2012 Va'a World Sprints

2012 World Va'a Sprint Championships

The World is coming to Calgary and 11 Kelowna paddlers will be there!
With three paddlers that have been to previous World Championships, this year's contingent is hungry not only for the experience but for success.  Kelowna Outrigger Racing Canoe Club's head coach, Leanne Stanley, leads the charge as Canada's top seed in the Open Women's V1 500m event.   She placed 4th in 2008 and raced to Bronze in 2010 and has her sights set on Gold in 2012. Leanne is also a part of the Canada 1 Open Women's V6 crew, the defending World Champions. Even a car accident less than a month prior to the opening ceremonies will not hold Leanne back from continuing the pursuit of her dream of adding an individual World Championship to her numerous team awards.

While out training in April, it dawned on Leanne that the 6 women next to her in the OC6 were keeping up during a workout.  Without talking to them about it first, she signed them up to be eligible for Team Canada. Luckily, all the ladies were onboard and jumped on the opportunity wholeheartedly.  With veteran Sandra Mowat returning to Team Canada after taking 2010 off in the stroke position and Emily Hardy as the steersperson, the crew is rounded out by experienced paddlers Iris Fink and Shannon Bliss along with Dragon Boat escapees, Kerry Willis and Kathy Montgomery.  These ladies are Open Canada 4 and Masters Canada 3.

The combination of focus, determination and hard work this group of ladies have made waves in the Canadian Outrigger Racing Association scene this year.  These ladies, along with some other club members, followed a pre-season dryland program at Okanagan Peak Performance and continue to train with coach Chris Collins and staff.  What most people don't see is that these gals have sacrificed not only personal time but family time to commit to the training and to each other. With the goal of reaching the semi-finals in the Open and Masters categories, the team is in their final couple weeks of preparation on the water with coach Leanne.

On the men's side, they are just as hungry as the women.  Jeff Fink is a contender in the Open and Masters Men's category.  He is competing in the V1 500m in both age groups as well as a member of Canada 1 V6 crews. Joey Hertz will be competing in two V6 categories as well: Masters Canada 2 and Senior Masters Canada 5. Also in the Senior Masters category is John 'Blu' Marks with Canada 3. Jeff Chandler is competing in the V6 as part of Open Men's Canada 3.

Other members of Kelowna Outrigger have been key to the training of the 11 going to Worlds. They have been filling seats, participating in training camps and assisting with coaching. Big thank you to Carmen, Al, Frances and Jim from all the Team Canada Kelowna paddlers. Also deserving a big thank you are the paddling wives and husbands that put up with the long training hours of their significant others.

New website

Hey folks, if you haven't already found it, my blog is now continued on my website. www.leannestanley.com

Check it out!

Sometimes it’s just nice to know that you’re normal

Yes I know we are all special and unique individuals but it’s comforting to know that you’re not the only one dealing with the day to day challenges that Diabetes presents. Or that the symptoms you had prior to diagnosis were overlooked by yourself and others.
I’m sitting here reading some forums for people with Diabetes and it reaffirms my belief in the power of communication amongst us. This is the reason that Connected In Motion has taken off and why I’m soo excited for DESA next weekend!
There are so many folks that are newly diagnosed looking for answers. Looking at how others are handing Diabetes. Trying to figure out if the pump is right for them. Trying to figure out WHICH pump is right for them. Everyone wants to be normal, well as normal as we can be.
The internet is a great way for people to connect but I think that what Chloe is doing with Connected in Motion is huge! For people our age (19-30somethings) to feel comfortable asking questions. No one likes to admit that they are wrong or have been doing something wrong but how are we supposed to find out what wrong is, how are we supposed to find out that there are other options out there?! All doctors/endos/nurses/dieticians are not created equal, some of us have lucked out and have great ones while others have ones that are stuck in the mindset that Diabetes care is the same as it was 20 years ago.

Not sure why I’m writing about this today. Could be because I have to see my endo next week, could be because I was with some CIMers on the weekend or that DESA is next week. Could be because I have a pile of work to do and really don’t want to do it … yeah, that’s most likely it!

