So,as part of this blog deals with my history and association with all things Ultraman Canada I figured that I should include some history on my participation in the event.Given that of the ten times it has been held I have competed in six and crewed for three,you can imagine there are some stories to be told.
ULTRAMAN CANADA 1993:11.8k swim--320k ride--84k run
In the summer of 1993 I had flown to Penticton from my home in Cairns,Australia to spend the summer(which would be the start of a full year) in Penticton to get ready for Ironman Canada at the end of August.I had arrived during early July and was joined after three weeks by my girlfriend Leisa who was interested in finally seeing what all the fuss there was about this Ironman thing.She had seen me head off to two other Ironman races before,one in Penticton in 1991 and one in Sydney in 1992 but had limited her triathlon spectating to local events in Cairns.Personally I think she,and my other two female housemates only came to races to check out local tri stud and international triathlon superstar Brad Beven.They denied of course but I knew better!
During late July we got a call from a local mate of mine Mori LaChappelle who told us that he had been asked to be on a crew for an athlete in a new race in town called Ultraman Canada.I didn't know anything about it but when told that we would get a chance to drive around the district looking aftter an athlete and that the guy who we would be crewing for was two-time Ironman Canada Champion,Tom Price,I was in.Leisa was up for it so we agreed and Mori had his crew.
Tom was driving from his home near Seattle and wouldn't arrive in town until the night before the race which I thought odd but who was I to question a guy with Tom's background.We met up with him when he arrived and he was a nice enough guy but it was tough to tell as he was very focussed on what he was doing which wasn't at all in character to the three people he was trusting his race to that weekend.He had lists for this and instructions for that and we were not allowed to deviate in any way from what he had listed.We had recepies for sports drinks to mix,lists of clothing he might need,list for this and that and were pretty much told to do what he said and when.Oh crap,so much for a casual weekend driving around enjoying the views,this was sounding like it was going to be hard work.
Unlike todays Ultraman Canada,back then the race had an 11.8k swim on day one ( in conjunction with the Skaha Lake Ultra Swim) day two was an imperial double century or 320 kilometers for those nations who have joined the 21st century and day three was a double marathon 84kilometer run.We weren't needed for day one as Tom had a paddler,Chris, who steered him to an easy victory in 3hrs and 15 minutes some 10 minutes in front of Georg Peters in second and a massive 53 minutes in front of Scot, Ed Bell.Great,now we had a guy who was winning the damn thing so there would be no room for goofing off!!!
Day two dawned and we were there at the start line pretending that we knew what the hell we were doing and as the race started we all piled in the vehicle and chased after Tom as best we could.It has been so long that some recollections may be a but hazy( and I'm sure Mori,Tom or Steve Brown will correct me if need be) it seemed to me that it didn't take long for us to get into the groove and get stuff to Tom when he needed it.Calgary based Dutchman Berend Henkle was the star of the day but the racing was actually pretty damn exciting as Tom,Ed and male model Jim Brazil all swapped spots in the chase which kept us on our toes and had me taking a crash course in how to(and how not to) crew for Ultraman.I learned so much that day watching Tom do his thing and also started to "get" the whole hippy-happy-clappy,we are one big family crap that Ultraman is famous for.
The 320 kilometer day two was a long one and I remember thinking "how the hell do these guys do it", many times during the day.The guys had been swapping places all day and we were there for all of them giving splits and shouting encouragement. When we hit the final turn at Aspen Grove (some 30 kilometers past todays day two turn) Tom was in a bad way with really sore feet.He had been doing really well but the long climb up from Princeton had got to him and his mood was turning pretty badly.He was pretty much just barking orders at us and at the turn suddenly stopped and demanded a shoe change.Now,we are a pretty casual bunch,Mori,Leisa and I and are quite prone to playing practical jokes and generally being disrespectful at the most in-opportune times but Tom kind of scared us a bit towards the end of the day and we turned very quiet for the duration of the ride.Leisa,who was a tiny,shy girl,hid in the back seat not wanting to get involved at all past that point.Tom brought it home pretty strongly and even though he sruggled toward the end, still managed second place in a time of 11 hrs and a few seconds.Berend had ridden 10hrs 48 min for the days win and Ed bell had stayed with Tom to finish in third place only 8 minutes adrift of Tom's time.The ladies all waitied to Jimmy Brazil to finish which he did looking as male-modellish as ever less than half an hour after Ed.So after two days of combat,Tom had managed to generate a huge 61 minute lead over Ed with the rest of the field way back in another time zone.It seemed Toms race to lose....and he tried.
