The Shortest Lake Ontario Crossing

Labour Day Holiday, Monday, Sep 7, 2015

The Pier to Pier swim is a ~2.4km swim between Hamilton and Burlington that takes place on the Labour Day holiday.  It has been nicknamed the shortest Lake Ontario swim crossing, and with a name like that how could I not take the plunge?!  Besides with the heat wave still gripping Southern Ontario the only sensible thing to do was go jump in the lake anyway.  The end of season swim had a lovely water temp of 70F/21C.  

A group of swimmers consisting largely of the Triathlon Club of Burlington (TCoB) http://triburlington.ca/, and the Lake Ontario Swim Team (LOSTies) http://lostswimming.com/, converged on the Hamilton pier to start the 2.4km swim over to the Burlington pier.  We were also supported by several kayakers who helped ensure our safety during the crossing. 

It was 9am when we all jumped off the pier and began the swim.  Honestly, with the weather conditions, it was one of the nicest swims I have ever done. The water was warm and clear, there was absolutely no waves, swell or wind, and the sun was shining down on us just right.

The group of swimmers each fell into their own rhythm and spread out into their own space, which was different from most of the swim races I’ve done before. But I had to remind myself that this wasn’t a race and it was meant to be just for fun. So I didn’t worry about keeping up with the rest and just settled into a relaxed pace for a change.  I estimated it would take me about an hour to swim the distance between the piers. 

One thing I came to realize on this swim was that I need to invest in a pair of tinted goggles.  Beginning my swim training, I spent most of my time in the pool, but now that I’m doing more and more open water swimming the sun has become a bigger factor in my training plans.  During this early morning swim, the bright sun was on my right side the entire time, so I had to breathe on my left, which caused some strain on my right shoulder as I felt I pulled it more during the breathing stroke.  This has caused some right shoulder tendonitis (overuse) and I need to be careful to breathe on both sides more evenly to become a better swimmer. 

But its hard to complain when the sun is shining on you and you’re having a glorious swim across the lake. So I found solace in the moment and kept swimming.  

I was about 40min into the swim when I began to feel hungry.  I had an iced coffee, half a bagel, yogurt and banana for breakfast about 90min before the swim - but at this moment, two thirds the way into the swim, I wished I had eaten more.  I stopped and looked around me, but there was no swim-up bar or coffee shop near me (this wasn't a Cuban vacation afterall). I was surrounded by water and nothing else.  I suppose I could have stashed a gel pack inside the sleeve of my wetsuit or given to a kayaker to hold onto, but it seemed unnecessary for a swim I thought would only take me an hour.  So I pushed my hungry thoughts to the back of my mind and focused on completing the last third of the distance so I could actually go eat something. 

Nearing the Burlington side, there was a slight chop in the water, but nothing significant enough to alter my course or breathing.  I continued my front crawl, and spotted every few strokes, as I narrowed in on the Burlington Pier and cruised past the many white tents set up in Spencer Smith Park for Ribfest (maybe that's why I was so hungry?).   

I arrived at the Burlington pier after swimming 2.5km in 62min.  Not bad for my first time doing this swim.  

It was a beautiful swim, with a fantastic group of people (swimmers, triathletes, and some kayakers as well).  I can say for sure that its an event that I would like to do again, and I’d highly recommend it to others who feel comfortable with open water swimming. 

Wasaga Beach Triathlon 2015

The annual Wasaga Beach triathlon is a race I have mixed feelings about.   In theory, this race is scenic and strategic in location, but the time of year (early Sept, late summer) it has been held sets it up for bad weather.  Indeed, the last two years I’ve signed up for this race, storm systems had moved through either the night before, or during the actual race itself, and the wind and rain wreaked havoc on the course.  The swims were cancelled and triathlons modified to wet and windy duathlons.  After last year I swore I’d never do this race again.   

