Borealis Massage!

This past week I went to a great masseuse, Roger Sandahl here in Prince George. Good hands are hard to find but I think I found a pair to keep!

I'd recommend him for any sport enthusiast, or anyone who wants a solid massage in the Great North. Although he did make fun of my hairy legs... hard to keep them shaven daily when I'm busy, and to tell you truth, it keeps me warm up here! No worries though, I don't plan to have hair on my legs come race season, or by the end of this week (unless it snows)!

Thanks Roger for a great massage and I'm looking forward to the next!

How I'm feeling today...

1 month up North

Wow, time sure flies by. I'm not sure if it's because I'm so busy or because the days are so short. Most likely both. And now with this time change, it will be dark by 4pm! Before I know it, I'll be back where the sun is!

I think I'm affected by lack of sunlight. I need ALL the lights on in the house to feel alive. When I'm riding indoors I hate when my surroundings are dark. A big screen to watch movies at my family's house helps!

Speaking of family, my mom and dad have allowed me to live with them for these next few months. This helps in the saving money department - much needed for traveling and competing next year.

Training is going well. Indoor riding is the S....H....#....T....! I only ride a few times a week which keeps me fresh and able to go hard when needed. I'm already seeing the gains.

I'm also meeting a number of great local athletes. A few I'll be coaching in the weeks to come to help them with their 2010 season!

Halloween with the family! (My mom, brother-in-law, neice and nephew!)

Week 3 done...how many more to go?

Not that I'm counting down, but today is the first day of snow here at home. I've been here three weeks and thought it wouldn't be until November that I would see the white, flaky stuff. I'm mistaken... It's flying and doesn't look like it will stop soon!

No worries however. I plan to relish in the white stuff as much as possible. I'm hoping to do a lot of snowshoeing and hopefully skate-ski if I can find a cheap used pair. Prince George is full of trails and parks so I won't be bored anytime soon.

Training is going great. Riding indoors is, for me, the best motivator. You not only get to watch movies, but you get to practice a bit on the mental game. When the quads hurt, keep pedaling...

Canada's oldest person dies at 113

The Canadian Press…Oct 22, 2009

Moncton, New Brunswick - Margaret Fitzgerald, a New Brunswick woman whose family described as the oldest known person in Canada, has died at the age of 113.

Fitzgerald, who had celebrated her birthday last month, has died of natural causes at the Villar du Repos nursing home in Moncton.

She was born in 1896.

According to Guinness World Records, she was believed to be among the 15 oldest people on Earth.

A funeral mass will be held today at St. Bernard’s Roman Catholic Church.

Her nephew, Reg King, said he remembers her as a hard worker who often thought about her days on a farm in Tankville, North of Moncton.

2 weeks up North

ALERT! Freezing weather will hinder outside running. Wear two pairs of socks, three tops and a wind breaker! Oh, and remember to wear your underwear under those fleece pants!

My first time outside, I must say, took my breathe away after arriving at the Prince George Airport. It was cold in Park City, but not bone-chilling! I used to love weather like this... I'm afraid I turned a bit soft. Time to HTFU!

But I have to say, over the last two weeks I've gone from freezing cold to actually enjoying the numbing feeling outside. Yesterday I ran on the track and helped a few local athletes. Cold weather makes you tough! I was shivering cold and bundled to the brim while one of the local ladies was in shorts! I look forward to helping more athletes in the PG area. They make me more determined than ever to get a move on!

My first week home was great! I'm working 30 hours a week and I had a great first week of training. I got in a lot of hours and felt awesome going into week 2. My enthusiasm slowed when I could hardly get out of bed mid-week. I've joined the local Swim group, PG Barracudas. Some of these swimmers (15 years younger!) are FAST and swim circles around me. I love it!

The past weekend was a bit crappy when a bout of sickness hit me (food poisoning from home-made Kefir). I would highly recommend not making your own bacteria drink! I literally spent a whole day in bed holding my stomach, running to the bathroom and holding my cookies. :( I'm better now...

Next week - week numero 3 in the Great North. I'm having a great time meeting up with old friends and staying with my family. My mom's cooking rocks, and having home cooked dinner's never tasted so good! I'm used to opening a can of tuna, getting some veggies and dinner is done. Now I get gourmet dinners nightly! Thanks MOM!

