Death Valley Trail Marathon

I initially signed up for this race with the soul intension of having fun and seeing one of the most unique areas on the planet. I had no time goals, no goals of placing first in my AG - just to try something totally different and have fun. The race is normally run through Titus canyon on the north side of the valley - at an elevation of about 5000 feet above sea level. It is small boutique type marathon that is extremely unique and that draws athletes from all corners of the planet. Unfortunately the weather gods didnt cooperate as the temperature in the park over the past week plumeted well below seasonal and the area recieved 2 times its anual rain/snow fall in the 72 hours prior to the race. As a result, most of the park was closed because of flooding - most notably Titus canyon. So the race orgainizers were forced to resort to plan B - running the race at the lowest point in the park through the salt flats and sand dunes that are the reminants of an ancient sea bed. Also a very unique area and cool to view from the mountains that surround it - but a area which loses its appeal rather quickly when running a marathon through it.

In addition i had to drive to the race by myself and sleep in my car the night before the race as the area as virtually no places to stay short of a few cabins which were booked up long before i ever thought of registering for the race. Fortunately things worked out better than i expected. I had purchased a inflatable mattress just before leaving, but never measured the exact dimensions of the truck so had to just wing it and hope for the best. My initial idea was to just put blankets down as I thought the truck was too short for a regular sized mattress, but thought i could cram it in if it was at least close. When i arrived at the camp site it was pouring rain, and getting dark fast. I quickly found my water logged site and ripped open the box for the mattress and started to blow it up as fast as possible - which unfortunately wasnt too fast as the valved was huge and didnt fit my bike pump. At first i thought it was hopeless, but quickly it began to take shape. After about 15 minutes of hyperventilating it was done. I quickly shoved all my bags and crap into the front seats and moved them as far forward as possible and to my delight and surprise the mattress fit PERFECT. I through on the sheets and blankets i brought - SOO classy. Shortly there after the skys opened up and it began to rain even harder. And as i sat in my comfy little RV i couldnt help but thank god i didnt plan on sleeping in a tent.

And despite the freezing tempuratures outside I slept very well, and really never felt cold at all while under the covers. The next morning I woke up early as usual, and tried to figure out what the hell to wear. It was overcast and freezing out, and the forcast was for rain and t storms all day. I opted to put on everything i brought and figure it out later. Needless to say I wasnt cold waiting around for the start this time like i was in tucson.

The race itself was rather uneventful. After registering and being bused to the start line, the race was started with the blink of the tail lights from the official race SUV.

The Tucson Marathon

Ok I am a little tardy with my update, but I was hoping to have pics to post with my update. Unfortunately I was unable to steal them like I have always done in the past with ASI - damm marathonfoto.com and thier security encription.

As with all races, in hindsight there are many things you might have or could have done differently that would have made a big difference at the finsih line (hydrated better, tappered, trained smarter, wore tighter socks, ....). All those excuses aside the race went very well - infact better than expected. I did managed to qualify for Boston (although it is sold out for this year dammit!!) and beat my goal time of 3:14:59.99 by 7 whole minutes !! Finishing in a time of 3:08:22 !! My PB - not that amazing since I have never run an open marathon before so any time would have been a PB.

Anyway, the day started early after a night of very little sleep - not a very good sleeper at the best of times, but this was a particularly bad night. I ended up getting up before my alarm. As per my usual OCD self I have everything orgainized at the foot of my bed so that I could be up and out the door in seconds flat (always worried I will be late and ALWAYS end up getting to the race and set to go with tons of time to spare - you think I would learn by now but I guess I am a slow learner). I was worried about finding the pickup spot for the bus to the start line so gave myself even more time for error. So between getting up earlier than expected and the additional margin of error factored in for finding the pickup spot I ended up being the first person there - snagging the prime parking spot !!

The benefits of getting there early ended there however as I got the distict pleasure of sitting for 30 min on the first bus waiting for it to fill up so it could go. And once arriving at the start line (after what definately seemed longer than 26 miles - more like 36 or 5o or something!! as i sat in my seat looking out at the course I was more than a little unnerved at how long it actually took the bus to get to the start doing 45 mph on the highway!! YIKES!!) I also got the pleasure of standing around in the FREEZING cold and darkness for an hour and a half. The only good thing was I managed to beat the lineups for the portapotties. Always a stress before a race and definately worth getting up a little early for, as the lineups 2 minutes before the race were still 20 people long.

I lined up about 4 feet from the front of the pack, and just ahead of the 315 pace bunny. My goal was just to finish in 315 to qualify for Boston (im an old man now so 315 is good enough to get me in - one of the few benefits of getting older). After a friend of mine missed out qualifying last year in Ottawa bc the pace bunny was off by 2 minutes at the end of the race, I decided I would err on the side of caution and try and stay a little ahead of him, but to not go out too hard and the start. The profile of the race is primarily all down hill, but the first few miles were by far the steepest, as you had to physically slow yourself down to avoid tripping or having to run a 4 min mile to keep upright.

I ran very conservatively for the first 4 or 5 miles until i got into a rhythm and in a group of runners i felt comfortable with. i was holding about 7 min miles - a little faster than i had planned - but i was feeling good. Things went very smooth for the first 11 miles. Then for some strange reason my right knee began to really hurt just below the jointline on the lateral side. I began to get worried I was getting ITB problems, but it just seems soo unlikely and certainly wasnt in the classic spot for ITB pain. As it gradually got worse I began to fear the worst - a stress fracture ?!?! seriously ? I was almost at the point of limping. I tried to change my stride a little, lifting my knees more, and kicking out my quads to get them to relax. To my surprise and delight, the pain eased almost as quickly as it came on.

For the next 6 or 7 miles I ran stride for stride with these two girls that caught me was I tried to work out the pain in my knee. The one girl was obviously a very experienced marathoner who was pacing her friend to what was initially to be a sub 3 hr marathon. They were running perfect splits, as the pacer kept things smooth and even - something my pacing is not. As an added benefit I managed to get at least some benefit of their draft (they were both 5 foot nothing and 89 lbs soaking wet - so really didnt get too much of a draft, but if i managed to angle myself just right behind both of them they almost added up to one person!!LOL).

