OK, OK… I know what you’re thinking, “Avia makes technical running shoes?? Really???”

Yes, really.

Admittedly I was a bit skeptical at first as well. In high school I worked at Track Shack, a technical running shoe store in Orlando, FL, and while I was working there Avias were considered nice enough shoes but certainly not for real runners. Maybe for walking or generic gym usage they would get the job done but we didn’t carry them.

So needless to say I was a bit skeptical when my friend Shawn suggested I try a pair.  Shawn previously worked at Asics and has put down some pretty serious times himself (certainly faster than me!) so I figured I’d at least have to give them a chance. He recommended the Avi-Lite which is, according to Avia, a “lightweight trainer for a neutral to slightly overpronated foot type.” The description sounded about right for me, as I have run the Asics DS-Trainers and Nike Zoom Elites in the past, so I decided to give them a go.

When I first laced them up, my initial reactions were that they were really soft and possibly a bit wide. They seemed to feel pretty comfortable just walking around but I was harboring concerns about how that feeling would translate out on the road while running. I relayed the information back to Shawn and he informed about the 2nd set of holes which can be used to tighten up the fit and convinced me the shoes would feel just as good running as they do while just standing. At that point I had no excuses; I had to give them a try.

My first run in them, surprisingly enough, felt fine. This was about 3 weeks ago and since then I haven’t run in anything else. While they are soft while walking, this is just a result of the cushy liner Avia uses for inserts. Once I started running though, they were nice and responsive. Additionally, they provided a nice ride, allowing for a smooth, efficient foot strike. Finally, I’ve done some faster running in them as well and haven’t felt weighed down as I sometimes do when trying to run fast in other trainers.

Finally, I should mention that in addition to feeling good, I have not had any knee pain since switching to the Avias.   So not only do they feel good while running but after as well. And although I dont blame my previous injury on the shoes in which I was running at the time, it is certainly a credit to the new shoes that they arent giving me any pain.

So consider me a convert!

More electrochemist rablings at http:ajhodges.blogspot.com

First off, here are some more of the Boise 70.3 pics I promised on my last blog.  Some just were sent to me, and then there is the perpetual formatting issue that techo weenies, such as myself, encounter more regularly than perhaps necessary…ahem.

Boise 70.3 pullin’ into T2

Boise 70.3 Awards

My uber cool homestay family (The Colberts) - Thanks, guys!

Friend, and fellow Calgarian, Chris Kirker, just prior to placing 3rd in M50-54.  His wife Jill (whose picture I cannot seem to get up here,  but not for lack of trying!!!) placed 1st in the same age category.  They’re both off to Clearwater!

For other news, yesterday, July 1st, was not only Canada Day, but also my very first official day of no longer being a ‘teacher’, but instead trying to soak up the realization that I am now a full-time athlete.  Hoo boy!  This said, I would also like to make this blog a little tribute to my grade five class, who made this challenging year of the ‘juggling act’ very worthwhile.  Go get ‘em, 5Mo!

We am now in the midst of boxes and mess as my fiance, Eric, and I make our way to Vernon, B.C. to really and truly venture on a new road….can’t wait!  A few days of packing, and then some R&R prior to my next race, Canadian Long Distance Triathlon Championships at the Desert Half in Osoyoos, B.C., which, I am sure, will live up to its DESERT name!!!

Happy Canada Day! 

Its day one in Font Romeu, i got here yesterday night after 1350km of driving, I came with mister Krep that helped a lot during the 13h with a few stops of driving, here are some good examples of good entertainment i had (taking photos of Krep while he was sleeping), i think he slept half of the way here…

nyway we got here alright but krep is defenetely sharing the driving on the way back in around 3 weeks :D

Today was very calm, just a short ride and short swim to get the feel of the altitude, the rest of the week isnt very tough as well but week 2 and 3 will kick my butt.

i was glad to wake up in the morning and looking at the window with a great day..

Of course at the time im writing this im having severe thunderstorms alert but i think its just a few hours :P

The last month or so where spent at a maintenance threshold, fast workouts to try find some extra gear and indeed i found one. 3 sprint races from the national cup and a kind of 24h MTB race kept me busy and at racing speed.

I starded with an out of the first result page at the sprint in Peniche, got an 7th in the sprint of Oeiras, got 9th at the 24h race with no night riding and ended up in 5th at the sprint of abrantes last weekend, thats a good curve of improovement in speed, although speed and Sergio doesnt quite match.

more soon

Buffalo Springs Lake 70.3 closed out a solid 4 weekends of back-to-back races in Steamboat Springs, Kansas, Boulder, and Texas (3 of the 4 were with the family), and I loved every minute of it! Because of the repeated high level of stress on my legs, I decided to scale my runs way back during the weekdays.  I only did 6 training runs in the entire month of June, and saved my legs for competition.  It paid off and resulted in 2 new ½ marathon PR’s in a ½ Ironman.  Recovery is key! 

