Training Log Archive: 'Bent

Easy commute with the big guy. Fewer fdfs.

Commute with AD- longer route due to construction. AD made a new friend Finn the lab/husky.

Shut Up Legs weekend part 2.
7th line down to Hwy 9, side trail, then up to the Pinnacles, which I did 4 different ways. One climb of 5th line, and a repeat on the big climb South past the old ski hill, with bonus bushwhack for max vertical, and some extras in Hockleycrest.



So lush





Managed hydration better-had an aid station after 1:20 and switched bladders plus picked up a 750 ml bottle. Didn’t run out today.

Felt pretty good after.

C • wow! 21

Workout 2 while trying to watch highlights of Friday’s mountain stage.
Kneehab + lumberjack.

Hockley - first North on the prov. Park trails with the elusive BGY, then aid station with an IPA and switch bladders, then by myself with poles south to the Pinnacles and back. Just ran out of water near the end.

Goose and Coach LD showed up after work with a kayak and their huge whitewater boat, explaing that if they can take T-man in it, we can handle Bazingadog for a paddle.
Nice paddle around Island Lake. The big boy did fine. I took turns with Coach LD in the stern with BZDog propped in front of the stern paddler, where you can manage him with your knees.
Coach LD broght a picinic dinner which we had on he patio, then watched a bit of the Tour.

C • I wanna trade 4

Short but tough schlep with poles.

Easy run in with both dogs and FDFs on a steamy day, but fast night run home with the big boy pulling on harness.

Muggy run in with 2 dogs and a lot of FDFs.

Dumping rain with thunder so the dogs and I got a ride home.
Workout 1 + rehab, some KBs and core.

RockstAR with Hammer. Details to follow.

C • Congrats Rockstar!!!! 22

RockstAR with Hammer.
We planned a nicely balanced AR training route, with a paddle prologue, followed by a paddle to the North, collecting the NE controls on foot, a paddle back to base, then the South controls on and off the bike.
During the briefing, Storm mentioned that the bridge is out for teams biking to the North. WTF- biking would be way faster on the NE roads, but we had already sorted our logistics with WT training in mind, and hoped that dragging the bikes over would prove fo be slow. There wasn’t much time to change plan.

We were tied for 2nd on the paddle prologue, and paddled up to the North portage.
Magic Mike nailed the NE checkpoints, but we saw our lead evaporate as Carolyn’s team passed us by bike. We ran hard for a bit, but the roads hammered Hammer’s knee, although it hurt even more to get passed by mid-pack teams on bikes. We decided to make the best of it and rely on Hammer’s precision and solid teamwork to make it up.

We ran and paddled back. Hammer was feeling the heat a bit so he did the inner tube and diving. We ran into Race Day Rush having an excellent race, and heard they planned to bike the North too. :(

I had promised that we’d be done the slingshot control in no time as I’ve never missed it, but this time I was off and we served a 10 min penalty.

After that we biked down South, running in to get controls through some deep but very warm bogs. We had to ride hard to make up time, and some big hills took longer than expected but Hammer flew on the bike and we made the 6pm check in ok.

The plan had been to take it easy and have fun, but Hammer got full-course-fever. After that we did the controls near the SUP which I did, then hammered the Lakota trail, made short work of the low ropes, then a full on bike sprint for one last control, and made it back with 2 min to spare.

We were the only team to clear the course, first overall. There were 2 bonus CPs only available after clearing the course, but no time for them.

Race Day Rush were 70 points behind. Amazingly, they paddled their 3 bikes to the North in one canoe on a very rough day, to win their category.

Hammer left it all on the course- great strategy, nav and solid pace. We worked well together.

As always, great race by STORM, Browner and the gang.

Out with the dogs for a test ride of some bike mods.

C • What mods? :) 2

Ran to work with my weed trimmer and a pack full of batteries, and cleared my commute. Made it back before full dark.

Nice commute with the big boy. Cooler with less FDFs.