This went on till about mile 22 when the girl being paced had to slow down. I was getting excited at this point as I tried to do the math - if I kept this pace I could go sub 305!! This combined with the fact I was now finally catching some of the faster runners that were cramping or had blown up, as well as some of the slower runners in the half marathon I managed to keep the pace up for about another 2 miles when my quads began to ache horribly. All that downhill running was finally catching up with me. My legs felt like wood. It was all i could do just to hold on to the finish. With one mile to go there was a nasty little hill just before the finish. Its not very often i look forward to running up hill - but the change in muscle use from running the previous 25 miles all downhill was a very welcome surprise.

The last half mile felt like it took forever. I was still holding a pretty decent pace - but video of me crossing the line shows that my technique was anything but. I definately had the IM shuffle going, as I barely bent my knees, taking short choppy strides with my weight barely ahead of my toes - if at all.

As I crossed the line, happy it was over, I couldnt believe how sore my legs were. They felt like they did after my first IM 4 years ago. Dont get my wrong, my legs were sore after all my other races, but nothing like these 2. I was having trouble walking, and getting up and down from sitting was rediculous. I looked like one of my 89 yr old patients with a broken hip !!! Which to my delight gave me very little trouble at all in the race aside from a few jabs of pain in the last few miles!!

Although this was not on my top ten races to do i am glad i did it. It helped boost my confidence for next seasons IM and put behind me the many doubts i have had about being able to run that far on my hip without damaging it further - and at a reasonable pace. It also taught me how to pace myself a little better and to get back to the point where I can push myself through the pain while racing at competitive level. Something I havent been unable to do up to this point since breaking my hip 13 months ago.

All in all it was a good finish to an otherwise very stressful year both personally and athletically as I struggled to get back to racing. I am now looking forward to next season with a much brighter outlook.

2009 Race Season Recap In Pictures

My last entry was from my first bike race at the Valley of the Sun stage race. It was a good introduction to the world of bike racing.

Next it was off to Vegas (well technically Henderson NV) to meet up with everyone from London down visiting and to watch them race the half marathon called the six tunnels half. It was a lot of fun.

Biked through the desert.

Had a few drinks with good friends at the local biker bar at the top of the mountain Good thing we blended right in with the locals !!

We cleaned house at the race - they may not have known where London Ontario was before the race, but they certainly do now !!

Hit the Hover Dam on the way home. Pretty amazing. Pics don't do it justice.

After Vegas it was on to the Arizona State Road Race Championships in Globe AZ !! Unfortunatley no pics available - but i did manage to come in 2nd in the Cat 5 mens race. Despite having a great day on the bike and just narrowly missing out on the win in a 2 man break away and then sprint for the line - i still ended up chicked, as Christine managed to out sprint the competition for top honours in the Womens Cat 4 race in her first season racing. Damn it ! Just kidding, great race babe. Sorry no pics, but if you want proof, check out the link below

http://graskyendurance.blogspot.com/2009/06/arizona-state-road-race-championship.html

Next came The Dueces Wild Triathlon Festival where I did the Aquabike - 2 km swim, and 90 km bike. Despite having a slower than average swim after being out of racing for over 8 month I managed to pull back the leaders out of the water on the last hill coming back into town, and to hold off a very hard charging NM TT Champion to hold on for first place. It was a good thing I didnt have to run, as I went way too hard on the bike to be able to run.

There was a bit of a long break after Show Low involving lots of training and catching some rays - and a VERY long drive back to Canada to return my leased Mazda 3. Awesome trip - but NEVER again.

I didn't end up racing until mid August when I did my first full half IM in Utah since breaking my hip. It was an amazing trip - the drive there was a little long, but the scenary was AMAZING.

The race itself was HORRIBLE. First off I thought camping the night before would be a good idea. NOT a good idea. Between the bugs, rain, and lack of decent light trying get ready for the race, it was a complete disaster. The ground surprisingly isn't that comfortable either - and the regular campers have a tendancy to stay up late drinking around the campfire. Not the best for sleeping.

The weather for the race was cold (actually FREEZING - as snow fell on the near by mountain at Sundance) and rainy as two separate storms came in at the same time, bringing 50 mph winds soo strong it nearly blew me off my bike several times. In addition the swim was shortend b/c they couldnt get the bouys to stay in place with the waves stirred up by the storm. The bike was brutal - after suffering 2 mechanicals, and heading off course I was way off the pace, and just tried to hang on to finish and start the run. The run was HARD - as i tried in vane to catch up to Chissy. The course was pancake flat, but felt much harder. Not having run more than about 12 km before the race, I managed to hold on to finish in 5th in my AG - and about 15 minutes behind Christine. Chicked AGAIN !! (this is a bit of a theme)

After Utah I decided to head home for a little visit with the family and friends.

While there I did the Muskoka 70.3 race in northern Ontario. Luckily the weather was much better than expected - as was my race. The course and scenery in nothern Ontario were amazing. The course was much tougher than I expected with the bike being about 4 km long, and both the bike and run hitting you with a seemingly endless array of hills.

I had a pretty good swim and bike - coming into T2 in 2nd place in my AG. And managed to hold on on the run to take 3rd place in my AG. Lucky for me the competition was a little weak. And thanks to a flat tire on the bike I managed to avoid being chicked yet again.

After Muskoka came the Soma Half IM in Tempe Arizona. The course is flat and very fast (not really a great course for me), and used as a tune up race for many of athletes doing IM Arizona in November. The swim is a simple rectangular swim - almost exactly the same as IM. The sun shinning off the water however made sighting almost impossible. Navigating through the slower swimmers in the earlier waves also proved a bit of a chore. The bike course was 3 laps, and VERY technical with lots of tight turns - and with 1200 athletes of all levels racing at the same time, it was also very nerve racking. Usually the bike section of the race is usually my strength, but still a little nervous about crashing again, I was a lot more cautious than most, and lost a ton of time on the corners. I did however manage a decent run (1:35 !!) - pulling back several of the faster bikers to take 4th in my AG. Despite my improved run leg, I was badly chicked yet again (I was beat overall by 2 minutes as Chris beat me out of the water by 30 secs, and on the run by almost 4 min - and I only managed to put 2 minutes into Chris on the bike - YIKES !!), as Chris destroyed the womens field, taking first overall AG and beating the top female pro by 8 seconds.




Next up the Tucson Marathon in December. Should be interesting. Never done a open marathon before. I will keep you posted.

