Road Rash Chronicles

Home.  Need massage, food, sleep and lots of Advil.  Oh did I mention some moisturizer for my burnt head!!  Ma tête est brûlée comme le pain grillé.

Will provide more details tomorrow.  But here is the pic of me fighting with Catherine for the finish line.

As we left the race track on our final day in Tuxtla, saying goodbye to the marathoners and our newly found friends from the Yucatan, was done with a sense of both sadness and anticipation. It had been a great 2 weeks up to that point. The teams had come together, we trained hard, we raced hard and most importantly we supported each other hard. Leaving that environment wasn’t going to be a joy by any means but for some of us, discovering and creating a new environment held just as much excitement.

After spending about 3 hours searching and calling around the city to find a rental car, we managed to organize ourselves and our luggage in preparation for the 1 hour drive to San Cristobal. After a small detour in the wrong direction (thx to yours truly) we watched the sun slowly fade on the horizon as we headed up into the mountains surrounding Tuxtla. The ride was mostly uneventful once you finally decided to put your life in Ray’s hands and sign the waiver over death and grave injury. And that decision needed to be made almost immediately. I am not saying that Ray is a crazy mutha fuc*ing speed demon on acid with a lead foot, but he ain’t no Sunday driver either.

About 3/4 of the way to San Cristobal, we began to noticed in the far distance that parts of the mountains were on fire. Not a forest fire as you would imagine but just a thin line of flames. Within minutes however, we quickly noticed that this "line" of fire seemed to stretch for miles and miles on the surrounding hills. It was truly a sight to be seen. Beautiful really. It was like watching hundreds of snakes of bright orange fire and light endlessly curl around the mountains. Kim and I had planned on taking pictures but we quickly realized that there would be no point as it was pitch black outside. Little did we know we would have a better chance in mere minutes. As Ray continued up the slopes of the mountain, traffic was beginning to slow down. Within seconds we knew why. Our mountain was on fire!! Not only that, the flames were shooting across the road...the road we were on! The flames were not crossing the road from flat to flat as you probably would imagine. They were coming from above and falling down onto the cars. You could only imagine our anxiety at that point. The last thing we thought about were taking photos. We were more worried about crossing the spitting wall of flame. But with stunt driver skills, the Jaguar (Ray) pulled us through. It was a bit unnerving however because we didn’t know what lay on the other side of the flame. The roads were notoriously curvy and who knows, there could have been more cars on the other side of the smoke and flame. Thankfully there was not. So with our lives saved from the fiery slopes of hell, we continued on our way. It was not long after when we pulled into town.

Kim had read about a cute little hotel run by Americans that was recommended in her travel book but once we found it and took a look around we decided against it. It was beautiful for sure. More like a courtyard sanctuary you would see in a movie but for us, the price was a bit steep. Compared to Tuxtla, it was like moving from sleeping in a card board box up to the Penthouse suite of Donald Trumps apt. when in fact, we were more interested in a Holiday Inn kinda place. It wasn’t long until we found a place and settled in. 3 beds, hot water, a toilet seat....good enough for me!

San Cristobal

The three of us knew almost immediately that San Cristobal was what we had been looking and waiting for since arriving in Mexico. Imagine a place that combines the perfect ratio of quiet mountain town , aged tourism, cobble stone streets, open air markets and pinch or two of pot. While none of us smoked, the hippy feel of the town kept everything in perspective. It was as if the hippies kept the place in check. They made sure it didn’t get too touristy. We folded into the lifestyle pretty quickly and found ourselves walking everywhere and taking advantage of the local street markets, coffee shops and little restaurants. It was heaven.

Agua Azul

One early morning, we took the car and made the 3 hour trip to Agua Azul on the recommendation of Ursula and Sergio. The drive was ridiculous and is almost impossible to explain if you haven’t experienced it yourself. The roads are about 5 feet wide and there is never a straight line for more than 5 feet. Navigating up and down the mountains without much food or water for 3 hours was a frightening scenario. So much so that Kim and I nervously watched Ray slowly transform into the Jaguar in front of our eyes. By the time we had reached our first check in point for the water park, Jaguar was in full force. Although the travel book warned that there were two tolls, one from the villagers and one from the park itself, Jaguar had decided that tolls were irrelevant. As small children (at first) knocked on our windows asking for pesos, Ray stayed focused and continued to drive as if the children were invisible....or dispensable. Either one would apply. An adult finally showed up and began pounding on the window, which only angered the Jaguar and put the fear of vengeance upon Kim and I. As the poor man was asking for the pesos, Jaguar attacked and had the man dangling by the throat within seconds. As blood dripped slowly from the neck of his fresh kill.....okay so that part didn’t happen but still, you had to be there. Jaguar’s attack might not have been physical but let me assure you that the growl of a Jaguar is just as bad as it’s bite. Needless to say, we paid the fare and made it the rest of the way safely.

The fates seemed to be paying attention to Ray’s little show of power and decided to torture him with the antics of a 7 year old. Upon parking in the lot to the park Ray was mauled by a 7 year old wanting "protection" money for the car. And this kid was persistent. He must have walked with us for a good 5 minutes almost threatening us that he couldn’t protect the car unless we paid up. Quite hilarious if not a bit scary as well. At one point I was certain that Ray was going to "bo-flex" this poor kid into a tree. Now that would have been funny.

The park was beautiful but was packed full of people. We walked around for a while and took a quick dip but we didn't stay long.  There were just too many people.

Our final nights in San Cristobal were relaxed and some of the best nights in the 3 weeks. We shopped, we drank, we ate and we walked and walked. Not to mention watching the sky open up one afternoon in a spectacular display of rain and light.

