By Jasper Blake
April 17, 2007 -- 2006 Ironman Canada Champion Jasper Blake is contributing to Triathletemag.com monthly as he prepares for the 2007 season, where he hopes to add another Ironman title to his resume and to tackle the inaugural Victoria International Half Iron on May 26th. Jasper loans his insights as a full time elite athlete on training the big miles, with a keen eye for the lighter side of triathlon.
Today was day three of my second bike camp this season. I love this time of year, as it gives me a chance to mix-it-up and train with some of the best young pro cyclists in Victoria. Today was magic. The sun came out after about a week of wind and rain. We did one of the best rides on the island – a very hilly route from Sooke to Port Renfrew. It’s five hours of charging uphill and down. In a word: Awesome!
Canada is an interesting country when it comes to sport. We have no true institute of sport but we do have Victoria. Snow is rare and athletes from all sports venture out here for the luxury of being able to train all year without the usual perils of a Canadian winter. This morning I looked around at our group of riders – 16 strong, and a mosaic of Canadian excellence in sport:
Seamus McGrath, one of Canada's top mountain bikers. Jake Wetzel and Malcolm Howard, two of Canada's most accomplished rowers with a combined weight of 460lbs. There was Mel McQuaid, three-time XTERRA World Champion. Erinne Willock, the best female cyclist in Canada, who at about 110 pounds, sits in stark contrast to the rowers. There was Max Plaxton, the best U23 rider in Canada at the moment, who is surely destined for greatness. To top it off, the group was largely made up of one of the best young-pro teams in Canada.
I'm shamelessly aware of my ability to name drop but to be honest it was just plain freaky to be surrounded by such an incredible group of individuals. The most inspiring part of sport to me is observing the diversity of the group. I could not be more different than the two rowers. At 130lbs and 5'5", I pale in comparison to the size of these beasts.
I've always maintained that if aliens came down to earth I would show them a heavy weight rower like Derek Porter, or one of these guys and tell them not to mess with us humans or the rowers will beat your ass. What I find truly amazing and inspiring is that we all come to the battle field with our own weaponry and somehow manage to do the best we can with what we've got. When we are rolling on the flats, these guys are incredibly hard to stay with. The wattage they can generate is astounding. On the flip side, every time we climb a hill, they have to haul an extra 100lbs up there - now who's your daddy? Sport is awesome that way and today it struck me more than ever.
And so we march on, through the winter, adding layer after layer of base miles, so that when the season rolls around we have a big fat cake we can dig into throughout the year. Last year more than ever I learned the importance of big miles, especially on the bike. Coach Andrew's program challenged me in new ways and there was something oddly addictive to conquering big miles. By the time Ironman Canada rolled around last season I had done so many over-distance rides that 180km at Ironman pace seemed almost easy. With cycling, the more I do, the stronger I get. If I swim too much I get a bit stale and crazy and running too much busts my body up a bit. Riding just gets better and better.
I have a good line up this year. The focus is on Hawaii and Ironman Coeur D'Alene with some half-Ironman events including a new one here; the Victoria International Half Iron, on one of my regular stomping grounds at Shawnigan Lake. The routes we ride add to the integrity of the layers of our cake and the beautiful, challenging Shawnigan loop is present in almost every layer. I think it’s chocolate. Shawnigan is on the baking schedule this Saturday, which is good. I need a chocolate fix.
Happy training,
Jasper
Jasper Blake is a long time national team athlete and Ironman Champion. Jasper is supported by Adidas (www.Adidas.com), Gleukos (www.Gleukos.com), Shmiano (www.Shimano.com), PowerBar (www.PowerBar.com), and 7 Systems Endurance Sports Supplements.