Karma

Over the past couple days i have had three seperate events take place in my life that all had a happy ending due to good karma.

1st Event:

Saturday night taking a cab in Vancouver i handed the cabbie $15 bucks. As i stepped out he said that i had given him too much. I had, i'd given him an extra $20. Good Karma

2nd Event:

Driving home from the ferry I rolled thru a stop sign and got pulled over. The cop decided to give me a warning. Good Karma

3rd Event:

Tuesday morning i couldn't find my wallet as i was rushing out the door. oh it'll turn up in my bag or something i told myself. Mid-morning Drew, pac-sport athlete services, told me some guy had called him saying he found my wallet on the pat-bay highway. Drew's contact number was on the back of a card in my wallet. That was the only contact number in there i think. I called this guy back and sure enough he said he had found in near Sidney on the highway. What!? I met him and he told me more about it, that is GREAT KARMA!

With all this good karma though i'm thinking i must have some bad karma coming my way, im bracing for it anytime now.

Crash and Burn...but so much fun

When my coach Patrick asked me what the goal of doing a Cross Country Ski Race was I said, "to give it a go and have some fun." But also in the back of my head was my competitve ego saying "me want more sports!" See, all my life i've competed at as many sports as possible. Besides golf, i've enjoyed all the sports i've tried and as a result have taken part in many types of tournaments or races. All except nordic skiing that is...

Sunday i was on the start line of the 30th Whistler Loppett ready to go. Stevo told me it would be a quick start and it was. I got in a good position leading up to the first climb where i bridged up to the front group of 3. I was also told to stay with the group as long as possible due to the gains in drafting. This i did, all the way up to the peak elevation of the course. Then the downhill section began... I put in a surge past the others and got into a good tuck. I figured my downhill ski racing days would start to pay off here, yup i looked over the shoulder and had a gap on the others. Not for long though as soon i ate my own words by succombing to a brutal yard sale on a tricky corner. The guy behind my narrow missed running me over as i got to my feet. No problem i told myself as i collected myself just relax and work your way back up, ok maybe not, my pole was freaking busted! As i proceeded on down the hills i was looking for someone with a spare pole. Maybe 5mins later i got one, but it was useless and kept slipping. Luckily i changed for another and it was alright. By then i was caught by the second group. We climbed up to the peak again and started to head down, i took the decent more cautiously this time but guess what i still bailed. The first thought that came to mind now was did i break the pole i just borrowed? No, pheeew. The second group left me sprawled over the track and i ended up eigth. Good fun and great food afterwards. What is painfull is that i'll have to wait like 10 months till i can redeem myself at another loppett, geeeez.

Thank god we have Raccoons

Listening to the radio on my way to swimming this week I heard about this crab that lives in the tropics. It is the coconut crab and it looks very evil. Not only is it gross but it is a pest. Lifting garbage cans up and rummaging through, as well as climbing coconut trees and sending bombs away. Their claws can lift up to 65lbs and could crush us. Raccoons are stuffed animals compared to these buggers.



Later that week I heard a brand new band, well new to the west. Russell has probably already being to see these guys in NYC i imagine. vampire weekend is pretty good, jumpy music.

Great fartlek run yesterday at the elk lake. 2X(6/2 4/2 2/2 2/2) descending effort. Good work in the bank.

Update

Having just finished 4 days of regeneration this week today was the first day of a two week build block which will be tough.

This morning we hopped in the water early at 6am to do 5k before the western canadian swim meet warm-ups. For about a week now i've noticed my stroke coming along, a more relaxed recovery with a high turnover i think is whats working. 3k warm-up brought us to the main set of:

10x(75 on 1:10, 100 on 1:10)

I felt great on this, must be the recovery showing, holding the pace times comfortably. Early catch and and light with the hands i found helped.

2hr road ride with stevo up and around the observatory and its only 11:00.

Next weekend i may enter into the Whistler Loppet, a 30km skate ski race. I"ve never tried a race like this and really want to giver a go.

Fast times of February High

Wow, i don't remember february being this windy and cold last year. The winds have been especially strong this week. Tuesday on a ride out near sidney the cross-wind was very strong, enough that you had to lean into it.

Thank god a headwind doesn't affect you in the pool, that would be killer. In the pool this week has been tough. Tuesday we had a speed set of 30x50 easy/hard on 60/40. I swam well on these holding 31-32's LC. Wednesday was a speed endurance set of 8x400. Very tough to stay focused on a set like this. A lapse in attention and you slow down. For me with my swimming it is and will continue to be all about stroke rate and maintaining a good rhythm. To do this i'll wear a finis tempo trainer, it beeps at variable intervals so you can match your stroke rate to it. I find if i don't use it i'll default to a long loopy stroke. THe 400's were 5:10-5:15 for me, not want i wanted but getting them done will definitley pay dividends.

Our weight program is going well and i can feel my legs gaining overall strength. Although from an outsiders perspective onlooker must be thinking, boy are those guys skinny..they have no muscles.

Much as the same this weekend i believe run rides and runs, perhaps a TT effort in the pool tomorrow.

Get in my Belly

Good weekend of training to log. 4.5hrs road ride where we all bonked and could laugh about it, long base run at Royal Roads which is quickly becoming my favourite place to run and ride.

HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY TO MY COACH PATRICK KELLY

Good little story here to tell which occured sunday during a 2k easy swim. Due to a massive synchro bananza the 50m pool and 25m pool were unavailable so Stevo and I headed to the dive tank area to swim a little bit. There was only 2 lanes for public swimming, so this was it for everyone who wanted to swim laps. Luckily there was only us two and 2 other guys.

As i am sure everyone who swims has encountered the "road hog" or perhaps more aptly titled "lane hog". Well these 2 guys were lane hogs thru and thru. Mid-way thru the workout i was swimming backstroke when i felt i was getting close to someone in front of me. I rolled over on to my front while taking a stroke, but when my hand entered the water it landed straight onto the hairy belly of the biggest hog. Woooooooooooah i had to stop myself before my face hit it too and then rolled off to continue swimming. geeesh.

Stevo had an encounter with this guy too. As he was swimming by the hog grabbed his arm and told him "this is the moderate lane, not a friggin shark lane!". Considering there was only 2 lanes i'd say it is up for grabs.

COld in the inner harbour today but no -50 thank god.




Myself with carpenter Dennis constructing a shelter for Hyack Air's Customer building.

The Troops

Here goes another anology:

group swimming and an army

Lets see, it begins with the colonels (Neil and patrick) scheming the plan of attack in the late hours over a few pints....oh yes we'll punish them here, make them attack here, no rest for the weak.

Come the day of reckoning the colonels yell out the workout/strategy to the troops. Find your arms and legs here, go thru your drills here, swoop in for a few short attacks here and then here the main rumble gets it on! The main set is the battle, you against the pool in a sense.

When it comes to undertaking the colonels orders the troops go in waves. The front line attacks first as a united three, reinforcements follow with the second, and then third rows as they pummel the enemy (pool).

After the storm subsides the troops cool their heads and back to the barracks until the next day to battle.