Sunday, March 29, 2009

Training/racing/other useless blabber

Training has been going really well since I left Guelph. I am in the third week of a four week block, and I was still going strong, until today. I will explain below.

Every other Friday in the pool we do 10x100 on 1:30 best average. I was pretty skeptical when i got in because i hadnt't been feeling the best lately, and warmup was no exception. My stroke felt long but laboured, so I was hoping that I would loosen up before the main set. And I did, I started out just above my 400 pace for the first four, and then from 5-9 I held under it. I kind of died on the last one, but nobody's perfect.

On the run, I know that I have been running well over the past month, but I had no way to guage it. My running coach Steve Weiler and his squad the London runner Distance Club hold two winter time trials a year to guage where your fitness is. At the end of February I ran a 15:10, and in one month i have knocked 45 seconds off of that time, which puts me at a pace that is just over my personal best for 5km. I was pretty surprised to see how fast i had ran it in because i was a little sore heading into it. But now my legs are exhausted, just standing kills me(maybe a little over exageration). So hopefully with a few lighter running days before Wednesdays hard run will be enough time to recover.

It is confirmed right now, the first triathlon is only three weeks away. I am heading down to Lubbock Texas to participate in the Twenty-Twelve Talent Identification sprint distance race. It is a cool concept, anyone from the ages of 16-23 are allowed to enter, and if you're 24-34 you need to be a top age grouper in the USA. There are no elites allowed, and you must finish the swim in under 16 minutes(it is going to be close). There is $4000 total prize money up for grabs, so hopefully I can dabble in that. Myself and last years National Champion Matt Vierula are the only Canadians that i know of that are going, so it should be a fun race. Because this is just a race to get all of the the winter cobwebs out, I am trying to make it as cheap a trip as possible, so i am flying in on Friday, racing Saturday afternoon, and flying out Sunday. It should be fun.

In other news, Kirsten Sweetland won the first World Cup of the year, Congrats. After being injured for most of last year, winning the first race has to get a lot of weight of the shoulders.

So until Later,

CH

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

5 km showdown

Well, it has been one day since I posted the challenge and my Dad is already playing mind games. My Dad has already used two alias', Kara Thrace is a character on Battlestar Galactica, and the character John Locke from the show Lost is an alias of Jeremy Bentham. Nice try there Dad.

A little background on my Dad. He is runnining about 10 miles a week, and he says that the best he will probably be able to go is around 22:30.

So keep the comments going, and leave your name, and I will administrate which comments are reliable, and the one's my Dad are writing.

So until later

CH

Monday, March 23, 2009

First camp has come to a close

Well, although my first training camp wasn't in the deep south of Florida or the desert of Arizona, going to Guelph was definately a good choice. Over the two weeks spent there, I could really feel the energy in all three sports come back. It is amazing the difference training as a triathlete has on you compared to training under coaches who specialize in individual sports. You end up going faster in the long run because your training is set up so that your are not trashing the same muscles over and over again, which leads to fatigue, and eventually injury. Only problem with training as a triathlete, is there are very few environments that allow you to do so.

The last month I have felt lousy in the pool, but after the first few days in Guelph, I began to get the zip back that was there early February. I was able to have some very solid workouts, and even got down to 3's and 4's on one set of hundreds. The total over the two weeks in the pool was just over 45 km. It would have been 50, but the pool was closed one day for some waterpolo thing.

With an increase in temperature over the last few weeks (it actually got into the double digits, and it wasnt negative double digits), it meant that I could brave it outside. It was nice to be able to finally take the bike off the trainer and hit the road. Now the next set is to be able to do it with out tights, jackets, and knee/arm warmers. Its hards to gage your fittness on the bike this early when all you are doing is base work, so we will see where i am in a couple of weeks when the local bike races start here in london. Total over two weeks was 6 rides/7hrs, so do the math.

Increase in temperature meant shorts on the run. Not quite warm enough to sport the bare chest, but i'll take whatever I can get. I was running very well knocking off under 3:10 for 1250 repeats, and then the next week I was doing them in 3:05's. It looks like all of the base i have done over the winter has paid off, now i just need the speed, although i did knock off a 29 second 200 at the end of a long workout. Total for the two weeks was 125km.

Firts race is in little over 2 weeks, a local 5 km. This race ranks in the top three of the year, right behind Worlds (if i make it) and PATCO. There are some very high stakes. My dad and I always do a 5km each year, I give him a handicap, and at the end whoever comes out on top wins control of the radio whenever we are in the car together, until the next challange(usually a golf match during the summer. I have held it since September, so he is getting a little ancy). As of right now I am giving him 7 minutes. To all my very few readers out there, post a comment on who you think is going to win, and leave your name, that way I know that it isnt just my dad voting for himself over and over agian in a ploy to indimidate me(its hard to be intimidated when im giving him 7 mintues), and on Good Friday (April 8) we will see who comes out on top. The last time we had out race my dad beat me bay a few seconds, so we are predicting another nailbiter.

