The family are going great guns.
My wife completed her first half-marathon this year at Reading. I'm really proud of her, and she's come along way since being last finisher at Margate parkrun on a windy June morning last year.
My daughter started in January at the local Tristars club. Her little legs wizzing round and round on her tiny 16" wheel bike around the Palmer Park track. Luckily it was her birthday recently so we took the opportunity to upgrade her to a 24" Islabike with gears. Well overdue. She can now accompany me on my runs.
She took part in her first triathlon; a practise one as part of the club. A single length in the pool followed by 2km on the bike then a 1km run. Good effort!
My son has been accompanying the family at the local parkrun where they've banged out a few 5kms over the past quarter. He has his eye on his 10 t-shirt!
It's really nice to see them get out and about and be active. I'm off work next week so we'll spend some more time on our bikes together :)
Showing posts with label Thames Valley Triathletes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thames Valley Triathletes. Show all posts
Thursday, 10 April 2014
Monday, 18 November 2013
Dinton Duathlon race report
I saw this advertised some months back, but an impending house move made the schedule unsure. I bit the bullet in the end and signed up for it. Of course a delayed house move meant only a week between the move and the race. Work also got their 2p in with me flying to the US on the Tuesday evening and landing back in the UK Saturday morning. How would I fair with such tiredness and stress?
It was very local and only took a few minutes to get there and register. A quick spin up the road and back then time to rack the bike. The advantage of having a surname beginning with A is often a low race number. #2 in this case.
Found my spot and racked the bike and attached my shoes. I seemed to be the only one doing so; admittedly the ground was a little damp but I didn't think it would be too bad. I deposited a pair of trainers at the rear of my bike which garnered some odd looks, then went for a warm up run. Back in time for briefing.
We lined up and watch a mini-helicopter take a video of us and then we were off. The pace was a little tasty and so I reigned it in a bit and started to get overtaken a few times. The run was a 5.3km loop around the lakes of Dinton Pastures near Wokingham. After a few km I began to reel in some of the overtakers, moving from one to another and so on. Throughout I kept an eye on the pace and I didn't want to overcook the first run. Just before km 4 there was a little lump in the trail, then another. Both upset the pacing but the short downhill afterwards was a blessing.
I went through 5km in 19:39 it didn't seem like the usual hard effort for that pace, especially as I had earned a short-lived 5km PB on a similar course at Dinton in February. Run#1 done in 21:00 in 11th place.
T1 was a very swift 21s (second fastest!) and on to the bike. The LH strap had come undone so I got some speed up then managed to sort it out. Not easy with gloves on. After a few minutes I heard the whup-whup of a disc and was left standing as another tri bike came past. I was then alone for the next 8km before we hit a motorway bridge. I hung back as I didn't want to attack on a hill. A few guys came past me like a chaingang and hung off the back of a few in front. For the next few km we played cat and mouse. Each time I dropped back out of the draft zone. When I overtook, the protagonist typically sat on my wheel. After one overtake I even saw him throw a gel wrapper in to a bush.
Towards the end of the bike leg I was overtaken by the guy again and left it there. He'd take a while to catch me in the first place so I knew his run wouldn't be much. As I came to the mount line a swift dismount saw me overtake the guy and I beat him in to T2.
20km Bike was 34:18 and 12th place.
T2 was a pedestrian 34s as I put on my second pair of running shoes. This did save some time overall even though I had trouble getting in to the shoes.
The second run was the same course as the first. There was a good first km and then I had to keep pushing to stay on the pace. I was overtaken twice, then after a few km caught up with one of the guys. Shortly before the 4.5km point I was overtaken again and there was no way at that point I would be able to kick and stay with him. That said I managed a ramp and then kicked at the 5km marker. As I came round the final bend I saw 1:17:56 on the clock and gave a good sprint hoping to fall in under the minute. Second run in 21:44 and 10th position on the run.
The combined time was 1:18:00 exactly and 10th place overall. This was 8th Male Senior and I reckon 4th M35-39. Not a PB, but then not a flat/slightly short course like Dorney and not a qualifier either. I wasn't racing for a particular time, but racing tactically for positions.
It's always interesting to dissect the results of multisport and see where I came on each leg compared to others. For example the guy who came 7th had the 28th fastest run#1, 15th fastest run#2 and a shocking T1. However his bike was very good!
As I have said, I didn't push as hard as I could on run#1 and I was fairly conservative on the bike. I pushed where I knew I could and the course would allow but otherwise not going too hard. I did burn a match at a compulsory stop where I left the bike in the wrong gear! This did work out with only a 44s increase on run#2. The bike numbers also tell a similar story with a Normalised Power and Average Power of 240W for the bike leg (VI of 1.00 obviously). Best 20minute power was 241W for both compared to 258W at a qualifier earlier in the year where my second run suffered by over a minute.
As an event Dinton was great. Good grass roots with a lot of first timers coming from both run and bike backgrounds. Lots of MTBs and team entrants too. Will be nice to see how this event flourishes next year.
It was very local and only took a few minutes to get there and register. A quick spin up the road and back then time to rack the bike. The advantage of having a surname beginning with A is often a low race number. #2 in this case.
Found my spot and racked the bike and attached my shoes. I seemed to be the only one doing so; admittedly the ground was a little damp but I didn't think it would be too bad. I deposited a pair of trainers at the rear of my bike which garnered some odd looks, then went for a warm up run. Back in time for briefing.
We lined up and watch a mini-helicopter take a video of us and then we were off. The pace was a little tasty and so I reigned it in a bit and started to get overtaken a few times. The run was a 5.3km loop around the lakes of Dinton Pastures near Wokingham. After a few km I began to reel in some of the overtakers, moving from one to another and so on. Throughout I kept an eye on the pace and I didn't want to overcook the first run. Just before km 4 there was a little lump in the trail, then another. Both upset the pacing but the short downhill afterwards was a blessing.
I went through 5km in 19:39 it didn't seem like the usual hard effort for that pace, especially as I had earned a short-lived 5km PB on a similar course at Dinton in February. Run#1 done in 21:00 in 11th place.
T1 was a very swift 21s (second fastest!) and on to the bike. The LH strap had come undone so I got some speed up then managed to sort it out. Not easy with gloves on. After a few minutes I heard the whup-whup of a disc and was left standing as another tri bike came past. I was then alone for the next 8km before we hit a motorway bridge. I hung back as I didn't want to attack on a hill. A few guys came past me like a chaingang and hung off the back of a few in front. For the next few km we played cat and mouse. Each time I dropped back out of the draft zone. When I overtook, the protagonist typically sat on my wheel. After one overtake I even saw him throw a gel wrapper in to a bush.
Towards the end of the bike leg I was overtaken by the guy again and left it there. He'd take a while to catch me in the first place so I knew his run wouldn't be much. As I came to the mount line a swift dismount saw me overtake the guy and I beat him in to T2.
20km Bike was 34:18 and 12th place.
T2 was a pedestrian 34s as I put on my second pair of running shoes. This did save some time overall even though I had trouble getting in to the shoes.
The second run was the same course as the first. There was a good first km and then I had to keep pushing to stay on the pace. I was overtaken twice, then after a few km caught up with one of the guys. Shortly before the 4.5km point I was overtaken again and there was no way at that point I would be able to kick and stay with him. That said I managed a ramp and then kicked at the 5km marker. As I came round the final bend I saw 1:17:56 on the clock and gave a good sprint hoping to fall in under the minute. Second run in 21:44 and 10th position on the run.
The combined time was 1:18:00 exactly and 10th place overall. This was 8th Male Senior and I reckon 4th M35-39. Not a PB, but then not a flat/slightly short course like Dorney and not a qualifier either. I wasn't racing for a particular time, but racing tactically for positions.
It's always interesting to dissect the results of multisport and see where I came on each leg compared to others. For example the guy who came 7th had the 28th fastest run#1, 15th fastest run#2 and a shocking T1. However his bike was very good!
As I have said, I didn't push as hard as I could on run#1 and I was fairly conservative on the bike. I pushed where I knew I could and the course would allow but otherwise not going too hard. I did burn a match at a compulsory stop where I left the bike in the wrong gear! This did work out with only a 44s increase on run#2. The bike numbers also tell a similar story with a Normalised Power and Average Power of 240W for the bike leg (VI of 1.00 obviously). Best 20minute power was 241W for both compared to 258W at a qualifier earlier in the year where my second run suffered by over a minute.
As an event Dinton was great. Good grass roots with a lot of first timers coming from both run and bike backgrounds. Lots of MTBs and team entrants too. Will be nice to see how this event flourishes next year.
Wednesday, 10 July 2013
Time trialling - Interclub, Club champs & a PB
Last Thursday was another TT on the H10/2 in Berkshire. TVT club champs and also the annual inter-club between MDCC and TVT.
I cam straight from Heathrow, and would have been very early though by the time I'd found a cashpoint I was running late and ended up with #28 - a 2013 start time.
A good warm up on the course with a few others then a little time to relax...
Soon enough I was on the line and being counted down. After the last TT where I smashed the first few km despite trying not to, I kept a lid on it, watching HR and time to ensure I'd got about 4 minutes in before laying down the power. It is at this point that I suddenly feel like I'm not moving and everything is hard work. Well, it is and I had to get on with it.
The outbound run is downhill but in to wind It wasn't very long before I overtook my minute-man. The turn point is always a question of up on the base bars or stay aero; managed aero on the warmup but after 7 km ended up on the base bars for the TT - I think I can corner better and lean over more.
The inbound leg is uphill but downwind, so some help, but the upflats are noticeable. I caught a club member a few km after the turn point. Up the lumps and still feeling strong. Round the large roundabout near the start.
One other thing that helped this time was my Garmin 310XT. IN previous weeks it has stopped recording at 2-3km. I have a speed/cadence sensor on the bike but don't run a magnet on the rear wheel. The Garmin should default to GPS but for some reason does not. This only happens on the TT bike though strangely on the road bike the speed sensor is broken so only picks up cadence and does use GPS for speed... This time I'd fitted a wheel magnet and had a good record of my distance and how far to go. This enable me to pace much better and then really give it the beans for the last km, half of which is an upflat with the final effort flat.
Bars gripped tightly, mouth wide open trying to get oxygen and push push push.
Official time was 24:15 and 18th overall. Of the TVT members I came 5th. Happy with that result and an obvious improvement due to the TrainerRoad sessions earlier in the year. TrainingPeaks data here. This also includes the ride back to HQ. Note that the best 20 minute power is also the first 20 minutes. The downhill I guess.
Watching the Tour de France TT today I was intrigued to see that the riders all sit up for the final push. I wonder what difference this makes?
I cam straight from Heathrow, and would have been very early though by the time I'd found a cashpoint I was running late and ended up with #28 - a 2013 start time.
A good warm up on the course with a few others then a little time to relax...
Soon enough I was on the line and being counted down. After the last TT where I smashed the first few km despite trying not to, I kept a lid on it, watching HR and time to ensure I'd got about 4 minutes in before laying down the power. It is at this point that I suddenly feel like I'm not moving and everything is hard work. Well, it is and I had to get on with it.
