible in the footwell is my DeWalt circular saw (don't really know why I own that)...

And yes, those would be rollerblades.

---------

Story goes like this. I have been training with the fabulous Rachel Kiers the last couple of weeks on Thursdays. We took our off-road bikes through UBC last week, and were planning on a core session this week, when I got the following in my inbox ...

From: Rachel Kiers
Sent: March-28-11 5:17 PM
To: doug@speedtheory.ca
Subject: Re: Sneak Peak... don't share until next week.

Great! Glad you're in!

I want to do something thursday morning but I already recorded my video ideas...

Want to go for another ride--maybe through Stanley's trails this week?

You don't rollerblade do you?

-------

Oh, I own rollerbladez

So on what ended up being a sunny morning, we met at Iona beach ...

Did you know that it's 4 km out to the end of the jetty? 8 km return? Sounds like a race to me

We wore our fancy new Speed Theory kits, and our helmets of course

and did some fancy moves

and, as always, I wore my Garmin to track the workout. Fastest speed was 30 km/h. That's a pace of 2:00 per kilometer.

By comparison, Clara Hughes won bronze at the 5000m long-track in a time of 6:55. That's an average pace of 1:10.6 per kilometer.

I guess I have some work to do

~ liquid

The Secret's Out

2011-03-20T20:57:00.000-07:00

No, this post isn't about the 'Power of Positive Intention'

We've all heard of people who engage in the act of "secret training" in order to get an edge on their competition (people in your swim lane, that one chick whose better than you, Cam)

I don't think this photo has yet made it onto the internet - you're welcome

Secret Training is generally understood to be any workout that you do:
- Solo; or with training partners that you don't know
- too early or too late in the day for others to reasonably join you
- unplanned or unlogged (and without the approval of your coach)

In an effort to play fair this year, here's a list of things that you can do to keep up with me and my awesomeness training

Remember to be aero at all times, like here at the 2009 Dave Marsh Invitational BBQ

1. When you're out for dinner at a restaurant, don't waste those hours! Instead, quietly tap your foot against the leg of your chair, or better yet the legs of the table. Constant fidgeting keeps your metabolism revved up, and keeps your highly-tuned body in a constant state of readiness should some impromptu sprinting need to occur. If the other people at the table complain that you're shaking the table, it's just because they're jealous of your superior training plan.

Go ahead 'n have some yam fries

2. When you have to take the dog out, or head outside for any reason, why just walk? Instead, use the time to practice your dryland swim technique. When at the grocery store, or heading to the local coffee shop, practice your catch, pull, body roll, and recovery. I'm sure it helps

You could also use this time to visualize a perfect Clean & Jerk (but it's a little hard to do without holding a broom or similar piece of equipment)

3. When there are simply too many people around to properly practice your swim stroke (such as on the path by the beach), use the slower moving 'non-athletes' to practice your drafting and passing skills. Remember, when you enter someone else's draft zone (7 meters for long-course racing) you only have 30 seconds to pass them or else you'll need to drop back and try again.

4. Incorporate your Training Periodization into everyday life. When your wife asks if you can do the laundry, explain that it's your 'Recovery week.'

And that's the real reason that NHL players sport playoff beards - they're 'tapering' their shaving. Keeping those shaving muscles extra-rested might just give you the edge you need

5. Let's face it, it's hard to get the recommended 8 hours of sleep per night when you're trying to fit in all your run, bike, and swim training. Which should you sacrifice, adequate sleep or your training?

Well, what if you didn't have to choose. I've been Sleep Training for several years now, mostly running and cycling. The best advice I can give young padewan athletes is to keep a high cadence, keep your arms and legs moving at all times, and be sure not to be wearing overly restrictive clothing.

Wear your heartrate monitor for optimum results

And watch out for those pesky 'dream curbs' and other dream hazards. Remember - anything. can. happen

Remember, train in your dreams, to achieve your dreams.

~ liquid

(But not the dreams when you get attacked by a giant squid)

Dirty Duo 2011

2011-03-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

Sorry, no witty title on this one. This post speaks for itself!

I've wanted to race the Dirty Duo for several years now, but it's timed so early in the year that I have always missed it.

Until now.

Plus, I'm a terrible mountain biker. As I definitely learned this past Saturday as I "raced" this epic mountain biking and trail running event on Mount Seymour.

Special thanks to Rachel and Jeremy for encouraging me to do the full Duo (run & bike); and thanks to Coach Calvin for recommending the conservative approach.

Like many trail races in North Van, this one started at Jaycee House next to Capilano College (unlike the provincial government, I've yet to recognize it's university status - mostly a name thing)

Look at that focusing on my jacket - it's like they knew I was coming!

To the race started with a 25 (ish)km run up to the Seymour Demonstration Forest, down to Twin Bridges, then up along Bridal Path to the Old Buck Trail that heads straight up Mount Seymour. From there you traverse over to Ned Atomic Dustbin (technical mountain bike trail on Mt Seymour). Oh yeah, it was covered in a couple feet of snow. Down Ned's, onto Bottle Top, then back across Twin Bridges, and back to Jaycee House.

Here's the map

Then hop on your mountain bike and do it all again. Plus a little extra. As riders who actually know how to ride these trails are passing you

Local Lambert rep Kevin Calhoun. Example of a rider who is good on these trails. Plus anyone wearing a Steed Cycles kit - those kidz have mad skillz

To be fair, when most of the cyclists saw my race number (denoting a "Run & Ride" athlete) their reactions were uniformly you must be exhausted, you're doing great

Five and a half hours later, covered in mud, I crossed the finish line. Damn that was one fun day!

~ liquid

Here's a link to the race files, if you're into that kinda think

The Run

The Bike

Super secret project with a Super awesome company

2011-03-09T17:04:00.000-08:00

In my line of work that I've somehow ended up in, I come across some very interesting and amazing people. And companies.

If you ever thought that bike companies don't listen to the average age grouper or recreational rider, think again! Even after a short 5 years in the industry, I have seen several product developments happen due to rider feedback.

Sorry readers, can't say much more, but there are some amazing things coming down the pipelines

~ liquid

If you happened to be driving in West Vancouver on March 1st...

2011-03-01T17:00:00.000-08:00

... you might have gotten a glimpse of the brand new Speed Theory kit for 2011.