Tour of the Valley of the Sun

Well this weekend I participated in my first true road race and stage race. The race put on by the White Mountain Cycling club here in AZ consisted of 3 stages - a 22km TT, a 41 mile road race, and a 25 lap criterium.

The first stage - the 22 km TT took place early Friday morning in a tiny little town called Buckeye Arizona, about 50 miles west of Phoenix. In an attempt to avoid having to get up at 4:00 in the morning to get there on Friday morning tired and stiff, we decided to head up to Phoenix the night before and grab a hotel room on the edge of town so we could get a good nights sleep. My race number was 719 and my start time was 9:27:30.

We arrived at the race site at around 8:20 am - after a 25 minute detour to starbucks !! Thank god for GPS. When we got there there were already several hundred of cyclists set up along the cross street from the start line setting up their bikes and warming up on trainers and rollers. It was an amazing and indimadating specticle. Most of the riders were on state of the art carbon bikes, and dressed in prefectly matching team uniforms. A little intimidating to a guy doing his first bike race and wearing a mismatched uniform with NO logos. YIKES !! Think I may be out of my league here !!

Nervous and scared about racing on my TT bike for the first time since my accident 4 months ago, I quickly got changed and began to warm up ASAP. I managed to get about 25 minutes in on the trainer between running to the porta potty and jumping off to get something I forgot or thought i needed (like gels - which i carried in my back pocket but never in a million years risked taking my hands off the handle bars to try and get out of my back pocket).

I arrived at the start line about 10 minutes early to ensure I didn't miss my start. As I stood in line watching each successive rider go off in 30 second intervals I began to feel a little better as many of the riders were also doing thier first road race.

As I lifted my bike up onto the start ramp, I kept reminding myself to start easy and build into the race. Unsure how hard to go on such a short ride with no run to follow, I started off focusing on keeping my cadence high and turning over the pedals at around 100 RPM. My legs felt great. With a slight tailwind and only a slight incline on the way out, by mile 2 I was flying and already reeling in the riders ahead of me. By the turn around I had caught 4 riders and was feeling good. I made the turn for home, looked up the road at the rider about 500m ahead, put my head down and dropped the hammer. Unfortunately it was a lot tougher catching riders on the way home and managed to just pass my 7th rider about 500m from the finish line. I crossed the line in 35:43 - 7th in my division and 1:30 behind the winner. And as usual, after finishing and checking the results an hour later, I wondered if I could have gone a minute faster if I knew I would win ... sure I could have... but as the old saying goes, if I could have, I would have. Regardless, I was happy with my results.

The next day was the road race which took place a little closer to home in Casa Grande - about an hour and a half from home. We left home shortly after 5:00 am and arrived at the race site around 6:30 am. Even before the sun was up - and it was FREEZING !! In fact it was soo cold, despite having plenty of time, I bypassed the warmup on the trainer to sit shivering in the SUV with the heat on full blast.

The New Machine

Well its been 3 weeks since I finally got my new machine - and I have to say I am in LOVE. I figured after breaking my hip I needed something lighter and more responsive to compensate for the extra weight of the added hardware in my hip and the trauma that has weakend the muscles around it. I thought of getting a titanium bike to match my hip, but decided instead to go all out and get the full carbon Kuota Kreedo Ultra(with Carbon bars and everything baby !!) all decked out with Sram Red, and all the extras. I even managed to get Ti Speedplay pedals !!

So to say this machine is light and responsive is a mild understatement. It rides and climbs like a dream, and fits perfectly. I was a little worried at first as I had ordered a size larger than my Giant - but it was definately the right decision. The seat has taken a little getting used to - needless to say the seat looks better than it feels.

The Comeback Starts NOW !!

Well its official, the comeback has begun.

Today i ran - ok jogged - for the first time since my accident. It wasn't pretty - i have to admit. My form and stride length looked like many of the 16+ hour finishers in Hawaii after swimming, biking, and cramping at about mile 20 !! As amazing as it is to be back running, given how poor my form was before the accident, it should be interesting to see what my form looks like in 6 months.

As usual, i probably over did it, and will pay for it tomorrow. But regardless it was definately worth it. So despite my overwhelming fear of my hip snapping off mid stride I managed to run a 6 times 5 on and 2 off on the treadmill at a blistering 13:45 pace. Thats about a 7 hour marathon !! Well I guess it can only get better from here.

This is about how I felt by the end of my 50 minute JOG !!

I CAN WALK !!! AND RIDE !!

Well I saw the orthopod again this week, and finally got the OK to start walking on my new titanium reenforced hip. needless to say, I wasted no time getting rid of the crutches which i quickly traded in for a snappy single point cane. its really very stylish. i think it will be the in thing this season. and as usual i will be leading the trend. NOT. at least not after about a week. as for the crutches i plan on burning them or smashing them into a million pieces.

So there is the good news. the bad news is that he doesn't want to repair the hernia in my IT band, and wants to wait 2 more months before fixing it - removing the locking screws at the same time. he feels the screws are sticking out too much and that they will EVENTUALLY cause a problem. in the mean time, i am stuck with this thing growing out of the side of my leg, which at the moment is really the only thing that is hurting. the hip itself is still very weak, and i walk like i have been shot in the ass (as i lack any stability in my core ) but for the most part it is pain free. the only thing that really hurts the hip is trying to stand on one foot to put on a pair of pants or shoes. a fact i find very annoying.

the knee however hurts all the time - especially when standing on one foot. on the positive side, both my knee and hip are pretty much totally pain free while biking - even climbing. I have managed to go biking the past three days straight - and today managed to bike 3 solid hours, although not at my usual pace. i started out strong but quickly faded when the road turned upwards. none the less i was VERY happy to be outside and on my bike again. now all i need is a nice new shiney bike !!

guess i have no excusses to stay off work any longer - and just when I was getting into daytime TV !! I will fill you in on all the fun and teasing I get when I start back next week. should be fun !!

Favorite Things to Do While Sidelined With a Fractured Hip

1. eat - my activity level may have dropped off, but not my appetite
2. watch movies - preferably tour de france or IM videos (and imagine being there!!)
3. watch TV - little tip : reality TV SUCKS !! and daytime TV is even worse !!
4. waste time on internet - read others blogs, slowtwitch forum, cycling news, ...
5. shopping - see above.
6. read - magazines, books, newspapers, flyers, ads, ....
7. eat more
8. sun tan
9. sleep / nap
10. clean appartment
11. play tour guide to my parents who are visiting
12. eat even more
13. ....