Upon our return to Tuxtla, argh, I had asked a favor of Ray and Kim which they were more than willing to fufill. As I didn’t get a chance to skate more than a few minutes on the Tuxtla track because of my Montezuma’s revenge, I wanted to return to the park and skate for about an hour before we had to prepare for our departure. Specifically, I wanted to get my time trial done so that I could have a semi-official time tracked. More for me than anyone else. When we arrived, the Chiapas junior team was there already practicing. Momentarily I was worried that we wouldn’t be able to skate but with a few words and hand signals, the coach was nice enough to let us skate with them. The kids were really excited to see us and for the next hour it was a joy to be able to hang out with them and race them around the track. It was the perfect ending! Full circle kind of moment for me. Of course I towered over these kids but that didn’t matter. They were just as happy to be screaming Canada as I was yelling Chiapas! As time ran out, we said our goodbyes, I thanked the coach and packed up to leave the track that final time. Although I won’t miss the city of Tuxtla, I will miss the track and the kids. They made the city almost bearable. Almost.

 

 

When looking back on the whole trip, I think the best parts however, was sitting down in quiet environments and getting to know the two amazing people I had spent so much time with in the past weeks. To me, our adventures together were worth more than the value of the trip itself. I can’t even describe how many times we were holding our stomachs and laughing to tears. Kim’s sarcasm and silver tongued personality, not to mention her ability to "play along" without cracking a smile combined with her unique vulnerability, quickly had her nicknamed the Minx. Fun to play with, coy and gentle to pet but has a bite you won’t soon forget. And Jaguar. Well, Kim and I got to see and experience a side of Ray that I can only imagine very few people get to benefit from. And that is a shame because it is a side that truly showcases his strengths and compassion. Separately, each are forces to be reckoned with, together they are a force of nature that I was deeply grateful to experience.

And there you have it.  I hope you have enjoyed my story.  Hopefully the adventures of Minx, Jaguar and Pantera will continue sooner than later.  Stay tuned.

 

 

 

 

 

 Last night at 4-2-1, right from the top of the class, Dom dropped the bombshell that we were going to do a marathon distance instead of our normal 25k.  Oh crap.

I was sort of excited to see if I could do it but I was also very very tentative considering all the boot and back issues I have been having lately.  Last week, after only 30 minutes of skating, I had to take my skates off because my ankles hurt so bad.  So you can imagine my trepedation when Dom mentioned a marathon.  Yikes.  Keep in mind that I only recently completed a 21k distance.  Anything over that was new territory.

I had luckily heat molded my skates again on Saturday night and decided to do a 10K before the group showed up for practice.  I arrived about an hour early and while warming up Dom showed up for a mini session with another skater.  I tagged along.  What a saving grace that was.  I was able to get the back and hips warmed up and adjust my laces to a comfortable threshold.  I even moved my frame yet again.  Still having probs with that left skate.  

Anyway, for the most part, I was okay.  I had some back and hip issues but never at the same time and almost always bearable to some degree.  Not to mention the speed we were tracking at was not race pace but not slow by any means.

We saw a few skaters here and there like Dan D and Ray V but it was only Ray who whipped around and joined the pack for a few kms.  We tried to convince him to come with us but he bailed out.  I guess he wasn't up to a real skate with the pros.  ;)

As the night progressed, Dom decided to test our road skating and quickly pulled us off the paths and onto major roads.  Hills, and cars and the most unbelievably horrible pavement I have ever experienced.  Island Park drive should be closed down.  It was like skating on glued together gravel stone.  Up to that point, I had never felt anything like it.  

By the 30+ marker I was getting tired and my ankles were beginning to bother me a bit.  Technique was quickly diminishing and as a result everything else started to get sore.  Especially the bottoms of my feet.  Since when does that happen?  Strange.  But before we knew it, we were back at the parking lot and I couldn't get my skates off faster.  Then of course, Kim and I had to reward ourselves with Dairy Queen.  Now that is the life!  

I had to laugh at one of Dom's critiques however.  While skating behind me for a few kms, she said "you are doing something wrong but I don't know what it is.  I know it is something but I don't know what "it" is."  

This morning, although very happy I actually did the distance, I feel like I am going to die.  My legs and hips are so sore that I can't even fathom that I have a 2 hour tennis game at 3 followed by another training night of skating.  Walking hurts....the last thing I want to do is put my skates back on.  But I also realize that that is probably the best thing I can do.  Damn!

So here is our route from last night.  It shows 30k but with my warm up, it was officially 40km.    

 

Mexico - Part 2

When we last checked in with our fearless skaters, we shared in their travel woes to Mexico, we learned of their stretching limitations by Mexican standards and we heard about the younger, faster, fitter Yucatan team. In this installment, I will transport you to Tuxtla, the land of dust and noise....so sit back and get ready for the journey down memory lane.

The Road Skate (our last day in Merida):

After skating in circles at the track in Merida for almost a week, the teams were super excited about the road skate we were going to take to some ruins outside of the city. After a short drive both the Yucatan and Canadian teams met up at the side of the road and got ready for a 15km - 20km mini race. The slower group (group 2) were taken to a location a bit further up the road so that they wouldn’t have to navigate some of the more steeper hills. Looking back however, there were no hills that would have posed us any problems. I am sure we could have handled them with ease. Speed however would have been another issue. There is no way we would have been able to pack skate with group one.