Official launch details to come soon, but here are a couple of sneak peaks.

The entire kit was designed inhouse @ Speed Theory, and features some of Sugoi's top cycling apparel

~ liquid

New Look, Same Great People!

2011-02-24T21:05:00.000-08:00

So I'm writing tonight's post to highlight one of Vancouver's great triathlon clubs, Leading Edge

In a great move for 2011, they are registered with both TriBC and Cycling BC (they'll have lots of racers at the Spring Series and Tuesday Night Crits), they have a fantastic new logo, and continue to grow as a fun and competitive group of people.

Visit their website here

While I'm not a member of the club, they are a club sponsored by Speed Theory, and I get to enjoy their Spin Classes at the shop Thursday Nights. These sessions are extremely well coached by some of the best in Vancouver, and are always technical and tough.

Oh, and you get punished if you chat, goof off, or practice otherwise bad cycling habits :) My kind of workout!

My trainer bag after a typical spin class. Ridden hard, and put away wet

Thanks LE for your continued awesomeness

~ liquid

Race Report and a New Look!

2011-02-20T07:13:00.001-08:00

So apparently Blogger has some new themes, including an orange one. So now my blog is orange - 'nuff said.

Saturday was an epically fantastic day spend along the Sea-to-Sky and Callaghan Valley. It was my first time doing a race in The Yeti Snowshoe Series

Step 1 - Enjoy running enough that moving in the snow (and potentially falling) sounds like prime awesomeness training!

Step 2 - Buy, beg, borrow, or steal a pair of Atlas Run Snowshoes (seriously, I've never been at a race where about 80% of the field were wearing the same brand of equipment)

Step 3 - If the race takes place far from Vancouver (like Whistler), make sure you carpool with an fantastic friend like Steph Corker Irwin

Step 4 - Find the Yeti and give him a High-Five

Step 5 - Have a blast! You get free coffee for showing up, and if you do well they give you a beer. How cool is that!

And if you are a data junkie and blog-stalker like me, here's are the details of the race as told by my Garmin 310xt

The Yeti Snowshoe - Callaghan

Have fun out there team!

~ liquid

Paleo Challenge 2011

2011-02-10T11:12:00.000-08:00

So today marks the final day of Pure Athletics’ month-long Paleo Challenge, a dietary challenge where you eliminate certain ubiquitous food groups from your diet and eat the types of foods our Paleolithic ancestors ate.

So for the past month, Elizabeth and I have cut out all grains (and grain-like foods like quinoa), dairy, beans and legumes, salt, vinegar, sugar, and anything and everything with complicated scientific sounding names.

And for the past month, we’ve been diligently cooking at home, taking leftovers for lunch, packing snacks of custom-made trail mix and fruit, and continuing with our daily lives as normal (which for me, of course, also means a lot of training).

When I tell people about this challenge, I usually get the following two questions:

Question #1 – Why?

I have come across lots of different people who take on the Paleo Challenge (or other dietary challenges) for various reasons: weight loss, allergy concerns, GI tract things, performance benefits just to name a few. For those who know me (especially from the triathlon community) will probably understand that I accepted this challenge because it was there. Swimming 50 times in 50 days, running to work and back, riding back to Squamish after doing the Whistler GranFondo – sometimes I do crazy/stupid things just cuz.

Plus, if I logged my meals and my workouts, I might be eligible for cash and prizes!

So, let’s address some of the main reasons for specific diets

1. Weight loss – well, I began this challenge at 150 pounds, and currently tip the scale at 146.5 pounds. This was one part of the challenge that I was kinda scared about when I started, because at the worst of times I don’t really have a lot of weight to lose (swimming in anything but warm water is daunting when you don’t have a lot of body fat to keep you insulated). Pretty sure that all the nuts I ate helped me keep the body weight on.

2. Allergies – I’ve gone through my life without any known allergies, and we’ll see as I re-introduce non-Paleo foods if anything manifests itself.

3.GI issues – see allergies – never really been a concern

4.Performance benefits – this is a tricky one, and certainly deserves a bit of thought.

How have my workouts been over the past month is a big question. For one, I’ve definitely felt more fatigued than in November and December, but that might simply be because I’ve been training more frequently and more consistently. I *think* I’ve been hitting my key intensity sessions fairly well, although I know that I’ve missed the convenience of multi-ingredient-easy-to-consume post-workout recovery drinks (in fact, my entire Sports Nutrition shelf has gone untouched for a month).

So, let's call this one a draw - workouts aren't any better, nor have they suffered

Question #2 - Why can't you eat (insert generally accepted-to-be-healthy food-type here)?

Okay, let me be clear on this: there are many foods that are not on the Paleo diet that I (and many others) still consider "healthy" - so long as you define what "healthy" means to you. I know there are many that would look at the quantities of fruit (full of fructose), nuts (high fat), and eggs (while shown to contain cholesterol, have not actually be shown to raise the level of cholesterol in your bloodstream), to be quite high. I personally believe that whole wheat grains, beans, and even yummy cookies have a part to play in the diet of active people.

So long as you don't eat an entire box of cookies in one afternoon while playing Playstation (yes, it has been known to happen)

I was also somewhat confused that coffee (so long as you don't add sugar, cream, or soy milk) is allowed on the Paleo diet - but hey, I'm not going to complain.

The Paleo Challenge (for me) was simply that - a challenge, where I was given a list of things to eat, and things to not eat. Call it willpower, call it stubbornness, I just followed the rules as best as I understood them.

If you've made it this far, you deserve some pictures. Here are some of my most favourite creations:

This breakfast scramble wasn't exactly new, but still a favourite staple in my diet

Take 1 cup of Coconut milk, 1 tablespoon each of Almond Butter and Tahini, heat in a pan with chopped leaks, onions, celery, whatever else you like, and you've got a delicious sauce that can pretty much go on anything

Chicken Fessengen - actually a recipe that my mom brought back from Iran when she taught there before I was born. Pomegranate paste and walnuts - yum!

I prepared this "Snowshoe Salad" for my trip with the TriScouts up in Whistler. Basic greens and fresh veggies and chicken, but unlike the salads at Whole Foods, it didn't cost $17.

