New Bars - 3T Ergonova Team

It always amazes me what cyclists and triathletes concentrate, worry and fret over the most when it comes to bikes. I would say that 80% of more, of the discussions when it comes to new bikes revolve around the frames. Then there is all the money spent on this part of the bike - typically the single most expensive part of a bike. Don't get me wrong, frames are important. However, what is actually of greater importance in my view are the contact points that you body has with that frame, and one of those key contact points are the handle-bars - this is true whether we are talking a tri/TT bike or a road bike. Comfortable, well fitting handlebars are going to obviously increase the comfort of riding but also your utility, of this key part of the bike - after all this is the cockpit of the bike, and this is where you control your braking, shifting and steering!

As some who follow along here know I recently acquired a new Cervelo R3 road bike. I had free choice for all the components and after a bit of research I decided to spec the 3T Ergonova Team handlebars for the new bike. In previous road bikes, I had found for comfort and optimal positioning for me, I needed a shallow drop handle bar. If you buy a Cervelo R3, as most do, complete - the bike comes with the 3T Ergonova bar! It's a great move by Cervelo.

The 3T Ergonova bar as it's name would suggest, is a wonder of ergonomics and engineering. It's a full carbon bar that seems to fit my smallish hands very well, regardless of where my hands are - on the tops, on the hoods or in the drops. The reach is a bit shorter than normal which may require a slightly longer stem( I needed a 120mm stem on my 58 frame), but combined with the shallow drop, it allows you better opportunity to easily find that sweet spot of positioning where both the hoods and the drops are optimally positioned - for comfort and use.

The tops have been flattened, and make for a comfortable perch for the hands as well, particularly on long climbs when this is a preferred position for many. Ditto for the bends on the drops, which feel great for long hard pulls on the front and out of the saddle sprints.

The carbon lay-up is such that the bar is both extraordinarily stiff, yet at the same time absorbs a fair amount of micro-vibration while riding. I have tested the latter feature extensively of late with a lot of riding on gravel roads, and the Ergonova Team bars definitely take a a bit of the buzz out of riding on such surfaces.

Full specs and more detailed information about the 3T Ergonova Team handlebar can be found at the preceding embedded link.

20 Questions with . . . Graham Fraser

There is no question that Ironman, and it's spin-off half-distance cousin the 70.3 race are the flavors-of-the-month in triathlon these days. In North America and perhaps even further afield, there is one man to thank for that - Graham Fraser. Odd then, that Fraser has more or less checked out, and left the triathlon house! However, Fraser is, more than anything else, more than being the best Race Director and Event Manger in triathlon, a visionary! After all, this is the man who 24 years ago, literally on a whim, with nothing else to do, organized his first triathlon race in Grimsby, Ontario in 1986. At the time, triathlon was still a freakish side-show, practiced by fitness fanatics, but Fraser saw more to it. He thought, that if you organized, great, well run races with supportive sponsors and partners, that not only would he do well and make a bit of living at it, but that the sport itself would flourish. He was right on all counts - those series of races that he started organizing were the starting points for, both Olympic Triathlon and Ironman World Champions, several successful product suppliers in the business, the entry point for some major triathlon sport sponsors, and for some of the first real serious TV race coverage of triathlon anywhere in the world!

Late last year Fraser sold his licenses to run Ironman branded, full length Ironman and 70.3 races in various locations around North America, back to the World Triathlon Corporation for an un-disclosed sum. He retained one license for Ironman Canada - the first Ironman race that he owned, and one he personally saved from the brink of cancellation in the early in the 1990's. He makes it no secret that it's always been his favorite Ironman event and the one that was used as a template to set up the other Ironman and 70.3 events he started in Lake Placid, NY, Oceanside CA, and other locations around the continent.

