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We’re back from a very brief trip to Lindsay for AthleticKid to swim/bike/run a kids’ triathlon. This is her first one of the season.
She put in a respectable time and moved up three places from her performance last year — in her estimate, measured from last place.
The New York Times has a small roundup of beginners’ running plans:
And who knows, some day it might lead to longer runs.
I finally uploaded the videos of our granddaughter in the Orillia Kids of Steel triathlon.
Andie-tri-start, originally uploaded by monado.
The swim was 300 yards: three times around the short course.
The first one, the swim start, is the longest video at ninety seconds. The others are under twenty seconds: one of the 5-km bike race and one of the running finish.
Andie-tri-bike, originally uploaded by monado.
Andie-tri-finish, originally uploaded by monado.
The results and pictures of yesterday’s marathon and half-marathon are up.
Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon 2008
The start!, originally uploaded by Longboat Daily Express Editor.
Every year, the Longboat Road Runners running club puts on a foot race on Toronto Island. It’s a fast, very flat course. But first, you have to take a ferry to the island. This year’s race was held last weekend on September 21. The pictures are up on Flickr.
Tacoma Narrows Bridge II
One of my first fun groups on the Internet was the Dead Runners Society. It’s a worldwide virtual running club discovered by LotStreetWiz. Through it we’ve made friends and acquaintances, learned more about other countries, met contacts on our travels, and even learned more about running and physical fitnesss training.
The DRS has evolved from a simple running club to a multi-interest group with regional subgroups such ad SOBER, the Southern Ontario & Buffalo Expired Runners, training specialities such as Tri-deads for triathlon training, and just plain hanging out for fun. Into the latter category falls the World Conference.
Here are a few notes about the 2008 DRS World Conference, which was held in Tacoma last June.
I stayed up last night and watched the finishers come in for about two hours. This event was not televised, but video & audio and liveblogging commentary could be had via the Ironman web site. I heard it announced when the man with a transplanted heart came in. Some people were accompanied for the last little bit by family members.
Ironman finisher
This is surely a pair of grandchildren, possibly with the oldest man in the race.
I caught a few glimpses of LotStreetWiz assisting the finishers off the course.
Other volunteers rushed across behind each runner to re-string the finishing-line ribbon. Some of the volunteers were children.
Runner and volunteer
Canada’s Ironman triathlon is running in Penticton, B.C. today. I’m watching the streaming video & audio (announcements and their choice of music on the speakers at the start/finish lines! Check it out at Ironman.com. Just keep following the links to live video. The results/transcription window pops up automatically.
The competitors are divided into professionals (pros) and amateurs (age-groupers). The pros compete for the overall win. The age-groupers have separate prizes for each age group (about a decade).
Ironman criteria:
The youngest competitor a woman of 18 and the oldest a 78-year-old nun. The oldest man is 77. I saw one man with a full grey beard, no one with large breasts.
I won’t be able to keep it on all day as I’m driving to Peterborough and back.
Andie ran her first tri last week. Here’s a picture of her during the run:
I did my first triathlon on Sunday: a try-a-tri in Orillia. About 220 people took part. (Or maybe I should say 217.) The weather was lovely: sun, some clouds, nice breeze, water fine. The swim was 375 metres, the bike ride 10 km, and the run 3 2.5 km.
I thought I’d have an easy time of the swim and plod through the rest of it at my usual commuter bike pace and Clydesdale amble. Instead, I was terrible at it. I felt mysteriously panicked during the swim because I couldn’t get enough air. I did the sidestroke most of the way so I could pant. Much of the time was spent worrying that the swim wouldn’t be timed because I hadn’t crossed over a timing mat before starting. It took about 24 minutes to do the 375 metres.
I probably took three or four minutes at transition because everything stuck to me when I tried to put it on. Then I was slow at biking but that’s not surprising as I have no endurance and there were hills. I did about what I expected on the bike, about 40 minutes for 10 km.
Then another three minutes in the transition zone. I drank the rest of my Gatorade(TM) from the bike bottle. I finally figured out during the run that my new running bra, worn under my bathing suit, wouldn’t let me breathe deeply. Consequently, I did even worse than my realistic expectations. Once I undid it I could breathe better and actually run a few steps. I finished it dead last or “DFL” as they say.
I was last out on the bike course and last back, but not, I think, slowest; then I was last out on the run but I did finish at about 1:38:41 total time – probably 33 minutes for the run. On the run, the Gatorade crew were packing up when I got close to the 1.5-km 1.25-km turnaround, but they left a glass out for me to have on the way back. The announcer was still announcing and the clock was still running when I got to the finish line. I know my timing chip beeped. Then they went straight to handing out prizes. I picked up a banana, some cookies, and some cranberry pitas from the food crew, who were also packing up.
I’m still considering whether to do another one. I think so. It wasn’t fun this time but only because I mysteriously could not catch my breath. It’s a fast-growing sport, according to the organizers.
I Will probably do the 5K associated with the Toronto marathon in a few weeks with Andie while Richard does the half.
Andie did fine in the kids’ tri but took a spill on her bike yesterday, crossing some train tracks on a bike path, and hurt her shoulder. We were at the hospital getting X-rays until 11:00 p.m. and then got supper at McDonald’s and I drove her back to Hamilton.
more funny cat pictures
In fact, she did wear her helmet and properly at that.
