Now that I am home from Subaru Ironman Canada and have had a little cry about what was a pretty difficult race day, I can now reflect on my very human performance that was dug out of heart as opposed to talent.   When this year started, I did not even know if I would race an Ironman.  I had rehabilitated my heel enough to be able to run, but running a marathon was a big question mark.

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Having finished coaching two Subaru Success Camps up on the Subaru Ironman Muskoka 70.3 course, I can offer a few observations and strategies for tackling this special 70.3 event. First, let me say, biased or not, this is one heck of a course!  Deerhurst is the perfect backdrop for this event and your family and friends will have several opportunities to cheer for you and take in all of the energy of race day.

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Register online at www.ironmanpower.com to win free entry into Ironman Canada or Louisville 2009 and 13 weeks of Powerbar nutrition and Lifesport coaching to help you push past your limits.

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Our final camp of the year, the 2nd edition of our Subaru Muskoka Success Camp, happened last weekend as we dodged rain, thunderstorms and the wee bit of chill in the air.  We all met on Friday evening and began our sharing and training weekend with a chat about nutrition and just general ‘how to race a 70.3’ tips.

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Last week was our 3rd annual Subaru IMC Success Camp in beautiful Penticton, B.C.  As usual, we had an amazing group of athletes and by the end of Saturday’s bike ride, everyone was cheering on everyone else and another Ironman family was born!

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In May 2008, Lisa Bentley challenged Regina’s Mayor Pat Fiacco to a race.  Both Lisa and Mayor Pat are racing Subaru Ironman Canada on August 24th, 2008.  Lisa had been invited to speak to the City of Regina and Viterra employees and during that appearance, the ‘bet’ was wagered.  It is called the ‘Equalizer’ – Lisa and Mayor Pat will go head to head at Subaru IMC.

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Last weekend, I raced in the Amica Providence 70.3 Rhode Island. Posting the fastest bike and run splits, I won the race finishing in front of the beautiful State Capitol. I had been itching to race! So when I saw that there was a new 70.3 event in Providence, Rhode Island, I was pretty eager to make it happen. During those long computrainer rides in my basement and the subsequent channel surfing during those rides, I had watched a television show called “Providence”.

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All is well here in my training preparation for Subaru Ironman Canada on August 24th.  And in preparation, I am heading to Rhode Island for the inaugural Providence 70.3 event this coming weekend.  I have always wanted to go there and what a better way to see the sites than to swim, pedal and run there!  Besides, I am just chomping at the bit to race.

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I have so much exciting news – but first a little race update. Last week, I raced the Subaru Muskoka Chase – this is the Muskoka classic - 2 km swim, 55 km bike, 15 km run - where the women start first – 18 minutes ahead of the men and the first person across the line is the winner. The best news is that I WAS RACING!! Last year, I watched the Chase and I could not even run 20 minutes pain free, but this year, I was ready to go!!

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Race season has finally started for me. After a long break over the winter to heal my heel, I finally jumped into my first race – the Florida 70.3. It was so good to hear that gun go off and be able to run into the water and not be grimacing in pain! The best part of the day was that I was doing what I love – swimming, biking and running with all of my triathlon friends.

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After a very long off season of great training in Clermont, Florida, I am finally going to get to race!!! Florida 70.3 on May 18th is going to be my first race of the season. I returned home at the end of March and bid farewell to the beautiful 50 meter outdoor pool and unlimited swim hours and said hello to 5:30 a.m. swim practices with the Dorado Swim Stars.

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Every day I say to myself, “self, you should really write down everything you did today and post it on your site” and then each day, I train, do my office work , and before I know it, it is time to unwind and resume my life as a wife, daughter, sister, friend and dog-mom. But here I am now, really wanting to share the past few months of fun with you.

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Hello from Clearwater – the day after my last race of the season – a painful season – but a season that I managed to execute despite being at less than 100%. Having finished 2nd at the 70.3 World Championships in 2006, I earned my slot to this year’s event.  And since I had spent much of the summer not racing due to an injury, I was quite eager to race the 70.3 Worlds this year. 

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You don't get to be one of the world's most successful Ironman athletes if you're not competitive, if you don't have an incredible drive to get to the finish line ahead of your competition. Lisa Bentley has won 10 Ironman races. She finished third at the Ford Ironman World Championship last year, second here in Clearwater just three weeks later. She won Ironman Canada last August, despite an Achilles tendon that most of us would consider kaput ...

