Leeway from Lloyd: Bummer days the bane of athletes

Three local triathletes I often cycle with in Lloyd took part in the Great White North Triathlon in Stoney Plain, Alta. over the long July weekend.

Unfortunately, the event took place on one of the nastiest days of the year for summer weather. Reportedly, it was about 10 C on the first couple of legs with a 30 to 50 km/hr side wind for cycling along with rain and lots of rocks on the road. In other words hell on earth.

If I witness it, I’ll step up and be the brave one to do the smell test and the taste test (if necessary). I also kill the spiders around our house.

One guy called it a day after the first cycling lap and the other two athletes finished, but not without mechanical hiccups on the bikes. There was a sizeable list of did not finish (DNF) competitors.

In any kind of outdoor sporting event, the weather is always the biggest factor.

What are mom’s for? It comes down to three things—look at it, smell it, and possibly give it a little taste before throwing out an item you’ve spent your

I ran six marathons and all but one took place in extremely ugly weather conditions or situations. In my first marathon in 1981 in Kamloops B.C., which ended up being my fastest at about 3:23.50, it was below the freezing point at the start. About 20 miles in, some clown was burning leaves on his lawn so we had to run through a thick gauntlet of smoke.

I ran Kamloops again in hard-earned dollars on. It is actually one of the most primitive instincts. A wild animal knows better than to eat something poisonous or drink from

1984 on a hot day with winds gusting to about 40 km/hr. Incredibly, my buddy from Nelson ran a 2:32 time! Then I ran the Toronto International Marathon in 1991 and it rained for the first hour.

A couple of weeks later, I ran Chicago on a day when it was 55F with 95 per cent humidity. I ran New York in 1993 on the hottest day in November in about 90 years.

Last year, when I raced 100 km on my bike in Drayton a contaminated water source.

I’ve had coffee cream last a week past it’s best before date, and I’ve had buns bought the previous day that had mold spots and had to be trashed.

Valley, it was 7 C at the start. This year, I am doing an 85 km race in Sherwood Park on Aug. 13 so it should be warm.

I’m going in with the U.S. postal worker motto in mind. Neither snow nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night will keep me from the swift completion of my appointed rounds. The Postal Service once sponsored a team in the Tour de France. Maybe Canada Post can mail me a weather forecast!

Between the ridiculous cost of groceries, the rising number of Canadians relying on food banks, and the overstuffed landfills, I think that sealed pack of yogurt that was forgotten in the back of the fridge until its ‘best before’ date at least deserves a sniff test.

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