2,200 cyclists race the GranFondo
Special to the Herald
The GranFondo Axel Merckx, held on July 8 in Penticton, is one of the largest cycling events in B.C. It was started by Axel Merckx, the Olympic bronze medallist and former Belgium national champion.
Merckx has lived in Kelowna for many years with his wife Jodi, who was born here.
The GranFondo offers riders the choice of four different distances to choose from, the 160K GranFondo, the 126K Velocifondo, the 92K Mediofondo and the 55K Cortofondo. There is also a hill climb up the Apex Moutain road, the Passo Apex hill climb, that is held the day before the main races.
In the 160K Granfondo, the overall winner was Kelowna’s Seth Cowie (M30-39) in a time of four hours and six minutes and with an average speed of just under 40 KPH!
The top Okanagan woman was Penticton’s Gloria Woolner (F50-59), who finished in 5:27. The top rider in the 126K Velocifondo was Vernon’s Dustin Pakosh (M30-39), while the top female was another Vernon rider, Alesha Miller (F20-29).
Young Kelowna cyclist Conor Martin, just back from impressive performances at the Canadian Junior National Championships, continues to show that, at 17 years old, he can more than hold his own with the big boys! Martin won the Passo Apex hill climb, finishing ahead of Nathan Brown (M20-29), a pro cyclist from Tennessee who has ridden on several top-ranked pro cycling teams and has competed at the Tour de France and the Giro D’Italia.
Martin then went on to compete in the 92K Mediofondo the next day and won it by almost five minutes!
Kelowna’s Baili Guidi (M-19), who also performed well at the Canadian Juniors, rode the 160K race and finished first in class and ninth overall in a sprint finish — only six seconds behind the winner, Cowie.
Several of my cycling friends were in the various events (unfortunately I was out of town and unable to compete this year) and I want to recognize their achievements.
Derek Barile, our leader for the Saturday Fresh Air Experience/Concept rides was 12th overall in the Velocifondo.
Rob Robinson and Bev MacLean both completed the Granfondo. Wendy Robinson rode the Velocifondo and Julie Barile the Mediofondo.
I was especially impressed with the performance of West Kelowna’s young Amanda Hardy (F20-29), who rode with the Fresh Air group last Saturday and after talking to her I discovered that although she has been riding for less than a year she entered and finished the 160K Granfondo, finishing in 5:58 for second place in her age class. Amazing!
Cliff Serwa, about whom I have written previously, is also in our Fresh Air group. Cliff, at 82, is an exceptional cyclist! He rode the 160K race, and won his class with ease, finishing ahead of almost 300 younger riders. He was very happy with his race, as he bettered his time from last year by over 35 minutes — finishing in 5:59.
I also want to mention 90-plus-year-old Robert Allan from North Vancouver, who rode the 92K Mediofonda in 4:24, finishing ahead of 120 younger cyclists!
Jordan Cheyne continues to impress his KHS pro cycling team with another strong showing. Cheyne raced in the inaugural Kristen Armstrong time trial at Boise, Idaho. Armstrong is a three-time Olympic gold medallist, and her race is the only elite professional time trial on the UCI calendar.
Cheyne took third overall in the 23K race in a time of just over 30 minutes, for an average speed of 46 KPH!
The average cyclist can’t reach that speed unless they are riding downhill!
MIDSUMMER 8K
The Fresh Air Midsummer 8K, race No. 7 in the Canadian Tire Interior Running Series, was also held July 8 and, as usual, attracted runners from all over the Okanagan and several from the Lower Mainland.
Kelowna’s Jeff Vogt (M40-44) was first overall, followed by Aaron Heidt (M40-44, Vernon) and David Guss (M55-59, Kelowna).
Penticton runner Christine Connibear was the top woman, with Calgary’s Allison Blackmore (F50-54) second and Vernon’s Seija Deleenheer (F40-44) third.
I mentioned Hardy and her performance at the Granfondo, now I see that her younger sister, Vanessa, who also rode with us on Saturday, ran the 8K, winning the F19-and-under age class and coming in as the fourth woman overall. A couple of talented girls!
Okanagan women who won age classes include Danielle Shand (F30-34, Kel), Tiffany Fowler (F45-49, Kel), Diana Eacrett (F55-59, Kel), the unbeatable Cindy Rhodes (F60-64, Kel), Jill Watson (F65-69, Kel) and Diane Leonard (F70-74, Kel), who has not lost a Canadian Tire series race in more than seven years!
Local men’s winners were Quinn Middleton (M20-24, Lake Country), Igor Pichugin (M2529, Kel), Jordan Riley (M30-34, Kel), Joel Deleenheer (M45-49, LC), Sergio Pio (M5054, Pen), Chuck Abney (M60-64, Kel), Peter Polhammer (M75-79, Kel), and the ageless Bruce Butcher (M80-84, Kamloops).
