WINTER TRIATHLON
THE 2004 WINTERLUDE TRIATHLON
By Rick Hellard “Skaters. Take your mark. GO!” Imagine 500 blades flashing, clacking and gliding along Dows Lake and funnelling into the Rideau Canal. At 35 kilometres per hour. A bit intimidating perhaps, but really cool to see. The lead pack forms quickly with one skater hammering up front and the rest falling in behind for the tow. The wicked pace separates those who possess turbo-diesel engines for hearts and lungs. Slowly, the lead group is whittled down to 20 by the end of the skate. Blowing vast plumes of hot vapour into dry air, participants rush to metamorphose from speed skater to cross-country skier. They change footwear in a flash and push off hard into the stiff wind on the challenging ski course. Arms, legs, poles and skis flail in controlled chaos as the best skiers put distance between themselves and the pack. Before long, the triathlon course is festooned with great skiers whose skating is not their www.OttawaOutdoors.ca
strong point—great skaters whose skiing leaves something to be desired, and all who lie in between. It is exhausting, humbling and great fun. Before the last skaters are even off the ice, the front skiers are already in transition for the final event—running. Burning, uncooperative thighs and calves propel the skiers-nowturned-runners as the blood changes course toward the running muscles. By now the frontrunner’s lungs are searing in the winter air. The running portion is the final test to sort out who wants victory most. It’s often the great equalizer—either you can run faster than the people around you, or you can’t. All that fancy equipment and agonizing over the proper waxing technique is in the rear-view mirror. Unlike the first two events, people tend not to fall when they run. They don’t get tangled up with other runners. This is the final push to the finish, so everyone fights to either catch and pass, or not get caught and passed. Once across the finish line, everyone catches their breath
and laughs about everything that happened during yet another Winterlude Triathlon. Meanwhile, skiers continue to finish up their stint on the “misery sticks” and head out on the running portion of the course to finish their race. Many of them are thinking, dollars to minutes, they’re getting better value than those who are already finished—and they have a point! This staple event of the National Capital Commission’s Winterlude consists of an 8-km skate along the Rideau Canal, a 7-km cross-country ski through the Dominion Arboretum and a 5-km run along a new-in-2004 running course—the snow-packed side of the Rideau Canal. As Race Director and a long-time participant, I offer a few suggestions to prepare for this great winter activity. First and foremost, don’t be intimidated by the distances or the speeds. This event is suited to everyone from the fast and furious to the “weekend warrior.” Secondly, treat it as a goal that will help you maintain or improve
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