FEB 1st TRAINING DAY

James and Tom in 10 years.

February, the toughest month in the calendar in the Great White North. We're kicking off Feb in style with a Training Day. As always, you can find the entire training day schedule on the right hand menu, or directly through this link.

If you've been to previous PTC Training days (since October 2008), I already have your registration forms, so you simply need to e-mail me with "February Training Day" in the subject line, telling me you'll be there. If you haven't been to a PTC Training Day, you can e-mail me for a registration form.

Four important changes/additions for this training day:

1) First of all, a big thank-you to the parents and athletes of the 10-12 group as I try to figure out the best way to integrate these athletes into the schedule and still deliver a program that meets their needs (rather than just putting them on the same plan as the older athletes). After talking to a few parents at the last training day, we're going to try something a little different this time; we'll have the 10-12 group start the swim at 9am. This group will do 60min of technical swim work, followed by a run, and a bike after lunch. We'll still have this group work with their peers and a dedicated coach, but this change will bring them in line with the schedule of the other athletes. These athletes are welcome to arrive at the normal time and sign-in, but we won't start their training until 9am. This group will end the day at 2:00-2:15pm, approximately 15 mins earlier than the older groups.

2) Any of the older athletes who need technical swim work will spend the first ~45mins working with Alan Fairweather in the warm pool, before finishing the swim session in the gold pool. I feel we've sometimes gotten away from delivering a good technical swim option for this group in the past few sessions, so we'll have a mix of drill session, followed by a workout. If I haven't said it in a while, now is a good time: I want to see all athletes choosing to work on drills and technique in their weakest event when they come to the training days. If that means an athlete needs technical work on the swim, they should be choosing to join Alan's group for the first 45mins. Long term success in this sport will be built upon a good technical foundation, especially for youth and junior athletes.

3) We will return to the format of running before lunch, and biking after lunch. Athletes are better at riding on a full stomach than running on a full stomach. This will apply to all groups. Please note that we will be running OUTSIDE, so bring appropriate clothing.

4) Last but certainly not least, we are pleased to have Steve Fleck joining us to talk about everything and anything to do with wetsuits. Steve is an expert in this area (and others), and this will be an important session for athletes and parents. We'll either schedule this talk immediately after the swim, or during lunch, depending on Steve's schedule. I'll have final confirmation prior to the training day.


Some Additional Notes:

- Parking is free on the weekends at UofG
- Directions to Guelph and to the Athletic Centre at the UofG are linked on the right hand menu, under "DIRECTIONS TO PTC"
- We have a limited number of bike trainers - athletes can reserve these at no additional cost, when they register

Train smart, hosers.