The evolution of fitness Pt. 2

Last time we considered different types of goals people may have when they begin their journey of fitness. Now we will consider where to go with that goal!

First up is the seemingly universal goal of loosing a few pounds. Right off the bat I am going to say that regardless of what exercise regimen, the more important thing to look at is what you are putting in your mouth. In short, 3hrs on a treadmill does not equal 3 plates of pasta... In fact, depending on where you are starting from and how much you have to loose you may need only to change your eating habits to achieve your goal. Now lets say that you have your diet in reasonable control. From here it is a simple balance of fuel burned vs fuel consumed. At least that is the general notion that people have been taught since the dark ages. And you would not be wrong if you go by this. However, through years of studies and hundreds of fad diets, there is one resonating truth. The quality of your food is far more important then the amount of it! You may even be shocked to find out that many don't eat enough food! In a perfect world we would eat vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, lean meats, eggs and we would eat till we aren't hungry. And guess what... There would be no obesity! For more info on this check out this link. http://robbwolf.com/what-is-the-paleo-diet/ (FYI, I ignore the the strange caveman theories and look at the useful info) 

Alright, we now have our mind set for eating right and balanced exercise. Now we can look at our options for exercise. The beauty about this goal is that there are so many different routs to the same destination! So if you hate running on a treadmill then guess what... You don't have to! Really as long as you are doing activities that burn the extra glycogen stores you have built up in your muscles and that elevate your heart rate you are going to loose fat. If you are the kind of person that likes to be pushed and have others working with them then you may try one of the many bootcamp workouts that are being offered all over the place. For those looking for a more dynamic environment, I highly recommend heading to the Crossfit gym closest to you and seeing what it's all about! (FSF offers this service).

If you are the timid, apprehensive type, and you don't mind doing your own thing then there is a lot to be said for the timeless cardio/weight training combo. A simple weekly schedule could look like this. 1 hr, 3 times per week with 20min of cardio coupled with strength exercises for the remaining 40min will work wonders for your body composition so long as you are performing them properly and safely!

What You Should Take Away From This

Quality, sensible diet + Regular exercise= Healthy body composition!


   

Things to look forward to!

Hey everyone! It has been a crazy couple of months getting everything set up and planning but I am proud to announce that Full Spectrum Fitness is now 100% operational and ready to help you! For all the info about services offered check out the website at http://fullspectrumfitness.ca/.

Also of interest is the upcoming winter program that's in the works. Who has ever tried a spin class? Who has ever experienced a Crossfit workout? Well if you have done both or neither I'm sure everyone in the GTA will love the new group session that Full Spectrum Fitness will be offering starting this holiday season!

More info is on the way so check in again soon!

I leave you with this awesome video of an amazing Race from the weekend! Enjoy

Raw Vegan VS. Primal Paleo?

The first and most confrontational nutrition debate is the plant vs. animal war. It seems that the 2 groups are trying to be polar opposites of one another but is one better then the other or are they just 2 paths to a similar destination? Well I have had the chance to dabble in both nutrition strategies and conclude that both have their merits. Lets expand...

Raw Vegan: Often the visual that one imagines when hearing that someone is a raw vegan is that of a thin, long haired, tree hugging, philosophy spewing hippie who lives off nothing but wheat grass juice and the energy of "mother nature". And no doubt there are many of that sort but if we look past the nutty appearance we can find that apart from all the spiritual jabber there is a fountain of well founded nutritional wisdom there. The Idea is simply simplicity. If it's hard for your body to process and digest then it shouldn't go in your mouth. Animal products are what they say to be the main cause of health problems along with grains and other starch based carbs. So the name of the game is stick with what the earth gives us without having to cook it. So things like potatoes and squash are also out... only fruits, vegetables and some nuts and seeds. Basically what you can grab just in the produce section of the grocery store.