The outbound run is downhill but in to wind It wasn't very long before I overtook my minute-man. The turn point is always a question of up on the base bars or stay aero; managed aero on the warmup but after 7 km ended up on the base bars for the TT - I think I can corner better and lean over more.
The inbound leg is uphill but downwind, so some help, but the upflats are noticeable. I caught a club member a few km after the turn point. Up the lumps and still feeling strong. Round the large roundabout near the start.
One other thing that helped this time was my Garmin 310XT. IN previous weeks it has stopped recording at 2-3km. I have a speed/cadence sensor on the bike but don't run a magnet on the rear wheel. The Garmin should default to GPS but for some reason does not. This only happens on the TT bike though strangely on the road bike the speed sensor is broken so only picks up cadence and does use GPS for speed... This time I'd fitted a wheel magnet and had a good record of my distance and how far to go. This enable me to pace much better and then really give it the beans for the last km, half of which is an upflat with the final effort flat.
Bars gripped tightly, mouth wide open trying to get oxygen and push push push.
Official time was 24:15 and 18th overall. Of the TVT members I came 5th. Happy with that result and an obvious improvement due to the TrainerRoad sessions earlier in the year. TrainingPeaks data here. This also includes the ride back to HQ. Note that the best 20 minute power is also the first 20 minutes. The downhill I guess.
Watching the Tour de France TT today I was intrigued to see that the riders all sit up for the final push. I wonder what difference this makes?
Sunday, 23 June 2013
Man up, cupcake!
It's been a while. After more Achilles problems I decided to not run for a month. This led to a training funk where I just CBA with anything.
A swim, a walk and a cycle, followed by some days of nothing. I wanted to TT, but had had enough of wet and windy TTs. I finally made it back out on the Friday, after committing to 16 km (10 miles) on the bike per day during the week, and something longer on the weekend.
After a great day out with the family on the Saturday at Beale Park (in the rain, grrrr!) I got out on the bike. The next day I went over to Pangbourne via Bradfield, and went up Whitchurch Hill. Not as bad as I thought, and a good 70 km.
Throughout the week I swam, and did easy 16km rides. Tuesday was a hard club chaingang, starting with the fast group. After a stint of the front it was my turn to rotate to the back, unfortunately I missed the join and fell off the back. By the time I caught up with the 'last-man' she'd been dropped too. Then a third man. We had a good effort round the course until we were down to two of us. A final sprint back to the start and probably a better workout that hiding in the bunch.
Thursday was a local TT on H10/2. The pre-TT warmup saw me and two other club members in a team-time-trial style ride. Great fun! For the actual TT I knew not to go out too hard, but ended up doing so anyhow. I was a bit worried about that and also concerned I had overcooked the warmup. Luckily not. Despite a positive split by 24s I managed to set a new PB (again!) coming in at 24:36 for the 10 mile course. There may be some pictures too; I'll have a look.
Yesterday I volunteered at my local parkrun whilst wife and kids ran. In the afternoon I rode to a friend's bbq, via a lumpy 60 km route: Frimley, Guildford, Shalford, Godalming, Millford, Elstead, Frensham, Alice Holt. Instead of loading a route up on the Garmin I simply wrote the town names on toa piece of paper and taped it to my top tube. No route to follow, no path to lose. Make it up on the way.
Today I went for an easy 40 km around the back of Bracknell/Ascot. We're moving over that way later in the year so I thought I'd have a quick look-see.
One takeaway from the recent riding is that my hill climbing seems to be getting stronger, and I don't need a large cassette as I once thought. Little lumps don't exist and the long ones can be spun up fairly quickly with ease. The wind and rain don't seem to be too much of a problem either, once I'm out the door.
~228 km this week alone, without much thought or effort.
A swim, a walk and a cycle, followed by some days of nothing. I wanted to TT, but had had enough of wet and windy TTs. I finally made it back out on the Friday, after committing to 16 km (10 miles) on the bike per day during the week, and something longer on the weekend.
After a great day out with the family on the Saturday at Beale Park (in the rain, grrrr!) I got out on the bike. The next day I went over to Pangbourne via Bradfield, and went up Whitchurch Hill. Not as bad as I thought, and a good 70 km.
Throughout the week I swam, and did easy 16km rides. Tuesday was a hard club chaingang, starting with the fast group. After a stint of the front it was my turn to rotate to the back, unfortunately I missed the join and fell off the back. By the time I caught up with the 'last-man' she'd been dropped too. Then a third man. We had a good effort round the course until we were down to two of us. A final sprint back to the start and probably a better workout that hiding in the bunch.
Thursday was a local TT on H10/2. The pre-TT warmup saw me and two other club members in a team-time-trial style ride. Great fun! For the actual TT I knew not to go out too hard, but ended up doing so anyhow. I was a bit worried about that and also concerned I had overcooked the warmup. Luckily not. Despite a positive split by 24s I managed to set a new PB (again!) coming in at 24:36 for the 10 mile course. There may be some pictures too; I'll have a look.
Yesterday I volunteered at my local parkrun whilst wife and kids ran. In the afternoon I rode to a friend's bbq, via a lumpy 60 km route: Frimley, Guildford, Shalford, Godalming, Millford, Elstead, Frensham, Alice Holt. Instead of loading a route up on the Garmin I simply wrote the town names on toa piece of paper and taped it to my top tube. No route to follow, no path to lose. Make it up on the way.
Today I went for an easy 40 km around the back of Bracknell/Ascot. We're moving over that way later in the year so I thought I'd have a quick look-see.
One takeaway from the recent riding is that my hill climbing seems to be getting stronger, and I don't need a large cassette as I once thought. Little lumps don't exist and the long ones can be spun up fairly quickly with ease. The wind and rain don't seem to be too much of a problem either, once I'm out the door.
~228 km this week alone, without much thought or effort.
Sunday, 26 May 2013
Grendon tri - race report
As I mentioned before, I'd had a busy week. I'd not had time to get nervous about Grendon. Strange, as I had thrown my £10 in the BTF aiming to qualify for the 2014 European champs. Whilst I knew getting in the top 4 of my AG would be very tough, I was aiming for the sub 120% of AG winner time. This would put me in the rolldown list.
Kit was packed up the night before. I was picked up my some club members at 0530, and the journey up was uneventful. Registered, racked and ready to go. Last minute toilet stop, then wetsuit on.
Swim - 750 m
I was in the green-hat wave: M35-39 & M40-44. We got into the lake and had a few minutes warmup, then were called back to the start line. The water was very cold, but the warm up helped to control the breathing. Plenty of face splashes to get used to the cold!
Once the hooter went there was some biff, but not too bad. Managed to get on to some good feet and sighted towards a pylon in the distance. Got to the first buoy, assuming it to be about the 350m point. We had been instructed to turn 3/4 of the buoy then head towards the fallen-over orange buoy. It was hard to see and certainly not 3/4 of the way round the first buoy. At some point between the two buoys I was caught in a gap; the front swimmers had moved ahead and I'd pulled away from the group behind, but not as much as the people following. In short, no drafting! At the final turn buoy we went round and I picked up the exit arch in the distance, with the sun shining in to my eyes. Kept plugging away and the swim seemed to go on and on and on. Finally to the exit ramp and then out on to the matting. A long run of a couple of hundred meters to T1 followed. Including run 16:57 unsure what the actual swim time was.
T1
I knew with the long run that the water would drain from the wetsuit. This often gives the opportunity to get rid of the suit by the lake then run, rather than de-suiting in T1. I chose to go to T1. Of course, my suit got stuck (despite having removed inches of leg from the suit last year). Once I was out of my suit I put my helmet on, grabbed the bike and ran to the mount line. 1:30 shocking.
Bike - 23 km
Elastic band trick worked well.
The road out of Grendon lakes had many sharp speed bumps, so took it easy. On to the main road and up the first hill. Immediately I felt like I had nothing to give. My legs felt tired. I remained positive in my mind but was definitely struggling. A few downhill and downwind sections made me feel a bit better but ultimately I wasn't on form. It was also unusual to ride in sunny and warm conditions. I had pre-empted this and had a bottle on the bike. Not for drinking during the ride, but for the beginning and end, to save time drinking in T1 and T2. Average Power 245 W.
A depressing 42:33.
T2
LuckilyT2 was a bit swifter. My new ASICS race shoes came with their own elastic laces which I used in preference to the ones I had used many times before. I struggled to get my feet in to my trainers quickly, but got them in, grabbed pirate visor and off I went. A glacial 1:03.
Run - 5 km
The run course was a 2 lapper. Out from T2 past the lake to a pylon, then back diverting past another lake, then through the finish area to restart. The surface ranged from tarmac to gravel to stones to grass. Very interesting. The loop by the second lake also had a lump in it. After the usual jelly legs I got in to a good pace. Of course I knew that I wasn't going to qualify but still aimed to hit the 120% time. Even so, the body once again failed to react. I did manage a final sprint to the line. Run time a leisurely 22:47.
All in for 1:24:52. Was aiming for something a tad faster, Safe to say I missed the 120% time.
Reflection
The event, course and organisation were great. I cannot fault that at all, it was really good.
So was sitting in the car for 1000 miles the week before beneficial? We all have to work. Was I fully recovered from the 8 days in California challenge? Was running 3 times in the past 4 weeks ideal (one of which was a poor 10km race)? The lack of adrenaline and nervousness the week before and the day before are interesting.
So onwards and upwards. Swimming won't improve too much, but let's stay regular. Running off the bike must improve and I think some rest and easy cycling will solve the bike problems. Let's build towards Bristol tri in June, and then the duathlon qualifiers at the end of the year.
Think positive.
Kit was packed up the night before. I was picked up my some club members at 0530, and the journey up was uneventful. Registered, racked and ready to go. Last minute toilet stop, then wetsuit on.
Swim - 750 m
I was in the green-hat wave: M35-39 & M40-44. We got into the lake and had a few minutes warmup, then were called back to the start line. The water was very cold, but the warm up helped to control the breathing. Plenty of face splashes to get used to the cold!
Once the hooter went there was some biff, but not too bad. Managed to get on to some good feet and sighted towards a pylon in the distance. Got to the first buoy, assuming it to be about the 350m point. We had been instructed to turn 3/4 of the buoy then head towards the fallen-over orange buoy. It was hard to see and certainly not 3/4 of the way round the first buoy. At some point between the two buoys I was caught in a gap; the front swimmers had moved ahead and I'd pulled away from the group behind, but not as much as the people following. In short, no drafting! At the final turn buoy we went round and I picked up the exit arch in the distance, with the sun shining in to my eyes. Kept plugging away and the swim seemed to go on and on and on. Finally to the exit ramp and then out on to the matting. A long run of a couple of hundred meters to T1 followed. Including run 16:57 unsure what the actual swim time was.
