RISING STARS AND FALLING RECORDS RING IN THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON!

TEAM IL PELOTON BRILLIANTLY EXECUTES A 1-2 FINISH IN EXCITING BYTOWN MARATHON EVENT!

On January 7-8, the Brewer Park Oval in Ottawa hosted the Bytown marathon weekend. The 25K took place on Saturday and the Il Peloton team was there. Constant had some equipment trouble and missed the start line and the first four and a half laps of the race, putting him out of contention for the win and forcing him to skate on his own. Ottawa's Stephane Tremblay (formerly of Il Peloton) took advantage of Constant's position and went out on an early break from the pack. He caught Constant before the pack could react. The pack was not reacting at all. When Sergio, who was far back, finally accelerated out of it, Stephane had half a lap on the pack. Had Constant not had a teammate in the pack, Stephane might have made his break for good. But without anyone to work with, Stephane tired eventually and Sergio was able to catch him. As a result of these efforts and a higher pace, the trio had lapped the pack. With 14 laps to go, and when the three were part of a peloton, Sergio played the Stephane's move against him and went out ahead about 150m ahead before Stephane went after him. Stephane caught Rocherster speed skater Nathan Fineberg who was skating faster than the peloton but a lap behind the top two. Together, they eventually chased down Sergio's break but again Constant was in their group and moved to the front to protect his teammate and prevent a counterattack. Sergio recovered in the pack, and took off for good in the last lap. Once Sergio safely crossed the line in 1st place, Constant opened up and caught the peloton in the final curve. His speed was so impressive that he passed all of them, except Nathan Fineberg, for a 4th place finish. Despite his debilitating start, this was Constant's best performance in the season. A very impressive performance from Stephane as well who made for a formidable adversary.

The 40K was not as exciting but it was an great example of refined teamwork. The temperature was very cold and the pace was initially quite slow. 13 laps into the race, Constant took off in a burst of acceleration that took the pack by surprise. There was not enough appetite at the front of the large pack to chase, and Sergio was certainly not interested in doing anything about it, so Constant quickly lapped the pack. Il Peloton's lock on first place was secured. About 60 laps into the race, it was Sergio's turn to repeat the same move. Some of the bigger guns were out, and it took him a little longer, but he too caught the peloton and Team Il Peloton was firmly in control of the podium. Ottawa's Adrian Loewen made a very valiant effort to go out on his own break, and Constant and Sergio let him get out about 150m from the peloton before they went out and chased him down. It is just so much easier to do that with a partner. In the end, it was Sergio and Constant with a lap on Adrian and 4 laps on the peloton. Sergio and Constant had a friendly sprint down the finish line for the crowd, and Sergio did not dispute Constant's claimto a 1st place finish. In addition to Adrian Loewen's great performance we want to recognize the talent of Caleb Hovey, who at 14 years old held his own in the peloton and finished an impressive 4th.

In a previous newsletter, we told you about Marc-Olivier Lemay, our multi-talented skating sensation from Point-Aux-Trembles, near Montreal. Marc-Olivier is a champion short-track skater with a promising future and dreams of Olympic glory. Like many of the new generation of short-trackers, Marc-Olivier is also an inline skater and demonstrated his dominance in a number of inline events in 2011 including the 24 Hour Rolller Montreal Inline Marathon.

On December 17-18, Marc-Olivier also competed in the Long Track Hybrid Competition at Ste. Foy.

Marc-Olivier won his 300m and 3000m mass start races, and his 500m and 1000m Olympic style. Not only were his 500m and 1000m times faster than anyone else in the competition regardless of category, but he set a NEW CANADIAN RECORD for his age category in the 1000m.

It seems that no matter what he does, long blades or inline wheels, long distance or sprint, Marc-Olivier excels in his racing.

You can read more about Marco's record, here, in french. He was also mentioned in the news.

Marc-Olivier will represent Quebec at the Canadian Long Track Championship in February in Fort St. John, B.C. Join us in wishing him the best of luck.

NEXT EVENT:

PORTLAND SKATE THE LAKE JANUARY 29, 2011

Come out to the next event in the Marathon Skating International Series on a 1km natural ice oval. The organizers have been working hard and the ice is in great shape, apparently the best it has ever been. We will be on hand to skate, announce and cheer.

MSI is now offering Nordic rental skates for folks who want to get a feel for long blades without making a steep initial investment.

SKATE WITH SERGIO ON THE RIDEAU CANAL

EVERY FRIDAY AND SUNDAY

If you are in the Ottawa area, come and "Skate with Sergio". Weather permitting, we will lead a skate along the Rideau Canal Friday evening at 7pm and Sunday morning at 8am. The Friday night skate is a social skate in a single pack, Sunday is endurance. Contact us for more information.

176 Concord Street South, Ottawa, Ontario, K1S 0Z6 (613) 261-6890

During our busy season, we accomodate fittings and appointments to suit. Our hours are long, but they are irregular, as we travel to attend races and sometimes we just need to go out for a skate. Please call ahead before dropping by.