Contrary to my last sentence, I ended up competing at Wasaga Beach again this year, as 3 things had changed.  First, the organizers changed the race date and moved it a week earlier so it was held Aug 29-30, instead of Sept 6-7.  Second, I decided to wait until I could confirm that the weather forecast would be decent before registering (I’d honestly rather pay the late registration fee than face the possibility of monsoonal weather conditions and duathlon).   Thirdly, I was motivated to get one more race in this particular series (MultiSport Canada) as I recently discovered I was third in my age group for overall points this season (http://results.sportstats.ca/res2015/msc/triathlon.htm).  This would have been my last chance to rack up more points in an attempt to secure my position.  Alas, I ended up racing at Wasaga Beach again this year.  

It was cloudy and overcast on race morning, but mercifully winds were low and the brief threat of rain passed without incident.  I would swim at Wasaga Beach for the first time in three years.  It was an odd swim course as the beach was so flat it took quite some distance for the water to get deep enough to actually swim in. The green start buoys were positioned offshore several hundred metres into the water.   The water was calm but it was an awkward swim back to shore, as sighting the exit arches on the beach was difficult due to their colour pattern and the blur of the bustling shops along Beach Drive.  Also, at the end of the swim course we had quite a long run though calf and ankle deep water to reach the shore and transition zone.   I can’t say I really enjoyed this swim course, I didn’t like the lay out.  I prefer a shoreline with a steeper grade that more precisely defines the point where you switch from swimming to running, instead of that prolonged awkward transition.   But at least we got to swim, so thats a small victory right there. 

I enjoyed the bike course much more this year.  I suppose it has a lot to do with not fighting the headwinds I’d encountered the previous years. That and still having fresh legs from the swim as opposed to not having my legs already tanked from the first run of a duathlon (the last 2 years the course was modified to a run-bike-run course which is really tough on the legs if you haven’t trained for it specifically, trust me).  There were a few parts on the road where racers had to be careful to avoid clumps of sod that had fallen off farm trucks, but other than that the road conditions were good.   It’s actually quite a nice course to ride when not cursing the weather or battling fatigue.  It was fast, flat with some gently rolling hills to prevent you from being complacent.  I ended up keeping an average pace of 28.9km/h on the bike course this time, a big improvement from last year’s pace of 23.4km/h.

The transition from bike to run (T2) went much smoother than the transition from the swim to bike (T1).  I didn’t have any problem finding my running legs, and I blew past two women in my age group right out of T2 as they were still getting their feet under them.   Running is my strongest of the 3 disciplines and I knew I had to lay down some speed after the awkward swim I had.   With this being a shorter run course (only 5km) I tried to be strong coming right out of the gate.  Just as the race organizers say to promote the event, it’s a fast, flat run, finishing on the beach.  I had a decent run, pacing 4:51/km.  I ran past several of my friends on the course, I saw Bala Falls Brad again, who I’m happy to say ran the entire course this time.  I also ran past my ultimate friends Marianne and Olivia who also put in sub-90min overall times at this event.  Its always nice when you see your friends at the finish line to celebrate after a hard run :)  

Overall, I finished the sprint triathlon (750m swim, 20km bike, 5km run) in a time of 1:26:21, placing tenth in my AG.  My specific race stats are as follows: 750m swim 16:57, T1 (2:10), 20km bike 41:34, T2 (0:55), 5km run 24:15.I haven’t competed in this distance category (750m swim, 20km bike, 5km run) since 2013, when my best time was 1:31:56.  My goal for this race was to run a sub-90min sprint triathlon.  And I managed to shave more than 5min off my time at this event - 1:26:22.  I have gotten faster!! 

The Iron Distance Swim

The iron distance swim is a 3.8km (2.4 mile) swim that is the first discipline of the three in an Ironman triathlon competition.  While I don’t consider myself ready to do a full ironman competition within the next year or so, I have been curious to test my abilities to complete the full distance of each discipline as an individual race event to get the feel for the full ironman event.  