I had raced out of the truck and donned my skates in record time as I saw that group one was quickly approaching. My goal was to jump on the pack and do my best to hang on for dear life. It kinda worked that way for about 5k. I drafted behind Ray (aka Jaguar) for a few k’s until I started getting some pretty bad toe and back pain. (Remember I was skating with a broken toe). The road conditions were not great but not super bad either, but the combination of my back and toe pain was too much for me to handle at that speed. As a result, I couldn’t stay with Ray and ended up falling back. At one point I had to stop altogether and relax but that only resulted in a car picking me up. The driver said she couldn’t leave me by myself and I had to either skate in a pack or be chaperoned. Anyway, we met up with Caroline shortly thereafter but the lady would NOT let me out of the car. After asking about 4 times, she simply drove right to the ruins passing everyone. I never felt more useless. I was not impressed but there was little I could do. Basically, the whole road skate was a bust for me but it was probably best for my little toe.

The Ruins:

After the race, the teams regrouped and got some great pictures before heading out to what I felt was the best collection of ruins we had seen thus far. It was just amazing. I can’t recall the name of the place but I hope we get to return there one day. It was stunning. Mini groups formed based on touring speed around the site and I did my best to spend some time in each one. Of course, the most entertaining was the Race Team group. Or more aptly called the Stephane Tremblay Babysitting Club. I tell ya, I am surprised that man wasn’t arrested! He has the energy of a 5 year old boy trapped in a 20something year old body. I can’t imagine the trouble that he could get himself into if left unsupervised. Whether it was chasing lizards with sticks and stones or throwing rocks everywhere, it was a challenge for the rest of the group just to keep up with him. Next year we will have to bring stronger medication. ;)

Week 2:

Tuxtla

At the airport, ending our first week, we sadly said goodbye to some team mates who decided not to come to Tuxtla for the second week of racing. The flight from Merida to Tuxtla was fast and relatively uneventful. However, upon landing I did get a strange twinge in my gut but I quickly brushed it off as a side effect to the meds I take when flying. (Big mistake)

The first thing we noticed was that Tuxtla was no Merida. It was like comparing Ottawa to New York City. Where Merida was a village like town (small city feel), Tuxtla was a bustling city with lots of dust and dirt and cars everywhere. It was city life all the way. You could see the pollution in the air and could definitely feel it in your lungs within a day or two. Cough Cough.

What was immediately evident while heading into the city was the car to taxi ratio. Where as here, there is about a 9:1 ration of cars to taxis, in Tuxtla it was the other way around. Every car was a taxi and every taxi honked its horn every 5 seconds. No shit! It was the constant soundtrack to the city. You could not get away from the honking. It haunted you at night and was relentless during the day. It was never ending. You have to experience it to understand the consistency of this noise. It is something I will never forget when I think about Tuxtla. That and the sidewalks, which proved more of a hinderence to my team mates than myself. I guess I am more coordinated in the walking department.

With that said, the team jumped in taxis and were quickly driven to our new home for the week. The dorms. Ah...the dorms. Where do I begin. And let me remind you that this is MY recollection of this place. I am sure that there are team members who loved the place..... ha ha

The Dorms:

Lets just say that the minute I walked in the place I knew that it was going to be an adventure. After picking up your one pillow, one bed sheet and food tickets for the week, we were shown to our dorm room which consisted of 4 bunk beds. The room was no bigger than 8 feet wide by maybe 10 feet long and considering we all had at least 2 pieces of luggage and skate bags, it made for a very tight fit. 8 men in a small room with no air conditioning....what was I thinking? Oh wait, it gets better.

The bed were made of wood but the bases were old fashioned wire spring netting. So just imagine your buddies ass hanging down in your face all night. Lovely. And the mattresses? Well, they were dark blue and about 5 inches wide and at first I thought they were patterned with polka dots but upon closer inspection I discovered that they were stained with....well everything you can imagine. And it was best you didn’t imagine for too long!!

The bathrooms were worse. Of the 5 stalls, none had seats and only 3 had doors. Toilet paper hung outside the stalls on the far wall and there were signs reminding people not to flush the paper down the toilet. Yup, you read that right. Paper was to be put in a bin beside the toilet. Yup. So you can just imagine the spring like fragrance of this place. And after only 1 day, all the toilets broke down and were blocked. What a joy that was. All in all, the bathrooms are what did me in . And did I mention no hot or warm water. Ya. That too. I lasted a night and ran out of that place screaming the next morning. Ray, Mike and Wilby were not far behind. For $12 a night, a clean bathroom and a hot shower, not to mention a reasonable bed, it was the best $12 bucks I have ever spent. For those who stayed, I take my hat off to you. Especially the women. I would have thought they would have been the first to leave. But I am not sure what their accommodations were like. Maybe they were better? Either way, I learned there was a limit to my "roughing it" standards.

Race Week:

Remember that flight I mentioned above? What started out as a "twinge" in my gut on the flight to Tuxtla turned out to be full out warfare against my body. Montezuma finally arrived and for the next 4 days I wasn’t able to leave my newly found hotel room, and while there, I pretty much camped out in the bathroom. No food and barely anything but Gatorade for days on end. I lost about 7 pounds in 4 days! It was a miserable experience that I never want to relive.

Needless to say, I missed all the races and couldn’t even cheer my teammates on. I spent about 2 hours at the track and other than that, I really couldn’t manage my time there. I needed constant access to "facilities" that were just too far away. That was what pissed me off the most. After all, I knew I wasn’t going to win anything but participating in providing support was just as important. I had to wait for updates from Ray or others each night and I only made it for one dinner in the whole week. I missed all the ceremonies and award stuff as well. It was a bummer for sure.