Now Paleo is different but at the same time has similar ideas behind it. The basics are that you only buy what we had access to thousands of years ago before processed and pre-packaged foods came about. In the same way as the raw diet, Paleo shuns most starch based carbs (grains, potatoes, etc...) and focuses on a lot of veggies. The difference lies in the high amount of meat consumed and the fact that you can lightly cook your veggies. It also limits the amount of fruit you can eat due to the high sugar content and the effect that it has on you insulin production levels. You can shop for this diet by only buying what you can find outside of the  aisles of the grocery store and avoiding dairy all together as it is designed to meet the needs of baby cow and not humans. The proposed benefits of this strategy are as follows, improved digestion, reduced risk of diet related disease, increase in lean muscle gain all round well being. There are those who take this to an extreme and go so far as to eat their meat raw! It's always best to be balanced with everything though and make sure that you are not depriving yourself (so have that piece of cake every once in a while).

Even though they are both strict diets that don't lend themselves to eating out with your friends, it isn't impossible. If you know exactly what you can and can't eat it is more than likely that you can ask your server to customize your meal a bit (eg. replace the rice with some steamed veggies).

So here is what I know from trying each diet strategy thus far.

Raw Vegan + very lean with little exercise required, feel strong and at the same time keep a low body weight. 
- Need to eat a lot to sustain energy levels, does not bode well for endurance sports.

Primal Paleo + Easy to build and maintain lean muscle, consistent energy levels, improved workout performance, Long lasting energy
- requires lots of planning for meals/pre-cooking,

I have to say that I have found for my active lifestyle that Paleo has been more suited. Though I love the clean and healthy feeling I get from being raw, it leaves me with little extra energy to work out and requires to much eating to keep up with a high metabolism.


I am going to stick with this clean Paleo diet for a while and see what else happens. Stay tuned for updates on that!

The Evolution of Fitness Pt 1

This is my first post under my new blog theme and I want to get off on a good foot. So let jump right in with a topic that perplexes anyone trying to start a new program. The constant changing and of what is considered to be the next best thing in fitness and all the different choices out there. Now I'm not going to come out and tell you that there is a one size fits all answer to this problem but I will say this. The industry has come a loooonnng way in the past 20 years and the new age style of training is much more scientifit and effective then the weight room junky mantality that most think of when they hear the word excercise! But the fact of the matter is that some are much better then others when it comes to real effectivness.

Lets talk about the factors that signify a legit workout program and what how you can find the right one for you!

1. The first and most important thing to look at is what does the program claim? If you are being promises and get ripped in 2 weeks deal then you are deffinitly on the wrong track! We see all over the internet and in magazines these ads with lean and rippled men and women that are saying that you can be that guy if you buy there 5 week dvd program or take this suppliment (this is a topic that I will go into detail with in the future) and it sounds really good right? Well if you were to ask one of those Profesional Fitness Models what they did to look the way that they did in the picture do you really think that their going to say "by taking this suplement or following a DVD in there living room? Hecks no! Their going to tell you about the hours they spent in the gym working there asses off to have that ideal body so that they could score the photo in that magazine! This leads me into the next factor that determins what program you should go for.

2. What is you ultamate goal? Without a deffinate goal in mind you will drift in and out of programs and diets because you can't messure your progress. So what do you want out of the program? Is it to build muscle? Or to loose weight? Or is it simply to have and sense of well being and health? These are important things to consider because your motive will determine what type of training you should be doing. In the next post we will consider the different training styles and what they are most beneficial for.

Until then train hard and enjoy the journey!

Keep a weather eye cause a storms a brewin

2 sleep away from the big day and all is good. Had a great ride on course yesterday or at least what I was able to figure out with the map. It may or may not be a MTB course but I'm not complaining either way. Lets just say that if I followed the map right we will be crushing some serious climbing and at the end of the lap is a stupid hard steep pitch. I wish I could go check it out tomorrow but havn't been able to line up a drive there. I need that G2...

Looks like all the heavy hitters will be there except Nova Scotian pride L'esperance. I haven't seen his name on the reg yet. There will be blood. Hopefully not my blood though!

Going into this race I have had a lot of help from some great people. So big shout out to the Ride with Rendal crew, papa Haviland, and the amazing guys at Evolution cycles in Richmond hill who have brought my bike back from the gates of hell a few times and made it ride like new! And a very special shout out to Mr. Peter Glassford who has got me to were I want to be this season. Hard work will show this Saturday and the best will come out on top. Can't wait!

