Current Stories Sun, 22 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-88SV9UGPSDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-88SV9Uhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-88SV9U
Just back from Algonquin Provincial Park with lots of new memories. As in previous years, we arrieved with our tent and canoe. Needless to say, we had a good time on the lakes and the trails.
But this is not the reason for this post here, it's the lack of any GPS coordinates in our Garmin nüvi when it comes to the Algonquin Provincial Park. So we started to set some favourites and saved them here. We were too busy with canoeing and enjoying the beauty of the park to create a complete list of all the camp sites and trails, maybe next time. The most important points are here and they will bring you to the park. They include both Highway 60 Corridor gates and the Sand Lake Gate for the Barron Canyon.
Click below for the Garmin Waypoints and a list of the coordinates. Enjoy your stay in the park.]]>Sun, 22 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=1374CD8CD1AD86BE8525778E00800329http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=1374CD8CD1AD86BE8525778E00800329http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87KNBQEnvironmentDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87KNBQhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87KNBQSo I go to my Bell Store and check what upgrade options I have. They tell me that I'm entitled to a credit towards a new phone on the 21st, that's today. After checking out the models at the Blackberry website, my mind was set for the Blackberry Tour. The reason is that this phone is unlocked and uses a Sim card where I can plug in my Swisscom Sim card when in Switzerland, same as the Blackberry World Edition. After some discussions with the Bell representative at the Winstongate Bell World store, I got the Blackberry Bold 9700. Even so this phone is locked now, I can actually get it unlocked by Bell so it will work with the Swisscom Sim as well. When they added up the charges for the new Blackberry, the representative incorrectly quoted me $149 verbally for the upgrade - it was only $99.
The decision to buy the Bold instead of the Tour was the result of a longer discussion. The representative was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. I must say, the best service I received for a long time. Actually, the Bell World store at Winstongate always served us very well.
But wait there is more. Phone is working, time to reconfigure and move all the stuff and my ring tone settings to the new phone. First thing I do is add the device to the Blackberry Server, then I send the Enterprise Activation Password from the server. On the Blackberry Bold, I enable Enterprise Activation and it starts almost immediately to synchronize. A few minutes later, I have all my email, appointments, addresses, memos and browser bookmarks on my new device. The ring tones are also changed to my previous choice. It took me about 2 minutes work to get the stuff from the old Blackberry to the new - now that was unexpected. I still spent 10 minutes (or more) to play with the new features such as the camera. Google Maps is already loaded and Facebook is next on the list. I think I leave this for tomorrow.]]>Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:19:32 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=C070EBEBA2E435B385257767005F72C1http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=C070EBEBA2E435B385257767005F72C1http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87HKLJRunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87HKLJhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-87HKLJGuelph Lake Triathlon. Weather was perfect, maybe a bit too perfect.

My time was 1:48:06 and I improved in the swim and bike portion. Running was another story, too hot for my old body. There is always next year.]]>Sat, 19 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=2807C097BC6F2344852577650052AB64http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=2807C097BC6F2344852577650052AB64http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-85HQUJRunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-85HQUJhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-85HQUJMississauga Marathon. Lots of participants at the start that need to park the car. And lots of finishers to lineup for water, banana and all the other goodies. I finished with 2:02:52 which is within my expectation of 2 hours (plus/minus 2 minutes). I blame the 52 seconds on the Power Gel at km 17, that stuff is sooo sticky, it took 52 seconds of my momentum.

Now starts the countdown for Guelph, bike is ready and the weather seems to get warmer.
Get some Marathon pictures here]]>Sun, 16 May 2010 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=9A2E73B67DEE7B4685257725006B3333http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=9A2E73B67DEE7B4685257725006B3333http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7Y4LHZTechnologyDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7Y4LHZhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7Y4LHZ We were Cable customers for too many years, paying $60 every month. The only show we watched on specialty channel was Daily Planet on Discovery Channel. When you add up the few TV series plus Daily Planet, that's tops two shows per day ... @ $60 a month ... so we paid about $1 for every TV show we watched. The often bad signal quality eventually made us reconsider the options. So from this here

to a really top quality, uncompressed high definition image it was a matter of a $100 investment for the antenna. And we never had to look at the pixel blocks anymore.
The Olympic games in Vancouver just finished and the picture quality was just outstanding. We could actually see the ice pebbles on the curling ice surface. We watched CTV most of the time and only once was the signal distorted due to a weak signal from the CN Tower.
]]>Tue, 2 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=5D5DB000F29288CE852576780057147Fhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=5D5DB000F29288CE852576780057147Fhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7XZH32RunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7XZH32http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7XZH321000 km = 621.371 miles. The 1000km/year is on my list since 2007 when I missed it by less then 50km. Last year in June and July, no running after surgery. So my 2008 total was 755km.
Now in 2009 it's done ... and getting ready to set a new goal. I'm still undecided if it will be a Olympic Triathlon or full Marathon. Both are double the distance from the races I'm doing now. I know that I have to finish a full Marathon one of these days, but my final decision will be early next year. It all depends when the trails are ice and snow free. I will run the Mississauga Half Marathon, but this event is mid May already. Training starts about 3 month before that, and February is not very appealing for long runs.