Riding indoors has been great to keep the intensity and get rid of the junk miles. I have to give kudos to everyone here in Northern Canada who is a summer athlete. It takes a lot of diligence to ride indoors. I can't complain though, my parents have the movie channel which helps a ton while riding! And for some insane reason, I LOVE riding indoors. I don't have to think about anything and the work gets done. No cars, no traffic, no bothers! Just you, the bike and the effort,,,

Happy training....

The Long Journey Home

After a long, arduous trip, I made it back to my hometown, Prince George, in beautiful British Columbia. I decided to take the long route back not only to save money but to get in some extra training; it was a long hike, as the photos below show!

On my travels, I had to secure a few places to sleep and came across some great ones. Some were a bit cold at night but I had enough in my backpack to keep me cozy. I even found a plum tree and made sure to get my fill, both in the belly and for later.

Now that I'm home, I'm working hard both in training and as a physical therapist. By the time I head back to the US and training camp, I'll be ready to go!

(In all truth I flew home and managed to be on the same flight as Simon Whitfield. We shared a few words before boarding. When it was time to board he stopped and sat in first class. I kept walking toward the back, where I sat sandwiched between two heavyset non athletes.)

Pictures of my Long Journey Home

Back to O'Canada!

Well this is my last week in the US. It's been a nice visit but I'm ready to head back to my hometown, Prince George, BC. I'll be training hard (albeit indoors!) and skiing when the snow falls (hopefully not for a long time)! I'm hoping to join or form a fast swim group to get ready for the 2010 season. Any takers? I'll become a swimmer yet. At least that's the plan! With Team TBB's secrets, Chuckie's expertise, and my diligence, I'm hoping to make some solid improvements in this area. They're needed.

Winter training is just that - WINTER training! I'll have to succumb to the cold and harden up. I've become used to the warm, cloud-free days of California and a moisture-free summer in Utah. This will be my motivation for the next few months though...that warm weather exists...and awaits! Unfortunately, I had to ship my bike home already because of the lofty charges on flights. At least I saved $75.

With my time in Prince George, I'm hoping to save up enough money to buy my own car. This will help a ton when I travel back and forth from the US. I'll be working as a physiotherapist for a bit to help offset the negatives I've been seeing in my bank account lately!

Any ideas on winter training? I'd love to hear them! I plan to mix it up with some indoor riding, snowshoeing and skate-skiing.

I could say this past year was a total waste, but it wasn't. Now I know I want this more than ever and know what I need to do it! Training throughout the winter up in northern BC will be extremely hard, but I'll come back more determined than ever.

Patience. A long but lasting lesson in life.

Bullet With Butterfly Wings

I've been nicknamed by a few people "bullet" because of my cycling ability. (If only this was the case for my swimming. Wait! Bullets sink. That would not be good.)

Well recently a butterfly decided to ride with me (for 30-minutes. No joke). I did as it requested and rode slow enough so that it could enjoy the views at a much faster pace than it could do on its own. A good friend of mine, Ernie Wyder, once nicknamed me: "Bullet with Butterfly Wings." I think this is one for the record now! Here's a song about the same subject: Smashing Pumpkins (unfortunately embedding was disabled!).

Below is a picture later in the ride. Riding with me is Anu Vaidyanathan, who came out to train for a bit, along with Chuckie. We had some great laughs, as usual.

Update

Yesterday I ran 40-minutes. I'm working my way up! It's slow progress but it's progress. Two steps forward, one step back. No more three steps forward and one step back! I've been mountain biking some as well, and I'm absolutely loving it! It's a great x-training tool for easy rides and bike handling.

The other day I was at the recycling centre and couldn't believe what can be recycled. You name it, you can recycle it! They had shoe bins, plastics, metal, mixed metal, lights, bathroom fixtures, housewares, appliances, E-waste, paper products, newspaper, cardboard…the list is long. Basically, if one were to take the time to recycle what they put in their garbage bins, it would basically be everything (except chip bags, VHS and the like). It got me thinking….we waste a lot in this society!

If you were to go down there today, you could literally find enough scraps of metal, wood, and old appliances to build yourself a lofty home! It makes me think of how much "things" I throw away that could easily be used by someone else. When I was there I saw about a dozen items that I could easily have used as well. But, trying to down-grade to literally a bike and bike box, I had to refrain myself from picking them up. At least, now I know how I can down-grade!