A little class to kick back and relax to this Sunday afternoon. The scene was filmed in the Italian Aps, near Aosta, host to the Giro Ciclistico della Valle d'Aosta and also to the occasional stage of the Giro d'Italia. The Giro d'Italia starts in a couple of weeks. If the controversial ad on Universal Sports doesn't make you want to tune in, maybe just do it for the racing; it is often more exciting than the Tour de France and besides, Oscar Feire just called the Tour "the most boring race in the world", and that guy knows a thing or two about bike-racing.
Wow, the first blog-post in a month and we're digressing already. After a couple of false starts, courtesy of Run Nova Scotia (Moose, Goffs and the Lung Run) we finally had our first TNS racing rendezvous was this morning at the ZX Aquathon. Some thirty of you braved the wind and occasional drizzly bits to take on the 750m swim and 5K run.
First place, by nearly the proverbial mile, was Italian exchange-student Gianluca Pozzatti, who completed the course in 29:19. Gianluca led out of the swim and never looked back. Apparently, he regularly breaks the hour for a Sprint and one of his training partners back home just gonged-up at European Dus. Second was Liam Patterson and third David Dallin of Victoria, BC. In the lady's, Kayla Boudreau was first in 34:54, followed by Brigitte Sabourin and Mallory Troup.
A big thanks to CFB Greenwood for the use of their facilities, and to all the helpers; Eric, Dan, Chrissie, Yvonne, Ty and all the rest. As always, RD Denis Choquette put on a great event, and as always was blessed with the best of the weather of the day. Not for the first time, the TA voluntolded one of Denis's events at CFB G'wood under relatively benign conditions only to drive home in heavy rain, wind and fog. This may be the last event Denis RDs for TNS, and he used the event to pass the reins to a new RD. Merci beaucoup Denis, c'etait fun. Bienvenue a TNS Guy; à bientôt. Just remember, you're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!
We shared the event with the Greenwood ZX 10K. Despite the parallel existence of a TNS event at the same time in the same place, some people decided to take on the 10K instead. Adages about horses, water and the taking of the former to the latter regardless of their hydration status come to mind. Alan Miner, for example, only competes in du's nowadays, where the only water is in the turnaround in cups (just the way he like it) so we can understand his reluctance to take on an aquathon but others? Perhaps a fast 10K was in their training plan instead. Whatever. What do we know? Increasingly, we are told, it is nothing!
We see Colin Edwards is getting faster, posting a 35' and change, coming in 4th, just behind Toby Hennigar. This was a good minute netter than his last outing in anger at the Legs For Literacy 5K last October. We also saw Mike French, Sean Merrett, Gayland Goodwin, Ron MacDougall, Mike Pettipas, Tina White and Brenda Topliss. Usual caveats over the TNS member-tracking software apply.
Meanwhile, elsewhere. 1128kms to the south to be precisely "elsewhere". Yes, we know, the Habs beat the Bruins in the playoffs the other night (again), at the TD Garden (again) but that's not the one. Rather, the other big sporting event happening in Boston this Patriots' Day Weekend; the Boston Marathon. By our count we see Elizabeth Corkum, Peter Hanna, Stacy Juckett-Chestnut, Mike Juurlink, Pat Kennedy, Tracey Mcneill, Shawna Murdock-Moore, Nancy Neatt, Nancy Petrie, Erin Pyke and Steve Saunders. Good luck everyone, and remember not to run the first 10K too fast (Matt Callaghan, we're talking to you). The usual caveats apply, try here if you weren't satisfied!
Of course, NS's hopes are with Rami Bardessy, who is nursing a sore hamstring and Denise Robson, who is nursing a sore lung. We hear BAA and John Hancock still invited Denise to the marathon anyway, and she'll be part of the medal party for the female para-athlete marathon. Kudos all around.
Coming up next, Du If For Shelter (hereto DIFS), a pleasant 4/25/4, reasonably flat duathlon out Musquodobit Harbour way on May 15th. If we're lucky, Stacy will bring some of those croissants again....
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