Rehab Update

Well its hard to believe, but it has been 3 weeks since the accident and surgery on my hip. and although it feels like it just happend yesterday on one hand - on the flip side it feels like i have been on these crutches and unable to walk (OR DRIVE!!) for months. to say i am sick of using crutches is a mild understatement. i have 38 steps into and out of my appartment, so getting around has proven to be more work than i ever imagined.

i am happy to let everyone know that things are slowly starting to improve. I am still off work but hope to be able to return to work with modified duties in about a week. i have been riding the stationary bike everyday for an hour, as well as stretching, doing pool exercises and water running, and some light upper body weights. I have also done a TON of crutching all over tucson and SW arizona. As fate would have it, my parents had planned a trip to visit me right after returning from Hawaii. The initial plan was to go up to Utah to see Bryce Canyon and Zion national park. Unfortunately that has been put on hold as a result of my injuries. we have however managed to see just about everything in the Tucson area. We have been up Mt Lemon, and Medera Canyon, and through Gates Pass. We have been to the desert museum, the botanical gardens, and to the Biosphere (and just a tip - i don't recommend doing any on crutches). I have also watched more movies and TV in the last 2 weeks than I probably did all last year.

I also managed to finally get in to see an orthopeadic surgeon here in tucson for a follow up appointment this week. It was a tough day to say the least. He is a really great guy, I really like him. But he pulls no punches and gives it to you straight. He took xrays and reviewed them with me. He pointed out the fracture which was much worse than Dr Chang had made it out to be when I was in Hawaii. It was a spiral fracture that radiated into the head of the femur, which is why she had to use 2 IM nails and not a simple plate and screws. He was really pleased with how nice the surgery went - felt the nails were placed very well. But because of the severity of the fracture he is VERY concerned with the possibility of me developing osteonecrosis of my hip (same thing Flyoid Landis had). Unfortunately because of the nails, he can't order a contract MRI to measure blood flow to the hip, and will just have to monitor things via xray every 3 months for the next 2-3 years. He also said that the surgeon had to detach my piriformis and glut med to insert the screws, so he really isn't sure if I will ever be able to run again like I did before. To make matters worse, he wants to be very conservative with my rehab to make sure everything heals before putting too much weight on it. so I allowed no more than 20lbs until he does more xrays in 2 weeks - at which time I hope to be at least up to 50% weight bearing.

On the bright side, the giant fluid filled mass on the side of my leg where the surgeon put in the locking screws has stopped getting bigger, and he feels it isn't an infection like I thought, but just a cyst like pocket of intersitial fluid that he PROMISES to drain next visit. I wanted him to do it right then, but he wants everything to heal before risking possible infection by lancing it and draining it. Unfortunately it is the most painful part right now when I try and put my foot down with even 20lbs. At least I hope thats all thats causing the pain.

As for my shoulder, xrays showed a grade III separation - which he points out will hurt like a bitch in the short run, but which he feels shouldn't impact me too much in the long run. He has ordered an MRI of my shoulder to rule out any possible rotator cuff tears, or what he thinks is more likely, a complete tear in my trapezius muscle along the spine of the scapula. Not really sure what he would do for that - i forgot to ask. but I'm hoping it will just need some really deep massage after is scars down, and some really specific strengthening. I'll let you know after I get my MRI results.

I will update things after my next visit when i hope to have some more good news to share about how well things are going. In the mean time, I want everyone to send positive thoughts and prayers to a fellow Canandian Tara Norton that was also injured in a crash in Hawaii, but who is still struggling with pain in her back, arms, and ribs. God speed in your recovery. All of us are pulling for you.

Hawaii Continued

Well its been 10 days since my accident, and a hellish 10 days it has been. That being said, I have to thank everyone for their patience and assistance with everything. Everyone has been soo gracious and helpfull i can't even begin to tell you how much it has meant. To say this accident has rocked my world is a mild understatement.

And getting around on crutches while on vacation has proven to be more difficult than i ever imagined. I tried to do as much as I could so that I wasn't holding everyone back or causing them to miss things on my behalf. I know that plans were altered to accomodate me, and I want to thank everyone for that, and for not making me feel like i was in the way. and I am glad to say that things have gotten better each day. I am now able to get down stairs on the crutches, get dressed on my own, and even shower without assistance. baby steps, baby steps, .... its amazing how much you appreciate the little things after something like this.

Things have not been all bad. I am happy to report that the snapping pain in my hip has gradually continued to improve, and now only really snaps when I try a straight leg raise (which i still can't do. not really sure how all these old people manage to do it at work !?!?!) I have also officially started my rehab program even before leaving hawaii. While there i used the stationary bike in the workout room at the condo complex and managed to get on the stationary bike for 40 minutes (on the lowest setting). I was also able to get in the pool to do some AROM exercises with gravity eliminated.

Crash and Burn in the Lava Fields

Well just to let everyone know who were watching or checking the race results, there were no problems with my timing chip, or my ribs, or the computer tracking my progress on the race. I actually did crash hard about 25 miles into the bike section of the race.
It happened soo fast I had a hard time processing it. It was just a fluke accident. at the instant it happened I was reaching back for a water bottle with one hand and only had my left hand on the bars when i hit the right edge of a highway reflector that kicked my front wheel out from under me and in an instant i went down. at first I didn't think things were too bad. I my shoulder was all cut up and sore, and my hip hurt like a bitch, but i somehow managed to never hit my head or lose consciousness. I knew it wouldn't be pretty, but i figured i would probably be able to finish the race - i mean i still had 14 hours left.
At the time both feet were still clipped into my pedals. it wasn't until i tried to unclip my feet that i realized i was in real trouble. i was totally paralyzed. i was completely turtled on the side of the road. by this point several volunteers had arrived on the scene to help, but i was informed that they couldn't touch me or i would be dq'ed. not wanting to be dq'ed i continued to struggle with freeing myself from my cycling shoes. after about 20 minutes i managed to free my right foot by releasing the velcro straps, and eventually managed to kick the bike off me and free both my feet. by this point the NBC cameras were on site recording everything. i was unable to move my left leg. I knew i was in trouble, but refused to give up on the hope of finishing. I hoped i had just a really bad hip pointer, that would get better if i kept moving it before it stiffened up and started to swell. I sat on the side of the highway for about 30 minutes passively moving my leg up and down as much as possible, screaming in pain any time it fell off to the side even slightly.