So that's the end - here are some lessons I've learned

1. Don't be afraid to try new things in the kitchen. Rather than adding butter or sugar, see how coconut oil, diced apples, or dried cranberries can flavor a recipe.

2. Try to dedicate some evenings each week to cooking up a storm. Make leftovers to take for lunch (I've bought lunch at work once this month, and take all my own snacks too).

3. Cleaning the kitchen sucks, especially when you are using multiple pots and pans for every meal. I'm definitely looking forward to the return of some "one-pot" dinners

4. Fill your grocery cart with real foods from the perimeter of the grocery store. By the time I'm through the produce, bulk nuts, meat, and refrigerated sections, I hardly have room for the boxes foods found in the aisles

5. Absolutely restricted diets aren't sustainable for most people, but don't beat yourself up for slipping either. I hear about people "cheating" on their personal dietary challenges, but in my opinion thinking that way can be very damaging. As I mentioned earlier, cookies aren't bad, unless they're eaten by the box-full.

6. If there was ever any doubt, I am truly addicted to coffee. But at least I can drink it without cream and sugar

~ liquid

The coolest volunteer I know

2011-01-06T10:25:00.000-08:00

This post isn't about me ...

I first met Jordan Myers several years ago when we were both officiating for TriBC at the UBC Triathlon. I have since had the pleasure of working with him during the Lifesport Subaru Vancouver International Triathlon, and have literally run into him several times at the BMO Vancouver Marathon.

As someone who works in the sporting industry, I take my hat off to any individual who can work, volunteer, and play in a single arena - and have a smile on his face while doing it!

See Jordan's latest 40-day project here

http://40project.wordpress.com/

~ liquid

Callaghan Adventures!

2010-12-12T10:40:00.000-08:00

With winter upon us, even though there's no snow in Vancouver, I knew there would be some somewhere ... so I made some plans with some friends.

A SkyTrain and a SeaBus later, I picked up Rachel in North Van

We head to Destination Ski to pick up our rentals, then make the long (but fun!) drive up the Sea to Sky towards Whistler!

It was Christmas time at the Akeroyd cabin, so we sang some carols in greeting

The next day, we hit the slopes! Well, only kinda, because this was my first time Cross-Country skiing! I've skied downhill (or Alpine if you will) for as long as I can remember (mostly at Blackcomb, but also Mount Washington, Silver Star, SunPeaks). But, I've never tried the Nordic-style of skiing. But with the Callaghan Valley so wonderfully updated from the Olympics, I thought it would be fun.

And it was

Nicole was Skating on her own skis, Rachel and I went Classic

I did fall several times (those skis are skinny!) ...

[no photo]

Luckily I was carrying the camera.

We stopped for some breathers/scenic views ...

... and thought some crazy ideas (anyone have a Crazy Carpet?!?)

We went and skied around the Olympic Biathlon Centre. Being my first time I had to improvise with the equipment.

But Nicole was an absolute pro (notice the form with which her skis are splayed on the snow, and the crazy angle that the photo is taken at!)

But we weren't as good as these guys!

I'm going to have to practice!

~ liquid

Hallow's Eve Half Marathon

2010-10-29T18:52:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post about last weekend's race.

Here's a link to the photo reel from the race (ended up chatting with Randy the photographer afterwards - really cool guy)

I ended up racing to 3rd overall. The racers who finished 1 & 2 were about 10 minutes ahead (3 km into the race, the volunteers said "they're just 2 minutes ahead." At the half-way point, "they're only 5 minutes ahead" - oh well, we'd lost them)

Trail racing is awesome, I suggest you give it a try!

~ liquid

North Shore Half Marathon

2010-10-12T08:44:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving isn't just about turkeys and pumpkin pie. For a lot of Lower Mainland athletes Thanksgiving weekend offers a plethora of racing opportunities: marathons in Victoria and Portland, Turkey Trots in Vancouver, and even the Ironman World Championships for those talented triathletes that qualify.

For me, Thanksgiving racing was fulfilled by the North Shore Half Marathon, a small event that spans some of my favourite running areas: from Parkgate at the base of Mount Seymour, the run follows the Dollarton highway across North Van, towards Park Royal in West Vancouver.

Here's the quick and dirty of the race:
Garmin Connect

I chose to go low tech for this run, using my Garmin Forerunner 60 (non-GPS) rather than my 310xt. My reasoning: for some of the cross-country and trail runs I plan on doing later this fall, pace-by-GPS will be less than useless, so I need to get back in the habit of running off HR and RPE feedback.

But mostly it was an opportunity to go for a run until I blew up (and hopefully that would happen after the finish line!)

Things I learned from this race:
1. Warmups can be fun as well as effective. Managed to get in a good 2-part warmup run with Rachel Kiers, and it didn't feel like extra work because we were just having fun

2. Don't go out too hard. Or, when you do, don't get depressed as runners pass you. If you look at the Garmin Connect file, that first split is Mile 1. 5:23 is pretty fast, even with the downhill. I'm not surprised that I couldn't maintain that pace

3. Being light doesn't mean you automatically fly up hills. I think it's something I need to work on

4. Plan post-race clothing and transportation better. I didn't think that I'd be hanging around the race finish like I did; luckily Elizabeth was able to bring me some warm clothes on her way to work at Park Royal

Next up: costumes and corners at the North Shore Hallow's Eve trail run

~ liquid

How a Wedding is like an Ironman

2010-08-02T14:03:00.000-07:00

So, if you haven't noticed, I haven't been posting on my blog recently. And you probably haven't seen me out running or at the weekly club rides all that often. That's because all of my efforts have been going towards July 31, 2010, the day that Elizabeth and I got married.

And as the day got closer and closer, it occurred to me that having a wedding shares many similarities to doing an Ironman. I even included some of these in my post-dinner speech (which - and if you were there you'll agree with me - was definitely nota highlight of the evening)

1. Cardio.

2. They both take a ton of preparation. In fact, if you are not careful the planning will take over your life. Unfortunately, there's no system of periodization or "The Wedding Training Bible" written by Joe Friel. He should get on that.

3. The food afterwards is amazing, and there are aid stations along the way. My pre-service food consisted of eating snow peas out of a ziploc bag (I wasn't allowed to eat anything that was already plated). Okay, the food at our wedding was most definitely better than that served at the Ironman Finishers Dinner, but I think my point still stands.

