-Courage, Madame, Courage-

Hey everyone! It has been so busy out here in Victoria and I love it!

I have everything here: Great friends, amazing autumn weather, a charming little place on the beach, the ocean, my coach and some of the Lifesport crew to help me push in all trainings before the big race!

I am getting used to my morning sunrise on the ocean! I have even seen some surfers out on the little waves further down the bay on a stormy day. That’s just incredible to imagine I could just walk out of my little place, grab a board or kayak and head onto the ocean! I need to get a kayak! ...now I am having the visual of myself hoping on the kayak at the end of a big day of training and paddling into the sunset…ahhhhh!

Training has been going so well since I got here. I am feeling great and definitely getting some hard work done!

It would be long to describe how amazing the quality of training is here, but here are some flashes from the last weeks that I would love to share!...

Riding, riding, riding, hills, hills, hills!!

Photo recently sent by photographer and friend David McColm.

Perfect weather....Outside in the sun with just shorts and arm warmers!

Long rides on the highway that takes you up the Malahat, with great partners, through beautiful mountains....ocean views from the hills (the good thing about overgearing workouts in the hills is that you get the gain and can also see the view!!)

A five hour ride, where we were pushing it and just playing hard! Ending a big day, drafting off cars with my buddies along the ocean drive, also one of my favourite rides!

Trainer sessions too: Instead of staring at the garage door, here I do them at the pool with friends. We put some loud music on, and push for hours at a time. In the last of Lance’s magic trainer sessions, a friend even came to cheer me on and Lance came to push me through the last part of the workout. It was so hard, I was just trying to get the pedals to turn and he would comment on my technique and force me to get back on the aerobars!!! Hahaha.

Working hard on the trainer by the pool with coach Lance!

Running, running and more running. The crazy one was off a really hard trainer session with Lance riding his mountain bike beside me, just flowing, through the trails around Elk Lake. In those trainings, Lance acts as my positive conscience. Unfortunately, I have to stop bringing out the devil sometimes too when it gets real hard. That is still my challenge!

The other hard training was my mistake! OUCH. Low calory 2h30 run. I kind of faded...just kind of...in the last five kilometres, I prefer not to mention how many gels I dropped on the run. Enough to make me kind of lye down on the ground for a while when I got home. Before I desperately reached for some food sitting on the kitchen counter.

Oh AND there is the swimming! That always hurts the most. Kerry and I have been working the pull-paddle sets recently... it seems there are only BIG FISH around here so I just HAVE to hold on for as long as I can! I even got to join Brent and Simon Whitffield in a practice. Simon has been really nice, made me feel very welcome. But boy...does he swim fast....even..on his easy (my tempo crazy) swims!

Goodness. If my Victoria inspiration doesn’t make me faster, nothing will!

Tomorrow is a HUGE brick session at Lance’s place…there is a new sentence I keep on repeating to myself when I am working very hard now: -Courage Madame, Courage!- and I will use it then.

Let me explain: My friend Josianne Pusterla, has told me that she would be watching Clearwater from Burkina Faso! She has told me about that expression often used in Western Africa in order to encourage female athletes during their effort. It is my magic sentence now.

-Courage- to all of you!

Magali.

My new home

Hi!
I have safely made it to my new home and training paradise! I am now a (very proud) -Victorian-!
I am so happy about my new situation here. And I knew it at the moment I got off the place and suddenly started feeling strange to be carrying my big white, furry, winter coat around. In Victoria, it felt like summer. And it seemed like it was giving everyone something to smile about.
Waiting for Curtis (remember, my homestay) to pick me up, I was now standing in the sun in a t-shirt and knew I was home.
Almost all of Lifesport has gone to Hawaii, it would have been great to see them again!
But I got such a warm welcome anyways. It started with Curtis picking me up (and later admitting he had missed school just for that!!), then reuniting with the homestay family, going for a visit to Hillerie and John s ....and then there was also what happened the next morning at my first, back to Vic, swim workout with Team mate Brent McMahon!
We had planned to meet at 9a.m, right after the national team training session, and go for that 40x100 killer set. When I first got to the pool, not only did I see Brent, but Lifesport athlete Samantha Mazer was also there with her usual smile and great energy and so was...Simon Whitfield and the national team athletes. As I said, they had just finished their swim.
Simon greeted me to Victoria in his own, very original way. When I mentioned that I was staying for good, he pulled out a card board box he had with him, grabbed my swim paddle and started forcing that box open. He then handed me a -house warming present-....a beautiful vase...well, not only a beautiful vase. A particularly memorable one, the trophy of the Hyvee triathlon!
He didn t have to insist much for me to except this kind offering and KEEP IT for my house on the ocean. I was taking it home for sure!

