August 5, 2010- TEST YOURSELF AGAINST PERSONAL BEST DREAM TEAM: This weekend, three of the PB’s top professional athletes will be racing the Niagara Triathlon as a part of a DREAM TEAM. Former University of Western 1500m swim star, Andrew Woegerer will start the day off with the swim. Multiple Subaru Race Winner, Dave Sharratt will do the bike leg and 4x Race Winner Sean Bechtel will tackle the run leg. You may see the fastest time ever done on the Niagara Course on Sunday by the PB DREAM TEAM. “The older elite guys this weekend wanted to give the younger guys a chance to win the overall race” said 4x Subaru Race winner Sean Bechtel. “Even coach Barrie is on a relay team on Sunday, so lots of people will be out participating in some way” said Bechtel.
TEENAGER KARSTEN MADSEN TRYING TO WIN FOR THE SECOND TIME: The Kitchener teenager had his breakout career victory at the 2009 Niagara Triathlon. “Winning last year was a huge confidence boost and I hope I have the chance to repeat on Sunday” said Madsen. One of Madsen’s biggest threats will be his teammate Taylor Reid. Fresh off a podium at last weekend’s Ontario Junior Championships, Reid will be a major threat for the overall victory. “No club in Canada has two more outstanding teenagers then we do with Taylor and Karsten” said former Olympic coach Barrie Shepley. “Both boys are incredibly hard working and talented and there is no reason they won’t be sprinting to the finishing line side-by-side for the individual victory” said their coach. “The only thing I am confident of, is shy of a flat tire, it should be the PB DREAM TEAM with the day’s fastest overall time” said Shepley.
TEAM DAVID VS TEAM BECHTEL: There is still time to register for the free Team Bechtel vs Team David summer contest. Details about the contest are on the PB site at www.personalbest.ca
June 8, 2010- After two races (Waterloo Duathlon and Milton Triathlon Weekend) the score is tied one win each for the two world-class Subaru Race Series Captains. Bechtel's team won the season opener over Sharratt's team by 8 points and Team Sharratt came back for a 5 point victory in Milton. "I can't believe we were that close in both races" said Captain Sharratt. The
goal of the TEAM BECHTEL VS TEAM SHARRATT contest within the Subaru Triathlon Series is to create a fun way for race participants to get to knowthe top pros and to add a bit of competitive juice to the summer race series.
The contest format is simple. When a person registers for the free contest, they are assigned to one of the two captains for the rest of the summer. Each time you race, your finishing position within your age group is scored to your captain. Finish 19th in the men's 40-44 age category and your team gets 19 points. At the end of the day, the team with the lowest total score wins. Next race, everything starts back over fresh and a newscore is calculated. "There is no stress, only some good fun" said Sean Bechtel. Bechtel has now set course records in both the Waterloo Duathlon and the Milton Triathlon. "I live and train with Dave Sharratt everyday and I know how hard he is working so its just a matter of time before he passes me in one of the Subaru Races" said Bechtel. With the score now one win each, the two captains will face off against each other on Sunday
morning June 20th on the second day of the Guelph Lake Weekend. "We will have a winning team for the Saturday and a winning team for the Sunday races" said Bechtel. Anyone can register for free and start getting training tips, video clips and a chance to win some extra prizes throughout the summer by going to www.personalbest.ca and registering for the summer long contest. "Because this is our first summer of trying this contest we have beenworking out a few administrational bugs, but I we will be fully ready for the Guelph Lake Weekend" said head-coach Barrie Shepley. The High Performance Team will have an identified tent location before and after each Subaru Race where Team Bechtel and Team Sharratt members can stop in and check to see if they have won any draw prizes for that event. In addition, to make scoring easier on the captains, team members will be asked to stop by the tent after the race and mark your name and finishing age group position off on the team poster. "By each athletes stopping to the tent for 20 seconds after they are done, we can do the scoring very quickly and recognize the winning team before we leave the race site" said Shepley.
Bechtel and Sharratt have a busy week ahead as they are running 3 hour triathlon and open water clinics on the races courses for Peterborough (this Saturday June 12th) and Guelph Lake (Sunday June 13th). Details and costs for the clinics are at www.personalbest.ca
June 3, 2010-Top Triathletes Sean Bechtel and David Sharratt to Run a Guelph Lake Prep Clinic on Sunday June 13th.
Just one week before Canada"s biggest triathlon in Guelph Lake, top pros are available for a 2hr open water swim, bike, run clinic for all ages. Details on the clinic are at www.personalbest.ca. "The feedback Sean and David got from the Milton Clinic was incredible and I know that people will really benefit from their expertise" said former olympic coach Barrie Shepley. With limited spots people should register immediately.