By the 5^th day, Friday, and 30 Immodium pills, it was slowly coming to and end. I finally managed to leave my hotel room and visit the marathon race for a few hours with Kim who was still suffering a bit herself. There, we said most of our goodbyes to the team as they finished the event one by one and got ready to return home that day or the next. Ray, myself and Kim were heading out on our own adventure to San Cristobal later that night, so we had to get our butts in gear and find a rental car. I have never been so happy to leave a place in my life. I couldn’t get out of Tuxtla faster. I am not sure if it was only because I was so miserable while there or if the city itself was not my thing but I still have a hard time finding anything memorable about the place.

The Jaguar:

Ray mirrored my views on Tuxtla but had his own issues with the city that far exceeded my complaints. In fact, it was in Tuxtla where we were introduced, for the first time, to the "Jaguar". A Tuxtla inspired creation comprised of 3 elements. One part rage, one part hunger and one part fatigue. Mixing parts of uneven sidewalks, blaring taxi cab horns, and mystery dorm food was all it took to mutate our soft spoken and often speechless Ray Vermette into his alter ego we have come to know as the Jaguar. A quick tempered, foul mouthed and easily agitated beast who attacks without prejudice at the slightest provocation. Once transformed, no man nor child was safe from the Jaguar.

As we laughed, teased and poked fun at our little Jaguar, little did we realize, Kim and I, that over the next 4 days, Ray’s mutation and influence would infect us as well transforming us into our own alter egos.

Stay tuned for the next installment.

Jaguar, Pantera and the Minx are set loose on an un-expecting mountain town.

Over the past few weeks, several of you have taken the time to come up to me and mentioned how they have noticed my improvements in speed, fitness and technique over the winter months.   Some have also given me excellent feedback and corrections on my technique.  Considering that I was probably in too much pain from my new skates to really hear you, I have to apologize for not doing the easiest thing, and yet one of the hardest for some....saying thanks.  

Recently, for every step forward I am taking, it feels like I am taking two steps back at the same time.  For every tip or technique I am trying to build upon, I get blessed with a whole new kind of pain that sets me back again.  And while I am caught up in my own pity party, I am forgetting to say thanks to "you", the skaters I look up to the most.

And even though you all drive me crazy at times ;) (mostly because I am perfect in every way)... I appreciate the boost!!  

So thanks everyone!

If you know me well, you know I am infatutuated with America's Next Top Model.  Nothing comes between me and my Wednesday 8pm date with Tyra.  Don't test me, I'll cut ya!!  

So you can imagine my surprise when I read the following article.  (Click to enlarge)  

 

People just have to understand, when Tyra speaks, shut the hell up!!!  Geeeezzzz.

It was an interesting day for skating to say the least.  I was so excited to have 3 hours of skating today that I totally misread the Club's website and showed up to the early session that is reserved for invited skaters only.  (I am not one of them).  So here I am stretching and getting ready to go when Allain skates over and fills me in on my blunder.  Crap.  Poor guy, I am sure being the bearer of bad news isn't easy but I totally understood the need for consistency in the program.  No harm no foul.   Anyway, I wasn't really willing to drop $15 bucks for an hour of skating....even if it was Allain at the helm of coaching.  No offense A.  And as irony would have it, what did they end up doing?  My favorite drill.....relays.  Ya, thanks.  Torture me why don't cha.

The next hour was fun just the same.  I tried to get some good technique going but things didn't come together like I had planned. 

Early on, Allain pointed out that although my shoulders were low, my butt was stuck in the air resulting in a false sense of lowness.  Trying to get lower, keep the ass down AND push with the heel all while trying not to fall backwards is harder than it seems.  I am going to have to make this a priority as I had a very difficult time getting deep in my seat.  Allain could bring his butt lower than his knees all the while in basic position.  That is fucked up.  Seriously.  Do these guys not have bones?  Are they all just rubber.  Geez.  I will have to research some stretches or exercises to help with that.  Finding that balance of getting the butt low without falling backwards is going to be tough.

In order to test out some theories, towards the end of practice I tried to skate a few laps without lacing up my skates.  What an adventure that was.  Immediately my feet started slipping out of my boots.  Dom (the nicest girl in the world...and the bestest buddy ever) said right off the top that this was a sign that I wasn't using my heel to push.  So for the next few laps I tried my best to get that heel down.  Of course, I looked like a tool skating around like this but it did let me know that my balance was all over the place and that I need to develop more confidence in my outside edges.  What I really need is 1 hour with a coach and some repetitive drills every week. 

Ed from TO showed up for the last hour and as always it was a treat to gauge visitors' reaction to our floor.  Only after a few laps, you could tell he was not overly impressed with the resistance our floor offers.  Ah, the joys of indoor.

And finally, Jean Charest, the Premier of Quebec showed up for a public appearance thingy.  He shook some hands and took some pictures, you know, the usual fan fare, but I kinda kept my distance.  After playing tennis with Movie stars, Chancellors, Prime Ministers and Presidents, a Premier is so below my attention span.  LOL 

Sorry I haven't been posting many pics lately.  Camera has always been forgotten.  I am sure some of you are glad of that.  ;)

However, for the rest of you, here are some shots from practice this week.

Don't cha hate it when one small correction can cause so much discomfort?  Who knew that skating was supposed to be this much trouble?  

At last nights practice, Sergio flew up beside me and gave me 2 really important tips.  

1.  Make sure you have your weight deep and back enough to allow for a strong heel push.  Seems I am still toeing a bit.  Argh.
2.  Upon recovery, try to bring your knees together.  "kiss the knees"  

What seemed like small corrections at the time had my hips screaming within minutes.  Ouch!   I will endeavor to add that to the list of things to remember and work on.  Seems this list is getting longer instead of shorter.  