Not one to sit around too long and watch the grass grow, Fraser has moved on already, and over this past summer, inspired by a cycling trip he took to the Tour de France, has formed a new series of events called Centurion Cycling. These events are modeled after the Gran-Fondo style of events that are very popular in Europe and attract thousands of entries. The Centurion events will fill a gap that exists right now in bike road racing and riding, between full-on Category( Pro, 1, 2, 3 etc . .) road racing and big charity rides. They will be 100 mile races (as well as 50 mile and 25 mile events), that are run over challenging terrain and open to anyone. The location and courses will be scenic - the kind of place that you have always wanted to go to ride. For a day, you will get the feel of what it's like to compete in a big Road Race, but do it on your terms and at your pace. This is Fraser's vision. Many are expecting the Centurion series to be the next big thing!

1. What got you into triathlons in the first place?
I had a friend ask me to do the Paris(Ontario) triathlon in 1983. I could not swim(Still can't!), and I did well for a hockey player!

2. With some free time now, what's next for you?
Obviously the Centurion cycling events but also spending more time with my family.

3. Is the Centurion Cycling series going to be the next big thing?
It has potential. We'll give it our best shot, creating an event with a different slant to it, and a different experience from other events.

4. How big can the Centurion Series get?
How big it's get's is not the goal . . . how much good it can do is the goal.

5. When you started that first triathlon you organized back in 1986, did you ever think that it would get this big for you?
Never. I was 25. I was just looking for something to do that summer and I always wanted to work in sports.

6. What's wrong with triathlon these days?
It does not have much wrong with it. Every generation looks at it a bit different. Ironman was never meant to be a do-2-3-a-year type of event. Some people are loosing perspective.

7. What's right with triathlon these days?
It has introduced a lot of people to a active and healthy lifestyle which, North America sorely needs these days.

8. If out for a training ride with Lance Armstrong, what would you talk about?
Would love to hear the off-the-record stuff, that he can't talk about. Who his real friends are? Training advice, of course. What motivates him? How his foundation works? It would be a long ride. Hope that I could keep up!

9. Will we see Lance Armstrong or other top road racers in the Centurion events?
It would be really nice to have his foundation involved.

10. What is the one thing all Race Directors should take care of first?
Simple. Athletes need to come first. Specifically, their safety. Plus little things that will give them a memorable experience.

11. What is the best triathlon race that you have ever been to, that has not been one of yours?
Challenge Roth

12. Are we doing the right things in terms of developing youth triathlon?
Kids need to do some team sports. If they do tris, do it for fun and with no specific training programs. If they really love triathlon, they can get "serious" at sixteen.

13. Why has Canada been such a leader in the sport of triathlon in a number of different areas?
A little luck with the talent pool coupled with great opportunities to race and compete. Plus everyone in the sport is generally really nice. That helps a lot.

14. Will you ever do another Ironman?
If my kids do it I might. To be honest, I was never good at the distance stuff. I think I have ADD! Now it's cycling and Nordic skiing - easier on the body.

15. Tubular or clincher?
Clinchers for training. Tubulars for racing.

16. Where's your favorite place to ride?
France. The Tour de France was unbelievable. Lake Placid is another place I like and the canyons around Boulder.

17. Who are you inspired by?
Steve Fleck!! [ LOL. He's joking. Full disclosure - I may be the only person still active in the sport who raced in that first triathlon Graham organized in Grimsby, Ontario nearly 25 years ago.]

18. Who will win the Stanley Cup this year?
Buffalo - I have been waiting 30 years!

19. Will Toronto ever win the Stanley cup?
No. Not in our, or our kids life-time either! They should just move the team to Hamilton!

20. What makes you the most proud?
Seeing people make the move at our events over the years from spectator, to volunteer, to volunteer captain, to doing their first triathlon, to finishing a 70.3 or Ironman race.

The Off Season & The Road Not Taken

Years ago, there used to really be an off-season for those of us who practiced summer orienated sports like triathlon. These days not so much. Many of the bigger more important races are now deep into the fall and people start getting ready for races in the late winter and early spring. Then there are people like our friends from Australia, who we had spent some time with at Ironman Hawaii - they were going home after Ironman Hawaii to summer. For them there really is no off season. I am not sure how they do it.

