Day 1:
I had flown in to Phoenix the day previous and today was to meet Bill Daniell at 0530 at my hotel to head over to the Tempe International Triathlon Race. Jill Grasky had made the arrangements for me to contact Bill which was much appreciated on my first visit to Arizona. Things started off without a hitch and we headed out to the race. I participated in the Sprint Tri as I wanted to conserve some energy for the upcoming camp. I placed third in my age group which was a nice surprise.
We headed up to Flagstaff with Bill, Matt and Lisa – I did not see much of the scenery on the way up as I was entertained by Matt and his technical descriptions about rims, tubulars vs. clinchers and how Tri Sports runs its demo wheel program. I had wished I planned ahead and placed an online order – next time!
When we arrived at the cabins in Flagstaff we were greeted by the rest of the group anxiously waiting to join us for a run. Lisa and I were still quite hot from our 104 degree race so we opted for a walk on trails while the others ran. A great filling dinner was had out - $16 – wow much more economical than in Canada, eh?
I felt very comfortable with the group and was pleased to see that varying levels were being accommodated and there was a good mix of male/female. Everyone was super nice, encouraging and the wealth of knowledge amongst the team was tremendous. Most campers were gearing up for Coeur D’Alene Ironman, Angie is doing Germany and I Canada.
The Grand Canyon trip will be my most memorable bike ride for a long time – it was spectacular and thanks to Greg, I learned a new way to repair a flat. I repect Patty for taking the lead on the bike maintenance in her household and for giving up her bike when Greg said, “no more.”
Brian’s style was much appreciated throughout the camp and I can’t say enough about Jill’s meals! Oley has sold me on Trifest next March and Lisa has offered me a place to lay my head while attending – I can’t wait to join up again!
--Joy Hollingdale
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