Less is not always better than more! Extra water in a fast flowing James River as a result of torrential rains from two recent storms meant it was too dangerous for the swim segment of the Xterra East Championships. So the race turned into a duathlon – short run, regular bike, regular run. I’m no stranger to duathlons, being a second place finisher in the world championships at the age of 19. But having no swim at an Xterra champs was a little discombobulating!

Not that it mattered in the end as it was another victory, making it three for three in Xterra Championships in 2013. I led for most of the first of two laps on the technical bike course before Shonny Vanlandingham zipped on by and I just tried to keep her close for lap two.

I am really happy how I have managed to elevate my mountain bike skills in the past 18 months. Lots of trail riding in training in almost perfect year-round San Diego weather is the key.

I cruised passed Shonny a mile or so into the run, posting an average run speed around 6.3 minutes per mile for most of the race, and winning by a couple of minutes. I felt really good and it was a great confidence builder on a course I have never conquered before mainly because of the technical bike section.

While that may be three in a row in 2013, I would now like to race in a warm, dry and dusty environment please, after back-to-back championships – Alabama and Richmond – that had rainy and slippery conditions! The weather gods please take note!

That was interesting! I grew up trail running the hills of Scotland in the rain and wind, but back then I wasn’t into mountain biking. So riding in the rain and slippery conditions of Xterra Southeast Championships in Pelham was something I was not used to.

I settled into a good place on the mountain bike despite the weather, jockeying for the lead. I was happy to focus on safety rather than speed and just wanted to make it through to my go-to discipline – the run – in one piece! Even so, I fell off the bike four times! The roots were like ice! If you didn’t go over them at the right angle you came off. By the end, I was getting pretty proficient at crashing, although I’ve since been told that wasn’t the point of the bike leg!

Never felt happier to get out onto the run in a race! And without injury from the ride! Took the lead soon into the run and cruised to a good time all things considered.

Ironically, a couple of days later I was out on a training ride and climbing Palomar Mountain’s 5,000 feet Nate Harrison trail in San Diego County in 100-degree heat thinking a bit of Alabama rain would go down nicely right about now!

This was long! Fifty miles long! Fortunately, it was also fruitful. Chalk up another good win.

The longer the race, the more draining it is mentally. Especially a mountain bike race where you have to concentrate the whole time or you’ll end up over the handlebars.

Mountain biking is a proverbial double-edged sword. It’s a fantastic sport and in a race like the Whiskey 50 there is something new around every corner and over every climb, so no seemingly endless, familiar miles on roads like in an a 70.3.

But on the flip side there is no zoning out like on the road, where you can just get settle down and become immersed in your steady breathing and your cycling rhythms. Sure, you can settle into a rhythm mountain biking, but you can never zone out! The margin for error is way less off-road. In mountain biking you have to stay focused or you’ll come off the bike, so it is more mentally taxing.

But it can also be way more fun!

Woohoo! The first edition of The Paterson Press is finally complete! Take a look and let us know if you’d like to be added to my mailing list. Just send my business manager Leigh-Ann a quick note with your contact info and she’ll get that taken care of. She’s at Leighann@lesleypaterson.com. Thanks for all your support!

Click here: The Paterson Press

Cheers,

Lesley Paterson

I had a fantastic race at the Xterra West Championships in Las Vegas. It was a lot of fun! I finished fourth OVERALL, which was really cool, and 13 minutes ahead of the second placed female. I felt amazing and truly unstoppable. Training had gone so well and I was excited to race everyone.

After a solid swim, I felt really strong and powerful on the bike. I was excited to be around the pro men on the trails and keeping up. Then an even better feeling was when I started passing them! I’m comfortable with loose rocky descents, living in San Diego and training on the trails there, so that part of the course was easy!

Historically my run has always been my true strength, although now I tend to be the fastest on the bike as well. On the run, I just felt strong and powerful and was surprised that I was catching and passing even more of the pro-men. I enjoyed just working hard and being in control!

I came into the California Ironman 70.3 at Oceanside as relaxed as possible, not thinking about how I would do and determined to just race and have fun in what is essentially my local San Diego 70.3 race. Already coming off race success off-road to start this season in both Xterra and mountain biking I was just keen to see how that would transfer to the road. As it turns out, it transferred brilliantly.

After being happy with my swim and staying within closing distance of a breakaway front five on the bike, I then posted the best run time ever for a female at Oceanside with 1 hour 16 minutes 21 seconds, picking off top pros to gain a podium slot with third place. My run time was about a minute better than the next best time on the course and everything felt fluid and moved easily. I was jazzed at such a great run performance and that the day was such a fun one as it always is at Oceanside.

So this was an interesting day! I started off with a training run before heading to Bonelli Park in San Dimas for round one of the Cannondale Triple Crown, which was the second stop on USA Cycling’s Pro XCT series.

Not having done any pro mountain bike races before, I didn’t even have a ranking so had to start at the back of the field! Then I missed a pedal at the start and dropped even further back and thought, “Ugh, this is going to be a long day!” With nothing to lose, I just hammered it!

Long story short, I overtook all the Olympians and pros in the field to cruise to a hard fought victory – surprising everyone, but mostly myself! As a result, I’ve now put more pro mountain bike races on the schedule for 2013!

Photo is of my best bud Tammy at the finish; obviously neither of us can quite believe what just happened!

Xterra Triathlon World Champion Lesley Paterson Wins “Off-Road Athlete of the Year” Award

Los Angeles – Off-road triathlon phenom Lesley Paterson has capped off a sensational 2012 season by winning the Off-Road Athlete of the Year, which was presented to her at the Endurance Live Sports Awards Gala on February 23 at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. The red carpet event is seen as the Oscars for endurance athletes, with previous award winners including Chrissie Wellington, Craig Alexander and Meb Keflezighi.