I’ve been putting in a lot of work on my open water swim this summer and felt I was ready to give this distance a shot.  I’ve been comfortable doing the 1.5km swim for the olympic distance triathlons recently, and have regularly been completing training swims of 2 to 2.4km, so this month I signed up for my first iron distance swim competition.  

My first attempt at this distance was the annual LOST race, which is held every second Saturday in Aug at the LOST beach in Oakville. http://lostswimming.com/  This swim is a 3.8km point to point swim along the shoreline of Lake Ontario, ending at the LOST beach, lighthouse pier near Navy St in Oakville. http://lostswimming.com/lost-race/ 

This year it was held on Aug 8. Normally, this time of year, water temperatures in the lake are in the range of 15-21C. However, this year proved to be an exception to the rule, and regardless of what swimmers plan to do, mother nature ultimately has the final say on the matter. With a recent dramatic plunge in water temp (50F/10C) it was too cold to do the full 3.8km iron distance, due to hypothermia risk. Race organizers instead offered 500m and 1km distance swim races instead. I was disappointed, but did the 1km swim anyway.  I suppose cold water swimming is a more traditional Canadian experience and will help toughen me up mentally for less favoubrable conditions I'm sure to encounter in the early spring.  It was a bummer not to meet my swim distance goal at this event, but I did have a challenging swim with some good friends regardless. Here's hoping for better conditions next time.  I would really like to complete this full course in the near future and will try again when the opportunity presents itself.  I'll be back to try the LOST swim again.  

*****

With the LOST race being somewhat of a bust, I decided to register for the Toronto Island Lake Swim (http://www.torontoislandlakeswim.com) the following weekend (Aug 16), which also offered a 3.8km swim.  I was familiar with this course, as I did the 1.5km race here last year.  Fortunately, mother nature was more conducive this weekend, and with warmer water temperatures (65F/18C) all swims were a go!  

While the weather and lake temperatures cooperated, the challenges with open water swimming are many, and one variable that still offered swimmers a challenge this day was the swell.  It wasn’t so noticeable from shore, but once a few hundred meters into the swim it was obvious the swell was a force to be reckoned with this day.  Going out to the first set of buoys I didn’t notice it so much as I was still trying to find my rhythm, but after making my first turn I could tell I was being tossed around by the swell coming from the deeper part of the lake.  I had trouble sighting the buoys and keeping a straight path.  I even felt my neck pulling slightly as I had to stretch further to take clean breaths between my strokes.  But I adjusted and swam on.  I was determined to stay the course and see this swim though. And I did. I paced at 22:43/km, and it took me 1:26:22 to complete the full 3.8km distance.   

I didn’t realize how tough the swim was until after I looked up the race stats the following day.  Of the 26 females who entered the 3.8km wetsuit division, only 20 finished, there were 6 DNF.  That swell was too much for some of the racers.  I ended up finishing 4/9 in my age group, and 13/26 in my gender division.  Not bad for my first attempt at this distance. 

I’m pleased with this result, and will hope to up my position in the Global Swim Series (http://www.globalswimseries.com/) in future sanctioned races.  Currently, I hold a position of #294 in the female wetsuit division - http://www.globalswimseries.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/FW-8-12.pdf - with final standings yet to be updated. Not too shabby for my first year competing in the Global Swim Series at this distance category. 

Despite the challenges often encountered during open water swimming (e.g. weather, temperature, wind, swell, waves) at least there were no dangerous aquatic life I had to contend with over the past two weekends! No sharks in Lake Ontario ;)  With that being said, I've really come to enjoy the dynamic environment presented with open water swimming, and have come to enjoy it much more than doing laps in the pool.  I'll be sad when the swim season comes to a close in the autumn.  But there are still several weeks of good swim time left which I plan to take full advantage of.  If you're looking for me, just check the lake and look for the yellow swim cap. 