Two more people commented on my pronation last night as well.  But there is really nothing I can do at this point.  My frame is all the way in and unless I am missing something I can't see how to correct it.  It is only week 3 on my new race skates and although I am not "afraid" of the outside edge, my ankle doesn't seem to like that position.  When I had my semi races, I think I was spoiled a bit.  I had no fear at all of carving that outside edge because I knew I had the support of the skate.  This time around, there is no support there so my mind has yet to put that edge to the test.  It will come in time I hope.  

Alas, I was only able to do 2 laps with the race team last night.  Crap.  I think they were practicing intervals because for half the loop I was okay but then all the sudden they were gone in a flash of lycra.  Even at my 100% with arms flailing about, I couldn't catch them.  Oh well.  I will just have to wait until they decide to practice lame ass skating.  Then I will be able to keep up no problem!!

But the most frustrating part of practice was a stupid mistake I made while pack skating.  I was pulling a nice pack of about 7 skaters at a reasonable pace when I saw Sergio about 100 meters ahead.  I took the pack and we attacked those 100 meters to pull right up behind Sergio.  (yah for me)  but.....  At the upcoming turn, I pulled out wide at the entrance in order to fall back (part of the drill) and didn't time my transition properly.  The next thing I knew my pack was gone and I was left trying to sprint to catch up to them.  

I learned via Dom, the nicest girl in the whole wide world, that I should have stayed pulling until the turn was completed and then transition back.  That way I am not losing the momentum or speed from the crossovers.  I had to do twice as many crossovers at a much slower rate since I had pulled wide way to early.  I will remember for next time.

So much to learn.  So little time.

Myself and the core group of racers met yesterday at 6pm for an informal practice session with Dom the bomb as part of our 4-2-1 program.  Much appreciated for sure!  Free session with one on one commentary and advice...who wouldn't want that.  

But here's the thing.  I want to skate!  Let's skate already!  I am such an impatient person sometimes and even though I KNOW I need to hear the mental side of things, I have dealt with that over a lifetime of tennis competitions.  I totally get the sports physcology side of things but nothing compares to actual skating.  At least for me.

I am not diminishing the importance of the mind in this sport, don't get me wrong, but as the sun was setting I was itching to get up and hit the trail.  After 50 minutes of chatting about "stuff" I was just about to say "excuse me, can we skate now".  

Like I had mentioned to Dom early on in our sessions prior to yesterday, I am a very "do or do not" kind of guy.  Sitting in a circle talking about "stuff" is not going to make me a better skater.  (or at least I don't think it is).  What I want is technique, skills and feedback.  I think I am just getting antsy about the 21k in Montreal.  I want it to be perfect.

On that note, I got some from Greg on pronating again.  Argh.  Will work on that frame even more today.  But I am starting to think it is just me not being 100% comfortable on my new skates.  The group ended up doing about 25km in a pack and it was really fun.  We had a reasonable speed and my back pain was at about a 7 out of 10.  Slowly getting better.  2 more weeks to go!!

Distance wise, that is 50kms in 2 days!!  Not to mention the 8 hours of tennis I have played in 3 days.  On top of that, I have 2 hours of tennis after work today and then I have to drive to skate practice at the NRC.  Christ, I better lose 10 pounds after all this!!!  I am surprised my legs are supporting my weight at this stage of the game.  I have to remind myself not to go to the gym when I am skating 20+ kms on the same day.  Ouch.

And one last thing.  I love my 4-2-1 team.  I trust them all and I really enjoy our fit together.  We can totally get faster but for now, things are on the right track. 

Since I began inline skating, I can't recall a time where I skated a long distance that would be somewhat similar to a half marathon.  Maybe while I was in TO and did that path with Michael Cole but I am not entirely sure what that distance was there and back. 

Either way, today, Greg and I ditched indoor practice and decided to focus on distance training in preparation from Montreal in a couple of weeks.  I did my first half marathon distance officially.  Greg and I jumped onto the parkway at the War museum and after a few warm up laps on the oval, we hit the trail and skated all the way to the Boat Club and back.  I didn't race it mind you, that would have been impossible and would have had me collapsing in pain a quarter of the way through.  On the journey, I had to stop or slow down about 5 times to stretch out my back as it is continuing to cause problems.  Twice I was relatively okay, but there were 2 times when I seized and could barely stand up.  I have a feeling I should be giving my doctor friend a call.  Argh. 

I score the paths about a 8 out of 10 today.  For the most part they are free of debris but from time to time you have to watch out for thick twigs and such.  Leftovers from the snow for sure.  But there are no rocks or gravel to be seen.  And that reminds me....since everyone and their dog is on the paths, I would strongly suggest that each person carry a whistle or noisemaker with them.  People are just not smart enough to know what you are doing.  It is almost as if they don't know how to react to inline skaters.  Bikes...fine...inliners and they go stupid.  So be warned and be careful.

And one last piece of good news.  I finally figured out what was wrong with the alignment of my skates.  Greg had pointed out that I was pronating on my left side pretty badly.  I had already heard that from Ray this past week...plus the fact that I could feel it too.  Upon early inspection (weeks ago), I had moved the frame as far in as possible but it didn't help.  I figured it was a design flaw of the skate and was ready to take a drill to the base to widen the slot.  Today however, Greg took my frame and inspected it.  We discovered that there was a "plastic material" build up in the track of where the bolt goes.  In other words, this material was preventing the bolt sliding fully over to the inside.  Digging this crap out with my car keys and a skate tool allowed me to move the frame properly to the inside.  Yah!  Hopefully this will make a difference....hopefully with my back too!  Such a small discovery can bring so much joy. 