T1
I knew with the long run that the water would drain from the wetsuit. This often gives the opportunity to get rid of the suit by the lake then run, rather than de-suiting in T1. I chose to go to T1. Of course, my suit got stuck (despite having removed inches of leg from the suit last year). Once I was out of my suit I put my helmet on, grabbed the bike and ran to the mount line. 1:30 shocking.
Bike - 23 km
Elastic band trick worked well.
The road out of Grendon lakes had many sharp speed bumps, so took it easy. On to the main road and up the first hill. Immediately I felt like I had nothing to give. My legs felt tired. I remained positive in my mind but was definitely struggling. A few downhill and downwind sections made me feel a bit better but ultimately I wasn't on form. It was also unusual to ride in sunny and warm conditions. I had pre-empted this and had a bottle on the bike. Not for drinking during the ride, but for the beginning and end, to save time drinking in T1 and T2. Average Power 245 W.
A depressing 42:33.
T2
LuckilyT2 was a bit swifter. My new ASICS race shoes came with their own elastic laces which I used in preference to the ones I had used many times before. I struggled to get my feet in to my trainers quickly, but got them in, grabbed pirate visor and off I went. A glacial 1:03.
Run - 5 km
The run course was a 2 lapper. Out from T2 past the lake to a pylon, then back diverting past another lake, then through the finish area to restart. The surface ranged from tarmac to gravel to stones to grass. Very interesting. The loop by the second lake also had a lump in it. After the usual jelly legs I got in to a good pace. Of course I knew that I wasn't going to qualify but still aimed to hit the 120% time. Even so, the body once again failed to react. I did manage a final sprint to the line. Run time a leisurely 22:47.
All in for 1:24:52. Was aiming for something a tad faster, Safe to say I missed the 120% time.
Reflection
The event, course and organisation were great. I cannot fault that at all, it was really good.
So was sitting in the car for 1000 miles the week before beneficial? We all have to work. Was I fully recovered from the 8 days in California challenge? Was running 3 times in the past 4 weeks ideal (one of which was a poor 10km race)? The lack of adrenaline and nervousness the week before and the day before are interesting.
So onwards and upwards. Swimming won't improve too much, but let's stay regular. Running off the bike must improve and I think some rest and easy cycling will solve the bike problems. Let's build towards Bristol tri in June, and then the duathlon qualifiers at the end of the year.
Think positive.
Saturday, 11 May 2013
Weekly update
After the bittersweet PB at Shinfield I took it easy....not!
Tuesday night was the tri-club chaingang. A new thing for me, so I set off in a group of people I've ridden with before. It wasn't long before we were overtaking most other groups. As the 2 riders on the front tired they'd rotate to the back, and everyone would take a turn.
A few attacks here and there around the 30km course, then a big final push where I completely emptied the bag then limped back to the finish, absolutely spent! Good fun, and our group finished in about 55 minutes for the 30 km loop. We'd taken it easy as it was the first week!
Wednesday was a gash rest day.
Thursday was the Maidenhead CC 10mile time trial. I've done a few, though this was the first time on course H10/2. I signed on as number #11, then went for a 10km warmup looping around two roundabouts in a business park.
The course was an out-and-back along the A4. The course trends down on the way out, and up on the way back. To make it interesting a strong wind was blowing. Weather was:
I took the first km easy, as going all out here has caused problems in the past. Last km was a big push, and I came in at 25:38 - second overall. Winning time was 25:13.
Tuesday night was the tri-club chaingang. A new thing for me, so I set off in a group of people I've ridden with before. It wasn't long before we were overtaking most other groups. As the 2 riders on the front tired they'd rotate to the back, and everyone would take a turn.
A few attacks here and there around the 30km course, then a big final push where I completely emptied the bag then limped back to the finish, absolutely spent! Good fun, and our group finished in about 55 minutes for the 30 km loop. We'd taken it easy as it was the first week!
Wednesday was a gash rest day.
Thursday was the Maidenhead CC 10mile time trial. I've done a few, though this was the first time on course H10/2. I signed on as number #11, then went for a 10km warmup looping around two roundabouts in a business park.
The course was an out-and-back along the A4. The course trends down on the way out, and up on the way back. To make it interesting a strong wind was blowing. Weather was:
Rain, 10 °C, SW 23 mph, 1005 hPa, Rising
So in-to wind on the downhill way out, and downwind on the uphill way home.I took the first km easy, as going all out here has caused problems in the past. Last km was a big push, and I came in at 25:38 - second overall. Winning time was 25:13.
Thursday, 25 April 2013
ETU European sprint duathlon champs race report.....long overdue
I've finally had a chance to sit down and write my race report!
I spent most of the morning before the race stewing in the hotel. I'd have liked to go in to town earlier but I had a transfer package booked with Nirvana, so waited with a few others for the transport. I took great delight in seeing that Sufferfest had changed their Facebook banner to my picture below.
We were dropped off, and made our way through the town to transition, where we showed our numbers and were allowed in. Bike were racked using the upright gaps in crowd fencing. To keep the bikes upright we had to push them quite far in, which made it difficult to get the bike in/out with shoes attached. We were also each given a transition box, similar to the WTS. Plenty of faffage ensued. Had a gel 30 minutes before the start, then joined up for the team photo.
A good run warmup was had. Taking in some of the run route and seeing the elites and juniors do their thing. Plenty of pickups and strides. After dumping my last bits of kit I wandered to the start and found a quiet back street to do some heel flicks, high knees and more pickups. Soon I was surrounded by other athletes doing the same.
We got to the start line, but the race was delayed as the female junior race had over-run. Not just over-run but run-past; the marshalls hadn't clocked 2 Russian Federation athletes miss the finish chute! Once they were correctly herded, the start horn went off. I'm not sure anyone was expecting it!
The run course was 2 laps of a twisty-turny 2.5km course. The starting gate was some 3m wide, and it was cross-country rules. So many people in such a small space.
As the athletes spread out we took up the width of the road and pavement. It was like a parcour run. We streamed around bollards and jumped over kerbstones. As the run went on the field began to thin out. First km was 3:30. There was a part of the course where the run went through a grassy area with path. I stuck to the path but saw that a few were running a straight line on the grass.
Throughout the run I kept the pace strong and stuck with those around me. The first run in a duathlon is tricky - too slack a pace and you lose a lot of places. To fast a pace and there is nothing left for later. Run #1 for 18:26.
T1 went very smoothly initially, straight to bike, helmet on, grab bike and go. I got to the end of the bike rack and realised I still had my trainers on. Shit! Leant the bike on the fence and ran back to dump my shoes. I was expecting about 45s for T1, but this schoolboy error cost me 1:31 in total, and 16 places.
Out of T1 and I jumped on the bike, slipping my right foot straight in to my shoe. After a few turns of the cranks I tightened up the strap, span a bit more then got my left foot in to the shoe. Strap tightened again after a few more turns of the cranks. After this phot was taken I turned my race belt round.
Normally at this point it would be down on the aerobars for the next 20km, but Horst had a town centre course. Like the run it was 2 laps, though each was 10km this time. Each lap wound through the town until we passed under the motorway. Then we could nail the bike until the 180 degree turn point, then back in to town. On the return we wandered around Horst again before finally making it back to the centre to start the second lap.
With so many people on the course there was inevitably some drafting going on. The draft police were out in full force, and I saw some people being put in to the penalty box for drafting. Once out on the open road for the first time the field did thin. From this point onwards it was a war of attrition and technique. Pulling close to the bike infront but not infringing the 8m box, then pushing on past for the overtake, before dropping in front of the bike, causing them to drop back out of the box. All whilst not infringing the draft box of the bike in front. At one point I did a triple overtake. Because of all of this, the ride was not a like a true TT and the power was a lot less that I thought I'd do. Average Power was 244 W, and Normalised was 247 W. This gave a VI of 1.01. Cadence was a lot lower than normal at 92 RPM.
I'll happily admit that I am not the best technical rider. I'm fast in a straight line, but corners can be tricky. At one point I was sparring with an Irish guy. He'd overtake every corner and then I'd hammer the exit and overtake again. After many corners I managed to get far enough in front for it not to be a problem any more. One final turn in to town and I removed my feet from my shoes and rolled in to T2. Bike carefully shoved in to the correct fence gap and helmet carefully thrown in to my transition box. Bike 35:20. I'd managed to pick up 9 places.
T2 was happier and I exited after a speedy 48s.
The second and final run hurt.
The pace started off shockingly low, every step a jelly-legged effort, but I pushed on. Out on the run, no longer the parcour course of before but a lonely trudge. I lost a few places initially, but as the legs began to warm up the pace began to increase. This allowed me to edge closer and closer to the pack in front. At the same time I could hear footsteps behind. As we came around the corner past transition I pushed the pace and dropped the GBR athlete behind. The final corner was where the GBR team manager was based, with a large bunch of GBR flags. I fumbled the pickup so continued. I moved on to the finish chute and fumbled another flag pick up, Finally I shouted out FLAG!!! and grabbed a GB flag from a random spectator (Thanks!).
There was another GBR in front, but he seemed out of reach. One last big push and I'd take him.
All that was left was to cross the line (and stop my Garmin).
Run #2 worked out at 2.8km, as the sprint transition was moved to create more room. The last run took 10:49 and I finished 13th in M35-39 age-group.
So sitting back afterwards, what are my thoughs on the AG system?
I really enjoyed myself. Yes, the cost can take away some of the enjoyment and quite a few in the hotel were eating their home-brought food instead of paying the €14 for breakfast. However we were there representing our country. Pretty much the pinnacle of our athletic careers. I met some great people and had an absolutely fantastic time.
Many thanks to all that supported me, especially TrainerRoad for keeping me true on the turbo throughout my training!
I spent most of the morning before the race stewing in the hotel. I'd have liked to go in to town earlier but I had a transfer package booked with Nirvana, so waited with a few others for the transport. I took great delight in seeing that Sufferfest had changed their Facebook banner to my picture below.
We were dropped off, and made our way through the town to transition, where we showed our numbers and were allowed in. Bike were racked using the upright gaps in crowd fencing. To keep the bikes upright we had to push them quite far in, which made it difficult to get the bike in/out with shoes attached. We were also each given a transition box, similar to the WTS. Plenty of faffage ensued. Had a gel 30 minutes before the start, then joined up for the team photo.
A good run warmup was had. Taking in some of the run route and seeing the elites and juniors do their thing. Plenty of pickups and strides. After dumping my last bits of kit I wandered to the start and found a quiet back street to do some heel flicks, high knees and more pickups. Soon I was surrounded by other athletes doing the same.
We got to the start line, but the race was delayed as the female junior race had over-run. Not just over-run but run-past; the marshalls hadn't clocked 2 Russian Federation athletes miss the finish chute! Once they were correctly herded, the start horn went off. I'm not sure anyone was expecting it!
The run course was 2 laps of a twisty-turny 2.5km course. The starting gate was some 3m wide, and it was cross-country rules. So many people in such a small space.