by this point the medical support had arrived to assess the situation. ironically the team consisted of the only orthopeadic surgeon on the island. after about 2 seconds she knew it was broken and said so. i was skeptical of her diagnosis and continued to try and move my leg. they eventually moved me out of the sun and got me up on my good leg before sitting my down on a chair. she was very nice about the whole situation, repeatedly asking me if i wanted to quit. I told her i really didn't think I had broken it, and that eventually i would get better. after about 90 minutes sitting at the side of the road, and the last of the racers passing me by, i tried one last time to stand and weight bear on my leg and get back on my bike. I took ONE step and was on the ground in excruciating pain. as I lay there on the ground in tears, i finally gave up and told them "I quit. I'm done".

unfortunately that was not the end of the the pain. I unfortunately had to then climb into a van and drive 35 miles to the hospital, where i again had to climb back out and onto a stretcher. and by this point the adrenaline was definitely wearing off, and the pain was becoming VERY apparent. I was then wheeled into the emerg department where I was met by a team of doctors and nurses that cut all my clothes off me, took my vitals, started an IV, xrays taken (probably the most painful thing of all), and was finally given pain killers - mmmmm pain killers.

after about 30 minutes i was informed that i had an intertrochanteric fracture of my hip and that i was scheduled for surgery later that afternoon. i didn't know what to do. I immediately called my parents from a cordless phone from the emerg department that was really bad, so i had to yell so everyone could hear my conversation. as i struggled to hold back tears, i informed my parents about the situation and asked them to try and get in touch with my friend ian ball so i could ask his opinion on the surgery. I also frantically called around to friends in London to try and get cell phone numbers of friends and family watching the race so that someone knew where i was before i went under the knife.

i managed to get in touch with ian almost immediately and he really made me feel better about the situation. he informed me that it was a really simple surgery with very few complications.

nexted i managed to get in touch with tony frost in london who i ended up playing phone tag with for the next 2.5 hours as we tried different avenues to try and get in touch with anyone we knew in kona. we ended up calling and texting anyone and everyone we know at he race, including graham fraser in hopes that he may be able to do SOMETHING to get in touch with our friends. I can't thank tony enough for his assistance.

eventually i managed to get in touch with ryan hugget and rob whitmill. i informed them of what had happened so everyone wasn't running around after the race looking for me, as i knew they wouldn't release my medical info at the med tent. to my surprise rob and ryan jumped in the car and sped up to the hospital to be with me before surgery. i can't tell you how much that meant to me. by that point i was feeling very isolated and alone - and quite frankly scared shitless of having surgery without anyone knowing where i was.

at 5 pm i was rolled into surgery where i was met by the same crew that picked me up at the side of the road. apparently the 3 medics that picked me up were the anesthesiologist and physician assistant as well as the orthopod. they had made an exception for me, and came back on their day off after volunteering all day to do this surgery. again, i can' t thank them enough.

the next 5 hours are a blur. surgery apparently took about 2.5 hours where they put in 2 IM nails into my femur and hip joint. i was then taken to the ICU where christine was waiting for me, exhausted after an amazing race, and still managing to stagger up to the hospital to see me. i unfortunately don't remember her being there, but can't thank her enough for doing that.

the first thing i remember after surgery is waking up in my hospital room as a team of nurses hooked up my morphine pump and checked my vitals. i asked how everything went, and what time it was, and where my friends were, etc. i was out of it to say the least and i drifted in and out of sleep, especially after using a shot of the morphine pump. as effective as it was at relieving the pain, i tried to use it as little as possible as it gave me VERY strange dreams. i still remember dreaming i actually made it into T2 in the race and when i took my shoes out of the transition bag they actually came to life and started chasing me. as i said - very strange.

the next morning i was awoken at 6 am by my roommate trying to watch NFL football. I was a little confused to see football on at 6 am, but soon realized it was now 1 pm in NY and time for some football. Breakfast came at 7:30 am and i was starving not having eaten anything in over 24 hours. I quickly scarfed down the toast, eggs, and coffee. They tasted soo good. better than i ever remember them tasting. unfortunately that feeling of satisfaction was quickly lost as i became very nauseous and sick to my stomach.

at about 8 am i had my first appointment of the day PT. His name was Barry, and as it turns out is from Tucson and used to work at the same place i do now about 10 years ago. small world. unfortunately the small talked needed to be kept to a minimum as i needed to get moving if i wanted to get out that day to see christine pick up her award and the post race banquet. As Barry grabbed a walker and slipped on a gait belt, i slowly managed to get myself to a sitting position at the side of the bed. After a few minutes i managed to take a few steps and pretty soon we had managed to make it all the way around the floor with me dragging my left leg behind me. I was informed i was only allowed toe touch WB for 6 WEEKS!! and although i knew it was easier to get around lifting it off the ground rather than dragging it, that was just impossible. the pain in my hip everytime i tried sent me through the roof.

after doing 2 laps of the floor, we returned to my room, where to my delight and surprise christine sat there waiting. i can't tell you how amazing it was to finally see her. she hugged me as i broke into tears. she was amazing. she just hugged me back and told me everything would be ok, and that we would get through this.

after my little breakdown and finally learning the details of how she did (awesome by the way) we took a very slow walk to the gardens area out front of the hospital. our visit was cut short unfortunately as i needed to be taken for more tests to check for blood clots or damage to the blood flow to my left leg. I told her i would call later, and that i hoped to be able to leave that day to be a the awards banquet to see her get her award. she wasn't too keen on the idea, but reluctantly agreed to wait to see what the MDs said - sure they would agree with her that it wasn't smart.

later that afternoon, Ryan and Diana Hugget stopped by to see how i was doing. It was a total surprise, and above and beyond anything i expected. I was soo happy to hear that Diana had finished in fine form, and that Ryan had managed to get back to see her finish after coming up to the hospital to see me. i filled them in on what had happened and on surgery, and on my plans to go the the banquet. Diana was not sure it was such a good idea either.

unfortunately i'm pretty stubborn at time (ok most of the time) and i managed to persuade the MD's to give me a LOA for the night. They were gracious enough to loan me a wheelchair and walker for the night as long as i promised to return them ASAP as Larry the nurse case manager was putting his neck on the line for me. (yet another person i have to thank for going above and beyond what they ever needed to).