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Hello from Hawaii and the Hilton @ Waikoloa Village.  I have been here training for about a week and I am becoming acclimatized to the heat and the wind. It is much windier than last year but similar to what I have experienced before.  I am training with Craig Alexander, the 70.3 World Champion and fellow Tri Dubai teammate.  Let me re-phrase that – I am training in the same postal code as Craig. He is racing this year so, although we do most sessions together, he is much faster than I am.

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When I crossed the finish line at Ironman Australia walking, I knew that I had hit a pretty big speed bump in my 18 year career. But sport is a powerful goal and the heart has incredible will. On August 26th, I crossed to the other side of that speed bump. I finished Subaru Ironman Canada running and smiling from ear to ear and winning my 11th career Ironman.

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If you had of asked me when I was in grade 11 what I was going to be when I grew up, I would have said that I would be a French teacher.  Then I got a summer job as a French camp counselor and realized that I wasn’t French enough to be a French teacher.  The reality was that when a child stuck their hand close to the camp fire, I would yell, “get your hand out of the fire” instead of the French equivalent!  And so the quest for my teachable subject began.  This is where the irony began.  Ms Bondi was my math teacher and my track coach. 

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Today was probably my hardest Ironman to date and probably my greatest victory to date – what a way to celebrate my 30th career Ironman!  I did not win the race – in fact – I did not even crack the top ten – but I still won the race because I crossed the finish line and I finished what I started.  That, at the very core, is the only thing that matters when you tackle any task – you do your best and you find meaning in whatever happens. 

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"I was gutted," says Lisa Bentley of her second-place finish in Ironman Canada 2006.

"I wanted to win. Everyone wanted me to win that race and that is the blessing. I learned what I needed to learn and it's okay that I didn't win. But I had to convince people of that.

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Hello from South America – it was another exciting day at the office – maybe a bit too exciting for January and the first race of the season!!!!  I won my 6th consecutive Pucon Half Ironman title by 11 seconds. 

Last year, after finishing 3rd in Kona and 2nd in the 70.3 World Championships three weeks later, I took a proper off-season.  I did really easy swims, bikes and runs to keep the blood flowing, but I worked very hard on healing up a few injuries that I had been racing through since last August. 

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Hello from Florida – SURPRISE – I raced in the 70.3 World Championships on Saturday in Clearwater, Florida and I had a blast!  It was my ‘two for one’ fitness race – I used my fitness from my third place finish at the Hawaii Ironman and carried it for three more weeks through to the first ever Half Ironman (70.3) World Champs.  It is so interesting how we peak for a race like the Hawaii Ironman World Championship – we are at peak fitness for that race - and then we have our off-season and don’t race again for another few months. 

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Good morning – or shall I say “good middle of the night” – I cannot sleep – how is it that I can be SO tired and yet I cannot sleep!!

Yesterday was the toughest last 60 minutes of running I have ever had to do – it wasn’t the fastest – but it was the toughest! 

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Hi there - it is Tuesday and I am en route to Kona!  I am writing from this email since my outlook won't send properly in this airport!!!  That will soon be a thing of the past when I get my new Dell laptop!!! 

So, yes the Hawaii IM is more than 3 weeks away, but I am going to Kona early to train on the roads and get acclimatized.

read more: Pre Kona; Pre-Race; Kona Quake

Hi there – Ironman is a journey.  Sometimes you win and cross the finish line first and sometimes you win and cross the finish line second!  I wanted so badly to win my home country race – but most importantly, I wanted to do my best on the day – I wanted to finish what I started – I wanted to be the best I could be with what I had.  I did all of those things and so I won the race in my heart.

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Hi there – I am just returning from a training week in Kona with my Tri Dubai teammates.  For me, it was a final preparation week for Subaru Ironman Canada on August 27th and an introduction to my preparations for the upcoming Ironman World Championships in October. 

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Hi there – I just wanted to send you a little note about our fabulous training camp weekend in Edmonton.  Last August, Dave and I were approached by Karen Frank and Kerry Nisbet from Cops 4 Cancer about the possibility of putting on a training camp for the Iron Cops members.  

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Hello – well, I have just returned from a scorching long run on a very humid day here in Caledon!  It was the first time in a long time that I just came home and had to lay down on the ground to re-group.  Normally, I spend the whole 2.5 hours planning my breakfast – cereal, soy milk, bananas, cottage cheese – very exotic – but today, I just wanted to get home and lay down.  That humidity just drained me today!!!

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Once again, Subaru Canada proved its dedication to the support and growth of triathlon by staging the third Muskoka Chase.  The format has the professional women start a pre-determined time ahead of the professional men and the first person across the line is the champion. Each year, this 2 km – 55 km – 15 km event has become more competitive with this year being the best competition by far. 

