Good Luck Clubbers!

Good luck to all Talisman Centre Triathlon Club members this weekend at the Calgary 70.3!

I look forward to seeing everyone on the course and crossing the finish line with smiles on your faces.

You have all trained hard for this day and now is the time to celebrate.

JVD

Final Preparations.

Hard to believe that the season is nearing the BIG events of the season as it just seems like summer began.

Last week I did the Ironspirit Camp in Penticton with Kevin Cutjar's crew. A great camp if you are focused on Ironman Canada especially if you get to train in the oppressive heat as we did. We were riding and running in mid 30 degree Celsius temperatures and everyone felt like they were dying out there on the roads. Since returning to Calgary which is finally seeing a nice warm spell, I don't really feel the heat when training outside. I have spoken with several triathletes who are complaining now of this heat.

With Ironman 70.3 Calgary a mere 10 days away, this is the time for many of you to start tapering for the event. This means that you should have already completed the training for the event and are now resting to allow the final peak preparation weeks you did to be absorbed by the body. Tapering in short is a marked reduction in your training volume while maintaining the frequency and specific race intensity over that time period. A few additional rest days can be thrown in as you feel are needed to tend to other "life" details or final travel or equipment preparations. This is now the time when you need to look back through your training logs to see all the training you have accomplished and to believe and trust that you are prepared. Do not cram more volume or overly intensive training in during this period as it will not benefit you at all for the upcoming race.

This time period is also great for you to write out your race day plan in as detailed a manner as possible. Plan your fueling scheme so you know how much you will need on race day and more importantly how much you will need to carry with you on the bike. Kevin spoke about carrying as little as possible on your bike to keep it lightweight versus loading 10lbs of stuff on board. There is no need to have 4 bottles on your bike. There is no need to have a full Bento box on your bike either. Use a front hydration system for your water and then carry one bottle on your downtube that can be replaced at aid stations. Carry gels in your race top rear pockets and grab more as needed from aid stations. Carry no more than 2 spare tubes, CO2 canisters and tire levers and use electrical tape to attach these to your seat post or tucked up under your saddle. Remember Calgary 70.3 is a hilly bike course.

A few additional tips;

1. Get new tires and tubes mounted to your wheels.
   
2. Put on a new chain or replace your drive train if required.
   
3. Check your shifting and braking performance and replace cables as required.
   
4. Clean your bike.
   
5. Check your cycling cleats and replace as needed.
   
6. Check your helmet and straps.
   
7. Set your bike up now in race day configuration so you can ride it to test it out.
   

Tips 1 thru 4 will net you a nice boost in efficiency on race day as everything will shift and move so smoothly. Trust me on this one.

In terms of dealing with the heat that may or may not be present on race day, prepare for it both mentally and physically. Get outside during the hottest part of the day to train and or walk or even sit in the heat. Kevin also spoke about "attitude" as a major contributor to persevering or suffering. Be positive. Kevin's mantra when he and the other thousands of athletes were facing one of the hottest Ironman Canada race days a few years back was "Bring it on. Is that all you've got?". As many crumbled on the course and they had a record number of participants drop out, he thrived in it and he attributed his success to being positive and staying in control of his emotions.

I will admit that I crumpled mentally and physically in the Penticton heat but I attribute much of my poor attitude at that time to being sick. However after some reflection time and speaking with Kevin and other athletes about this my attitude now has changed (I am also feeling much better health wise too) and I welcome the challenges that will come my way whether they be this weekend at Sylvan Lake, next weekend at Calgary 70.3 or next year at Ironman Canada.

Good luck to everyone in finishing the season successfully.

JVD

 

Calgary 70.3 Volunteers

The organizers for Calgary 70.3 have asked for Talisman Triathlon Club help for the race day. There are still a lot of vacant volunteer spots for the 70.3. If you are planning on cheering for the race this is a great way to give back to the Triathlon community.

http://www.ironmancalgary.com/volunteers.htm