Howdy all! The title pretty much gives it away, but in case there was any doubt, this post will go over my recent race experience in the Muskoka region as I tackled the inaugural Ironman Muskoka. As some of you may be aware, this wasn’t my first time racing in an “iron-distance” triathlon, but it was my first taking part in the big corporate machinery known as World Triathlon Corporation, the group that puts on all the Ironman races globally. Ironically, in the week before the race, the entire corporation was actually bought out by a Chinese company. So I […]
Muskoka
5 posts
Greetings race fans. Fancy title, isn’t it? I’m sure some of you are wondering just what the heck I’m talking about. Well, it’s pretty simple really. On the periodic table, Iron (Fe) has an atomic number of 26. Aluminum (Al) has an atomic number of 13, or in other words, half that of iron. Have you put it together yet? Yup, this race report will be about my recent experience in Huntsville taking part in the Ironman 70.3 event there (a half-Ironman). Of course, this isn’t my first 1/2, or even full Iron-distance tri, but it was my first crack […]
The vision in my mind was clear. The start is called, and off I go, paddling hard and efficiently at the front of the race pack. I nail all my navigation challenges, bag all the CPs, and have quick transitions, to cross the finish line first, with no one even near me. Well, as you know, vision is often different from reality, particularly in the adventure racing world. So goes the backdrop for my start to the 2013 ‘Summer’ race season. I found myself once again in Huntsville, at Deerhurst Resort, for what may ultimately be the final Frontier Adventure Challenge. This was slated to be a 5-8 hour adventure race featuring all the fun of a classic adventure race in a manageable format. I was covering the event for Get Out There Magazine, and the lovely Deanna also joined me as a volunteer / race photographer. Good thing she had a brand new camera to try out! As a result, I’ve got both a video to share, as well as a whole folder of pictures that Deanna took. Now read on!
They say everyone has a doppelganger somewhere in the world. Well, apparently, I may have inadvertently crossed paths with my ‘sporting’ doppelganger at the recent inaugural Muskoka Grind Off-Road Tri. You see, I finished this race in 4th place in my category, a mere 1m14s off the podium. Okay, 1:14 isn’t that close in a 2.5hr race, right? Well, it get’s interesting event by event. For the swim, this fellow was a mere 3 seconds faster. The bike? He was only 16 seconds faster. And the run? Well, I took that one by 16 seconds! So in reality, our moving time was only 3 seconds different!! However, where I lost time was in transition, and with good reason. I had to get cameras mounted and ready for the bike and run, since I was on-site covering the event for Get Out There Magazine. As a result, I once again have a nice race video and some pictures to share with you all. Read on for the whole story about this well-run race at the Limberlost Forest and Wildlife Reserve.
The sun was beating down hard on my neck. My leg muscles were just on the edge of starting to cramp after over 7 hours of hard effort. A team up ahead had paused to debate the merits of taking one route over another at an intersection. With my head down and with determination, I blew past them and pedaled hard to the finish. Keeping a very short lead on them, I crossed the line as 4th solo male, and 6th team overall at the spring Frontier Adventure Challenge in Huntsville. In retrospect, had they made the turn, they would have had 1km shorter to travel, and would have beat me, but seeing me blow by made them change their minds and try to chase me down. I got lucky this time! Of course, dear friends, I’ve just revealed the punchline, the finish of the race. This was the first summer race of the season, and it was a great one. Read on for the full story, video, pictures, and all the good stuff!