For me, I have always enjoyed having four distinct seasons and the varying weather that comes with each of them. It gives the year, and the training a natural and organic ebb and flow. It was this time of the year, the late fall that was and still is particularly enjoyable to me - strange as it may seem. It is at this time of the year that the formal and structured training can stop for a bit - just train every day, however I want. Just do something and stay active. Also, cross-country skiing is hopefully just around the corner. We have been on-snow here in Southern Ontario as early as the last week in November.

Near our cottage in Muskoka there are networks of cottage roads and gravel and dirt roads, like the one above( Paolina in the picture above looking out our cottage road). At this time of the year, with all the leaves off the trees and before the snow comes, is the perfect time to ride these roads and trails. It's quiet. There are no bugs and the views through the forest are rather nice. To borrow from Robert Frost, it's nice to take, the road not taken at this time of year. Although, surprisingly many have already headed indoors and are riding their bikes bolted to the trainer! Boring. But to each his own. Too soon I'll be doing some of that as well.

Back in the 90's a spent an entire year traveling in the tropics. For me it was a whole year without winter. I arrived home in Vancouver at the time, in the fall of the year. I had never looked more forward to the cooler weather, the change of seasons and the coming of winter, than I did that year. I recall going for a run in an early winter blizzard of snow and loving every minute of it. Perhaps it's the Canadian in me, but I think what having four distinct seasons has done more than anything else, is keep me fresh, physically and mentally over the years. If nothing else, there is always something to look forward to in the next season.

Leafs Lost

Generally speaking I like to keep the topics here on the blog related either directly or indirectly to triathlon. However, I feel that I must comment on the start of the hockey season for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Yes, I am a fan. Not a fanatical fan and perhaps not part of the "Leaf's Nation" but, nonetheless still a fan. There is a family connection that goes back several generations. My great uncle Harold, "Baldy" Cotton played for the Leafs in the late 1920's and early '30's. He played on the Maple Leaf team that won the Stanley Cup in the spring of 1932 - the first season that the leafs played in Maple Leaf Gardens. I have made a trip to the Hockey Hall of Fame to see "H. Cotton" engraved on the Stanley Cup. It's a long ago and distant connection, but it's a strong and emotional one. Few amongst the, "Leaf Nation" I am sure can claim such a connection to the team.

I am old enough to recall the last time the Leafs won the Stanley Cup in 1967. It was a big deal. I have vague memories of watching the playoffs on TV that year and the celebration that went on afterward. One of the stars of that team was Dave Keon. He lived in our area of Toronto. In fact, he banked at our bank and my Dad used to point him out for me. You see, back then Hockey players were just regular folk living amongst us - not flown-in multi-million dollar talent that you only read about in the papers.

So, with Saturday night's loss, the Leafs are off to the worst start ever, for the team - a dismal record of 0-7-1. Win-less so far this season. How is it that you can pay all of these people, from the owners of the team, down through the management and all the players so much money, and you get this abysmal level of performance. Crazy. Of course the reason they can, is that the Toronto Maple Leafs Sports franchise is one of the most valuable in all of North America. Forty plus years of futility in trying to win the Stanely Cup and the worst start ever, does nothing to deter people from still cheering on the team. What's that they say about insanity - it's when you keep doing the same things over, and over, and over and expect a different result.

This was supposed to be the start of a big rebuilding process. To make a connection back to cycling and triathlon - Lance Armstrong's Coach Chris Carmichael was brought in to, among other big changes, revamp the Leafs fitness routine and the teams fitness levels. However, it would seem they have taken a giant step backwards! Hard to go further back - the Leafs finished almost dead-last in the standings last year.

I am sure things will turn around at some point. Perhaps they should go back to the old Maple Leaf logo( at top of post). This is what the Leafs logo looked like when they last won the Stanley Cup in '67. Nothing else is working, might as well try this!

Triathletes: Your Next Bike is . . . . A Road Bike!

No you are not reading the title wrong. Yes, triathletes out there who only own a tri-bike, forget more aero do-dads and upgrades to the TT rig, get a road bike and really learn how to ride. I am serious about this. And don't kinda do it, by looking for a super aero road frame and/or going half way with this. Get a real road bike, that fits you properly.