It is obvious that the running season is winding down. The trails are quiet and soon will be covered in snow and ice. I hope to catch a few more runs over the next days and then it's time to hibernate.
December 30th Update: The weather over the last few weeks favoured my running. Just finished my last run for this year, the 7km loop through the park and Sawmill Valley trail. The picture above is from the trail. This brings my total for this year to 1075km. ]]>Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=3E25C836B0D03430852576750046D003http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=3E25C836B0D03430852576750046D003http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7WA4ELRunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7WA4ELhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7WA4EL It's raining now ... but according to the Weather Network, this should change at 7am, half an hour before the start. We'll find out soon. Anyway, it's time to go to sleep. I have to get up early.

The run course went west on Lakeshore, then a u-turn and all the way back. This gave us the chance to see and cheer the elite runners. About 10 runners, then ... a big gap ... until the next group of runners. Three of the elite runners finished in less then 2:10 for the full 42km, that is a speed of almost 20km/h.
I finished just under 2:14 and crossed the finished line about 30 seconds after Toronto's Mayor David Miller. And the 'scary' part, I crossed the finish line several minutes after the winner of the full 42.2km marathon. Keneth Mungara of Kenya who also broke the Canadian record by finishing in 2:08:32.
The event was well organized, but 20,000 participants plus 30,000 spectators (according to the radio station), everything takes a long time. ]]>Sat, 26 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=29D298882D7CA26A8525763E000B8492http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=29D298882D7CA26A8525763E000B8492http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7VPMDZRunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7VPMDZhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7VPMDZGuelph Lake Triathlon. A sunny day, a bit on the warm side for the running part. Water temperature didn't really require a wetsuit, but I feel more comfortable with the extra buoyancy.
Both the Sprint Triathlon and the Try-a-Tri were sold out. Like the previous events, I was in the last wave. Now I have a white cap in my collection as well.

I finished the race in 2:18:59. I was hoping for less then 2:15 and not sure where I lost my time. It took me 2 minutes more for the 30km bike ride, but both the swim and run were faster then last year. My guess is that the transition needs lots of improvement.
After the race it was time for the goodies from the sponsors. The top prices were a new wetsuit, watches and sunglasses. They pulled our names out of a box and very unexpected, my name was one of the first five. I won Bollé sunglasses, perfect for my runs. A big thank you to Bollé and all the other sponsors.
]]>Sat, 5 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=EAEA9CE81E0E8D538525762B005B1B4Ahttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=EAEA9CE81E0E8D538525762B005B1B4Ahttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7UDHM9RunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7UDHM9http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7UDHM9 Alarm went off at 5am, and we were on the road by 5:30. The Red Rock Canyon is a national conservation area and you can find some information here. We arrived around 6:15am and the park was already open (they open at sun rise). The sun didn't yet make it over the mountains. Starting at the visitor center running north, the road was still in the shade. A perfect combination of weather and nature and the road ahead of me. From the start to about mile 5, there is over 100 meter height difference. So I appreciated the shade on my uphill stretch.

I was not alone, the Red Rock Canyon seems to be favored by many runners and cyclist - and not too many cars so early in the morning. The one-way loop in the park has several parking areas to view the breathtaking rock formations and colors.
I had to be back at the hotel by 9am, I jumped into the car at mile 7. We made it just in time for the meeting start at 9am.
]]>Sun, 26 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=9E5DA0BCE29ACA2085257601004966A3http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=9E5DA0BCE29ACA2085257601004966A3http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7T8L9BRunningDieter D Stalderhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7T8L9Bhttp://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/d6plinks/DDSR-7T8L9BGuelph Lake Triathlon is happening. Now after the fact, the weather conditions were actually very pleasant, a bit wet beyond the swimming part, but at least no pouring rain.

My time was 1:42:45 and the time splits were within my expectations.
About an hour before race start, I laid out the helmet, running shoes, towel, drink, bib and whatever else I need when changing from the swim to bike and then to the run. This year I started in the Men-55 category, so the bike rack was not as crowded as other age groups. I had all my gear ready for the transition, stepped back and mentally went through the process. I was pleased with everything and expressed it with a "Now I'm ready for the race". A fellow racer looked at me with a big smile and said: "You know, in our age group we shouldn't be that excited anymore about the race!". Based on appearance, this was not his first race - and he looked as if he is in great condition - and is having fun.
I finished 13th out of the 19 men in my age group or in 454th place of the 542 competitors. Just out of curiosity, I check the results how I would perform with the next age group (Men 60-64) and it's nothing to look forward to. 6 participants, 5 finished well before my time and my chances don't grow in the higher age groups. With these results in mind, I think I know what my fellow racer was referring to before the race.
Hey, I enjoyed the race - I finished within my expectation - I got my T-shirt, what else can I ask for? Well maybe that a few years down the road I can still participate and finish the race.]]>Sat, 20 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/CommentsRSS?Open&id=50BADB1D3794371A852575DC0055A930http://www.stdi.com/stdi/ddbd.nsf/PostComment?RunAgent&id=50BADB1D3794371A852575DC0055A930