PaddleFit

New Classes starting THIS week!

Hey there everyone! Don't miss out on our next set of PaddleFit classes that start this coming Monday! Our current PaddleFitters are having a blast and getting a killer workout at the same time. After much request, we're happy to offer more. Here is the upcoming schedule. Let me know if you want in. We provide all the equipment, you show up ready for a fun full body workout!

PaddleFit @ Alice Lake (Squamish)
MONDAY’S June 1st, 8th, 15th 6-7:30pm
WEDNESDAY’S June 3rd, 10th, 17th 6-7:15am
PaddleFit in Whistler
THURSDAY’S June 4th, 11th, 18th 6-7:30pm

$25/class Pre Registration Required.

In the words of my idle, Laird Hamilton - "Life is for living."

Races on the Radar

With MOMAR Squamish wrapping up, I have my attention on a few races and I think you should toooo.......
The Coastal Challenge in Costa Rica
January 30th - Feb 6th

COME RUN WITH TEAM CANADA!!!!!
We are currently looking to continue building on putting together a great crew of folks to head down to the warmer climate next year. I am offering special training package rates to get you prepped and ready for this one (programs start in July.) Early bird prices on race registration are still low. Right now, we've got runners of all levels coming and you know what??? They are all first time expedition racers (some have never run over 42km just yet.) I will be changing that for sure but...just know that YOU can do it! Email me for more details or visit my website for info! You don't want to miss this one!!!
Choose from a 3 or 6 day run!!!!!! We will all race solo but can enter in as a TEAM as well - how cool is that!!!!

The Intermontane Challenge A 5 day "clover leafed" bike race in Kamloops, BC! Competitors are coming from all over the world to check out this mountain bike mecca. I'm headed there myself with xterra pro athlete Brandyn Roark-Grey and we are both getting really excited. This race is SUPER affordable as far as multi day races go. The terrain and race atmosphere are not going to dissapoint. Check out their website and give it some thought - warm, dry single track riding for 5 days, sleep in a hotel at night, eat good food - ummmm yes please!!!!!

MOMAR Report
As the Race Director

(tooo funny not to post, racer having a tough go with the rap off the Chief)

So I am sitting here Wednesday morning, still stoked on what a great weekend the MOMAR was! I ripped it up The Chief this morning after doing a 400m crossfit lunge workout and I got a partial taste to how all the racers must have felt as they ascended the giant, legs shattered in pursuit of reaching CP11.

Huge congratulations to the 240 racers who came to Squamish and tackled the MOMAR. It was a longer race course this year (somewhere between 54 and 57km) with some good elevation gain and sweet riding. I hope that everyone loved the rappel off of Peak#1 - when else do you get to do such a sweet ass rappell???? It's really neat for me as the race director to be out the course, seeing everyone move through, pushing limits, working hard and smiling. AR is such a wicked sport and I think you can see why I am so hooked on it. A few injuries out there but we had JF and his amazing medic team dialed in.

A massive thanks to ALL the volunteers who gave up their weekend to help pull this event off. Special thanks to Darren Johnston and Mike Kleso, my section co-ordinators, for doing a great job. And finally, thanks to everyone in Squamish for supporting this race, for supporting me and for the many roles that many people played to make this happen for the 3rd year in a row.

I am busy preparing for 2010 already- lots of ideas, a sweeet course is in the making!!!

Here are a few links to race reports & news articles to check out:

Team Helly Hansen Vancouver Island - 1st place (4 co-ed)
Bart Jarmula - 1st place overall
Sarah Seeds - 1st place female
The Chief Newspaper
The Whistler Question
Pique News Magazinehttp://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/pique/index.php?cat=C_Sports&content=Momar+1622
CONGRATS again to everyone!!! Rest up, train hard and hope to see you in Cumberland in September if I am home from Baffin by then!

MOMAR Weekend

Gotta keep this post short because its GO TIME. The 3rd MOMAR Squamish is less than 2 days away and I cant wait for the 240 racers to get on the course that I have designed. It's been a lot of fun (and work) to put this route together and I hope that everyone loves it. Great single track riding and some tough trekking. The rappell takes the cake though.
So, goodluck to everyone, see you on the race course!

Here is some exciting news that we have just released. In September of this year, I will be embarking on an impossible2possible expedition to BAFFIN ISLAND. Here myself, Ray Zahab, Kevin Lin, Kevin Vallely and Marshall Ulrich will be running the Akshayuk Pass with 5 selected youth ambassadors! The goal - an expedition to raise awareness and encourage and inspire youth to protect the planet. School groups across North America will be following our group and participating in interactive learning studies as we journey across the pass.

Be involved! Please visit the i2p website to see what this non profit organization is all about and how you can be involved. If you are associated with a school and/or can help us spread the word about this program, please let us know!

This will be my second expedition with i2p. Last year I ran the 135 mile Badwater Ultramarathon for i2p. Several other expeditions have taken place already including the Quest for the South Pole and the 4500km run across the Sahara.

So please, spend a few moments and check out impossible2possible. It's an honor for me to be involved with an organization that stands for an amazing cause and where we can use adventure to inspire, motivate and make a difference!