3 Stage with Tiny. I ended up chasing Tiny all ride, and we got onto the black-rated tight and twisty trail, which was too tight and rocky for my ‘bent.
A fair bit of the riding was at the limit for me.

The blue trails were fine, but my phone wouldn’t find location on the Trail Forks app and the trails aren’t marked otherwise. Be fun to explore the lower trails with more time.

Long Time Running bike training. GPS missed the first part.



We headed out from the Waddtage to a fairly typical ATV trail. Luckily not too muddy, but a bit overgrown, and FDFs to the max, in your mouth, under your pack and helmet etc.

We got to Georgian Nordic and the bugs were better. Nice doubletrack and some fun Shield singletrack too. The whole team rode well together- Hammer can really handle the rocks!



We rode the gravel shoulder back until we got to the paved bike path in Nobel.

Nice outing!

C • Games faces? 6

We took kayaks to Georgian Bay and paddled around Huckleberry Island.
Browner and I traded between Starr’s gorgeous wooden kayak and AG’s Current Design boat.









Nice trip in perfect conditions.

Team Long Time Running training outing with Hammer and Browner.
From the fantastic Waddtage we went up 9 mile lake.

Nice trek in the bush. Bugs not too bad, heat not too hot. We also swam across a lake. Includes the return paddle.

Easy commute withAD.

Watching the tour.

Took Schlepp Jr and AD out into the deerflies.

Run in with the big guy in his cooling jacket.
They have my route under 50 blocked off, but there's a temporary light to cross.
Cooler evening run back- no bears.

Commute with AD.

Hockley loop + with STORM.

Browner headed out to join Bash on her first of 2 loops.
Storm and I did all the side trails of Hockley Prov. Park and then had an aid station at 5th line. I drank a small coke and grabbed an icy soft flask of water, but my 1.5l bladder was dry shortly after. I still had a half full soft flask, but 3 different pinnacle climbs took care of that, so I had to dial it back and ration my sips of water from the remaining flask as the day got hotter.

We soaked down in a couple of creeks and I pole-hiked the uphills, but still ran dry. I guess it means I’m taking in plenty early on and clearly I need if.

Very enjoyable outing at ultra pace. Too bad it was too hot for dogs.
Bash looked good heading out for her second loop, but I was happy to be done,

C • Running dry 3

Nice ride down to Albion with Bash. Perfect weather.
The trails were pretty eroded in spots from all the rain Thursday and perhaps during the 24hr race, and I got stalled out on some off-angle roots on curvy climbs. Still a great ride, and not very busy.
Bash took a doubletrack route home when I went up the Goat Path, but she ended up getting bashed more than me.

Rehab, workout 3 and hauled a big load of logs from the bush.

Dogs had a great day between cooler temps, chasing off a bear cub (from behind the fence) and a long romp and swim in the off-leash property.

C • Bear 1

Run in with the big guy. Pretty relentless deerflies, but he also got to do battle with the golf course sprinkler. Got a ride home in a massive monsoon downpour.

C • Pooches & Sprinklers! 2

Easy spin with the dogs while the temps were around 20 in the AM. Hosed them down, and they had a swim in Wheelie's pond. I stood on a floating raft
at the shore to let Brody swim, until I noticed that we'd come adrift and were heading out to sea. I managed to escape with a big leap and one soaker.

Workout 2 and rehab.

Singletrack commute- too hot for the dogs.
Had to cherry-pick sections without poison ivy.

Workout + kneehab at ABC gym.

Hills at Blue with Bash. Cascade was the nicest on a hot day.

Run/trek in Beaver Valley with Bash. Steaming hot- got up to 35C.
We dunked in creeks as much as possible.
I froze a bladder of Infinit the night before, but it thawed slower than I was drinking even at 35C so I ran out of drinkable liquid except for small sips.
Used poles, and hiked the hills to keep from cooking.

Nice lunch with cold drinks and watermelon at the Kimberly General Store, before returning to swim the dogs at Sunset Beach.