It’s now almost mid-June, and with it came our first taste of the summer heat here in southern-Ontario over the weekend. I was out on the bike for a 4 hour, 110km-plus ride on Saturday, and sure felt the heat. We had made the trip up to Peterborough to get in some practice on the bike course, and it was an almost identical day to race day a couple years ago when I got destroyed on the bike ride. Hot, humid, and a strong wind blowing from west to east, making for a brutal second half of the ride. I think I’ve learned that one key to a good bike split on the course is to take advantage of the wind when you have it. There were a couple flat stretches where I had a tailwind and I managed to keep it over 50km/h for 2-3km. Definitely helped bring the average speed up! On the flip side, there were some downhills heading into the wind where I had to pedal hard to hit 30km/h.
I’ve been training pretty hard the last couple months, and am actually feeling fairly strong on the bike. We’ve been doing lots of long rides, and I definitely have learned a thing or two about nutrition since the last time I did this race. One of the keys for me is adequate electrolyte replacement. It’s great that the PowerGels now contain extra sodium, and I drink mostly eLoad while I’m riding. I’m hoping that this change in nutrition, plus sticking with a little more intense training plan will pay off come race day in a little over three weeks!
This weekend is my one and only tune-up race for the half-Ironman, the Muskoka Long Course triathlon. With a 2km swim, 55km bike ride, and 15km run, it is a great distance to stretch things out and see where I’m at. It’s also a fun race to be at as it attracts a lot of the top pros – pretty cool to see them powering across the finish line. I’m looking to significantly improve on my 2006 performance here – check back on Monday for the race update!
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