As the athletes spread out we took up the width of the road and pavement. It was like a parcour run. We streamed around bollards and jumped over kerbstones. As the run went on the field began to thin out. First km was 3:30. There was a part of the course where the run went through a grassy area with path. I stuck to the path but saw that a few were running a straight line on the grass.
Throughout the run I kept the pace strong and stuck with those around me. The first run in a duathlon is tricky - too slack a pace and you lose a lot of places. To fast a pace and there is nothing left for later. Run #1 for 18:26.
T1 went very smoothly initially, straight to bike, helmet on, grab bike and go. I got to the end of the bike rack and realised I still had my trainers on. Shit! Leant the bike on the fence and ran back to dump my shoes. I was expecting about 45s for T1, but this schoolboy error cost me 1:31 in total, and 16 places.
Out of T1 and I jumped on the bike, slipping my right foot straight in to my shoe. After a few turns of the cranks I tightened up the strap, span a bit more then got my left foot in to the shoe. Strap tightened again after a few more turns of the cranks. After this phot was taken I turned my race belt round.
Normally at this point it would be down on the aerobars for the next 20km, but Horst had a town centre course. Like the run it was 2 laps, though each was 10km this time. Each lap wound through the town until we passed under the motorway. Then we could nail the bike until the 180 degree turn point, then back in to town. On the return we wandered around Horst again before finally making it back to the centre to start the second lap.
With so many people on the course there was inevitably some drafting going on. The draft police were out in full force, and I saw some people being put in to the penalty box for drafting. Once out on the open road for the first time the field did thin. From this point onwards it was a war of attrition and technique. Pulling close to the bike infront but not infringing the 8m box, then pushing on past for the overtake, before dropping in front of the bike, causing them to drop back out of the box. All whilst not infringing the draft box of the bike in front. At one point I did a triple overtake. Because of all of this, the ride was not a like a true TT and the power was a lot less that I thought I'd do. Average Power was 244 W, and Normalised was 247 W. This gave a VI of 1.01. Cadence was a lot lower than normal at 92 RPM.
I'll happily admit that I am not the best technical rider. I'm fast in a straight line, but corners can be tricky. At one point I was sparring with an Irish guy. He'd overtake every corner and then I'd hammer the exit and overtake again. After many corners I managed to get far enough in front for it not to be a problem any more. One final turn in to town and I removed my feet from my shoes and rolled in to T2. Bike carefully shoved in to the correct fence gap and helmet carefully thrown in to my transition box. Bike 35:20. I'd managed to pick up 9 places.
T2 was happier and I exited after a speedy 48s.
The second and final run hurt.
The pace started off shockingly low, every step a jelly-legged effort, but I pushed on. Out on the run, no longer the parcour course of before but a lonely trudge. I lost a few places initially, but as the legs began to warm up the pace began to increase. This allowed me to edge closer and closer to the pack in front. At the same time I could hear footsteps behind. As we came around the corner past transition I pushed the pace and dropped the GBR athlete behind. The final corner was where the GBR team manager was based, with a large bunch of GBR flags. I fumbled the pickup so continued. I moved on to the finish chute and fumbled another flag pick up, Finally I shouted out FLAG!!! and grabbed a GB flag from a random spectator (Thanks!).
There was another GBR in front, but he seemed out of reach. One last big push and I'd take him.
All that was left was to cross the line (and stop my Garmin).
Run #2 worked out at 2.8km, as the sprint transition was moved to create more room. The last run took 10:49 and I finished 13th in M35-39 age-group.
So sitting back afterwards, what are my thoughs on the AG system?
I really enjoyed myself. Yes, the cost can take away some of the enjoyment and quite a few in the hotel were eating their home-brought food instead of paying the €14 for breakfast. However we were there representing our country. Pretty much the pinnacle of our athletic careers. I met some great people and had an absolutely fantastic time.
Many thanks to all that supported me, especially TrainerRoad for keeping me true on the turbo throughout my training!
Sunday, 14 April 2013
Lighting the taper, and new trisuit revealed!
It's been another busy week. I got out on the TT bike in the sun last Sunday. It was a pleasure to ride some country routes without wrapping up like an Eskimo.
Monday was going to be busy with work so I went out for an early morning run, in the sun again! I had to pick up a colleague up from the airport and managed to drop in to Blade printing on the way to hand over my Adidas tri-suit for printing, in case the Z3R0D suits were not available. At the same time the team received an email telling us to order the new suits online. After some confusion we were then told to order them direct from the BTF.
Tuesday started at a hotel in Essex where I tested out the gym bike with Audiofuel's Ride Harder#1. 40 minutes of pyramid intervals - good stuff. I washed this breakfast down with a 15 minutes treadmill brick, then went to meet my colleagues for a proper meal. After a couple of busy days I got home late Wednesday, just in time to go to the track. Our club coach had planned 3 reps of the following:
That slipped until Friday lunch time. I rode Sufferfest's The Wretched on TrainerRoad. A good way of keeping true to power.
I also received my Z3R0D GB trisuit at last, all printed up. Very proud!
Saturday was an early run before a wedding. It was my turn to drive as it was a friend of my wife. Next time she can drive! Today was finished off with a good session on the TT bike.
Taper time now. Shorter sessions but just as intense. Heading out to the Netherlands on Thursday.
Monday was going to be busy with work so I went out for an early morning run, in the sun again! I had to pick up a colleague up from the airport and managed to drop in to Blade printing on the way to hand over my Adidas tri-suit for printing, in case the Z3R0D suits were not available. At the same time the team received an email telling us to order the new suits online. After some confusion we were then told to order them direct from the BTF.
Tuesday started at a hotel in Essex where I tested out the gym bike with Audiofuel's Ride Harder#1. 40 minutes of pyramid intervals - good stuff. I washed this breakfast down with a 15 minutes treadmill brick, then went to meet my colleagues for a proper meal. After a couple of busy days I got home late Wednesday, just in time to go to the track. Our club coach had planned 3 reps of the following:
- 1200m at HM pace
- 400m at 10km pace
- 200m at 5km pace
That slipped until Friday lunch time. I rode Sufferfest's The Wretched on TrainerRoad. A good way of keeping true to power.
I also received my Z3R0D GB trisuit at last, all printed up. Very proud!
Saturday was an early run before a wedding. It was my turn to drive as it was a friend of my wife. Next time she can drive! Today was finished off with a good session on the TT bike.
Taper time now. Shorter sessions but just as intense. Heading out to the Netherlands on Thursday.
Saturday, 6 April 2013
Testing times
So following on from my last post I said I would take a week or so from running, which I did. I also did the early morning Threshold turbo session - TrainerRoad's Goethe.
It was strange doing such a session first thing, a few minutes after waking. This season most of my training has been in the evening and my body had to wake up rapidly this time. HR was lower than usual but was to be expected. It was nice to know the workout was done and out the way. This freed up the evening to go to a tri-club curry night, with a coaching discussion.
Wednesday was an active recovery turbo in the evening, followed by the first cycling Time Trial of the season on Thursday. I woke with a sore throat, and it had got worse by the evening. Work had overrun, and I left the house in a panic. I'd planned to cycle a lap of the course as a warmup, but in the end did some small loops. Not enough unfortunately. All I could do was shiver.
I signed on the line and was given #22. The first lap was OK even though I knew the last part of each lap was in to wind. The second lap became a lot harder halfway through. Post-ride analysis from my PowerCal shows the best 20 minute power was minutes 0-20! It was a real struggle to put out any power towards the end. Normally a TT is hard, but this was something else. After crossing the line I had an easy pedal up the road and back again, got in the car and went home, still cold. The time was horrendous and not what I had expected.
My NP for the TT was 259W and the AP 256W. More than both duathlons but not by much. Overall I was 10th of 22 riders, and the 14 knot wind didn't help. On the plus side I tried out a visor I'd bought for my TT helmet back in August! Reminded me a bit of flying, with the visor that far from my face - I'm used to riding in sunglasses.
All evening I was shivering and my muscles were sore. Friday I awoke with a headache, sore throat and sore muscles. Not happy, and didn't do any training.
Today was much better and managed to get out in the sun (yes, sun!) for a nice run, mostly track and trail. A bit further than 8km; some tenderness in the Achilles to begin with but it soon dissapeared. A tad tender afterwards but nothing to write home about.
Next week is a busy week with travel so aiming to bike long tomorrow, bike Monday before work then run Tuesday before work. Back to track on Wednesday, though not too hard a session.
It was strange doing such a session first thing, a few minutes after waking. This season most of my training has been in the evening and my body had to wake up rapidly this time. HR was lower than usual but was to be expected. It was nice to know the workout was done and out the way. This freed up the evening to go to a tri-club curry night, with a coaching discussion.
Wednesday was an active recovery turbo in the evening, followed by the first cycling Time Trial of the season on Thursday. I woke with a sore throat, and it had got worse by the evening. Work had overrun, and I left the house in a panic. I'd planned to cycle a lap of the course as a warmup, but in the end did some small loops. Not enough unfortunately. All I could do was shiver.
I signed on the line and was given #22. The first lap was OK even though I knew the last part of each lap was in to wind. The second lap became a lot harder halfway through. Post-ride analysis from my PowerCal shows the best 20 minute power was minutes 0-20! It was a real struggle to put out any power towards the end. Normally a TT is hard, but this was something else. After crossing the line I had an easy pedal up the road and back again, got in the car and went home, still cold. The time was horrendous and not what I had expected.
My NP for the TT was 259W and the AP 256W. More than both duathlons but not by much. Overall I was 10th of 22 riders, and the 14 knot wind didn't help. On the plus side I tried out a visor I'd bought for my TT helmet back in August! Reminded me a bit of flying, with the visor that far from my face - I'm used to riding in sunglasses.
All evening I was shivering and my muscles were sore. Friday I awoke with a headache, sore throat and sore muscles. Not happy, and didn't do any training.
Today was much better and managed to get out in the sun (yes, sun!) for a nice run, mostly track and trail. A bit further than 8km; some tenderness in the Achilles to begin with but it soon dissapeared. A tad tender afterwards but nothing to write home about.
Next week is a busy week with travel so aiming to bike long tomorrow, bike Monday before work then run Tuesday before work. Back to track on Wednesday, though not too hard a session.
Monday, 1 April 2013
Quarterly review
2013 - what a year, and we're only 3 months in!
It seems that January was mostly spent indoors though the number show otherwise. A minimal amount of running, most off-road due to ice and snow including a good XC league race at Tadley. Lots of turbo cycling though - great quality and quantity.
February was an improvement in running volume and quality though the biking was reduced due to tapering and racing. Some good duathlon race results at Dorney and Althorp and of course qualifying for the ETU champs.
March was a bigger month all round with some great quality bike (road and MTB) and run sessions. The month was finished nicely with a ~4 hour club ride finishing at the cafe at Dinton Pastures, where I refulled with a sausage roll, chocolate fudge cake and a coffee.
With hindsight I wish I'd had some quick tracker so I can separate turbo and road rides. Perhaps something for me to add to my TrainingPeaks metrics.