Business time

Cross season baby! And it's about to get really heated up with Nats only 1.5 weeks away. But first lets recap the season thus far. Skipped first few O-cups to rest up after an awesome provincial MTB champs. By the time my first cross race in Guelph came I was itching to race. I wasn't sure how that would go cause I didn't do mush prep before hand and was on a large borrowed bike. It was huge! But came out with a win and that was that. Moving on now. Mr, Glassford and I got to work on training with Nationals in mind and things have gone great so far! Also super cool that Peter is taking part in this cross season.

Next race=Hillbilly Hustle=OMG! Too cold too soon and I was not prepared at all. I also tried to be all manly and go bare leg which sucked! Chown and Zack Attack maned up and crushed it while I pulled the plug after rolling my tire and then going all Hypothermic. Too bad cause that is my Fave cross race on the O-cup circuit and the course was great.

Durham cross was sweet again but this time more fast guys were there. I was training through that one so wasn't sure especially since Mark Batty had shown up. But turns out he trained through it too and we had a great race that ended with him hitting the deck on a barrier and me attacking to get away for the win. Love that course!

Off to the USA for some UCI action with Alex Sanna and his super girlfriend Hidy (sorry if I spelt that wrong). Joined by Mr, Batty and Easterner Emily Flynn and her mom it made for a super fun trip. The racing was fierce and Mark crushed day 1 with a 2nd and I was really happy with a 7th and some UCI points. Next day was... hell! They threw in an additional climb and that along with tired legs made for one of the toughest races ever! I had 11th but crashed with about 1min left and fell back to 15th. Still happy with how I rode though.

Ok almost caught up. Baseball cross=flat hammer fest. Loved the course that Watson and Barrie crew set up. It all flowed soo well and made for some tactical racing. Started 2nd row which made me start easier then usual but it might have been good cause I got to draft the whole 1st lap. Then I got board and went to the front and went hard for a while and got things going with a lead group of Zack, Mark and myself. Mark looked like he had been doing some serious training the week before and fell back the next lap leaving the 2 kids to work together. After a few laps of trading up the lead we saw Watson creeping up the field the same way a lion sneaks up and and Gazelle and then before you know it BOOM your dead. So the only logical thing to do was go faster cause we didn't want him there. He's got that old man power (old enough to race masters nats... Look out Mogg). Then it was time to break the team work and go for the win. So I put in a 1 lap dig and got a gap. But Zack never gave up and was biting at my heels for the rest of the race. I managed to hold him off and get the win.

Next race will be Nats and it's gonna be sick! We have a stupid strong U-23 field this year so it will be a show fo sho! Time to train!

Different year different race

Hey there. So this time last year I had my all time best race of my life wining Nationals in Canmore. So I have been excited all season dispite not having a great season so far to come back and try and defend the title. I can't say that my confidance was super high going in to the race but I kept an open mind and stayed optamistic. It got a bit easier to think about doing well mid week when I suddenly had really good legs. So I did everything I could think of to keep the feeling alive. I kind of succeeded and and made it to race day feeling fresh. The reason I say kind of is because the feeling only lasted the warm up and the first 10 min of the race. Cramps started to set in pretty quick after that. I was able to keep the pace high still and picked off people once I got back into a rhythm. Then lap 3 I managed to find the one difficult section on the course and then eat it hard! Dug my face into a pit of sand and smoked my hip and a rock. Got back on and bike was fine and got going again. Took me a bit to get back up to speed. I might also mention that the lead guys had checked out by this point so all I could do was try to see how far up I could ride myself. Picked off a few more people but not sure which ones were in my category though. Last lap came around and I was thinking I could move up at least one more spot. Hit the "Eye Dropper" and heard that sound that every cyclist hates the most. Felt stans spraying all over my leg. Got in to the pits and Havy gave me a sick wheel change. Got going again and just wanted to hold whatever spot I was in and get finished up. Made it but got sprinted at the line by a guy I didn't even know was there. So Needless to say not the highlight I had last year. But moving forward and looking forward to the new team relay event tomorrow. Congrats to Boucaurd, Baily and Martin on there great races. I'll be working my ass off to get to that next level and mix it up where I want to be.

Finding the balance

The past few weeks have been all about getting into a routine that allows me to get everything done. This has been by far the busiest winter I've ever had. With training, job, studying and trying to have some non cycling fun when I get the chance. It has been overwhelming but a good learning experience. And I feel like I've found that sweat spot where I can do everything and enjoy life at the same time. Good thing I like my job!