christine picked me up at 5 pm outfront of the hospital as i sat in my w/c holding my walker like a 90 y/o man. with a lot of help (and A LOT of pain) i managed to get into the car. maybe this wasn't such a good idea. oh well, no turning back now.

with the assistance of christine, i managed to get back out of the car, and hobble my way in where i needed help getting my food, drinks, and even to go the washroom. everyone was amazing. and as much pain as i was in, i was glad to be able to be there to share everyone else's victories, and especially to see chris pick up her award after watching how hard she had worked all spring and summer. she definately deserved it. congrats chris - i am soo proud of her.

i will have to fill you in on the rest of my adventure at a later date before this becomes a novel. but i really need to finish this off by thanking everyone for their help, assistance, and kind words. I would like to thanks all the doctors and nurses at the kona community hospital, the OR team, Dr Chang the surgeon who even went as far as to call my parents, Larry the RN manager who enabled me to go to the awards banquet, Barry and Ric my 2 PTs that got me walking again, to all my friends that have called and helped me after i got home. But I really need to thank Christine who i have had to rely on for almost everything. She has been amazing. more than amazing. she has been awesome. she has had to do everything from help me get dressed and shower, change my dressings, and help me get in and out of the car a million times. I have no idea how i can repay her for all she has done other than to say thank you and i love you.

Buffalo Springs Lake Triathlon

We departed Tucson in a panic late Friday afternoon, despirately trying to get out of town before the monsoons hit town. The plan was to drive as far as possible and grab a hotel to reduce the drive on Saturday to Lubbock. As we set out, things look like it would rain and possibly storm. And we THOUGHT we may avoid the storm, but things just got worse the farther east we headed. Just as the sun was setting, we got to experience our first dust storm. It was very strange. Kind of like fog, but very windy and dark.


































After excaping the dust clouds, the sky lite up with lightning and thunder. The sky was BLACK and nasty looking, but the rain never really came. It rained a little, but never too hard.



We drove until 1 AM before trying to find a hotel in Rosewell of all places. To our surprize the place was packed with UFO watchers, and after checking all the respectable places in town, we ended up staying at the Econo Lodge - a rather shady place to say the least. I'm just happy I didn't catch anything staying there.



The next day we drove on to Lubbock without incident. The road is dead straight and boring, soo when I thought I saw spiders all over the road, I wasn't sure if I was over tired and seeing things, or sleeping at the wheel. After talking to a coworker after the race that grew up in this area of Texas, she assured me I wasn't imagining things.



The city of Lubbock is pretty cute, and Texas Tech University campus rocks. It is soo classy. The downtown by the university was a little lacking, but overall it was pretty cool. We spent most of the day hanging out in the hotel room getting ready for the race, cleaning our bikes and watching the weather forcast online and on TV between constantly looking outside. When we went to bed, we were still very uncertain what the next day would bring.



When we awoke at 4 AM, the sky was angry, with the occational flash of lightning. I was certain the race would be cancelled, but we ventured to the race site anyway. Following the stream of cars, we arrived very early to get try and get a good parking spot. The walk in was a little scary as we had to trek about a mile into the park in pitch darkness to get to the transition area. Smart orgainized me forgot my helmet and I had the pleasure of trying to run back to the car against traffic in the dark to get it. so much for a calm relaxed warm up.

The race ended up starting a little late because of parking issues and disorgainization on the part to the race orgainizers. To say the start was disorgainized was being generous. There was no one calling the waves or getting them lined up, no one getting athletes to cross the timing mat, making sure everyone was in the right wave (i'm sure if you were willing to risk it, you could easily get a 4 min head start going in the wave ahead of your own, without anyone knowing)... but most disappointing for such an important race was the lack of even a starting line. People just kept edging further forward into the water, and then running along the shore line as the water levels were low, and no markers forcing you to swim out and around the corner. I opted to stay to the far left and not run the corner and hope that avoiding the crowds would pay off with less wasted energy. that and I can no longer mix it up like i used to since almost drowning in Hawaii 2 years ago - i get paniced very easy and would rather take a slightly longer line than get caught in a large group.

The swim was uneventful, and smooth. I stayed to the inside the whole way and avoided any trouble. I worked on trying to stay relaxed and smooth, and really concentrate on my recovery, keeping my elbow high and efficient, and my stroke turn over high. I felt my sighting was pretty good, and never got too far off course. As i exited the water, i checked my watch - 27 min and change. a PB. As I ran up the ramp to transition I looked for the wetsuit strippers as I heard they were going to be there, but I somehow missed them and ended up kicking it old school and trying to get it off myself as i stood at my bike.

The bike ride was a little different than usual. Normally I attack right from the start trying to catch anyone in front of me, going as hard as I can for as long as i can. This time i was worried about my hamstring that I had pulled a few days earlier so took it a little more conservatively, focusing on spinning more, with high RPM, and not trying to power up the hills. The bike course was relatively flat and fast, with several decent hills thrown in as you cris crossed the canyon in which the lake and conservation area were located. The hills weren't that though going up, but were very tricky going down. The rain had brought the oils to the surface of the road, and the corners on the hills were like glass. I did a good job on most of the corners but got careless on the last decent, neary going off the road on a quick switch back that caught me napping.

The ride back to T2 was straight into a head wind, and after trading off the lead with several other guys in my AG, i put my head down and tried to keep the pressure on to the end of the bike. Not really feeling like I was going as hard as I normally like to, and keeping an eye on my time, as it kept creeping closer to 2:30 for my bike without the end in sight, I kept expecting to be passed by other riders. It wasn't until the run, when one of the other guys I was racing told me how much of a dent I put into them in the last 10 km that I realized how well I did.

The run started off well. I was feeling good, and my legs felt better than usual with much less lactic acid. Again I focused on technique, trying to stay relaxed and my turnover high. I was having a hard time judging how well I was doing, as several runners (4 in total) passed me pretty handily. I was however slowly picking off one female pro after another, so I assumed I was doing ok.