April started with an easy 30km road ride, where I took in a lap of the HCC234 time trial course. My TT season starts there this Thursday. Tomorrow morning will be a good threshold TrainerRoad turbo session and Wednesday will be a 30 minute recovery ride to spin the legs out in readiness for Thursday. I'll swim Friday.
No running for me this week. A tight calf has caused my Achilles to become sore. Knocking running on the head for a week will not affect the goal for me. I will also stop my daily hamstring stretched as I have an inkling that the stretches are also contributing to the problem. Shame, as I was enjoying the track sessions. More time on the foam roller needed.
Even though it was a busy training weekend, the extra two days holiday meant some really good family time was had. We didn't do much - visited the in-laws Saturday for more cake, and then back over for Sunday lunch. Friday and today we chilled at home. Daughter leant to play draughts and is already beating me. One day I'll win against my wife too. Here's hoping at least!
It seems that January was mostly spent indoors though the number show otherwise. A minimal amount of running, most off-road due to ice and snow including a good XC league race at Tadley. Lots of turbo cycling though - great quality and quantity.
February was an improvement in running volume and quality though the biking was reduced due to tapering and racing. Some good duathlon race results at Dorney and Althorp and of course qualifying for the ETU champs.
March was a bigger month all round with some great quality bike (road and MTB) and run sessions. The month was finished nicely with a ~4 hour club ride finishing at the cafe at Dinton Pastures, where I refulled with a sausage roll, chocolate fudge cake and a coffee.
With hindsight I wish I'd had some quick tracker so I can separate turbo and road rides. Perhaps something for me to add to my TrainingPeaks metrics.
April started with an easy 30km road ride, where I took in a lap of the HCC234 time trial course. My TT season starts there this Thursday. Tomorrow morning will be a good threshold TrainerRoad turbo session and Wednesday will be a 30 minute recovery ride to spin the legs out in readiness for Thursday. I'll swim Friday.
No running for me this week. A tight calf has caused my Achilles to become sore. Knocking running on the head for a week will not affect the goal for me. I will also stop my daily hamstring stretched as I have an inkling that the stretches are also contributing to the problem. Shame, as I was enjoying the track sessions. More time on the foam roller needed.
Even though it was a busy training weekend, the extra two days holiday meant some really good family time was had. We didn't do much - visited the in-laws Saturday for more cake, and then back over for Sunday lunch. Friday and today we chilled at home. Daughter leant to play draughts and is already beating me. One day I'll win against my wife too. Here's hoping at least!
Thursday, 28 March 2013
A run focus
Last week was bike focused; this week is all about the run.
Monday was a club swim. Tuesday was a tempo run with my running club. A good distance for the tempo section at a good pace. Unfortunately my elastic laces caused my feet to start slipping in the shoes and the day after my feet were really sore.
Each toe has a blister on the end and the underside of my feet are quite sore too. I replaced the elastic laces with normal laces for Wednesday's track session. Another good session with 3 sets of decreasing reps. My left Achilles was a tad tender afterwards too, but nothing the foam roller can't cure!
Tonight saw me back on the turbo, doing a TrainerRoad sweetspot session to get the legs going, and watch some of a Harry Potter film.
Tomorrow I hope to get outside, or I'll hit a threshold session on the turbo.
Monday was a club swim. Tuesday was a tempo run with my running club. A good distance for the tempo section at a good pace. Unfortunately my elastic laces caused my feet to start slipping in the shoes and the day after my feet were really sore.
Each toe has a blister on the end and the underside of my feet are quite sore too. I replaced the elastic laces with normal laces for Wednesday's track session. Another good session with 3 sets of decreasing reps. My left Achilles was a tad tender afterwards too, but nothing the foam roller can't cure!
Tonight saw me back on the turbo, doing a TrainerRoad sweetspot session to get the legs going, and watch some of a Harry Potter film.
Tomorrow I hope to get outside, or I'll hit a threshold session on the turbo.
Sunday, 24 March 2013
Weekly update
It's Sunday evening so time to catch up on the week since my last post.
Wednesday was the start of the tri-club's track-brick sessions. After a good warm up and some drills I did 3 reps of 6 min bike and 800m track. Each bike rep was high cadence and the 3 800m reps were very well paced. Slightly slower than my usual 800m target but taken easier as I'd raced at the weekend.
Thursday saw an hour on the turbo riding Sufferfest's Fight Club on TrainerRoad. A good session especially with the sprint intervals within each interval rep. I'm not a big fan of big-gear low-cadence work, but it must be done to build strength!
Friday was a warm, sunny lunch time easy run, with some added pick-ups to keep me race-pace aware. Some trail, some road and some very muddy XC section. My XC shoes had only just dried after Marlow!
Saturday morning a parcel arrived in the post for me. It was the flag and stickers that Sufferfest had donated to me. Thanks Sufferfest!
My wife and I knew we had a busy weekend ahead of us. Both children had parties to go to plus the usual visit to the in-laws for cake. Normally I'd cycle over with a long detour though the logistics for the children meant that I'd not do it this week. That, and with the weekend weather forecast looking grim I'd planned to ride Sufferfest's new video, Blender. However I thought I should get outside and took the opportunity to ride my rarely-used MTB. I knew that Swinley Forest was being reworked in to a trail centre so I decided to take a snowy look.
Once my daughter had been collected I cycled over to Swinley with a friendand we spend an hour and a half trying out the new trails. The trail work is very impressive with some good surfaces and a noticeable lack of surface water despite the waterlogged forestry all around. A quick cup of Bovril and flapjack in the cafe, then a further hour rolling around Swinley before heading home for a warm cup of tea.
A really enjoyable session and back in the nick of time; we arrived just as my daughter was being dropped home.
This morning I left the family to their lie-in and headed out with a few friends from my running club. We ran deep wet muddy XC trails and climbed a few hills before heading back in to woodland trails and more mud. We parted ways after about an hour and I did another 30 minutes on my own whilst they went of for some longer mileage. Even though it was cold and lightly snowing it was a good run. I'm so lucky to have such a vast amount of running and cycling terrain on my doorstep.
I got home to find that my wife had baked a lovely cake, ideal recovery food from a run. I also found out that my son's couple of red spots had turned in to full blown chicken pox overnight. Unfortunately for him he would not be going to any party today, and had unwittingly jeopardised my daughters own birthday party scheduled for this week. Other than being very itchy he doesn't appear to be suffering and still tore round the house like a barbarian all afternoon.
Another good week of family fun and 9 hours quality training.
Wednesday was the start of the tri-club's track-brick sessions. After a good warm up and some drills I did 3 reps of 6 min bike and 800m track. Each bike rep was high cadence and the 3 800m reps were very well paced. Slightly slower than my usual 800m target but taken easier as I'd raced at the weekend.
Thursday saw an hour on the turbo riding Sufferfest's Fight Club on TrainerRoad. A good session especially with the sprint intervals within each interval rep. I'm not a big fan of big-gear low-cadence work, but it must be done to build strength!
Friday was a warm, sunny lunch time easy run, with some added pick-ups to keep me race-pace aware. Some trail, some road and some very muddy XC section. My XC shoes had only just dried after Marlow!
Saturday morning a parcel arrived in the post for me. It was the flag and stickers that Sufferfest had donated to me. Thanks Sufferfest!
My wife and I knew we had a busy weekend ahead of us. Both children had parties to go to plus the usual visit to the in-laws for cake. Normally I'd cycle over with a long detour though the logistics for the children meant that I'd not do it this week. That, and with the weekend weather forecast looking grim I'd planned to ride Sufferfest's new video, Blender. However I thought I should get outside and took the opportunity to ride my rarely-used MTB. I knew that Swinley Forest was being reworked in to a trail centre so I decided to take a snowy look.
Once my daughter had been collected I cycled over to Swinley with a friendand we spend an hour and a half trying out the new trails. The trail work is very impressive with some good surfaces and a noticeable lack of surface water despite the waterlogged forestry all around. A quick cup of Bovril and flapjack in the cafe, then a further hour rolling around Swinley before heading home for a warm cup of tea.
A really enjoyable session and back in the nick of time; we arrived just as my daughter was being dropped home.
This morning I left the family to their lie-in and headed out with a few friends from my running club. We ran deep wet muddy XC trails and climbed a few hills before heading back in to woodland trails and more mud. We parted ways after about an hour and I did another 30 minutes on my own whilst they went of for some longer mileage. Even though it was cold and lightly snowing it was a good run. I'm so lucky to have such a vast amount of running and cycling terrain on my doorstep.
I got home to find that my wife had baked a lovely cake, ideal recovery food from a run. I also found out that my son's couple of red spots had turned in to full blown chicken pox overnight. Unfortunately for him he would not be going to any party today, and had unwittingly jeopardised my daughters own birthday party scheduled for this week. Other than being very itchy he doesn't appear to be suffering and still tore round the house like a barbarian all afternoon.
Another good week of family fun and 9 hours quality training.
Sunday, 17 March 2013
Race report - Marlow duathlon
To catch up with the week...
Wednesday evening was a pyramid track session. Thursday I rode Sufferfest's There Is No Try on TrainerRoad. During the middle TT section I could feel some cramps building in my left calf and then on the final high-power interval the cramps arrived and locked my leg solid. I still went out for my planned transition run then finished off with a 10 minute spin on the bike.
Friday's tempo run became an easy multi-terrain run with a few pickups; mainly as I was racing Sunday and also to run off the muscle stiffness from the cramp. Saturday was a rest day and after visiting my local bike shop I took the kids to a local park. They have an outdoor gym there and it was funny to watch both of them trying leg pushes, ski-trainer and stationary bike.
So on to the duathlon. Marlow Striders have run this annual event for a fair few years now. It is a great, friendly, grass-roots event and gets better every year; this year had chip-timing and proper age-group results. In past years the proceeds have contributed to the purchase of Marlow sports ground, along with the other resident clubs.
I had been watching the weather for a few days. Despite raining yesterday the evening forecast promised a dry morning with minimum wind with heavy rain coming in before 12pm.
Upon arrival it was noticeably cooler than at home even though it wasn't too far away. After registering and getting a coffee I took the bike out for a 10 minute spin to make sure all was OK, and then racked the bike. After some more faff I adjusted my rear brake, set up my shoes on the bike and then went for a quick warm up run. Back to the start line for the briefing, and then the hooter went.
The first run is 7.5km - round the sports field, out down Pound Lane (a track), along a muddy path then on to the Thames path. Over the Thames on a wooden bridge then cross country again. Through a low tunnel, round Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre then continuing on the road across the Thames at Marlow. Through Higginson park (grass and mud) then back down Pound Lane to the large gate and across the field to T1.
Run#1.