You see, the thing is, many new triathletes, and their has been massive growth in the sport in the last five years, have gone straight out and bought a TT/Tri-Bike as their first bike. Nothing wrong with this. If you are doing triathlons, and you are well fit, comfortable and aero on this bike, you have the right tool for the trade. However, many newer triathletes think this is what cycling is all about, when in fact, they are practicing a sub-discipline of cycling - time-trialing. Ironically, a sub discipline that many real cyclists, loath!

So get yourself a real road bike as a second bike - and keep the tri-bike. You can't go wrong in this regard with the R series of bikes from Cervelo( R3, R3 SL & RS). These bikes are in my view the best designed road bikes on the market.

In my job, I am lucky enough to be able to ride a number of different bikes in a year - usually loaners from friends and customers when traveling. In this regard, I get to really ride these bikes - 2 to 3 hour rides and not just a spin around the block. I can honestly say, that from having ridden a number of the very best road bikes in the world by some of the leading manufacturers, that the Cervelo R3 really does it all in, terms of what you want to get out of a road bike. It's very stable and stiff. Well balanced. However, at the same time it has this amazing ability to soak up rough stretches of pavement. This is truly an all-day bike. It's the kind of bike top road racers look for as they have to spend, many hours each day in the saddle - a touring bike, that rides like a real race bike, if you will. This is the feeling that the R3 delivers - I-beam like stiffness and stability, but with a level of comfort that has to be experienced to be believed.

The secret to the comfort are the thin seat-stays on the rear of the bike. These soak-up and absorb most of that harsh vibration and bumping from the road. The first time you ride an R3, it's not uncommon to keep looking down at the rear tire to check and make sure it's still fully inflated! These thin seat-stays are a wonder of bike engineering.

The RS model has a taller head-tube. If you prefer a more up-right position and or have a short torso and long legs, the RS model might be the better bike and fit for you. The RS's seat stays are slightly bowed/curved and deliver even more rear-end compliance than the R3 model.

The favourite bike frame in the world of the weight weenies is the R3 SL. If your goal is to build up the lightest road bike that you can, then the R3SL is a great starting point to hang all your super light weight components on. I rode a R3SL last year that weighed about 13 pounds and it was perhaps the most surrealistic feeling bike ride I ever had. It was almost like there was no bike beneath me!

Riding a real road bike, such as the Cervelo R3, to the triathlete who may have only ridden on a tri/tt bike, will be a bit of a revelation. Assuming a good fit, the steering will be more predictable. The bike more stable. Carving high speed turns, becomes old hat! You may feel more secure on descents and more powerful on ascents. You will be more comfortable on longer rides. What's not to like?

A real road bike also gives you options. More options than if you just own a tri-bike. You can go on more group rides or organized century rides. Next year, a whole new seris of century rides will be launched in North America, modeled after the Gran Fondo's in Italy. The Centurion Series is being put together by Graham Fraser, who literally put Ironman races and Ironman racing on the map here in North America. From what I can tell, the Centurion events are going to be the next big thing! You will want to do these rides on a road bike.

If you wanted to take it to the next level you could get into road racing with a real road bike. Road Racing, to the uninitiated is completely different than the bike leg of a triathlon. About the only thing the two have in common is that they are both done on two wheels. The similarities end there. Road racing can be a huge amount of fun, and often the final outcome does not matter - just being part of the scene and part of the action of the race is what matters. Unlike triathlon it tends to be a winner-takes-all sport, so finding those other victories and places to slot-in, are key. Whatever, the case, the Cervelo R3, would serve you well in any bike road race. After all, this is the bike that 2008 Tour de France winner Carlos Sastre rides most of the time, so you'll be in good company!

Picture at the top is my new R3 in gravel/dirt road mode - mud, dirt and all. This is yet another advantage of this amazing bike. It will take up to 28mm wide tires(give or take). Add some MTB pedals and you have a bike that can even handle a bit of light cyclo-cross riding on easy trails and grass and rides along gravel and dirt roads like a dream! After all, this is the same bike that has been ridden to victory in the famous and brutal Paris-Roubaix road race twice in the last few years!

