“Mama, do you have gangnam style?”
-Anja, 4.
Oh, for the love of…
Author: Christine Cogger
I am not a writer. I like my kids, coffee, running around and reading about you. I live in the most incredible part of the world and am lucky enough to live some pretty great adventures.
QOTD
It’s smokin’ hot in Pemberton these days – like 35C at 7pm hot – and the kids have a love/hate relationship with it. They had a big, fun weekend (as did I) and today I think we all felt a little rundown.
As I was putting Anja to bed tonight, she came apart at the seams for no apparent reason. Oh wait, sorry. It was because I couldn’t locate Barbie’s bikini bottom YES THIS IS A CRISIS.
Me: “Anja, it’s time to go to sleep and just not worry about this.”
Anja (through quaky tears): “I don’t want to go to bed I’m too tiiiirrrred!”
I think that sentence sums up 4 year old logic.
Rite of passage
I was drinking my coffee in the kitchen the other morning when Anja stumbled in, bleary-eyed and clutching her blankie. As she mumbled her breakfast requests to me, I glanced down and then did a double-take.
“Did you… Anja! Oh my god. Did you… CUT YOUR HAIR?”
Anja, now wide-eyed and guilty-looking, answered with an emphatic “no!”
I started pawing at her forehead, and sure enough discovered that she’d given herself uneven bangs in a top-secret, middle of the night self-haircut.
“Anja, you did! You cut your hair! Where are the scissors? Where’s the hair?!”
Through tears and a wobbly lower lip, she answered (induced purely by my panic):
“In my bed…”
Oh boy. Once we both recovered from the shock (do spare me the “it’ll grow back” speech), we agreed that she didn’t do such a bad job after all. Mama Marnie cleaned it up a little, and as we walked home I said:
“So Anja, let’s remember. Who cuts your hair?”
“Only our hairdresser, mama. I get it now. I totally get it.”
Crisis averted. Parenthood: how I love thee.
End of the Moratorium
Local’s Profile
Nancy Johnston is one of those sort of dark horse competitors. She seems so quiet and unassuming, but get to know her a little bit and you’ll find she’s a fierce competitor, with a lot of race finishes under her belt. Quick with a smile and and modest to a fault, if you’re from Whistler, you’ve surely seen her around town. Nancy was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to answer some of my nosy questions.
Tell me a little bit about yourself, outside of sport.
Originally from Ontario, I’ve been in Whistler for nearly 23 years. I work with a great, supportive group in the Bylaw Department for the RMOW.
Tell me about your athletic background.
I have 3 sisters, 2 brothers. We grew up in St Catharines with a pool in our back yard. I learned to swim and loved to race anyone who would jump in. But that was for fun. Growing up my sports were all team sports, ice hockey, basketball and field hockey.
What inspired you to try your hand at triathlon? When was your first race?
A friend of mine wanted to give triathlon a go so I signed up. It was Kelowna Apple Tri in 1996. I borrowed a bike, it was really hard and I loved it. It was so much fun.
What drew you to Ironman in particular?
After sprints and Olympic distance races friends convinced me I could go longer. Victoria half Iron was my 2006 goal. On my second lap of the run I swore I would never run more than 10k again. Since then I’ve done Oliver half iron multiple times and Muskoka 70.3 IM wasn’t an easy decision I knew it was going to take a lot (time, money) but I lined up after watching IMC 2008 and with the support of family and friends and guidance of my trusted coach Christine Suter, I crossed the finish line.
(Editor’s note: In an very respectable time of 12:08:45)
What has you most excited about taking the start at Ironman Canada 2014?
Not sure it is excitement I am feeling. I don’t know why but I am nervous. Maybe because it is a month early?
Do you have a particular goal for this race?
My goal for the race is to really enjoy the day, smile, thank as many volunteers as I can. With a few lingering injuries I don’t want to focus on a time, I don’t want to be disappointed.
Will you complete any races prior to Ironman?
I’ve only done a few running races. With a few lingering injuries more racing just wasn’t in the cards.
How did you find training through the winter months?
I love the training so I’m okay with the long winter in the gym, pool or on my bike in the living room. I also got up the hill once or twice a week for a bit of cross training.
How do you fit in life, work and training? Are you able to find balance or did “something have to give”?
My coach gets me program for the week I schedule everything and it all fits in. Just trying to sort it out on the fly doesn’t work. Balance is key and overtraining is a big risk.
What do you consider your strength on race day? What about your weakness?
My biggest strength on race day last year for sure was friends, family, colleagues cheering me over the entire day. The support was overwhelming, it gave me a lift when I needed it and that was a lot, especially on the run.
Which brings us to my weakness, the run. It’s not just running (although my hips and knees are not happy about running these days) it is usually the state of my gut by the time I’m about halfway through the run.
What sporting/athletic accomplishment are you most proud of?
I ran a pb at the UBC fall classic this past November. Getting older and faster, I was stoked.
What do you find most enjoyable about training? Is there anything that you dread?
I love training with my friends in Whistler, and meeting new people who come here to train and race. I am not a big fan of cold water or starting my ride in the rain, it’s ok once I’m out there and it rains but starting in the rain? Doesn’t happen for me.