Bala Falls Triathlon

Mid-summer triathlons are always challenging due to the warmer weather, but this one was held right as Ontario was about to begin a week long heat wave.  Making matters even more interesting, was the geographic location of Bala (in the southern region of the Muskokas) with its rolling hills and roads exposed to the sun.  Fortunately we had a early start, 8:30am, and anticipated finish time of 10:30am, so we’d be racing before the heat of the day really set in.  However, at the start time it was 25C already. It was going to be a hot one.    

This was my first time racing this course (MSC Bala Falls http://www.multisportcanada.com/balafalls/) so I was trying to get as much background info on the course as I could before heading up.  I found a nice course outline with training tips on YouTube with Ignition Fitness from a couple years ago - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G33LYs0uy4.  I’m no stranger to squats and lunges, thus felt fairly confident in the ability of my legs to get me up and over those famous Muskoka hills.  

The transition zone (TZ) was set up on the grass next to the shore of Moon River in Jaspen Park, and after setting up my gear, I headed down to the water to do my usual 5min warm up swim.  The water was so warm (~23C), wetsuits weren’t really needed but most triathletes prefer to race in them for the slight speed advantage, so I wore mine as usual.  I’m glad I did, as I had my personal best 750m swim time of the season 15:37 (pacing 2:04/100m). That’s almost half a minute faster than the Welland swim in the canal current!  

On a high from the swim, I ran into transition and got ready to ride with Ruby.  Before racking my bike that morning I had the good sense to give my bike a pre-race check up.  I pumped extra air into the tires, checked the brakes and made sure the tires were spinning smoothly on their axis’.  There would be no repeat of the Belwood fiasco.  And my Ruby rode true.  I was then less concerned with mechanics, and more concerned about the hills at this point, but as I began the numerous climbs and descents I actually found myself enjoying the course much more than the fast and flat terrains of Welland and Wasaga that I had chosen in previous years. I have fairly strong legs & glutes, and practiced climbing Sunnybrook Hill many many times for just this occasion.  Not to mention the geography was simply beautiful you couldn’t help but enjoy yourself on the ride.  I ended up with a 30km time of 1:06:40 (pacing 27km/h), not my fastest ride, and still one of the slower riders in my AG, but I was happy in the moment, and felt positive going into T2, which I did in under a minute (0:58). 

The run course was tough. I have to admit. I’m a pretty strong runner but the steep hills and exposed sun along the 7.5km stretch of Muskoka Rd 169 we ran along was as much a mental test as it was physically grueling. I had enough sense to bring a hat and wear it, and as I passed each aid station I poured one cup of water over my head and drank the H.E.E.D. to keep me going.  Mercifully, there were 2 small side roads we had to run out and back on, and they were shaded by trees, but those were only ~2km of the run, while the majority of the run course (5.5km) was full on sun, and I’m sure the air temp was at least 28C by then.  I knew I was pacing slower than usual (5:17/km), but that’s the nature of the environmental conditions taking their toll I suppose.  By this point in the run, I had passed the racer in my AG (with Bib 104) who passed me on the bike course and I knew I just had to keep on running. I was stronger than her I told myself.  

I typically get pretty pumped up on the run, its my favourite part of the race by far, so although I was suffering I didn’t let it mentally grind me down.  I began passing several other runners at that point, one of whom in a red tri suit was walking the last km.  I remembered what it felt like to be walking that last km, and the regret that it always brought, and since the guy wasn’t in my AG race category I decided to help him out.  I turned to him and said “Come on, no walking! Don’t you know these race times stay on the internet forever?!”  And that lit the spark in him.  “OK!” He began running again, and the personal trainer in me took over.  “What’s your name?” It wasn’t on his bib, he must have registered that morning.  “Brad” he blurted out.  “OK Brad, come on, you’re going to finish this strong!”. Run run run. “Come on Brad, let’s kill this hill”.  While it might have seemed I was helping him out more so during this last hill climb, I find this pep talk helps me out tremendously as well.  It pumps me up, and it felt like as we got closer to the finish line the crowds started feeding from the energy as well, bursting into cheers as we ran by.  “We’re almost there!”  With that I let my finishing kick take over and finally crossed that line, 4 seconds ahead of my short lived running buddy.  After regrouping we high fived and he gave me a sincere thanks for the push.  

