::ONE WEEK::

A quick plug for a great Canadian Movie. One Week comes out in theatres around Canada this week. I was fortunate enough to catch an early screening in Toronto before I left for Florida training camp. I'm really glad that I caught it before migrating south, not just since it probably won't be in Florida cinemas, but because it was a beautiful reminder of so much that I love about our Nation. It was a touching dose of Canadiana, and a great story about a man facing his life's biggest challenge. It's got a great soundtrack full of Canadian bands like Sam Roberts, Wintersleep, Stars, Great Lake Swimmers and lots of others. This plug doesn't require a "support Canadian cinema" tagline or anything of the sort; you should see it simply because it's a great movie, and it'll have a lasting impact on anyone who considers the True North Strong and Free their beloved home. Enjoy!

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::TWO RAD CANADIANS::

You thought it was a one-time thing, you thought you'd seen the last of Rad Canadians. Well, I'm here to prove you wrong. The thing is, though most Canadians are pretty rad... you've gotta blow the roof off of rad to qualify for vankayak radness.

Two Canadians this time.

Rad Canadians [post 2.0]

Simon Whitfield is really rad, so he gets a nod for making me wise to this installment's first most worthy rad dude. His name is Svein Tuft, he placed 7th in the cycling time trial in Beijing, he's one part Christopher McCandless of "Into the Wild", one part Lance Armstrong (plus one testicle and minus any and all doping allegations), and all parts rad.

His paternal grandfather is Arne Tuft, who cross country skied for Norway in the 1936 Olympics. He is from Langley, British Columbia, he rode his bike to Alaska from there when he was a teenager. When he started cycling competitively he had to go to a training camp in Los Angeles; so yeah, he rode his bike there. I cannot do this article any justice, so just read it and absorb the rad by osmosis. Actually, don't read it in your head, scream it aloud at your office or in your lecture hall or wherever the heck you are for the benefit of all who are within earshot, they need to hear about Svein too.

Svein, you rock.

Rad Canadians [post 3.0]

These are in no particular order, only in the order that I hear about them. All Rad Canadians are equally rad in that their radness is so diverse and distinct; there is really no comparing them. Unlike different types of fruit, which I think are all subject to cross-comparison on the basis that they are all edible fruits; blueberries are the best one, I just ate some.

On with it, van Koeverden.

Ray Zahab

Ray is an ultra-marathoner. Lives in Chelsea, Quebec. Runs distances that make me cringe; across the Sahara, through the Amazon Rainforest, and most recently to the South Pole, the first person ever without skis. Drinks a lot of coffee, used to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, and does not anymore. He wore a David Suzuki t-shirt on the Hour with Strombo, knows my friend Corey, and is totally incredible. He does all of this to raise awareness, for advocacy, and to inspire. The Sahara run was to raise awareness for the lack of clean drinking water in Africa, the South Pole run was to inspire our youth to think about protecting our environment. Inspiring to say the absolute least. Check out impossible2possible.

These two videos will give you a pretty good idea of who Ray is. and why I think he's so rad. Next, he and his team plans to run to the North Pole in 2011. Way to go Ray, you rock, and you are truly, a very rad Canadian.

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::WICKED-WINTER::

Back to winter. I've been back at it in the snow 'n ice for a couple weeks now, my throat is not diggin' the cold air. My pipes like the humidity, the warm salty air, I miss short sleeves and flip-flops. Oh summer, where art thou? Check my skating skills over here in the pic. I can stop on the left now, stoked!

Really, I kid. I love our Canadian Winters, skating and skiing in my beloved Algonquin Park this weekend was incredible (and my left-stops are still lame). The lakes I use for kayak-borne locomotion all spring, summer and fall are solid and perfect for ice-skating right now. Saw lots of wicked wolf tracks which were both very cool and very scary. They'll go straight for your throat, I hear.

