Tenille Hoogland: Elite Triathlete

New Website!!!!

2011-05-15T08:06:00.000-07:00

I am now blogging on Wordpress. Please follow the link below to learn more about me, what I am doing, where I am and about my latest racing and learning experiences.

Come check it out!

http://about.me/hooglandt

My Wildflower Triathlon Experience

2011-05-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

A fourth place finish at Wildflower is something I am very happy and proud of. After a really tough go at Galveston 70.3 I was really ready to show the hard work that has gone into my winter training. I was confident in every way once I had got to the race site and took in what was going to be a really tough days’ work on the course. I had perfect preparation, lodging, meals, and mental space. More than that though, I came to understand how well Zane had prepared me physically for this race. I understood all those hill repeats, final 3 mile run efforts, long rides… During the race I had a few ‘aha’ moments where I thought, oh this is why Zane had me do this, I have been here before and now I just have to do it again. It was awesome to be so prepared and confident.

The swim was solid. It was steady and relatively smooth. My nineteen wetsuit was great and other than super buoyant legs, I hardly noticed it. I came out of the water with the lead pack of girls and moved quickly onto the bike.

Right out of transition the bike is tough. It goes up, up and up. Cave, Ellis and Swallow quickly formed a little group and powered up the hills. I decided to hang back a bit and keep my power where I knew I needed to be – the brilliance of an SRM. I knew it was going to be a long day out there and there were lots of hills to come. Call me a pessimist but I also was waiting to see which of those three would unintentionally get a staggered or drafting penalty – they were riding too close. The officials really mean it when they say there is zero tolerance and you have to play by the rules. There is no room for slipping up. Swallow was the one who slipped and it was perhaps too hard to get back in mentally at that point. Samantha Warriner caught me and passed but for the remainder of the race I decided she was a great rabbit and never let her out of my sight. We were met with some pretty huge cross winds that actually threw some people off their bikes entirely. I was ok but was ever vigilant. Coming up the hill named “big nasty” I felt great, stayed in my seat and just kept things smooth. My nutrition was OK although I somehow lost 2 water bottles at different times. Guess I need to fix that. There were tons of aid stations though so I really was never worried or unable to solve what could have been a potential problem.

So although it is obvious that equipment makes a difference I can’t tell you how much faster by power numbers alone how much of a difference it makes. Zipp gave me the new 808s for the race and they were truly something. They demand better bike handling, fluid pedal stroke, and are just darn fast. That, in combination with my totally dialed Transition Pro (THANKS JEFF!), I could not ask for much better.

Coming into T2 was very nice and I was looking forward to getting onto the run and having only 1.5 hrs left. I was still feeling good and was in my rhythm. It was great to see my Specialized crew there and I think they were breathing a sigh of relief when I got in safely with a smile on my face… their work was done with me. I still had Warriner in my sight and knew that unless she put in a major surge, I would catch her. It took me 6 miles to do it but I reeled her in one step at a time. The course was very tough and whoever tells you that the hard part is done at around 5 miles needs to do the course again. I think that the hard part is done at 13.1 miles and not a moment sooner. The last hill before the last descent to the finish line was the hardest hill of the day. I once again was so glad for all the work Zane has been making me do and to Alan for helping me prepare mentally for that last mile.

What is next you ask? A am doing a wee little 10km race in a few weeks and then am stoked to return to Austin and race the Capital of Texas Triathlon! It will be SOOOO short in comparison.

Will write again soon.. stay well, healthy and happy!

Fourth Place at Wildflower!

2011-05-01T05:36:00.000-07:00

An incredible day where I was able to put out there what I have been training to do. I am about to board a plane but come back soon and there will be details to this epic race! I do have time though to say that sharing a great race with awesome people makes it mean so much more. The people at Specialized and Zipp are truly top-notch.

My pre-race thoughts at Wildflower....

2011-05-01T05:32:00.000-07:00

Wow. I am in another world of immense beauty. I was gob-smacked when I first arrived to Lake San Antonio, saw the hills, lake, and incredible work that was being accomplished by Dixie, Terry Davis and the whole Tri-California crew. A whole village of triathlon had sprung up amidst incredible natural beauty. This was going to be our playground for the weekend. Amazing. I had heard about “Wildflower” since I started triathlon but until you experience it and feel it, you really have no idea. The first thing I did was visit my friends at Specialized. I am still very green at the whole supported athlete thing so when I arrive with bike in hand, receive a warm hello, offered a drink, chair and then proceed to have my bike prepped, I think – this is it! Not only is my bike getting a tune-up, it is getting a new cassette which has an extra climbing tooth and new 808 Zipp super- fast wheels. Every time I race I get something that will make me faster. It is really just FUN!

I grabbed a cyclo-cross bike from Specialized (definitely the next “sport” I will do for fun) and then rode the run course. It is 60% trails, 40% road which makes it a little slower but harder. The trail takes you right along-side the lake, meanders through some meadows, up steep hills, past a few deer… most beautiful run course I have ever been on.

Two days ago while I was riding on the Shoreline highway 1 in California, I was honing in on WHY I do this sport. I have spoken about this in past blogs as something that you can have absolutely no doubt about. For me it is simply to be the absolute best athlete that I can be, no holding back, no excuses. I aim to understand what I can do when nothing (mostly myself) is in the way of being what my best is. If this best puts a gold medal around my neck, fantastic. If not, then it is what it is. Sometimes that is hard to take. Rarely do people take the time or space in life and have access to resources to do this. I do. Being able to appreciate this fact is what makes my experience or journey what it is. Arriving to a race and feeling so privileged to be here is what propels me to go on, to continue the sacrifices and dig deeper when it counts. This is what will be in my head racing tomorrow – dig deep, this is my time, know it, appreciate it and love it.

Freedom in movement and loving the hills!

2011-04-25T15:32:00.000-07:00

"In great works, by man or nature, a polar balance of physical and metaphysical principles exist, both fulfilling a function and expressing a meaning." Alonzo King, Choreographer of LINES Ballet.

Yesterday, I was treated to an amazing experience that reminded me of the power of the human body and mind while it is supported, suspended and captured in the environment which it is within. I was taken to see a modern dance ballet by Noreen, an incredible woman and friend. The dancers captured in artistic form and in physical strength what it was to shift, change, grow and be still in what was to be wind, ocean, and earth. I was taken into their movements.

It made me think of myself as a triathlete and particularly how I have been grappling with an assortment of health challenges, so many related to the environment (allergies). Alonzo says that "we are stuck, obstructed, when there is no flow and the mind/body isn't moving creatively." Before coming to California it really was like I was stuck, my body unmalleable, unable to move freely. I tried to force it into submission, kept wondering what was wrong, why it was like I was hitting my head against a wall... hard.

Since Thursday I have transformed back into myself. I am staying with an incredibly gracious woman who's home eludes peace and calm. It is surrounded by Redwoods, on top of a hill and smells of eucalyptus. I am in heaven. The air is cool here by Austin standards but clear. My body has responded both to this environment and to what Dr. Noah Moos has given me to fight the blockages in my body - essentially vitamins and minerals that I have not been absorbing through my own diet/nutrition. Each day I feel better and tackle the surrounding hills with exactly who I know my body to be - powerful, free and determined. I meet the challenges not with a fight against my body telling it to do what it does not want, but with a joy of being part of the experience. I have once again the energy and ability to relish in the experience of breathing hard and pushing harder up the hill, through the wind and rain. It is a gratefulness that I have to be out there in the trees, on the hills, and once again in my body and doing what I love.

The dancers had peace and control in both the movements and in standing still. They were completely absorbed. So this is what I will continue to strive for - to find a calm, control and freedom in my movements no matter how challenging. The environment will support me. Up next Tri-California Wildflower Long Course! SOOOOO EXCITED!

Fresh Air

2011-04-22T06:31:00.000-07:00

Over the course of the last few weeks I have become heavy with frustration. I was angry with my body not being able to perform with how I know it can. I was frustrated that I continue to struggle to find air and manage digestion. I was frustrated that I couldn’t “figure it out”. Managing these frustrations made me also really face the reality of my profession which is so singularly focused on training, sleeping and eating. When the joy of the training is off it is all too easy to be derailed, negative and surrounded by the sense of loss and wonderment of why you are doing all this. It is a slippery slope…

At the track two days ago I was attempting to do mile repeats on a tough but manageable pace. I had done it before and this was just another hard training session. Mile 1 - legs felt ok, mentally was focused and was on pace. Mile 2 – started ok but then the tight feeling where my body works harder and harder to get air set in. Mentally I thought, not already it is only mile 2, please no, stay calm, breathe deeply, relax. I finished but by the end my chest had completely tightened and I knew what was coming. Mile 3 – lasted not more than 200 meters until I was trying so hard to get air down I stopped. I broke in frustration with my body.

Austin is an incredible city. It is vibrant, rich in trees and green space, warm and full of incredible people. It is also notoriously bad for high pollen counts. This coupled with forest fires in west Texas, high winds, high humidity and no break of rain to bring the airborne allergens down a bit is a recipe for disaster for asthmatic and non-asthmatic alike. For me, it just has meant that I can’t breathe.

And so I am off to find fresh air. I want to be able to breathe deeply and have every cell of my body enriched with oxygen. I am off to California where the land is lush with evergreens and the air is clear. As I write it seems dramatic to me and very privileged. It is. Zane reminds me that this is what it is to be professional. Alan reminds me to trust myself and make decisions that will enable me to be the best athlete I can be and have no regrets. I just want to remind myself what it is like to be free in breath and in spirit.

Galveston 70.3

2011-04-14T12:02:00.000-07:00

Almost a week later and I am finally sitting down to write what happened at the Memorial Hermann Ironman 70.3 in Galveston last weekend. If I wrote it before now it would have been a little bit or perhaps much more “whiny” and woe is me oriented. Perhaps this is ok because it is in truth that I seek to write about my experiences as a triathlete. I still am sorting through emotions and the challenges of not having a race go the way I hoped but have things in perspective again and this is a very good thing.

I had the best pre-race preparations. I had incredible bike support from the guys at Bicycle Sport Shop and the Specialized truck. I had a quiet hotel room away from the anxiousness and hype of race prep. I ate well, hydrated and was able to totally relax. The morning of the race I knew I was ready.

The swim was brilliant. It was pretty windy so there was definitely a challenge in getting through the chop. All the better for me as the harder, the better. I came out of the water in second behind Mary-Beth Ellis who had a great swim as well. I got through transition without a hitch and was off on my bike.

This is where I had fun. The course is very flat, very fast but is deceiving in that there is a terrific wind that blows off the ocean the whole time. While riding in one direction I actually was doing a full lean into the wind to keep my bike upright. I kept the intensity up and steady. My bike was amazing and with the full aero gear I felt like I was flying. I held the lead for about 50km when I was passed by some outstanding cyclists. I actually didn’t even see Theurig pass me as I think she was going so strong. I took in my nutrition, drank and was super happy to get off the bike after 90km. I felt good and I was in fourth.

Immediately getting onto the run I started having digestive issues. This was not new for me as I have been struggling the past few weeks with keeping any sort of nutrition down. I have been playing with different gels, different levels of electrolytes, and varying combinations of solid food vs liquids. I knew going into the race that it was not sorted completely but I didn’t think that it would really get me. Heat has got me in the past in a big way but this was different and usually I am ok. But it did. Essentially what I know now is that I started getting and have been getting gastro-esophageal reflux. The sequence of problems was burping, reflux, irritation and inflammation of the esophagus causing difficulty in breathing. This triggered my asthma causing complete inability to breath and me walking. A 1:45 half marathon time is hardly what I have been working for.

I think what frustrates me the most is that it is another “thing” to get over, figure out and deal with. Some ask whether it is a stress response and thus a mental issue. I would say that it is potentially a bodily stress response that has been building – starting a long time ago with imbalance in hormones, developing exercise induced asthma, inability to fight allergens, becoming lactose intolerant and now not being able to keep nutrition down. So then the question still is whether I can change my mental game to stay calm and avoid all these “issues”?

My answer to this is that although I do believe I can strengthen my mental preparation – this was not a mental issue. This is what I am proud of in the race – I finished and not once did I give up trying to get going again after “problem-solving” throughout the race. My thinking was sort of like this - just drink more, try taking in more nutrition, sponges, ice, slow down and come around, form, get inhaler, Gatorade, and finally – just walk, no shame in walking. I was determined. I had two medical people follow me for 10km. I had an age-grouper tell me that I was a pro and to act like one. I had support telling me that I was doing great knowing that it was a complete lie. I had to fight my personal demons to keep one foot in front of another. It is this fight in me that pushes me in training, in racing and will get me to another finish line with a smile on my face. What I do know though is that I am just so thankful once again that I am not alone to do it. To my sponsors and my personal support, thank-you for sticking by me. Let’s climb another mountain.

Balance

2011-04-09T08:36:00.000-07:00

How many times have I heard myself say to someone or someone say to me – how do you find balance? Up until 1 year ago I tried to balance work, being a pro-triathlete, relationships and life. Once I realized that I was on the brink of exhaustion I made being a pro-triathlete my work and my priority. The question remains though – have I achieved better balance? To answer this question I have looked to the dictionary and talked to several people. This is what I learnt in my quest to understand what it means to me.

Definition #1: An even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady

To me this definition gets at the physical dimension of balance that triathletes struggle to achieve in their quest to strengthen three demanding sports. I, like many others, have not managed to stay “upright” or “steady” in training or races due to injury, poor mechanics, or nutrition. Lack of balance can be too much emphasis on motor development at the detriment of skill development. It can be too much time spent on one sport, leaving another to become the weak link. It can also be missing the recovery needed to keep going at such intensity, volume whilst meeting life demands. For me - there really is only one solution. Get a coach. Zane has taught me so very very much about the need to balance skill and motor development with recovery. He constantly is finessing my training schedule to meet me where I am at and where my body is at. Some say planning is the biggest job and execution is the easy part… to keep me swimming, biking and running healthily, I believe it.

Definition #2: A stable mental or psychological state; emotional stability

I had the incredible opportunity to listen and speak to Peter Reid at the Specialized Training Camp I attended two weeks ago (For interview go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir-qWuItgck). One thing that really struck me is how strongly he emphasized knowing why you are doing something. Triathlon is no easy undertaking. For me there are times when everything hurts, I am tired and that it takes everything in me to step out the door to go for that second run. These are the times that knowing why is critical. There are a million different reasons why each of us undertakes the mission to complete a triathlon. It is only your reason that matters though and that will bring joy to the training day and to the race. Know it and breathe it – it will bring stability just when you really really need it.

Definition #3: Something that is left over; a remainder.

I like this definition as it applies to life because it is often that we are cramming in lots of life into the “remainder” time we have after training, working, school, etc. Two friends of mine were talking about what balance means over dinner and the suggestion was that balance is meeting the must dos and being able to pursue the want to’s beyond that. Important to this notion is accepting that you likely can’t do or achieve all your want to’s. Skot Campbell, BG bike fitter at Bicycle Sport Shop said to me that balance is something that we all aspire to but rarely attain because we are, after all, asymmetrical. I loved this because it reminds me that it is the pursuit of life that brings balance and that it is human to be a little lop-sided.

Perhaps as we struggle to strike the right balance of work and play, family and friends we need to fundamentally remember that life is in balance when it is full of all those things that are important to us, that we are meeting those things that we have set as priorities and are enjoying once and awhile the nice to dos.

Brazil FAST Triathlon: Team Canada comes 2nd!

2011-03-05T04:08:00.000-08:00

When you are sitting on your trainer for hours on end, have no pay cheque coming in, can't remember when you went out last, and constantly think that a nap would be great, you sometimes have to wonder... WHY?

