70.3 Mount Tremblant

Swim 40 mins, bike 2hr 37 mins, run 1 hr 51 mins plus transitions for a race time of 5 hrs & 17 mins. Overall, pretty darn happy considering the difficulty of the course. The entire event & venue is top notch. I have ridden on many of the roads before so I had a good idea of what to expect. I overheard one of the younger participants finishing well ahead of my time tell his parents it was much more tougher than he was expecting. Ironman Utah bike course was still tougher in my opinion. Yes there are lots of hills and its all about exploiting free speed on the downs and being sensible on the up climbs. The toughest part of the bike is from 70 km to 80km where you just climb. My top speed was 71 kph but apparently my daughter tells me they announced at the race site the pros were hitting 90 kph. The road ways have all been paved so truly a treat. About mid way through the bike course you enter the beautiful town of St. Jovite (the main drag). This might be the most technical part of the course even though the people & fans are inspiring. Going into St.Jovite there isn't much width and you need to be alert with the manhole covers. Passing during this stretch is manageable. The run is half asphalt and half trail. It's fun. The trail is flat. The roadway is not. Have fun Ironman participants you will enjoy it.

Would ya?

You doing a 70.3 Ironman, its cold, as you leave the water and come into T1, you pause, and quickly calculate the physics of leaving your wetsuit on. Would ya?

Don't fight the Wind

The wind. Flying a kite, sailing, letting it blow through your hair, it's all quite conveniently cordial. Being upwind of a Grizzly who hasn't eaten for two weeks and cycling in a crosswind, save it for another day. There was a time, I would have just kept the TT bike at home and not ventured into the 30+kph cross winds. The secret to to getting into the aero position, tucked into the aero bars is not to fight the wind, but be one with the wind. Sounds poetic? [Laugh, spit, blow nose] Oh, it's true. Don't fight the wind, use it to your advantage. Give yourself permission to be courageous and surprisingly you will amaze yourself. Our Barrie TC held their weekly TT last night and we had a turnout of seven courageous Triathletes prepared to get blown over by the gust into asphalt possibly the farmer's fields. We didn't set any personal best times, but the group did amazingly well. The wind will make you stronger.