My target time for this was 30 minutes. As usual it wasn't long before I was hot, even in the overcast conditions - I have raced most duathlons this year in a white short-sleeve base layer, arm warmers and tri-suit. All was well until we hit the muddy track. In past years a cold spell has made this track passable though hard underfoot. Today it was a quagmire, with most people struggling to stay upright, even those in XC shoes like myself. After some effort the path ended and the Thames path appeared. The wooden bridge was slippery on the way up and even more so on the way back down. Up to this point I had been sparing with a fellow Finch Coasters' runner. She had some great XC shoes and made some headway on the mud but I managed to overtake on the road section. Good going on the roads until we hit the mud in Higginson park and then in to T1.
Run#1: 30:44.
T1 was a pedestrian 55 seconds due to running up the wrong row in transition. Found my bike, put my helmet and glasses on and I immediately noticed that my glasses had steamed and would not clear.
Bike.
After jumping on the bike at the mount line my feet found my shoes and off I went. Plan was to take it relatively easy on the first couple of km as they were uphill, then I could hammer the downhill and the rest of the 25km course. Then it started to rain, and I struggled to keep my glasses clear. At the top of the hill I got ready to hit the descent though it was hard to see due to my glasses and the rain. I should have used the clear lenses too.
The entire course was waterlogged and the surface water hid potholes - or so we'd been warned. The bike course splits in two quite nicely. The first part is rolling and the second is more up then down.The first part wasn't too bad but the rain got heavier and then turned to hail. I was still struggling to see where I was going and so decided it was better to take it easier than end up damaged. As I approached the second half my kit was soaked, my shoes had filled up with water and I'd lost most of the feeling in my hands, needing to use the entire hand to change gear. There wasn't much to be said about the bike course other than it was hard work in the conditions and completely unenjoyable. Not the fault of the organisers by any means. For me it was also interesting to see how lonely the bike course was. Last year I was further down the pack so there was lots of overtaking and grabbing positions back. This time there was the odd overtake or overtaking and passing those unlucky enough to puncture on the multitude of potholes. One of the best part of the second half is the descent to the turn-round point. Not this year. Lack of feeling in my hands meant taking it easy so I could slow down in time and I lost a few places due to this. After the turn-round it was through a wooded area where the road surface was mostly holes. I noticed the guys in the distance were drafting which annoyed me - it is unfair to everyone else riding within the rules. Towards one of the final turns I passed another punctured competitor and a marshal asked if he was ok. I tried to reply but my mouth would not move - frozen in place. I rolled down the hill in to T2 - again, normally I'd put some effort in but it was hard to do anything.
Bike: 51:11
T2 was faster as I knew where the bike went, though the event photographer was trying to do some artistic shots in my space.
Run#2.
Run#2 , the reverse of Run#1 was about survival, rather than my 30:00 target (run#2 is slightly shorter than #1). The lack of effort on the bike meant I was not going to hit my target so it was a case of do what I could. One thing I did notice was the lack of jelly legs. I hopes this down to all the brick sessions I have done, but in all honesty is was likely down to the lack of bike effort. Like the bike, the run was lonely and cold. I also noticed I was shivering a lot. Shortly before Bisham I was overtaken and we exchanged some banter. He was running off some anger caused by a puncture - and then he disappeared! I heard some footsteps from behind shortly before the wooden bridge and was accompanied across the bridge and along the Thames, then he overtaken me. We hit the muddy path and both of us played Bambi on ice for a mile. Once back on the track I found my legs again but could not catch him. I tried to push harder but it seemed it was too early to kick and I'd run out of power before the finish. A winter of XC racing has given me a good grounding of how early I can kick, and also when to save it. As we approached the final turn in to the sports ground I kicked hard and made the overtake. We both hit the grass on the field and I thought I would lose my lead. Luckily the bad footing affected us both and I crossed the finish line with 3s between us. The previous finisher was 14s before - a lifetime in racing.
Run#1: 32:00
Aftermath.
I grabbed my free hot chocolate recovery drink and headed in to the club for my warm clothes as I continued to shake and shiver. The club house had a few people covered in foil blankets and others lying next to radiators. I got on my warm clothes then found my Coasters' friend, who was also suffering. It seems the conditions caused a few cases of mild hypothermia and a vast amount of shivery cold people. Many ended up under hand-driers and alongside radiators in the bar. No long term damage done though.
It is a measure of an event when things like this happen, and the Marlow guys really pulled together and ensured that everyone was ok. Hot tea, coffee and more hot chocolate flowed until the warmth was evident. Well done Marlow.
So after all that I finished 23rd overall, and 7th in AG after 1:55:43. I'll be honest and say I'd hoped for better - somewhere at least 5 minutes quicker overall. Though with hindsight I had really raced last year and this year I struggled to see on the bike so eased off and also suffered from the cold. Then the second run was about getting back rather than setting records.
Not a bad day out, but must try harder. That is all my racing done now until the Europeans so time to get some quality training under the belt. Glad to see that my Coasters' friend managed 2nd Woman and the other Coasters and TVTers all did well in the conditions.
Wednesday evening was a pyramid track session. Thursday I rode Sufferfest's There Is No Try on TrainerRoad. During the middle TT section I could feel some cramps building in my left calf and then on the final high-power interval the cramps arrived and locked my leg solid. I still went out for my planned transition run then finished off with a 10 minute spin on the bike.
Friday's tempo run became an easy multi-terrain run with a few pickups; mainly as I was racing Sunday and also to run off the muscle stiffness from the cramp. Saturday was a rest day and after visiting my local bike shop I took the kids to a local park. They have an outdoor gym there and it was funny to watch both of them trying leg pushes, ski-trainer and stationary bike.
So on to the duathlon. Marlow Striders have run this annual event for a fair few years now. It is a great, friendly, grass-roots event and gets better every year; this year had chip-timing and proper age-group results. In past years the proceeds have contributed to the purchase of Marlow sports ground, along with the other resident clubs.
I had been watching the weather for a few days. Despite raining yesterday the evening forecast promised a dry morning with minimum wind with heavy rain coming in before 12pm.
Upon arrival it was noticeably cooler than at home even though it wasn't too far away. After registering and getting a coffee I took the bike out for a 10 minute spin to make sure all was OK, and then racked the bike. After some more faff I adjusted my rear brake, set up my shoes on the bike and then went for a quick warm up run. Back to the start line for the briefing, and then the hooter went.
The first run is 7.5km - round the sports field, out down Pound Lane (a track), along a muddy path then on to the Thames path. Over the Thames on a wooden bridge then cross country again. Through a low tunnel, round Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre then continuing on the road across the Thames at Marlow. Through Higginson park (grass and mud) then back down Pound Lane to the large gate and across the field to T1.
Run#1.
My target time for this was 30 minutes. As usual it wasn't long before I was hot, even in the overcast conditions - I have raced most duathlons this year in a white short-sleeve base layer, arm warmers and tri-suit. All was well until we hit the muddy track. In past years a cold spell has made this track passable though hard underfoot. Today it was a quagmire, with most people struggling to stay upright, even those in XC shoes like myself. After some effort the path ended and the Thames path appeared. The wooden bridge was slippery on the way up and even more so on the way back down. Up to this point I had been sparing with a fellow Finch Coasters' runner. She had some great XC shoes and made some headway on the mud but I managed to overtake on the road section. Good going on the roads until we hit the mud in Higginson park and then in to T1.
Run#1: 30:44.
T1 was a pedestrian 55 seconds due to running up the wrong row in transition. Found my bike, put my helmet and glasses on and I immediately noticed that my glasses had steamed and would not clear.
Bike.
After jumping on the bike at the mount line my feet found my shoes and off I went. Plan was to take it relatively easy on the first couple of km as they were uphill, then I could hammer the downhill and the rest of the 25km course. Then it started to rain, and I struggled to keep my glasses clear. At the top of the hill I got ready to hit the descent though it was hard to see due to my glasses and the rain. I should have used the clear lenses too.
The entire course was waterlogged and the surface water hid potholes - or so we'd been warned. The bike course splits in two quite nicely. The first part is rolling and the second is more up then down.The first part wasn't too bad but the rain got heavier and then turned to hail. I was still struggling to see where I was going and so decided it was better to take it easier than end up damaged. As I approached the second half my kit was soaked, my shoes had filled up with water and I'd lost most of the feeling in my hands, needing to use the entire hand to change gear. There wasn't much to be said about the bike course other than it was hard work in the conditions and completely unenjoyable. Not the fault of the organisers by any means. For me it was also interesting to see how lonely the bike course was. Last year I was further down the pack so there was lots of overtaking and grabbing positions back. This time there was the odd overtake or overtaking and passing those unlucky enough to puncture on the multitude of potholes. One of the best part of the second half is the descent to the turn-round point. Not this year. Lack of feeling in my hands meant taking it easy so I could slow down in time and I lost a few places due to this. After the turn-round it was through a wooded area where the road surface was mostly holes. I noticed the guys in the distance were drafting which annoyed me - it is unfair to everyone else riding within the rules. Towards one of the final turns I passed another punctured competitor and a marshal asked if he was ok. I tried to reply but my mouth would not move - frozen in place. I rolled down the hill in to T2 - again, normally I'd put some effort in but it was hard to do anything.
Bike: 51:11
T2 was faster as I knew where the bike went, though the event photographer was trying to do some artistic shots in my space.
Run#2.
Run#2 , the reverse of Run#1 was about survival, rather than my 30:00 target (run#2 is slightly shorter than #1). The lack of effort on the bike meant I was not going to hit my target so it was a case of do what I could. One thing I did notice was the lack of jelly legs. I hopes this down to all the brick sessions I have done, but in all honesty is was likely down to the lack of bike effort. Like the bike, the run was lonely and cold. I also noticed I was shivering a lot. Shortly before Bisham I was overtaken and we exchanged some banter. He was running off some anger caused by a puncture - and then he disappeared! I heard some footsteps from behind shortly before the wooden bridge and was accompanied across the bridge and along the Thames, then he overtaken me. We hit the muddy path and both of us played Bambi on ice for a mile. Once back on the track I found my legs again but could not catch him. I tried to push harder but it seemed it was too early to kick and I'd run out of power before the finish. A winter of XC racing has given me a good grounding of how early I can kick, and also when to save it. As we approached the final turn in to the sports ground I kicked hard and made the overtake. We both hit the grass on the field and I thought I would lose my lead. Luckily the bad footing affected us both and I crossed the finish line with 3s between us. The previous finisher was 14s before - a lifetime in racing.
Run#1: 32:00
Aftermath.
I grabbed my free hot chocolate recovery drink and headed in to the club for my warm clothes as I continued to shake and shiver. The club house had a few people covered in foil blankets and others lying next to radiators. I got on my warm clothes then found my Coasters' friend, who was also suffering. It seems the conditions caused a few cases of mild hypothermia and a vast amount of shivery cold people. Many ended up under hand-driers and alongside radiators in the bar. No long term damage done though.
It is a measure of an event when things like this happen, and the Marlow guys really pulled together and ensured that everyone was ok. Hot tea, coffee and more hot chocolate flowed until the warmth was evident. Well done Marlow.