***Have no regrets, always run it like you mean it!!***   

I posted a run time of 39:41.  Not my fastest 7.5km run time, but considering the heat, humidity and hills it wasn’t so bad.  Overall my finishing time for the 750m swim, 30km bike, 7.5km hilly run course was 2:05:02 (just 8 seconds slower than my Welland race time last month).  Finishing 7th in my AG, back in the top ten again.  Not so bad for my first Muskoka race experience.  

Perhaps the Ironman 70.3 Muskoka race next July isn’t such a crazy idea after all.... 

Belwood Triathlon 2015

The next race on my schedule was held on July 11 at the Belwood Lake Conservation Area. 

MSC Belwood Triathlon http://www.multisportcanada.com/belwood/ 

This is a race I had a really great performance at last year, with an overall time of 2:00:55.  And I was looking forward to racing it again, hoping to finally complete a sub 2hr race in this distance category – 750m swim, 30km bike, 7.5km run.  

The weather was a beautiful – sunny and a little humid, but the 8:30am start time meant that we got going before the real heat of the day hit so it wasn’t so bad.  The swim was in Belwood Lake, with the local Ospreys soaring overhead.  The water temp was quite warm, probably close to 20C, but most triathletes chose to swim in their wetsuits still, typically for the speed advantage.  I paced 2:13/100m in this swim, taking a total of 16:38 for the 750m swim.  Not my fastest swim time this year, but being such a short portion of the race I felt I had plenty of opportunity to make up for the slight time deficit. 

Unfortunately, this would not come to be, as I encountered some mechanical problems on my bike. The bike portion started out OK, but after the first 5km I began to notice a dragging resistance on the bike.  I wasn’t sure what it was, I tried to listen for the sound to isolate where the problem was, fiddle with the brakes to make sure they weren’t catching.  As it turned out, my rear tire wasn’t quite sitting properly, and was rubbing on the frame.  It got progressively worse on the course.  I ended up fighting the bike the entire ride and couldn’t properly fix the tire until after the race ended.  This resulted in my worst bike ride at a triathlon, ever.  I barely paced 21km/h on this course, taking a pitiful 1:25:27 to finish the 30km, which was significantly slower than my past performances.  

After the atrocious bike ride, I was eager to make up time on the run, which is my strongest discipline.  Fueled by the knowledge that I was now in last place in my age group, I gave the run everything I had left. Pausing briefly, to have a couple gulps of HEED on the 7.5km run, I began speeding down the Elora-Cataract trail.  I really enjoyed the run here last year, it was shaded, woody and a softer gravel trail. I posted a really good run here last year and I was determined to go even faster this year, and I did.  I set a blistering pace of 4:29/km (almost as fast as my Yonge St 10km pace of 4:27/km) and began passing other runners who were beginning to fade at this point in the race. I began scanning other runners for the age group marking on the calf muscle and felt a slight sense of relief as I began to pass some other late runners in my age group. 

I managed to pass 4 other runners in the last few km of the run, safely rising out of what would have been my ‘last place of shame‘, into 11th place.  Amazingly, I posted the fastest race time of all the women in my age group (33:42), even faster than the woman who won our group (35:49).   Apparently, I need to tap into this fear of failure in order to bang out my best triathlon run times.  At least I can be proud of this run performance. 

I learned a hard lesson at Belwood this year.  I will have to pay closer attention to my bike maintenance in the future, and will be double checking my bike before every race from now on. I’m obviously disappointed in my overall race performance (with a finishing time of 2:19:03), but will take away the value of the lesson learned, and of course, my great run time.  

