left.right.repeat group -closed - Full of a bunch of winners...YEAH! (Page 43)

Hey, I'm here <cricket>

Bryan - did you happen to see a guy or girl at the Longhorn 70.3 wearing "Tri The World" gear? He is from my hometown of Ottawa and is part of the www.runningmania.com forum that I post on. He and his significant other are doing (they may in fact be done now) 16 HIM's in 11 countries over 8 months this year. He's a testicular cancer survivor and doing as a fundraiser. Amazing. His t-shirts have printed on the back, "It's all fun and games until somebody loses a nut"

It's Thanksgiving today but we actually celebrated yesterday because Stephanie heads back to uni this morning on the bus. We had a great visit with her and she enjoyed being home. I'll get to see her again in 2 weeks when I go over to PEI to close up the cottage for the season.

Tomorrow is election day in Canada. Did any of you even know? We are inundated with news of the US election but I suspect ours isn't even on your radar unless you're a real world news junkie. Our system is very different - a parliamentary democracy - so we don't actually vote directly for our Prime Minister (PM) but rather for a Member of Parliament from our local riding. The leader of whatever party gets the most local members becomes the PM. Polls suggest that the Conservative party will form a second straight minority government so the PM will remain the same - Stephen Harper is his name.

Hope to get out for a run today to work off some of the turkey etc. from yesterday. 

Leston - OMG its colder there than here! Not often I get to say that.

Did a 5.5 k run today. Absolutely gorgeous fall colours here. I'm sure it is similar in Mav's and Dan's necks of the woods. I love this time of year. Cool, crisp mornings/nights but quite lovely during the day. here's a pic my daughter took yesterday whilst out on a "hack" (apparently this is what you call going out with a group of friends for a ride on your horse!)

And to prove I love him just as much as I do his sis, here's a pic of son Chris after his football game on Saturday:

Finish Line updated....I just have to say....we are awesome....we are at 48 finish lines for the year.....what are we doing in 2009 to top that...wow!!!!

FBP - love the civics lessons....or government lesson or whatever you all call it....by the way, you obviously love your daughter more....her pic was bigger.....LOL!

Mav - Sox will be okay.....by the way, it is SOOOO cool to see a friend or relative finish their first.....I can't wait to run the San Antonio Rock n Roll Half Marathon with my brother...he is pretty geeked right now....I am trying to keep him calm.

So each of you has effectively dodged the "what are you going to do in 2009?"  Goal time peeps....what's it gonna be???

sTRIve

FBP - I did see the Tri The World folks...and the back of their jerseys showed they were supporting testicular cancer....I wish I had known ahead of time...I stood right by them at packet pickup....I think there were three but I may have mis-counted....I was a little wigged out at that point.....

They had cool jerseys....if I had only known....I would have connected through my friend, FBP.  How cool that would have been......

Mav - hanging tough -- they both look good tonight.....I would love to be there....as I am sure you would too.....

All - had a short training run of 17 miles yesterday with a nice 1 hour bike today....I rode my road bike...I haven't been on it in months...felt really good....after it got over being mad at me for neglecting her.....smile.  The run was.....ouch....there is a lot of difference between 14 and 17 miles......duh!!!  Two weeks until I run 20....I cannot believe this stuff...FBP, how do you do this....my hips and knees were hurting....my calves tightened and loosened the whole run....I felt REALLY good up to about 11 miles...hit some more hills and they did me in....by 14 miles I was hurting....just gutted out the next two miles and then the last one was ok....the Garmin says I climbed 2362 feet and descended 2336, I think the downhills are as painful late in the run.

FBP - it's time for some serious marathon tips....bring em on....

Here's a link to my Garmin data from the workout if you want to check it out...the Garmin 405 is really cool....  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/1118610

sTRIve

Dan - duathlons are tough....I wish you could have done it to compare it to your tris this year.  About next year, I personally would recommend you get a couple of Olympic distance races in next year prior to the HIM.  The lessons learned in a 3+ hour event are invaluable and you will be in better shape next year.  I was fortunate to have the HIM late in the year so I could easily do two Olys spread apart by three months before the HIM...then a month after the second Oly it was HIM time.  I have no doubt you can do it, but the 3 hour experience I think really helped me as the clock kept climbing higher and higher.....7 hours is a LOT different than a hour and a half as we all know.  So if you can get in an Oly or two prior to it to check the fitness, certainly go for it.

Dan - GO TO THE DOCTOR

Leston/Dan - some of us were rooting for the Horned Frogs....smile.

Mav - knee clicking....sounds like old age.....ROFL...spray it with WD40 and take another Condroitin (sp?)....or maybe your hubby put a playing card in your spokes so he could hear you coming and you wouldn't be able to sneak up on him.  By the way, there are all sorts of parts of me that creak and pop and click and all manner of distracting effects....

Mav - marathon in January....I have three more long runs before the marathon.  Thanks for your concern but I feel really good.  I am fully recovered I think - I ran three miles today nice and easy.  I am looking forward to some extended time off in January after I run it.  I have actually done almost nothing the last two weeks....this past weekend got me moving again.

I had Active Release Therapy today.  If you ever get a chance to check this out at a race expo, do it.  Any tightness anywhere can be helped.  I have tried massage and just hadn't found someone who really knew what I needed.  ART really was helpful.  Google it if you want to learn more.