My good friend John Lopes, who I trained with for more than 30 years, won the M65-69 class. He took a few years off from serious running, but has come back strong.
TRIATHLONS
The 35th annual Penticton Peach Classic triathlon was held on July 15. This was the first triathlon I ever did, back in 1984. I won my class and became a real triathlon nut for several years, culminating in doing the Ironman in 1991. This year, 175 competitors hit the water when the starter’s gun went off on Sunday morning.
Top Okanagan finishers were Kaleden’s Martin Caron (1st M40-44, 3rd overall) and Kelowna’s Cory Krist (2nd M35-39, 4th overall). Summerland triathlete Haley Berrisford (F18-19) was the third woman overall. Other local winners were Janine Benson (F50-54, Kel), Danita Schreiber (F5559, Kel), Kevin Cutjar (M5054, Pen), Carl Peterson (M65-69, Pen), Brad Lee (M60-64, Pen) and Charlie Llewellyn (F60-64, Pen).
The Lac Megantic triathlon is the toughest Ironman distance triathlon in Canada. A breathtaking course amid the Canadian forest and mountains that will push you to successively complete: a 3.8-kilometre swim on Lac Megantic, starting at dawn; 180 kilometres of biking along the “Route des Sommets” with an elevation gain of 2,500 metres; and 42 kilometres of running along roads and trails with the ultimate finish line at the summit of MontMegantic with an elevation gain of 1,200 metres. This is the most intense, wild and beautiful triathlon in North America!
The Okanagan’s Karis Shearer competed in it this year, coming in first in the F35-39 age class in 17 hours, 34 minutes.
She sent me the following report on this epic race: Here’s a short recap of my race! CanadaMan/Woman is part of the Xtreme Triathlon series that includes races such as the infamous Norseman and Celtman. Essentially, they are iron-distance races (3.8-km swim, 180-km bike, 42.2-km run) but they’re done in regions known for their rugged and challenging terrain (cold water, lots of elevation on the bike course and the run course). The run courses usually have an off-road trail run portion with a mountain ascent, as this one did, ending at the observatory at the top of Mont Megantic. The race’s slogan is “Reach the Stars before Midnight” and so that was my goal.
The other thing that makes these xtreme triathlons different from an Ironman is that you bring your own support crew and they carry all your food and hydration, and you need to have a support runner as well to accompany you up the mountain portion of the run for safety reasons. The CanadaMan/ Woman is also a grassroots race that seeks to bring tourism to Lac Megantic after the rail tragedy that happened there in 2013, and the race starts with a “wind walk” at 4 a.m. to commemorate the lives lost in that tragedy. It was a very moving tribute to them and I was profoundly grateful to the residents of the region for being so welcoming to the athletes.
Swim: CanadaWoman began at 4:30 a.m., in the dark. I’m not a strong swimmer, but I do enjoy open-water swimming. This was my fastest swim ever at this distance.
Bike: The bike course has 2,600 metres of very punchy climbing and is very windy. It shares most of the same route as the second stage of the Tour de Beauce, which my coach Jordan Cheyne has raced several times, so we joked he “pre-rode the course” for me a few weeks ago. But seriously, he had a lot of detailed tips that proved helpful on my race day. The bike course ends with a one-kilometre climb at a grade of 13 per cent, taking you within sight of the U.S. border. Hands down the hardest bike course I’ve ever done.
Run: After a tough bike leg, supported by my awesome crew (my dad, my partner, and my Kelowna training friend Alison Rose), I set out on the run with my legs feeling pretty tired. It took just over a kilometre of marching steadily, wondering if I’d make the midnight cut-off before all the run mileage I put in this year (nearly 1,000 km, which is a lot for me) kicked in and I started to feel good again. My support crew were ready with snacks and water every four kilometres, and then at kilometre 29, I began the mountain ascent. My support runner, Rose, met me at kilometre 33 and we ran (hiked or climbed is probably a better term) the final 8.5 kilometres together, which is mandatory for safety reasons and was I ever glad to see her. The run course has 1,300 metres of climbing and two summits.
As we reached the first summit, the sun was starting to set and I realized we’d be doing the final few kilometres in the dark. We clicked on our headlamps. Fortunately, Rose is a strong trail runner and surefooted in the dark.
We crossed the finish line and met the rest of my crew at the top of Mont Megantic in just over 17 1/2 hours since I started.
UPCOMING EVENTS
The final race in this year’s Canadian Tire Road Race Series is the Kamloops Half Marathon, which takes place on July 22. There is also an 8K run, a full marathon and a 3K kids run. All are on a flat loop through the Thompson River valley. Details online at interiorrunningassociation.com.
The L’Alpe de Grand Blanc bike race from East Kelowna Hall to the top of Big White goes this Sunday at 9 a.m. A 60K ride with just a little bit of climbing. Hopefully it will not be too hot!
Last year I cramped up badly with 5K to go, I don’t want that to happen again.