June 3, 2010- Dave Sharratt to Replace Nat Faulkner in Summer Long Subaru Racing Contest
While he started the season off as the co-captain with Nat Faulkner, Guelph Ontario's David Sharratt has graciously agreed to take over as the head captain for the rest of the summer in the Subaru Race Series. ”With Nat Faulkner's retirement from the High Performance Team its an honor for me to take over as the team captain against Team Sean Bechtel" said Sharratt.
Sharratt and Bechtel were winter house-mates in Tucson Arizona all winter and are now living and training together in the Caledon area for thesummer. "Sean Bechtel is an amazing athlete and I have learned a lot from him over the last two years" said Sharratt. "As much as Sean and I are great friends and training mates, when the gun goes off on race day we both
want to beat each other" said Sharratt.
The Team Sean Bechtel vs Team David Sharratt is a summer long, free contest where Subaru Series participants get to benefit from some free newsletters and video tips from Sean and Dave and the chance to win extra
prizes if their team wins that weekend.
"We don't want anyone to get too stressed about the contests, its all fun and an opportunity for Dave and I to get to know the Subaru participants" said Sean Bechtel. Bechtel won the Victoria Duathlon in record time and is excited to try to go two for two in Milton. "I know David is in great shape and he will be a major threat this weekend" said Bechtel. Subaru participants can still register for the free contest. Anyone racing Sunday should check out Dave and Sean's Milton Race tips at
www.personalbest.ca "I hope all participants join our fun summer contest, as the goal is to add some extra social opportunities as well as learning sport tips" said Bechtel's coach Barrie Shepley
May 28, 2010- TOP PB TRIATHLETES RUNNING A CLINIC IN PETERBOROUGH JUNE 12TH
Maybe your a novice and your doing one of your first races in Peterborough next month. Or maybe your a veteran and your trying to nail a great half-ironman performance in Peterborough. Or your schedule hasn’t allowed you to hit one of the PB clinics yet this year. Either way, Saturday June 12th is your day. Former Olympic coach Barrie Shepley has made his top athletes available for a one day ADULT and YOUTH clinic in Peterborough in conjunction with Runner’s Life. “I am continually getting calls from great triathlon hot beds like Peterborough to see if I can help create a one day clinic for age groupers and kids” said Shepley. “I have known Dave Dame for a very long time and his great support of the Subaru Triathlon Series in the Peterborough area made it a no-brainer to work on this exciting one day Peterborough triathlon clinic June 12th” said Shepley.
Sean Bechtel and David Sharratt are two of my (and Canada’s) most promising elite athletes. Bechtel is fresh off his course record victory in the Victoria Day Waterloo Subaru Duathlon. Sean started as a competitive swimmer before he started working with Shepley. Over the past ten years, Bechtel has represented Canada on Jr and 23 and under national teams as well as winning major international triathlons in Florida and most recently the Muskoka Chase last June. “Because Sean is so strong in swim-bike and run, he can race and be on the podium at any distance from 70.3 down to a sprint” said Shepley. While Bechtel could easily be very competitive in an Ironman, he is holding off at the longer distances till after 2012 to give himself a chance to make the London Olympic Team. A two-sport-star at McMaster University (swim-bike), Bechtel spent the winter in Tucson Arizona coaching and training.
David Sharratt comes from a strong running background, having won the Ontario College Running Championships twice (2008 and 2009). The three time winner of the Waterloo Duathlon and many other Subaru Races, Sharratt has improved immensely over his winter of training with Bechtel in Arizona. “Training with Sean and Barrie all winter really has taken my skills and fitness to an entirely new level” said Sharratt. Sharratt went to Ironman Utah a month ago to swim and bike (on his way home from Arizona) and was second out of the water and one of the top men on the bike when he stopped his training day. Two weeks later Sharratt was one of the top pros at 70.3 Florida Triathlon. Shepley expects Sharratt to be a major factor in 2010 with the prospects of being one of the top 70.3 & Ironman competitors in the world over the next few years. “Canada has developed some of the best male/female triathletes in the world and I see all the right skills in Dave Sharratt’s background to be a champion one day” said Shepley. Shepley has made Bechtel and Sharratt available for a one day, limited capacity triathlon clinic on Saturday June 12th. There will 3 distinct clinics over the day.
Novice adults (those looking for help at improving their overall swim-bike-run skills)
Intermediate adults (those who know the sport but are trying to improve for faster age group times)
Youth/Kids Tri-Clinic.
