First of all congratulations for the start of your season. You started your season with a disappointing 25th place at 70.3 St-George but you had a great 2nd place at Mont-Tremblant against a strong field and you had your first Pro win at Challenge St-Andrews. You also recently finished 6th at 70.3 Timberman. Are you happy with the start of your season?
I am please with the year so far. I am always looking for the win. But I have been moving in the right direction and I look forward to seeing what I can do with the rest of the year.
picture from Asdeporte
What are you goals for 70.3 World?
My goals for 70.3 world this year is to place in the top 10. I will be aiming to be less than 90sec down from the leaders out of the water and work my way up from there. I also hope to have a personal best time in the run portion.
Did you think you would be racing 70.3 Worlds only in your second year racing 70.3s?
I was a little surprised when I made it in. I was aiming to qualify on 2016 but it happened a year early so I thought I would take advantage of it.
What are your goals for the rest of the season and the following years?
I hope to win a 70.3 Ironman before the end of the year and make sure I do not place outside of the top 10. Long term goals are to podium at a long course world championship.
You had some strong results in ITU races including a 16th at the 2013 Edmonton World Cup (2nd Canadian). Why did you make the switch to long distance racing?
My swim was not at the level it needed to be for ITU. So I felt that I would give the longer distance a try before I left Triathlon and I seem more suited to the longer races so we will see where this goes.
picture from Rich Cruse
What are the biggest differences between ITU racing and 70.3’s ?
The training is very similar, just a longer long ride. The races were much more suited to me I have a lot more time to catch the leaders in the bike and run. Learning how to eat properly was the most difficult part. The fields are also a little bit smaller but there still is a lot of depth. It is nice to talk to the age groupers after the race they have a lot more appreciation of what you do since they just raced the same course.
You started training with the Triathlon Squad, which includes Eric Lagerstrom, Heather and Trevor Wurtele, Magalie Tysseyre, Joe Maloy and others. Will you be training all year there? Do you think it is an advantage to train with both ITU athletes and Long distance athletes?
I spend as much time as I can training with the Triathlon Squad. But my time in the USA is limited with out a visa so I have to spend it wisely. I think it is very important to train with the ITU athletes since there still is a lot of speed required for the 70.3 distance. It is great to push each other and not have to worry about ever racing each other. It takes away a lot of the tension.
Do you plan to race Ironmans in the following years?
That is hard to say. IT may be in the cards but not for at least 3 more years.