5k Time Trial

I've been catching a lot of flak lately for the length of time I take to compose these blog posts. But you know, F. Scott Fitzgerald was known for writing, editing, and re-writing his work countless times before publication. Masterpieces take time, and I'm just trying my best to live in that literary tradition, alright?

Last Thursday night (not to be confused with last Friday night) a group of intrepid triathletes left the comfort and safety of the Nest to test their night vision in the cold and alien world of Post Daylight Savings Point Grey. This is a convenient time for a friendly reminder to bring your headlamps to run practice from now on! It's a cruel world full of ankle-rolling hazards out there, my friends. Be ever vigilant.

The state propagandists in charge of the elementary school curriculum in China told me that the Long March was long, but I don't think they've run five-and-a-half laps of the Acadia Loop. A 5k is lung-burning, glycogen-depleting, lactate-building long. In a brazen attempt to verify special relativity by moving really fast, we only managed to stumble upon physiological relativity -- that is, a sensation of time dilation proportional to the intensity of discomfort experienced.

No problem, though, for these are triathletes accustomed to sufferfests. They inched up to the start line with some reluctance, burdened by the anticipated pain, spurred on by the possibility of glory.

At stake: the coveted Vincent Lavalleé Cup.

The heat of the race fires the crucible from which PBs are forged, and this race was hot. The personal dramas are revealed in the results themselves, so take a look and see if you can decipher the strategies and triumphs.

A group of us stayed around for some much-needed refuelling in preparation for the next events of the Race Series. Next up, the Brick and the Denim Mile! If you were aching for an opportunity to gain some style points, this will be your chance.

Post-race pit stop. Note the Bluman salute.

Race series update: 50m Swim Sprint and Aquathon!

Hang on to your chammies, tri-hards, we have a double blog post ahead!

Last Wednesday saw the inaugural racing of the new addition to the race series, the 50-metre Swim Sprint. Sure, we're known for our endurance, but that doesn't mean we can't giv'er when the situation demands it.

The pool was a roiling cauldron of athleticism for the ten minutes or so it took for the 22 triathletes to make it through the six heats of the race. It's kinda hard to describe the action -- imagine the classic piranha feeding frenzy, only instead of meat, they're going after Clif Bars, and instead of piranhas, they're triathletes.

The story of the night was Noa "Sleeper Agent" Sison's turbo-charged performance of 31.6s. Coach Tia definitely felt scandalized that Noa had been hiding this speed. 

To satisfy the cardio junkies, Coach Tia designed a special Halloween themed swim relay as cool down. But now that I've seen things from her perspective, I'm suspecting she makes us do these swims partly for personal entertainment...

Coach Tia giving out instructions for a post-race Halloween-themed relay.

It's a good thing this event didn't deplete all the glycogen, because just a few days later was the Aquathon, reported below by club President and Guest Blogger Jen Moroz!

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Even though the morning forecast called for rain, rain and more rain, six athletes showed up to compete in the clubs first multi-sport event of the Fall classic race series – the crowd favorite aquathon!  This race consists of a 500m swim, followed immediately by a 2.2 Km run.

Martin made a grand entrance with his brand new tri-suit.  Built for speed and cold weather racing, it appeared that he might have a huge advantage over the other competitors.  An advantage felt by Flo and Jen, who were later found tampering with Martin’s shoes before the race.

But that wasn’t the only shenanigan for the day.  Nima was caught racing with a self-made jet pack after barreling past Jen and Martin less than 100m into the swim (despite starting 10 and 20s behind them, respectively). Tia had to confiscate the contraption before allowing the race to continue. Lucky for Nima, his burning desire to win the race allowed him to continue pushing the pace, setting him up well for the run.

Ariana and Ben worked well together in the swim to give them a huge lead heading into transition.  However, their inexperience caused them to blow this lead as both casually suited up for the cold run, and even stopped to sign a few autographs for their adorning fans.  During this time, Nima ripped past them, looking poised to get the W.  Jen surprised the entire crowd by posting one of the fastest transitions!  (Yeah, we didn’t believe it either).  Guess being the last out of the water meant she couldn’t waste precious time helping her competitors remove their wetsuits, nor give out free hugs.  ;)

Out on the run course, Ariana and Ben were in chase mode after the rapidly moving Nima.  Close behind, the chase pack of Martin, Jen and Flo (dressed up as a fairy!) did their best to close the gap.  Only Jen - channeling her inner Gwen Jorgensen - had the leg speed to charge after Nima.  But, she was unsuccessful as Nima cut the tape first with a final surge along the blue carpet.  Ben was the final competitor to make the podium, crossing the line less than a minute behind the leaders.

The excitement continued as Flo, Ariana and Martin were switching leads several times.  In the end, Flo used his fairy powers to propel him to a fourth place finish just ahead of Ariana, who was closely followed by Martin.

Up next are the 500m swim TT, the 5Km run and Brick.  Who has what it takes to dethrone Jen and Nima?  Will a new member surprise everyone with a dominant performance in one of these races?  Only time will tell.  Stay tuned!

November Sponsor of the Month: ATAC

As club veteran Winston "Style Points" Guo points out, half the battle of triathlon is looking good. UBC Triathlon Club has special assistance in this regard from one of our sponsors, ATAC Sportswear. The threads they provide have caught the eyes of competitors and civilians alike as we train and race in Vancouver and beyond.

