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Family Gal: Fitspeek 185 with Angela Froese.

Angela Froese from Chilliwack is a talented juggler. Not only does she juggle training for swimming, biking, and running, just like a lot of tri-moms out there, she juggles that with the demands of a career, and family life.

And as we all know, doing that juggling act involves compromises. Angela however, manages to make it all work through superhuman organizational skills and gritty determination. 5:15 AM alarms are just business as usual for this mother, physiotherapist, and podium-topping triathlete.

Off the race course, Angela is an amiable person to be around, with a great sense of humour but on the race course, this Chilliwack athlete is all business. Laser focused and steel-willed racing is Angela’s modus operandi and it has served her well. In the podcast this week, we chat about Angela’s roots in triathlon and some of her big performances in the sport. We also get Angela’s take on the women’s only race in Kona and of course…the animal question. Spend 30 minutes with the social and multi-faceted Angela by pressing play below.

This week’s feature bike is the RP, which is the A2 aero road bike. Click on the bike below to learn more about it.

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Fitspeek 184: Luke Tasker

In hindsight, could the local triathlon scene for 2023 be called the Year of the Rookie?

From Victoria, Fitspeek guest and Triathlon Magazine Canada colleague Mel McQuaid has just done her first-ever Ironman World Championships (just like Fitspeek host, Kevin Heinze did).

In Victoria, Mitchell Kirby rocked + shocked his competition at the Ironman 70.3.

Just last month a triathlon newbie WON the Cultus Lake Half-Iron.

If you have never heard of Luker Tasker before, you can be forgiven. That’s because this guy, originally from England, had never done a triathlon before.

That’s changed and now Canada has a rising new star at the Half-Ironman distance. A 4:10 debut with a lot of mistakes hints at Tasker’s athletic potential. Before you hate on Luke because of, well, a 4:10, you gotta know that he paid his dues as a lad in the UK swimming 5-6 times a week and competing at a high level in modern pentathlon.

Hear Luke’s story from ski-bum to Vancouver firefighter + champion triathlete by pressing play below.

Tested in the tunnel, aero + affordable, and on-course at the world championships, the SP by A2 bikes is your ticket to a faster bike split. Check out their range of build options by clicking on the bike above.

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A Stranger in a Strange Land. Fitspeek 183 – Hydrosloth Goes to IM World Championships. Guest Interviewers Call BS!

This week on the show the tables are turned as Fitspeek alumni Leigh-Ann Parker, Kevin Watt, + Dr. E, interview host Kevin Heinze, about his experiences at the Ironman World Championships, in Nice, France.

A major part of the interview is finding out how he qualified for France because being a hydrosloth and giving up 10 minutes to his age group competition in the water, meant that time had to be made up…somewhere! Find out what sacrifices were made in the heat of the battle when he found out that he was in 3rd place in his age group.

Here’s the bike I used to get to Nice and tackle the course in France. It’s the SP by A Squared. Click on it to browse and configure your dream machine. Thanks to Mark Mattecheck at A2 for “Borris.”

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Fitspeek 182: Penticton roundtable

Penticton has long been known as one of Canada’s multisport capitals and it’s not just because of the geography. The city has a tireless army of volunteers that get behind everything that a race organizer could want whether that’s an ultra swim, gravel race, fondo, or triathlon.

In addition to the volunteers, Penticton is home to numerous multisport personalities. In this week’s show, we have a chat with locals Steve King, Jen Annett, and Jeff Symonds. They all played a major role in the latest Peach Classic Triathlon. We talk about that, as well as what’s been going on in their non-tri-lives. Hear about it now by pressing play below.

Aero + affordable, based in Oregon,A2 has your next aero road bike available now. Click on the red RP above to find out just how easy building your dream machine is.

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Like a Rolling Stone. Fitspeek 181 – reintroducing Simon Whitfield

This week on the show we have another person originally from Kingston, Ontario. And unlike Mitchell Kirby, this guy has kinda already done everything there is to do in triathlon.

There was this moment (and the paycheque), there was that Olympic gold medal back in 2000, and there was that quarter-century-long career in swim bike run.

But Whitfield isn’t a WAS guy, he’s more of an IS guy, and as you’ll find out in the show, more of a WHAT’S NEXT guy. And while the latter is still being written, the IS consists of salt water and fresh air.

It seems to me sunrises give Simon more pleasure than sunsets but when you ARE a triathlon legend there’s gotta be some baggage you take along with you for the rest of your life’s journey. We deal with that stuff in the interview. We also talk about how ex-Olympians FEED themselves (or more importantly to Simon, sleep well)

Finally, in the show Simon goes Tri-Yoda and offers up insightful advice for today’s pro-triathletes and age-groupers. The advice involves what to do with your cell phone and what to bring to the pool, the next time you go. Hear the show now, by pressing that play button below.

It’s aero, it’s adjustable, it’s available. It’s the SP, the black missile disguised as a tri-bike by A-Squared. To ride it is to love it. Take it from one who knows! Click on the bike to check for available builds and prices.

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Yeah, I guess I won. Fitspeek 180 – introducing Mitchell Kirby

For most people, success in triathlon, especially at longer distances, is the result of toiling + training for years, essentially, “paying your dues.”