Three-time off-road triathlon world champion, and current Xterra world champion, Lesley Paterson, ended a year of domination by repeating as Xterra World Champion in Maui in October 2012. She began 2012 by winning the ITU cross world championship, and in between those world championship book-ends, won both the Xterra USA National championships in addition to the season-long Xterra Pro Series.

“This award caps an incredible year for me,” says Paterson. “I was able to remain injury free for the season, for the most part, which was huge. I just went from strength to strength, both mentally and physically. My confidence grew and, as a result, I eventually stopped over-thinking my races and just went out to enjoy myself.”

Paterson, historically the fastest runner on the Xterra racing world circuit, also demonstrated how far her mountain biking has come in the past two years by posting the fastest bike leg at the Xterra world championships on Maui in October to win her second consecutive crown, along with the fastest run leg.

Paterson is no stranger to triathlon, having been a Scottish and British international since she was 15 years of age and winning a silver medal at the Duathlon Junior World Championships in 2000. With so many years spent in the sport, Paterson is the first to acknowledge how much she owes to supporters and what she refers to as “Team Paterson.”

Says Paterson, “I couldn’t have done what I did this past season without the incredible support I get from my husband, family, friends, fans and sponsors. My parents gave me fantastic support when I was young, driving me all over to races and camps. That same dedicated support has continued from so many people over the years.”

After taking a break from triathlon for a couple of years in the mid-2000s, she rediscovered her love of the sport with a vengeance, steadily improving on her fitness and global results both on and off the road every year since, culminating in 2012’s off-road triathlon dominance.

For Paterson, at this point in her incredibly successful triathlon career, it is all about giving back to the sport by encouraging young people to try it. “It is really important to now give back to the sport after it has done so much for me,” she says. “Triathlon has helped me to grow as a person and as an athlete and I want to take that message out to youngsters that are struggling to find their way in the world.”

Paterson is planning a full schedule of Xterra races again in 2013, continuing to pursue her great love of both the outdoors and off-road triathlons.

OC Tri Club Talk

As many of you know, one of the things I love to do is talk!

So any time I get the chance to impart my hard-won triathlon knowledge and experiences to others, I’m up for it. Which is exactly what I recently did with the Orange County Triathlon Club!

I had a great time nattering away for 45 minutes to a good crowd of about 120 or so.

I also managed to take some video of myself engaged in the oratory arts.

Here are links to three of the video segments. More to follow.

OC Tri Club – MTB vs Road Training Time

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/48690934/OC%20Tri%20Club%20-%20MTB%20vs%20Road%20Training%20Time.wmv

OC Tri Club – Xterra vs Road Triathlons

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/48690934/OC%20Tri%20Club%20-%20Xterra%20vs%20Road%20Triathlons.wmv

OC Tri Club – Exercises – Running off the Bike

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/48690934/OC%20Tri%20Club%20-%20Exercises%20-%20Running%20off%20the%20Bike.wmv

Enjoy :-O

Mmmm…chocolate! Anyone that knows me knows about my infatuation with chocolate and that the one thing you must never do is raid my personal chocolate stash in the fridge door! That first bite almost feels like ecstasy. I know for me it can change my whole mood around – from a bad day to a good day – in that one initial, irresistibly inviting bite!

That said, for obvious reasons, the ready-made chocolate consuming excuse of Christmas and the holidays are both a dream and a disaster at the same time!

The big challenge for me post-holidays – and let’s be honest I don’t think I’m alone here! – is how to gradually reduce the chocolate intake and substitute it with healthier treats? However, the one thing not to do is deprive yourself of snacks or food. If your body is telling you it wants something to eat you should satisfy that demand, but just not with sugary confectionary!

That said, in chocolate’s defense though, it’s not all bad. Some studies over the years show it could actually improve the heart by improving blood flow and reducing cholesterol, and that it can even lower blood pressure. Yeah, I know, the impassioned defense of the desperate! But come on, it’s chocolate!

The most obvious place to start is to replace the chocolate and less healthy indulgences with fruit and veggy snacks. They are mostly cheap and can taste great. So instead of sultry, smooth chocolate caramel squares…have a carrot stick. Ugh! I know it sucks in comparison, but get used to it buddy. It was your choice to take a step into the confectionery dark side over the holidays, so now you have to pay the reaper and right the wrong! You fell off the healthy snack horse, so now you have to get back on it.

If fruit and veggies don’t cut the proverbial mustard then try nuts, seeds and trail mixes. They are all high in protein, vitamins and fiber, as well as some of the good fats, which help you feel like you’ve eaten something more substantial and fill you up.

I find yogurt and bananas, either separately or together, as well as any fruit with a yogurt, can be a fulfilling and healthy snack as well. There’s a reason the Greek yogurt industry in the United States has exploded into a multi-billion dollar annual industry! They taste great, especially the 2% fat varieties, although the non-fat types can sometimes hold their own pretty well.

As always though when opting for more healthy snacks and food like veggies and fruit – which invariably carry a much-reduced calorie-count – make sure you have enough calories in a day to ensure optimum training performance the next.

Above all, remember there is no “me” in chocolate…although there is in “chocolate caramel” but that’s another story…

A New Off-Road Camp coming to San Diego….NEXT weekend: Jan 11/12th/13th 2013. Only a few spots left!

Ever wanted to give Xterra a shot? Now’s your chance to try! Go to www.campbravedirt.com