I am hoping to get that distance in a few times a week before heading to Montreal. I figure with more distance under my belt, the more prepared I will be.  That logic is sound right?

Although I have been suffering from strange back pain recently, I have to say that yesterdays practice was fan-fuc*ing-tastic.  After running the loop and doing a very light amount of plyo based exercises, we donned our skates (without stretching tsk tsk) and focused on pack skating.  Love this exercise as we don't often get to practice lots of pack stuff over the winter.  We try but the skill levels don't usually accomodate everyone on such a small indoor track.

Anyway, several times during the practice, I jumped onto the race team pack and managed to get about 3-4 laps with them before being dropped or dying from fatigue.  (edit: a lap is just shy of 1km) Either way, sticking with them for 4 laps was totally amazing.  I had to skate at about 90% of my ability but it felt grrrreat to be a part of that pack, even for just a small amount of time.  The speed is a bit crazy and you have no time to worry about the surface you are on because you are focusing on keeping up and staying in a controlled peloton.  Very different level of focus.  At least for me.  The great thing is the realization that at least I can do it.  Even though I realize that they are only skating at about 60%, it is still a good feeling.  Of course my legs are so sore today that I can hardly move but still, it was fun.

As I mentioned, I still had a few back issues but this time around it was a bit different.  I was able to give my back a break from time to time by standing up and just changing position but at one particular point of the night I had a bizarre turn of events.  Instead of my back being sore while skating, it spasmed when I tried to stand up.  My laps were over and as I was rolling to a stop I tried to stand up and the pain was like a punch in the gut.  No breathe at all.  It took a good 2 minutes to finally be able to get up and once I did manage it, I tried to stretch it out a bit at a time. 

I am still working on core strength off and on skates and I hope that with the more skating I do, the quicker things will fall into place.  At least that is the goal.  With tips and comments coming in from everyone (thanks) I will be putting many things into practice to see if that helps. 

Well the time has finally come.  Time to put my money where my mouth is.  

I am officially registered for my very very very first inline event.  The Roller Montreal Marathon on May 11th, 2008.  http://www.mtlroller42k.com/index-en.html

Now I only have 3.5 weeks to learn how to stay low for more than 3km without my back spasming.  Should be a super fun 3.5 weeks.  I am hoping to skate every night from this point onwards so who wants to come out and play on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays?

Practice last night was held at Asticou.  I had never been there before so I was looking forward to grading the pavement and the facilities as I had heard nightmare stories of this place for the past year.  Although it has its patches of rough, overall it was an okay loop.    

I wasn't 100% happy with my skate yesterday but it wasn't as bad as I thought once I chatted with Greg on the way home and calmed down a bit.  Sure I had some back issues but they were relieved (for the most part) when Dan D and Alicia gave me some great tips.  Alicia reminded me to get even lower and to suck in my bellybutton to give my lower back a break.  Worked like a charm.  Dan D reminded me that if you are in a pack and you are in the middle or at the end, there is really no need to stay super low all the time.  If you need to, stand up and give your back a break.  Once I did that and took advantage of the bigger guys in front of me, I was able to increase my distance on the first try.  

I couldn't complete all the sets that Dan had us doing but I did put in an effort.  I completed about 25km of the 30+km that were required.  It seemed that about every 5km I had to break in order to rest my back or stretch out.  That still seems to be my challenge thus far.  I am going to work on strengthening my core as much as possible on non-skate days and see if that helps at all.  And as Alicia mentioned, I might just need to push through that wall and see if maybe my body can adapt.  Lots of things to try, lots of things to learn.  I am hoping that it is just "new season" aches and pains.  Regardless, I WILL prevail.

On a more positive note, I did manage to do a 2k loop with Stephane.  Although it was his warm up lap, the pace was still pretty fast for me.  I had to give my 80% just to match his speed.  It was great fun.

The Corner Kid Killer struck again last night and Benoit was the latest victim.  I guess he was getting to close and she kicked him to the curb.  Poor guy.  Although he kept on skating, he did have some nice road rash as a souvenir of this senseless attack.  I think I will have to rename this skater the Corner Kill as she now seems to be going after adults as well.  There seems to be no discrimination now.  When will it ever stop?  Something has to be done!

As always, the race team were pretty focused and were just blurs of speed the whole night.  You can tell that they are stoked that the outdoor season has begun.  The fun and games are over.  Training time has begun!  I am bummed that I can't train with them on Wednesday mornings because I totally think I could benefit from it but this damn job of mine keeps getting in the way.  But I am looking forward to when the Saturday morning sessions start.  I will totally be there!  No one is going to question my intentions this summer, let me assure you.

Lastly, I have to give some props to Shannon.  I am totally jealous of his endurance improvement over the winter season.  Speed and distance are looking great buddy.  I think you are the next "skater to watch". 

And Greg, I am going to take your advice and let go. 

Hmm, I have to admit that the "high road" is something I am not used to taking.  Piss me off and I am usually quick on the retort.  If you knew my family you would totally understand the training that was required when growing up.  However, today I managed to keep my cool.

Today at the gym, I was practicing some dry-land exercises and some plyo's that Barry and Stephane have us do when I noticed this guy watching me from across the room.  At first I just figured he was wondering what the hell I was doing but after a few minutes I thought I might have a stalker on my hands.  (after all that happens to me all the time)

Anyway, while doing some abductor work and skating stride jumps, he comes up to me.  (for the visual) He was about 5 feet tall weighing MAYBE 140 pounds soaking wet with stick figure arms and legs. 

him:  "hey, I was noticing your skate exercises...do you have abductor problems too?"
me:  "hey there, no but I find it is a good exercise to build up my muscle strength"

him: "ah it must really improve your hockey skating"
me:  "actually I am learning how to speedskate but I am sure it works the same way"

him:  (with hands motioning) "aren't you a bit "big boned" to be a speedskater? " 
me:  "well that is kinda why I am here at the gym"

what I wanted to say...

me:   (with a look of pissed)  "aren't you a bit delicate to play hockey asshole?" 