So after all that I finished 23rd overall, and 7th in AG after 1:55:43. I'll be honest and say I'd hoped for better - somewhere at least 5 minutes quicker overall. Though with hindsight I had really raced last year and this year I struggled to see on the bike so eased off and also suffered from the cold. Then the second run was about getting back rather than setting records.
Not a bad day out, but must try harder. That is all my racing done now until the Europeans so time to get some quality training under the belt. Glad to see that my Coasters' friend managed 2nd Woman and the other Coasters and TVTers all did well in the conditions.
Monday, 11 March 2013
Still swimming...
I realise most of my posts this year have not mentioned swimming, and have been very duathlon-centric. After Saturday's bike ride and yesterday's long run I swam today with the club. A good session focussed on 200m intervals.
Swimming is still part of my training plan in preparation for a summer of triathlon, including the qualifiers for the Worlds in London!
Swimming is still part of my training plan in preparation for a summer of triathlon, including the qualifiers for the Worlds in London!
Monday, 4 March 2013
Race report - Althorp duathlon
The 2013 Althorp duathlon was a qualifier for the ITU (aka Worlds) and ETU (aka Europeans) Championships. It was originally scheduled for the 16th of February but was moved to the 2nd of March due to the flooding of transition. I had registered to qualify for both the Worlds in Ottawa and the Europeans in the Netherlands.
At the time of postponement I was a bit annoyed; I'd had a good week's training and followed it with a fairly scientific taper. Being away in Germany with work the week before was not ideal, but I was ready to race. Since then I'd managed another good week's training and another taper week.
I travelled up to the Northampton Hilton on the Friday evening. M25 was lumpy as usual. In the vein of Sir Dave Brailsford I'd even taken my own pillow so I would sleep better. Of course, it doesn't always work like that.
After a night of fitful sleep my phone alarm went off, but I did not receive my alarm call. Never mind. Up, showered and ate some pots of rice pudding I'd bought. Kit in the car over to the Althorp estate.
I was one of the first people there; transition was empty. I always build too much spare time in, but it is good to be early rather than late. I registered, had my hand marked, took a look around then started putting race numbers on the bike & race-belt. I then took the bike out for a spin. My legs felt very heavy, which was different to my last race. Upon returning I racked the bike and went for a quick run. Once again my legs felt heavy and I was beginning to worry. Of course, both warm-ups started with a 1km uphill!
Soon it was time to line up, and I started in the second row back from the front. The horn was off and we all moved forwards. Up the 1km hill, then left onto a grassing avenue. This had a slight incline then finished with a soft muddy area before turning right into a church yard. Most people were running along the grass rather than the gravel. Out of the church yard and back on to the road where we started to descent, albeit gradually. All this time I was losing places and felt like my heart was going to explode.
The run continued through Great Brington then rolled towards Little Brington. Here there was a course change due to waterlogging. A slight uphill along a track then a left turn on to a ~1.5km track. Finally a left turn in to the field at Althorp where we looped to make the distance, and then in to T1.
Helmet on, grabbed my bike and ran, across the mount line and on to the bike. Right foot went straight in and after some pedalling and effort the left foot was in. Again the first km was uphill. I don't recall much of the bike, other than noting that it was a nice fast rolling course. I had some trouble from my new trisuit and kept slipping back on the saddle. I was overtaking and being overtaken.
I was unhappy to see a fair amount of drafting. The course has some narrow winding roads so some bunching is to be expected, but once back on the open road it should not happen. I made a conscious effort throughout to be at least 7m from the rider in front at all times. After some time we turned back towards transition, undulating up and down, then down a steep hill towards T2. Always fun trying to brake, stay upright and loosen shoes at the same time. In to T2, rack the bike, trainers on and off, then back to dump my gloves. A school boy error.
The second run was a repeat of the first, though of course it felt much harder. I pushed throughout, trying to bridge the gap between me and the guy in front, however I was on the edge. After lots of chasing I crossed the line, happy to have finished and wondering how soon we would get the official results.
76th overall and 20th M35-39. A very strong field, with most people trying to qualify for the Worlds or Europeans.
At the time of postponement I was a bit annoyed; I'd had a good week's training and followed it with a fairly scientific taper. Being away in Germany with work the week before was not ideal, but I was ready to race. Since then I'd managed another good week's training and another taper week.
I travelled up to the Northampton Hilton on the Friday evening. M25 was lumpy as usual. In the vein of Sir Dave Brailsford I'd even taken my own pillow so I would sleep better. Of course, it doesn't always work like that.
After a night of fitful sleep my phone alarm went off, but I did not receive my alarm call. Never mind. Up, showered and ate some pots of rice pudding I'd bought. Kit in the car over to the Althorp estate.
I was one of the first people there; transition was empty. I always build too much spare time in, but it is good to be early rather than late. I registered, had my hand marked, took a look around then started putting race numbers on the bike & race-belt. I then took the bike out for a spin. My legs felt very heavy, which was different to my last race. Upon returning I racked the bike and went for a quick run. Once again my legs felt heavy and I was beginning to worry. Of course, both warm-ups started with a 1km uphill!
Soon it was time to line up, and I started in the second row back from the front. The horn was off and we all moved forwards. Up the 1km hill, then left onto a grassing avenue. This had a slight incline then finished with a soft muddy area before turning right into a church yard. Most people were running along the grass rather than the gravel. Out of the church yard and back on to the road where we started to descent, albeit gradually. All this time I was losing places and felt like my heart was going to explode.
The run continued through Great Brington then rolled towards Little Brington. Here there was a course change due to waterlogging. A slight uphill along a track then a left turn on to a ~1.5km track. Finally a left turn in to the field at Althorp where we looped to make the distance, and then in to T1.
Helmet on, grabbed my bike and ran, across the mount line and on to the bike. Right foot went straight in and after some pedalling and effort the left foot was in. Again the first km was uphill. I don't recall much of the bike, other than noting that it was a nice fast rolling course. I had some trouble from my new trisuit and kept slipping back on the saddle. I was overtaking and being overtaken.
I was unhappy to see a fair amount of drafting. The course has some narrow winding roads so some bunching is to be expected, but once back on the open road it should not happen. I made a conscious effort throughout to be at least 7m from the rider in front at all times. After some time we turned back towards transition, undulating up and down, then down a steep hill towards T2. Always fun trying to brake, stay upright and loosen shoes at the same time. In to T2, rack the bike, trainers on and off, then back to dump my gloves. A school boy error.
The second run was a repeat of the first, though of course it felt much harder. I pushed throughout, trying to bridge the gap between me and the guy in front, however I was on the edge. After lots of chasing I crossed the line, happy to have finished and wondering how soon we would get the official results.
76th overall and 20th M35-39. A very strong field, with most people trying to qualify for the Worlds or Europeans.
| Total Time | 01:16:42 |
| Stage - Run - Time | 00:18:43 |
| Stage - Transition - Time | 00:00:40 |
| Stage - Bike - Time | 00:36:51 |
| Stage - Transition - Time | 00:00:39 |
| Stage - Run - Time | 00:19:51 |
Saturday, 2 February 2013
Race report - Gatorade VoTwo Dorney sprint duathlon
This week was a light week, with a taper designed by myself. The aim was to increase my Freshness as much as possible, without decreasing my Fitness too much. I do this by monitoring my training load with TrainingPeaks.
Today started early, no malaise or laying in bed today, straight awake and up! I've gone off porridge after the best part of a year of it for IM training but it is good bang for buck, and washed down with a cup of tea is the best start to a race day; and the first multisport race of the season.
I knew it was going to be cold today so I had a new short sleeve base layer under my tri-top, I wore my trusty 2XU LD tri shorts - the TVT club kit was still delayed. I'd bought some running gloves during the week too, in case it was this cold.
I arrived at Dorney lake and registered (number 3) and put my number stickers on everything. Instead of a proper ankle chip we had a 'dibber' to stick to our finger. Each stage would have a marshall to put the dipper into a socket. I thought that would slow things down, but the organisers swore by them.
A quick spin around the bike course (5km) proved that the outbound bike would be downwind and fast with smooth tarmac, but the return bike on the farm road in to wind would be hard. At the beginning of the spin I tried to mount with my tri shoes already attached, having spent a few hours yesterday sorting this. Unfortunatey the socks I had on got stuck to the velcro on the shoes. Change of plan needed...no socks for the race. I racked my bike, then went for a lap of the run course (2.5km). Again, the wind would be fun. I managed to keep the lid on the effort for the in-to-wind return run. Time was ticking on so took trackies and jacket off and went to the start line. Armwarmers and sunnies on.
I lined up on the second row at the start and GO! we're off. I had some idea of the pace I wanted and was aiming for ~21 minutes for the first run. Lost a load of places in the start melee, but soon settled down and started to recoup places. 2 laps of the 2.5 km run course were needed. It quickly became clear I would break 20 minutes for 5km, and it didn't feel too hard. Running without socks was causing some rubbing.
Ran in to T1 to find the course was slightly long - 5.15km in 20:15.
T1 was over in 42s - shoes off, helmet on, drink sip, run.
I got to the mount line and threw myself on the bike, and managed to get my feet in to the pre-attached shoes OK too (this was a major worry). I had to cycle 4 laps, and on each lap the downwind leg was ~45 kph and the in to wind dropped to ~30 kph. A tight turn at the top end of the lake was interesting, with mud on the road surface, but marshals were present with advice to slow down! I stayed in the top ring, but on the return legs could feel the legs building to cramp so eased off a bit. As I came towards T2 I took feet from my shoes, but the lack of socks meant my feet were cold and I couldn't feel them.
Bike 33:48 for 20km.
T2 done in 43s. Rack bike, helmet off, runners on.
Last run - the cramps that I kept away on the bike started to creep in on the run. Little stabs every 5s or so. Took a good kilometre to run it out then I could ramp the pace. 2 laps of the 2.5km course again, in to very strong wind. It felt a lot harder this time, and though I may not have shown it the support from some club members was well appreciated.
Finally the finish chute appeared and I crossed the line after 21:27, making 1:16:55 in total on the Garmin.
I grabbed a cup of gatorade from the finish. It was mixed like treacle and burnt my throat, so I struggled to talk for a few minutes. No idea on placing yet as the machine went down during the race...
All in all a good opener for the season. What made the day was the wide group of competitors - people doing the supersprint (2.5/10/2.5), or the sprint like me (5/20/5). People on mountain bikes, people on expensive TT bikes. People sprinting people walking. It was a great sight, and hopefully one I'll continue to see throughout the year. A great Olympic legacy!
Update - 25th overall and 1:16:37 officially. No proper Age Group results, though comparing some names on Tri247 shows that I achieved 7th in the 35-39 AG. A very good day.
Today started early, no malaise or laying in bed today, straight awake and up! I've gone off porridge after the best part of a year of it for IM training but it is good bang for buck, and washed down with a cup of tea is the best start to a race day; and the first multisport race of the season.
I knew it was going to be cold today so I had a new short sleeve base layer under my tri-top, I wore my trusty 2XU LD tri shorts - the TVT club kit was still delayed. I'd bought some running gloves during the week too, in case it was this cold.
