CLERMONT VIDEO

Courtesy of Ian Donald. Nice work.

CLERMONT

We've just wrapped up our winter camp here in Clermont, Florida. Half of the squad is already in the air (flying home), and the rest of us are loading the van for the drive back. Internet was sketchy and the days were busy - that's our excuse for the lack of blog posts. PK's squad has put us to shame in the blogging department, but we may be able to put a video or two together during the drive home. Special thanks to coaches Greg Kealey and Lorri Zagar for their guidance and support during the camp, and congrats to the athletes; everyone arrived ready to work, and pushed their boundaries during our time here. A great start to the 2010 season.

SMUCKER'S

The boys getting ready for a good swim

Busy days lately = no new posts.

Among other things, we've been doing some swim races/TT's lately. Connor, Dorelle and Angela raced for the Guelph Gryphons at the OUA Swim Championships last weekend, with good results. Earlier this evening, most of the rest of the crew got a chance to swim at the UofG last chance meet. Most of the crew swam the 1500, while Connor took a crack at the 200 (he raced the 1500 at OU's) and our newest triathlete, Derek Snider, tackled the 800. Unfortunately, Ian was sick with a bug that's making the rounds, but he'll be back to fighting form soon.

I know that many of the youth/junior triathletes around the province have also been racing lately, with good results. Hopefully I'll find time to post a summary of those results, soon. For now, here's what the squad has been up to:

1500M
Tyler Bredschnieder 17:06.3

Connor Hammond 17:51.0
Angela Quick 18:08.3*
Dorelle Hinton 18:15.9*
Alexander Hinton 18:20.5*
Tom Lokody 18:24.6*

800M
Derek Snider 10:31.6*

* PB's

Congrats to the squad on their performances.

Now, let's get faster.

We're off to Clermont, Florida, for a camp next week so look for some videos soon.

Some jam to go with Tom's PB

RECAP

Great day yesterday with 40+ athletes swimming, biking and running, with large training squads for all groups (10-12, 13-15, Juniors, Adults). Thanks to the coaches, athletes and parents for a great day.

The Gear Swap also went really well, especially considering it was pulled together in 2 weeks. Thanks to everyone who came to sell some gear, and to those who came to shop. I managed to get great deals on a bike repair stand and a new Giro helmet - I better start riding.

If anyone has feedback on the gear swap (whether you attended or not), please e-mail me with your ideas and feedback, with "Gear Swap" in the subject line. We'd like to organize a swap next year, and we obviously need to provide more notice, but any feedback on the following would be appreciated:

- what time of year would be best?
- what items are you most interested in? (bikes, wheels, wetsuits, other?)
- should we organize a swap in conjunction with a training day (or training weekend?), or as a separate event?
- anything else?

Next Training Day is Sunday March 7th.

All the best in your training and racing.

SWAP UPDATE

Updated Jan 30, 9:07pm.

We have several more items for sale, including 10 bikes and/or frames. Sellers have cycling and running shoes, bags, backpacks, wheelsets, tires and a bunch of other equipment. See the GEAR LIST for more details.

Edit: Specialized M4 51cm bike sold today.

Just one of the bikes for sale Sunday

DIRECTIONS TO UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH: Click on this link, add your address, and "Get Directions."

LOCATION: The Gear Swap will take place in the Grypon Dome. Click this link, and then select "Find on Map" for location of Gryphon Dome.


SCHEDULE:

8:00AM The Athletic Centre opens; athletes will enter to register for the training day

8:15AM The Gryphon Dome should be open by 8:15A, at which time we'll get some tables set up, and get the sellers organized

8:30AM The Swap Begins.

10:00-10:30 We'll aim to wrap things up by 10 or 10:30am. We'll be on the track, in the Dome, and we'll have to be respectful of groups who have booked the infield for activities.


Some important notes:

GENERAL
- there is a bathroom and water fountain at the dome, and Tim Horton's in the Hockey Arena, across from the Athletic Centre
- Sellers may want to bring along some small bills for change
- Sellers may accept personal cheques at their own discretion
- parking is free on Saturdays at UofG, and there is a small parking lot directly beside (south) of the Gryphon Dome

SELLERS:
- Lorri Zagar will be in charge of getting you organized tomorrow morning, with the help of a few volunteers
- we will have a few trainers (4 or 5) available for you to set bikes up, but since we have 8 complete bikes coming, we'd appreciate it if a few of you could bring a trainer to showcase your bike
- we'll bring some tables in from the Athletic Centre (and we'll try to get some chairs)
- bring your own price tags, markers, etc.
- Sellers set their own prices, and do their own haggling

BUYERS:
- this is open to the public, so come on by, no charge
- please give the sellers time to make sure they are set up and ready to go
- there will be more items for sale than those listed on the Gear List
- bring cash - the closest bank machine (CIBC) is in the University Centre (a 3-4 minute walk from the Gryphon Dome)
- if you are shopping for a bike, make sure you know your measurements - Competitive Cyclist has a nice tutorial on measuring for bike fit, including video demonstrations, and it's relatively straight forward....definitely worth 20mins of your time to ensure you get a bike that fits properly in the winter
- do your homework - many of the bigger items for sale are listed on the gear list, so do some homework on any items you are particularly interested in
- Need to try on a wetsuit? Come to the pool to swim a few laps before you buy (between 8:30-10:00a)....don't forget to bring a swim suit and towel

Looking forward to a great day tomorrow.