Afterwards of course, I binged on my salad for lunch and then forced myself to purge it so I could keep my calories down for the day. 

What a bastard.  Big boned!  The nerve.

Hey again everyone.  Just so you know, I have updated my flickr account with more photos.  You can find your Run for Reach photos here.  http://www.flickr.com/photos/30813780@N00/sets/

BTW, I create individual folders for each skater whom I have more than one photo for so if you don't have a folder yet, it is only because I need more shots.  Be patient. 

I have folders for people I don't even know.  How strange is that!

Not many read this blog so if you do and you know people who have a folder here and would like to know, share the info share the love.

Thx all.

****Update:  Seems the time counter at the race was a bit off.  Therefore the times on your pics are  incorrect.  For your even BETTER results, go here:

 http://www.sportstats.ca/display-results.php?lang=eng&racecode=43186

So the first event of the season has come and gone and I can honestly say that I am glad I sat this one out.  It just didn't feel right .  Plus I wanted a few more sessions with my new skates before I commited to an event.  whaaa whaaa whaaa I know.  Spare me the violins.  I know how it sounds.

Anyway, I promise I will have my crap together for Montreal in a few weeks.  Even if I have to put on my old skates, it is going to happen!

On a positive note, I just have to say how amazing it is to watch my fellow skaters cross that line.  Even if they didn't do as well as they hoped, just doing something like that is amazing to me.  To think that there is only a small community of people in Canada who can do a half marathon within 30 - 45 minutes and YOU are one of them.  I think people lose sight of how great they are in the eyes of other people. 

On the photo side of things I have to apologize.  My camera was malfunctioning and the majority of my shots were overexposed or had major focus problems.  Peter Doucet of Speedskateworld, our 1st place winner with a 37.50 minute race was also the first victim of my bad camera skills.  Sorry Peter!

Here are a few shots that did make the cut.


Benoit, our second place skater.  38.01


Allain.  Always in the lead pack.  40.09


Morgan from TO.  41.19


Sarah from TO.  Our ladies 1st place winner.  41.22


Travis from....TO (I think) and JF.  44.12


Dan the man.  44.24


Dominique (corner kid killer)  44.28


Candy from TO.  My competition for next time.  45.52


George from TO and Tom.  45.57


Tanya.  A great race!!  52.32


Tom and Melissa.  The dynamic duo. 


Dominique and someone.  No introductions.


No clue who these people are either.  LOL  They look nice!


Deja Vu?  He looks familiar.


Bailin, the Devil and Lisa.  Seriously, doesn't Benoit look like he could set you on fire by looking at you!  Told ya!  I am sure he has evil powers.  I just know it.


Our fearless leader.  Peter Doucet, the 2008 champion.

Il Peloton had its open house last night and it was tons of fun.  Great time, good food and best of all, amazing people.  It was great to see some of the TO crew there but unfortunately they came in just as I was heading out.  Argh.

I always enjoy seeing skaters outside the spandex and helmet world.  However, sometimes I need to remember that these are people I don't see socially all that often.  So I sometimes forget to put that "social check" on myself.   You see, I have a REALLY twisted sense of humor.  REALLY twisted.  I imply everything and substantiate nothing.  I deny nothing and offer up everything.  All in fun of course.  I totally enjoy getting a rise out of my friends so I will admit to anything.  And the thing is, I don't usually have to explain myself because my friends know when I am being an ass.  (which is most of the times) so they know to take me with a grain of salt.  But when an equally sarcastic person gives you that "look" of "hmmm are you serious", then you know the joke has failed miserably.

With that said, I noticed that at key times last night I would get very funny looks from people I was talking to.  Some with raised eyebrows and some with nervous laughs.  I have to make it a point to remember that not everyone has the humor tools to cut through the sarcasm and invention to find the joke.  Crap!  Uh oh I have a feeling there are some skaters out there that have a very scary view on yours truly. 

LOL  I am a good person, really!  I am normal damnit!  I am a gentle and delicate person full of sunshine and puppies....really.

I will have to redeem myself when I see some of last nights crew today.  LOL  This should be fun. 

Although the Ottawa Inline Club is not officially promoting this event, I think it is totally one worth mentioning and promoting to our fellow skaters around the region.  The price is right, the route is reasonable and the timing is perfect.

On May 4th, Nortel is holding its annual Nortel Tour.  A bike, walk and inline event that circles around its main site in the West end of Ottawa.  There is traditionally only one event open to inline skaters but this year, with permission, we have been given the okay to participate in the 35K road tour as well.  

Where the 12k tour circles the site on very nice pavement, the 35K tour goes offsite on what can be described as a somewhat challenging route.  There is a tough hill and a patch of rough pavement but apart from that the route is about 75% standard fair.  No problems for our average marathon skaters.  

The cost is only $25 bucks and this can either be paid through a pledge or through registration.  That is all.  You can even do both events if you really like!!

For those interested, drop me a line.  Cor1000@yahoo.com  I would love to do the 12K but am hoping I can get a group of people together for each of the events.  For me, it will be my first inline event and I do NOT want to skate it alone.  Come on people!!

Things to keep in mind.