I arrived at Dorney lake and registered (number 3) and put my number stickers on everything. Instead of a proper ankle chip we had a 'dibber' to stick to our finger. Each stage would have a marshall to put the dipper into a socket. I thought that would slow things down, but the organisers swore by them.
A quick spin around the bike course (5km) proved that the outbound bike would be downwind and fast with smooth tarmac, but the return bike on the farm road in to wind would be hard. At the beginning of the spin I tried to mount with my tri shoes already attached, having spent a few hours yesterday sorting this. Unfortunatey the socks I had on got stuck to the velcro on the shoes. Change of plan needed...no socks for the race. I racked my bike, then went for a lap of the run course (2.5km). Again, the wind would be fun. I managed to keep the lid on the effort for the in-to-wind return run. Time was ticking on so took trackies and jacket off and went to the start line. Armwarmers and sunnies on.
I lined up on the second row at the start and GO! we're off. I had some idea of the pace I wanted and was aiming for ~21 minutes for the first run. Lost a load of places in the start melee, but soon settled down and started to recoup places. 2 laps of the 2.5 km run course were needed. It quickly became clear I would break 20 minutes for 5km, and it didn't feel too hard. Running without socks was causing some rubbing.
Ran in to T1 to find the course was slightly long - 5.15km in 20:15.
T1 was over in 42s - shoes off, helmet on, drink sip, run.
I got to the mount line and threw myself on the bike, and managed to get my feet in to the pre-attached shoes OK too (this was a major worry). I had to cycle 4 laps, and on each lap the downwind leg was ~45 kph and the in to wind dropped to ~30 kph. A tight turn at the top end of the lake was interesting, with mud on the road surface, but marshals were present with advice to slow down! I stayed in the top ring, but on the return legs could feel the legs building to cramp so eased off a bit. As I came towards T2 I took feet from my shoes, but the lack of socks meant my feet were cold and I couldn't feel them.
Bike 33:48 for 20km.
T2 done in 43s. Rack bike, helmet off, runners on.
Last run - the cramps that I kept away on the bike started to creep in on the run. Little stabs every 5s or so. Took a good kilometre to run it out then I could ramp the pace. 2 laps of the 2.5km course again, in to very strong wind. It felt a lot harder this time, and though I may not have shown it the support from some club members was well appreciated.
Finally the finish chute appeared and I crossed the line after 21:27, making 1:16:55 in total on the Garmin.
I grabbed a cup of gatorade from the finish. It was mixed like treacle and burnt my throat, so I struggled to talk for a few minutes. No idea on placing yet as the machine went down during the race...
All in all a good opener for the season. What made the day was the wide group of competitors - people doing the supersprint (2.5/10/2.5), or the sprint like me (5/20/5). People on mountain bikes, people on expensive TT bikes. People sprinting people walking. It was a great sight, and hopefully one I'll continue to see throughout the year. A great Olympic legacy!
Update - 25th overall and 1:16:37 officially. No proper Age Group results, though comparing some names on Tri247 shows that I achieved 7th in the 35-39 AG. A very good day.
Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Looking back; looking forward
In ancient Roman religion and mythology, Janus is the god of beginnings and endings. He is typically portrayed as two faced, since he can see in to the future and the past. The month of January is named after him.
So with 2013 upon us, it is an opportunity to recap on the past year, and share some plans for the new year.
2012 was a landmark year for me both in running and triathlon.
January was the second month of training for the Outlaw long (Iron) distance triathlon. Run training was also focussed towards Wokingham half-marathon.
February brought at PB at half-marathon distance, taking 9 minutes of my 2011 result. Half term was spent in Devon where I got some good hill climbing in, and some trail runs around the rugged Devon coastline.
March saw a good performance at the Marlow Duathlon in Buckinghamshire. IM training allowed me to pick up 32 places.
April was the first OW swim of the year, bringing worry for May's first triathlon of 2012.
May was the Marshman middle (half-Iron) distance triathlon in Kent. A cold, wet and windy day, luckily the swim was cancelled and replaced with 5km run. Second duathlon of the season then! This was my first attempt at HIM distance, so I took it steady and paced well. 5:28:54.
June allowed another week away for half-term, this time in Yorkshire. I saw how the Brownlee's have become so superior when I saw the landscape. At last it was taper time too as Outlaw approached.
July - Outlaw Iron distance tri in Nottinghamshire on the 1st of the month. A very nervous couple of days at the end of June followed by a long day at the office. In one day I swam the furthest, set a 180km PB and ran my second marathon. All in for 12:52 and change. The rest of the month was spend enjoying some well earned time with my family.
August was also a great Olympic month! I cycled to and from the Road Time-Trial and saw Bradley Wiggins become victorious. I continued my good luck by going to see the men's triathlon in Hyde Park where I was privileged to see both the Brownlees podium, along with Javier Gomez. What a week!
August was also a return to tri, albeit with a different strategy. Going shorter! I'd entered the Vachery Sprint triathlon in Surrey. I'd felt the swim could have been better and rode well, sparring with some other riders for places. I felt I could have done better on the run, especially on the XC elements like the staircase! Reviewing the results showed that I'd got a 3rd in age-group, and had been 1st in AG on the swim and bike, losing 2 places on the run!
September delivered a sprained ankle courtesy of a rabbit hole whilst running in Austria. Cue a DNS at Cardiff half-marathon. The plus side was 4 weeks on the turbo trainer with TrainerRoad making my cycling stronger. My return to running was at the Dorney tri-relays with my tri club, Thames Valley Triathletes. Poor tidying after the Olympics meant the perimeter road was too muddy for the bike leg, so I raced my first Aquathlon.
October marked the start of my running campaign; 3 months to increase my speed over shorter distances. It also coincided with the start of the Thames valley XC league which was a great boost to the end of year motivation
November showed promising results at the XC leages and my 5km time was reducing. XC spikes made the season easier.
December, much like November was cold and wet. More XC racing and a final chance for a 5km PB at Frimley Lodge parkrun. Alas the course condition was awful. I managed to fall over before the start of the race, and even with spikes it was hard going. I did PB, by 1 second. The next day I finished first Finch Coaster at the Reading Roadrunners hosted XC at Bearwood College, Wokingham. Then a few days R&R with the family. Loads of gifts for the children, and a great Christmas day lunch at our house, with my parents.
2013 - so what will the new year bring?
As I write this I am reflecting upon a great new year's eve with some fantastic friends, followed by a good day's MTBing in the Alice Holt forest, and across Surrey with the same friends. It was nice to finally squeeze in a social bike ride followed by some pub grub and pints.
For me, 2013 is all about shorter, faster races. No Iron or half-iron distances, maybe a half-marathon at a push. It's about 5km and 10km road races, sprint distance duathlons and triathlons. The last quarter of 2012 showed great running improvement by following the Furman FIRST 5km plan. This first quarter is for improving my cycling in a similar, with TrainerRoad.
I plan to do a few parkruns early on to see where I am with my 5km time, and race a few sprint duathlons to get back up to racing shorter and faster. I've entered a few of the sprint triathlon qualifiers for the 2013 ITU World Championships in London and the ETU European Championships in 2014. Let's see how we get on!
So with 2013 upon us, it is an opportunity to recap on the past year, and share some plans for the new year.
2012 was a landmark year for me both in running and triathlon.
January was the second month of training for the Outlaw long (Iron) distance triathlon. Run training was also focussed towards Wokingham half-marathon.
February brought at PB at half-marathon distance, taking 9 minutes of my 2011 result. Half term was spent in Devon where I got some good hill climbing in, and some trail runs around the rugged Devon coastline.
March saw a good performance at the Marlow Duathlon in Buckinghamshire. IM training allowed me to pick up 32 places.
May was the Marshman middle (half-Iron) distance triathlon in Kent. A cold, wet and windy day, luckily the swim was cancelled and replaced with 5km run. Second duathlon of the season then! This was my first attempt at HIM distance, so I took it steady and paced well. 5:28:54.
June allowed another week away for half-term, this time in Yorkshire. I saw how the Brownlee's have become so superior when I saw the landscape. At last it was taper time too as Outlaw approached.
July - Outlaw Iron distance tri in Nottinghamshire on the 1st of the month. A very nervous couple of days at the end of June followed by a long day at the office. In one day I swam the furthest, set a 180km PB and ran my second marathon. All in for 12:52 and change. The rest of the month was spend enjoying some well earned time with my family.
August was also a great Olympic month! I cycled to and from the Road Time-Trial and saw Bradley Wiggins become victorious. I continued my good luck by going to see the men's triathlon in Hyde Park where I was privileged to see both the Brownlees podium, along with Javier Gomez. What a week!
August was also a return to tri, albeit with a different strategy. Going shorter! I'd entered the Vachery Sprint triathlon in Surrey. I'd felt the swim could have been better and rode well, sparring with some other riders for places. I felt I could have done better on the run, especially on the XC elements like the staircase! Reviewing the results showed that I'd got a 3rd in age-group, and had been 1st in AG on the swim and bike, losing 2 places on the run!
September delivered a sprained ankle courtesy of a rabbit hole whilst running in Austria. Cue a DNS at Cardiff half-marathon. The plus side was 4 weeks on the turbo trainer with TrainerRoad making my cycling stronger. My return to running was at the Dorney tri-relays with my tri club, Thames Valley Triathletes. Poor tidying after the Olympics meant the perimeter road was too muddy for the bike leg, so I raced my first Aquathlon.
October marked the start of my running campaign; 3 months to increase my speed over shorter distances. It also coincided with the start of the Thames valley XC league which was a great boost to the end of year motivation
November showed promising results at the XC leages and my 5km time was reducing. XC spikes made the season easier.
December, much like November was cold and wet. More XC racing and a final chance for a 5km PB at Frimley Lodge parkrun. Alas the course condition was awful. I managed to fall over before the start of the race, and even with spikes it was hard going. I did PB, by 1 second. The next day I finished first Finch Coaster at the Reading Roadrunners hosted XC at Bearwood College, Wokingham. Then a few days R&R with the family. Loads of gifts for the children, and a great Christmas day lunch at our house, with my parents.
2013 - so what will the new year bring?
As I write this I am reflecting upon a great new year's eve with some fantastic friends, followed by a good day's MTBing in the Alice Holt forest, and across Surrey with the same friends. It was nice to finally squeeze in a social bike ride followed by some pub grub and pints.
For me, 2013 is all about shorter, faster races. No Iron or half-iron distances, maybe a half-marathon at a push. It's about 5km and 10km road races, sprint distance duathlons and triathlons. The last quarter of 2012 showed great running improvement by following the Furman FIRST 5km plan. This first quarter is for improving my cycling in a similar, with TrainerRoad.
I plan to do a few parkruns early on to see where I am with my 5km time, and race a few sprint duathlons to get back up to racing shorter and faster. I've entered a few of the sprint triathlon qualifiers for the 2013 ITU World Championships in London and the ETU European Championships in 2014. Let's see how we get on!
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