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Sunday, September 11, 2011

Day 7 - Climbing the Great Wall

Well this site was as spectacular as ever. It was a touch anti-climatic in that it took an hour to drive to Metianyu but we only spent about 30 mins climbing the wall. It was quite crowded so moving up and down the stones was a bit problematic. I did not have any trouble walking or climbing but I had to watch where I was stepping. Lots of people stared.

The views of the countryside were phenomenal from the wall. Given the thickness of the wall's construction and the terrain of the countryside, I almost felt as if the Emperor's that had built the wall were a bit paranoid. Seriously...what invading army would plan an invasion thru the mountains with the equipment they would undoubtedly need to overtake the Forbidden City (the ultimate prize)? Just does not make sense. I am thinking that there were a few Generals with enormous egos that posted anyone they did not like to these remote areas. There is nothing around this wall for miles and miles. Complete isolation. Even food would have been hard to come by. Life on the wall would have lacked serious quality of life.

The luncheon afterwards was excellent. It was one of the best meals we have had all week. Many thanks to Ming Hua Chung our tour guide.


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Location:China

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Day 6 - Post Race

We had a great post-race meal at a local restaurant called Auspicious. It was very very good authentic Chinese fair. We ordered about 10 different dishes and shared them amongst the team. YUMMY!!

Many thanks to Grant for breaking open his 12 yr old bottle of Rye that he picked up in the duty free shop. It did wonders for my hip flexors who were still slightly annoyed with me for putting them thru that grueling 20km bike on race day. They are fine this morning thankfully. My entire body feels fine.

I remain a. Little disappointed this morning but I have come to realize that there are just some things beyond my control. I gave it my best shot.

Lessons learned:
1. Get my bike adapted to include climbing gears. I have no ability to stand up so i need the extra


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Location:China

Friday, September 9, 2011

Day 5 - Race Day

I placed fourth!

This was the most demanding course I have ever raced. My training went well all summer but on the day, my training fell short of what I needed to climb the 8-10% grades over 500-800m of climbing and times that by 10 over the course of 23 km.

It was an amazing race. Well done China! I am glad I came and conquered the course but at the end of the day I did not have the proper equipment to climb these grades as an above the knee amputee. I should have changed out my front derailleur to a triple...just like all the other AK amputees. We need the granny gear to climb so I was taken on the hills and had no legs left for the run. It's unfortunate but nothing I can do about it now. My bike coach had thought that there was no grade over 2% and I took that info at face value. In hindsight, I should have done my own calculations.

Swim was ok but I was a bit off my rhythm. Got slammed at the start by the guys again. Oh well.

The run was ok but I had no legs left! Brutal run but I made it. I was never so happy to see the finish line.

Great experience and lots of lessons learned.



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Location:China

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Day 4

Ok it's the day before the race and I definitely have race jitters. Curtis is just as nervous as I am. As my handler he has to follow strict rules and could inadvertently disqualify me. So his fears are just as real as mine; he too has to perform on the day

Not much more to say except that I missed the team photo and opening ceremonies as I had to have my rear derailleur cable completely replaced. Yes mechanical issues have reared their ugly head. Our job is to stay calm and simply go with the flow

Many thanks to the Chinese ITU mechanics who did an amazing job repairing my bike




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Location:China

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Day 3

Well it was an interesting day today. I spent most of the morning searching for a bike mechanic. I found the TriCan bike designate, Jay, who was able to get my rear derailler working again. I guess I should have protected and stabilized it better in my bike box given that the journey alone was bound to cause shifting inside the bike box. I also regret not getting my bike tuned up again right before we left Canada. I figured that I just had it tuned up before London UK four weeks ago, so did I really need to? WRONG WRONG WRONG! I should have kept to my normal race routine and had my bike tuned up. Even though we are deemed Elite we do not have access to the Canada elite support staff. Otherwise I would have had my bike repaired yesterday without issues.

While Jay was able to get my bike up and running, it's not finely tuned. Jay is a formula race car driver with a big heart and great tools. I am truly grateful for his help but I don't have confidence in my bike. So I am going to have to try and ride the Papa Hill tomorrow. Hopefully that part of the course won't be closed off.

Chinese security is starting to tighten up. I just got a note slipped under my door ordering me (well instructing) to attend a security screening at 1520 h. Oddly enough I will be at a TriCan meeting at the same time so I won't be able to make the timing. The note also states that the bus I am supposed take leaves the hotel 2 hours before the event! Sitting in a stadium for 2 hours and then participate in a 2-3 hour opening ceremony and pasta party, the evening of my race, is not that appealing. Security is so tight that I probably won't be able to leave at a decent time to return back to the hotel for a good night sleep. I guess I will have to make the call tomorrow as to whether or not I will participate in the opening ceremonies. It's too bad but such is the life of a racer. I came to race and represent Canada. It's a matter of priorities

I am feeling good today. I had a good run. My pace was a bit fast but that is ok. A case of pre-race jitters. I ran with Charles, our 74 yr old age grouper. He is in great shape and is racing sprint distance on Sunday. It's a definite must see for me. His lovely wife June volunteered to help as a Handler. A very nice couple. I am hoping that I can use Charlie as my aid at the bike dismount but I have to wait until tomorrow for a ruling from the ITU. The ITU might simply assign a delegate of their choice. Regardless of who helps me as long as I know who the person is and that they know how to help me, I will be fine.