That doesn’t seem to be the case for Kingston’s Mitchell Kirby. He’s been in the sport as an adult for less than a year and already he has had some eye-opening results, including a top 5 finish overall at the Victoria 70.3 race back in the spring. Then, after he borrowed some race wheels from a family friend, he did even better at the Muskoka 70.3. He won the race, even though he had made some big-time rookie mistakes in the swim.

So, how is a tri-newby with a lot to learn able to crush his competition? As it turns out Kirby is an experienced runner, competing for Queen’s University in cross-country for years. I think that his “engine” is just about as big as his current learning curve in triathlon.

In the podcast, we find out more about his athletic back, his takeaways from his recent races, and his future plans in endurance sports. Join us now for 40 minutes with a bright new star on the Canadian triathlon landscape.

Now available in new colours, the SP is the tri-bike by A Squared. It’s aero, it’s affordable, it’s available now. Crush your competition, not your bank account. Click on the bike for more details.

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Fitspeek 179: Mark Klassen

In this week’s show, we ditch the goggles and aerobars and focus on running shoes, or more accurately, a guy who wears running shoes – in a very big way.

Mission’s Mark Klassen used to run cross country while in school but life changed and he stopped running. Then, about 8 years ago, he and a friend decided to take up running again. Without any “serious training,” as he puts it, he reeled off a sub-35-minute Sun Run.

Now that he knows how to train his times have been dropping, as have the jaws of his competitors. He’s gone from being a local fast guy to one of the fastest in the province at most distances of running races – that is except for the marathon!

In this week’s show, we go deep with Mark and find out why he is so fast, get his not-so-secret training secrets, and find out what is on the running horizon for this humble + inspirational athlete.

What you are looking at is the aero road bike the RP. It’s made by A Squared Bikes out of Lake Oswego, Oregon. Think of it as your Swiss Army Knife with wheels.

As is, it is ready for road races, fondos, crits, and coffee rides with your buddies. Slap a pair of aerobars on it and it becomes a speedy triathlon bike. It’s plenty adjustable for you to get your position dialed in just right to keep you comfortable and your competition behind you. Click on the bike for more details.

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Fitspeek 178: The collaboration episode

In a first for both of us, fellow podcaster Larry Ryan and I do a joint program. Fitspeek listeners will be introduced to one of the most important folks in the Canadian ultra-triathlon community.

Larry and I ask each other how we became interested in endurance sports, how we became podcasters, and how all roads seem to lead to this guy!

Near the end of the podcast, Larry announces some very exciting news for ultra-distance athletes from Canada and the rest of the world. A new ultra-distance race event!

Listeners will be given an opportunity to get to the front of the registration line for the new 515! That can be you! Hear the details and the stories behind the details by pressing play right here.

Tested in the tunnel and on the race course, the SP by A2 bikes delivers! It’s aero. It’s affordable. It’s available! Click on the bike to read more about your next tri or aero road bike.

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The Purple Tiger gets Unbound: Fitspeek 177 with Rach McBride

Time has been kind to Vancouver’s Rach McBride.

Not only did Rach emerge from the Covid-Era heathier + wiser, 2022 turned out to be a most amazing year.

Though we are only half done, 2023 has been an exceptional year for McBride as well, with an exciting finish to the Half Ironman distance race in St. George. You can see some heart-palpitating numbers here.

Numbers can be pretty boring stuff on a podcast, so I get Rach to tell the story behind the numbers.

As you can imagine, there was an abundance of drama playing out during the last few miles of the run at the North American Championships.

So what’s with the “Unbound” part of the title of this podcast? As it turns out Unbound is one of North America’s premier gravel races. Rach tells the story of a purple tiger (not a cowardly lion) and the Kansas mud and muck, exciting listening for sure! Hear it now by pressing play below.

If you are an all-rounder, who enjoys competing in triathlons as well as fondos and road races, the RP is your Swiss Army Knife of bicycles.

Tackle the mid-week roadie ride, then slap on a pair of clip-on aerobars to race triathlon on Sunday. The RP does it all, and at a price you can afford.

Use our Fitspeek 22 code to save an extra $200.00 on your next purchase.

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Fitspeek 176: The local roundtable with Thomas, Roy, Mikey, + Dr. E

4 guests with 1 thing in common – all are Ironman finishers! It’s been a long time since we’ve had so many folks in the studio + it’s always a blast when we do.

This week on the show Roy McBeth gives us his take on all of the big news in pro cycling + triathlon and Mikey Ross updates us on what is happening this summer for the Abbotsford Triathlon Club.

Making his Fitspeek debut is local triathlete and adventure-seeker Thomas Hekl.

We also do a recap of some of our guest’s recent racing experiences, and to end off the program, we delve into their inner fears and find out what still scares them when it comes to racing. 45 minutes of local news, insights, + laughs is yours with the press of the button below.

Tested in the wind tunnel, on the Matsqui Flats, + on the Ironman Canada Bike Course, the SP bike is uber aero + adjustable. It checks in at under $3,000, so you can add some aero wheels and kick some serious butt at your next time trial or triathlon. Click on the bike to customize your dream ride today!