A Big Climb

In my previous post, I talked about driving to the summit of Mauna Kea on the big Island of Hawaii ( Photo above is of the observatories at the summit of Mauna Kea). Mauna Kea's true elevation is 13,796 ft. However, it is also commonly referred to as the tallest mountain on the planet. If measured from the sea floor, Mauna Kea's total height would be about 33,000 ft - that's 4,000 ft higher than Mt. Everest!

My friend Nigel Gray, a top long distance triathlete and coach was over at Ironman Hawaii supporting a number of his athletes who were racing there. With time on his hands, Nigel, like many older endurance athletes these days, was looking for the next challenge. He had heard that there was a road that went right to the summit of Mauna Kea. To a cyclist and triathlete, like Nigel, that's like waving a steak in front of a hungry dog. Nearly 14,000 ft of straight climbing on a bike - why not!

The link below is Nigel's accounting of his Epic climb up to the summit of Mauna Kea:

http://www.nrgpt.com/hm/inside.php?sid=8

With time on my hands myself in the days leading up to Ironman Hawaii. I had thought briefly of joining Nigel in this crazy endeavor. However, after hearing Nigel saying that he was completely overwhelmed with his lowest gear being a 39/25 and then actually seeing the condition of the 8km of gravel road that you needed to go over at over 10,000 ft, I was much the wiser for having stayed down at sea-level that day! Perhaps some other time.

Ironman Hawaii 2009 - Sideline Report &Thoughts

First congratulations to the winners, Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington. This is a very hard race to defend and repeat at, but both of these amazing athletes did it in style and with class. Wellington's win was the more predictable of the two. But the two-time winner, continued to raise the bar by breaking Paula Newby-Fraser's long-time course record. As for Alexander, he showed that the men's race has become more strategic( more on this in a bit) and, that it's not necessarily who is absolutely the fastest in each leg, but who puts together the best swim/bike/run on race day. After all - it is a triathlon, not three separate events!

Next up for recognition are four athletes to watch out for in the future. Mirinda Carfrae showed that in her first Ironman race ever, that she may be the one who'll go after Wellington and give the World Champion a run for her money in years to come. On a day where most wilted in the heat on the run, Carfrae broke the run course record for women running a quick 2:56 split for the her marathon. In finishing an impressive fourth place, Tereza Macel completed an improbable and never before done, trinity of high-level Ironman wins and places, with wins at Ironman Lake Placid and Canada, and then a 4th place at Ironman Hawaii! Both Andreas Raelert(3rd) and Rasmus Henning(5th), seem to have torn a page out of the Craig Alexander play book - wait in the weeds, and then run to your final place. Still new to Ironman racing, both of these men with their ITU run pedigrees can run much faster with a bit more experience. Watch out for these two.

I had the opportunity to watch much of the Pro Men's race on the bike up close. Most of These guys have figured it out to a T. About half way out to Hawi a large group formed that at times had 25 of them all legally spaced out 10m apart along the road in a 250m long line. It was a sight to behold. There was from time to time, a shuffling of the deck or a move off the front or from the rear, but they all knew that they had 25 seconds to resolve all this and sort themselves out again and then settle back into the long line. Eight of the top ten men in the race spent a good portion of the bike ride in this group. It was only Chris Leito and Faris Al Sultan who did not. Clearly, the strategy now with the men is to get in this group on the bike and stay there as long as you can, because if you can, and you can run well off the bike, your chances of being in the money and on the podium are highest.

Chrissie Wellington right now is in a class of her own. However, behind her it's good to see that the competition in the woman's race is getting deep, fast. Some have criticized other Ironman races this year with having weak woman's race fields. Not so at Ironman Hawaii. My wife Paolina Allan was off the bike in 16th place last year. This year, in almost the same exact running time on the race clock she was off the bike at T2 in 35th place! That is a dramatic jump in the depth of the field in one year and it is good to see.

Something needs to be done about media on the race course during the bike leg. My understanding is that there are some restrictions on this, but on race day it was hard to tell. There were mobile media in cars and on motos all over the place. In similar sports like Pro Road Racing there is a specific protocol for where media can be on the course and how long they can be there for. The WTC should look into this in more detail. I witnessed numerous incidents of cars and motos riding alongside athletes in cross-winds for a very long time. In some cases doing interviews with athletes during the race!