Day three was the first time I got the chance to see one of the most beautiful run courses you could imagine(well,except for the last bit) and we had a great time standing on the side of the road handing nutrition to Tom as he ran confidently,swapping places with with Ed,Georg and Jim,(whom I may recall wore speedos on the day)Tom was doing really well and was keeping his nemesis Ed Bell within his site while Jim Brazil started to try pull away.We wren't concerned about Jim as he was too far back timewise to worry about.It was all about Ed,who was,let's face it was pretty miserable to everyone concerned.At the time we didn't like him at all.
It was during the start of the second marathon that Tom requested some continued help pacing and as I was Ironman fit I joined him again and ran with him while handing him nutrition.I'd already done some running with him but he wanted somene there the whole time.No worries.It was also a chance for me to finally get to know they guy.We started chatting away and he wanted to know all about Mori,Leisa and myself and I think ttha whole Ulraman family thing started to take hold.His driven,focussed attitude changed and he mellowed out a lot,maybe too much.During the last half marathon his condition really started to deteriorate and he struggled.Jim was nowhere to be seen and as Tom hit the highway(we finished in the southern end of Penticton back then unlike in Summerland where we finish today)he started to walk.Mori was pacing him at the time and he didn't know what to do so I got out and swapped with Mori.I tried to get him to run but he wouldn't have any of it and now we were in trouble of losing the huge lead Tom had built over Ed.
Mori and Leisa drove past us when we hit Trout Creek just as I spied a gas station and I called for them to stop and get coke for Tom while trying to keep him mvoing forward.He was a mess and was now losing serious time to Ed as we slowly got closer to town.I fed Tom a bunch of coke but his condition got worse and he started to cry.It was the single most amazing thing I had ever witnessed in a race,The guy who had won two Ironman races and who had been so strong and so in control all weekend simply went to pieces right in front of me.I had to do something!
I started to yell at him to run from one post to the next but that din't work then I told him about the people back at home who had supported him during his training and were waiting for news of the race finish.That didn't work.Finally I'd had enough of the blubbering and did what I do best,I told him like it is,no touchy feely shit.I said " Look mate,I know you are hurting but so am I.I've run over 50 kilometers with you today and I don't want to be here either so you either start running and try to win this thing or we can get in the fucking car and go home".Well, he turned and looked down on me and smiled,he said okay and started to run.
What we didn't know was that up ahead,Ed Bell was really running hard for the win but had taken a wrong turn up the river channel bikepath and wasn't on the road like he was supposed to be.He had run a long way down the path before he was told of his mistake and to his credit,turned around and ran back to where he went off course and started down the highway.That mistake may have cost him the race,we will never know.
Our crew meanwhile had taken off to the finish to report in on Tom who they said was near death and had no chance of winning let alone finishing the day.Four kilometeres behind though Tom was having one last pee break and chatting with me as he prepared his head for the charge to the finish and what a charge it was.He had put all the bad attitude away and whatever demons he had in him were left behind on that highway.He ran down the road like it was a 10k race.I could barely keep up and the reaction of the folks assembled
at the finish was priceless as we ran past and made ready for he final 200 meters.
He jogged into finish and had held on to his first place position to become the innuagural winner of the Ultraman Canada Triathlon Championships, beating out a classy Ed Bell by around 32minutes and Georg Peters by and hour and a half.
It was an amazing weekend and I learned so much about what can be achieved by us if we just get our heads in the right place.I also learned that sometimes it is that strangest of things that lifts ones spirits.Tom and I had done battle with each other out there and Mori had done a great job keeping the crew together but it was one comment but my quiet,shy, little girlfriend Liesa that had Tom share just how much he needed us all.At the awards she was telling me that she didn't feel like she did anything at all to help and that she had been pretty useless to Tom.When Tom heard that he said she couldn't be more wrong as everytime he felt tiered or down and wanted to quit during the whole weekend all he did was look at her and think why would this girl put herself through two days of hell on the road helping some guy she had never met.He said that it was that beautiful smile on her sweet little face that he looked for every time he felt like he wanted to stop.It reminded him of the girl he had at home and that was all the motivation he needed.
Tom,Mori and I are still very good friends all these years later ( Mori is crewing for me this year) and I know that we will always have a special conection as when you go through the hell Tom did that third day it is impossible not to give something of yourself to those who helped you through it.That is how it is with family,that is how it is with friends and that is how it is in Ultraman!
Ultraman Canada Race results 1993
www.ultramancanada.com/race-results/1993-2
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