It's started to rain this evening. I am hoping that the weather system will pass us by this evening and that it will be dry tomorrow. Here's hoping that for once, I will race with good weather. I have participated in only three international races in short paratriathlon career. Each and every time it has poured rain...and not just a sprinkle here and there. It was an all out assault. One can only dream for good weather.




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Location:China

Monday, September 5, 2011

Day 2

Up at 0545h this morning and gulped down a refreshing smoothie with bananas and mango. I added a protein supplement so it filled me up quite nicely before the morning bike ride around the race course.

We headed out for our group ride at around 0615h. We are only 2 kms from the race site, which is awesome.

Despite what my coach told me, the profile of this bike course has several grades over 8 percent. On the first hill my chain fell off and I crashed. This will teach me to ignore the sound of a twing coming from my rear shifter before I head out onto a ride. Bad bad bad. I managed to pick my butt up off the pavement and put my chain back on. I got back on my bike and just gutted it out all the way up the hill. A little zig and zag and before you know it I was at the top of this bugger of a hill. I finished the loop and then headed back to the hotel. YES I will find the bike mechanic today so that when I head out tomorrow, my bike is in good working order.

Once off the bike we took an hour break and then headed to breakfast. Since I had a smoothie I really was not hungry. I did have a tasty coffee.

About 30 mins later we were at the pool. Before long I was experiencing a Charlie horse in my good leg!! What else could go wrong! I guess that crash on the bike did a little damage as I am now achey all over. Damn!!!

So now I am sitting in my room snacking on some noodles and 7up. Think I will stretch and then have a nap. No sightseeing for me this afternoon.


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Location:China

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Day 1

Well hello everyone! First full day in the country and we have just learned that there is no access to Google or WI-Fi in this hotel. We are not certain if you can only access WI-Fi in Beijing. So my blog entries will be delayed.

The country is very beautiful. We are north of Beijing in a place called Changping. Nice area but the road system is under construction so it seems. Made the drive out here more like off-roading.

We have a decent room but it's not a double bed. It's two single beds. Smoke stains on the carpet so we wear our shoes all the time. Great ac though and nice linens. Beds are very hard. If you had a bad back you would be in heaven.

We will be out on the bike tomorrow and again in the pool. I hope to be able to do some running on site. The run route is all on top of a padded surface that is much like a track surface. This means that it is soft and will be much easier to run on.

Food is good just different. I will be carbo loading with rice. Not much in the way of sweets though but we got some amazing fruit at the local WalMart. Yes you heard me correctly. This place was huge and had everything you could think of including BEER. It was kind of like an LCBO inside the store. Curtis and Grant (another amputee Cdn racer) were checking out the scotch for after the race.

Curtis is running around in his underpants to keep cool. It's very very hot and humid here.

Got good news from the ITU today. I am going to be permitted to have someone at the bike dismount much to my relief. Just means that I won't need to find a safe crash zone to get off my bike. Yeah!!!! Also will be able to get red swim cap for swim exit. There is an assumption that all amputees can hop. In Canada the rehab centers discourage hopping since I broke my only good ankle because it has limited flexion. All to say that I am very glad that I asked the question in the first place.

That is all my news. Feeling ok and positive about the race. After the bike familiarization I will have a better feel for the race. I will post again tomorrow.


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Location:China

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Road to China

We are now underway. First leg of the trip is complete! Vancouver is beautiful as per usual. Flying over the Rockies was majestic. Not a cloud in the sky so that you could see the tops of the mountains as clear as day. Curtis and I are somewhat tired but we should be able to recover with a latte at the Maple Leaf lounge.



One of the best lessons learned from London was the value of executive class lowest fares. It's not first class but it is certainly a welcome step up to fully reclinable seats. We flew economy to London and ended up in seats that did not recline. Both of us ended up with back spasms, jimmy legs and for me the added phantom pain. We promised each other that if we were ever flying overseas again, we would splurge for the moderately higher airfare just to have the luxury of stretching out. We also decided that a good sleep would help with acclimatization. Beijing is 12 hours ahead of us (from Ottawa).

I am feeling good right now. No race jitters. I am in 'determined' mode. This won't be a tough race but rather a good race where you have to give it everything you got.

Curtis is reading a paper right now sipping a decaf espresso that was supposed to be a decaf latte! Damn machines!!



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Friday, September 2, 2011

Pre-flight Training

Did a "mini-sprint" triathlon in reverse today. Started with a 3k run, followed by a hilly 10k bike and ended with a 400m swim. Felt pretty good afterwards. Goal was to focus on transition and technique in all of the disciplines. Overall it was a great day.
Bike is packed, suitcases are just about done (waiting for a bit of laundry), and I am chillin' with a brew. Flight is at 0 dark buffalo tomorrow morning, so off to bed soon!!


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