What are you most looking forward to once you cross that finish line?
Hugs, Hi 5s, and West Coast Float.
Any race-day superstitions?
Nothing New!
Name 3 things you can’t live without while training and racing.
Floating, Physio and Massage
If you could have your dream day – perfect racing – describe it.
Sunny, warm, no wind, lots of people on course and all the dogs on leash. ( I nearly got taken out last year by the Whistler Golf Course)
(Editor’s note: you know what they say, you can take the girl outta Bylaw for a day…)
If you could pick 3 dream sponsors, who would they be?
West Coast Float, Whistler Village Sports and Vega
If you could pick 3 dream training partners, who would they be and why?
Greg Sandkuhl, Christine Suter and Maridee Fitch. I have had great days swimming, biking and running with all three, motivating and fun.
What’s your favourite way to recover after a hard race or workout?
Primary recovery needs to happen right away, get in cold water, Vega recovery protein, rehydrate. Then the fun begins beer, chips, pizza (gluten free please), feet up. Next day, go Float 650lbs of Epsom salts; does the trick.
Thanks Nancy, I’ll be at the finish line to give you a hug and a high 5! You’re on your own for floating.
Observations from seat 28H
I don’t travel all that often, but when I do, I always find the people watching in airports to be top notch. As I stood in an interminable line at the airport the other night, I mentally categorized the travellers I was surrounded by. I’m sure I’ve left a few types out, but what’s not to love about these fine folks? Because chances are, you’ve encountered each and every one of them in your travels.
The Deep Sigher
He’ll subtly shakes his head to indicate displeasure at being forced to wait in line. He’ll frequently and deeply sigh at the clear incompetence surrounding him. Usually stands with arms crossed, casts around impatiently trying to figure out what could possibly be the hold up. I imagine him to be the type of person to use the line “Do you KNOW who am?” And not facetiously, either. Also prone such displeasure when seated within 10 rows of small children.
The Extreme Comfort traveller
Granted, we were boarding a red-eye, but come on now. I followed a man onto the plane in his pyjamas. Not track pants, not flannel pants; full-on, top-and-bottom pyjamas. Clutching a full-size pillow. Dignity, people, dignity.
The Personal Space Invader
Listen, I want to get on this plane just as much as you do, but if you step on my heels one more time, I’m going to call security.
The Over packer
I may have been guilty of this once or twice, but I’m learning to curb my evil ways.
You can see her coming, anxiously shuffle-running to the gate. She’s pulling her wheelie carry-on; her gigantic over-stuffed shoulder purse, a bag of snacks and one of those neck thingies strapped to one of her bags. She’ll board, then hold up boarding for the rest of us as she tries to heave the wheelie bag in the overhead bin (it won’t fit). Can’t quite stuff purse and food under the seat in front of her. May or may not be spilling into the seat next to her. She’s a gem, this one.
The No Packer
Behold the opposite end of the spectrum. The dude who gets on a 6 hour flight with absolutely nothing, not even a freaking brochure to read. Spends the entire flight staring at the seat back in front of him. Maybe he’s meditating.
The Catapulter
It’s always when you finally drift off to sleep that the passenger behind you uses your head rest to hoist themselves out of their seat and then lets it go with such ferocity that you get whiplash when the thing hits you in the back of the head. And then does it again when he sits back down. Love that guy.
The Newbie/Exasperated Frequent Flyer
These two inevitably go hand in hand at security. The newbie will always go first, completely unawares that she has to relinquish her water, take off her shoes, her belt, empty her bags and must ask 76 questions in the process. This lovely, naive traveller is always followed by the razor-sharp frequent flyer who can do all those things in the blink of an eye, while on the phone sipping his triple espresso from Starbucks. But who cares! Because his coffee will have time to cool in the time it takes our newbie friend to go through all the steps. EFF is not to be confused with Heavy Sigher, though they may exhibit similar same traits.
The Overeager Stander Upper
I had the distinct pleasure of sitting next to one of these. As soon as the plane’s wheels come to a halt at the gate, this guy springs out of his window seat and stands hunched over me. Guess what? Hovering over me will do nothing but make me take my sweet time. How’s your neck feeling, by the way, as you tilt yourself awkwardly under the overhead bins for the next 5 minutes?
The Carousel Hoverer
This one, hands down, is my favourite. Everyone’s favourite, I think. You know the ones: if they could, they’d stand on the revolving part of the carousel. Since they can’t, they like to stand so close that they can press their shins to it, as if this would make their bags get
there faster. I will admit that it gives me tremendous pleasure to stand back, approach when I spot my bag and then hurl it off the carousel into their knees with near super-human force. “Oh, terribly sorry, didn’t see you standing there!”
I’ll confess that I probably am a combination of all of these… except for the catapulter and the carousel hoverer. You’ll never catch me doing that.
It’s good to be home.
Body: 1, Ego: 0.