4. They are both a team effort, and require the support of family and friends to whom I am eternally grateful. Here are just a few of the people who contributed to our special day.

5. People who haven't done it may think you're crazy. People who have know that you are.

6. You wake up the next day and have blisters on your feet. And you don't really know how you got them. And you're kind of proud of them.

7. It ain't cheap, and at a certain point you stop keeping track of how much you spend.

8. Your closest friends and family come out to cheer you on.

9. Staying hydrated is very important. Although at a wedding, wine and beer count as electrolytes (and carbs).

10. At the end of the day, when you cross the finish line, your life is changed forever.

We'll be posting pictures soon

~ Doug

Downtime

2010-06-10T06:06:00.000-07:00

Not a whole ton to blog about on a year when I'm not racing, cuz when I don't race, apparently I don't train either.

I'm actually quite enjoying not having to wake up super early to go to the pool, and not having to don my winter riding gear for all these crappy days we're having in Vancouver.

If you didn't see the results for last week's Oliver Half Ironman, do take a quick sec to read them here. Special congrats to Nicole, Chris, and Katrina for their spectacular results at their first attempts at the half iron distance.

So if you see me out on the road and completely leave me in the dust, don't feel too bad - I'll be fine.

I"ll also give a shout out to Pure Athletics, the newly operated and renovated CrossFit North Van gym on Dollarton. Elizabeth and I are having a blast with our morning workouts, although my hands might never recover from the lifting, pullups, dumbells, kettlebells ...

Just takin it easy, having fun

~ liquid

2010 Vancouver BMO Marathon - Race Report

2010-05-02T14:20:00.000-07:00

The quick read:

Overall: 36
Male: 33/1870
M 25-29: 7/224

Gun Time: 2:53:51
Chip Time: 2:53:45
Average Pace: 4:08

Average HR: 171 bpm
Max HR: 184 bpm
rTSS: 356.5 (which means I'll be out for a couple of days)
IF: 1.041


Splits
5 km         20:27  
10 km        40:33  
15 km        1:01:17  
Halfway      1:26:09  
30 km        2:03:14  
35 km        2:24:05  
42.2 km      2:53:51

Hells ya. So, if you hadn't talked to me in the past couple of months about my marathon, the basic plan was this. Most of my workouts were done at a pace that would push a 2:45 completion time (about 3:55 min/km) with my goal of racing the marathon to 2:55 (my previous PR being 2:58:59 set several years ago).

My basic strategy was to run an even race - 4:09 min/km would finish at 2:55 evenly. Knowing my strengths (a strong finish) and my weaknesses (racing waaaay too early, ie. in the first km) I knew this day would be a bit of a challenge.

Luckily, I had some great assistance along the way. First was simple math - using some online marathon pace calculators I figured out my 5 km, 10 km, 21.1 km, 28 km and 33 km splits. (These times were rounded off, and were to be used more as time checks that strict pacing tools - as long as I was +/- 30 seconds I knew I'd be fine)

Also helping was my Garmin 310xt. I'd set the main screen to display my current pace, current HR, and the elapsed time for the race (so that I would actually know my split times (above))

PS. If you plan on using a Garmin on your next running marathon, please don't set it to beep when you're under/over your goal pace or HR - it's really annoying!

Unlike any other race I've done, I also had the luxury of a great runner to run this "nice and easy Sunday run beside." In the weeks leading up to the event, Jeff Seeley and I knew that we were running for pretty much the same finish time, and so it really just made sense to work together after we passed through the crowds in the first couple of kms. Jeff finished with an amazing 2:55:29.

My race went nice and smooth through Stanley Park, over the Burrard Street bridge (I knew the 28km time split there would be a key one to grab), running through Kits (where the best spectators always are - thanks to everyone who braved the rain!!!)

At the final turn around at 33 km, there were 4 of us in a small group who had decided to work our best to get to the finish line fast. My initial race plan had me running steady until this turn around point, then trying to pull out a sub-40 10 km pace to the finish. Seeing as I was 1 minute up on the overall pace, I thought it a little smarter to just keep my average kilometer pace just above 4:00. I downed my last Gu Roctane (perfect for race day) and tried to hold on.

Back over the Burrard Street Bridge and down for the final 2 km, this is the time on the course where you think "okay, you're allowed to let it hurt, because you can probably hold on to the end." I heard Steve King announcing the finishers ahead of me crossing the line, saw the Finishing Clock ticking up past 2:53:45 ... 46 ... 47, and just put my head down to finish it.

So beat my goal time by a minute and 9 seconds; beat my PB by over 5 minutes; and finally figured out how to pace a marathon.

What did you do Sunday morning?

~ liquid

500 grams well worth its weight

2010-04-23T08:27:00.000-07:00

With the BMO Marathon just over a week away and training moved full into taper mode, my mind has quite naturally started to wander towards other training goals for the season.

North Shore trails, here I come! So I bought a new toy

Yes the orange model.

But before I hit the trails, safety Doug sayz that all runners should take some precautions and back a little extra weight. Sure, when you're running on the road there'll probably be a good Samaritan close by if something goes wrong, but out in the woods, you're on your own. If you plan to go out in the woods this summer, consider packing just a little extra weight.

Here's a list of what I keep in my bag, beyond water, food, and some extra clothing


First aid kit (including mole skin)         - 119 grams
North Shore trail map (waterproof)          - 83 grams
10' lightweight Rope                        - 21 grams
Whistle and Waterproof Matches              - 35 grams
Space Blanket                               - 53 grams
Orange Garbage Bags (x2)                    - 89 grams
Knife (probably too tiny to actually
       cut anything)                        - 21 grams
Duct tape                                   - 7 grams
One Step hand wipes (several)               - 17 grams
Instant Hand Warmer                         - 35 grams
LED Light                                   - 11 grams

Total weight - 491 grams.

Be safe out there kids!

~ liquid

Spring is here!

2010-03-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

which means many more glorious rides outdoors, a spring marathon, and maybe even some open water swims!

Unfortunately, it also means that there are a lot of drivers on the road, who - for some reason I can't figure out - are always 30 seconds late to where they need to be. And me and my bike are apparently in the way.

