Hello Gators, Memorial Day weekend… Summer has arrived! If you are in town this weekend, join us for a workout or two (or three or four)… Saturday morning (Blue Marsh bike followed by OWS), Sunday morning (French Creek bike), Sunday evening (Phoenixville SRT run + dinner), and Monday late morning/early afternoon (Blue Marsh OWS, run). See “Mark Your Calendars” below for more details. If you are planning to participate in any of these events, please send a brief “I’ll be attending the following…” reply so that we know who to look for. If you are traveling with the family to a beach, mountains, etc… Have fun and we’ll see you when you get back! Also, the inaugural Steelman French Creek Sprint Triathlon and Aquabike is rapidly approaching (Sunday, June 14). A special $10 off discount code has been made available for all Gators that would like to register starting today… The code is SMFC15. If you are unable to participate in the triathlon, we could also use many more volunteers to make this event as successful as possible. For more information please contact Jon Wesler (jonswesler@icloud.com) or see the event website… http://www.steelmantriathlon.com/fc/index.php This week's news topics include...Accomplishments… We’re #3, Maddie’s #1, Up the Creek, Upper Dublin, and Down in Maryland!!Who’s Next?… Time to sink or swim!!About a Gator... This Gator’s going to Florida!!Coaching Tips… Stay cool, forget the scale, and another use for disposable grocery bags!!Recommended… Get out of the water, walk don’t run, and going through the paces!!Mark Your Calendars... Weekend training opportunities!! Happy Birthday!: Best wishes to the following Gators celebrating birthdays this week!Thursday, May 21: Brent VoynarFriday, May 22: Don Mack Accomplishments: Lots of success this past weekend in everything from aquabike to duathlon to triathlon to scholarships…West Chester Running Club Scholarship: Huge congratulations to Maddie Matarazzo who was recently learned that she is the winner of the West Chester Running Club Scholarship!! After graduating from a very successful high school academic career, Maddie will be heading to James Madison University this fall where she is already engaged with the university’s triathlon club.Cascade Lake Duathlon (Hampstead, MD): Despite battling through some injuries the Beauchamps tenacity resulted in great events. Their results were enough to propel our club into 3rd place overall in Piranha’s tri club standings!Kelly Beauchamp was the #3 female overall… PODIUM!!!... and also achieved the following… #1 in age group, #5 in T1 and T2, top 35% overall bike, top 40% overall finish. Great job, Kelly and wishing you a speedy recovery from your surgery!!Ken Beauchamp was #5 overall… PODIUM!!!... and also had the following results… #2 in age group, #1 overall T1 and T2, #4 overall bike, top 10 in run 1 and top 20 in run 2… Awesome effort, Ken!!French Creek Triathlon (Elverson, PA): Many good things to report… This was the first French Creek Triathlon for all four of our athletes…Sprint: Jason Brannon was #2 in age group… PODIUM!!!... and also achieved the following… top 35% overall, top 30% overall run, top 45% T1, top 50% overall bike and overall swim… Way to go, Jason!!Kerri Brannen was #3 in age group… PODIUM!!!... and also top 50% overall on the run…Olympic:Tiff Pfluger completed her first Olympic triathlon (only weeks after completing her first sprint) and was also in the top 45% overall on the run…. Congrats, Tiff!!Tim Pfluger finished #1 in his age group… PODIUM!!!... and also achieved the following… #10 overall, #3 overall on the run, #15 overall on the bike, top 35% on T1, and top 45% on the swim… Great race, Tim!!Upper Dublin Sprint Triathlon/Aqua Velo: All of the following successfully completed their events…Sprint Triathlon:Suzanne Angelaccio finished in the top 25% of all female finishers and also achieved the following… top 45% overall, top 40% T2, top 50% overall bike… Fantastic, Suzanne!!Rebecca Bonawitz finished as #4 in her group and also in the top 30% overall swim and top 30% overall T1… Excellent results, Rebecca!!Dean Milligan finished in the top 15% overall and also achieved the following… #22 overall swim, top 15% overall T1, top 20% overall bike and run, top 50% overall T2… Way to dominate the swim, Dean!!Steph Stranick, despite still recovering