Recipe: Ali's favorite chocolate Truffle brownies 

This recipe is from the book 365 days of Quinoa. The brownies have the texture of a truffle and there is no flour involved!  

Ingredients:

• 4 squares unsweetened chocolate 
• 3/4 cup butter 
• 1 1/2 cups sugar  (but i always do a tiny less) 
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp pure vanilla (always add extra!)
• 1 1/4 cup milk (or almond milk)  
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1. Preheat to 350 and grease a 9 inch pan. 
2. In a small saucepan, melt the chocolate and butter together on a low heat.  
3. Add sugar to the saucepan slowly, stirring constantly
4. Once mixture is all blended, transfer to a bowl and add eggs and vanilla. Blend well
5. Stir in flour and milk.  
6. Add nuts and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Be careful not to overbake

These are really amazing warm and served with ice cream. Recommended: Coconut milk ice cream. YUM

It's that time of year again; the season between summer and winter when bike riding temporarily loses it's identity. It's a tricky time of year. The weather can be all over the place, North American road and triathlon races are by and large finished and it's hard to know what kind of bike you are supposed to ride or whether you are supposed to ride at all.

Your road bike is a bit of a prima donna; it likes warm weather, clean streets and the energy of a good group. Your tri bike is even more of a snob, craving long open stretches of road in the blazing sun, you can't even think about taking that out in the fall months without serious attitude. Your mountain bike is always eager to go out but it craves the trail networks, some mud and a few decent jumps. Granted the fall months are great for this but what if you just want to get out and do some long consistent riding?

Well there is a solution and it's the cyclocross bike. Yes it's totally fine to justify the purchase of yet another bike. If you already have three then why not four? Four is a nice round number if you're a cyclist. You cover off all your conceivable bases unless of course you live in a city whereby you will probably need to purchase a really cool cruiser bike for those trendy jaunts about town.

   Click here to read the rest of THIS ARTICLE at our Coaches Corner BLOG  

7SYSTEMS Athletes finish 4th, 5th and 6th at Ironman Canada 

After a one year layoff from Ironman 7SYSTEMS cofounder Jasper Blake finished 5th at Ironman Canada.  Jasper ran himself up from 14th and capped an impressive 11 year run, with eight races in Penticton never finishing lower than 5th.  He was closely out done however by fellow Pro team athlete Chris Bagg who had his best finish ever at an Ironman finishing two minutes ahead in 4th.  Not to be outdone, Nigel Gray showed that when he puts his mind to something he can't be stopped.  After several years away from Ironman Nigel finished an impressive 6th, and showed why he has been one of the top long distance athletes in Canada for over a decade now.   

Stefan Timms

Stefan Timms is not only a full time lawyer but a father of two and avid multisport athlete.  Stefan recently won the Chicago sprint triathlon beating 2500 fellow competitors to the line in very tough conditions.  A week later he continued his winning ways by taking the overall victory in the 2.5km Big Shoulders Open water swim race for the second year in a row! 

Xterra Canada

7SYSTEMS was proud to be a title sponsor of Xterra Canada in early September.  Race director Calvin Zaryski put on an amazing event in Whistler that truly showcased how cool Xterra can be in Canada.  7SYSTEMS was proud to be associated with such a great event at such an amazing Canadian destination. 

Dave McGuire

Long time 7SYSTEMS user and truly inspiring individual David McGuire is running his heart out this year in his "Run to Remember" which is raising money for a charity called "Brain Trust Canada".  David is running a marathon a day from St. Johns Newfoundland to Victoria BC and will finish in November of this year.  When David last checked in he had just passed the Terry Fox memorial statue outside of Thunder Bay- a fitting place to pass if you are running across Canada!  Read David's full story at his blog.

Graham Robertson

Graham Roberston recently completed a 31 day 3600km solo bike trip from Anchorage, Alaska to Victoria, BC.  He raised an impressive $13,000 for the Victoria Hospice.  Graham plans to one up this years journey with a trip across Canada next summer to raise money for the same cause.  You can learn more at www.cycleoflifetour.ca  

The 7SYSTEMS Team