1.  It is not a race.  Just a friendly day of fun.
2.  Although we have been granted an early exit time, there will be cyclists on the route with us.  
3.  Visit the site for more information.  http://www.tournortel.com/

Since Mexico, I have been brainstorming with team members, board members and other athletes about this idea I have. Here is the gist, reasoning and process behind it.  Let me know what you think.  

To me, coaches are defined as those who take the responsibility of teaching skills, rules and tactics involved in a particular sport to its players.

Trainers on the other hand are those who take on the responsibility of increasing the physical fitness level of players in a particular sport.  That is to say that the basics of the skills are there and a “next level” is being sought. 

How does that relate to skating?  Well ask yourself these questions. 

1.       Do you receive one on one instruction?

2.       Do you receive regular feedback on your performance?

3.       Do you have a technique goal or a fitness goal?  Have you informed anyone of these goals?

4.       Do all the members of your group share the same goals?

5.       Do you consider yourself more of an “improved skater” or a more “fit skater” after a season?

For the most part, based on the above questions, I think I approached my first winter season with the wrong goals.  My particular focus was to complete (to the best of my abilities) the drills and exercises outlined by the Race Team.  These drills usually focused on endurance, interval training, speed and relays.  All of which pushed me to my limits and at times over my threshold which I discovered was surprisingly low. 

The level of training is and has always been fantastic and difficult. No complaints there!  I am clearly a more fit skater compared to last year and that is thanks to the routines and drills set out by the Speed Hour group at our indoor and outdoor sessions.  Without those drills I can’t imagine the belly I would have after the winter season.

I fully recognize that I decided to join the training program of a group of skaters who are clearly at a different level so that I could learn and benefit from them as much as possible.  The problem is that I don’t often get the opportunity to learn as much as I thought I would.  I am observing tons of skill, technique, speed…etc. but processing that information and putting it into action myself is another story.  Many of us are still at an infancy stage when it comes to these particular skills. 

I know I have mentioned this a dozen times in the past but it warrants repetition.  Each time that Stephane, Ray, Mike, Dominique, Benoit, JF, Sergio and Allain have taken 2 minutes out of their time to point something out to me that I was doing wrong and then SHOW me the proper skill or technique, it has given me something to work on and improve.  And I felt I have.  They didn’t just say “get low”, they showed me how to do it.  How to ankle bend, where to place my shoulders, how to carve that outside edge…etc.  Carolyn and Sarah did the same in Mexico.  They commented on how I was arm swinging across my body rather than in front of my face.  With a 10 second demonstration I was able to correct that technique issue.  10 seconds!!!  What I don’t think they understand is that 2 minutes of their time saves us months of repeating a bad habit.  Hopefully that can change.  This is how.

What:  One on One Skater Assesments

A one on one assesment would allow a beginner or intermediate skater to “book”  time with either a Race Team member or an advanced skater to review and assess their skill level at varied times through the month/season/year.  This would include instant feedback and demonstrations of the skills/techniques that the coach/trainer has identified as needing work.

How:  A pre-developed skill list could be created so that coaches/trainers could assess each skater on the most common of skills and techniques.  In addition, the skater could also communicate with the coach/trainer on particular goals and objectives they have identified for themselves for that particular month/season/year.  For example, common skills could include:

1.       The ability to skate in a basic position with good extention.

2.       The ability to skate in a basic position with good ankle and knee bend.

3.       An assesment of the overall core strength of the skater.  Can they skate in a basic position for more than 2km.

4.       Can the skater skate in cadence with another skater/pack?

5.       Can the skater stop?

For more advanced skaters, skills could include:

1.       Can the skater crossover in turns?  At what level?

2.       Does the skater have adequate underpush?

3.       Does the skater toe out when recovering?

4.       Does the skater push to the side or to the back when skating classically?

5.       Can the skater double push?

When:  This can be determined by the skater and the coach/trainer.  There is the option of having the assesment done during pre-existing training days or alternatively at a mutually convenient time outside club program timeslots. 

Cost:  Upon discussions with other skaters, there has been a consensus that a small fee could be charged if need be.  In reality, many skaters believe that there should be a fee as the time of the coach/trainer is valuable and not something that should be taken advantage of.  Time is money people!  The race team would certainly benefit from fees coming in as they could use these funds to offset competition fees, travel fees…etc.  Fee structure could be:  $25 / assesment (Approx. 1 hour)

There are two remaining options.  One is the option of having a fee paid to the coach/trainer directly and not to the race team as a whole.  The last is a “no fee” option where the assesment would be done at no cost to the skater.  Obviously, the feedback and guidance of the Race Team and the elite skaters would be sought in order to come to a mutually beneficial agreement.

If successful, this could potentially be a service provided by the Race Team that could be advertised.  I believe that if managed properly, this could become a very popular and beneficial tool for all level of skaters.  Visitors could click on a link and a Race Team member would reply within a time period to set up a time and place for the assesment.  How the Race Team would assign coaches/trainers would be up to them.  Alternatively, skaters could be given the option of “who” they want as a coach/trainer for their assesment.  This would be a discussion point.

Of course, there are other elements to be considered but overall, this is the basic overview.  It occurred to me recently that we have all these skilled skaters in our midst and we rarely take advantage of their experience and their guidance.  There is obviously a need and a demand, so why not develop a tool to meet these needs?  I also believe that with the new “buddy” system discussed at the Registration Night, this assesment tool would be a perfect way to integrate new skaters into the club and also develop the intermidiate and advanced skaters who may wish to take a more active role in the race/marathon events.

As skaters of all levels, I would love to hear your thoughts or suggestions either through this forum or via email.  Cor1000@yahoo.com