Catharine Pendrel

Well since I am now 30, that makes me a master.  No I will not be racing Masters on the bike, but I am going to try my hand at Master’s ski racing.  Why not start with the Masters Ski World Championships? They are being held next week in Vernon, BC only 120km from my home so why not? I am hoping that my fitness can make up for my lack of  skill.  Master skier I am not.  Signing up could be the best thing I have done for myself though as it is really cold here  and after spending 3 of the last 4 weeks riding my bike in warmer climes I needed some motivation to get back on the skis and an escape from freezing off my digits and face on the bike. But I am far from the only cyclist turned skier and vice versa.  I recently got to catch up with Alison Sydor over coffee and she has adopted skiing with passion.  Likewise I got a visit from old friend Ricky Federeau, not to mention  a good a** whopping on skis by him.  Watch out for this guy on the bike this summer. On the flip side Keith

I got back from California on a Friday (and aside from studying for 2 final exams in Anatomy and Physiology) I managed to find time for some great skiing and food!. Lucky me got invited to attend  the Gold Medal Plates Dinner aka the Canadian Culinary Championships and a COC CPOC fundraiser.  There I get to meet Maielle Ricker and see her  snowboard cross Gold medal, meet rising star triathlete Paula Findlay as well as Barney Bentall, Colin James  and many other great people.  One chance meeting was with one of the event’s sponsors, Michael J,  the owner of SilverStar Ski Resort.  He generously offered us skiing at his resort the next day, where Keith and I had been heading anyhow.  Thanks Michael!!!! The resort was amazing.  The weather and snow were perfect and Keith and I had an amazing day.  SilverStar has  a pretty wide range of  terrain and was the  perfect place to try out my new skis.  I’ll definitely be back to check out the Bike park. Getting to do these winter weeke

So the National mtb team camp has finished up in Oxnard, Ca and it was great.  Every year the national team keeps getting better.  The athletes, staff and general atmosphere is so positive and fun to be a part of. We did some really good rides there through the mountains.  Our most epic day had us climbing 0ver 2500 m to some beautiful views and a great descent. It was kinda crazy chasing fast guys down brand new descents, but luckily I had my BCBR partner’s wheel to follow and Geoff led me safely down to Sea Level. Another day had the park rangers out chasing after us, but apparently we were the first people to ever evade their road blocks (and completely unintentionally)  we had no idea we had crossed onto  off limit trails at any point but luckily we were on and off them quickly enough to not be a problem!  Poor Scott had to do the appeasing work as he waited by the uhaul for us and our bikes. The road rides were equally beautiful and the neighbouring town of ventura offered so

Well Duty calls so I am off to California for training.  Amanda, Fudge and I head to the beach for some shockingly cold ocean time. We’ve done two road rides, one with the Canadian Women’s road team and two fun mtb days with plenty more to come. Keith, on the other hand got some new powder skis and headed to Revelstoke to visit his family for the weekend and try out the skis.

1 square of  good Dark Chocolate (75% or greater) has the equivalent amount of antioxidants as 5 cups  of fruit.  Sure not the same nutrient or fibre content, but that’s why there’s fondue. From the mouth of a sports nutritionist.  Thanks Susan!