Ironman Canada

IronMan Canada took place on Sunday. What an amazing day. The lake was calm, no clouds and perfect temperature for the start. I was lucky to find Darryl, Lyndsey and Tammy to share the start. The racers were off. Some swam hard while others took their time to walk into the lake and find their own piece of water. An ironman start is one of the greatest sights to observe. I had a moment where I wished I was also swimming. And then that moment passed. :)

We moved to Main St to watch the cyclists start their 180 km journey. The crowds lined the street and the energy from the crowd was wonderful. It looked like a scene from the Tour de France. What a great sendoff for all the cyclists. After cheering for a while we then slowly made our way to breakfast at the Hotel where we joined Janet. We laughed that we were enjoying a delicious meal while the athletes were consuming gatorade and Gels. Mmmm!

After this I moved to the bike course and made my way close to the special needs and I cheered each cyclist as the rode by. They had a tail wind and were flying. It was great to watch. Once again I had a moment where I wished I was riding, and then it passed. After cheering everyone on I then made my way back to town and cheered at the 4 mile mark on the run. First to run by was Gord, I missed Maureen. He was struggling after a solid ride and was hoping to get his running legs back. Next up was my brother Greg and he looked very happy to be running in Ironman. His plan was to run as much as he could. Next up was Richard and he gave me a great photo op. He also looked great and very happy to be on the course. My digital camera is too slow and I did not get many great shots at this race. Sorry!

In the end, Maureen finished with a time of 12:25. She had a great swim 1:01, solid bike 6:01 and a disappointing run due to sore calves at 5:10. Overall Maureen was very pleased with her day and was proud to be an IronMan.

Gord also had a great swim of 1:03 and another solid ride at 6:07. His run was a bit off pace at 5:32 giving him a total time of 12:56. I have yet to talk to him about his race but I am sure that he is happy to have crossed that finish line. Gord also raised money for prostate cancer in his Ironman effort.

Greg had a steady swim of 1:21 a fast bike at 6:39 and a marathon with very little walking 5:14. His total time was 13:26. He was very happy as he crossed the finish line and looked a bit too good. That must be my brother trying to show me up eh!

Richard had a great swim at 1:31. He was pleased to follow feet throughout the swim. He had a very good bike 6:49 and then a steady marathon of 6:03 to bring him home in 14:39. He was proud to call himself an Ironman.

I was very proud to watch everyone race and I wished I could have run each of you to the finish line. Your hard work paid off and you are all Ironmen / Ironwomen. Watching the race from the sidelines makes me appreciate all the effort each person puts out to complete the day. Congrats again and enjoy the off season!