At about the 13km mark, I managed to do something I have never done before in a race. On an small down hill my shoe lace came undone and I ended up tripping over it and going down hard. I tried to get up as quickly as possible, but I had easily lost a good 30-40 seconds, and 2 positions as 2 runners went past as I was on the ground. With a shot of adrenaline, and fear, I eventually caught back up to the 2 runners and passed them back. But with blood running down my arm, and my hip aching, and now blisters forming on my feet from my rain soaked shoes, the last 8 km was going to be tough. I tried to suck it up as best I could, and was either doing pretty good at it, or others were suffering worse than me, as I slowly gained time back on many of the runners that passed me in the first half. Unfortunately I was unable to catch all of them before the line, but felt good about my finishing kick, as I managed to pass 2 poeple in the last mile.

As I crossed the line, I felt pretty good about my race. I had a solid time, and finished strong. Not really having any idea where I ended up in my AG, I was sure I had done pretty well. And a quick check on the results showed I had managed to get 5th in my AG with a PB in both the swim and the run. Not bad considering 2 days before I didn't think i could race.

With about 40 minutes till Chris made her way to the finish line, I quickly got changed and ran back to the car to get my camera to try and catch her crossing the line. Unfortunately she was too fast for me to get back in time - finishing in a time of 4:54 and first in her AG. And more importantly, having had a PB in the swim and run, and didn't end up in the med tent !! I did however manage to get a picture of the dynamic duo shortly after she had crossed the line.

Trilife and Relationships

Do triathlons and tri training enhance or detract from a relationship ?

There is no right or wrong answer, and probably as many opinions as there are people doing tris. But having personally watched others relationships - and a few of my own - stretched to the limit or even to the point of collapse as a result of the training and partnerships and friendships formed during all that time spent training, I really have to wonder.

Is it the time spent training and hanging out together, the socializing after the workouts and races, the travel to races and time spent in hotels, or the hard bodies that make us jealous ? Or is it an inherent insecurity most of us endurance athletes have that keeps us humble and constantly striving to do better. And why does it seem to get get worse the more training we do ? Or maybe its just me. But I don't think so.

Ironman training and racing however seems to bring with it insecurities and issues other triathlon distances don't really have to deal with - time and money. This sport is expensive and time consuming, and there is a lot of athletes with a lot of disposable income - and a lot of free time. And if you don't have either, your already at a disadvantage.

The pros have all the free time, are fun easy going, and FIT. The top age groupers have MONEY. Money for the latest clothing and equipment, money for training supplements and coaching, money for race entries and travel expenses, money for IM stuff .... not to mention the Hummers, and Porches. And in a sport with 80% men, the competition for the attention of the few women in the sport is fierce. And as a result the guys with money or lifestyle use it to their advantage.

As a man in our society, we are taught that money is power, and a berometer for how successful a man is. And with money comes confidence in addition to all the many luxeries it can provide - both of which are very attractive to members of the opposite sex.

And when your partners success ultimately surpasses you, and they are constantly surrounded by both athletes with BIG money or professional athlete good looks your really F#$KED.

I personally think these insecurities are a combination of all these things, and leads us to feeling jealous and ultimately resulting in us to acting stupidly and to losing perspective on things. ultimately F#$KING up the very thing you value the most. Because you see, insecurity is like a cancer that slowly eats away at you, and gets worse with each passing day. Ultimately comsuming your thoughts and actions, until it destroys the one thing you tried soo hard to hang onto - your relationships.

Summer Heaven no BS !!

Well I just finished my first summer ride up Mt Lemmon to Summer Heaven, and they aren't kidding. I never would have believed that altitude would make such a difference in temperature, but it amazes me every time.

After sweating my ass off at the bottom of the climb at 85 degrees, I made it to the top about 2 hours later to a very comfortable sunny and breezy 68 degrees. But if I thought the ride up was amazing with the change in temperature, the ride down was mind blowing. The winds were ripping off the mountain on the way down, throwing me left and right. so much so I thought my brakes might get soo hot they may blow my tire !! Luckily they didn't, but the ride down was very tricky none the less.

The change in temp by the time I reached the bottom was UNREAL. The air felt like it was coming from a blast furnace and was thick as hell. I am not normally one to complain about the heat, but this was tough. I was ok by the time I got home and reaclitmated to the heat. I can see why people flock up the mountian in the summer. I think I will be making a few trips in the coming weeks when temps reach a very comfortable 120 degrees here in the valley. YIKES !!! may have to do hill repeats at the top of the mountain - after driving up there !!

Deuces Wild !!

Well I just got back from the Deuces Wild 1/2 IM in Show Low AZ, and it was totally not what I was expecting.

The drive there was absolutely amazing. What should have been an easy 3 hour drive, ended up taking a good 5 hours after stopping a dozen times to take pictures and to take in the views. It was exactly as I imagined AZ would look when I moved here. I kept waiting to see the roadrunner come burning up the road in a cloud of smoke, and Wye Lee Cyotte chasing wearing a pair of rocket skates !! The pics really don't do it justice.

The race venue itself was surprisingly very similar to Muskoka or Peterborough. I really never imagined pine forests in Arizona, but what did I know. We arrived late friday afternoon, registered and checked out the venue. It really was amazing - with the exception of the lake. Although it looked pleasent and inviting, it was anything but. At a balmy 58 degrees, it was colder than Tempe Town lake at IM AZ !!! Needless to say, a prerace swim was out of the question.

After hanging around for a few hours, checking out the sponsor tent, talking with the Skins and Kuota reps, and after Chris had ripped off the local middle school kids for dinner, we headed back to our luxury hotel. Lucky for us, the inside was better than the outside - or the bar attached to it. Seedy would be a minor understatement.

We awoke early on Saturday to pack the truck, and drive to the race site. To say it was cold, is a minor understatement. Even worse, was that neither of us brought enough clothing, and as a result we froze out A$$ off. Lucky for us there wasn't a cloud in the sky and things warmed up quickly. The lake however didn't warm at all.

The mens swim went off at 6:30 am, and was soo cold I began to panic and hyperventilate the instant my face hit the water. I had to really concentrate on relaxing as I was sure I was going to have to DNF if I could calm myself down soon. I managed to get things under control for most of the swim, but had several minor episodes during the swim when I hit cold(er) spots. Needless to say, my time was a little slower than I would have liked, but i had survived, and that was most important. My feet however were completely frozen by the end and had real issues running into transition. Not to mention trying to get my wetsuit off.

