Belatedly, all the news that's fit to print, and some that's not, from the racing scene.
August 1st saw the Provincial Championships and the only long-course triathlon in NS this year. Brad Piggot and Heather Doucette won the Olympic Provincials, Parker Vaughan and Virginia Soehl the Sprint Provincials whilst Reid Burrows of New Brunswick and Kali Caulier won the Youth. In the Long Course, Cliff Worden Rogers and Gina Spear Burrows of New Brunswick took top honours. ED Sarah Wood has posted a bunch of photos on the FB page so if you haven't, scoot over and have a look.
Big kudos to TNS Tech Chair Linda McLeod, who turned up early (05:00 early), staffed TZ, then did the Sprint (09:00 start) and almost immediately upon finishing put on an officials' vest to spent another 4hrs on the LC run course, seeing all the athletes safely home. Chapeau!
The following week, Cliff and Heather took victories at the revamped Yarmouth Triathlon (still a point-to-point but now a true Olympic distance).
With nearly all the races done now, points-series update, not including B'town or Yarmouth is available here. Have a look, see where you stand. If you are chasing triathlon points, then there are only Guysborough or Shubie left. You duathletes have a little more time left until Riverport, so you should be well rested by early October. Or burnt out following Cobequid, Berwick and Rum Runners. Either way, a point is a point is a point, and a point scored in G'boro is just as as valuable as a point scored in Navy. Just sayin'.
Remember, the volunteering criteria are in effect; to qualify for an award you must also have volunteered. This rule has been on the books for a while so it shouldn't be a surprise. This volunteering can be at the TNS level, the race level or the club level. We'll let you know soon how you can let us know what you've done.
If you need to tick this box, then trying pinging Ray Bates, Mark Campbell or Tom Rogers and see if they need voluntolds for their events. Or you could write something for the blog (commenting anonymously doesn't count). Perhaps get more connected with your club. The possibilities are endless.
On with business. Our bad on not doing this earlier, but Lake Placid was on July 25th (this was the same day the TA was up to it's ears in a Portacabin in QC which is why it kinda slipped us by). We count nine NSers and erstwhile colleagues in the race as well as Stacey Juckett-Chestnut and Tim Chestnut who volunteered on the run course for an insanely long time. Top of the pile is Stephane Boudreau, now in NB, with an 11:21 and a very funky new haircut (see below). Then we see Sean Haggerty (11:52), veteran IMer Steve Abbott (11:53), Sylvie Cloutier (12:18), Leanne MacDougall in her first IM (13:00), HTC head-honcho Ken Grandy also in his first IM (14:59), Shawna Murdock-Moore (14:54) and Peter Hanna (15:09). Terry Moore DNF'd. As promised, check out Stephane's post-race hair...
We also missed out on the Amica Rhode Island 70.3. Laura Keefe topped the list with a 5:09, erasing the memories of a painful Buffalo Springs event earlier in the year. Next in Jeff Burbine (5:27), John Purdy (5:39), Caryn Small Legs-Nagge (5:54) and Roxanne MacLaurin (6:00).
Chris Milburn took the Barbarians a-raiding to IM Regensburg in Germany on August 1st. He had a 9:52, Julie Curwin a 10:10, Donnie MacIntyre a 11:39, Vince Nicholson (12:17) and Todd Crowdis (14:03). All those times are from the Cape Breton Post and we didn't do any fact-checking, so caveat emptor.
There have been a whole bunch of running races recently; Cross-Border Challenge, Run for the Lobster, Shelia Poole (Provincial 10K) and Dartmouth Natal Day to name a few. Triathletes have done really well in these races; check out Parker Vaughan's 35 in Natal day the day after a 1:03 Sprint at B'town, or Rayleen Hill getting closer and closer and closer to Denise Robson.
Now the news you're all waiting to hear; the latest Tally/Counter update. In a previous poll we asked if RDing DILB (that seems ages ago doesn't it?) counted t0wards the Counter, and you voted more than 2:1 that it did. With all the silliness since, we think it's now
We haven't been keeping count, but by our reckoning, Mark-the-Mule is still steadily adding to the Counter whilst McScotch is finding the Tally's early pace hard to maintain. Perhaps not surprising; remember, McScotch has done at least four back-to-back weekends; Benny 5K/DIFS, Penguin/Cyclesmith, Cross-Highlands MTB/Port Hood and Cross Border/Duncan Hadley and that's got to take a toll.
This week's evidence is telling.
Here is Ron after the Bike For Breakfast >280km pedal-fest across PEI (it looks like they issued a dossard so it counts in the Tally)...
Whilst here is the Mule at 8 hours of Gore.
Check out that vein/bulging gastrocs thing he's got going on his right leg! Who wants to mess with that?
While we're on the subject of Gore, we mustn't forget John Gillis and Greg Wagner also took on Gore; there's two more guys who don't mind getting their white sneakers dirty.
Sure, McRon might have an apparently unassailable ten-event lead, but with these images burned on your retinas, who can discount a late surge from the Mule? Even if McScotch tops out, by the looks of it, it may well be a pyrrhic victory.
Next up for these two is IM Canada....
AD
great update and just an fyi - that "vien/bulging gastrocs thing" is called a muscle andrew, and they are found in most other peoples legs. :}
ReplyDeleteMuscles? You mean *that's* what a muscle looks like? No wonder I keep on failing the Koaching Kourse!
ReplyDelete