When I finally did arrive at the hotel in Niteroi, Brazil (just outside Rio) all became clear. I was in heaven. It was blissfully warm, the salt from the ocean permeated the air, there were people out everywhere. I was immediately brought back to days past when I lived in Buenos Aires Argentina. It felt like I came out of a winter cocoon in London Ontario and once again was alive! I had only 2 1/2 days in Brazil though so I really had to make the most of it.

I met Rachael and Gabrielle Edwards whom I was racing with for "Team Canada". They were the youngest competitors by far but had maturity to handle the whole experience like pros. Saturday, the day before the race, we went to the ocean to have a quick swim. We stood on the edge of the ocean and looked up in the distance to see the infamous Jesus looking down from his perch. If that is not awesome I am not sure what is! We practised our starts and did one leg draining run exit on the soft white sand. We were miles away from winter jackets, layering our bodies with cloths, having our lungs freeze on a cold run. For Gab and Rachael it was a 60 degree difference in temperature. They had prepared for Brazil with steaming bathroom trainer rides... oh Canadians are a hearty bunch!

The afternoon was spent having a delicious Brazilian buffet lunch - rice and beans. Then we had an opportunity to ride the 0.6 km circuit. Yup - try doing that 6 times. If you didn't have bike handling skills, good luck. Honestly I was hopping on my new Specialized bike - I am still very much in the honeymoon period and wondering if it could get any better. Ryder (my bike) is amazing and I am sure our relationship will only get stronger with time!

The race was FUN. There was absolutely no pressure on any of the athletes and because GloboTV had paid for absolutely everything, everyone just seemed to be super stoked to be there and do what they love. Don't get me wrong - we were all out there to win but it was in a fantastic competitive spirit. I wish all races could be like this one. The format of the race was a super super sprint x3. The time between races was based on what GloboTV had for commercial breaks. Each race took about 15 minutes to complete. My first race was a little sloppy as I didn't buckle my helmet properly on the first try having to stop and fumble with it before leaving T1. I came back though on the bike to capture 4th. Gabrielle had a stellar first race placing 3rd. The next two races kept getting better for me. No more fumbles in transition and I took 3rd and then 2nd. Gabrielle and Rachael did awesome putting everything they had out there. It was enough to capture 2nd place as a team. I was super happy and proud of us.

The FAST Triathlon in Brazil is a huge event. After the race we were treated to full celebrity status signing t-shirts, scrap paper, giving away our swim caps, our disposable timing chips.. I have also never had so many pictures taken of me in my life. It was just fun.

The afternoon was spent going to an incredible beach with our fantastic and beautiful Argentine competitors and Jorge (lone and lucky guy!). It was awesome to be speaking in spanish again, sucking on a frozen coconut milk stick and wading in the ocean without a care in the world. I celebrated the 2nd place finish with a Quilmes and laughed freely. Oh South America how I have missed you.

And so went my weekend trip to Brazil. It makes me super excited for the season and racing. The work in between is hard but oh so worth it. And so it goes. Back onto the trainer until I get back to my beloved Austin. Soon. Very soon.

Ryder Amira Hoogland and life of late...

2011-02-24T03:58:00.000-08:00

I have been wanted to write a blog post since Saturday when I first got on my brand new Specialized. First I should say that I am not a technical person. I could not tell you what is new in the way of carbon fiber, aero positioning, components etc. I am therefore not qualified to tell you the ins and outs of what makes up a phenomenal bike from a technical perspective. What I do know though is what riding feels like when you are trying to give that extra push up a hill, surge on a flat, and take a corner tight. I know when the bike is able to react to your slightest weight change from left to right. I know what it feels to be weightless. When I got on my new bike it was love at first experience. First it weighs almost 5lbs less than my old bike. That is ALOT! It is a lot stiffer and when I want it to go it just goes. An excellent bike feels like an extension of yourself. It is just that. I have never named a bike before and have issues with becoming attached to "things" but this will be an exception. After much thought I am calling it Ryder Amira Hoogland. Yes Ryder after Ryder Hesjedal. Last year many people came to learn of Ryder after his outstanding performance in the Tour de France. I certainly became a huge fan. He is Canadian. He is rather good looking but most importantly he is an incredible athlete with determination, style, and a whole lot of skill and power. After each stage I was amazed at how he managed the pressure on him and how he really stayed focussed on what he was there to do - ride well, ride smart and ride with fire in your belly. Ryder is riding the wrong bike but he can't help that - it is a team thing. And so my love affair has begun. Ryder and I. A perfect match.

Apart from getting my new bike, life has been busy lately. First to get a new bike takes a lot of work on the behalf of a few people. Ian at Specialized has been incredible and I have to say I am soooo super excited to be part of the family. Next is Bicycle Sport Shop. They have been awesome to me. I can walk in there now and know that all will be well - James and Tim in Service will get my bike build and tuned to perfection, Skot gets me fitted just right, and the other staff make sure that I have everything I need to race well. What more could I ask for!

Another thing that occupied my thoughts and attention is a visit from Joanna Brown, a junior on the Canadian National Development Team. Joanna arrived and immediately hit the ground running. She is a hard worker, trains hard and trains alot. It was amazing for me to see so much of my old work horse self in her. Unfortunately after 4 days of training she got very ill and a week later still had not made much progress to getting better. It was a real bummer for her I am sure.

The day after Joanna left I was on the plane to London ON. I was supposed to have 3 short days until I left for Brazil. Unfortunately 3 short days turned to 4 as a plane delay caused me to sit tight and leave a day later. The good news was that in those 3 days I got to see Sam (RMT) at the University of Western Ontario. As mentioned in my last blog, I did something to my back. It was actually my ribs that attach in the back but I will save the whole description of that freak injury for another time. Dr. Z of Advanced Rehab in Austin worked his ART magic for the past 2 weeks getting me mobile again where I was absolutely stuck. Like my favorite massage therapist Kevin in Austin, Sam has a unique ability to find, maneuver and release troubled areas without me really knowing that that spot was the problem. I think that one quality that is critical with RMT is patience. Kevin has it. Sam has it. The ability to let ones body sense where tension lies, to stay with it and allow it to slowly release. If I were to try I would find a spot, dig hard and fast and move on. Not always helpful. Anyway, if in London ON for some really odd reason and you need an awesome RMT, call Sam at UWO. He'll get it done.

And so, I am waiting for my flight to Brazil to start my season at the FAST Triathlon. Wish I could say more about it but to be honest, I don't know a thing! It is 3 sprints with commercial breaks in between each one. And that is what I know. We'll see how it goes after having one whole day to acclimate to weather that is 50 degrees warmer than what it is here. dohhh!

I'll write all about it after... until then though I am going to do my best to stay hydrated!

Labral Tears: A year later

2011-02-07T13:56:00.000-08:00

I had someone email me the other day asking where I am at now almost one year later... so I though that I would give a quick synopsis and update on how Zane has helped me get back on my feet and running. My first MRI showing a labral tear on the right hip was in November 2009. This MRI showed that it was due to the way the bone was structured (FSA) coupled with poor running technique. In February I started having significant problems with the left hip . No amount of ART could fix it. I had a second MRA completed in March. At the same time as the MRA I had a cortisone injection. The results showed an extensive tear on the left hip. The MRA did not show FSA. The cortisone shot finally allowed my hip to stop freaking out to protect it. I was told at that time to not expect to be able to run that season let alone race.

After two consultations with Surgeon I opted to not undergo surgery. The outcome is not guaranteed. The only guarantee was that I would be out for at least 6 months. I was encouraged to learn how to manage the labral tears if possible. Zane started the process 5 minutes at a time to have me relearn how to run. He also incorporated a lot of core work to solidify my hip movement. I also had to really work on my flexibility in my hip flexors.

It has taken me a full year of complete diligence to say that I have completely changed my running form. I honestly wouldn't know how to run like I used to anymore. I am absolutely a forefoot/midfoot striker at this point. I have increased my turnover and am leaning forward more. Zane reminds me that I have not got it perfect especially when I start to get tired but I don't collapse in the core nearly as much. I do think about it though on every run.

The other key to my success in 'managing' labral tears is the work I get done by Kevin Trybalski, my massage therapist. I notice it tremendously if I miss one week of massage therapy and don't having my gluts worked on. I really can't do without. While I was in Canada I missed Kevin tremendously as did my body. Due to very bad weather I missed 3 weeks of massage therapy (that is some bad luck). My body is still trying to recover from some issues I developed - plantar. Again if Kevin is not on it then I start to fall apart...

So a little luck to have a coach who just knew I could do better, an incredible team at Advanced Rehab to rehabilitate me, core work, a whole lot of Kevin and complete diligence on my part to run with good form and I am still going. This year we will see the results of actually being able to run in the base period of my training. Thus far though it is looking really good, really really good.

On another note - back is better and I am up and running again. Thank goodness.

The ups and the downs...

2011-01-28T05:46:00.000-08:00

This week I am being tested on my ability to be patient. I had a freak thing happen to my thoracic spine on Wednesday and since then have been rather immobile. It was one of those twisted the wrong way and it just went out sort of things... Now I just have to wait. That is the boring part. But this is what it makes me realize:

1) I love what I do. I wake up thinking that maybe today I can run again, maybe hop on my beautiful bike. Can you think that about your job? If not, get a new job :)

2) I have awesome people around me. Zane of course... How does he know so much about everything! I am seeing Dr. Noah J. Moos for Chiropractic/voodoo magic like care. I also have my favorite Kevin Trybalski (RMT) on call... Tanner is putting up with my absolute grumpiness. I really am not that much fun when I can't move.

3) I have time to contemplate random thoughts like whether there is a difference between those that like crunchy peanut butter and those that like smooth, how humour differs, what makes some people tick and others to run for their life, how 80's music makes me laugh...

4) I am learning about yet another possible injury. I suppose being an elite athlete also means that you get to learn about all the things that also can go wrong. I never really had this problem before so will have all sorts of advice on it in a few weeks.

I will keep y'all posted. Meanwhile I am going to get absorbed into my new book 'What the Dog Saw' by Malcolm Gladwell. Should be interesting. I just finished 'Room' by Emma Donaghue which will be hard to follow - very very good book.

Later....

Blueberry pancakes and easy mornings

2011-01-24T06:37:00.000-08:00

I am listening to CBC, just finished blueberry pancakes and had my morning coffee. It is an easy morning of just sitting back and relaxing. Soon I will have to start my training day but not now and not yet...

I had a great weekend of training which continuously surprised me. Zane has been working to build my volume in my run lately and getting my body to handle distance better. I, like any athlete, have had to progress from 8miles, 10-14miles and now 16 mile long runs. The first time I did 16 miles, my longest run ever, I really just got myself in the door by the end. It wasn't pretty. I really wondered how marathoners do it let alone people training for ironmans. Now though I am pushing those last few miles into a faster pace and thinking that my legs are good. It is an amazing feeling. I also did my first brick this weekend. It was after the Saturday (ATC) morning ride where Paul (stellar rider/person) dragged me through the dam loop. I will admit I was hurting. I was even riding my hot new Specialized bike and thinking that it was ready for me to just fly up those hills but I kept looking back to check if my brakes were rubbing (they weren't)... I finished the ride, got in the door and said my mantra 'just keep going just keep going, don't think, just do'. As soon as I started to run it was like I checked in my old body, got a new one and just ran. It was a totally bizarre and awesome feeling. Not bad for my first brick.

So yes this weekend was good. Very good. It has put a hop in my step. But not yet... I am still chillin. Have one more hour until this training week begins. Going to enjoy it!

2011-01-19T13:50:00.000-08:00

Because I have seemingly been horrible at keeping up my blog I will get right down to the important happenings in my life...

I had a wonderful Christmas season with my mom, Ted and brother in London Ontario. Can't say I loved the cold but I did love the warmth of being "home", a constantly full fridge, swimming with my mom and coming home after a morning training session to a huge hug from my brother. No price on that.

I now have the best sponsors anyone could ask for. Specialized is now my official bike sponsor which is so super cool I am not sure if I can even express how awesome this is. I have been in and out of Bicycle Sport Shop getting all fitted up by Skot who has been truly great. I think they are even starting to recognize me. Rogue is also an 'official sponsor' and they continue to support me in every other way - running, product, emotional support.... that is just to start. Powerbar is going to supply me with carbohydrates, sugar, protein and lots of it.... I have to say I really like their new gummy things but have to remind myself that it is not candy and not meant to be eaten as such. Darn it. Good thing I train so much.

I am now 33 (as of today). Really wish this meant I felt wiser. I don't feel any older. I continue to be amazed at my life (Bob - that is for you), the people that I have in it and the path that I have chosen. I rarely settle for anything comfortable (actually will run the other way if I sense it), always am looking for adventure but mostly want to be a better person and better athlete. As far as being a better athlete - I absolutely am learning and making leaps and bounds. That is pretty cool.

I have moved again to a lovely place called Pflugerville which is just outside of Austin. I am staying with Daniel and Fernanda, two amazingly wonderful people with huge hearts. It is certainly different from my awesome digs with Mark in downtown Austin but it is good for me and the riding out there is great!

I am running very well. It is wonderful to be building a base and learning to just run. I am not worrying about injury or standards and believe it or not, am running most often without looking at my pace, heart rate or times. Very very liberating.

Finally and importantly, I am happy. I am really excited about this year. I am still living out my dream and loving it. I have overcome so much and these challenges have made my everyday reality so much more rewarding. Although I often wake up sore and thinking that it is way too early - I wake up knowing that I wouldn't want to be doing anything else.

Not bad... thanks friends out there for being patient with me. Back on the blogging bandwagon. Stay posted.

Winter Wonderland

2010-12-06T07:45:00.000-08:00

It is the phenomenal amount of snow that I am witnessing that is inspiring me to finally write. I am in London Ontario. There is a snow squall occurring and although I did not remember what this was, I do now. From the window it is really quite pretty- trees bent over with the heaviness of snow and an endless white. When I look at my runners and think about running outside it is a bit of a joke. There is no way even a hearty Canadian can get through this without snowshoes.

I better back-up a bit as quite a bit of time has passed since my last blog and now. I have, surprise, surprise, been rather busy. After my last race of the season in Phoenix, I had two weeks off from training. I was really really ready for it. I thought that maybe I would have a hard time not showing up at the pool, throwing my runners on or getting on my bike but I actually had no trouble saying good-bye to my training regime for a little time. It helped that I was able to do things that I have not done in such a long time – hike, play, stay up late and not worry about the next days work!

Tanner and I went to Big Bend National Park which is in the South of Texas on the Mexico/US border. It was spectacular. The park is in the middle of the desert, has an incredible canyon that the Rio Grande meanders through, and is a collection of limestone peaks that provides the most incredible views, sunrises and sunsets. The night sky is unforgettable – thousands of stars that the naked eye can see. I was able to let go of my endless list of things to do and give over the pressure I put on myself to constantly achieve and work hard. I was able to just be.

This set the stage for the rest of my vacation where I had a whole lot of fun with friends in Austin. I could not ask for anything more… sadly it all came to an end when I got onto the plane to Ottawa.

I arrived at 4:30 to a dark sky, rain and a chilly wind. It was everything I dreaded. I was in Ottawa to see friends, get some things done and move my boxes to London Ontario in a big UHAUL truck. As per usual Ottawa folks were amazing. The Cyclery got me set up with an awesome Tacx trainer, Ryan at Solefit Orthodics got me into a new pair of orthodics, I saw my favourite Dr. Taylor at Carleton Sport Medicine Clinic and Rebecca at Westboro Chiro worked on some surprisingly jacked up gluts. It was like I never left. I ran along the beautiful Rideau Canal and swam with the best swim club ever – ROCS. After saying good-bye to friends I said good-bye to the city. Ottawa has been amazing to me in so many ways but that chapter of my life is now closed and a new one has opened.