The day’s format will be the following:
8:30am Arrival and get to meet the coaches
9:00am Open water swim skills and swimming (wetsuits valuable)
10am: Run skills/drills and transition skills (participants will be trying the skills)
10:45 Bike Skills – bike positioning and strategies, along with power-out discussions
12:00pm Lunch with the pros (bring your lunch and sit with Sean & David)
12:30pm Arrival of the youth/kids for their tri-clinic
1-2:30pm:Swim-bike-run skills for kids with Sean & David
REGISTER AT PERSONAL BEST www.personalbest.ca
January 19, 2010- TOP COACH & ATHLETE PRESENT FREE TRIATHLON SEMINARS AT RUNNING FREE- sponsored by MERRELL RUNNING SHOES
Canada’s first ever Olympic Coach Barrie Shepley and Ontario’s top elite athlete Sean Bechtel will be doing free ninety-minute Triathlon Seminars at local Running Free Stores in January and February. “Sean and I are excited to have a chance to meet TRISPORT’s many triathletes in our three free seminars” said Barrie Shepley. Seminars will include great material for novice participants as well as leading-edge information for veterans who are training for 70.3 or Ironman races in 2010. Each talk will take place at Running Free Stores. Jan 27th at the Markham Running Free at 7pm. Feb 3rd at the Milton Running Free Store at 6:30pm. Feb 10th at the Barrie Running Free Store at 6:30pm. Participants will be eligible for great draw prizes, great training information and early-winter-motivation. Participants must RSVP for the free talk they wish to attend (and let Barrie know how many seats you need reserved). Save a seat by emailing barrie@personalbest.ca .
January 4, 2010- YOUR 2010 RACE SUCCESS STARTS THIS WEEK WITH PERSONAL BEST
Time to get your 2010 season started off right. Personal Best are the official coaching / testing company of the 2010 Subaru Series and their staff are excited to be partnering with Trisport to work with Ontario’s age group athletes. “No single organization has had a bigger impact on the sport of triathlon in Canada than Trisport and it is a privilege to be working with Janet and Mitch in 2010” said former Olympic Coach Barrie Shepley. “I announced the very first Trisport Race in Grimsby nearly 25 years ago and have witnessed the amazing job the organization has done over the years in running World Class Races in Ontario” said Shepley. Shepley and his senior coaching staff have over two decades of helping people get started (novices), improve (Olympic distance) and successfully finish 70.3 and Ironman races (99% success rate).
While we have the expertise of working with the country’s best athletes over the past two decades, what makes us unique at Personal Best, is the fact we create personalized, daily training programs for very busy people and help them achieve their goals (on limited time). “Our services can range from testing, to injury prevention, to private swim-bike lessons, to weekly coached group activities” said Canada’s only Hall of Fame Triathlon Coach. The famous “PB MEGA TRAINING DAYS” begin this Saturday Jan 9th, and go ever two weeks until the end of February. Imagine 100 people, in a big room, great music/video and world class motivational coaches up on stage. Follow that up with a 75 minute core/injury prevention session with Caron Shepley and you have the makings for a great boost in your winter fitness. In addition to personalized coaching, testing and mega days, PB will be running eight weeks of amazing winter Get Away Camps in Tucson Arizona (from mid-Feb till May). Our coaching staff in Tucson is incredible and our elite athletes will be there for nearly 12 weeks getting ready for the 2010 Trisport Series” said Barrie Shepley. Sean Bechtel, Nat Faulkner, David Sharratt and the rest of the elite team will be working closely with Barrie to make sure that each athlete’s specific needs are being met. The 2010 Team will be riding Specialized Bikes, Running in Merrell Shoes from Running Free and swimming in XTERRA Wetsuits. Take some time to learn about the Mega Days, Training Programs and Winter Camps at www.personalbest.ca
See details of all the above programs at www.personalbest.ca or email Sean Bechtel at sean@personalbest.ca
December 10, 2009 - MERRELL SHOES - SPECIALIZED SPECIALIZED BIKES AND PERSONAL BEST PRESENT 2010 TRAINING DAYS – CAMPS AND TRAINING PROGRAMS. Personal Best are proud to be the official coaching company of the Subaru Triathlon Series for 2010. “No race series has done more for developing the sport over the past two decades than the Subaru Triathlon Series” said former Olympic coach Barrie Shepley. Shepley is president of Personal Best and his top elite athletes have committed to doing the entire 2010 Subaru Race Series. “Our goal is for our team of elite athletes to race all the events in 2010 and to get to know the many great age group and junior athletes who are racing in Ontario this summer” said Shepley. With top athletes like Sean Bechtel, Nat Faulkner, Andrew Yorke, David Sharratt and Jennifer Hall all apart of Shepley’s elite team, Ontario age group athletes will have a chance to see and meet some of the best athletes in the country. Personal Best is currently working on 5-6 two hour winter clinics around the province in Jan-Feb (look for more details within the next week). Trisport clients who are looking for great Christmas ideas should consider a Personal Best gift certificate for any denomination. Consider one of the following gifts: