Great Article

This is a great article as it puts all that has gone on in the states in the last decade into non-economic language. It is 8 pages long but is a really interesting read. If you don't have time right now, bookmark it and read it later!

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/26793903/the_big_takeover

Spring is finally here...apparently! I am wishing I was still in the warmth of Arizona. They are calling for possible snow next week in Victoria!! Maybe the winds will blow it right through.

I'm going to try my hand at planting some veggies on my small balcony. Got the everyday herbs started off in those peat pellets, but I saw a bigger tray for bigger veggies like tomatos, kale, etc. Not really too experienced with this sort of thing but I get lots of sunlight so it should be ok. I do have a habit of killing plants though. To prove a point, my neighbours in the Kootenays brought me 4 cacti, as did somebody else, as a housewarming gift. They had a great idea thinking that I wouldn't need to take care of them...too much. They didn't make it.

Our last swim in AZ:

Wheelbarrow races!

Not seen every day

I forgot to mention something that you don't see in Canada. Down in Phoenix, on our last day driving back from the pool I looked out the window and saw a motorcyclist passing that had a gun strapped to his belt! No, not a cellphone like lots of other people, not a leatherman either. A GUN. Anyway, in my amazement I asked Noa to get a picture of it.

Just thought I'd share.

Spring is in the air

So it’s been a while since I last blogged. Since then a lot has been going on with training and getting a lot of kms in driving across BC. A group from PT Coaching spent a week down in the desert riding, running, and swimming. It was great getting some warm weather. Having been sick with a cold/flu for all of February and the end of January, Phoenix was a great way to pull me out of a hole. Just what I needed!

Coming back to Canada I finally felt stronger, more energy, and ready to battle it out at UBC last weekend. I got a bike fit done on my Cervelo P3 on Friday in the hopes of a fast bike split. UBC year after year is known for its unpredictable weather – one of the reasons I have never raced it before. This year the good old weatherman called for snow! Sunday came about, the temperature was hovering close to zero, but the skies were clear. After a mediocre, aerobic intensity, swim I spent a good amout of time in transition, then jumped on the bike and headed out SW Marine on the downhill. Immediately I felt a pain in my left hip and lower back. Throughout the entire bike I wanted to stop. I couldn’t push any more than 32km/hr coming back towards UBC along SW marine because of the pain when I was in my aero bars. I did finish the bike in a little over 1:05 (1:09 with transition).

After all that, I ended up dropping out on the run. My feet started to warm up and started to hurt badly.

LESSONS LEARNED (not that I wasn’t told before the race): 1) Don’t race your bike if you a) just had it fit, b) haven’t ridden it more than an hour before your race it; 2) always remember your toe covers on your bike shoes.

Although it was a DNF, there were a number of positive things that came out of the event. The positives are all great things to build on throughout the coming months heading into the summer. I have had a good week post-UBC with some solid sessions in the pool (finally getting some speed back) and good workouts on the bike and in the running shoes.

Let the good times roll.