The first swim I did that morning (on Tuesday), was BRUTAL. Oh, now I remembered the feeling, the -all you can sweat fest- had begun!!! And coach was not even there yet! Yikes, imagine what it will be like when he takes out that whip!
It was so good to hear a familiar voice give me encouragements during the set, to do the warm up side by side with Sam and to use a bit of Brent s draft before seeing him disappear in the distance at each of the 40 of the 100ms we did. Ha! I am definitely getting my share of motivation now! Just at the right moment too!!! I need to step it up and get those swim times down too!
This place will be perfect to train before Clearwater!
That great new feeling has not left me. Training, so far, I have gone on a crazy 3 hours bike ride today, where I rediscovered the beautiful, hilly trails all over again (I did not see time go by!). I then went for a fast hour run off that bike around the lake trails. Happiness is definitely an amazing training fuel!
And then there is the rest of the fun stuff! I got into my beach house, and had quite an adventure getting the mattress there on the top of the car with Curtis. I still need to go shopping for some more furniture and Pierre arrives tomorrow with my car and the rest of my things. I have not slept at my new home yet (I was staying with my homestay until things were set up) but I think tonight will be the night!
But first, to the pool! (yes, it is getting late but it seems that here, pool time is unlimited! )
Tonight is an easy swim so I am walking to the pool with homestay mom Denise, she will be joining me on that one! Sure that will be a great way to end the day!
Then, my first sleep at my new place.
Cheers everyone! I will do a special effort to keep you posted on my new adventure!
Cheers!
Magali.

Inspiration of the day

This morning, as I was having breakfast, MANUEL DE LOS SANTOS
popped up on my TV screen. It was a short interview that brought me so much inspiration into my day.


Like many children from his native country,( the Dominican Republic), Manuel dreamed of becoming a world class baseball player. His determination drove him to be recruited as a development athlete for the Blue Jays at age 17.
It is at the moment the young athlete saw his childhood dream become a reality, that he would have to face tragedy. His dream of becoming a baseball superstar was shattered when a motorcycle accident left him without his left leg.

But it seems, not much can stop a champion from becoming a champion. Manuel figured that all he needed to do was....to find another sport in which to exert his passion. And this man didn't waste any time!

After having seen an inspirational movie about a golfing champion (yes, really, it was THAT simple!), he figured it looked like fun and his baseball skills might suit the game (hey, kind of like a baseball version of Happy Gilmore?). He went to a driving range for the first time and IMPRESSED. To him, each shot felt just like a home run! And from that moment, he was on a mission.
Manuel De Los Santos started playing golf in 2003, he now has an outstanding portfolio and has recently placed second at the European Handigolf championships. He is also competitive at the non-handigolf category and his aspirations are high...how high? I think we will see very soon.

Why do sad things happen to good people? Probably because they are the ones strong enough to make the whole world smile and dream. They are examples to all of us, they are there to show how strong a positive mind can be. I remember the way his interview ended: With a huge smile on his face, he said: -When it goes well, I smile, when it doesn't go well, I smile too!- he then laughed. It sounds so simple! I guess that is the secret to becoming a champion.

Have a great day everyone!

oh and.....TRAIN HARD! YEEEAAAAHHH!

Magali.