[source]

Thanks to Memphry

This Sunday was our Eastern Canadian Championships in Magog, Quebec. I was lucky to stay in a nice condo on the water...I tried on many occasions to spot the lake's infamous monster, Memphry, but I am sad to report that there were no sightings to document. Apparently Memphry has been spotted over 225 times in the last 200 years. I guess he / she (?) got scared away by all the crazy people flailing in the water.

Anyways, the race went really well. I was out of the swim where I needed to be and made up time in transition to be with the lead pack on the bike. I was feeling quite weak after my sickness, and I didn't quite have the legs on the hilly course. I stuck in and played it safe, taking some pulls and watching for any breaks. I had a great T2 and was off running, so happy to be where I wanted to. Unfortunately I went the wrong way on the run, but I was fortunate to realise my mistake and turn around in the right direction. I had to sprint back up to first, and I was so relieved to have the speed and energy left to do so!

The town was so beautiful and I enjoyed staying there. I hope that I can go back soon...there are so many paths and restaurants to explore. I won't bore you with the story of my two hour adventure in the grocery store...some people love shopping for clothes...I love shopping for food!! They had the most amazing grocery store; oh how I wish we had Metros like that in Ottawa. Or maybe not. I wouldn't get much done because I would be grocery shoppin all the time.

There was a lot of racing this weekend and so I have many congratulations to give out.
1) Domi Jamnicky showed her fitness at the Junior race, coming in third. She has put so much work in and truly deserves this result. I am so fortunate to be able to train and race with her!
2) Sam Klus placed first in the U15 Elite category with some fast racing. Elise Charrier and Alex Maxwell represented Bytown well with some great results.
3) The veteran, Matt Vierula competed in the Elite Olympic race in Magog, placing fourth and getting a chance to TT the whole bike! I don't know how I would ever have done those hills on aero bars...
4) Ryan Cain, newly engaged to a gorgeous blonde lady, stole third position in the Long course race...apparently he was too cool for the medal ceremony and insisted that they mail his cash to him...but he did have the fastest bike after all. I am excited to help him work on his speed in the water. Then he can bring home the BIG bucks, and share some with me. :)
5) Leslie Sanderson and Dave Markin raced IronMan Lake Placid this weekend with some solid results. I am lucky to swim with them on a regular basis and their level of commitment is inspirational. Can't wait to hear about how the race went!
6) Garrett De Jong blazed through the Long course race in Muskoka. He tackled the hills and the challenging terrain to finish strongly....just slightly behind some of North America's better know Pro Athletes.
7) Paula Findlay. Need I say more? Zooooooooommmmmmmmmmmm.

Next up is Ontario Provincials here in Ottawa; the first ever draft legal race to be held here! It will be an exciting race, and we have to thank Terry McKinty for letting us use his course!

No Fun

It could have been the ducks in Pike Lake.
Or the residence at University of Saskatchewan.
Or the red-eye flight home from Saskatoon.
It could have been in the warm water at Mooney's Bay.
Or something that I ate.
We may never know. But it sucks.

On Wednesday night I woke up many times to burps and cramping. I was feeling pretty sick, but nothing seemed to come of it. Thursday morning, tired and still nauseous, I dragged my butt out of bed and off to the pool. You could say that I threw up just as I was walking from my car to the pool. I will tell you that I felt 100 times better afterwards. But the good feeling didn't last a very long time...

Once I got home I had no appetite and the burping was back. Pair that with gastrointestinal problems and you have a winning combination. So here I am, five days later, still sick. Feeling quite tired and weak.

I have done my best to stick with the BRATTY diet - bananas, rice, applesauce, tea, toast, and yogurt. No food is really appealing, but the bland stuff I can usually keep down.

So that has been my week. Hope that I make it to Magog...and that everyone else is doing okay!!

Hot hot heat

I love the heat.
I love the sun.
I love blue skies.
When it is cold, I think of my love for summer.
I wish for warm.

This week I got it. Since Saturday Ottawa has seen highs of 35C. That gives us a overall high of about 43C with the humidity. It has been a little difficult to get in the usual training as the heat can be so draining.

Mother Nature, sometimes you are a little too generous with the sun. But I am not complaining. I will take this over -20C and snow ANYDAY.

Next up, Saskatoon!

UFC at Coteau-du-Lac and Canada Day

Trying to smile after drinking 2 Litres of water for CCES...

I am in serious need of a nap!

So this is much overdue, but I raced at Coteau-du-Lac in Quebec last Saturday. It was a national Junior series race as well as a Continental Cup race, and the set up and accommodations were excellent. I really noticed a difference between the transition zone set up from this year and last year, and it was a lot smoother and thought out.

I arrived the day before and looked over the course before heading over to the pre-race meeting a couple of kilometres away. In the meeting we learnt of a new rule now being enforced in all TriCan and WC races. For the first time ever, we were going to be using a penalty box for any infractions over the course of the race. The penalty box was to be placed on the run course, and the athlete may decide on when to serve their penalty (first or second lap). For those who are curious, a fifteen second penalty is given if an athlete false starts, drops any equipment on the way to transition, touches their bike before fastening their helmet, mounts before the mount line, dismounts after the dismount line, unbuckles their helmet before racking their bike, and fails to put their helmet in the equipment box (we didn't have equipment boxes for this race).

Anyways, I headed back to the hotel for dinner with the team and Andrew McCartney. Then settled in for the night. The race wasn't until the afternoon the nest day, and I enjoyed the chance to sleep in (which means 7am) and relax before the race.

We arrived on the race site with pouring rain and cooler temperatures, and soon learnt that the race was not wetsuit legal. I warmed up and did the normal preparations. Unfortunately, our swim warmup was a little short, but I got in a couple starts and was ready to go.

I got a decent spot on the pontoon, but I wasn't prepared for the blast of the start horn and the thoughts in my head revolved around, "boy, I bet that water feels chilly without my nice warm wetsuit". I didn't have a great start, and I found myself being pushed back as the pack closed in. This is when I received a swift kick to the face. A girl's heel connected right with my right eye, and of course my goggles. I couldn't really see out of that eye and my vision went blurry and white. Sighting was slightly difficult, as was the run up the stairs to transition. I now have a pretty sweet looking black eye...I will get some pictures up when I can!!

Out of the water, I was farther back then I wanted but I knew I had to minimize any damage on the bike. After two laps of working with Domi Jamnicky and Mag Rochette, I was slowly starting to see out of my right eye. It became obvious that there were some effective team tactics going on, and with this being an important qualifying race for Worlds in September, it wasn't hard to understand why a strong team would take this approach.

Once I got off of the bike I did what I could on the run, but I had lost too much time to run to the spot I wanted. Overall, I learnt where I can make some corrections and prepare for the next race!

In other news - Happy Belated Canada Day! I trained a bit in the morning and then went up to a friend's beautiful cottage to relax and celebrate.

Canada Day Road Race