Recent activity has included training obviously, sharpening the chef skills, spending good time with the friends and family and a trip to the bike show. This year I think was the most enjoyable visit to the show in a long time. Mostly because for once I wasn't there looking for the most outrageous deals and spending all my time in the cramped booths getting pushed around. Instead I was just there to mingle and check out the new products. Fave booth was the shimano booth with the new XTR. Sooo excited to ride this stuff this season!

Even though I wasn't looking for crazy deals Me and my Dad still came across one that we just couldn't pass up. Full carbon Noco torrent frame for 450$!! My dad has been without a MTB for a few years and I decided that I needed a riding partner this summer so I put the money down and had a happy father. He almost had the bike fully built within 2hrs of getting home! It's looking sweet.

Now looking forward to the next winter escape of the year to South Carolina with the OCA camp. Can't wait! Especially since winter has had a second wind here. Then soon after the camp it will be off to Colombia for Pan Ams! Excited and scared at the same time for that one. Should be a good experience for sure.

That's about it. Happy trails... or rollers...?

Going going, Back back too...

Cali Cali! Oh how I am loving it here in sunny California. Well with the exception of today which is stormy and dark... For the past few weeks I've been down here getting in some good training and learning all about "good livin". It's been nice to not have to worry about anything but riding my bike and eating. After a month of the bike due to a knee injury it's really helped me get back on track and shed some of that extra weight gained which I am probably going to gain back by the end of today. It's crazy how hungry I get on recovery days!

This trip has been great not just for riding but also for getting to know the rest of the National team. I've had the pleasure of staying in a house with Amanda Sin, Mikaela Kofman (Fudge) and Catherin Pendrel. 3 pretty rad laddies who have really impressed everyone with there riding abilities on this camp. We've done some killer rides and all 3 of them have risen to the challenge!

One of today's off day activities was setting up a twitter account! After seeing the people I'm staying with using there's all week it has sparked my interest and I have become past of the flock. Check it out! http://twitter.com/#!/jrdstafford

This trip has seen a lot of firsts for me and will always be a great memory. Thank you to MattP and Pete Glassford for setting up the accommodations and I will definitely be coming back next year. And I recommend it to anyone looking to escape the great Canadian winter to Talk to these guys as it is probably the biggest bang for your buck you will find!

Just one more ride here and then it's back home for a while. Sad to leave but can't wait to see the fam. All for now.

A new adventure

Hey everyone! Hope you had a good holiday season. It's been a nice relaxing break and I'm feeling refreshed and re-motivated. I've been exploring different things to do for fun other then riding my bike in my time off. Did some snowboarding, xc skiing and even hung out at a few malls with some friends. I think I'm done with that for another year though. Not a whole lot of excitement to report on. Just good refreshing fun and time spent with friends and family.

Now looking forward to the year 2011 I've got some big things happening. Other then starting up with training again I have started my new job at UTC (Ultimate Training Center) as an assistant to the trainers there. So far I think I'm going to like it there. Especially once I get my Canfit personal trainers certification and can start working with the clients. It's a great facility and I recommend it to anyone in the Newmarket/Aurora area who is looking for some fun group cross training this winter. I took part in one of the workouts the other day and it really exposed my weaknesses. I think it's really beneficial to work on balancing out those muscles that don't get worked as much in out sport to become a more well rounded balanced athlete.

So for the next while along with training I'll be updating on how my new adventure with the job is going and talking about what I'm learning.

One last thing. Along with everything I am trying to raise money so I can go to Cross worlds at the end of this month. I'm doing a fundraising spin class at Joyride 150 on the 16th. It will be about 2hrs long and all those who come will have access to the park after. Also Starbucks has been nice enough to supply free coffee for us to keep you energised for a solid day off riding. The fee for the class and day pass will be $40. extra help if more then appreciated.

All for now.

I have a blog!?

