Better late than never, but I had to do a “wrap-up” of this event. For those I haven’t had a chance to chat with, I wanted to let you all know how it went!
I completed the dreaded Canadaman in 14 hours and 41 minutes. 4th out of the water (1h05minutes) and 8th after the bike (6h56minutes), my relative weakness in the run (6h39minutes) pushed me to 18th place out of the 63 who completed the full course.
The conditions were difficult. Here is a summary:
- 3:15 a.m. wake-up (camping);
- Pre-race preparation under pouring rain, swim start in the dark at 4:30 a.m.;
- Still heavy rain for the first 50 km of the bike;
- Ascent on the bike of 3000m according to my data…
- Temporary mechanical problem with the bike;
- Lower back pain;
- Inability to run most of the “runnable” part of the marathon (first 20km).
However, my support team did their job brilliantly and I never ran out of anything. The plan was successfully followed, especially from a nutrition point of view. I even had the chance to be followed (maybe supervised is a better word!) by caring friends when the physique was at its lowest. I say “physique” because I don’t think my morale got low at any point of the race, which is a success in itself for a race like this. The second half of the marathon was much better as we headed into the hiking trails. This forced a slower pace and I was able to make the most of my trail running skills to make up some lost time in the first 20km. As you will see in the photographs, all smiles on arrival! Thanks also to my quasi-personal photographer David Larivière for his excellent shots.
I am proud of what I accomplished physically and in my charity, because with the contributions of donors and sponsors (some from the TA family 
), I was able to donate $2,700 to the Chaudronnée de l’Estrie community kitchen so it can continue to fulfill its social mission. Creating this fundraiser helped give meaning to my sporting commitment and certainly helped me up those hills for sure! I’m not sure what my next big sport challenge will be, but I’m very curious in multi-day stage races, whether they be solely run or bike (inc. fatbike in winter), or other (maybe canoeing!).
To the TA family I say keep in touch, let me know if you intend on visiting Québec, and I will do my best to visit you all in the next 2 years. Take care of yourselves, and of course say “Yes!” to adventure!
~ Sammy the Hippie Triathlete ~