BTW, find more of my writings on my official website, www.leannestanley.com

CWD 2009

Children with Diabetes Conference, Toronto 2009

Wow, what an event! The DESA conference last summer was amazing, but this was a different kind of fantastic! I could have never imagined just how wonderful this weekend was!

The families that were here this weekend are an inspiration. Listening to these kids and how they deal with Diabetes was so moving. It was weird to think that I was supposed to be there as an inspiration to them when I was the one learning and being inspired by them! I had a blast playing with the little ones and just randomly chatting to people.

"Why Not!" Pays off again!

I just got home through the snow from an amazing evening. When Hedia asked for people to ride in the 24 Hour Spin for Heart at practice a while back, I was like, sounds interesting. Then the email came and just left it in my inbox. Another email came saying she still needed people, so what the heck, why not. It's for charity, it won't cost me anything and I get to ride for however long I want. Signed up for a couple hours.

Wow, such a cool event! Live music on stage infront of a couple hundred spin bikes! The AC/DC tribute band was awesome! But the highlight for me was The Midway State! I had no idea that they were going to be there, they weren't on the published list of entertainment! Dr. Draw was pretty darn good too.

It was interesting to see how my sugars responded to the spinning. It's been a while! I only went low once but the orange slices, crackers/cheese, smoothies, bananas and eload that the volunteers were bringing around brought me back up (with a little help from a couple Dex4 tabs). Spent most of the time in the 5.6 range ... which made me feel really good on the bike! I could have finished the third hour if my replacement hadn't shown up. I ended up getting in 2 hrs 15min. Sweated buckets. Had a crazy sore butt. But wow, so much fun!

Thank goodness for a little support from my friends

We all have people that care about us; our families, our friends. But it's when you get a group of people that know nothing about eachother except that we share a common trait and within hours of meeting eachother you're cheering one another on, sharing laughs and stories that it hits you ... you're really not alone.
My last post was about my struggles since the holidays. The injuries, the food, the stress. Well, it's all still here, nagging injuries are getting a little better but it's the frame of mind that I have that makes all the difference in the world.
Last weekend with Connected In Motion's Winter Slipstream I had the opportunity to share my experiences of the past year. I also got to know a wonderful group of people that share in the same daily struggles that I do that no one else seems to really understand. We all have Type 1 Diabetes. Some were diagnosed as little kids, then there were others like me that it's just recent. But we all have the same highs and lows (literally!) in life. Sharing how we deal with them physically and emotionally brought us all close together (that and standing on a tiny platform high above the ground). Thank you to all the Connected In Motion folks for helping me get back to my self again. I really needed to hear that we all have our down days and that no matter what, it does get better.

I got back into the hardcore training this week. The major turnaround for me was on Tuesday. I wrote an email to my bestfriend that I hadn't talked to in a while about some of my issues. Felt good to get it off my chest. They responded and were very supportive. After that little chat I headed to the gym for my yoga workout. Somehow there in the dark weight room, just me and my mat ... it all came back together. I was stronger and more relaxed in that workout than I ever have been. My mind settled in on what I was doing, it worked out with itself that even though I've messed up the past 4 wks, I'm still me and I'm strong enough to get back to where I was and to be even better than that. After coming home from work that night, it was like the bad energy was gone. Positivity was rolling back in and it continues to do so even now.