So now I find myself in London Ontario with my mom and Ted. The fridge is always full, the apple cider warms the house and mom is constantly baking the next loaf of bread. Christmas centre pieces are found throughout the house and it is warm and cozy especially when Ted starts the fire. I have a room devoted to my bike trainer and can watch VHS movies… excellent. I have reacquainted myself with the pathway along the Thames river, the treadmill and am training with the University of Western Ontario swim team. It is actually all working out quite well from a training perspective as long as I am ok with it being indoors. I look forward to my brother arriving and chilling out with him. So until I return to Austin (Dec 31) I just have to stay warm, not get frustrated with the shovelling, ice, layering, slower pace of moving and remember that a few feet of snow really is quite pretty…!

2010 - A Year to Remember

2010-11-10T06:16:00.000-08:00

I am not sure how to capture this year in words as it has been such an incredible journey. It has been wonderful and painful, has brought joy and sadness but most importantly has challenged me to be a better person, better athlete and striving for more.

In January I sold all my furniture and left my work with the federal government to train full-time. Knowing that my run was my weakness I went to Austin Texas to work with Steve Sisson who is a phenomenal elite running coach. Once again I fell in love with Austin and the people who make this community so incredible. I was there for three short weeks but it was long enough for me to want to go back as soon as possible. In March I returned and was ready to work hard but this time I was limping around – there was something wrong in my hips but I had no idea what. I went to see Dr. Zelinski of Advanced Rehabilitation and he worked hard on improving my mobility. No matter how many treatments I had though, I was still suffering. He sent me to get an MRI and I stopped running entirely. The prognosis was not good – labral tears on both hips.

At the same time as getting these results I flew back to Victoria to say good-bye to my pake (grandfather) who was dying. Whilst with my family I went to see an orthopaedic surgeon in Vancouver to discuss the MRI. His prognosis was that despite having labral tears I should do everything I could to not have surgery – there was no guarantee that surgery would help me. And so I went back to Austin on a mission to change how I run. It was essential and the only way that I could get back to doing what I love.

I had to make some hard decisions to make changes in my training that I felt were necessary to take me to the next level. I needed a coach that could change my running form so I could run. I needed a coach that could help me use and apply the motor that I had developed over the past three years with Ken Brunet of the Peak Centre of Human Performance. Finally I needed to be in an environment with others that pushed me to be better everyday. Zane Castro, a friend of the past three years and a person who I had turned to numerous times to seek coaching advice was what I needed. With a lot of difficulty I left Ken to work with him. Zane had his work cut out for him!

Starting 5 minutes at a time I started to come back to running. Every moment was supervised with Zane demanding nothing but perfect form. These training sessions were some of the hardest I have done both physically and mentally. I also worked with Lauren Green at Advanced Rehabilitation to strengthen my coordinative strength, my core and my hip flexor mobility. Through this time there were incredible people who gave me the strength to keep going and that kept reminding me that this too was all part of the journey.

After 6 weeks Zane gave me the green light to race in the ITU Pan-American Cup San Francisco Triathlon at Treasure Island. I had just got my mileage up to 6 miles. The result – First Place! That race meant everything to me and set the tone for the rest of an incredible year. I raced everything from a super sprint (300m swim, 5mile bike, 1.5 mile run X2) to a half ironman. I learnt that despite training in heat I have not learnt how to race in the heat and had some tough races in 35C+ weather conditions. I learnt that I absolutely LOVE really hard races with lots of hills (Alcatraz). If there is one thing I can do it is grit my teeth and power my way through hills. Mostly I learnt that this job, being an elite athlete, is incredibly challenging, sometimes lonely and leaves no room for excuses. It is complete dedication to a lifestyle - eat, sleep, breathe, train - that rarely allows for compromise. It is also incredibly rewarding.

Just like every journey it is the people and the relationships you create that enrich the experience. Although triathlon can be a completely selfish endeavour, it is when you share it that it is truly worth something. The people that have supported me above and beyond: Mark Cathcart, one of those unsung heroes that has provided me with a roof over my head for numerous months, been a sound advisor all things triathlon and has generally supported me asking for nothing in return; Zane Castro and the Peak Centre for making me believe and getting me to where I am; Rogue Running (Ruth, Steve, Carolyn and the Elite team); Advanced Rehabilitation; The Cyclery (getting me what I need regardless of where I am!); Jack and Adams Triathlon Store (they fix my bike on a dime every time); Logan Katz LLP; Dr. Alan Edmunds (sport psychologist who challenges me every time); Kevin Trybalsiki (my massage therapist, counsellor and best hugger in Austin); Sugoi (amazing cloths and Canadian!); Solefit Orthodics; and, Dr. Taylor of Carleton Sports Medicine Clinic who won’t stop until she really knows what is going on. With these people I could keep going, dreaming and working my butt off. Finally, I can’t thank my family enough – you only get one and I have the best out there.

I am actually taking a vacation this year – first one in 3 years. No training, no work, just bliss. I am sure after 2 weeks I will be absolutely itching to get back to what I love and absolutely passionate about. This year was very good but next year is going to be incredible. That I know.

Second Place Super Sprint Triathlon Grand Prix!

2010-11-02T05:15:00.000-07:00

An amazing day. An unbelievably exciting race experience. An awesome result.

Going into this race I knew the race would be fast, fun and really hard. It was all that but awesome for triathlon, fantastic for elite athletes, and so much more. The vision that Marc Lees has for the Super Sprint Triathlon Grand Prix will be incredible entertainment for spectators and television viewers. The race format was 300m swim, 5mile bike, 1.5 mile run x2 and no breaks.

The race was in the community of Oceanside at the Pier. It was perfect weather, not too hot and not too cold. There was surf which definitely benefitted those that knew how to read and swim waves and those that felt confident in their swimming abilities. I fell into the later category as I really have not had much experience in the whole wave thing. Apparently I am a quick learner.

The horn blew and we were off – from that moment on it was full on racing. Sara McLarty was phenomenal right from the first swim. She apparently caught a wave that launched just after theturn buoy and rode it practically to the shore amazing spectators. She came out of the water ~40 seconds ahead and maintained that lead for the rest of the race.

The race really became about 2^nd place. Out of the first swim I set the stage for what was to come - I was in second.

The bike course was hotdog shape and we did 8 laps. It was head down, surge out of corners and hard. Coming off the bike Aussie Charlotte McShane launched a terrific speed onto the run quickly followed by Alicia Kaye. I never lost contact but fell into fourth. The ITU racer Takagi from Japan and Ironman superstar Kate Major ran themselves into the race and so our chase pack swelled to 5 women into the 2^nd swim. Richie Cunningham had prepared me mentally for that second swim telling me that it would be super hard but to just get through it. I love a good fight so I did just that. I pushed through a lot of pain and managed to catch up around the buoy. Then a miracle happened – I caught a wave on my way back. I have to say that this was a super cool experience as I had no idea even how to catch a wave. I just kept swimming with it and found myself coming out of the water in second again. Perfect. The second bike was similar to the first in that it was fast and hard. Alicia Kaye caught up to me and we worked together. Kate Major, Takagi, and Michellie Jones were hot on our heels. Getting onto the second run I felt good and my legs were really turning over. I passed Alicia and was running in second up until the last 300m of the last lap. Takagi caught me and Kate and I started to run shoulder to shoulder. Around the last turn though I was in contact with Takagi and I gave it my all. I ran hard, overcame her and sprinted across the line to

take second place. It was absolutely awesome.

The Super Sprint Triathlon Grand Prix is really like nothing I have experienced before. It was sheer adrenaline from the get go. The coolest part was that it was not just the athletes that had the total high but spectators too. They were on the side cheering their hearts out which spurred each of us on and pushed us to a new level. I can’t thank Marc Lees enough for having such an incredible vision for this race. It takes incredible courage and passion to put on such a class act and Marc obviously has it in spades! Super Sprint Triathlon Grand Prix 2011 here we come!!!

Acknowledgements for Photos: Sean Watkins Photography, Finishline Multisport, Super Sprint Triathlon Grand Prix

For Media coverage check out:

http://triathlon.competitor.com/

http://video.competitor.com/2010/11/triathlon/tricenter-super-sprint-tri-grand-prix/?marquee

Pan-American Championships Puerto Vallarta

2010-10-23T13:09:00.000-07:00

Going to Puerto Vallarta to represent Canada at the Pan-American Championships was an incredible experience. I was selected to go along with Chantell Widney, Kirsten Sweetland, Andrew Russell and Jeff Phillips. We had Craig Taylor (Triathlon Canada Senior Development Coach) to support us athletes and Kurt Innes (Triathlon Canada High Performance Director) was there to research the area in preparation for the Pan-American Games in October. All in all it was a great Canadian team and we had awesome support.

I was the first to arrive and was a little gob-smacked by the hotel. The last time I was in a resort-like place was in Mombasa, Kenya with Farouk. There we took in amazing views of the ocean, laid by the pool, did the snorkeling thing, ate too much... I digress. This is what most people do when in Puerto Vallarta too. That is most people except us. We were there to work and that is just what we did.

The prep days before the race were very uneventful. We sat in our hotel rooms to stay cool. We watched movies, read, drank electrolytes... were bored actually. Because we were tapering as well the energy levels just going up and up and up to the point that both Chantell (roommate) and I were saying to each other - let's get on with it!

The race organizers were doing anything but relaxing. Up until the morning of the race they were determining what the course would be, laying dirt over cobblestones, packing it down and hoping the cement that they laid the day before was dry enough. It ended up being a technical

but flat course on the bike. The swim was in a sheltered port and the run was mostly along a

flat road. Surprisingly and after some serious anxiety the course was pretty good.

It was a deep water start and unfortunately for me I had a really rough start. I ended up loosing the lead pack and dragging the second (chase) pack behind me. In other words I did all the work and was anything but comfortable in over 80 degree water. I lost my goggles as well so sighting became a challenge. Despite these challenges I worked hard and came out of the water (after totally banging my shin and knee at swim exit) and was ready to rock the bike. We worked hard and eventually caught the lead pack. Then my next stupid mistake happened. I missed an attack just prior to a technical transition section, got stuck behind some girls who lacked cornering skills and a gap opened up. So I found myself working super hard once again to close the gap... third full-on effort in the race. After we caught the girls there was no way that I was going to get caught out again. I led the bike for a significant portion of the remaining time controlling much of the pace. I told Kirsten to just sit on my wheel (i.e., not work) and make sure she was ready to win the race. She did just that (although got DQd). Through the final 2 laps (of six) of the bike I felt good, thought that I recuperated from the efforts and was ready to have a good run.

Then the run. Oh the run! Coming from the race in Tuscaloosa (ITU Pan-American Cup/US Nationals), learning from that race (specifically blowing up at 7km due to over heating/dehydration), Zane and I determined that I should definitely not bolt from transition like I normally do, be more conservative and ensure that I take in more fluids throughout to bring my core temp down. Specifically we planned that I would actually drink water at the first opportunity. I downed almost a full bottle. Then I promptly felt like I needed to throw it all up. Excellent. I kept hoping that I would come around - I was ready for this race. I never did.

I was super super bummed. I have been running faster than ever. I was fully tapered and confident. Yet a stellar finish was not in the cards. So this is where I have to say that sometimes I need to be beat on the head a bit to get perspective. I was not supposed to be able to race at all this year. I had to get over a significant injury, totally change my running technique and make some other huge changes in my life (take a leave from my job, change coaches, move to train in Austin... just to start). Through all of this I had breakthrough races, learned a whole lot about race strategy and after just 2 ITU races this year came 14th at the Pan-American Championships while racing for Canada. So am I on track? Absolutely.

Up next is an amazing race in Oceanside California - the Super Sprint Grand Prix. This race is by invitation only and will be super super fast and fun. I have never done anything like it and am really excited about it. We will be doing a swim, bike, run x2. It is going to HURT! Which is exactly what we triathletes, for some reason absolutely love. Sadly it will be my last race of the season. Funny to think. I will keep you posted on how it goes!

Happy training, racing and recuperating from a great season!

AzulOx

2010-10-05T04:58:00.000-07:00

What is AzulOx you ask? Well it is Josh Baker in action with a camera, lights, and cool moves. His subject - me! So those that know me know that I have not ever really considered myself "model" material. But put me in my Sugoi cloths, running shoes, and on a bike and suddenly I can pose, move and have a whole lot of fun!

This past weekend was really great. It started with a early morning steady ride with Terra Castro on the Longhorn 70.3 course. Other than a few dogs jumping out at us, the ride was really beautiful. Sun rising over fields, cows, over small bridges, under tree canopied roads... thanks to Mark Cathcart you always knew you were on course following little yellow arrows. From there it was a quick stop at Rogue, home for lunch and then off to the Bicycle Sport Shop to volunteer at the Trek Women's Triathlon. Volunteering at an event like this is wonderful because it reminds me of doing my first triathlon. I remember Margot showing me how to set up my transition spot, answering questions like 'what do I wear?', 'do you put socks on?', 'do I need gels and how many?'.... Then there was my first triathlon at the elite level - how do you keep your shoes on your bike (elastics) and how do you get on your bike in the flying start sort of way (I likely have not figured that out but what I do works for me!).

The weekend then just got better on Sunday. I was off to the Rogue Running Fat Ass Trail Run at "The Shore" on Lake Bastrop. I ran 12miles of beautiful well marked trails, some of it with stellar runner Allison Macsas (elite Rogue Team) and was in bliss. I helped out after

my run handing out the most amazing awards - rolls of toilet paper on gold, silver and bronzed holders (stunning really) and replenishing post-race food (a role I take very seriously). After all that was over, runners had made it in from the bush with smiles on their faces, Josh and I began my photo shoot.

I can't be the easiest subject to capture (being so speedy and all :) ) but he used his talents and came out with some fun pics. The point of the whole thing was for me to have some pictures of me where I am in action but not with a look of total race related pain on my face. I want to have them to send out to potential sponsors. Fingers crossed that it will work - who wouldn't want to buy into this image right! Anyway, the whole process was great. Check out all the photos at http://www.azulox.com/blog/?p=302

Sunday afternoon it was off to the Quarry with Mark for a quick swim and then a fabulous meal of filet mignon with sauteed aspagagus, green beans and roasted sweet potatoes. Told you my weekend was great! And now it is Tuesday where most people head to the office and I head out for hours of training and hopefully if all goes well hours of "resting" too. Hopefully all the participants at the Trek Triathlon and Rogue Fat Ass Trail Run will have lots of great stories to tell around the water cooler! Congrats to you all on a great accomplishment!

Seventh Place at US Nationals / ITU Pan-American Cup Tuscaloosa Alabama

2010-09-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a race. I would be lying if I said the whole thing was a whole lot of fun because to be honest the last lap and a half on the run was sheer pain but I will get to that.

The race started at 12:00pm, 92 F. The course was 1 lap swim, 8 laps bike with a small twisty hill, and 4 lap run along a road one way (no shade) and pathway on return (some shade). It was my first race this year where there was no chance of rain and I was not wearing a jacket at the start to stay warm. Given that I have been training in Austin where temperatures are routinely in the 90s and thus used to dealing with heat I thought - no problem, my body will be able to handle this... 2 hours - thats all right! I was ready to swim, bike and run up to my potential. I felt good and was excited to race.

