Meyrick Jones Racing: Kelowna Apple

"wise guys" quote:

It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best, knows the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.

- Theodore Roosevelt, speech titled "Citizen in a Republic" delivered at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

Everything you need is already inside.

- Bill Bowerman, co-founder of Nike, legendary coach, and father of the running movement.

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Kelowna Apple - 2 weeks out

With the holiday in the rear-view mirror and my road rash completely cleared up I am ready to ride (and run, and swim).

I have two weeks until Nationals in Kelowna... I will use the time to re-awaken my legs after the lull in training. There was a time when I would worry and stress out about a lull in training... now I keep it mellow - I've realized that if I go all out, all year, I burn out and lose any desire to train. These "breaks" are critical to mental and physical well-being.

I have been working out at IF and cross-training a bit during the last two weeks. I did an easy trail race and a fun mountain bike but I am ready to dial up some race specific workouts.

1. Aero position riding.

2. Knox Mountain simulations (the one "hill" on the Apple course).

3. Open water swimming.

4. Brick workouts.

I have only one niggling concern... the outside of my foot directly below my ankle bone is hurting when I run and a bit when I walk.

To combat this I will do neither.... ha ha... actually I think I will just de-emphasize the running for now - give it a day or two to come around. Maybe it's a lingering result of my failed Newton experiment, my roller-ski wipeout, or my endo on the mountain bike... I'm not sure. I need to watch out for injuries. They are extremely detrimental to my EOL (enjoyment of life).

On Sunday (today!) my friend Harley Rollins will be competing in the Self-Transcendence Tri-Du (which sounds very spiritual...) at Elk Lake in Victoria. Harley and I went to Saint George's together way back when. He is a type 1 diabetic and therefore has an extra set of challenges when it comes to racing and training. Harley has offered to share his race report here so that we can all hear the blow-by-blow account of his day.... stay tuned!