2004 that is me and dad in the backyard in Risca Wales after my world's in Sweden. I was pretty fast then, getting slower by the day now!
And to close, 3 filet mignons last weekend with Dad, Meredith and I. 
Long live the BBQ, even in winter!
Sunday marked my 10th anniversary of first heading to Huntsville to race. My first adventure I did the run->bike->run. My second year I jumped right into the water and since 2000 have made the annual adventure to Huntsville all but one season. Janet and Mitch and the Trisport team put an amazing event on every year and this year pulled some special tricks out of the bag to make sure the race happened. Moving the swim exit, the transition area, the swim course itself, the bike course…actually the only thing that stayed consistent was the hard, hard run! This was all courtesy of the G8 2010 summit occurring in Huntsville that has a bunch of construction at the race site.
Obviously the G8 takes precedent over the overly self-absorbed Tri-Geek club-J
Proudly emblazed in the www.race4kids.ca race top I barely made it to the swim start in time! Just getting there was an adventure with all the changes and not doing my usual swim up the canal to the start. Swim was bizarre, felt good but got dropped and came out with some friends I know well. I then made a meal of the first transition spending close to 2 minutes there and losing a minute to the same guys I finished the swim with! Off on my new Cervelo P3 I put my head down and within 5 minutes knew that feeling…heavy legs…no turnover…tired core…time for some positive self talk; “stay focused and force the pedals over, it will come around”. That turned to, “don’t worry, stay focused and aero. You will pull out some magic on the run” which then on the run turned into; “run your marathon pace for first 5K and then pick it up!”
I had a hard day but incredibly rewarding day!! I smiled and cheered and shared hugs with friends new and old. I made some surges later in the run and raced a fellow that did break me in the end. He passed me, I passed him, he caught me and took it by 5 to 10 seconds at the finish. My final 5K split was the fastest split so I take that nugget home knowing I forced him to dig deep to beat me-J I learned again that racing for fun is the best way to race. And I learned that triathlon truly is an amazing sport with a great community and amazing race organizers!
It will take Rhys Spencer more than 450 training hours covering 200+km’s of swimming, 9,000+km’s of biking, and 1200+km’s of running to train for Ironman Lake Placid and raise money for the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO).
Help him in his fight to eradicate childhood cancer by donating safely and securely here.
Rhys Spencer is a Toronto-based Ironman-distance athlete who has spent the past 10 years racing various Ironman events in North America and Europe. He is a two-time provincial age group champion, two-time amateur provincial long-course athlete of the year, Kona Ironman Championship finisher and multiple Subaru and Multisport age group winner. But his proudest accomplishments in sport have come from giving back to his community.
Over the years, Rhys has raised more than $30,000 for various charities, including: CIBC Run for the Cure; Brain Tumor Foundation’s Toronto Spring Sprint; Toronto Food Bank; and the Lymphoma and Leukemia Foundation’s Team in Training.
And now, in 2009, he is racing Ironman Lake Placid to raise funds for the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO).
Fairness for Kids with Cancer
“I have been blessed with a healthy body that can race hard for 10 hours”, says Rhys. “This is a gift and something I believe I should use to give back to my community. Everyone has a story that ties them to a cause. I have lost my mom to leukemia, my father-in-law to a brain tumour, my grandmother to bowel cancer but one of the most heart wrenching things has been watching my cousin’s 4 year old daughter battle childhood leukemia. Since the age 2 little Myleisha has undergone cancer treatment that have left her cognitively impaired. But finally, she has finished her last round of chemotherapy. While Myleisha lives in Wales, I knew that this story must be similar to lots of kids in my own back yard.”
This prompted Rhys to seek out Richard Pady and the www.race4kids.ca team who compete in various triathlon events to raise funds for POGO in honor of Richard’s daughter Elizabeth.
“What attracted me to POGO is its lack of administration fees, there are no expenses covered, no swag . Every dime I raise goes direct to this great charity,” says Rhys.
“POGO’s goal is to work towards fairness for treatment for all kids fighting cancer no matter what kind and to give all of them a fighting chance. More than 400 kids and their families will hear those words “you have cancer” this year. I know times are tight but POGO works hard to make sure that money goes a very long way!”
Facts about childhood cancer in Ontario:
- Each year in Ontario 400 kids are diagnosed with cancer
- 3,000 a year in Ontario receive cancer treatment and follow up care
- 2 Ontario kids die of cancer ever week making it the leading disease related cause of death
And, of those that survive half face significant side effects, like my little cousin Myleisha.
Taking on 226 Kilometres in 10 hours!
On July 26th, 2009 Rhys will race Ironman Lake Placid, a 3.8 km swim, 180 km bike ride, and 42.2 km run through the Adirondack Mountains to raise funds in support of POGO. He is paying the $525 US race entry fee, all travel and hotel costs, and volounteering upwards of 20 hours per week of training time to compete in the event.
Please support Rhys in his quest by donating here, media interviews are available by calling 416-712-5362 or e-mail Rhys at rhysblog@gmail.com
For more information on POGO please visit: www.pogo.ca or http://www.race4kids.ca/