The gun went off and I was perfectly positioned next to Hayley Piersol, just one of the USAs amazing swimmers in the sport. I just had to follow her and I would be ok. I followed her right into the first pack and swam comfortably on the feet of the leaders and specifically Sara McLartys for the first 900meters or so. I kept thinking this is good, stay here and don't let them go... but then around the second buoy Sara decided to strap on a turbo jet and my wonderful draft was gone! Just like that. I had no feet, no Sara pulling me along happily and I found myself having to work very very hard to close a gap that was opening up. Ugggg. The gap ended up being around 15 s and despite the fastest transition (which I am quite proud of) and working so super hard to close the gap on the bike - I failed. Second Uggg.

Jillian Peterson pulled up to me with Jennifer Speildenner and she was going super strong. It is with these two that I rode the 8 laps. Not much to say on the bike except that I felt fine, had lots of time to drink and actually ran out of my GU brew... 2 large bottles in 1 hour. It was that hot.

So the run began and I just heard Zane's voice in my head saying 'run up to your potential, grab someone and stick with them.' No where did I hear in my head "Respect the heat - It will get you if you do not conserve". So off I went running. I passed Jillian, passed McLarty and was all of a sudden in fourth! Brilliant. I would be lying to say it didn't hurt but to be honest after the second loop I was feeling ok. I believed that I was holding a pace I could sustain. The numbers were right (if not slow). It was not until the 3rd lap that I started to think wow I am really getting hot. Then I started to think, this is really hard and I am not really loving this right now. Then I started to think, I hope I can finish (that was on the 4th lap). Then I stopped thinking and just tried to stay on the path (the weaving, closing my eyes began). I crossed the finish line and was helped to the medical tent where I was given ice, water, a place to rest.

I ended up seventh. It was a great race on many different levels but mostly because it was a great race to prepare me for the Pan-American Championships in Puerto Vallarta. I felt rusty going into this race as it was my second ITU race this year but now it is like the chain has been lubed, a few aha moments happened and I have no doubt that I am on the right track.

On my way back to Austin now and will definitely be working hard. I will keep you posted but mostly my blog will be me saying I eat, I sleep, I train and once in awhile get excited because I have discovered a new icecream to make in my new ultimate icecream maker. Stay well my friends, congrats to all my fellow racers this weekend and thank-you volunteers, race officials and City of Tuscaloosa for a great race!

Third Place at Avia Austin Triathlon!

2010-09-09T16:26:00.000-07:00

Finally my race report on the Avia Austin Triathlon! I could have wrote about the race immediately citing the amazing organization of the event by High Five Events with critical support by Jack & Adams. I could have wrote immediately about the stellar form Kelly Handel Williamson is in and of course Desiree Ficker, both of whom caught me on the bike. I also would have probably said something about the icecream, tortillas, beer that you get at the finish line.... but when it came down to it I needed a little time to think about my race and what it was to me.

Since Alcatraz last weekend it has been straight down to business. I have an opportunity to get a solid few weeks of training in before my next important race, the ITU Pan-American Cup/US Nationals in Toscaloosa. I am back in Austin with Zane at my side correcting any form slips since I have been away. I am back at the UT Masters early morning practices and doing the infamous ATC Saturday rides with the roadies. And then of course getting used to loosing serious water weight everytime I train in the Austin heat and humidity. The Austin Triathlon was part of the training, part of a hard week.

When you get on the start line it is just the same though - the anticipation of a adrenaline kick, your chance to put hard work into action and to be the best you can be that day. A few days prior to the race there was a lot of talk at the pool of who was going to be on who's feet, who was going to have to do the hard work off the start. Unfortunately for me the guys (Philip Graves, Richie Cunningham) took off at such a pace that I could not match it despite my best effort. There were no feet for me to draft. I did have a great swim though closing the gap toward the end of the course and getting through transition very quickly. On the bike I kept thinking go go gadget legs! My breathing was fine but my legs were having a heck of a time giving that extra race

ummph, that - I am in a race grrrr factor. Kelly and Des passed me at virtually the same time on the third lap. Again I thought - anytime legs go! But alas what I had that day was what I was putting out there. The start of the run was in the pouring rain - one could say refreshing? I just laughed given my track record of cooler weather/rain race starts this year. Knowing my legs were a little shot I determined to really focus on good form and getting my speed from that. I was cheered by friends which was awesome - really kept me going and pushing.

When people first asked me about my race, I didn't know what to say - hard day on the job? Now I would say that it was great. Zane keeps emphasizing progress to me. The Austin Triathlon evidenced progress - I swam faster and ran faster on tired legs with much better form. Steve Sisson (UT Womens and Rogue Elite Team Running Coach) was there and was so positive that I think I am still glowing. Progress. At the end of the day this is what it is about. What I can do is have no regrets, give each day, each race everything I have. Did I do this - absolutely.

The highlight of this day was cheering on the Rogue athletes who were accomplishing their own greatness - seeing their faces, look of determination, joy (ok and maybe a little pain) was awesome. Celebrating their accomplishments was fulfilling and joyful. I have said it before but being part of the Rogue athlete community brings me to the essence of why I do what I do. I started triathlon aiming to be the very best athlete I could be, bringing it to a level I had not achieved, taking care of every detail of my training and life to accomplish this goal. For the Rogue athlete - this may look a little different but it is about accomplishing something great, their own PR, overcoming fears and being their own best. Progress right? So to end this congrats to all those out there that have aimed for progress today. Keep going. Everyday counts.

This is it!

2010-09-03T16:59:00.000-07:00

It is 7pm on a Friday night and I am cleaning my room. My legs hurt and I am getting hungry as it has been a whole two hours since I ate last. I also just thought that I better get going because it is bedtime soon! As I look around I realize that I have way more Sugoi gear that contains spandex than anything else. I have GU gels on the counter right beside a few CO2 cartridges. The jewelry I have is a Garmin and it is connected to my computer uploading my latest run. All these little things are my life. What is better yet is that I am living and doing exactly what I want to be doing even for a Friday night. There are not too many people that can say that. From where I was in March through to now has been a tremendous journey with so many people that have been there along the way. They are right now on Quadra and Hornby Island, in Courtney, Vancouver, Kelowna, Calgary, Ottawa, London, San Francisco, Austin and living it up in San Jose, Milan, Muskoka, Kenya... I hope that everyone enjoys what life has given them this long weekend from races, weddings, baseball games and just hanging out. I will. How cool is that!

Victory at San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz!

2010-08-30T14:20:00.000-07:00

I think that the beginning to a great race starts the week before it happens and for me this was certainly true. The Tuesday after a very sad DNF at Nationals I went back to my Austin home. As soon as I arrived I felt my whole being relax. Wednesday I ran on Townlake, did bike intervals on south mopac, saw my friends at Rogue, got the best hug and massage by Kevin (RMT) and got to coach the amazing Rogue triathlon swim group which always brings me to why I do what I do. Thursday I was at the track and never ran better. My health and my spirit were back.

Friday morning getting to the airport was a little rough as the cab was 1/2hr late for a 4:30am pick-up. The stress of checking in before the cut-off time, getting my bike and me through security and making it onto my 6am plane enabled me to meet an incredible person though. By the end of the whole ordeal I still had a smile on my face. My bike didn't make it but that was ok,

I have been there before. As soon as I arrived at Noreen's, my amazing homestay, I also felt at home. She had plans for a lunch of quinoa salad, dinner including Rebar potato pizza and fresh out of the oven banana bread to keep me going all day long. Really now, does it get any better!

Noreen, having done Alcatraz three times, took me to see the incredible bike course. Other than Pacific Grove triathlon, I have never been on such an incredible course. The views of Golden Gate bridge, Alcatraz, the dunes, the Presidio were amazing. I kept laughing as I quickly realized how hard a race it was going to be. It is a there and back course but really it just seems like it is up and up and up! I wondered if Zane knew what I had gotten myself into - of course he did. He

also knew that I would absolutely LOVE the challenge of it.

Tri-California did an amazing job of the logistics and organization of the race as it could not have been easy. First there is getting over 1000 bikes and people organized in transition, then onto a bus to meet a boat that would eventually take us out to Alcatraz. The energy on the boat from the age-groupers was incredible to be part of. At 7am though it was down to business - we walked along the thin boat rails and the gun went off... I had one mission and one mission only. Follow the lead boat to ensure that I caught the current properly. It was a little rough to do as my idea of this may have been a little different from others as I wanted to cut over to that boat. Eventually I freed myself and was able to swim properly. I swam the whole thing on my own but came out almost the same time as fellow competitor Kirsten Peterson. Amanda Stevens was only a few steps ahead.

The first 15 km of the bike course was Amanda and I switching back and forth for the lead. Amanda then took the lead on the Great Highway using her awesome time trial power. I never let her out of my site and eventually, getting back into the hills, was able to close the gap. Like in the 70.3 I controlled my power resisting huge surges as I wanted to ensure a fast and solid run. I believe I played it perfectly because when I got onto the run course my legs still felt good. I immediately started chipping down on Amanda's lead and at the first hill overtook her. Then came the downhill. Guess I need to work on this as Amanda's legs turned over like a pinwheel and once again we switched leads. Then came the strength part - run along the super soft sand followed by the infamous 400 step sand ladder. It is exactly how it sounds. I knew if I wanted to win this race I had to power my way up the ladder and keep the pressure on for the remaining part of the hill - no looking back. There was another downhill and I did not want her speedy legs to catch me! I gained time on her and then just dug in until the finishing shoot not giving in for a moment until I knew I had it.

Crossing the finish line in first on such a prestigious course and with competitors Amanda Stevens and Melanie McQuaid was incredible. The journey to this race once again showed me so much about myself. The race was sheer joy, adrenaline and incredible athleticism. Now, watching the Tri-Cal TV interview, reading the slowtwitch article and receiving such an outpouring of support and excitement from friends, I am in awe of what this journey I am on brings out in me and in others. All I can say is I can't wait until the next one but until then, I am going to continue working my butt off!

Article: San Francisco Examiner

Knowing when to call it quits

2010-08-23T05:45:00.000-07:00

I don't know the right answer to this question necessarily but I did just that yesterday in my race. The last few days before the race were rough for me. I got a cold. I tried to believe that it was just in my sinuses, that I didn't really need to breath through my nose at all, that my head, despite feeling heavy, was going to be ok. I drank tea endlessly and tried to do all the right things to get better. The funny thing about rest though is that as soon as you do it, your body can either get stronger or it falls apart. Mine fell apart.

When I woke up yesterday morning, my first thought was that I wanted to go back to bed. This is not ideal when I should have been itching to get out there! I ignored my malaise and continued with my pre-race rituals. Got to the race site and was ok but still way too blah for a National Championship Race. The gun went off and I had a good start. I was actually in the lead for the first lap of the swim but then it went downhill - my body started to shut down. I was only 10 minutes into the race. I dropped several places in the second lap and despite making a huge effort to bring myself up, I had nothing. Running to transition was brutal and I watched the lead pack get away. Normally in this situation I will fight to catch up and I did but the fight was a bit of a pathetic attempt as I could hardly breath. My power on my SRM was low and I felt like I was going to die... not great. I tried to get myself going but no amount of postive talking was going to get my body to recoup this one. The chase pack caught me and I told them to not count on me - I was using half a lung. This is when I knew that my race was over. I was not going to have the race I knew I could do. I also knew that if I continued I would be putting myself further into the hole I started in. So I called it quits.

Upon reflection now, it is really hard to know what this is like until you do it. I actually don't know the last time I ever quit anything. Sure I have lost confidence or blown up and didn't put my normal 200% into something - but quit? I don't think I ever have actually done that - not in synchro, school, races, workouts... Last year I raced until I passed out - twice! To me that was better than quitting.

So here I am the morning after the race, sitting here with a box of tissues beside me and a cup of ginger lemon tea wondering how long it takes to get over this little bump. I look forward to feeling like me again and giving it my all. I am trying to be easy on myself and let it just be what it is. Although I am not a huge believer of horoscopes - they can sometimes be fun and fitting. Mine today:

"An idea that meant nothing to you yesterday will mean everything to you today and you won’t be happy until you have investigated it further. It’s not true that Capricorn is interested only in practicalities. You’re philosophical too."

So I may investigate this a little further, will learn from it and then get down to my practical self again and move on to the next race - San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz! Until then, I can't wait to get back to Austin, the warmth, my friends and what I seemingly call home now.

Training in Kelowna

2010-08-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

I seem to balance my days with training, picking vegetables from the garden, searching for recipes, little more training and then making vegetable feasts! I have feasted on swiss chard salad with apples and pecans, cucumber peach salsa, plum chili salsa, caprese salad, brown rice mushroom risotto with zucchini. The best yet was a zesty orange zucchini loaf with cream cheese icing. Unfortunately I got one slice and the dog ate the rest. So yes trying to keep the dogs out of trouble (ie leave NOTHING out, up high, in tupperware containers etc) seems to be my biggest challenge. In the scheme of things - not bad. The picture is representative of my daily harvest here.

Training in Kelowna has been pretty great. The riding is always up or down and through incredible orchards and vineyards. Often you turn a corner and are offered an incredible view of Okanagan lake. It is quiet, drivers are used to cyclists and for the most part, seem to be pretty relaxed. Apart from the orchard/winery industry, tourism feeds the economy here so people may be more inclined to be nice.

This past weekend I went for a dip in the lake. I remember it being warmer than it was. I only managed 30 minutes before I had to get out and warm up in the sun. I was also treated to a hot chocolate after which really helped me to warm up! I wonder if I am the only one in Kelowna looking for hot chocolate on a beautiful summer day.

The absolute highlight thus far has been running along the Kettle Valley Railway, up at 4000ft with the most incredible views of the Okanagan valley. The dirt trail takes you across 15 train trestles and through 2 rock tunnels. There were tons of people on their bikes, stopping for lunch and enjoying the sites. I was in bliss. I also have not run on much flat terrain of late so this too was a treat as I felt like I was flying!

Today I am up for a swim and have scoped out a few more recipes to get through the mountain of zucchini and cucumber that we have here. Another loaf of zucchini bread has just come out of the oven - this time though Fernanda and I will be the only ones to enjoy it!

Fourth Place 70.3 Calgary!

2010-08-10T07:50:00.001-07:00

Ok a little delayed but here it is.. my race report! The day started at 3am with breakfast listening to the wonderful noise of rain pouring down with only thunder interrupting the patter. Excellent!

Nevertheless, I was off to meet the bus at 4am and get out to the race site. I can't say that I remember all that much about the bus ride but do remember that it was early, cold and dark. Forty-five minutes later we all arrived and I walked to my transition area - a huge pool of water. One potential bonus was that I had a lot of space as no one else really wanted to brave the additional swim through transition. The other advantage to a cold rainy morning is that the water felt surprisingly warm in my warm-up!

When the gun went off I quickly realized that I messed up a little on the start line as I hung back a little. This meant that I had to fight my way to the front. Men and women went off together so it was a little different for me than in the ITU races. To be honest, I think that although the bodies I had to battle were a bit bigger, there was a lot less silly antics (feet grabbing). My swim felt strong and steady. I had a good rhythm. Because of my poor start I missed some drafting potential and had to swim on my own for a large part of the swim trying to bridge the gap between the lead group and myself. I almost succeeded. I did create a huge lead (2:20) though among the women - of course I had no idea of this running out.

