US Team Trials

My first major races of the year were the US Team Trials, in Santa Rosa County, CA. I had been looking forward to these races for several weeks as the first chance to put my winter training to a very good test. The races were pretty much a who’s who of orienteering in North America and included some strong international runners - in particular, Kristaps Jaudzems, 4th at the 2004 Junior World Champs and Øystein Sorenson, gold medalist at the 2005 Junior World Champs.

Training Group Success!

Our Vancouver training group had some great results this weekend. Øystein and I had very good races in the Middle and Long. Louise had several strong races in the women’s class as well. I am very happy that the weekend went well for us. Hard work pays off.

Mental Preparation

I am in very good shape right now, faster and stronger than I have ever been, but to have a successful weekend, I knew that I had to navigate well. At this time of year, my foremost goal was to be smooth and in full control, making no mistakes. I was extremely successful at meeting these goals and I am very satisfied with my mental preparation so far. Now it’s time to move on and look towards the bigger goals.

Physical Preparation

My winter training has had its ups and downs, but I am in very good shape right now and looking forward to gaining some higher end fitness leading into the summer. I felt very comfortable physically during the races, so that is good feedback for now. I always had lots left at the end of the races, so there is definitely room to push harder. Especially at the end of the long, I was feeling very strong and gained a lot of confidence from the good race.

Next up

A few days at home in Van to recover will be followed by another big stint of travel. Several TCs, work and the Canadian Team Trials will take me to Kamloops, Canmore and Whitehorse over the next month. Stay tuned!

One Step Closer

After a nice rest on the flatlands, a brief training camp in Kamloops was on the agenda to kick off the spring. The terrain is very open, but not as rocketship fast as you remember, with some stony and uneven ground. Still, it was a great way to get some terrain legs back. I was well focused and met my goals of being safe and smooth through the weekend. In many ways, a perfect weekend of training and more than I had hoped for. Many thanks to the Vyses for a comfortable bed and great supper!

When it rains, it snows in this prairie town

Summer has most definitely arrived on the west coast. Warm, sunny days, cherry blossoms, the end of work and new found speed are all some of the things I get to enjoy with the new season. But to start it off, I visited home for a few days last week. The CBC stories of flooding and massive ice jams are no exaggeration, and it was quite a sight flying into the prairie town.

Relaxation, good food and visiting with family are the main reasons for a trip home, and I am now charged up for a very busy summer. I plan to keep regular updates as my exciting weeks of racing, training and travel unfold!

Next post – TC#1 in Kamloops!

Happy Earth Day! $7 Million for Land Conservation in Manitoba

The Manitoba Government announced a big Earth Day present to its citizens this morning. $7 million is being used to support to the efforts of the Manitoba Section of Nature Conservancy of Canada and various smaller projects around the province.

There's an informative and interesting press release here from NCC. And a bit of a fluff piece by the Winnipeg Free Press here.

Live through this and you won't look back

The winter is supposed to be a time of big, solid training adventures. The last month has been frustrating from a training perspective. My motivation for a great racing season is high, but I've been dealing with a nagging knee injury that is hanging on and refuses to heal. It is improving daily, but still very slowly. To keep the trend going the right way, today was a triple workout day - keeping them short so that it's not too tough on the knee. Progress!

There aren't a lot of places in Canada you can get a roller coaster snowy trail run in the morning and a sunny and a nice warm ride in the afternoon.

Espresso, Speed, Sun

Just three of the reasons Portugal is an ideal getaway for the orienteering athlete pining for great training. The terrain is amazing, technical and fast. The sun is warm. The coffee is strong and cheap.

February was a packed month and just flew by. It was filled with a few big, solid training weeks, two training camps, and one injury! I will be doing some updates about the past month, but for now, here's a peak into the month that was!

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog! The purpose of this page is to share some of my adventures in orienteering and other crazy trips. I'll post pictures and stories hopefully a few times a week.