Friday, March 20, 2009

The life of Thomas Evelyn Lokody

Thomas Evelyn Lokody was born in a small town in nothern Russia called Yakutsk in 1945. Yakutsk is one of the coldest cities on the planet with temperatures ranging from -45C in the winter to 30C in the summer. At the age of 5, Thomas Evelyn Lokody was already swimming. He made a great living as a spear fishermam during the winter because his full head of hair and lumberjack beard allowed him to swim for great lenghts of time. While the other fisherman were resorted to fishing through the ice, Thomas Evelyn Lokody could swim between ice holes catching fish.

At the age of 10, Thomas Evelyn Lokody began to lose his hair. This put an end to his spear fishing career because he was no longer able to keep his body temperature high. After losing his job, he set out on a treck to find his place in life. Thomas Evelyn Lokody eventually made it to the Paccific Ocean after a year of travelling, where he decided to go for a swim. Unfortunately the current was too strong, and it dragged him out to sea. Rather than swim back, Thomas Evelyn Lokody decided to take the Hard Road and see where this journey would take him, so he began to swim out to sea.

For 2 straight years Thomas Evelyn Lokody swam. For food, he used his spear fishing experience, and for sleep, he slept on the backs of whales. He eventually made it to Graham Island B.C. where he hitched a ride on a fishing boat to mainland B.C. From there he worked as a logger for 7 years.

At the age of 20, he set out to find out what the real world was like. He eventually made his way to Vancouver, where upon asking for directions, he was mugged by a blind 10 year old boy and his dog named Skruffy. Not knowing what the real world was like, Thomas Evelyn Lokody had no idea what was going on when the boy asked him if he could borrow his wallet for a few minutes to show his friends. After waiting for a week for the boy to return, Thomas Evelyn Lokody left and eventually made his way to the railroad station where he road the rails all the way to Thunder Bay.

After spending a few years in Thunder Bay flipping pancakes at a local breakfast establishment, Thomas Evelyn Lokody decided to go for a bike ride. He made it to Barrie before his bike broke down. From there he ran to Toronto. Upon arriving in Toronto, with nothing but the cloths on his back, Thomas Evelyn Lokody worked as a rickshaw driver. That is how he met Craig Taylor. Craig`s car had broken down, and he needed to make it to Guelph to coach a run practice in just over an hour and a half, and his only hope was Thomas Evelyn Lokody and his rickshaw.

An hour into the ride, Thomas Evelyn Lokody was ahead of shedule, he had been riding his bike at over 100km and hour, but that is when things started to go wrong. The massive power output that Thomas Evelyn Lokody was exerting on the old bike was too much for it, and it disinegrated. Not wanting Craig to be late, Thomas Evelyn Lokody carried Craig on his back for the last half hour of Craigs journey to the University of Guelph. They made it just in time. Craig was so grateful that he offered Tom a spot to train with his group. Tom accepted, moved to Guelph, where he would meet his future wife Erna.

That is the story of how my homestay came to be a triathlete. I will always be gateful to Thomas Evelyn Lokody for allowing me to stay in his home for two weeks while I trained with him. So with out further adieu,

Thomas Alexander Lokody


Thanks for the awsome two weeks. Here is a picture of Tom with my favourite two foods, along with me wearing a shirt his Grandmother from South Africa gave him.

So until later,
CH

Thursday, March 12, 2009

First training camp of the year

After training in London by myself for the last few months, I needed a break. Although my first training camp isn't in the sunny state of Florida, i do have good training partners, and that is all that really matters. Craig thought that it would be a good idea if I came to Guelph, so here I am. I am staying with Tom Lokody and his wife Erna.

The last few days of training have gone really well. It is nice to be doing triathlon specific training again. Monday was a light day, Tuesday was a a moderate day with a tough 2 workouts. I had a great swim and run that day, but it left me a little sore for the next day. Wednesday was light agian, and so was today. tommorow is a big day, and I am looking foward to getting in the trenches with some good hard work.

I satrted writing this post a few hours ago, and the reason for the amount of time it has taken to publish it is because I was inturepted by the CCES. Yes that is right, the CCES came to Tom`s house so that I could be tested. It was quite the scene when Erna answered the door, and then later when Tom arrived home to find us in the kitchen.

I will try and keep everyone updated over the next week and a bit that I am in guelph.

So until later,

CH