Elements of Erin 337

An annual tradition for me since 2006, the 2013 Delta Triathlon was once again a great event.  This year, the adult race was before the Kids of Steel race so no need to arrive too early for the event.  My swim start time was estimated a 9:25am and it was pretty much on time.  My Dad was also racing and started around 8am.   The weather was windy with a bit of sun and NO RAIN!  Yippee! The best part about this event is the HUGE amount of community support from the South Delta Triathlon Club and The Steveston Athletic Association .  Every second racer, volunteer and cheerleaders were friends.   The pool swim went well.  Glad we practiced 'annoying Delta swimmer' drills the week before.  Although, I was probably the annoying swimmer more than others.  I was the only one who was doing flip turns in the lane and made sure to make my presence known at each end.  Worked out well since my swim was quite fast and my lane count...

This spring break, my family spent two weeks in Waikoloa, Hawaii.  Last time we were on The Big Island was in June 2011 for my 40th birthday and Honu 70.3 triathlon.  This time was for rest and relaxation but I still managed to fit a race in.   After we booked our trip, I searched the internet for any local races while we were there.  I was very excited to find the Lavaman was right in the middle of our trip.   Lavaman is an Olympic distance triathlon that is a popular race for Team In Training groups from all of Canada and US.  The race is based in Waikoloa.  The swim is in A Bay, the bike is a mostly flat and fast out and back along the Queen K then an amazing tour if the Waikoloa resort area on the run.  The most spectacular and toughest part of the race is the last mile of the run.  The last mile is on Kings Trail which is a lava rock trail along the ocean finishing off by a 500m run in soft dry sand to the finish.   ...

Back in February, Tim and I took part in the Chilly Hilly cycling event put on by the Cascade Bike Club.  The Chilly Hilly is a 33mile (52km) ride around Bainbridge Island, WA.  It is a short and inexpensive ride from downtown Seattle.   Many cyclist ride over from Seattle on the ferry the day of the event but we chose to drive to Seattle on Saturday afternoon and stay on Bainbridge for the night.  The Best Western hotel close to the event start is clean, comfortable, affordable, bike friendly and includes breakfast.  What more could you ask for?  They also have a noon check out time which enabled us to complete the event onSunday morning (starting at 8am) ,enjoy the post ride food and still have plenty of time to shower and check out before noon. The event is all inclusive.  All levels of riders and styles of bikes were seen on the route.  In addition, it is VERY AFFORDABLE.   Here is a link to the event for this year.  ...

Back at the end of January I attended the FIST Bike Fitting Certification course in California.  After five days of intensive training, I am a certified triathlon and road bike fitter.   I highly recommend the facility and the training if you are interested in becoming a bike fitter. Xantusia - The ranch were the courses took place Yes, they even get snow in California.  View from the outdoor deck A couple of horses on the ranch View of the guest house from the deck No guesthouse is complete without a Tiki Bar On property outdoor pool was out of service for the winter Wonderful riding in the area Panorama view of the bike fitting training facility Morning run near the property Panorama view from the deck