The bike started with problems right from the get go. After getting up to speed, I tried to shift into my big chain ring, and nothing. I tried several times before having to get off and switch it over manually. Once rolling though, things went really smooth. I began picking off people one right after another, until the half way point, at which point I was all alone. Not really sure where I was in the race, and with no one to chase, and no one chasing me I found myself getting into a solid pace, but definately not pushing as hard as I should have. I also ended up missing 2 turns weaving my way through the neighbourhood surrounding the conservation area.

Having seen the leaders already on the run course coming into transition, I tried to rush things and ended up leaving T2 the wrong way and had to back track. Not to self - check the course out before the race !!! I began the run as quick as possible affraid I had lost too much time with all my stupid mistakes. I was trying as hard as possible to suck up the pain of my blisters on both feet I got on my last run 2 days before the race. Can anything else go wrong ?!?! Once I hit the turn around at mile 10 and I realized no one was near me - infront or behind - I decided to coast in to the finish. I crossed the line in 4:43:?? in 3rd place overall.

Overall I was happy with my race. It was a solid effort, and much better than I ever expected. And I'm glad the bike section of the race is largest, otherwise Christine who ripped up the course finishing first in the womens race would probably have beat me !!!

Next time I will have to prepare a little better, and iron out the little mistakes if I want to do better in Texas next month.

HR, Fatigue, and Training Effect

This is a shout out to all you Exercise Phys experts.

Its a question I'm sure everyone has asked or thought about at some point training for an IM or half IM, but probably never looked any further. It crossed my mind this w/e as I struggled through a "speed set" in the pool as my third workout of the day, and at the end of a very heavy week of training and work. I was doing sets of 12x50 (25 all out, 25 easy) followed by a 200 all out. I was dead tired, but after starting I was determined I was going to finish the workout. During the workout I kept track of my HR and times. I was clearly at my LT based on my HR, but my times were VERY slow compared to what they should have been. As I struggled through, I kept wondering - am I actually getting the benefit of the workout I should be ? I was clearly working at my LT, but at the same time I was soo dead tired, I definately wasn't doing a real "speed set". So often when training for an IM we do workouts dead tired and just pushing through. So my question to the experts :

Do you still derive the benefit of pushing up your LT doing these workouts dead tired and slower than expected, but clearly at the proper HR zone ? Or are you doing more harm than good ? Or is it better to just call it quits, skip the w/o and have a nap and recover and do a better quality workout tomorrow ?

I would be interested in seeing if there is any scientific evidence - or everyones personal experience.

Arizona Roadkill

Well its official - roadkill season has started !! In comparison to London the number of animals on the road is much lower (no raccoons here !!) but definately much more interesting - or exotic. Intially I saw a few small VERY dead snakes and other small animals. But they were very far and few between. At first I was very interested and excited when I came apon something new and exotic. A few weeks ago I saw a VERY dead Gila Monster. I felt sad for him.

In the last two days however, things have really picked up. The animals are no longer small and cute, but big and scary. Yesterday on my ride I came across a dead pitt bull. It was sad. He obviously had just been hit recently, and luckily it wasn't gross. It just looked like he was sleeping. Later in the ride I saw one of the scariest things I have seen in real life - a giant 6 foot long black king snake. I was lucky not to hit him. He was in the bike lane right at the end of a 4 hour ride, and I was tired, and just managed to avoid it after riding with my head down. At first I thought he was dead, but after turning around to take a closer look, I realized he was still very much alive. I quickly made a quick 180 and got the hell out of there.

Today I came across two very cool of AZ finest. At the start of my ride I came across a Gila Moster trying to cross the road at about a half a mile an hour. Without getting too close I managed to scare him back into the desert and save his life. Good deed for the day done. I was excited to have seen one, as they are very rare, and few people who live here for years get a chance to see one - let alone save its life.

All pumped up about seening some of AZ's wildlife upclose and personal I kept my eyes peeled to see the "urban legend" Javalina. Unfortunately no dice. I did however stumble across the biggest snake I have ever seen. It was about 7 feet long, and about as thick as my arm. Luckily it was dead - but just. It must have just been hit minutes before. Had I been just a few minutes earlier, I would have found myself screaming down the road at 35km/h staring at a giant snake and no where to go.

I quickly changed my mind. I am happy to not see anymore of AZ wildlife upclose and personal - especially since I still have yet to see a rattle snake, scorpion, giant millipeed, africanized bees, bob cats or cougers, ....

Hiring a Coach

Seemed like an easy thing to do when I started. I mean how many professional triathlon coaches could there be out there?!? A hell of a lot more than I expected thats for sure !!!

I thought it would be easy to decide. Check their record, results, philosophy, programs, .... and done. but instead its like buying a new car (or bike!!).

So you start with a budget and compare all the ones in and around there. You look at their credentials, race results, testimonials, .... and rates. And of course all the ones you want are just a bit more than your budget, but somehow you think you can justify it.

And this is where it really like buying a car - you start with a budget of X, and then see a car thats just a bit more expensive, but its got more horsepower, or better breaks, or looks better, so you justify it to yourself that you can afford that little extra. But then at the next dealer you see a car that is just a little more than the last one you convinced yourself you could afford but it drives soo nice. So you justify that little bit extra for A/C and traction control .... and pretty soon you have justified to yourself spending way more than you initially intended.

And it begs the question - especially with a coach. Are they better just because they were faster as a pro and are more expensive ? In our society if it costs more, it must be better. This applies with everything from cars and bikes, to jeans and wine. But is that $1200 bottle of wine really better ? Or has some popus ass just told us its better and therefore worth more ?

And with evaluating coaches its even more subjective. We already know that sometimes great althletes make terrible coaches. One only has to look at Ishia Thomas. Great basketball player. Terrible coach. Same with Wayne Gretzky, or Micheal Jordan. All great althletes with terrible coaching records.

And can you really believe everything you read on a website ? Have they all coached IM winning athletes ? And if so how come none of them give full names ?

I guess when it comes down to it, its going to be a bit of a leap of faith. I'll let you know who I decide on, and how soft the landing is.

Things I Like :

• Speedplay pedals
• 2008 Specialized Transition
• Arizona
• Blueberry bagels
• Ipod nano
• Tanning bed
• Chocolat Milk
• Carbon anything
• Diet Pepsi

Things I Hate :

• Uggs boots
• Snow
• Credit Card Bills
• Slow swimmers in the fast lane
• YMCA change room
• Reality TV
• Blisters, saddle sores, lost toe nails, ...