Ironman Canada - Bike Aid Station 6 - Still Looking for Volunteers

We are still looking for volunteers to help with Aid Station 6 on the Ironman Canada Bike Course

• Full Shift is 9:30am to 2pm. This includes load up and clean up time.
• Aid Station is No. 6 - it is located on the back side of Richter near the start of the rollers
• If we have too many people respond there is another aid station at the top of yellow lake also looking for help.

Please contact me on jeremy.hopwood@gmail.com to help out

Rough Map of the location

View IMC Aid Station No. 6 in a larger map

Being Prepared to FAIL

So have found the past few weeks a little tough - has been a mix of recovery and getting into the swing of things. Getting sessions done has not been an issue but the enthusiasm to get out the door has been lacking at times.

From people I talk to this is a normal phase that one goes through, main thing is that have got the work in and are now approaching 8 weeks to the show. Starting to get excited and motivated for that now (have forgotten about the pain of racing at IM CDA) and now want to suffer in training

Still trying to work out goals for Kona. Its a different place and race from any other Ironman and deserves a lot of respect. So one thing I have decided is that I am prepared to FAIL. Hopefully FAILING would just mean a long day and the use of glow sticks but I think it is important to go in with the realization that the day could go sideways.

So what advantage does being prepared to FAIL give me. It gives me the chance to have a FANTASTIC day. In Coeur d'Alene I felt I had a good to great day but not fantastic one. There are some things I know I can improve on and I am absolutely positive I can run faster as came of the bike with cramping hamstrings and this dogged me throughout the run. Having gone through the first half in 1:32 and finishing up with a 3:11 on a day when I felt like I was breaking done from mile 1 gives me the believe that I can run around 3 hours come race day. Training will tell me if this is realistic but its something I feel that I can do and why not do it at the show.

8 Weeks to go and looking forward to earning a good day by doing as many thing right over this period to make it happen.

Just another brain dump of a blog post but will be good for me to look back on these "dear diary" moments and hope that if you read and go through the motivational ups and downs of a season that it helps you realize that most people hit this challenge at some point or the other.

Would You Recognize a Good Day if They All Were

So are home, a place I don't always get to see a lot of!!!. Anyway, after two days in Penticton training have come to a realization that bad days are in some regards a good thing. As without the days that you struggle you don't learn to appreciate the good days.

In the recovery start to build back up process have had a range of great days or bad days, not really many in between. Have been a bit grumpy after the bad days but in the end it is all part of the process.

So wanted to "analyze" this to get my head in a good place so I can execute well. Here is what I came up with;

• I went deep at IMCDA. Didn't really realize this until now 5 weeks on but pushed myself really hard on race day. This is good to know that I have the ability to suffer, however it does take the body some time to recover.
• Have to be selfish - in terms of recovery etc, the next 9 weeks need to be defined about making the right decisions day in day out.
• Luck to pursue this dream - so need to live it and enjoy it even on the bad days
• I know some awesome people who put up with me even after bad workouts!!!
• I am fit - even still being in a recovery mode physically the sessions which I execute well are going fantastic.
• You have to want to hurt and earn it - willing to do this but this got reinforced in my head over the past weekend.

So this post was just a general brain dump, first time looking to race to IM's in one year so it is a learning experience but looking forward to getting to suffer again. The more I suffer in training the easy it will be to go to that well on race day.

10 Seconds a day

So had a swim time trial the other day - result wasn't what I wanted but is still a vast improvement from this time last year. However I have a number in my head that I want to swim in Kona and as a result I need to make sure every swim session I have between now and the (likely 50 or so) I am trying to swim as technically and mentally as strong as possible.

So how does one put this in to numbers - I need to find 10 seconds per session for my overall swim time and will be at were I want (maybe not where I need to be but it will be start) by the time I tow the line in Kona.

Time to get the sharpie out for the pull buoy and paddles. Every session has a focus and it is all about finding that 10 seconds. Whenever I am getting tired or slacking mentally it is all about that 10 seconds.