One of the kids that in I coach in XC skiing is getting into triathlons. She is a pretty keen athlete and worked hard all winter and went from nothing to getting on a few podiums this year. She did a few Kids of Steel tris last year and is keen to train and race them this year. So I sent Simon a short email asking him if he could drop a note to the girl’s mom’s account wishing her good luck on her racing and training.
So Simon follows through…and the girl, all of 14 years old gets a “pump up email” from an Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist and I can just imagine how motivated she is to go out right now.
Absolutely. With all the stress going on at work, he made my day by doing this (in addition to the kid’s). They say it takes a village to raise a child and Simon offered to be part of that village.
The cool thing is that unlike the spoiled millionaire bad boys in the big 4 sports, pros in our sport make themselves very accessible and give a lot back to the community. This is just one example. I think we are priviledged to be part of this. It’s like these guys are the rockstars of our sport, but they get off the stage, and mingle with the crowds like regular guys and then they even invite us backstage and let us in on group rides
I was there that day. You could tell he was a genuinely nice guy seeing the way he was chatting with your son. He was also extremely nice (and patient) with the seemingly endless line of folks getting pictures. He was very generous with his medals also. He was hanging them on anyone…
But his bike position will still not be ST approved no matter how fast he goes. Wonder if Simon shows up with the P4 or rides around with a parachute dragging behind his Soloist and still kicks everyone’s butt
Scott, I have my bike at work and plan to ride around March Road and Huntmar after work. If you want to be seen with a guy riding powercranks, feel free to join in…really nice to be back riding outdoors after riding every day in March on the rollers and making friends with pain. Some days, I felt like I was riding in Simon’s steam room, the only difference is that there is no picture of Javier Gomez in my workout space
Dev, I just removed my Powercranks from the road bike and will be putting them on an old beater bike for dedicated indoor use. My taint cannot handle bumps with Powercranks - feels like someone is taking a hammer and smacking my nuts. I can’t make it for a ride at the end of the day, but am planning on taking my road bike outside tomorrow afternoon if you are interested. I will probably just be hitting some of the old routes north of March Road - first outdoor ride of the year. I have never biked down Huntmar, but it would be a pretty good road to do some short but steep hill repeats on.
Scott, tomorrow, a group of us will be heading up Huntmar over to March, Dunrobin, 5th line and hill repeats on Thomas Dolan. We should be out around 9 am starting from All Saints High School, so if you decide to head out early, you can latch on :-). Anyone else in the area reading is more than welcome.
As for Eganski stalking Mr. Whitfield, I believe he is taken…better to go after Ms. Desfick anyway. How is your back anyway? Back to St. Croix?
That is exactly where I am planning on going tomorrow. Thomas Dolan is a nice road with little traffic - just be sure to bring along a bike pump for beating off that psycho dog that lives on the farm halfway up the hill between Dunrobin and 5th line. Unfortunately I can’t make it in the morning due to time trials at swim practice.
That dog stays on the gravel…I’ve done a zillion climbs up that hill and he never leaves the shoulder…just don’t ride too close to the shoulder. We’ll soften the dog up for ya…one trick is to ride with a group and not be the slowest rider! That dog is famous. He bit my colleague’s daughter when she was mountain biking in the area!
Equally as approachable and just as nice a guy (wonder why Simon picked him for the Olympic team eh?) is Colin Jenkins. Got to take a first aid course with him a few years back and you’d never know he was an elite athlete. Caught up with him at the City Kids Marathon this fall and he was more than willing to talk to anyone and everyone about his experience. You could tell his enthusiasm was just as real as that of Simon. We are pretty lucky to have such awesome people representing our country and our sport.
I love Simon. My man-crush on that guy is downright embarrassing. He’s my #1 pick as a pro triathlete that I’d like to meet.
I missed camp this year due to the shoulder thing and pAulo made sure to IM me to let me know that they were riding w/ Simon & the gang the next day. BASTARDS!!!
Living in Kingston I have met Simon a couple of times. His commitment to getting youth active can not be appreciated enough. My youngest got a chance to hold his gold medal and has participated in triathlons since. I have had the good fortune to spend (volunteering) time with his mother and knowing her I understand why Simon is such a great person.
He is one of the best ambassadors we could hope for.
Rick
Simon came to speak in Guelph brought in by the GTC. He answered questions after speaking and made a point of answering the questions of kids before the adults. He’s a class act and definitely a great role model for any kid (or adult) in any sport.