Mav - Endurance Nation - I am a member of the forums and have considered buying their season plan.  I have invested a lot of hours on their podcasts and video and have learned a lot.  I am considering buying their plan maybe in 2010 - they have been around a while but are tweaking the plan quite a bit.  They market themselves as being different and maybe they are but they come across to me as pretty similar.  There is a lot of bike and not a really long run compared to some other plans.  A lot of intensity work, big fans of power (not required but certainly helpful) meters, very little if any swimming until pure race prep starts.  I am currently comparing six plans for next year to see what I am going to use.  I am building an Excel spreadsheet to see the differences and similarities between them.

sTRIve Turtles sTRIve

Wow. Great to open up the site this morning and see all the updates. I was starting to wonder whether our group was drifting apart now that tri season is done for some of us. I sure hope not because I love staying in touch.

There was so much news that I've had to open a second window so I can conveniently flip back and forth to respond/comment on all the points in previous posts.

As for the Sox, I too was really hoping but 'twas not to be. On the upside though, there is a player on the Phillies from ... Freddy Beach !!! Matt Stairs is the player and he is a local hero as you might imagine. He has played with a lot of teams (including the Sox) but is probably best known as an Oakland A. He also has played with both Canadian teams - the Expos and the Blue Jays. Go Matt Go !!

My Learn To Run group is progressing well. We are at 4:1 now and step up to 5:1 tomorrow evening. I have a core group of about a dozen that are really dedicated but sadly just lost one of them due to a non running related broken ankle.

My own running and swimming has been slack of late. I've done 5-6k at the most on the weekends and haven't been to the pool in a couple of weeks. I have been continuing to ride my bike to/from work even though it is getting really chilly in the mornings (just below 0c) and depressingly dark at 7 a.m.

No firm plans yet for tri's next season, beyond the one wehere I willbe guiding Myra (July 11). I need to spend some time looking at event calendars for planning purposes.  

I was in Montreal on Friday to receive a "National Volunteer of the Year" award from the Canadian Diabetes Association. Very humbling. Cool too that the founder (and owner) of The Running Room chain, John Stanton, received the National Corporate Partnership award. It was his program that I followed when I first started to run and it is through the RR store that I teach plus Jill teaches there and is a p/t staffer too.

 Yes, Cuba is a permitted destination for Canadians. It seems to me that the US of A is drifting towards communism - travel restrictions first and now government intervention in the markets resulting in nationaization of some financial institutions. YIKES. What will be next?

Canadian election was almost a non-event. $300 million to hold it and in the end the same parties were elected in alomst the exact same proportion. YAWN.

To those of you nursing injuries remember RICE -  Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation

FBP

Dan - you drive a stake through my heart with your comments about medicare. It's been said that the difference between an american and a canadian is that the canadian doesn't carry a weapon but does have healthcare

FBP

FBP - many congrats on the NATIONAL VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AWARD -- holy crap -- I didn't know we were in the midst of such greatness.  All kidding aside, I cannot begin to think of anyone I know that would deserve such an award as much as you and I also know we don't know beans about what you and Mrs. FBP really give.....so congrats to you, mate.

sTRIve

Well.....Dan is partying.....

How bout those Spartans!!!!

Dan - be SURE you let it heal.  I would recommend a "confirmation of healing trip to the doc".  Debbie, aka Ms. LRR, is BACK in a boot - about a year after her last one.  She had not really run for almost a year and as she began to get back into it, has once again fractured her ankle....the left one this year.  She had a bone scan done yesterday as we don't think (me that is, with my extensive medical knowledge) that the Boniva has been very effective in adding density.  I KNOW this time her duration and intensity increases weekly were monitored by a very insistent (read PITA) husband/coach.  She is out of the Houston half in January and has been told no running until next summer at the earliest.  Hopefully we can make some headway for her in the next few months.  She is about to fall in love with her bike.

Mav - the marathon is in January....MLK weekend.  Here is the schedule for the next few weeks.....this weekend 20 miles, then next weekend 5 miles, then a weekend half marathon, then 5 miles, then a weekend run of 23 miles, the a couple of 5s and then the LONG 25er.....a taper of a few weeks and then it is here....

FBP - where the heck are you.....volunteering????

sTRIve

FBP reporting for duty Sir!!

Not all that much to write about. I have managed to get to the pool twice this week although neither swim was of any tremendous length. Ran with my running class on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Sure is getting dark early now and although we've yet to receive snow, it won't be long until we get the first few dustings.

Our Freddy Beach baseballer, Matt Stairs, won a cherished World Series ring the other night with the Phillies!!

The big news is that Mrs FBP was offered a job this week. It is a part-time term position in the Student Employment Counselling centre at UNB. It is exactly the kind of work she wants to do and perfectly aligned with her Master of Adult Ed studies , which she will continue to do along with the job.

I've been on the road for collective bargaining this week ( ) and will be up to Toronto for two days next week for meetings.

This is a big weekend for marathoners - the NYC marathon goes on Sunday. If you ever have the chance it is a MUST DO event.

Strive on everyone 

You can sure tell the days are getting shorter....the posts are getting shorter and we can stay on the same page here for many days more than in the past....

Remember to keep up the training....you all rock

sTRIve