GEAR SWAP THIS SUNDAY

EDIT: Gear Swap List is HERE. Lots of new items added.

A few updates for the coming weekend on the Training Day and Gear Swap.

TRAINING DAY: We're FULL (or we might have one spot left, check with LeighAnn if you're interested). This is the second time we've reached capacity (40) at a Training Day - the other was Simon's visit after Beijing - so we're excited to have a full house with lots of energy. Breakdown by group: 10-12yr Group: 8 athletes, 13-15yr Group: 16 athletes, Juniors: 7 (+PTC squad), Adults: 8 athletes.

GEAR SWAP: In addition to the Training Day, we're going to host a Triathlon Gear Swap on Sunday. Due to venue bookings and coach availability, the swap will run concurrently with the training day swim. If you are an athlete attending the training day, or a parent with an athlete in the training day, feel free to pull them out of the swim to check out the swap - we'll integrate them back into workout when you are done. We'll also be able to set aside some pool space for anyone who might want to try out a wetsuit prior to purchasing it.


SWAP DETAILS

SELLERS: There's a $2 to sell, but no charge if you (or family) are registered for the training day. Please e-mail me to let me know you are brining items for sale, and send me the details so I can add it to the list.

EQUIPMENT LIST: See the top of this post.

BUYERS: Come and have a look, no charge.



SWAP SCHEDULE

8:00AM: Doors of the Athletic Centre open.

8:10AM: Doors of the UofG Dome open. We'll be using the dome for the swap. Sellers to set up their gear from 8:10-8:30AM. We'll have trainers to put the bikes on, and we'll try to have some tables/chairs for the other equipment. Lorri Zagar will co-ordinate the set-up.

8:30AM: Swap time until 9:30AM.

That's it. Short and sweet. If you have any triathlon gear around the house that you've outgrown, or you aren't using, let me know and bring it to the swap. We'd like to grow this into an annual event to help the Ontario triathlon community, and to put good gear to good use.


NOTE: Personal plug for old(er) tires: If you have any spare 700c tires.....something used but with some life left in them.... bring them and I'll make you an offer. We (PTC squad) are burning through tires on the trainers at a pretty fast rate this winter.

WONDERFUL

I've started putting a quote up on the right side bar - hopefully our dear reader finds something useful or inspirational from time to time. I was updating the quote today, and thought a bit of backstory on the current quote would make a good post.

The quote comes from Italian speedskater Enrico Fabris, who won three medals at the 2006 Turin Olympics. The Canadian speed skating team, led by Cindy Klassen, was nothing short of exceptional during those games. But four years later, Frabris' CBC interview immediately after the men's 1500m is what sticks with me.

Fabris came into the Turin Games having just won the European Championships a month earlier. But while he had been on the podium at a few World Cups and the World Champs, he had never won gold on the international circuit. And he had never won an international medal of any colour in the 1500m.

At the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics, he was 16th in the 5000m, and 26th in the 1500m.

Fabris opened the Turin games by claiming Italy's first ever Olympic speed skating medal (a bronze) in the 5000m. Five days later, he followed with a gold in the team pursuit, as the Italian men upset powerhouses Canada (silver) and Denmark (bronze).

But it was in the 1500m where the real magic happened. At best, Fabris was a longshot against American co-favourites Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick. But someone forgot to tell Fabris about the odds, or maybe he just ignored them.

Fabris skated in the third-last pairing, setting the fastest time: 1:45.97. He then waited as Hedrick and then Davis skated in the last two pairings. Hedrick, the Olympic 5000m Gold medallist, who prior to the Games had predicted he would win 5 gold medals in Turin, was ahead of Fabris through the early splits. At the line, he came up 0.25 seconds short in 1:46:22.

The crowd was electric; Fabris was guaranteed at least a bronze medal, but there was still hope for something more. The final pairing featured the Olympic 1000m Gold medallist and pre-race favourite Davis, who had decided not to race the team pursuit in order to be rested for the 1000m and 1500m.

Italian and US flags waiving, crowd screaming, clock ticking, Davis flew. Like Hedrick, Davis was ahead of Fabris through the opening splits. He simply eclipsed the other skater in the pairing. He was racing only against the clock, chasing his second gold. And when the clock stopped, Fabris had beaten Davis by 0.18 seconds.

The home crowd went crazy. Fabris was mobbed by his team, the stands were red, white and green, and the Italian commentators were so excited they knocked over the press box camera in their celebration. Pandemonium. Pure joy.

Somehow, a CBC reporter waded into the scrum and got a microphone in front of Fabris in those first moments after his win, and this is what he said:

"First of all, I believed in it. If you believe, you can train and work so hard to get your goal…..and I did it, and it’s wonderful!”

It's still one of my favourites.