Today I took a nice spin out to Whytecliff Park, a ride that many who live and cycle in Vancouver are familiar with, and that I've ridden for some 7 years.

One Lexus near the park came out of a side road, blew through her stop sign, and continued her turn out of Horseshoe Bay. Meanwhile I got in touch with the back half of my saddle and was happy that I had installed new brake pads yesterday.

One Translink bus (I know!) cut me off in order to pick up his passengers. After being forced up on the sidewalk, I rolled by his open door and thanked him for the stop.

And 6 blocks from my front door, while stopped at a stop light, I heard behind me "ride on the sidewalk dumbass!" I think riding on the sidewalk is illegal, not sure though.

Now, I'll be honest: when I ride and when I drive, I don't always come to a complete stop at stop signs. But you can be sure that any liberties I take on the road are after your standard decelerations, blindspot checks, and gradual creeps to make sure that everythings good to go. And it's not like I'm out there "Critical Massing" the road - I'll usually wave drivers by after 20 or 30 second if I'm impeding their drive.

Unfortunately, if you're reading my blog, you're probably also the type of person who contends themselves if a similar manner on the road.

If you do, however, see yourself in any of the above motorists, perhaps you should take a bike out on the streets sometime. Who knows, you might become a better driver

Be careful out there

~ liquid

ps. if you haven't seen the news, one of triathlon's great athletes and one of my personal role models Jordan Rapp was in an accident yesterday. You can read about it here. My thought go out to Rappstar and Jill.

Back to black

2010-03-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

So after a year and a half of having the most awesomeness coloured bike in Vancouver, an unfortunate series of events has put my Orca back to "normal" colours

1. My orange hudz wouldn't fit on my new Ultegra 6700 shifters (no, I didn't try)

2. Orange bar tape with black hood covers looked weird (yes, I did try)

3. Large gash in my tire made me replace my Vredesteins; intrigue led me to try Continental's this season

4. Orange demo Fizik saddle looked very strange without matching orange hoods, bar tape, and tires, so I put the black Fizik Arione back on

Okay, I admit, the bike's still very awesome, and I guess now my Speed Theory kits won't clash

note: pedals, bottle cages, seatpost, stem, bars maintain orange highlights

Love the Bike

~ Doug

Love the Run

2010-01-11T11:50:00.000-08:00

Starting next Monday, January 18, I officially enter "Marathon training mode" where every workout is carefully executed, recorded, and evaluated in my leading to the BMO Vancouver race.

So that I can hit the ground running - so to speak - I figured that I should actually start running again after a long (but well deserved) break from the running grind.

New Year's Day I started with Run 1 - 2010

After last Saturday's Toonie spin at Speed Theory I ran down to see the folks at Forerunners with Nicole to buy some new shoes for the season

This is actually my 3rd pair of Saucony's Grid Fastwitch 3 shoe, and I really like the weight, last, and heel profile of the shoe. New Shoe Day happened Sunday January 11 with the great folks from the Steveston Athletic Association at Granville Island

Love the Run

~ liquid

A New Year Begins

2010-01-01T13:09:00.000-08:00

At the risk of writing a cliche, here's my list of things for 2010

1. Update my blog more often (been busily on a training vacation)
2. Get back running
3. Life is more than swimming, biking, running
4. At home, at work, clean up as I go
5. Stop buying lunch at work all the time stupid, you're a pretty good cook
6. Figure out how insurance works and get some
7. Help Elizabeth plan a wedding. Maybe that way I'll be invited
8. Hit 1000 watts for 5 seconds

I didn't reach 10 things, but I'm okay with it

~ Doug

Phantom Run - FTW

2009-11-18T17:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday November 14th I took the day off work to run the Phantom Trail Run in the Seymour Demonstration Forest.

It's been a long time since I've run a trail race, and I thought it would be good fun to strap my trail shoes and run in the woods around where I grew up. When I looked online and saw the 3 distances - 12k, 19k, and 24k - I thought "24k, that's just a little over a half-marathon - I can run that." Of course I really haven't been running since August ... nor did I take the time to look at the map and figure out the route

not quite the whole 24k route, but you get the idea.

So Gerry and I carpool up to the race site, I bring the Starbucks, and I get ready for the start. The race started with a quick loop around Rice Lake; I knew that I wanted to keep the effort pretty moderate, but I had no problem running with the front-runners right off the bat.

I take an early lead; the runner in the Fresh Air Experience vest (Dirk Hande) ran with me for the whole race.

Things I learned about trail racing very early in the race:

1). Train your power walk. Running up hills just isn't worth it - HR shoots up way too high. And walking fast is a lot faster than walking slow
2) Hydration is a good thing. Carry water (luckily I did)
3) In November, the weather can change quickly. Good thing to carry gloves and a toque in your vest pocket
4) Trail racing isn't as competitive as a road race (at least this one wasn't). Take the time to chat, point out sticks and call out drops - it'll pay off when you take a tumble or get lost.
5) Learn to enjoy technical descents - practice running on mountain bike routes for this (I regularly ride the section of Ned's and Bottletop that we raced, and it made it much easier.)
6) Trail racing is slow. 12k in 1:10 slow. Like, over 5 minute kilometers slow. Pace accordingly.

Anyway, once I got over the shock that getting back to the start was only the half way point, and we had to do another 12 k, the rest of the run went pretty well. The course took us up the Lynn Loop, which I had run several times last year training for the BMO Marathon. At this point is was just Dirk and I running, and we'd reached the "I don't care if my shoes get wet/muddy/torn, just let me finish the race."

After returning to the packed fire trails (just north of Rice Lake) I look to my competitor and tell him "if you want the win, go for it." You see, I actually don't like being in the 1st/2nd/3rd position during a race. I figure that if you can see the person in first place, then you have to race for it - and this is quite stressful. Anyway, we decided to just make it to the top of the hill (about 1 k from the finish) and see what happened. We started to pace, then tempo our way down the trail, and despite the pain I was able to pull out a pretty mean spring for the win!

Doug Giles 1 2:22:04
Dirk Hande 2 2:22:06
Scott Comeau 3 2:29:32

Pretty tired at the end of the race

Thanks to Dirk and Scott for their company on the race course. And congratulations to Shannon Back for breaking the women's course record, and finishing 4th overall!