I was just cruising through some peoples blogs when I realized that I have one as well and I haven't touched it for a while. That seems to happen after after big events like nationals as I start to think about taking time off the bike and get lazier. Well I haven't been all that lazy. I've spent the last few weeks in a classroom getting me ready for a co-op type of course. I just finished my last in class day yesterday and will be getting a placement at a training gym soon. It's a pretty cool program for those who think they know what they want to do but aren't sure what is involved with that career. So for the next few months I'll me studying and getting experience in the field of personal training and group training for different sports like hockey, soccer, speed skating, Olympic lifting and other sports that I have never taken part in. Should be a good experience.

So needless to say that I haven't been doing much riding at all lately and I'm starting to feel the effects when I race. I don't feel really slow or out of shape but I seem to be lacking the ability to attack or get out of the comfort zone. Maybe I'm just getting soft. So I'm thinking that this weekend will be the final race of the season at Sunnydale park. I'm still in the overall lead for the series so I feel like I should finish it off and try to hold the lead.

In other news (for those who care) I picked up the new Gran Turismo game yesterday. It's been years since they announced this game and I have been expecting a lot in return for the long wait. I haven't gotten very far into it yet but I can already tell that I'll be spending some solid hrs with it this winter. The graphics alone Are worth the wait but there are so many cool new features and a stupid amount of cars. So far I'm rocking the Asian beast known as the Honda civic. Pretty gutless... but there is much to look forward to including a Nascar series! Ok I think I should leave because if I don't this post will get very long. If you like fast cars and are like me and can't afford to get one for real then I suggest you get this game!

All for now.

Well the hillbilly has come and gone. This year was the nuts! Snow and mud puddles every where. I'll admit I was not fully prepared for those conditions. Didn't bring warm enough clothing and paid for it. It was the coldest race I've ever done. I could feel every muscle just slowing down as I got colder. Well actually I couldn't feel much at all! The race is kind of a blur know but I managed to tough it out for second. So no jacket this year but half way through the race I honestly didn't care anymore. All I could think about was getting across the finish line and getting dry and warm. And that brings me to the post race de-thawing process. I've experienced the burning sensation before but this was by far the worst I've had it. It felt like my hands and feet were it a fire for a solid 10mins. I looked pretty pathetic but at the time I really didn't care. I'm pretty sure that Peter was filming it so if you have that vid Peter send it my way please. Pretty sure it would be quite comical to see now. After getting cleaned up, going to the podium and have Andrew taunt me with the coveted Hillbilly jacket I went home and crashed.

The next few days were rough as I was really tired still from the race. Kept things pretty chill doing a bit of riding and took care of some school stuff that had been neglected for a while. Feeling much better now. Got my bike almost all sorted out for this weekend. It was pretty wrecked from the race. Looking forward to the battle between us u23's. It should be some good racing. Looks like rain the next few days so I might be throwing on the new mud wheels complete with Rynos! Hoping for mud to make things more interesting. See you all there!

Best bad race

After last weekend I had to take it easy for few days as I was pretty destroyed. 2 days of chasing a group of fast guys into a head wind proved to be hard on the legs. But Maybe it was good training because when I got back on the bike I felt really good. So as long as I could keep that good feeling I was confident that I would have a good race at provincials.

Lets skip ahead to race day. Turns out the good feeling stayed with me and I woke up dying to get on my bike. hmm... pretty uneventful up until the race. Just rode the course a bit and chatted with all the good cross folk while watching the 11:30 race.

Got lined up next to Andrew so that I could get in his head a little bit before that race. Don't think it worked though because he went off the start and took the lead right away. I had a good start and was able to get right on his wheel with no trouble from anyone else. Through the first set of corners I was content to just sit on Andrew and let him set the pace. There were a few passing attempts by Mr. Hughs but I had to shut them down as I did not want any separation between me and Andrew. Sorry Zack. Once we hit the hill section of the course Andrew and I had some separation. Then he took a fast sweeping corner wide and I ripped it on the inside and past him. May have been some smack talk going on. But When we got to the top of the course I blew a corner and he was quick with a come back.

After the first lap we had a good sized gap. That would mark my most successful attempt at staying with Andrew to date. And I was still feeling good. Going into the second lap Andrew upped it. I reacted and stayed on him. I had a feeling he was hurting more then he was showing so I stuck with it. Coming back into the hill section again. Put it in the a small ring and SNAP goes the derailleur hanger. Got off my bike, sat down and pouted like a 5 year old for a bit. After watching the rest of the field go by I shook my head and said what are you doing you fool! Picked my bike up and ran it into the pits. Got on the old ridly and tried to restart my race. Legs felt weird after the run and the bike felt really awkward. Took me a few laps to get used to the added weight and different position.