from a sprained ankle, completed her first Upper Dublin triathlon and also finished in the top 40% overall in T2… Nice work, Steph!!Aqua Velo (swim/bike): Doug Schmidt achieved a significant PR due to his greatly improved bike split… Congrats, Doug!! Who’s Next?: There is only one Gator participating in an event this weekend… This Sunday, May 24 Nabil Radouane will return to the NAV-E-SINK or Swim in Rumson, New Jersey. Nabil will again be participating in the 2.4 mile event. Best wishes to Nabil for a safe and successful event! About A Gator: This week’s “About A Gator” covers an athlete that will soon be relocating to Florida (but remaining a part of our team). Learn about Kelly Ferreri in this edition! Coaching Tips: Several coaching tips this week…From “Zen and the Art of Triathlon’s” Brett Blankner...For long and hot races, carry a hand-held water bottle with you to fill up with water and/or ice at the aid stations. You can use it to keep you cool in between the aid stations.If you typically monitor your weight on a regular basis, try to refrain from doing so during the latter stages of your taper (especially for longer races) as you will likely gain a couple of pounds that you will put to good use during the race (plus it will keep you from trying to diet as you are approaching the race).Cover your feet and hands with a disposable grocery bag as you are putting on your wetsuit. This will help to overcome the friction and allow you to put it on much more easily. And speaking of wetsuits and bags… Take a large garbage bag with you and put it underneath your transition area towel… You can use it after the race to carry all of your wet stuff (rather than trying to jam it back into your transition bag). Recommended: This week’s recommendations include a couple of articles and a podcast…Six Steps to Master the Swim Exit… http://triathlon.competitor.com/2014/03/training/swim-training-master-the-swim-exit_29054Could the Run/Walk Method Work for You?... http://triathlon.competitor.com/2015/05/training/could-the-runwalk-method-work-for-you_116138Triathlete Training Podcast: Ironman Pacing & Swimming… http://triathletetraining.com/tt057-ironman-pacing-swimming-with-jim-vance/ Mark Your Calendars: Upcoming Events:Memorial Day Weekend: Current plans for this weekend; stay tuned to Facebook and e-mail for additional updates…Saturday, May 23: Blue Marsh… Due to very old overnight expected temperatures tonight, the OWS will now take place AFTER the bike ride.8:30am: Multi-loop ride on the 17.5 mile hilly route that we've used in the past... Each loop will pass by the parking area, so you can do as few as one or as many as three loops. Total planned ride time is 4 hours.Approximate 12:30pm-1:00pm start time: Open water swim (30-45 minutes)… Looks like it will be sunny and temps should have reached the low/mid 60s by this time. The water temp is in the 60s, so definitely plan for a wetsuit swim.Sunday, May 24: Two parts...Part 1 – 7:30am-9:00am: French Creek bike ride… Will be hilly (ask our recent French Creek Tri finishers)Part 2:6 :00pm start: 1 hour run on the new (sometimes hilly) portion of the SRT around Phoenixville… This is a good opportunity to be introduced to a great trail you may not have known existed. Trail information: https://www.traillink.com/trail-maps/schuylkill-river-trail---phoenixville-to-pottstown.aspx. Here is a link to directions (from the YMCA) to the meeting location (Cromby Trailhead off of Township Line Rd. in Phoenixville Rd (note that there is another “Cromby Trailhead” near Route 113 in Phoenixville that is NOT where we are meeting. Royersford Foundry & Machine, 835 Township Line Rd. is about 300 feet from where we are meeting; use that address in your GPS)… https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Spring+Valley+YMCA,+West+Linfield-Trappe+Road,+Royersford,+PA/40.147895,-75.528597/@40.1751933,-75.5536873,13z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m9!4m8!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c69aa12dc8720f:0x817453981c9ba83c!2m2!1d-75.510448!2d40.206766!1m0!3e0Post-run Recovery Food/Drink: Details coming soon on Facebook… Stay tuned! Monday, May 25, 11:00am: Blue Marsh – Open water swim (60-90 minutes) and possible post swim run (30 minutes) Sunday, June 14: Steelman French Creek Triathlon and Aquabike Go Gators! Don M