This race has got me fired up for the Dirty Duo trail run/ride in March. Gotta keep riding!

[Insert witty swim-related title here]

2009-10-30T08:08:00.000-07:00

Currently in the second week of my 50/50 swim challenge, sitting pretty at 9 swims in 9 days, so I thought that I'd write a post of some of the gear I've been (over)using at the pool.

I'm not normally one to write about different products, as I do sell a lot of swim gear at Speed Theory and don't want to come across as pushing product here on my blog. That said, this stuff is pretty cool ...

Speedo Aqua Socket Goggle
I've only been trying out the Aqua Socket goggle for a little over a week, and in honesty I probably wouldn't have tried them if not for a meeting with Speedo. I usually prefer a goggle with a bit of a softer (but solid) gasket, like the Speedo Sengar or Blue Seventy Element. The Aqua Socket is definitely made to be a racier goggle, but offer a surprising amount of periferal vision. In this way they're much like Swedish Goggles, which I tried once but failed. Maybe I needed Meyrick's sandpaper trick to make them work ...

Aqua Sphere Alpha Fins

Okay, another blatant review of a product now stocked at Speed Theory, but I wouldn't use the Alpha Fins if they didn't work. Unlike most swimming fins, these are made of a light foam, and they float while you swim. At first I thought that that would make for a great freestyle fin, but not so useful for fly and backstroke. So far they seem to work well for all strokes (well, not breaststroke ...) and they're actually really comfortable. In my old fins my feet would always cramp up after a few hundred metres, but the soft foam construction of these works better with the foot. And besides, they make you look like a Zora

and moving on ...

Finis Freestylers

I bought these paddles over the summer on the suggestion that I needed a paddle that would slip if I didn't reach properly with my catch. Unlike other paddles I've used that are bound securely to the hand with multiple bits of tubing, these paddles use a single tube around one finger, and can fall off easily if you're not catching right. Plus, they're not actually that big, so they don't slow down my stroke rate like bigger paddles, and are thus really useful for swimming without a pull buoy. Thanks to the guys at Team Aquatic Supplies for ordering these in for me.

Blue Seventy Transition Bag

Unlike everything else, this isn't a new acquisition for me; I've had my transition bag for well over three years now. What has always impressed me with this bag is the size of the main compartment; many times I drive to the pool straight from work, and need to store all my clothes, my winter jacket, towel, and all my swim gear to take onto the pool deck (I've never trusted the pool lockers). No problem. There are lots of exterior mesh pockets to store your slightly damp suits, goggles, swim caps etc. so they dry out over the course of the day too. And during the summer it's great for open water swimming, as my wetsuit can roll up and fit in the bottom compartment (which is waterproof, except for the zipper).

TriSwim

TriSwim has a complete line of products for the semi-competitive swimmer (hey, thats me!) Their main focus is making shower products that don't leave you smelling like chlorine all day after an early morning swim. And in that they're pretty sucessful. I remember when I first used the shampoo and could barely get my fingers through my hair afterwards, as the stuff strips your hair of all its oil as it's clearing the chloride (the label says "gently removes chlorine" - yeah right). So the one downside is that you do need to pair their products together: shampoo with conditioner, and body wash with lotion (though substitute your favourite body lotion as you will). And it leaves you smelling like Froot Loops, which is pretty cool.

Sugoi Piston 140 Compression Top

Okay, not technically a swim product, but let me explain. When you swim 2 or 3 times a week you might notice some upper-body discomfort for a day or two after the hardest of your workouts. When you attempt to swim 7 times a week, often doubling up swims on days, and are coming to swimming relatively late in life, well let's just say that I expect my shoulders to be mildly sore until December.

Enter Sugoi's new compression line. Following the massive success of their R&R Compression Socks (Elizabeth actually had a customer being fit for jeans at Hangers the other week who was wearing them) Sugoi has come out with full line of compression wear for next Spring. While they're relatively late to the scene with compression, the Piston fabric they use makes their shirt perfect for a swimmer's recovery piece to wear throughout the day. I got the one in black, and am seriously thinking about dressing up as "Compression Man" tomorrow for Hallowe'en.

Anyway, that's all I've got to say for now. Probably time to go get an easy 1000 metres in ...

~ Doug

Trying something new

2009-10-14T10:39:00.000-07:00

Every off season I try to do something completely new to work, as Joe Friel might say, on my "limiters." Last year was the 50/50 swim challenge, which will be continued this year in T-5 days! One thing I've never done is a winter run focus. In fact, I can't recall a running race that I've done for it's own sake, not as training for an upcoming triathlon.

Yes, even the 2009 BMO Vancouver Marathon was raced all in preparation for Ironman Couer d'Alene - the Saturday before the race I rode near on 5 hours.

For the 2010 BMO Vancouver Marathon I'm going to actually see what I can do when I train and run more than 2-3 times a week. And all this started last Sunday when I took a new purchase out to the local track...

Okay, the photo is horrible, but man are these shoes pretty. Special thanks to Todd and Karen at Forerunners for helping me find these Adidas Titan Cross Country Spikes!

In preparation for some upcoming cross racing, and to pick up my running fitness in general after Ironman Canada, I needed some qualified, reliable information to help me train. [enter] Google.

A quick search for "Track Workouts" led me to this page by Running for Fitness. If you're a runner and you haven't seen it, I suggest that you do. Merely plug in your goal or actual time for a race of pretty much any distance, and you get not only reasonable pace times for your 5k, 10k, half and marathon races, but 15 track workouts custom timed to your goal pace.

Thus my first track session of the season consisted of 5 x 400m repeats, run @ 73 seconds (1:13) with 2:26 recovery (or thereabouts, it was early in the morning and I wasn't thinking too clearly). Nicole @nicaker.blogspot suggested that I take it easy on my first couple of sessions using spikes, as they strain the calf muscles moreso than running flats. Why I didn't listen, I don't really know (it's Thursday now, and I still am recovering).

Next up, the BC Cross Country Championships on October 31st.

(published by Doug, no matter what Blogger says!)

The 50/50 Swim Challenge

2009-09-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

Ah October! The month where the weather in Vancouver turns, I get a Thanksgiving Turkey Dinner, and then there's the start of the 50/50 swim challenge.

(sorry, this'll be a boring no photos post)

The start date of the first inaugural 2008 Swim Challenge was quite arbitrary - I wanted at least a week of recovery after running the Victoria Marathon - but it seems like a good time of year for most triathletes to spend some quality time in the pool.

Now, you might ask yourself, "Why would I possibly want to swim everyday for the next 2 months?" And really, I don't have an answer for you. If the idea of getting up really early to hit the pool, or putting off dinner so you can get in some lengths right after work doesn't float your boat, I got nothin' for you.

Oh, and there's a facebook group to stay in touch with all the other crazy swimmers out there!

For those who remember all the good times, pruned fingers, and missed social occasions of last year, of if you're new and want to try it out, here's the official rule book:

Begins: Monday October 19th
Ends: Tuesday, December 8th

This is an opportunity for those of us who are water challenged to get a headstart on swim training for the 2010 race season. Remember, this challenge is for personal benefit only and is supposed to be fun, but should also be a good motivation for training in the water.

1. We will record workouts individually on the honour system; most of us are on WorkOutLog anyway so we can print off our accomplishments on a weekly or monthly basis

2. There is no need to complete one swim each day; multiple swims are allowed, as are rest days (see point 4 below)

3. An individual swim workout must be at least 1000 metres to qualify, with the following exceptions:

1-on-1 sessions with a swim coach count even if you don’t swim 1000 metres
Open water swims that last for more than 5 minutes count as a swim (but honestly, it’s October, so this shouldn’t be a problem)

4. If attempting to do multiple swims in a single day, 1000 metre swims won’t cut it

To count two swims, one workout must be at least 2000 metres, or the total of the two workouts must be 3000 metres
To count three swims, one workout must be at least 3000 metres, or the total of the three workouts must be 6000 metres
If you try to count four swims, we’ll know that you’re cheating

5. Dry-land training doesn’t count. That’s weights

So clean out those goggles, dust off your swim cap, and get prepared to mercilessly disregard all of life's other commitments (thanks to James, one of 2008's finalists, for that one).

~ Doug

Lookin' good

2009-09-17T20:23:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from a recent photo shoot taken with Sylvia McFadden and Cody Young. Visit Sylvia's Flickr page @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/sylvia_mcfadden/

Critique my fit ...

Long & low and F.I.S.T. approved

After this shot we ran out of light - the sun hid behind a wall of cloud. Til next time ...

Let the off season begin

2009-09-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

So I completely recognize the irony of starting a blog of my triathlon training and racing at the end of the tri season. Nevertheless, this weary ironman is now in his official offseason. Not to worry though - I've got plans for exciting activities to keep all my adoring fans (at last count, 2 comments and 1 follower ...) entertained.

First on the list of things-to-do was hitting some of the North Shore trails mountain bike style! I'd gone once before earlier in the summer up Seymour - not the smartest thing to do leading up to Ironman - but now that I don't have to be injury-paranoid, I gave it another go. Our route was the course for the Canuck Place Adventure Challenge, which Nicole is tackling next weekend.

For want of a link, I wouldn't have had to delay and go get a spare bike ...

WTF! How does that even happen?

The Team - Murray, Nicole, and Sean

Check out some of the details of the ride here, captured on my Garmin 310xt

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Mountain Bike - Canuck Adventure Challenge Route

Needless to say, it was an awesome day.

IMC by the numbers

2009-09-05T09:04:00.000-07:00

The racing's done, I've downloaded my Garmin, so here's the data for those who want to know.

On the Bike

Time: 5:25:21

Work: 3280 kJ

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for IMC Swim / Bike

Ave Power: 169 w

Nor Power: 186 w

Max Power: 637 w

Ave HR: 155 bpm

Max HR: 178 bpm

TSS: 246.1

IF: 0.675

(based on FTP of 275 w)

Ave Speed: 27.4 kph

Max Speed: 81.5 kph

Peak Power

5s: 524 w

10s: 432 w

30s: 338 w

1 min: 317 w

2 min: 301 w

10 min: 233 w

20 min: 219 w

60 min: 192 w

On the Run

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for IMC Run

Lap 1 (to 21.1 km) 1:43.02

Lap 2 (to 42.2 km) 1:51.17

Ave HR: 153 bpm

Max HR: 227 bpm (hopefully an error)

Ave Pace: 5:17 min/km

Finishing Pace: 3:46 min/km

Ironman Canada 2009 Race Report

2009-09-02T21:59:00.000-07:00

Yay Doug!!! Asses were kicked; names were taken. On a day many athletes found challenging, Doug pulled out a personal best, taking time off all 3 events!
Doug: It was gratifying to have a well put-together Ironman...I decided to commit, and I did.

Doug likes to have lots of time the morning of an event to chill and warm up, so we were up around 4:15am, had time for a quiet breakfast, and were at the race venue a couple minutes before transition opened at 5:00. There aren’t any line ups yet, so Doug breezed through body marking, gave his bike some loving, and had lots of time for a quiet warm up run before gettin’ into his wetsuit.

I headed to my favourite IMC swim spectating spot: standing knee deep in the lake. Doug knew I would be in the lake so he waded over so I could wish him luck one more time and snap a few pics.

Doug was pretty relaxed and prepared for the day. Just before the pro’s started, they played Human by the Killers, which was one of Doug’s key training songs for the season, and although I couldn’t see where he was in the crowd of black wetsuits, I knew he was singing along. Then the horn blew, and they were off!

Doug had two changes he wanted to focus on for the swim after CdA: swimming smooth rather than swimming fast, and seeking open water. He did a great job on both of these points and cut 7 minutes off his CdA time! He did such a good job swimming smooth, when he came out of the water he was worried he had actually had a really slow swim because it had felt so easy; he was pretty surprised that he was able to cut that much time off his swim by putting in less effort.

For the second point of seeking open water, he started to the far right which is a bit counter-intuitive cuz you would think going wide of the buoys (starting far left) would be less crowded. But I guess everyone thinks that way and wide of the buoys is actually more crowded than sticking really close to them. Doug actually ended up swimming out inside the buoys, so he got some less crowded water and swam less distance than the going-wide gang. His final time was 107:53, an exciting breakthrough performance for Doug!

Then it was out of the water, and into transition. After thanking his wetsuit stripper, Doug grabbed his transition bag and ran through the tent to the less crowded area near the exit. There was a great volunteer there who helped Doug and 3 or 4 other athletes to re-pack their bags so they could get out faster. Yay volunteers! They are the secret to Doug’s great transition times. Doug grabbed his bike and headed out onto the course with a T1 time of 2:36.

Doug’s plan for the bike was to push harder and go faster than CdA. He had a fancy new disc cover for his rear wheel, and his new Garmin watch and power tap so he could keep an eye on his power output. A lot of his favourite memories of the bike are seeing and well-wishing other North Shore triathletes; he saw Rachel, looking fast, at the Cawston out-and-back and figured he was only about 12 minutes behind her, which he was pretty happy with.

Doug felt good ascending with his power tap to keep him from going to hard, and he kicked serious ass on the descents. At IMC ’07 he had to sit up and slow down to make it down the hills, and since then he has worked hard on improving his descending skills. All his work paid off – this time around he felt confident and in-control while speeding downhill, had a ton of fun going fast, and passed a ton of athletes while descending.

He road steadily up Yellow Lake, took in the incredible energy from the crowd, and prepared for the descent into town. He actually smiled when he passed his parents and me cheering him on – those of you who have seen Doug race know that’s very unusual – so he must have been feeling pretty good.

Doug’s parents are always easy for Doug to spot cuz they’ve got a huge orange banner...it’s hard to miss.

Doug: My Bike-of-the-Race award goes to Athlete #921 – riding a WTC-coloured Cervelo P3C, with matching white disc and trispoke wheels. I was tempted to ask if he owned the matching Catlike Whisper, conveniently available at Speed Theory. Do a search on asiorders.com for the athlete to see what I mean.

Doug clocked a time of 5:24:35 on the bike, and then it was on to T2, where Doug’s time was 3rd fastest overall – only a couple pro’s beat him! His CdA T2 was awesome so his plan was to go for a repeat performance of that success. His strategy is to begin mentally preparing for the transition well in advance. Then he does a very impressive flying dismount and is already running along with his bike by the time he hits the dismount line. As in CdA, this time around he was able to snag a volunteer to help him out: he dumped his transition bag out, grabbed his shoes and hat and was off, while the volunteer put everything left behind away for him. He sacrificed a couple seconds for a bit of sunscreen and started running; it all took just 1:25!

Leaving T2 Doug asked someone what time it was, and figured he was a good 15 minutes ahead of his CdA time. He was hoping for a better run time that CdA...it kind of bugged him that his run time was so much slower than his regular marathon time. His secret weapon was his new Garmin, so he could keep an eye on his pace as he ran. We were spectating at the North end of Skaha lake, so we saw Doug around the 7km mark looking really strong.

Out on the run course, Doug saw a lot of friends and cheered them on, including Rachel and Jeremy. He saw Jordan Rapp’s commanding lead and urged Jasper Blake to chase down the field. He was extremely impressed to see Anthony Toth running up amongst the leaders. On the way out, Doug didn’t see a whole lot of athletes running the other way, which was an encouraging sign, and he steadily passed the athletes around him.

At the end of the out-and-back, Doug did his fancy turn-around (ask him to demonstrate sometime), drawing cheers from the crowd. On the way back, Doug started looking a bit more hurtin’.
He was fully into Doug’s patented grim-face, whereafter he ceases to respond to your cheering in any way. He appreciates the cheering, and he takes the energy you’re offering up gratefully, but he won’t give you any energy back. He needs everything he’s got for himself. So if Doug ignores your cheering, cheer louder, cuz that’s when he needs it the most.

With about 5 km to go, Penticton’s Olly called to him “Just keep running,” which was exactly what Doug needed to hear. He committed to picking up the pace and running strong to the end. In the last 2km he started his sprint finish, drawing on the energy of the crowd.

He gave a great final burst of speed down the finishing stretch, grabbed the finish line banner and held in above his head triumphantly, smashing his previous personal best with a phenomenal time of 10:10:46!

His run time was 3:34:20. He finished 96th overall out of 2595 (that’s top 4%!!!), and 12th of 107 in his age group. With personal bests on all 3 events, he’s super happy with his performance, and I am so proud of him!

After some sittin', I grabbed Doug's change of clothes and he went and stood in the lake (Doug says "Splash Fight Lake" for those in the know). The water was pretty warm so it wasn't exactly an ice bath, but it helped Doug's muscles a lot. Then he put on his compression tights and socks (for super double compression power), and his walking was a lot less tragic after that (but still pretty bad) and so he hobbled his way back to the race site to greet his adoring fans.

~ My name is Doug Giles and I approve this message ~

Previously on the Doug Show

2009-09-01T17:35:00.000-07:00

Holla peeps! Elizabeth here...Before I post my race report for IMC ’09, I just want to do a little recap on Doug’s previous Ironman experience. His first Ironman was Ironman Canada 2007 and he did awesome for his first try with a time of 10:46. It was all kinds of exciting that he did as well as he did, but he had a serious list of things he needed to work on for his next Ironman.

And he did! At Coeur d’Alene in July 2009 he had a way smoother, way better executed race. He worked hard on his skill descending hills and it went from being his weakness to his strength on the bike, he honed in on his ideal nutrition plan, and he got a fantastic new bike and aerohelmet. He also overcame IT band issues and was able to do the run no problem. One of his main goals was to finish the marathon with no walking (except a lil at aid stations) and he succeeded.

So all in all CdA was a success, but his time, 10:35, wasn’t really that much faster than IMC ’07. He raced a safe, conservative race, and for IMC ’09 he was ready to take a risk, push himself harder than ever, and hopefully see a payoff in his time at the end of the day. So that’s the scene coming into IMC ’09...

Hey look, I can blog too!

2009-09-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, so at the request of some friends I'm going to attempt to create a weblog, or "blog," as the kids are saying these days.

If you didn't realize that that was a joke, you should probably not read any further ... ever.

I don't really like to write about myself, but a lot of people have expressed an interest in following my triathlon training and racing, so here goes. Elizabeth has offered to help too, so this'll be as much a blog of a crack triathlon spectator as of a racer.

~ Doug