Take Off, Hoser

Between those words, 'Back Bacon' and 'eh' is the only Canadian I speak. And, it looks like I'll need to study up on it as Steve and I have decided to head to the Maritimes in the Great White North for our fall marathon. Right now, we are aiming for the Prince Edward Island marathon on October 18 with the Valley Harvest marathon in Nova Scotia on October 11 as our backup plan. Backup plan? Yes, in case something comes up for either one of us and we can't make the weekend of October 18. October 11 is close enough that we can adjust our training schedules.

I've been to Canada probably a dozen times or so. Mostly in Montreal or Toronto. (I went to Expo '67 in Montreal as a small child.) This, however, will be my first time going to the Maritimes. My wife and I have talked about going but never had the opportunity to do so. I think our discussions were around which island to visit and we were afraid of picking the 'wrong island' to go for a vacation. As I stated before, the marathon I picked this year was to a place that I wouldn't be going otherwise. Parts of Steve's family is from that area so it's a perfect choice for both of us.

Back to speaking Canadian. I know, I know, Canadians speak French and English. And, I'm sure Canadians are tired of hearing everyone saying 'eh' to them. But, in the late 1970's/early 1980's, there was a late night show called SCTV, which was a parody of independent television. One of the sketches they did was a panel show hosted by Bob and Doug McKenzie which played up (purposely) to Canadian sterotypes. Bob was played by Rick Moranis and Doug was played by Dave Thomas. (Here is a Wikepedia entry describing the show http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_and_Doug_McKenzie)

At the time, it was very popular and the characters wound up with albums, records, and a movie. Recently, I read a list of the 100 most popular characters in television history and they were left off the list. (That's why I rarely pay attention to these lists because they are tilted to recent history. ) I've included a YouTube clip of the characters. If you do not remember them growing up, you will probably not think its funny. If you remember staying up late to watch SCTV (which was almost as popular as Saturday Night Live), then you will appreciate the sense of humor. This was my introduction to Canadian culture.

In any case, Steve and I agreed we will make our final decision for the trip when we meet up at Falmouth, the weekend of August 8-9.

(Notes: I think I'm starting to get the hang of my recent swimming lessons. At least the part where you are 'rolling' your body with every stroke. I started to do that in practice and have found my shoulders are not so tired after the session. I also feel that I'm getting to the other side of the pool a lot quicker. Or at least, it feels like I'm getting there a lot quicker. I'm scheduled to do an open water session at Lake Nockimixon on June 21 which will be the real test of whether I do what I was taught or what comes naturally for me. My biking and running are going well, so far.
Also, I did purchase my new toy. Instead of the Sony camera, I decided to go with the Canon Powershot SD series camera. I'm still learning the features but better quality videos of where I run should be coming soon.)