This morning was the second round of fitness testing for the National Women's Dragon Boat Crew. Went into it a little sore after joining in on the killer workout I gave my boys soccer team last night but thought what the heck, let's do it. First up was situps in 1 min. The advantage this time over the first round was that I had someone holding my feet. So by the end of the minute, I had increased my score by 11 over last time. Good start. Next up was the chinups in 30 sec. I see these awesome gals just pumping them out no problems. My hands start to shake (and I know it's not from low blood sugar this time), my mind starts going through the possible reactions that people will have when I can't even do one. Then it gets close to my turn and all fears go away and I tell myself that I'm just going to give it all I have and whatever happens happens. So up I go, pull up off the bench back down to full hang and get about half way up and get stuck ... damn, try as I might my damn body doesn't want to get any higher! So, back down to the bench, try again, same thing happens so after 3 or 4 tries, my time is up. Well, at least it's overwith and time to move on.
Next was a 30 second rowing ergometer test. Now, it's been at least 3 or 4 years since I've been on an erg. I'm not happy to say it but the last time I tested on an erg, I couldn't keep my butt on the seat! I had no idea what pace to try and maintain or what good scores were. I did however realize that the girl before me was super awesome. So sit down, get my feet adjusted and here we go. With in a few pulls I hear from behind me "wow". Ok I think, let's do it baby! I managed to pull myself to the best distance of the day.
Then came the bench press, 3 rep max. I figured I'd be ambitious, why not, go big or go home right? So added 15lbs to what I knew I could do for 5 reps a few weeks ago. Got through it no problem so we added another 5lbs. Just managed to push through that ... not to shabby. New personal best for me :) Haven't lifted that much since I was on creatine back as a varsity shot putter!
Last but not least was the 300m erg test. Again, I knew the super awesome girl was infront of me so I paid attention to the pace she kept so I had some idea of what I should be around to be near the top of the pack. She pulls out an awesome number. Then I'm up. One of the girls sets my goal time for me just as jokes. Then another pipes in with another bet of what I can do ... meanwhile I'm sh*tting my pants as I'm getting set on the erg. Put my head down and just give 'er! I look up a few times to see how many metres are left. I start slip on the seat with about 60m left, I have to let up on the pulls just a little to make sure my butt stays on the seat, I don't want to waste what could be a good test and have to start again! So by the time it finally gets down to 0m left .... my time is faster than the goal my teammate set by half a second. Again, fastest of the day.
Not too shabby. For a gal that was having significant doubts about her abilities and doubting herself, today definitely helped get the confidence back up. Needless to say I was pretty useless at climbing afterwards. Packed it in after an hour and a bit. Slept most of the afternoon.

That's all for tonight folks ... gotta rest up for the 10km run in the morning.

Welcome 2009!

New year, new opportunities, new adventures!

Bring it on!

I've got some cool things on the go with Animas Canada right now.
www.animas.ca - check out "what our pumpers say"
www.childrenwithdiabetes.com - check out "focus on pumping" conference in Toronto in March.

On the training side of things ...
I've been having a rough go since I came back from the holidays. Training was going great until my shoulder started acting up on me. I'm fighting with myself about it. I want to keep training but know that if I continue at the pace I was going, that it will only get worse and I don't want to have to deal with a busted shoulder when I could be on the water. Now is the time to take care of it when the snow is still around and I have the time to do it properly.
Also having some issues with food and my body, I don't get full ... ever! I can eat all night and not be full. It's really starting to concern me. I know I don't need the food, I know that I shouldn't be hungry and that I shouldn't eat ... but I'm having a really really hard time not eating. I'm concerned because all the weight that I dropped in the fall ... back in like 3wks! Now I have 5 wks till I go to Hawaii, a bum shoulder and back to square one in terms of paddling weight!
Hoping I can get some insights and tips this weekend at the 1st Annual Winter Slipstream event put on by ConnectedInMotion. A weekend with active young professionals that also have Type 1 Diabetes. It's kinda neat because ConnectedInMotion is the result of a confersation that I had with another girl I met last November at a Diabetes Conference in TO. We talked about how there must be lots of other people our age out there that love the outdoors and being active to share strategies, tips and tricks for managing our diabetes with. Well, over the past year, Chloe has taken that idea and run with it. She's done an awesome job and I can't wait to see what she has in store for us this weekend.

Work wise ....
Wow, semester 2 starts tomorrow. Really looking forward to starting fresh again with new classes. And finally I have 3 phys eds! Figures, my last semester and I finally get 3/3! Should be interesting, we have a new phys ed guy starting with us too. I haven't even met him yet but hear he's a good guy and will be a great addition to our team. My soccer guys got back to practicing today. I'm looking forward to see how the rest of our indoor season plays out, as well as the City Championships and hopefully an Ofsaa birth!

So much coming down the pipe in the next 5 months!

Stay tuned!