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Hi there – well it has been a busy few weeks but a terrific few weeks!  As you know, I raced at the Disney 70.3 event in Florida. I had a fantastic race there and finished 3rd.  I had the swim of my life and exited the water with Canadian Olympian, Sam McGlone.  I lost her in the transition area as I had a serious arm wrestle with my helmet and lost precious seconds. 

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Hello from St. Croix!

Yesterday morning, I had my best race ever in St. Croix! I finished 2nd place behind Mirinda Carfrae from Australia – winner of the Nice Triathlon and top finisher at many ITU World Cups.  Joanna Zeiger, 4-time winner here at St. Croix finished 3rd.

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It was supposed to be a time to remember— Lisa Bentley aiming for a podium finish at Ironman Hawaii and then a few days later getting married in one of the most idyllic settings in the world. However, 36 hours before the event in October 2005 she suffered abdominal pain, and chronic appendicitis was the possible diagnosis.

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Hello from OZ!!!

I am very happy to report that I was able to stay out of the operating room this Ironman and I was able to win Ironman Australia for the 5th consecutive time!  This is my 10th Ironman victory.

The one “wrinkle” to winning my 5th IM Australia was that the course moved from its original location in Forster, New South Wales to Port Macquarie – another lovely town about 60 minutes north of Forster. 

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At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the  school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:

"When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?"

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Welcome to the 2006 triathlon season!!!  I thought the first race of the year was supposed to be a gentle reminder of how to swim, bike and run – a little rehearsal for the upcoming season – a chance to re-acquaint oneself with travel, taper and pressure. Nope!  A quick look at the start list would explain why I had the “opportunity” for a finishing sprint en route to capturing my 5th title at the Pucon ½ Ironman on January 22nd! 

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Canada has a rich history of success at the sport of Ironman Triathlon, particularly by our female Ironman athletes. Going back to the Puntous twins from Quebec who posted Ironman wins at the World Championships in Kona, Hawaii during the early eighties to Alberta native Heather Fuhr with fourteen Ironman victories and Lori Bowden of Victoria with two Ironman World Championships in 1999 and 2003 it is an illustrious group.

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Hello from Kona – 36 hours before race day

My training and preparation has been excellent.  Over the past 12 weeks of training, I have swam at my best, thanks to Brian Kelly, my swim coach, I have biked at my best and I have executed career best runs.  And thanks to my Kona training buddy, Nigel Gray, I have maximized my training sessions and gotten every ounce out of the fantastic coaching which Lance Watson has provided me since 1999. 

It is because I have been supported so wonderfully by everyone that I am wanted to share this note.  I have been battling abdominal discomfort for the past 10 days.

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Last Tuesday evening, I was lucky enough to throw out the first pitch at the Toronto Blue Jays game at the Roger's Center. I used to be a huge baseball fan back in the 80's when the Blue Jays won the World Series. But once triathlon took hold of my life, my baseball 'dates' with my father were soon replaced by long bike rides, long runs and laps in the pool! Well, now that I am about to marry the biggest baseball fan other than my own dad, I have been going to several games with Dave and mom and dad.

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Kona may be only a few weeks away now, and Lisa Bentley must have that race at least partly on her mind, but right now she is contemplating an event that is even more important than that...

Lisa Bentley recorded the ninth Ironman win of her storied career at Ironman Germany. Lisa believes in squeezing every drop of joy from her Ironman journey, as evidenced by this detailed report from her trip...

Lisa took on another grueling event this past weekend, a little known 18-100-100 triathlon in Caledon, Canada. 18-100-100? Yep, that’s an 18 metre swim, 100 metre bike and 100 metre run - and Lisa was crewing for her 4 year-old nephew Braedan...

Check out this article from last year on the Cycstic Fibrosis Association web site about the fundraising efforts of Lisa and Tracey Richardson...

Lisa had a great time speaking with kids at Alton Public School in a visit there in December. The kids were all watching as she raced and won in April's Ironman Australia ... and this is what they said to her...

Lisa begins, ‘Ironman Australia was the experience of a lifetime. The entire journey was marked with challenges but it was from those challenges that I grew. It was a success before the gun even went off on April 3rd’...

Lisa Bentley reports on a freezing and uninspiring day at Ralph's California Half Ironman and looks forward to a warmer day at Ironman Australia as she decides to defend her title there instead of racing Ironman Arizona...

Lisa recently donated her autographed Ironman Canada 2004 winners jacket to a Tsunami relief auction. Her jacket was the highest auctioned item of the entire auction bringing in $777 USD. Lisa's unsigned IMC 2003 winners jacket was the 5th highest auctioned item at $360 USD.