 Friday night I dove to Lubbock by myself and camped in a little town in route called Clayton, NM.  After a brief 20 minute run in the morning, I got into Lubbock in the afternoon, checked in, met with the Trakkers team and got some sleep.

Race morning came and I felt great.  I was expecting the sun and 102 degree temps that I saw on Saturday, but instead woke to clouds and wind.  I got to the race at 4:30, and lined up in my wave for the 6:45AM start.  This year I was wearing my Trakkers GPS device (www.trakkersgps.com). I was testing the device for Trakkers which allows you to be seen via their website on a Google map updated every few seconds.  It’s waterproof so I wore it for the entire race.  The swim went well and I exited in 25:45, just behind fellow Coloradoan Eric Petersen.  I jumped on my TTX and was on my way.  The precipitation didn’t really start coming down until mile 45 and soon developed into a steady rain. The wind did not let up either as it was a 20 MPH on much of the course.  I soon saw the orange glow of my fellow Timex teammates at the turnaround, Adam Wilk and Gabriella Loskotova!

As I rode back into the park, there were many downhills.  I tried my best to have the combination of cork brake pads, carbon rims and rain not allow me to lose control of my bike and successfully made it back in 2:22.  Out on the run, it was still raining, but I did my best and ran 1:21 on the hilly course securing my spot for 1^st Amateur and 7^th overall at 4:12.49.  I found out later that Cameron Brown finished just behind me in 8^th by 3 seconds!

 After a quick warm down in the lake, I packed up the car and drove 8 hours to make it in time for dinner and bedtime with Nikki and the boys.  No 72oz. steak dinners in Amarillo this year, but it sure was tempting!

 Tim

It took a while to get this posted…but better late than never :)  This season has gone well so far, race highlights being: Personal best time at Green Bay Marathon in May (3:04) and Second Place finish at Rockman Half IM (June 7, 4:44). 

I was actually waiting on photos so this could be an interesting post, but I can’t wait forever!!  Last Sunday I raced a half ironman race (along with fellow Timex team mates Mike Lavery and Will Smith) at beautiful High Cliff State Park (outside of Appleton, WI).  Here’s a recap of the weekend:

Friday (6/19):  I took the day off of work with the idea of leaving early for the race and getting to the campground with time to hike around or relax a bit.  Well…after sleeping in until noon, cleaning the entire house, and doing some yard work the day had quickly gotten away from me.  Soon it was 5:30 and we had a 2 (plus) hour drive….no big deal we’d still get there before dark (barely!)

Despite a long, winding detour and a GPS with a dead battery, we somehow made it to the campground at 8:30.  It had been storming the entire drive, so we immediately checked out the bikes…they looked fine, but were coated nicely in about 1/2 in. layer of sludge.  Awesome.   Anyhow…found the site, got the tent set up…Mike struggled with his a bit, but it went up eventually.  Amazing how the rain-fly belongs on the outside of the tent! :)  Unfortunately with the rain we couldn’t get a fire going so we spent the night burning our race packets and whatever else we could find.  Storms came hard all night…but somehow we managed to stay dry.

Saturday (6/20, race day):  5am came quick, but the weather looked great for the race. 

SWIM- took place in Lake Winnebego, a pretty large lake.  The water was very choppy and I had a very hard time spotting the buoys.  After a little detour off course I found someones feet and rode it pretty much the whole way.  I came out a bit quicker than expected (27:06) considering the conditions.  Had a good T1 and was ready for the ride.

BIKE- This is definitely my weakest section of the race, but usually I can hang in there.  My legs were not feeling great right from the start.  Luckily the course was pretty flat, except for the mile long climb just after transition.  I got passed by Mike at mile 20 (he started 5 waves behind me) and was not feeling so hot at that point.  I think one of the problems was that I never actually looked at a map of the course so had no idea if we were doing an out and back, or loops or what….oops!  I managed to only get passed by one woman at about mile 45.  I pushed to keep her in sight the rest of the way…but my legs were really not coopering.  Anyhow, came off the bike with a mediocre 2:40 (avrg 21.3).

RUN- I spend the last half of the bike portion of any tri thinking about how excited I am to start running.  I love the run and can usually make up some ground on all of the bikers that passed me earlier in the day.  I had a good T2 and took off with my Nathan handheld bottle (very key for the race since it was hot!).  The run started out up the same hill that the bike course did and there was no choice but to walk it.   The first mile was tough, but after that it was all trail running.  As an ex-cross country runner and being semi-injury prone, I run on trails as much as possible…so this was a very enjoyable run for me.  Finished with a 1:32 split for the run.  I’ll take it on a hot day.

Overall time 4:42, First overall.  See full results at : http://www.itiming.com/raceresults/519-high-cliff-tri-half-div09.pdf.    Congrats to Will Smith, overall Men’s winner and Mike Lavery, 3rd overall.  Great showing for Team Timex!