I haven’t DNF’d a race since I was racing mountain bikes in 1999-ish. I broke that streak on Sunday when I pulled the pin on the run portion of the Victoria 70.3. I wasn’t at all happy with having to make that decision, but when I got off my bike and hobbled through transition to rack my bike, looking for all the world like a human leaning Tower of Pisa, I knew that it was the decision to make. That was me, being mature and all that.
I may or may not have shed a tear of frustration, disappointment and yes, even a little embarrassment. I guess deep down, my heart just wasn’t into hurting myself for the sake of running around the lake twice.
Still, it sucks.
On the bright side, I had my fastest ever 1/2 iron swim (not fast by fast standards, but who cares. Fast for me. And if you tell me the swim was short, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear you.)
My bike was very average and the indicator that I wouldn’t be running started to become apparent to me when my leg went numb and my back flared up again. I told myself I’d pull out of the bike after the first loop but as I rode right past the turnoff, but I guess my stubbornness kept me going. My internal dialogue at that time went something like this:
“Ow. Stop.”
“Hey, aren’t you turning?”
“Nah, might as well go ’round again.”
“Ok. But still. Ow.”
“Oh shut up.”
Let me tell you, I’ve see suns set faster than the time it took me to ride that 2nd loop. Sheesh.
So now, time to heal this crooked body of mine and really try to figure out what’s wrong. Being injured just plain sucks.
My partner-in-crime and I decided on a 2 week “don’t-sign-up-for-anything” period to prevent the whole “that was awesome, let’s do it again/that sucked, I need redemption” thing. This does not stop me from googling races and planning out adventures. A girl needs something to look forward to, ya know?
Big, huge thanks to my brother for coming with us and holding down the fort as I rolled out of bed at 4:30am for this silly hobby… Big, huge thanks to Liz for always being up for anything… Big, huge thanks to Steph and Chrissy for the pep talks… Big, huge thanks to the kids for being exhausting humans who make me laugh/want to tear my hair out.
Anybody got any bright ideas on what to do next?
Eat all of the things.
And that folks, is my pre-race mantra. It’s working well so far; I successfully stuffed my face today. I think I need to have a shirt made.
It’s Ironman 70.3 Victoria tomorrow. My morale is… meh. I’d better get my mental act together since the alarm goes off in about 8 hours. Frankly, I got exactly what I wished for when I said I wanted my next race to be in more moderate temps – I froze my ass off today.
Coach Suter said that I’m to swim as hard as I can (haha), bike as hard as I can (ok, sure) and then see if my foot holds up on the run. It’s going to be a long walk if it doesn’t.
This means I’m going to take the opportunity to try all new things in this race and see how it all works out. I mean, on the one hand I can argue that I am rested because I haven’t overtrained. On the other, I can argue that I am severely undertrained. So really, what have I got to lose?
FAMOUS LAST WORDS.
Speaking of trying new things, I brought these along with me. It’s their first time at one of mum’s “big races”:
They’ve added a whole new dimension to race prep.
I wonder how this is all going to shake out tomorrow?
Vignettes
It’s been hot these past few days and it’s awesome. Feels like someone turned on summer, suddenly. The kids don’t adapt that quickly — they love it but it seems to sap their energy at the same time. I spend an inordinate amount of grocery money on popsicles.
Why can’t I find these anymore?
Remember smacking them on the counter and splitting them with a friend? Or shafting your sibling by eating 3/4 of it and giving them the piece that fell off into the package in the smacking process? Ah, the good old days.
—
Summer means lots of time biking here. BMX started last night. By no means are my kids competitive at this sport, but they do love going to the track. They ask me for tips and all I can provide by way of insight is:
“um, yeah. Don’t stop pedaling.”
“But what if I’m in the air?”
“Then don’t pedal.”
“But you said –”
“Never mind what I said. Just go have fun.”
—
I’ll be on the start line at Victoria 70.3 next week, no matter what. Which of course means I did this yesterday. Someone needs to save me from myself.
—
This guys has provided entertainment, companionship and lots of headaches these last few weeks. He’s adept at escaping from the backyard but I can’t figure out how, despite spying on him (yeah, I spy on my dog. So what?) If you see this friendly face on the trail, take him for a ride/run. He’ll love you for it.
—
Any bets on how long this Teacher’s Strike will go on for? Kids are enjoying the 4 day weeks. Parents… less so. Summer vacation starts early, I think…
It’s not going to plan.
Allow me to vent for a few lines.
Planned for Saturday? Nimby 50.
As it stands right now? My back is seized, I’m walking/limping like a neanderthal and riding a bike isn’t working out so well. My kids think it’s funny that mummy lies on an ice pack while they eat popsicles and keep me company.
I was really looking forward to busting out a fresh pair of polka dot socks and enjoying the best post-race burger any race has to offer.
Planned for 2 weeks from now? Victoria 70.3
As it stands right now? My ankle/foot aren’t working so I can’t run.
You could argue that this leaves me with swimming but what’s the fun in that? Besides, I can’t cancel Victoria anyway because the kids are coming with me and they’d murder me if I robbed them of the chance to stay in a hotel and ride a ferry boat.
What does that leave me with?
Frustration and a desire to take up an easier hobby, that’s what.
Woe is me. End rant.
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