Another issue that should be looked at is to figure out what do do about the women's Pro race and the timing of their start. Right now with a 15 minute head-start, about half to 1/3 of the woman's field has their own race on the bike while the other half to 2/3 of the woman's field get's gobbled up by large packs of fast cycling age-group men at some point during the bike leg. The race for these women amongst the age-group men is very different than for the women that have the open road around and ahead of them. Indeed, the top-10 results of the women's race was directly impacted this year because of this, with the disqualification of Rebbecca Keat. I realize that there is no easy solution to this, but it seems a bit un-fair to have one race with a group of people that have to race under two completely different sets of circumstances on the bike.

My apologies - more minor complaints: I realize the WTC is a bit hamstrung due to the space on the Kona Pier and the layout of the King Kam hotel grounds. However the post-finish-line area at this event is a bit disorganized and not of the standard at many other WTC events and certainly not at the level of a World Championship event. The finish line itself is historical and magnificent, but beyond that it get's a bit crazy. The flow of people into and out of the area is hard to figure out. There is no where to sit down( no chairs anywhere). I talked to many athletes who just wanted to sit down somewhere after being on the go and on their feet for 9+ hours. The ground is all there is to sit on, and with the beach right there, and the whole area covered in sand and athletes all slick with sweat, sunscreen, Gatorade, coke and who knows what else, as soon as they sit down on the ground they are, in the parlance of beach-volleyball Corn-Dogged! Also the ground back there is all uneven and hard to get around on for people with blown out and wobbly legs.

OK enough of the complaints. This years Ironman Hawaii lived up to itself. It was a deceptively hard and demanding race. Winds were moderate and I am told, it was hotter than "normal" - whatever that is. It seems, blast-furnace-hot to me on the Kona coast, all the time. To use a golf analogy - this is a race where very few people actually hit par. A handful of very select people, go under par, while the rest are way over par. Paolina's day was illustrative of that. Last year, she was 22nd. A year later, in much better shape, with experience and acclimatization on her side, hoping to move up a few places, and it still went backwards for her ending up in 31st. Still not sure what went wrong. One thing Paolina did learn this year is that you can't make the whole year or even the whole trip to Ironman Hawaii revolve around the race. That may sound odd, but it's true. For her it was the going early and training with some of the best triathletes in the world for three weeks before Ironman Hawaii that was the real value in the trip. She learned a great deal. Many thanks to fellow Pro Charlotte Paul and her husband Kristian Manietta for taking Paolina under their wing for a few weeks.

This year I was able to take my bike with me and It was a real pleasure to be able to get out on the famous Queen K and get some riding in. It's extraordinary to note that the shoulder on Hwy 19 is the biggest, widest and best paved shoulder of any road that I have been on, any where in the world. You could use track racing tires on this course! Kudos to the local government and the WTC if they had and hand in this. It's like that for nearly 50 miles all the way out to Hawi! If you like the lunar landscape scenery of the lava fields and even if you don't, it's nice to know that you have that much room to ride on. It gives you peace of mind.

The real essence of this race came for me when I headed out on the run course to the infamous Energy Lab. No one, other than athletes are allowed into the energy Lab on race day and that was fine with me - it's not a place I wanted to go as I had a bit of a melt-down in there myself a number of years ago. Instead, I stood on a barren stretch of the Queen K just along from the Energy Lab and watched a long procession of runners pass me on a relentlessly sunny and very hot day, it was completely silent except for the squish, squish, squish sounds of wet feet, in wet shoes. Everyone very quiet and alone in their thoughts and trying to do everything they can to get across that finish line at Ironman Hawaii. That's what its all about.

Paolina finished and there were some emotions. We stood and chatted with some other Pro women for a bit and then went back to the Condo. Then it was time to be tourists for 2 days! The high-light was making it to the summit of Mauna Kea by car just as the sun was setting( below)! Standing on top of the earth's tallest mountain( if measured from the sea-floor), way above the clouds looking out at that magnificent sunset seemed to be worth it. I some how think we will be back.