Two weeks and I'll be down in Florida. I'll soak in every bit of winter before I go. Through the window from the treadmill. Again, I kid. Off to Banff this weekend for some XC ski action and to host the Canadian Culinary Championships (Word to James "Penne Alla Arrabiata" Chatto). It's a gonna be delissima! (please use an Italian accent when reading aloud to all your friends)...
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::WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS::

It never drizzles in Maui, if there's a drizzle it's because there just was, or soon will be, a torrential downpour of tropical proportions. But, I had a lazy morning taking care of a sore elbow, so the rain wasn't going to keep me from training with the boys this afternoon. We did laps of the airport, 4 of 'em, with a nice cooldown up Baldwin and back. 50km in total, pretty weird how a 50km ride feels kind of "short" for me now... the crazy is contagious!! Thanks to Andrew "I can't believe I wore white today" McCartney and Simon "the meteorologist" Whitfield for a really fun ride, and a wicked training session. After that I headed to the gym, and hammered out some weights; happy to say that the "trim and lean" (didn't say skinny) triathlete look isn't as contagious, as the team's uplifting and welcoming vibes. Hugs all around. Especially for Rapp, two hugs for Rapp... sorry I touched your onions.

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So I will admit to not taking this photo, of a baby humpback whale breaching. BUT, I will add that that Maui Queen Lauren "OC-Wonder" Spalding-Bartlett and I saw exactly that yesterday while we were on the water, just outside Kahalui Harbor yesterday afternoon. It was rainy and overcast, but the baby whale was spectacular. We were clearly interupting baby-whale's breach lesson, cause I heard mom-whale's growl reverberate through my surfski and penetrate my very being with what could have only been mother-whale for "get lost little boats, we're having a special moment". Thanks for an amazing (mental)picture, and have a great swim to Alaska, whales. Speaking of whale babies, I have a big day tomorrow, a big day of training, and it's also the day my lovely mom, Beata birthed me... she never did teach me to breach, and we never swam to Alaska together, but her plankton-stew recipe rivals the best any humpback mom can boast. Thanks ma.

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::100KM BICYCLE RIDE::

Camp Maui Multisport 2009 continues to go incredibly well. Training today was pretty wicked... I had a good swim this morning

(early! check the dark pool! triguys n gals are morning folk), about 2700yds of mostly 50yd sprints, then we did a 3hour bike ride which took 4hours. Check the map for all the places we visited, according to SQW's bicycle tricorder we climbed 3000m throughout the ride, and covered a total of 100km, on the money. That's a very far bicycle ride for me, 1km for every second that my 500m race takes, in a slight headwind. So, my legs are tired. We stopped at a banana bread stand which boasted the "best banana bread on the planet", so we devoured 2 loaves. Given our state of hunger, I don't think anyone was in a position to judge with a particularly worldly bananaloaf standard, so let's just leave it at, "certainly worth the trip to Kahakuloa, banana bread". The views were totally nuts; cliff top ocean vistas, switchback mountain tops, and eerily skinny roads made for a pretty spectacular ride. The top of Haleakala crater is at 10 000ft, about the same amount of climbing we did today, and it's a 100km round trip too... the most glaring and obvious difference between the two rides that ALL of the climbing is done at once, and it's much, much steeper up to the top of this volcano. Outside magazine ranks this climb as the world's best (didn't mention banana bread), and one of the hardest. The great Canadian tour rider (currently at the Tour of Australia), Ryder Hesjedal recently broke the record for it's ascent on a bicycle, awesome... we are considering attempting an ascent, at a much more civilized pace... perhaps including a few stops for a snack of triangle egg sandwich? Simon (and his wonderful family) and I are sharing Ryder's home here in Maui... so big thanks, and good luck in AUS Ryder! Yesterday included a good swim, a great 70min run with Lauren Groves, and a few laps of Kahalui Harbor in the surfski with the Queen of Maui, and OC-1 virtuoso, Lauren Spalding-Bartlett... tomorrow: more swimming, and some serious gym-time, before I lose 25lbs.

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