One thing about me is that I hate being cold. The rain had stopped thankfully but there was no sun to be found. This meant braving cool temperatures for 95km. I decided that as long as I could wear socks I would be ok. So I grabbed my bike, ran out of transition, and close to the mount line I put my socks on. Of course the video camera was on me as I was in the lead so I thought - oh man this is sooo not going to look professional! I laughed and just kept thinking - this is my first one and I am allowed to make a few rookie moves :)

On the bike I tried to find my rhythm right away. I usually have a tendency to just want to hammer it out but kept thinking that I really needed to contain myself if I wanted to maintain a solid performance. I probably was a bit conservative on the bike for this reason. Heather Wurtele had a stellar bike and passed me, then Mirinda Carfrae came up and also passed me. One person was ok but two! Never mind that Mirinda is a world champion. I didn't want to have to be the one always worried about the draft line so I passed her back and didn't look back. The second half of my bike was stronger than my first. My rookie mistake on the bike was that I kept looking at the mountains and thinking how pretty it was. My head had to turn to do this and if you have ever seen an aero helmet, if you turn your head you are anything but aero. Oops. I had to stop enjoying myself out there so much.

I came out of transition and Mirinda was hot on my heals. She quickly passed me and I had to remind myself to slow down - I had 21km to do and was certainly not going to be able to do it at her pace. Thank-goodness I had my Garmin because as much as I wanted to hold a 6'/mile pace, it was not going to happen. The run felt pretty good although I wondered at around 4km if my legs would ever come around. It was like running with bricks. They did though and I honestly was shocked at how quickly the turn-around at 10km came. I was sad to see though that Linsey Corbin was coming up on me so quickly. I just kept trying to keep my pace up. The rookie mistake that I made on the run was my nutrition. I knew I had to continue taking something in and I tried but the whole chocolate Gu thing in the flask was not working for me despite training with it. I kept forgetting to close the lid and it kept getting all over me. Chocolate Gu is not what you want all over and I kept thinking how beautiful it must look with brown smudges all over my hands and face. My ego got in the way :) So over the half marathon it was lucky if I got in one gel. oops. I hit a wall at 19km and shortly after Linsey flew by me. Uggg. So close yet so far. I came to the finish line though with a smile on my face. The announcer was rather funny - he kept saying ' we don't know much about Tenille Hoogland as this is her first 70.3 but she has been doing half marathons etc.... ' The last half marathon I did was in Toronto in 1995. I did it just under 2 hours and it HURT!

I loved this race and loved the whole experience of being in Calgary while undertaking my first 70.3. It truly was everything I hoped for (although the podium would have made me very happy). I really look forward to my next one and pushing the envelope maybe a little more on the bike. I also will have done more than one long run by this time so will have a bit better fitness in this department. Oh soooo scary how well I could do at this distance if I trained for it and had a proper TT bike!

Since the race it has been straight to training for Kelowna Pan-American Cup/Nationals. It is back to speed and being on the red-line for 2 hours. To be honest, the 70.3 although hard, is not as hard as the intensity that comes from an ITU race. Maybe because I was conservative in my race but to sit on that thin red line is challenging mentally and physically. I usually don't see anything in an Olympic race except the feet, wheel or pavement in front of me. I certainly don't have time to think, oh those mountains are sooo pretty!

Stay tuned... hopefully I will be running around a little less in the next while and better at blogging. The season has just begun!!!

For articles on the race click here or here.

Calgary - a new city and a different me.

2010-07-30T15:09:00.000-07:00

What I remember about Calgary comes from two places in my past. It is a place I grew up in until I was 11 years. It also is a place I returned to chase my Olympic dreams as a synchronized swimmer. Growing-up the memories I have are fond. I had the idyllic childhood - long summers playing in the yard, sleepovers, winters spent at the pool, at the neighbourhood ice rink, Nakiska ski resort, pizza nights, Olympics of 1988, Fish Creek park... the list could go on. Coming back when I was 16 to swim was a different story. It was a struggle despite amazing support of the Gregory's, Korenda's and to the extent they could, my family. I struggled to find a job, struggled to get to the pool, ballet, and work without a car, struggled to make it financially and struggled to make the adjustment to life without school and being "on my own". With all the pressures, my synchronized swimming career took a downhill spiral. Arriving I was at the top of elite athletics. Leaving I felt like I was with the bottom feeders in the deep ocean.

Fast forward 10 years - I had travelled the world, earned two degrees, loved, forged incredible friendships and found myself in a career with the Canadian Government. I was ready for the next challenge. In comes triathlon.

Five additional years and I am here as a professional triathlete in Calgary. Something drew me here to do my first 70.3 triathlon (half ironman). Riding and running parts of the course yesterday I think I started to understand why. First is the beauty of being in the prairies. The huge blue sky with the rocky mountains as the backdrop. The birch trees. The meandering creeks and rivers. The second reason is that I needed to be here to further embrace and understand myself as an elite athlete. Swimming taught me discipline, the importance of team, coaching, trust, and hard work. Somewhere in my career as a synchronized swimmer though I lost the love of the sport yet could not let go because it was who I was - or at least thought it was.

Coming here I realize that I am a triathlete and it defines what I do day in and day out. It is 100% my lifestyle and I do it because I am passionate about the sport. Yet, it does not define me. I much rather think that the relationships I have, support, and grow in define me. It is how I do my work (train, eat, sleep) not the end result of it. I want success that is defined by being at the top of the podium just as my competitors yet understand that this is only part of it. So cheesy but so true - it is the journey not the destination.

I have incredible life experiences behind me and so many rich experiences ahead of me. I have an optimism, confidence and love of where I am in life. I am once again here as an elite athlete at the top of my game - but better. I am prepared mentally and physically to be in this race. If you are wondering what I might be thinking over the 4.5 hours of hard work, it is about how much I love what I do... being in the water fighting to get around the buoy in first, getting on the bike flying up and down the hills, and finally being blissed out in the run because I know I can - the biggest gift yet. I also will be joyful that I am in this incredible city, creating new memories and taking all that I am in it. Zoom Zoom - here I go!

Learning and Re-learning

2010-07-23T09:01:00.000-07:00

Ahhh this is the life! It is 8am and I am sitting at the Bouldin Creek Coffee House with a cup of coffee and a just out of the oven Morning Glory muffin. I have swum this morning, checked and written emails, made phone calls and now am taking in the rich life that I have. These past two weeks have been really amazing for me in all the learning that I have done through training. Although I am still working on increasing speed for Olympic distance triathlons I am also preparing for my first half ironman (next week Sunday!). The differences are not so much in the volume of work but the type of effort and how to manage it both physically and mentally. This is what I mean….

Lesson #1: First Tempo Run Workout of 2010. The first thing you should know is that it is hot in Austin at this time of year. Many days you just have to walk outside and you start to sweat. The second thing you should know is that I have never really enjoyed evening workouts – that is anything past 6pm. Maybe knowing these things Zane decided that I should do a tempo run with him on his bike at 7pm – nice and hot and late. Ugg.. I had all day to wonder if I would get my nutrition right, whether I could manage the heat and whether I would make the pace times. The first steps I took I thought – I hope I don’t puke. The next few steps I thought- this is not going to be particularly fun. So it began and so did Zane in his constant “encouragement” for me to fix my running form. As the workout progressed I got it into my mind that I was not hitting the pace times, that I was not living up to what I could do and was expected to do, and certainly not looking like a good runner. Essentially the negative thoughts began. I started to feel my stomach turn, my breathing went wacked and I gave up on trying to lean forward, keep strong posture, arms strong…. I broke down in frustration. If one saw us on the side of the path they would have seen me ready to cry and yell in frustration and Zane, in his very cool way, saying “use your words Tenille”. That is what my sister says to my 5 year old niece! Out came all my fears, expectations, frustration with running. Zane made me come back to believing in myself, trusting in the process and coming back to focus on what is important in completing the workout. For me this focus is on running form. When it gets hard I have to dig into how I am doing it not in the fact that I have to push harder, work harder, and get the time. I have no trouble in working hard (it’s innate) and the time will come on its own. My body position will only come from me. Once I regrouped I headed out for another 10 minutes. Low and behold I got the time, felt strong and had MUCH better form. Imagine that! It is about controlling the mind and focussing on what is important for you.

Lesson #2: Going long. I headed out yesterday for a long ride which included 2 hours at race pace followed by a moderate 6 mile run. I have to admit that I had no idea what to expect. I have done several longish Saturday morning rides with the Austin Tri-Cyclist group but on your own is different as you aren’t using the motivation and energy of others. What I did know was that it was going to be about proper nutrition and focus. The focus is different – it has to be held for a much longer period and is not so much managing at the upper threshold of pain as in a tempo run but in a constant push of pain. And so it began. There were several times throughout those two hours when I was dripping in sweat and wondering how in the world Zane thought I would be able to hold my watts up… then I realized it is again about believing in yourself to do it and managing it one pedal stroke at a time – pulling and pushing. It was about staying in the process and not for a moment letting up on it. Did I manage the whole time – absolutely not. Do I know what I have to do to be the best I can be in long course triathlon – absolutely. The respect I have for the Chrissie Wellingtons and Terra Castro’s of this world is huge! I am thus far “only” undertaking a 70.3 distance, racing an ironman is a completely different ballgame.

Summary: Focussing and what it takes. There is an important difference between a good triathlete and great triathlete. There are those people who race amazingly well and train good. These people know how to bring something special to the race, are usually smart strategically and have an unwavering confidence. Although successful these people won’t live up to their potential because they have not done everything they could to bring their peak fitness to the race. Then there are those people who train very strong, are unbelievably fit but race only well. They don’t race up to their potential because they lack belief in self, in their training or are overwhelmed by the competition and/or the race itself. Finally there are those that train and race up to their potential. Races are not won in the race but in the focus that one can maintain day in and day out which they then are able to bring to that day. It is about staying in each training session with that belief that you need to get through that day but also that you need to take to the start line. It is about the constant decisions you make to be the best you can be – nutrition, recovery and the details. It is about remaining open to learning and relearning how to be better mentally including what to do to regroup after everything seems to be falling apart (tempo run) and how to stay in the “zone” (long ride at race pace). Bringing deliberate training to the race is what makes one great at the race. I certainly have a long way to go but when you are following your bliss like I am this kind of “work” is where joy comes from – and lately, I am full of it!

Pan-American Champion!

2010-07-13T05:31:00.001-07:00

My first victory as an elite athlete! It did not happen over night and it certainly did not happen without many many challenges and learnings to get me to this spot. Is it all worth it? Absolutely. Is it about the journey? There is nothing better and nowhere else I would rather be day in and day out than right where I am. The win is a testament to that. What makes this victory so great is that I am able to share it with so many others - I am blessed with an incredible community across Canada, the US and continents of the world!

Everything about the lead up to this race was different for me. Given my labral tears just getting to the start line was a huge achievement. I was itching to go and knew with certainty that I am more fit than ever before and also have the skills and strategy to match this fitness. I was also not getting off a week of work and trying to switch gears into "elite athlete" mode a few days before a race. This makes a tremendous difference. What is funny is that I really felt that I knew how the race would play out. Although I was ready for different scenarios, it did play out exactly how I determined it would.

It was really cold in San Francisco (60s with high of mid 70s). At least I thought it was cold given my love for the Austin heat. Because of this I opted to not swim before my race - a first. I normally really like a long swim warm-up and don't normally get really moving in a practise until we are halfway through. I was ready though and when that horn went there was no thought of anything but to move into the lead. The swim played out a little differently than expected as another girl (Brazilian) moved into the lead. I determined that I would not pass her easily so it was better to just sit on her feet and let her do the work. I stayed there until the last 200m or so when I started to pull in line with her. I was able to get up the stairs faster at swim exit and take the honours of fastest swim (or smartest :)

After a DISMAL first transition I got on the bike. I was relaxed as I knew that I would not have any troubles catching up to the 2 other girls. The bike is where I have always had a quiet confidence. This year though it is not only a confidence in my power but also in my improved bike skills. Zane has had me doing crits every Thursday and a lot more riding in groups where understanding tactics is necessary if you want to hang on. Although I still have a lot to learn, things have much improved from my first days of racing. Having skill on this course is a huge advantage as it is so technical with approx. 23 turns per lap. There were 6 laps. After 2 laps I had dropped both girls and did not look back. I continued to gain time on the chase pack of 6 girls and went into T2 with a very solid lead.

In the past I have run scared. Last year at this race I had a solid lead but was run down. In Kelowna, National Championships I was with the lead pack (doing much of the pulling) and was run down. I previously had the attitude of just go until you can't go any more. I seemed to loose time in the last 3 kilometers and just die. This year working with Zane I have two things - efficiency and strategy. Ken (previous coach) has built in me a huge motor. Zane is building on it and bringing out the potential I have out. I maintained my composure in the run. I believe I had good form, turnover and most importantly belief in myself and my abilities. Chantell and Gwen (2nd and 3rd) are very strong runners and had faster run times but I was able to hold them off. With some speed and tempo work which I have yet to add since my injury I will be able to do more than hold them off.

This race obviously means a lot to me. I really could not have got to the start line without the support of a few incredible people: Zane Castro for bringing out the power, skills and faith in me; Ken Brunet for believing and bringing me to where I am; Dr. Taylor (MD) and Dr Zelinski (and team at Advanced Rehabilitation Austin); Kevin Trybalski (RMT)and Dr Glennie (ART); Ruth England and Steve Sisson (Rogue Running); and, Mark Cathcart for his on-going generosity. This win though is for my mom who rarely misses a day to hear how I am and who somehow does not bore with the ups and downs of being a pro triathlete. She is my rock. Thanks Mom - medal is in the mail!

Up next... Calgary 70.3. That is really going to hurt!

For pre and post interview click here

For video of the race click here

For photos click here

Over 3000km later and still going!

2010-07-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

That's right - I am going to race this coming weekend at the ITU Pan American Cup in San Francisco! What a journey to get to this start line... the challenges however are far from over. I will back track though as much has happened in two short weeks. On June 22 I left for a whirl-wind trip to Ottawa. I hit the ground running to appointments - Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Taylor (sports medicine), blood work, bone density tests, ART (thanks Rebecca!), car repairs (ouch!), bank... I had three days scheduled to get a lot done - typical Tenille style. I also wanted to get my training in of course, enjoy friends and relax a little. Except for the relaxing part I got it all done. The biggest challenge was getting my bike to arrive in Ottawa before I left back to Austin. I spent hours talking to United Airlines pleading and stressing the importance that they find and send me my bike. I pulled out every diplomatic bone in my body to stay calm in these "discussions". In the end it arrived four days late.

The appointment with the Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Beaule, went very well. He echoed the advice of Dr. Gilbart to "manage" the labral tears and only do surgery as a very last resort. I did learn from him however that the left side labral tear is due to FAI (http://www.hipfai.com/), a bone structure problem, whereas the right side labral tear is due to poor running mechanics. What this means is that I will be able to manage my right side easier than my left as there is not much I can do to change my bone structure. Luckily the right was the more problematic side whereas the left only flares up once in awhile. Dr. Taylor, in her constant quest to address problems and prevent them, issued tons of blood work and the bone density scan to make sure all was well in my general health (results pending).

Between the stress of my bike and running like a mad woman to get stuff done I did have a few shining moments - swimming in Meech lake, doing a late night dip in the Gatineau river, riding around Wakefield, swimming with ROCS, a bonfire - catching up with some friends. Ottawa is a special place and I am lucky to have called it home for a few years.

On Sunday I hit the road toward Austin. The road trip could not have started better. After four short hours my dearest friend Carrie and I caught up in Toronto. I then had one more hour until I arrived into Kitchener where I stayed with my best friend Carolyn. It was great to get out of my world for a moment and just be with people who know me beyond being a triathlete. The next two days are a blur of cities and highway. I started driving at 7:30am Monday and did not stop until 9:30pm. The next day started out again at 7:30 and arrived in Austin at 8:30pm. Over 3000km, numerous tanks of gas and hours of listening to podcasts, music and audiobooks later, I arrived. I have to say I was absolutely exhausted and completely "jacked-up". My left hip was bugging me.