With 3 to go I got a bit of a second wind and picked it up a bit. I really started picking guys off after that. It wasn't long before I had moved into 4th in the u23 and could see 3rd at some of the cross over sections. By the beginning of the last lap he was just up ahead. Once I caught him he put in a good effort to stay with me. So I punched it to try and break his spirit a bit. Before the finish I managed to catch and pass Peter Morse which would have put me 7th Elite.

So not what I had in mind but definitely not disappointed. It gave me the chance to work on some mental toughness and made me push harder. After looking at the lap time I noticed that my last 3 laps were faster then every ones. So There are a lot of good things to take away from this race.

Today I chose not to race and just do a good endurance ride which I need to get started with. It's gonna be a cold one I think.

T.O day 1

Here's a short take on how today went. Finally got on the front row. Had a good start and sat in with the fast guys for about a minute. Didn't ride as aggressively as I should have and got past by a few guys who were slower through the hills and corners and lost the lead group. Once we hit the straits I past the guys in front of me and desperately tried to Chase down the group ahead. It was hard because there was a good head wind and I was the only one in who seemed interested in chasing. So I pretty lead into the head wind for the whole race and picked off guys that were falling off the lead group and kept riding past them. I probably could have let someone else take the lead and recover a bit but I won't lie I wanted to catch Evan Mcneely who had a great start and was sitting in with leaders (sans Fretini). So I kept drilling it for the whole race. Got caught by Andrew and pulled him around for a bit. Then he picked it up again and I was to blown to stick with him. The last lap I blew a corner in a fast section and was gaped by Mark Lalond who had stuck on my wheel for most of the race. Once I got up and back on my bike he had a good gap. I was able to close the gap a bit but didn't have enough time to seal the deal.

Ended up 7th 2mins down on Fretini. Looking forward to tomorrow. It's goin down! Looking at you Evan.

Will you go easy on us please

My words as I was in line for the washroom talking to Dave Fratini of the Italian National team. That's right we had some international talent at an non uci Ontario race! He's here for the uci race next weekend and for thanks giving with family here. He heard about the race from Eric Box and said hey why not?

So Here's how the day went down. Got up feeling a bit tired from a very active recovery day yesterday. It was worth it. Had too much for breakfast but it was also worth it. Yum! Headed over to Toronto with My dad, my Bro and Tristan Smit. Got there at 10:30ish and watched the early race and checked out what was in store course wise. Lots more uphill and strait aways then last weekend. And one very off camber section that people were getting me all worked up over. Jumped on for a lap after the race was over and it wasn't so bad. But the course was very physical. It had the first real run up of the year which was unrideable because of the steepness (is that a real word?). Then watched the next race witch included the juniors and women. Small junior fields this year. Only 3 today. I guess most of them have moved on to new categories this year.

Then it was go time for me! Got in a few more laps for a warm up. Then waited around for a bit by the start. Got board there and went to ride some more on the course and ended up being late to the start line. Missed the front row again. But squeezed in on the second row which was alright. Had a good start and managed to blow by the 2 guys the row in front of me. Settled into the Fratini train and picked 1-2 off on every strait section. It wasn't long before I was in the front group of Batty and Fratini. So I settled in and let Dave do the leading and learned as much as I could by watching him. Very smooth on the pedals and never seems to make mistakes.

After a few laps of following Dave eased up a bit and we all started looking at each other. I noticed that A chase group was closing a bit and decided that I didn't want them to catch on so I took the lead and pushed hard. I knew there was no chance of gaping Fratini but I thought maybe i could shake Mark. But after about half a lap I was hurting pretty bad and the other 2 were still sitting on. After a 1.5 laps I pulled over to let Dave by again and sat on his wheel and tried to recover. And guess what happened next? He upped the pace and gaped me a bit. It wasn't long before Mark decided to come by to try and close the gap. I managed to get on his wheel and stay there.

