I’ll start by getting the obvious out of the way: Yes, I’m ready for my race! I’m at the absolute top of my game! I’ve never been fitter in my life, and I’ve been doing age-group sports all my childhood and adult life. I’m gonna crush it, and I’m gonna crush my competition, which are my mates from home. I’ve put so much time and effort into training this year, and I’ve gained so much triathlon experience. 
I must credit all of the TA coaches for massive improvements to my running technique and the management of high-volume training, including injury management. I can’t thank my training partners enough for the added motivation and all-round good times! Also, Melbourne is probably one of the best places in the world where a triathlete can train, and live!
A specific takeaway I have from training with TA this past year is biking in the dark, and in the rain. That’s something you might think Canadians don’t fuss about, but in winter we’re forced to adapt our triathlon activities to the sub-zero weather while the Aussie winter still allows to bite down and plow through… so the custom is if you can’t ride in the light, it’s because it’s that time of year when your bike should be on a trainer indoors. But as long as there’s no ice (and de-icing salts) on the road, I think I can convince my fellow Canadiens to embrace the dark and the sh*t weather rides, which could lengthen our outdoor biking season from 6 to maybe 7½ months!
A bit about my big race: Canada Man/Woman Xtreme Triathlon will be on Sunday, 2nd July. It is part of the XTRI World Tour Series which also includes Swissman, Celtman, ICON Livigno (good luck Andy!), and the notorious Norseman (for which Canadaman grants 4 
slots for draw). These are all Iron-distance events but typically have more challenging weather conditions, less organizer support, and, of course, significantly more ascent metres than your typical Ironman. Canadaman has a combined 4000m ascent over the bike and run courses. There is no live tracker at this event. I will mandate one of my crew to send in updates in the Symposium/LC chat (so please don’t kick me out yet!), or you’ll just have to wait till I send in my victory photo!
This is unfortunately also a farewell message to the TA Gang, as I won’t be returning to Melbourne after my race but instead settling back into the life that I put on pause one year ago. From then on will begin another, albeit different adventure in which triathlon will still have its place but in which I will welcome other endurance challenges, having grown as an athlete from my experiences both within and outside TA (please plan a gravel ride on Big River Rd carefully…). I will miss my training mates; I will miss my coaches pushing to get the most out of me; I will miss Sarah’s trash talk, and I will miss this beautiful city and country that I now call my second home.
But it may not be goodbye forever, as due to my partner’s networking efforts at the Florey Institute (Neurology in Melbourne is pretty badass), she will likely get invited here in the future in which case I’m obviously in! Who knows, maybe IM Cairns or Busselton 2025 are already in the works…
Until then, if any TA member feels for a change of scenery, a good dose of hiking, snowshoeing, fatbiking, icefishing, poutine, or beer at a reasonable cost, or being immersed in some very coarse-sounding French, then they are more than welcome for a stay with Ann-Marie and I (and possibly a 3rd family member by then…) in La belle province. BTW (by the way ;)), just sayin’, in addition to Canadaman (which is now also available in a half-distance format), we’ve locally got these very cool IM races within a 4-hr drive from where I live:
– Ironman (Full/70.3) Mont-Tremblant (CAN)
– Ironman (Full/70.3) Lake Placid (USA)
– Ironman 70.3 Maine (USA)
Take care everyone! Oh, and don’t forget to say YES to adventure!
Sammy the Hippie Triathlete
