WWF-Canada CN Tower Climb

Another successful CN Tower Climb, the third one for me. An unusual event, but in my mind, a good test of my current fitness against previous years times. Not only did I climb this year, but also helped out as a volunteer on both the team and public climb days. To be honest, there is nothing great about the climb itself - there are no views (except at the finish !), just 144 flights of monotonous stairs, and when I did get to the top, I spent the next 24 hrs coughing from the bad air I had inhaled on the way up. This year I also climbed as part of a WWF volunteer team, which added a great deal to the enjoyment. The event though is a major fund raiser for WWF-Canada, and this year 6, 420 climbers raised over $ 1.2 million for the organisation.

Dr. Jane Goodall - 50 years of Chimps and Change

On Friday, what a privelege for Heather and I to listen to a lecture by Dr. Jane Goodall at the University of Toronto. Inspirational, and even emotional, to hear of the challenges and successes of the chimpanzee studies in Gombe National Park, Tanzania, and beyond. I guess what was most striking to us, is that with all her awards and worldwide recognition, the message was straight forward and direct, and given with such humility.

Pack of Wild Eastern Wolves in Algonquin Provincial Park - February 18, 2010

Being a member of the The Friends of Algonquin Park, and visiting regularly, the following video was of great interest. Hear and read so much about the wolves, but they are so rarely seen !

http://www.youtube.com/user/FOAPAlgonquinPark#p/a/u/0/8g-mJHcH0_U

Death Race Training

Since the beginning of January, I have just completed 13 weeks of training for the race, approx. 900 km (A 100 mile race training schedule). The last few weeks have been tough, struggling with niggling injuries that just never go away. Also completed my third Hamilton Around the Bay race on the 28 Mar - a great time of year for the 30 km race, and a good test of fitness coming out of winter. Last week, on my recovery week, I stuck to walking to try and give my body a chance to get through the strains. Not lost effort, as there will be a lot of walking during the race. The next three weeks will be a real test, with a target of 96 km per week. The weather in Toronto though has warmed up a lot, and it is making for some great clear days for running. The race facebook page has regular updates from other competitors, but I am unsure of the pro's and cons of reading the updates. It is encouraging to read the updates, but in other ways concerning to follow the amount of training others are getting in. I honestly don't believe I can be doing more than I am - the body just will not adjust that fast !

WWF CN Tower Climb 2010

Under two weeks to go until the annual World Wildlife Fund CN Tower climb - the team challenge on Thu April 15, and the public climb on Sat April 17. Since our six month trip in 2008 to South America, it has been a focus on work to pay the bills and increase the savings. Our dream would be to travel more, and to certainly get out into the great outdoors more often. In the meantime my goal is to have a balance between work and the rest of life, hence a big focus this year for me to get more involved in Rotary projects, course manager for the 5peaks Ontario trail racing series, and also I have become part of the in-house volunteer team at WWF. The CN Tower climb week will be busy, helping out as a volunteer on both the Thu and Sat, and to climb as part of a volunteer team in the team challenge. Saturdays shift starts at 03h00 ! All for a great cause, and the involvement is just so rewarding contributing towards something real. The dream would be to work full-time in conservation related work, but for now I have to accept that engineering project manager is where the money comes from.