So this is how it goes for me - I learned that sitting is absolutely the worst for me -planes are particularly bad. Running around like a mad-woman while maintaining some form of a training schedule is sure to cause problems. In other words - recovery is essential. How many times does one need to hear this to really get it? I have to admit I was scared - Six weeks of running seems to be my breaking point since the fall. It seems to happen just as I start to feel good. I start to get a sore lower back, my gluts starts to seize up and I cater to the affected hip which throws off proper mechanics, walking or running. Essentially the muscles around my hips go into overdrive causing immobility and a general lack of proper functioning. On the road toward Austin I put in a call to Kevin, the most phenomenal massage therapist, and prayed that he would see me as soon as I got into Austin. He did and worked hard providing me with much improved mobility in that hip. The mental challenge that goes with managing my hips is the constant questioning and uncertainty. I am not sure whether to back off running or whether to believe that the muscles will release and that I should keep going. I realized that this is exactly what "management" is and that no one can tell me what to do. I have to learn the grey zone.

Thankfully I played it right and am still going and getting stronger with every workout. I am ready to race and see where I am at. I am super excited to get out there and nervous too. It has been a long hall just to get to this point and so my game plan is this. I am going to soak up every moment of planning, training and racing... I am going to stay grounded in the fact that I am following my passion and my dreams and have incredible people around me that are helping make this happen. It is easy to let stress overcome these facts. So stay tuned... results are coming!

Buns of Steel

2010-06-14T14:34:00.000-07:00

I told Raven that this is what my next post would be called so there it is. That is what I am aspiring to have- buns of steel. Today though there is little buns of steel happening as I have the whole day off of training which feels kind of weird. I woke up at the crack of dawn and decided today was the day I was going to be a tourist and take photos of my current neighbourhood - Congress and South 1st street and find an appropriate Father's Day card. I took out the commuter bike which one can only go slow on, wore a dress and swung my handbag over my shoulder. I succeeded in the first mission but failed miserably on the second. Hopefully my father will forgive me for yet another very late card celebrating his day...

Lately I have started to get a little anxious and have started to really bug Zane about when I might start racing. I think this is due to the fact that I have been feeling good lately.

It is hard to continually put the reigns on when you just want to fly! To be honest, I still have a ways to go in terms of my run fitness but I

am not sure how much longer I can handle being on the sidelines. I will listen to Zane of course but it is hard not to start to planning, getting excited about what may come yet this season. To think that it was not that long ago that I was told that I likely would not race at all this season and would be out until the spring at least. Amazing how quickly things can change.

Next week I go to Ottawa and see everyone there which will be really wonderful and help me get over the general desire to just go somewhere, do something. I am most looking forward to seeing John and the gang at the pool, riding in the Gats and taking a dip in Meech lake. I can't imagine a better way to spend a few days. There will be lots of appointments in there to doctors, seeing friends and yes, I am even headed to the spa thanks to a nice Christmas present! All good. And then I get in the car for what I think will be an eternity! Four days on the road driving back to Austin... ugg. If anyone has any recommendations for how to break up unbelievable boredom let me know! Podcasts, books on tape and music. I will be doing it all...

Just imagine when I arrive back in Austin though - I really will have a whole lot of pent up energy to be released! Watch out....it will be scary :)

Labral Tear Update

2010-06-08T09:03:00.001-07:00

On the training front with labral tears things are going surprisingly well. Last weekend I wrote how it was hard to go through the ups and downs of whether it hurts or not. This week there was not so much of that. I pretty much just trained normally and consistently without any drama which felt pretty darn good. Raven (physiotherapist) has me really working my hamstrings and gluts to balance out my over dominant quads. She wants to see them “pop” and so onto the physioball I go doing reps with weights. I also continue to do core work which is planks, planks, mixed in with more planks. The other thing that I am working on is proper form when walking and sitting. I notice that if I walk or sit too much with my right foot not aligned straight, my hip will let me know. This means when driving my foot is not turned out, when walking I am holding good posture and still leaning. I suppose that I really am re-learning whole body alignment and this seems to be what is making a difference. Each run feels like I am a little closer to getting some fitness. Each day I am a little more positive and think that maybe Dr. Gilbart just might be onto something with this whole managing thing… still hoping and taking one day at a time!

My First Ever Bike Race

2010-06-08T08:39:00.000-07:00

On the start line there were only six other girls. One of them requests to do only 1 lap of the course thereby reducing the race to 26 miles. The official states that if everyone is in agreement to do one lap then she is ok with it. Much to everyone else’s chagrin, there was no way that I was doing a 26 mile race when I showed up for 52 miles. Come on people! They were sadly disappointed.

So we begin and stayed together for the first 8 miles when the first King of the Mountain (KOM) prime came up. I was in the lead and took the first surge up the hill and maintained my position – score. The pack broke up here and there ended up being four girls, including myself, riding together. Two of these girls made a decision to not work AT ALL. This left all the pulling to me and another girl, Deena, who was quite strong (also from Canada!). Not wanting to be played like a total sucker I strived desperately to have patience. We tried to pull away with a few surges but they responded. When we did try to have them take a pull, they slowed to almost a stop and I am not exaggerating. After awhile I asked what was up. The response was that because it was I who wanted to do two laps they were not going to work the first lap. And that was that. It was painful. I was not happy or having fun…this was not racing.

So the second lap came and I tried to not be suckered into continuing to do all the work by moving constantly from one side of the road to the other. I chilled out and just told this chick to let me know when she was ready to enter this race. The time came on the second KOM prime. I was ahead again going into the hill when she attacked and dove in front of me literally causing me to brake on the hill. There was no way she was going to take it so I punched it and dropped her. Thankfully Deena was not too far behind at the crest and told me to keep going and get away. We did and left them in our dust. Seriously. It felt great. Deena started cramping so I ended up doing the majority of the work on that second lap but I was ok with this because I was glad to be actually riding and she made an effort at least. Last 500 meters was nearing and once again I sensed that despite the fact that I pulled 75% of the second lap, she was still going to go for it. It was a race after all! There was no way though that I was going to let her take it.

It came down to a sprint finish. I had led the whole 500m and new that I had to be in my drops and out of the saddle for the very last surge (thanks Rob!). It worked by a hair. I won. I just (and I mean just) edged her out. I rode straight to the water coolers and drank and drank and drank. It was freaking hot!

In the end, it was fun thanks to my fellow Canadian who was there to race. Maybe those other girls were ready to race but just have a different idea of what this means. Maybe it is me who needs to learn what bike racing is and patience was the first lesson. I kept thinking of Cynthia knowing that she never would have gone for that bull** and would have shared a few choice words. I would have loved to have had her there.

To top the day off Zane had me do my longest run yet… a whole hour!!! It was awesome, had no pain and felt not too bad considering the volume of water lost over the course of the day. Thankfully that night it was a B-B-Q at Allison’s and Gabes. Bless them. Good food and company. Life is good.

Learning to manage the body but more importantly the mind.

2010-05-31T05:49:00.000-07:00

It is 8 am on Memorial Day here in Austin. I have the whole day off training which is a real blessing. Overall my body is doing pretty well these days but admittedly the past few have been a little more up and down. Friday morning is known as "fast friday" at University of Texas Masters swim program. The idea behind this is that we do fewer sets very fast. I say the idea because although effort/intention may have been there for me it was like I was going backwards. I was not too sure how the run that afternoon was going to go considering my less than stellar performance in the pool. Sure enough though the body is a funny thing and I had what felt like my best run in a long time - it was hard for me to hold back and not just go, letting my legs just take me how fast they wanted to go. I finished thinking that finally I was coming around just a little. Then it hit. My limp was back. Just to remind me that not all is well with that hip I felt it. Doesn't hurt just is this weird feeling that makes you not want to put all the pressure on the hip. I sat in cold water to try to recover, stretched a little and just hoped that it would go away. Saturday was a hard ride... I don't feel my hip on rides but did feel that my right glut got a little more jacked up. Again the day, evening was spent wondering what this is all supposed to mean. I had a run on Sunday and this is the challenge - do you constantly try to have "no pain" or is it about managing "the pain". I put "pain" in quotes because it isn't really pain that I feel. It is just this annoying feeling that comes and goes and sometimes feels worse than other times and causes me to protect it. I decided to give it a go - long run of 40 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening. This is what is funny - running now feels much better than walking. It is only when I stop then the sensation in my hip comes back a bit. Does this mean then that I should only run everywhere? Love it. So what to do.

Managing a labral tear I think is more about the mind game of managing rather than what the body feels. It is the up and down of analysing, trying to be "smart" but also of not giving in to fear. It is the decision to give it a go and see what happens and trusting that your body is in fact managing and that this will just be part of it - an annoyance. I will continue my core work, trigger ball, cold baths and focus on good running form. The only thing I can do is take a deep breath, remember to exhale and go with it. What is left if you do not have hope and faith? And so today I will relax, send all the positive thoughts I can to my body and be ready to start again tomorrow. Managing and happy.

The Core

2010-05-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

Driveway Series Criterium Race - Thursday night workouts. I don't normally do the women's race but gave it a go.... Feels great when you win it!

May 27

I am not sure what to say first... that I found the absolute BEST consignment store "Lovely Austin" or that I am addicted to the frozen yogurt shops here. Although healthier versions of shopping and eating deserts, in excessive amounts these could be potentially dangerous. Sorry I digress. This is a blog about triathlon stuff right!

Rehabilitation or training, to be or not to be injured, that is the question. I am running again. Not long, hardly hard, but running. Zane manages to come out on Mondays to watch me run circles around him on the grassy intramural fields. I listen to him constantly say “lean”, “posture”, “feet”, “lean”… 30 minutes later thinking that maybe I had got it he yells again “lean, more!”. In my head I resolve that if he says lean one more time I am going to bop him on the head. Finally, I hear the words “stop” and am relieved! It is not necessarily easy to change the way you have been running after doing it one way for so many years. That expression, bad habits die hard, is so very true.

So two wise men (Zane and Steve) have told me that either I am injured or not. There is little room for grey. So I am officially now in the “developing my base” phase again. There is, however, the reality that I have labral tears on both hips. How I manage these is what is interesting and the question remains of whether I can build up my run to a world class level. I think that I mine as well share some of the technical aspects of this mission as who knows who else is out there in cyber-world wondering the same thing as myself. Surgery or no surgery. Hopefully no surgery and I will run long into old age!

Along side the change in running mechanics, I am doing some serious core work. My core needs to be stellar so I can maintain my form and posture. Raven, the physiotherapist who I am working with at Advanced Rehabilitation, has me doing core work 6 days a week. Front, back, side planks feel like they go on forever, then there is the pilates core exercises, hamstring and glut exercises on the physioball and to top it off balance exercises. If I did not train on a professional level I don’t know how I would fit it all into my day to be honest. Not easily.

My longest run has been 40 minutes on grass. On Sunday I did 35 min in the morning and 25 in the early afternoon. That is a whole hour in 1 day! Amazing. So it comes slow but steady. I am still pain free although I know those tears in the right hip are there. Funny how everyday I run is a blessing and not taken for granted.

Because I know many are wondering what my “plans” are I have to say that there is no race planning aloud. Not until I am solid like a rock and ready to take on some serious competition. It has got to be fun and putting in a solid race with no excuses is the only way this will happen… and so I wait. That’s it for now… off to sleep before the next workout.

Rollercoaster Ride!

2010-05-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

Life is a beautiful thing. Since coming to Austin nothing has gone as planned but perhaps this is the beauty of it. Considering that by profession I am a planner, I have had to learn how to go with the flow, let a lot go and reconsider what time means.

Before I get too far ahead of myself I will recap all that happened since I arrived here. In March I thought I had iliopsoas tendonitis. I started to see Dr. Zelinski of Advanced Rehabilitation who treated me 2x each week trying to get me loosened up and moving again. When I first arrived in his office I was not walking normal at all and had a significant limp. After 3 weeks of treatment and strengthening exercises everyday, I had definite progress but still pain. Dr. Z and I determined that we better get an MRA done. A week later I learnt that I had an extensive labral tear in my right hip, a possible stress response in the joint, and damaged hamstring tendon. Not a good prognosis. The day I learnt this I was also on the plane to Victoria BC to say good-bye to my grandfather who passed away a week later. Upon arriving in Victoria I spoke with Dr. Taylor, my amazing Sports Medicine Doctor at the Carleton Sports Medicine Clinic in Ottawa to see what we should do. In discussing my right hip labral tear, I also learned that I had a labral tear in my left hip. Just keeps getting better! Dr. Taylor was able to get me a consult with Dr. Gilbart of the Joint Preservation Centre at UBC Hospital in Vancouver. Thanks to some amazing people in Ottawa (Chris and Rob) and Austin (Brad) who didn't mind making phone calls and driving all over the city to pick up and deliver MRIs for me, Dr. Gilbart had all the necessary information to meet with me. Lynn also gave up a whole day to drive me to and from ferries, to UBC and sit in traffic for 3+ hours to get home. Yup, I am loved.

Dr. Gilbart examined the MRIs of both hips and recommended that I try to manage the labral tears without surgery. We discussed the challenges of labral tears, what leaving them means and also what surgery may or may not do. He also examined x-rays for hip dysplasia and CAM impingement and is not convinced that I should have anything "corrected" at this time. He is encouraging me to get back to running while improving the weaknesses that have been identified. If in 6 weeks time I am not running and "managing" then he is willing to do the hip scope and address the tears.

So here I am back in Austin, getting back into training and even thinking about possibly racing! I don't think I am out of the woods yet by any means but am confident that I have the best people to help me get back into running safely. I have decided to make Austin my home base for this next year partly because of the great weather but mostly because of the amazing people who make up an incredible training environment.

The other significant news is that I have asked Zane Castro to be my coach. After 3 awesome years with Ken Brunet of the Peak Centre in Ottawa I decided that I needed to make some changes to how I train. I can not say enough about Ken. He is an incredible person and coach. He has brought me to where I am today and given me a huge platform for which Zane will build upon. I would only be so lucky to keep Ken as a part of my team that propels me to be stronger, fitter and faster. The reality though is that I need Zane, his broad knowledge and expertise to apply to my running mechanics, my bike skills and racing strategy. I have the utmost confidence in him and know that once I have all my cylinders firing, it will be a scary thing!

So finally I will say to all you out there, there is no detail too small that shouldn't be addressed when you are pushing your body to the limit day in and day out. Your body will thank you later. Start slow, get it right and don’t overlook the small stuff.

I can not say enough about the emails, encouragement and support that I have got. Thank-you. The army behind me on this journey never ceases to amaze me. The first line I cross this year is to all of you. Hopefully it will be in first!

Back in Austin!!!

2010-03-26T14:52:00.000-07:00

Once again I have found myself in Austin. I suppose that from the moment I left Austin in late February I was itching to get back. I knew it was where I was supposed to be. Ottawa was good to me as usual – seeing friends, training, getting my taxes done (thanks Gary and Wendy at Logan Katz!!) but really I just wanted to be here.

While in Ottawa I developed what I now know to be iliopsoas tendonitis. What this meant was that I was a bit stressed out as to whether to run or not to run. Aches are normal but pain is something else and sometimes it is hard to know the difference. After going back and forth a few days between resting it then trying to run, I decided to take a week off running. Given my recent history I got a bone scan to make sure that my bones were good. Other than learning that I had not just pulled an intercostal muscle in December but actually cracked a rib (no wonder it hurt so much!) all was good. Like I said before in a previous blog the hardest part of an injury is: a) not knowing what it is; b) understanding why it happened; and, c) believing that you will be ok and that not all is lost. Basically though, I get grumpy (hence the lack of writing on my blog).