UBC Triathlon Club ladies decked out in ATAC-supplied gear after dominating Storm The Wall 2014.

Key to the awesome look and high performance of the gear are the quality technical fabrics and high-tech printing process, something called "sublimation printing." I won't pretend to understand how that works, but take our word for it -- this ain't your grandpa's cotton T.

If you're in the market for some sportswear yourself, look no further! You can pick your item of clothing, upload your design, order, and you'll be swathed in sweat-wicking swag in no time. They supply way more than just triathlon gear, so consider ATAC the next time you have a company dragonboat team-building exercise.

The Iona Time Trial

Important update to the Fall Race Series Schedule!

Due to scheduling conflicts at the UBC Aquatics Centre, the Aquathon has been moved to Saturday, October 31. Yes, it is Halloween. And yes, you will get bonus points for racing in costume.

The updated full schedule is now:

Oct 18: Iona 10.2K bike time trial
Oct 28: 50m swim sprint
Oct 31: Aquathon (swim and run)
Nov 2: 500m swim time trial
Nov 5: 5k run time trial
Nov 8: Brick (bike and run)
Nov 19: Mile time trial
Nov 21: Uphill bike time trial

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On the eve of the conclusion of one marathon (electoral), an intrepid group of triathletes braved mist and traffic to embark on another (athletic). I'm speaking, of course, of the month-long UBC Triathlon Club Race Series.

This past Saturday saw the first event of the series, the 10.2km Iona Beach Bike Time Trial. We don't need no snobby cyclist derision at our flat course, the quad burn speaks for itself. Vincent "Aero Gear" Ye showed up fully prepared to demonstrate his understanding of fluid dynamics, while fearless leaders Jen "Jackrabbit" Moroz and Keith "Piston Legs" Bystrom cruised alongside German-engineered luxury V6 engines on Southwest Marine Drive. Leading the pack on the out-and-back course was Celina "Shiny Brakes" Lim, who was showing off a newly tamed steed.

Observance of speed limit is optional.

But the stars of the event were Emily "Class Act" Rankin, who won a special Race Series Prize for sportswomanship, and Florian "Kraftwerk" Heinkel, who powered through the course in the quickest time that day. Honourable mention goes to Nima, who I'm pretty sure is descended from a steam locomotive, for the fastest individual time of this event so far.

View the results of the Race Series here.

The 2015 Fall Race Series Begins!

Is there a distinct lack of trash talk in your life? Are you itching to collect POINTS for athletic prowess? How about for just showing up?

Look no further, the UBC Triathlon Club RACE SERIES is here! This intense series of eight races will test your wits and your brawn. Points are awarded after each event for participation and ranking. The schedule and distances are posted below. Mark your calendars!

Oct 18: Iona 10.2K bike time trial
Oct 24: Aquathon (swim and run)
Oct 28: 50m swim sprint
Nov 2: 500m swim time trial
Nov 5: 5k run time trial
Nov 8: Brick (bike and run)
Nov 19: Mile time trial
Nov 21: Uphill bike time trial

October's Sponsor of the Month: Dunbar Physio

Plantar fasciitis, iliotibial band syndrome, Achilles tendonitis, shin splints…  A typical runner will become acquainted with one of these injuries, eventually — it’s just a matter of time. It’s hard to reconcile the notion that we were “born to run” with the outrageously high incidence of repetitive strain injuries afflicting the average road runner [1]. When running is such a huge component of triathlon training, how are we supposed to avoid injury, and what should we do after injury occurs?

Luckily for the members of the UBC Triathlon Club, we can turn to one of our sponsors, Dunbar Physio, in our moment of need. Dunbar Physio has been serving the community since 1984, and has been a generous sponsor of the club for 5 years. Located on West 41st Ave just east of Dunbar St, it’s a quick hop away from the UBC campus. Best of all, club members get 20% off regular private fees, three times per calendar year.

Dunbar Physio is located at 3540 West 41st Ave, just west of Dunbar St.

I went in for an appointment recently to consult the experts on the cause of some knee pain that I suspected to be related to my IT bands. The pain had thrown my training plan completely off the rails, and I was worried that I wouldn’t be prepared for race day. My appointment was with Jonathan, who took a detailed history of my injury, assessed my running stride, and walked me through the anatomy of the lower leg before narrowing down the possible causes of the pain. He prescribed me a handful of exercises to correct for my imbalances in flexibility and balance, and also suggested a new technique of myofascial release therapy inspired by the practice of cupping.

The team has benefitted from Dunbar Physio's generous support for the past 5 years.

I left the office with a sense of control over my injury, ready to do my exercises and hit the road. The next time you’re sidelined with a sports injury, look to the expertise of the trained physiotherapists of Dunbar Physio. They’ll get you back to racing in no time. 

http://www.dunbarphysio.com/index.php?lookup=mainindex

[1] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2465455/

First bike practice!

The first bike practice of the year will be this Sunday, September 13, at 10am. Meet in the courtyard between the Nest and the Aquatic Centre.

We will be going over group riding etiquette, safety rules, hand gestures, etc.

See you there!