We were still gradually losing Dave and the lapped traffic wasn't helping us any. Then i made a few mistakes getting clipped in and Mark got a gap. I was able to drill it hard and close up but whenever I got close my right pedal would give me more trouble getting clipped in. And as Mark Accelerated away again I was still fumbling with my pedal. So the last few laps were spent with me drilling it try and catch back onto Mark and Mark drilling it to make sure I didn't get back to him. The last lap I manged to not have any pedal issues and got close to Mark again. Came around the last corner with him only a few bike lengths ahead but he has a kick that I couldn't match. But in fight with each other we were able to close the gap a bit on Fratini and could see him crossing the line as we hit the last corner into the finishing strait.

So that was that. 3rd for me but definatly a satisfying 3rd. And all the big Ontario hitters were there (- Watson) so I'm happy about the race. Also it was good to see more cross newcomers like and Adam Morka, Preston Wagler and another appearance by Ty Wag. Feel like I'm missing someone.

Well that's all for today. Looking forward to a long ride tomorrow with Tristan and Jamie and possibly others. See yall next weekend at Centennial!

Running over birds and elderly people

Don't be alarmed by the title. I managed to not do ether of those things. But It was hard not to at the race last weekend as someone had thrown some seeds on the course and every time a came around there would be a flock of them to dodge. This could be a new course standard for cross races as it adds another skill to master.

Anyways the race was great. Got lined up second row because A newcomer fresh out of junior sniped my spot on the front row. No matter. Just sat in for the start and let him destroy himself for a bit. Then I took the lead and settled into a nice hard pace. Looked back a lap later and no body was there. So I figured I was doing something right so I kept that high pace and made sure to punch it on the hard parts of the course. Speaking of the course I'm really glad to see that Ziggy has upped the level of course design for nationals. It was Quality with Good hard sections to put yourself in the hurt locker and awesome tech sections to keep you on your toes. So back to the race. I could see how much of a gap I had each lap and every lap it was opening more and more. It was a good feeling to be off the front like that but I missed having to chase Mr. Watson around. Ended up taking the win by 2mins. It was a fun race and I look forward to the race this weekend as it's put on by the same organizers and I'm hoping for an equally fun course.

Training this week has been going well. Most of my time is spent on the cross bike in the woods or at parks. The only problem with that is sometimes you scare the walkers. For example I came up on a pair of elderly women the other day. I wasn't going fast so that I wouldn't freak them out. I nicely called to let them now I was behind them. But with no reaction. Then I noticed the hearing aids. So I figured i would have to call louder to be heard. And So I called louder. Still no reply. So I called out almost yelling this time and they both jumped out of fear. And as I rode by I received a slur of verbal abuse for scaring them. Oh well I tried being a nice guy.

That's all I have to tell right now. Exciting stuff eh!

Cross Is Here!

Point form catchup

-worlds was crazy. Bad start, dropped chain, crash, off the back, played the catchup game and moved up pretty well, crashed hard on rocky decent and don't remember much until the hospital.

So the MTB season is over and I am really satisfied with it. I achieved my goals and then some. So I can't complain about a bad race at worlds because I was just happy to have been there on home soil. The experience will stay with me for years to come.

Now it's time to hang the mtb bike up and pull down the cross bike! I'm not going to lie I have been looking forward to cross season for a while now. After a bit of time off the bike to recover from the crash at worlds and to get some fresh legs I raced the Durham cross classic. With a guest appearance from Mike Garigan and the Mr. Box I was excited for a fast race. I got the whole shot in to the first "run up" and rode it. Well until my tire rolled off. Guess I should have done some maintenance on the bike before racing it. Got the tire back on and chased hard for a few laps but kept weight on the front because I was scared of rolling it again. Decided to switch onto the old bike after a few laps. Got about 100ft out of the pit and snap goes the chain. I'll skip the details but Craig let me run back and grab my other bike again. At that point I was in last. So I just went into TT mode and saw how many guys I could pick off. Found out at the end that I came 3rd. I'll take that. Great race and awesome course this year. Too bad the turnout was poor.

Moving on to the next weekend in Wisconsin For the first USGP weekend of the year. Went with Rick Myloff. Really chill and fun trip. The race was crazy fast with some of the fastest guys from Europe there and a very fast Canondale team. The first day saw more bike problems this time the drivtrain. Ended up running the last bit of the race and don't really know where I finished.