So to get at the why an injury happens, how to prevent injury and most importantly achieve optimal performance is what I have been grappling with. Part of this is analysing what it is about Austin that supports my renewed sense of self as a professional triathlete. Although I think that I have a long ways to go to answering these questions I have learned a few things that I think are essential for where I am now.

I have got to where I am now thanks to my absolute dedication, consistency and motivation to build my motor. I have had countless lactate tests which drove my individualized training program with Peak Centre. The consistency of my training has been like clock work balancing intensityand volume within a very regimented schedule. This was done while balancing a demanding job where I was always “on” when I was there. I don’t think that any other approach would have worked and given me such power for the training time spent as my schedule was everything to keep me going. I never stopped. This was my reality up until January of this year when I became a full-time athlete.

There are however other aspects of training that I am only fully appreciating now and have the ability, time and space to really investigate and apply. These are stretching, sport specific economy and finally, strategy. Zane Castro and Steve Sisson’s elite running group at Rogue have had a huge influence on me and have led by example rather than words. Basically what I have learnt is really summed up in what elite triathlete Sarah Groff had to say in her blog http://in-the-arena-sarah.blogspot.com/. To be an elite athlete is not only to do the hard work and push through it but to address every detail of your being. Training consistently is key and when you are training on the edge the only way to continue training consistently without injury is to implement, without excuse, the details. This is where the only consistency I have had is falling short.

I also recently read the book on Hamish Carter (2004 Gold medalist Triathlon) which really opened my eyes to the strategy and planning that has to go into a race season and race. As for race specificity Hamish trained for one race the whole year- the Olympics. There was a killer hill in Athens and it was evident he was prepared physically and mentally for it. Not only did he physically take it on 6 times as though he were dancing on the pedals, he had the confidence that it took to dance up that hill 6 times. Confidence is the difference from 1^st to 2^nd and sometimes the whole top-10. If you don’t know, and I mean really know you can, you won’t.

Finally, my last point as I ramble on is that we all need people to help motivate and push ourselves past what we thought we could. I need people to train with and learn from – I can’t nor do I want to do every training session alone.

So where does this leave me. With homework and lots of it. I am cramming what it took Hamish Carter to learn in 10-14 years of competing at the elite level in triathlon in 5. I always loved a good challenge. Each person on my team plays a role but it is up to me to clarify and ensure that I am putting it together and have the right lead. I have to trust myself to take what I know, what I am learning and apply it. So stay tuned because I just have this feeling lots of good things are happening… starting with this pain in the iliopsoas going away!!!!

A tough day....

2010-03-07T04:15:00.000-08:00

On my second espresso. I have eaten my morning oatmeal, fruit, yoghurt combination and am now gearing up for my long run for the week and then ride later on. It is still cold out and so I am waiting until we get above the freezing point. Why rush it? Yesterday was a tough day of training and so I thought I would post something about it - what a tough day is in my world. On the agenda was a morning indoor trainer race at the Peak Centre, a 8M steady run with some hill drills and to top it off a swim in the afternoon.

This past week (compared to the week before which was recovery one) was tough with every day giving me some sort of hard intensity either on the bike, swim, or run. Fridays are off for me so Saturdays seem like I am waking my body up again. The moment I started the race my legs felt heavy. I had power but it was going to be tough. Sue Schlatter - incredible rider, mom, inspiration to me was beside me and the question was how badly was she going to kick my ass. Then there was Alex a few bikes down. I beat him last week by 1 second so he was ready to redeem himself. I, in other words, was in trouble. I went out hard trying to stay in touch with the two of them - started to lose ground, tried to pull it back up and then totally blew up. Ouch. I finished the race a few minutes behind and pedaling sheepishly to the finish line. I did however have that dizzy, I worked my butt off, have a hard time walking problem so definitely did my job of stressing the system. I decided then that my run would be a much more positive experience if I had a short nap so home I went. Nap - brilliant. The run - to start was not good... my stomach was not cooperating. Ran to the hill, did drills and slowly my body said ok it would work with me. Ran 5 miles steady and actually felt fantastic. Then boom, my body was done again so I had to slow down completely. My stomach turned around on me and I had to walk the last .5M so I didn't lose everything inside of me... uggg. The swim - by this time I think that I was dehydrated. It was hard to keep pace with the nutrition for this day. I decided that the focus was to just swim - I didn't have to kill it. There was some sprinty stuff but 25m at a time is most definitely manageable.

The point of this blog I suppose is to say that a hard day for me is not just about putting my body through the grind but the mental up and down of it all. There were moments of brilliance in the way of good power, speed, form. These moments, however, were fleeting as I had to slow down to a slow pedal or walk. I kept plugging away and just hoped that it would be ok, that my body would come around again... sometimes it did. I listened to my body and went with what I had in that moment. I suppose this is kind of like life except wrapped up all in a day - when you are going through the tough stuff, have faith that things will come around again. Deal with the present and don't worry about the future - it will come. And importantly make sure you finish the day with a piece of apple pie. You made it.

Every bit counts

2010-03-04T15:02:00.000-08:00

I posted this on Trirudy (Friday March 5th) as there was much discussion happening with respect to the "Own the Podium" initiative of the Canadian government, the Olympics and funding in general. This was my two cents....

Another four year cycle is over with the conclusion of the Olympic Winter Games. For every single one of those athletes at the games there were at least five other athletes from across Canada that were close enough to have a dream to also be there, represent Canada and become one of the very few who reach this pinnacle of sport.

In reading the recent posts on Trirudy I was interested on the various view points of OTP coupled with the posts by Cliff on the Lifesport Pro Camp – what it takes to be a pro (i.e., elite athlete). There are two points here I want to make. First is that no athlete can make it to the Olympics without fully devoting every waking and sleeping moment to their sport for numerous years. Second is that no athlete can devote every waking and sleeping moment to their sport if they don’t have incredible people behind them also willing to sacrifice their time and/or money.

For me – I have a dream to represent Canada at the 2012 Olympics in London. I was the sixth Canadian at Nationals this past year and am one of the few who have a real shot to make it to the top. I would not have been able to dream and take the plunge to become a full-time athlete this January if it were not for my family, amazing friends, and countless individuals that give me tangible support week-in and week-out (from training, housing, massage, spider-tech tape, to bikes, bike mechanics etc.). To be an elite athlete I saved money by working full-time, reducing it to 15 hours over the course of 4 years and then selling everything that was not related directly to my goal. Now that I am not juggling work and training and am devoting every moment to my sport I believe I will be representing Canada at World Cups this season and will make the necessary steps to compete against the best in the world.

Listening to Olympians interviews each recognized the support that they had behind them to get them where they were. There is an expression that says “It takes a village to raise a child” - the same goes for an elite athlete – it takes a whole community. Own the Podium is important but do not forget for every athlete that made it and received funding from this or the summer equivalent Road to Excellence initiative there are several others that did not get support because they were either in the “wrong sport” (ie not the chosen few) or not quite there… yet (think of Carolyn Murray 2008 Beijing Olympic Team). They figured out a way to believe in themselves, work day-in and day-out on their passion, and simply take care of every detail there is to be the best they can be. This takes living every day without fear, with joy and certainly a lot of faith that it really will all work out.

Whether I make it to the Olympic Games in London or not I can say that I am living everyday with passion and no regrets, that I would not have made it without my incredible community of support and that already I am living my dream. I hope that what I am doing now inspires others and I know that one day I will also be able to give back.

So dream on and keep supporting those around you to be the best they can be. Every, and I mean every, bit counts.

Feeling it in Austin

2010-02-20T13:02:00.000-08:00

This morning summed up why being in Austin has been so good for me. I was up at 5:15 am, made a cup of coffee, some oatmeal and checked my email. The cats were up, looking for food and checking what had changed overnight. Not much. At 6:30 I was off for my last run workout here for a few weeks. I met Alison at Rogue (running store) and 7 am we were off. A 3 mile warm-up – matching her stride by stride, feeding of her energy helped me make the transition from groggy legs to just feeling good.

Steve met us at the track for our 10km workout. Pacing has not been my forté. Actually it has not been something that I understand at all. We started out with 400s- first one too fast, second one too slow, third slow, fourth fast… I was getting frustrated because I just couldn’t get it. Before the 800s Steve came over and gave me a stern talking to – chill out, relax, feel it, stop fighting. 800s – dead on. 1 mile – dead on. Back down to 800s – started to feel my legs, perceived effort increased. Steve once again got on me to relax. The coolest thing then happened back on the 400s – I started to tense up on the efforts and fall apart on the recovery. I made the pace time but had resorted to fighting for it. Steve once again caught me and once again reminded me to focus, relax, feel it, not fight for it and keep my form at all times. I was convinced that I started to run slower but when I looked down on my watch I knocked off 2 sec. I did it again and again… It was an “aha” moment. How could it get easier?

This workout really showed me the difference between fighting and feeling. I am a fighter and this can be good but with running you have to relax to keep going. I have to learn my body inside and out to understand where I am at, my pace, what it feels like to find a rhythm, believe and trust in myself. Furthermore, perception of what is happening and what the present feeling is can also be two different things….

Regrouping we were stoked that we had completed the workout. It was challenging but we are all on track. Having Alison and Raul there created the supportive environment that you were in it together – they have your back. Steve is phenomenal – knew exactly what to say, what to do to get me on track. I trust him. So this is it. This is Austin. Here I am reminded to love the movement, feel the movement – not always fight for it. My concept of a “good workout” is no longer equating hard efforts with collapsing of exhaustion, breathing so hard that I am on the edge of an asthma attack or passing out all together. It is about managing the stress of what it is, feeling and relaxing into it, trusting that I can manage it. Austin has given me the environment that I am not out there on my own and has reminded me of the positive energy from others. What more can I ask for. I constantly pinch myself to realize that this is my life, my job. How can I not love everything about it… living and feeling my dream everyday. Wow. When do I go back?

Snow in the forecast

2010-02-08T19:23:00.001-08:00

All I can say is thank-goodness I brought my Sugoi lobster gloves and warm weather cloths. Only problem is that I didn't bring quite enough of them! Brrrr. I guess I too am getting soft!

Austin, Texas

2010-02-07T16:35:00.000-08:00

I love Austin. I have been here almost one week and while I knew it would be good for me, I didn't know just how good. I came here to press a reset button - to open myself to a new experience and learn to use the motor that Ken has built within me. To do this Zane Castro (brilliant Triathlon coach and friend) set me up with Steve Sisson, Rogue elite running team and University of Texas Women's long distance running team coach. What surprised me most about him was not so much his immediate ability to analyse and improve the technical aspects of my run but his insight into me as an athlete. He saw me race in Austin last year and Zane told him about me but it was him who put together what he sees in me, how I approach training, triathlon and specifically my run. The result is yet to be seen but when you start something that you 100% believe in and just have this feeling - it has got to be good. I think that I have work to do of course but it is more a shift in my thinking, my confidence and strategy.

I am quickly creating Austin as my second home to Ottawa. It is raining here and "uncharacteristically cold" but it is still not as cold as Ottawa! I keep laughing at how soft one can become when you are spoiled with incredible weather and facilities. In the change room some women were gripping about the fact that their nose was running in this horrible weather (+5) It was that cold! In the pool again I laughed when the men in my lane were complaining that the lifeguard chair was blocking one of the 8 synchronized clocks. I will give it to them that they are getting old... but for what they have lost in eye sight they have maintained in speed!

Just to continue with all those who spend energy blogging about food (of which I am one!) - the grocery stores here are amazing - who would not want to buy the whole produce department of Whole Foods! Then there are the samples - a must stop after a hard workout :) And Costco sells organic meats here... I digress.

I'm hungry - eating Spicy tomato lentil soup in this oh so cold weather :)

32 and living my dream.

2010-01-19T05:20:00.001-08:00

Sometimes (ok alot of the time) I think that I am absolutely crazy. I am 32, have left my work, spend countless hours training on the bike, in the pool, in freezing cold winds running, in the weight room and I think mostly of the next training session, sleep and food. I sometimes shake my head and wonder who this person is. But then as I put my hands above my head and stretch and feel every aching muscle in my body, I smile. I smile because I have a phenomenal team around me that is on this crazy journey with me. I have a coach that I can't say enough about. I get to have the best head rush or euphoric sensation most days when I train, massages that are as relaxing as are painful, ART that is not relaxing but somehow makes me keep moving when I am "stuck". I get to eat and eat and eat.... I guess what I am saying is that everyday I am thankful to be where I am. There are few people who do what I am doing and follow their dreams...no matter how far they seem to be at any given time. How lucky am I to be able to say I am 32 and absolutely loving life for all that it gives me. Here is to being older!

Full-time Athlete!

2010-01-14T07:05:00.000-08:00

The day has finally come. I am a full time triathlete. Amazing. My first 4 days have been me trying to get used to not having to call into work, letting them know I will be late again, firing off emails frantically, trying to keep up… running. Always running.

To be honest I feel tired. It is like when you finally get on the plane for a holiday… you give a big sigh and have an overwhelming feeling of exhaustion. You made it, just. Perhaps it is because for the first time in years I am starting to breath, stretch, relax between workouts. I am even sitting down when I eat! I get excited about nap time and am on a mission to excel at chilling – letting my body recover. I expected to have more time but really this is not the way it works. I am not cramming workouts in and find myself focussing better on what my work is for that day. I am doing strength work, I stretch, ice when I need to and am trying to have better nutrition. I have yet to find a rhythm to all this but it will come.

But before I get too far I notice that it has been awhile since my last post! Essentially the past few months have been very up and down... I had a lot of fun transitioning into fall training- went to lots of great music concerts (Dan Mangan, Amy Millan, Hannah Georgas among others), a hockey game (Sens actually won!) and was running lots. I was living with Beth, a friend from my undergrad days, and life was good. I then got injured and with this everything seemed to fall apart at the seams. Injuries are hard for two reasons. The first is obviously because you can't do what you love to do. The second is that they take a lot of time to figure out what is actually wrong. Once again my incredible support team pulled through and after a month of doing stuff (A.R.T, X-Rays, Bone Scans etc) I learnt that I caught a stress fracture in the femur below the lesser trochanter before it actually happened. Stress fractures, while always not good, are really really not good if they are in the femur because they are so hard to heal. Anyway - I stopped running for a little bit.

The next injury happened early December and involved the intercostal muscle. These little muscles are the ones that help you breathe so you can imagine how annoying (and painful!) this one is. It was a bit of a freak injury that put me once again into a holding pattern. Once I finally was running again I had yet another freak thing happen… I twisted my knee while dancing with my 4 ½ year old niece. Frustrating is one way to put it. Once again, Rebecca and Michael went to work on me and I am now running. My knee is still a bit stiff but I am praying that it will eventually just let go. By the time I build up to longer runs I hope that I will be able to add some intensity back in. The positive aspect of all this is that my swim and bike have never been stronger! Seeing times go down in the pool and power go up on the bike is very gratifying.

The interesting thing about injury is the reflection on why it happens - over-training, bad nutrition, lack of stretching, poor recovery - little of everything! For me I think where I have the most to improve on is the nutrition part (ok the recovery too). I have recently learnt that on a pretty normal training day I need to take in between 4000-5000 calories! Do you know how much that is? An average person needs approximately 1500 calories. I eat that before lunch. I have actually been gaining weight in the process of eating more which is mentally a little challenging. Most people would love the challenge of having to eat more but let me tell you - it is not as easy as you think especially because I am still pretty picky on what I tend to consume. Copious amounts of fruits and veggies are just not going to cut it anymore sadly. Bring on the protein, bread and maybe a little extra chocolate!