I’m already looking forward to MSC Bala Falls Triathlon (July 26) as an opportunity to redeem myself on the bike course and place myself back up on the leader board with no less than a top ten finish.  

Buttermilk Plays Mid-season Classic Tournament

The mid-season classic tournament was held at Sunnybrook Park this weekend, July 4-5. This is an annual tournament held by the Toronto Ultimate Club - http://www.tuc.org/events/midseason/2015 

My Tuesday night league team, Buttermilk, entered into the competitive division of this tournament this year along with seven other teams forming 2 pools of 4 (Pool 1: Naptime, TBA, Nor’easters Want the Conch, Buttermilk; Pool 2: Savage Tribe, The Big Kahunas, Magnitude, The Fifth Element).  There were also intermediate and recreational divisions playing in the same tournament, but in their respective playing pools.

Buttermilk had a really great day on Saturday. We swept our pool with a 3-0 record at the end of the day.  Game one was a close call, going all the way to time-cap (90min) with a 12-11 victory over Naptime.  Game two was a more solid victory 15-10 over team TBA (yes, that was their team name). Game three was also a success, 15-12 over Nor-easters Want the Conch.   We were definitely gelling as a team and grooving to tunes DJ’ed by yours truly including Benny Benassi - Satisfaction, Survivor - Eye of the Tiger, and Technotronic - Pump Up the Jam, along the sideline.  You couldn’t help but feel great when running to those tunes. 

Playoffs began Sunday morning, and the pools crossed over according to seedings established in the Saturday round-robin play.  Buttermilk played a very intense game against The Big Kahunas, going point for point up to halftime.  It was our toughest opponent of the weekend.  We were up 14-13 when we failed to complete an endzone pass that would have won the game for us. The Big Kahunas were able to regain possession and worked it up the field to tie it up 14-14 just as the horn went.  That meant we had to play it out at universe point for the win. Unfortunately for us, the Big Kahunas came out with their strong defensive line, forced a turnover and capitalized on the turn with a big upfield huck, winning the game 14-15.  It was a disappointing loss to a very competitive team.  We fought hard, but its always hard to suck up the first loss of a tourney especially when it was just within our grasp!  

We still had two consolation games to play that afternoon, so we picked ourselves up, dusted off our cleats, and went to face our next opponents.  

Perhaps we felt we still had something to prove, and we went into our next game vs Magnitude thinking about the win we should’ve just had.  This was another close game 10-9, but we managed to secure the win at time-cap.  A sense of relief overcame us as we heard the horn blow.  By this time, it was obvious we were all beginning to feel the effects of fatigue setting in, and the weather was getting really hot and humid at this point.  With a humidex approaching 30C, players were having to don their hats, sunscreen and increase their hydration with water, ice and gatorade, but still the heat was taking its toll on the team. 

The final game was against The Fifth Element. Whether it was fatigue, heat or the unfortunate choice of Maroon 5 by the Sunday DJ (sorry, I’m just not a fan...), we struggled to play at our usual form in this last game, ending the day with our second loss of the tournament, a disappointing 5-15.  It felt like our hearts were just not in that last game.  But that’s OK, you can’t win them all, and it was just a consolation game at the end of the day.  

Overall, we went 4-2 at the weekend tournament, so despite the couple losses on Sunday, we finished with a winning record and we should be proud of that.  It was great practice for our team to get out and a play a full weekend tournament, especially since league playoffs will be done in a similar format to this in early September.   

Now go get some rest and I’ll see you all again Tuesday evening you sexy goats!!     

Six Things Mentally Strong People Do

Developing and measuring physical strength can be easier than testing mental strength.  However, both mental and physical strength are equally important for overcoming challenges to meet your fitness goals.  Here are a list of 6 things mentally strong people do. Do these habits apply to you?  Are there areas in your mental game you need to address?