Second day went much better. I had my best cyclocross start ever riding with Berry Wick for the first lap. Made a few mistakes after that and lost that group. Spent most of the race battling with fellow u23 Cody Kyser for the 3 spot in our race. But once again my bike decided to quite on me. Ok it's my fault for for not making sure it was working well before the trip. Anyways I struggled with my bike for the rest of the race and managed to salvage a 36th place finish.

Dispite the bad luck there is a lot of good to take away from the race. Great experience at these US races. The level is so high and gives you a good idea of what you need to do to be good in this sport.

Feeling motivated from the weekend I have been doing some good training this week. Feeling a bit tired from it though so tomorrows race should be interesting. Looking forward to it though. Got my bike all sorted out so I don't expect to see any bike issues this time. The only one I can blame for a bad race will be myself.

All for now :)

Just a quicky

Short update on what's going down here at St Anne. Staying at a nice chalet right at the mountain. Living with some good guys like Kris Sneddon and Francis Morain. I've been seeing a lot of the top pro guys walking around the area. Seems to be the hot spot around our chalet. Rode the course a bunch and love it. A bit on the dry side. Actually it's really dry. The whole course is covered in sand. But I'm riding well on it so no worries.

The team relay is today. It will be fun too watch the team ride a suicide lap while I sit on the side of the trail. Kinda glad I'm not doing it. Save that juice for the race on Friday. That's about it. Super cool to be here. It's unlike any race I've been to before. Can't wait to race!

Lets Catch Things Up

It seems that once again I have been late on posting a race report. But I have an excuse this time. After the race I talked to the guys organizing the worlds project and found out that it was going to cost 1000 bucks! Now I know that everyone going has to pay that much but I just found out and didn't have enough money to cover that. But it seems that I will still be going thanks to some help from various people. Good to have friends that are willing to support you.

So the race on the weekend went well. After a rough start the leaders were well out of sight. But I didn't panic and got into my groove. Picked people of for the first lap and by the end was with Tyson and Zach was just behind.

Second lap Just kept it steady and gradually rode away from those 2. I made it up to Peter and Morka and was pretty happy to be with them. But then they picked up the pace. So instead of killing myself and trying to stay with them I just kept that steady pace.

After that there's not much to report. Spent the rest of the race alone trying to hold of any late race attacks. Finished 6th overall and 1st U-23.

So that raps up the O-cup season. It was an awesome year of racing and Chico did a great job as usually. Those guys deserve every ones gratitude. So if you haven't already then next time you see them be sure to thank them for all the hard work they do. The Ontario scene wouldn't be the same without chico.

Prep for worlds is going well. Past few days have been blow yourself up workouts. It's good because I have a feeling that world is going to be all about how much you can suffer without blowing up so it's good to know were that red line is.

Getting pumped for the race! Not just mine but the seeing the Elite race as well. For those who don't already know CBC will be covering the race. So if you aren't able to be there you can see the action there.

All for know

Close call

Past few days have been pretty scary. Sunday I went to ride the new course at Woodnewton. Got in a few hrs and had the course figured out pretty good. During the ride I was having mixed sensations. One minute I would be feeling good and the next I would be red lined and wanting to go home. Held in till the end of the ride and went home. That's when things went bad. I was getting the chills and a wicked headache. Instead of trying to pretend that I wasn't sick and hoping that it would just go away which has proven unsuccessful in the past I went to bed and slept as much as possible. The next morning I was feeling a bit better. But I had to get up and go to work. That was rough and by the end of the day I was useless. Got home and repeated what I did the night before. Next day felt better again but didn't have to go to work. So I Spent the whole day doing nothing but napping eating relaxing. And guess what. It worked! Got up today and felt normal and well rested. Had a great ride and feel back to my normal self. I haven't felt normal since Kelso so I'm thinking I just needed to take a day and really rest up.

Now as for the course at Woodnewton. Well It's a classic style MTB course complete with a long start stretch threw a field, fast sandy single track and lots of steep punchy climbs. Verdict = like it. I think after riding it again this Saturday with good health will help me to love it. The second part of the course is definitely more exciting than the first with some awesome full speed burmed downhills and less blow yourself up climbing.

Look forward to the race and seeing everyone. Hope all goes well.