So where am I now. I moved again and living at another friends. Back in the Glebe! Very very happy to be here and am happy that I will not be moving for a little while now. Three times in 5 months was a little much. Perhaps now with my new found full-time athlete status I will keep up more with blogging. Would be good as there is much more to say… but that is enough for today.

Last race of the Season - Dallas

2009-10-22T06:31:00.000-07:00

Little delayed on my race report of Dallas but here it is....The top 10 athletes I was up against have competed at world cups, several at the Olympics and many regard this race as an important one with so much money on the line. It was a big big pay day for some. It was also a non-drafting race which makes it completely different from ITU races as well. You have to be strong in all three disciplines as opposed to being stellar in swimming and running and good at biking. Unfortunately with my new run focus, I am not swimming or biking much so had to just manage the first 2/3rd of the race.

Had a few hiccups along the way. First lost a screw for my bike seat so had to find a bike shop otherwise I would have had to ride with my knees hitting my chin. Then morning of the race woke up to a flat tire. Unfortunately I forgot tire levers but found that the spoon and fork I had brought were very useful. Then after getting off the bus to the first transition area (this race had two) I was missing a plug on my handlebar. So getting to the start line was a little rocky but with each thing I sorted it out and moved on. I had also had the most awesome pasta dinner the night before in my room while sitting in bed and watching a movie..... what better race prep!

The morning was colder than Pacific Grove (PG) and misting enough to feel like rain. A perfect combination of PG and Westchester - lovely. The swim was uneventful. I think I started too slow as I started to really pass people on the last 500m. I must have made up some good ground and came out with the pack. I should have been in the lead of the pack but as I am not working on the swim right now I will let that go. Needless to say I froze on the bike. The winds were pretty good too to top it off. The course was pretty ugly through industrial areas and typical american shopping centres, not to mention the pot holes that left more than a few people with flats. There was also this chick who kept drafting after every guy that passed. When I finally passed her I kept looking back to make sure she wasn't drafting me. Grrr.

So the run... have you ever tried to run with two bricks at the end of your feet? Oh my goodness. It was horrible. I could not feel a thing and when I started to get some feeling (around 3 miles) it was so painful! I didn't know what was worse - the bricks or the thaw. I kept thinking of all my runs that I have been doing lately and thinking that this is really quite a short distance. It was over quicker than I thought which I have NEVER thought before. But then again, I did it under 40minutes (barely)! It was faster than most of my tri-runs this year! yippee the run focus is working

So with that done, I am officially back to winter training. I took last week "off" which means that I didn't let Ken tell me what to do.. I went with what I felt like doing - funny how I still found myself running or swimming most days. The weather didn't inspire me to get out for a bike and the trainer just doesn't sound "fun". I also went to two amazing concerts. It is wonderful to appreciate and be inspired by others passions. So what is next? Maybe a 10km race this weekend if I am feeling better (have a cold). One thing is for sure though, I have my work cut out for me. I am ready.

Off to Dallas!

2009-10-08T16:29:00.000-07:00

This will be the shortest blog ever... happy, healthy and super excited to go to Dallas. It is going to be all about enjoying the whole process. There are no expectations on me and I am stoked to be on the start line with such high calibre of athletes and know that I belong there. Incredible. Here is the link.

http://www.toyotausopentriathlon.com/US_Open_Triathlon.htm

Thanks Michael for making sure I get there injured free!!!!

Another race down...

2009-09-28T04:42:00.000-07:00

Pouring rain is the first way to describe this race. I hardly slept the night before as I listened to the wind in the trees and the rain hitting the window. Surprisingly enough I have never had to contend with the rain before in a race. After receiving brilliant counsel from Rob -lower tire pressure so the tires stick to the pavement better and put on oil to block the wind and Jamie -stay off the paint, I felt comfortable enough. I was worried about my hands freezing though.

I got to the race site and although wet I was not cold. It actually was warmer than the previous year. My warm-up and race prep went smoothly. The gun went off and the swim felt ok except that I was slow! I am not sure whether I chose the wrong line or whether I am just slower right now but I came out of the water a bit behind Alicia who I normally don't struggle to stay with or ahead of. The bike is where I felt a little sluggish as well. My body just didn't have the extra race ummph. Although I have not talked to Ken yet I know he is going to say.. what do you expect? You trained right through the race. Despite knowing that high mileage the week before a race and perhaps the 8 hour drive doesn't exactly prep you for a stunning performance, I wish it did! My run felt fine, good turn over I think but it really hurt in that last kilometer.

The volunteers were absolutely amazing! They lined the streets on the run, they had a band playing and everyone had huge spirits. I love triathlons in the US - people get so into it! There was also one moment in the race that would even make a Canadian patriotic. They have established one small hill on the course as "Claire's climb" and is a charity fundraiser for Lou Gehrig's disease. As you climb the hill toward a huge american flag which you eventually ride under they had a bagpiper playing on a grassy knoll beside the climb. They also had little slogans that you could read that would cheer you on. The whole setting was just kind of cool.

So the last race of my season is coming up in two weeks... Lifetime Fitness Series race in Dallas where the best of the best come out. I hope to be a little rested for this one. Should be exciting!

A second place finish at Pacific Grove Triathlon!

2009-09-19T10:19:00.000-07:00

Every once in awhile I get to do some very fun non-drafting races like the Pacific Grove Triathlon that I competed in two weekends ago. It was a spontaneous adventure for me, not in the schedule but I was ready and well, who would say no to racing in California along one of the most magnificent shore lines on the Pacific Coast! The race is put on by Tri-California and as with every other race they put on, very well organized. There are some unique features to this triathlon but none quite as unique as swimming through a kelp forest. I had to really fight to stay in the lead and come out of the water with Leanda Cave (world champion and ironman). To start the water was freezing! It was like drinking a few mega-gulp slurpies in a row and getting a really bad brain freeze. The gun went off and we all jostled into position… all until one person would hit a patch of kelp and literally stop dead in their tracks. To get out you would have to push the kelp down beneath you so you could move forward again. As soon as you would be free and maybe into a rhythm, another kelp patch. If everyone didn’t have to go through the same thing it would have been frustrating but because we did you had to laugh at yourself!

The day was a little misty and kind of cold and rainy so the bike was challenging. Huge head winds kept myself and Leanda working hard together. The run was great as it starts on a slight decline. This is rare in a race and I like it! It made getting a quick turnover and speed that much easier - the return was obviously up what you declined but by this time you were able to recover. I came second at the end of the day and was thrilled. A great race.

Check out the link to see the race on You tube

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=745864582705097069#docid=341808186469947849

Next up is Westchester Triathlon in New York State tomorrow! This race will be great preparation for me before the final race of my season at the Lifetime Fitness Series Toyota US Open Triathlon in Dallas, Texas. Although not a World Cup, the worlds top male and female triathletes compete for a total of $92,000 US. That would be one great payday!

Race season continues!

2009-09-06T05:54:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning and life is good. I am back in Ottawa and setting my life up once again. First thing Monday morning I drove out to Peak to meet with Ken, talk about Nationals, the past year and what we need to do this coming year. It is all about the run now. I am swimming less, biking less and running alot. This makes me sad as I love being in the pool and can't imagine what's better than being on my bike but perhaps my run will become so good that this will soon become my favorite part of the triathlon! All this talk about me running lots (I used to run 5X/week and it's up from that) made me immediately call Mike for massage as I know injury prevention will be everything... My visit with him was awesome as it had been so very long since I had a truly awesome massage.

While my training program has changed I still am very much in the middle of my race season. This coming weekend I am off to California, then Westchester New York and my finale will be in Dallas in October. I can't believe how blessed I am to be able to go to all these races! I have a certain excitement with how I feel and with what I have learnt at my races this year. One think I can't wait about my upcoming race in California is putting my toe to the line knowing that I am going to put everything out there right until the end. I have been holding back in the run because of fears that I now recognize... no more.

So life continues... training, eating, sleeping and racing with work thrown in there whereever and whenever possible. Of late I have certainly had to be creative on getting the job done but it seems to continue to work somehow thanks to a fantastic manager and my committment to making it work. Not easy but it happens somehow. Off for a ride now - the gatineau maybe?

ITU Pan-American Cup/Nationals: Kelowna

2009-08-28T15:51:00.000-07:00

It has been almost one week since the National Championships in Kelowna and I am just starting to understand my race. The morning of the race I have to say that I felt great. I am so very used to waking with something feeling tight. Only after a cup of coffee, a good warm up, stretching out do I feel ready to take on the day. This day was different. I have perfected my pre-race routine and so just went with the process. Standing on the start line I was finally at the place that I had visualized so many times in my head. Two feet planted on the ground and having already a huge sense of accomplishment for getting through another year of hard training to be there. Alan (sport psychologist) talks of no regrets. It is on the start line that if you do have regrets or things you ‘should have done’ you will feel a sense of dread and an ‘oh my goodness what am I doing here!’ Luckily I have complete confidence in my coach, the training he puts me through, my preparation and the hard work I have put into it. I know that I have made each day count.

The gun went off and what to say, it was like most triathlons that I have done - a mad scramble, people grabbing at your feet (intentionally or not), getting your head hit etc. It always is a little feisty. Coming from a family of rugby players though, I am not shy to hold my ground or line so to speak. It was two loops and after the first loop I was in third. I managed move up a spot and came out of the water in second place right after Kathy Tremblay. Not bad.

The bike was sheer fun. This year I have really focussed on learning bike strategy - knowing when to surge and for how long, when to hold back, how to corner, what it means to stay out of the gutter, understanding wind and heat. Luckily I like bike geeks (you know who you are) so have picked up a lot from just hearing stories and from riding along side. The course is 6 laps with one small but good hill. I usually was in the front of the hill and made sure to give a little extra right at the top. Then the course is just basically a long down and flat - great for speed and hammering. I did just that. My plan was to create as much of a gap between the lead pack and the chase group. I think we managed to get around five minutes. I had nothing to loose with hammering the bike and doing more than my share of work – with Kathy Tremblay, Lauren Groves and Lisa Mensink on the start line, I was pretty sure their run was a wee bit faster than mine.

Off the bike and onto the run. To say that I have struggled with my run is maybe an understatement but I finally feel like I can run well (efficiently), maybe not fast yet but well. Although my run time was nowhere where I want it (I need to drop several minutes), I know that I can take my fitness and motor to the technique I am just starting to really get. I did not have the confidence going into the run and it showed in the time. I did get stronger as I went though and know now that I can do it. Perhaps a little late but it is a process after all.

When the race finished, after hugs from my Mom and Ted at the finish line, I kept on thinking, it’s over – all that hard work and it is done after just over 2 hours. It was actually kind of sad so I quickly started to think of ‘my next race’. I guess I am saying this because although the hard work culminates in certain events, it really has been about each day that leads up to it – the trainer rides, the long rides in the Gatineau, early morning swims, depleting myself of Oxygen, weights, Ride with Rendall challenges, track, ART and massage… big meals and all the small ones in between. And so after one week of refection, I am ready to prepare for the next thing on the calendar (Provincial TT) and enjoy each moment and certainly have no regrets.

Race Ready!

2009-08-20T14:26:00.000-07:00

Sitting here at Nancy and Dave's home (friend of my mom's) which is a little bit of paradise. Garden is in full bloom with strawberries, rasberries, swiss chard, carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, peppers... the beginning of my perfect dinner in other words. It has been a crazy last few weeks of which the word "trying" can only really describe it. I feel as though I have been on an up and down rollercoaster ride with training, at times feeling great, and at other times like I don't know where my body, my willpower and determination went. Work was super busy with deadlines which I met - the Olympics and Paralympics will go on! I am finally feeling like myself again though and all seems to be right with the world.

Last week I caught up with family and old friends from my past synchro life which was wonderful. Synchronized swimming was my joy through my youth, source of community and where my some of my dearest friends are from. After 16 years I am very much over the absolute disappointment, frustration, and perhaps disillusionment of the sport that I felt when I left and now am reminising in the good times, laughs and chaos that made up my synchro years. Who knew that I was completely "unbalanced" up until I was 17. We typically swam 5hours/day, ran up and down SFU hill, did weights, stretched completely cold before practices, land drill... Knowing what I know now about exercise physiology, biomechanics, and sport psychology, I can't believe the things we did.

Back to the present though. The hard work is done. I just have to eat well, sleep well and believe in myself. Then all will fall into place to race the best race I have ever raced before! Honestly I can't wait.

Feeling Feisty

2009-08-12T21:49:00.000-07:00

Yup. That is me. I am ready for Nationals which is good as it is around the corner. Taper has begun and now I just want to get out there. I have two days of work left before I get to turn my attention away from Olympic and Paralympic scheduling to chillax'n. I keep thinking how different life will be when I can focus on training, recovering all the time. hmmmm.

My New Blog Site!

2009-08-07T18:43:00.000-07:00

Not too sure why I felt it necessary to change my site but change is always good...

All is well. After hitting the wall a few time in training and at work, feeling much much better and happy again! After putting in a 11 hour work day yesterday and topping it off with a 7:30am video-conference this morning, I decided to take it a little easier... Watched Fight Club, ate a bowl full of cherries (stomach is not sooo happy now), sat in the hot tub and am about to get ready to race tomorrow. Brilliant.

Check out this link. My first video debut! The announcer has no idea who I am... he seems floored that this person from Ottawa, Canada of all places is in first for 3/4 of the race!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU5mXQ09lQ0

Pan-American Championship

2009-05-26T04:56:00.000-07:00

I came seventh but wow it was close to a fourth place finish.

The swim was great. I have improved so much this year it is awesome. The biggest difference is that I come out of the water in a solid position and am not totally spent. This means fast transitions and being in a good spot for the very fast start on the bike.

The Bike - Holy smokes it was hard work! We started with a pack of 6 girls I think. There may have been more but the pace was hard so I think a few were shot out very quickly. The course was pretty tough in that there was a wicked wind, some serious divets/holes/rough patches to avoid and a gradual hill one way that didn't seem nearly that bad until you had to do it 4 times! Unfortunately two girls crashed - one by crossing wheels and the other by hitting Mary-Beth Ellis (eventual winner) when she accidentaly went into one of the significant divets in the road and had to sharply pull out. For me - all went well but I made the stupid mistake of not drinking and totally screwing up my nutrition. Although the day started quite coolit gradually got hotter and ended up being really deceiving. I had maybe 3/4 of a water bottle and one gel which was not nearly enough to sustain me through the run. The other dumb ass thing I did was not gearing down in the corners - had to work super hard in a high gear to catch up each time. Thankfully I have good power but may have wasted some energy. I have to say that when the going got tough, I had in the back of my mind Ken's voice saying (in his very laid back andconfident way) - No problem for you on the bike, you can stay with these girls. I figured that he is usually right so I did stay with them for the most part and when I did drop back was able to pull myself back into it. I was happy.

The run - Started great! First two laps were solid. The third lap I started to lose some form. The fourth lap I just kept thinking - go go go - you have to want it. Problem was that on the last km my body just didn't want to go any more - I hit the wall big time. Apparently I was not running in a straight line anymore and to be honest, can't remember running the last 100m or so. I almost went the wrong way at the end but somehow crossed the finish line. Apparently the medical people were calling me in :) So in the last 1 km or less I was passed by Kerry Spearing and Susan Williams. There was no doubt though that I had put everything I had out there.

So a strong race. Lots to improve on and I am super excited about the next one. Just imagine if I get my nutrition right! Austin is a lot a lot hotter so there will be no option to be smart on this one. So next time -faster.

Thanks for all your messages and fast thoughts - they really came in handy! Follow this link for the full results breakdown.
http://onlineraceresults.com/race/view_plain_text.php?race_id=10778