Canmore XTERRA race report.

Overall female finishers Danelle Kabush, myself and Kelly Geisheimer
Rob----had an close encounter with a fun section call the Coal Chutes!
Finally, a little to say about the highly anticipated Canmore XTERRA last weekend!!
I have been looking forward to this race, as I don't actually compete in very many XTERRA events!
2 years ago, I won the inaugural Canmore XTERRA, and last year came in close second to Danelle Kabush. The second place finish last year got me pretty stoked, as Danelle is an amazing XTERRA athlete, having placed second at Worlds in the past!
She was 3 months post baby last year!! Crazy, she is amazing!
I went to the race without kids and husband this year, leaving them with some good alone time, and traveling with a friend, Rob who was doing the race as well.
With just me (and the race) to think about, I was pretty relaxed and feeling good about the race.
THE SWIM!! 1000m
Yeah me!! Finally had a decent swim! 2 minutes faster than last year, which in a 1000m swim is a good improvement.....actually was hoping for one minute faster, but I will take it!!
It felt like a pretty crazy swim out there!! I guess with a bit faster swim, puts me in a different race, there are actually other swimmers around me, I am not alone at the back anymore, it was awesome!! People in front and on both sides the entire swim!!
The Mountain Bike 22km
A faster swim also makes for a different race on the bike, not as many riders to pass, and more back and forth with the guys, it was super fun as well, and I felt like I had a great ride out there!
The descents went smooth (well as smooth as they get on my Orbea ht) felt good on the climbs as well!
I was able to catch all the girls before the end of Lap 1 (with Kelly Geisheimer being the last one, she has a super strong ride, and has an incredibly fast swim)
I finished Lap 2 without catching Danelle......and not knowing where she was, but knowing I would never catch her on the run!!! She is super fast!! I was just hoping that I wasn't too far back....boy was I wrong....
The Trail Run - 8km
Lap 1 of run felt good, I was testing my ankle a bit, hoping it would hold up, and it did, so I tried to push is a bit more, The first half of Lap 2 felt better, but felt myself slowing down after that :o(
I was just running hard, hoping nobody else would catch me at this point!
I was very happy to reach the finish line in second.
My Uncle Ken had come to watch, nice to have someone there watching! I asked how far back I was......the look on his face said it all :o)
He guessed around 10 mins....ugh!! Awful, imagine my disappointment, when I found out it was actually 15 minutes!!
I finished in 2:35
10 minutes faster than last year....the course was a bit drier, but happy with an improvement for sure!
2 weeks until XTERRA Nationals in Whistler, I was contemplating switching Cats, but will stay where I am, I am not the fastest out there, not as fast as I wanted to be this year....but I am hoping for a good strong race there!
Thought about not going to Maui for Worlds, but since that has been my goal for the entire past year, seems kind of like quitting to do that, and with a couple good months still to train, and hopefully get my mountain bike to where I think it should be, I will be doing it!!

Canmore XTERRA....ready.

Transition #1 - Quarry Lake

Just a picture of my babies that I miss so much already!! I am sure they are having a way more fantastic time at home with Daddy, then following us around here in Canmore!! I guess easier for us as well....but life is not complete without these guys....

Looking back towards the Lake, a bit of a run to Transition!

Canmore!! It was a beautiful day here today!! A gorgeous sunny day!

Rob Veg and I are without families this weekend, we headed up to the Nordic Center for a pre-ride of the bike course, which is the same as last year, but unlike last year, it is nice and dry.....yipppeee!!

The course is super fun, starting with a longish climb before dropping into a technical little descent...after that there are some nice hard pack climbs, rooty climbs and some longer rooty descents. I chose to ride my Orbea Hardtail for the race, and although it is a little rattly on these roots, I still think was the best choice for me, for this course. I have been feeling pretty fast on this bike! I just have to make sure to really watch my lines in those sections!

Had a fantastic swim in Quarry Lake, where the swim will take place, the water is perfect! I just need to remember to not swim like a fool!! I tend to forget my form when I race!!

I had my ankle taped again on Friday, I have been having some rolling issues during trail runs, that make it quite difficult to run confidently and with speed, hopefully the taping helps, and my ankle holds up!!

Everything is done, bike and gear are ready, and it was quite a relaxing day.....everything went smoothly, and quickly....and we are left with a couple of hours to chill.......this is why the rest of the family decided to stay home, but I am longing for some noisy children (who would love running around this hostel) and longing for my millions of hugs and kisses...and it has only been one day!!! Crazy!

I just need to remember Avery's race tip....and I quote

"Mommy, just swim, bike and run as fast as I do....then you will win"

I will steal some of her confidence!

Rob---setting up Camp---hope we don't have any noisy roomies tonight!!

Race prep.

Sometimes resting to maximize peformance can be more difficult than the overspeed treadmill sessions, long hill climbs, or the long swims. Staying still is hard....

With only 4 days until XTERRA Alberta, in Canmore, my time training has been decreased and I am left feeling tired, sluggish and lacking energy, but with a few more short workouts planned this week, and lots of rest (yeah right) I am hoping to go in to Canmore feeling springy, fast and ready to raceDuring this time of taper, I have read that your immnue system is not as strong, and certain foods can wear down your immune system even further, such as certain sugars.

I am focusing this week on eating a diet plentiful in foods rich in antioxidants, such as berries, brocolli, green tea and tomatoes, and I have noticed that these foods are actually staples in my diet anyways!
We spent the past weekend camping at the beautiful Champion Lakes, and if there is ever a harder time to not eat loads of crap, this is the time, and although, our trailer is usually clear of any offending foods...it always seems to appear!! I was able to control myself (most of the time)
The other challenge, is not eating too much, but eating enough...and of course all the right stuff....no ice cream and cookies last night when we were at friends for dinner (almost felt rude saying "no") and cutting out my daily glass of wine :o(

With the kids being older, you would think that I would get a solid nights sleep....but most nights, I still have one or the other waking up, but of course it is not nearly as tiring as when they were babies! So this week, I am cutting out all of my early morning workouts! No more 5:30am wake up calls for me, sleeping until 8:00am is my goal....and going to bed before 10:00pm, every night this week! So far, so good!

I am trying to relax this week (as relaxed as life gets with 2 kids) and stay mentally strong and positive! I start doubting my training, and how I will perform this weekend...did I too too much, did I do too little? Fortunately I have had a structured, coached training schedule all year, so I have high expectations, and although this race isn't the biggest race I will do this summer, it will be a good benchmark for the upcoming Whistler Nationals and Maui Worlds!!

I also have to give my neglected legs a wax, because that will make me faster for sure....whatever you think will make you faster, will make you faster :o)