Adventure Onwards

Ore Crushing Weekend

Finally, a weekend here in Squamish! Wonderful to be at home, wonder to Beans Brackendale for my morning java fix and then decide to head out to Don Ross to take part in the annual Ore Crusher MTB race. Since returning from my California roadtrip, I have switched my focus to the first part of this year on mountain bike racing and getting stronger and fitter on the bike once again.
So, first step, time to be humbled. I went out and rode ok, not great, just enough to be ok. Had lots of fun, got the heart rate up. The race course was super flat so it didn't favor me at all. Add a total distance of 30km to that factor and well, it really doesn't favor an endurance athlete. However, patience Jen, patience. Just trying to get bike fit again and I am very knew to this short sprint MTB racing scene. Obvious to see of course, why I have chosen to do my first solo 24hr MTB race in a few weeks time and then end of July to tackle the Intermontane 5 day staged race up in Kamloops. Yes, distance and hills, give it to me.
To make a long story short, I did my best out there and had fun. I won my division but its not a race that I can truly feel good about. Learning curve for sure. I will just continue to remind myself that will all those short sprint races, I am getting fitter. Yes, I am getting fitter.

Adventure Onwards, its back to MOMAR course riding.
Have you signed up yet????? It's next weekend and oh yes, we still need volunteers!!! Come help out if you can't race and enjoy a wicked after party that night!

Now on Twitter....

Follow my adventures:
My name is AdventureOnward

After lots of encouragement to get on the twitter program, I finally signed up and am learning how to use it.
If you are a twitter user, please let me know your name!

Crossfit

Toughest Workout Yet!

Last night at crossfit was the hardest workout that I have done. I gave it 120% and it paid off. I was able to do everything as perscribed and it was crazy hard. Jesse had us do what was apparently the 1st WOD in the Western Crossfit Qualifier. Heather was my judge and so every single movement had to be perfect (and yes, I had to add a few extra wall balls in there to get it right). Here is what I did as per the female perscription:

AMRAP for 20min of

10 Wall Balls (14lbs)

10 Box Jumps (20")

10 Deadlifts (69.5 kg)

10 Burpees

I got through 5 rounds, 21 reps!!!

Max HR, super tough deadlifting, I KNOW GAINS WILL BE MADE!!

Oh ya, and then I paired that with the WOD today which was Fran! Ahhhhhh, so not recoved. This was my first go and Fran and I sucked! I managed to do as perscribed for the women but my pullups took so long and didn't look pretty. It took me 12:45 to get through:

FRAN

21/15/9

Thrusters (30kg)

Pull-ups

*so yes, thats 3 rounds of each, back to back!! Can you say FRICKEN HARD!!!!

Crossfit, gotta love it!!!

The Ongoing Achilles Issue AND
a great new Mountain Bike Race

Slowly but surely, I am on the mend. California was a great opportunity for me to re-focus and set some new goals for the next few months. I got lots of great riding in under the sun and that always does wonders for the mind and body. During the last few days of the roadtrip, I felt ready to try a few short (and I mean very short) runs. I experienced some tenderness the next day and so have backed off. I will continue to test it out and of course, I have my trail run clinics starting here in Squamish this week so it has no choice but to get better.

With that said, ah yes...., new goals. So, I have committed myself to making the next few months all about the bike. This has me really excited now and its an adventure racing discipline that can always use improvement (especially when my AR team mates are animals on the bike.)

So to kick things off, looks like I will be attempting my first 24hr solo MTB race in 1 months time down in Monterey, CA. I will focus on good hours in the saddle leading up to that and use it as a training race for a newly added A race of the year which leads me tooo.....

The Intermontane Challenge - a 5 day staged MTB race in Kamloops, BC!!! Check it out! This is the first year for this race and how about this, they are offering a HUGE cash purse, $60,000 spread over a few categories. I couldn't be more excited about this one. I have teamed up with Brandyn Roark-Grey, an xterra pro athlete from down in the USA and together we hope to rock the 2 female category. Brandyn is not only an incredible and fit athlete but an all round great person with awesome energy. I am really excited to race with her and ride hard.

Now YOU should consider this race yourself. It's at the end of July and VERY affordable. I think its actually the cheapest multi-day race that I have come across yet. Reason being, we do loops out of one central camp each day so the race organization does not have to move and transport gear around etc. Hotel accomodation at night if you choose which means good rest and hard riding the next day. Food options available too. Seriously, come ride on some dry wicked BC singletrack in a great town. The race is from July 28th - 31st. 5 day's of rippin fun!!!!

Adventure onwards......jen

The newest in Fitness Conditioning!

I'm still on the California roadtrip but I wanted to fill everyone in on the coolest new class coming to Squamish when I get home. Details below. We have been SUP'ing it up down here in the warm weather and its such a killer workout. Even did my first SUP race in Malibu last weekend - unreal!

PADDLE FIT

This is a unique fun new way to get in the best shape of your life. Paddle Fit combines the traditional Hawaiian sport of stand-up paddle boarding (SUP) with cutting edge strength and conditioning fitness to give you a total mind body workout. Develop the core, train the body, relax the mind! Experience the future of functional fitness training!


GET FIT Wednesday Nights
6:00pm – 7:30pm
6 Classes Starting May 20th at Alice Lake
Price: $25/class(6 classes)
$30/class (Drop In) Spaces limited.

Pre-registration required.
Email me if interested at jen@challengebychoice.ca

Paddle Fit conditioning classes will get you comfortable with the new sport of Stand Up Paddleboarding (SUP) as you learn how to engage and utilize your entire body to power the board through the water. Dry land conditioning exercises will be integrated into each session, providing a total body, high calorie burning fitness class. PaddleFit redefines total body fitness.

LIVE LIFE NOW……Get PADDLEFIT.

NOTE: There are still a few spaces left for the co-ed Wednesday morning conditioning classes. Visit www.challengebychoice.ca for details. The Tues/Thurs women's class is now FULL. There are a few spaces left for each of the Tues & Thurs spring TRAIL RUNNING CLASSES.