Mission Accomplished

This week was all about the bike, getting out and riding it. In both the Bala Middle Distance and the Cowman races I was conscious of my legs lacking strength endurance towards the end of the bike course and with the Aberfeldy Half Ironman coming up on 16 August and the hilly nature of that course I am determined to be able to ride hard all the way. The hilly nature means I will be leaving the Prince of Darkness at home and taking my trusty Litespeed, so all the road riding this week has been on this bike. I've throughly enjoyed riding on the road this week (the great weather has helped) but the turbo sessions have not gone so well, so hopefully I can build these up over the coming fortnight. I also need to increase the swimming and running as well. A look at this week's training stats will explain:

Swimming - 40 minutes
Running - 1 hour 16 minutes
Core, stretch & flex - 30 minutes
Cycling - 7 hours 49 minutes
Total - 10 hrs 15 minutes (compared to an average of 7 hrs 27 minutes so far this season)

So this week I will reduce the amount of time cycling, add in another swim session and a long run and hopefully get a better balance in the programme. This week was all about cycling, so Mission Accomplished there.

The second aim was to lose a few pounds before Aberfeldy, and I'm pleased to report that I am going well. I raced Cowman at about 11st 9lbs and yesterday morning I was 11st 7lbs. Target weight is 11st 4lbs and if I can get close to that it will make getting over those Scottish mountains so much easier.

Train smart folks.

Fat Mick

You're a cruel lot. 70% "of those who expressed a preference" reckon I deserved Chairman Pete's "Muffin Top" comment. That's it, I will retreat from all forms of gluttony and subscribe to the super model diet of water and thin air until I am leaner than a very lean thing. Unfortunately I will probably lose all my strength and be a lesser person, but that's OK because I will be thin. And Lonsy will probably beat me and then there will be nothing left for me but to slope off into inglorious retirement, but no-one will notice because I will turn sideways on and be lost to you. I hope you're pleased. And thanks to all those who voted "foul", even though I suspect my Mum voted more than once!

For the sensitive souls out there please note that the above was written with TVFIC!

It's Still Not Happening...

I got on the turbo last night and after a 10 minute warm-up got stuck into the 6 minute reps at 330 watts, with 2 minutes easy recovery at about 200 watts. Again, though, I just didn't seem to have the heart for it. It was hard (as you would expect) but whereas in the past I would just grit my teeth and get on with it I found myelf once again contemplating climbing off. I battled with these demons for a while and not even Iron Maiden's "Run to the Hills" on the ipod could dispel them. In the end I did 3 reps of 6 minutes and just to confirm the strange state of mind I currently find myself in I dashed inside, put my trainers on and went for a run. Now this is most unlike me! It wasn't quick and it wasn't long but for me to run instead of ride my bike is almost uheard of.

So today I have taken a rest day and taken the opportunity to review my training diary. I have done 7.7 hours of training over the last 4 days; in comparison my weekly average has been 7.3 hours this winter. The last 4 days consists of 40 minutes of swimming, 30 minutes of running, 30 minutes of core and 6 hours of cycling! Am I really traning for middle distance races?

The good news is that I have a late start tomorrow so plan to take Bandit for an early morning run in the park; will hopefully be out for at least an hour. Which leaves Saturday and Sunday for a couple of long bike rides; Saturday will be a steady ride out to Cambridge and back and Sunday will be a couple of hours of hill efforts. This will hopefully give me some confidence in my bike endurance that was lacking at both Bala and Cowman and allow me to balance my training a bit better over the next 2 weeks.

It's the Trentham Gatorade Big Half (or whatever its called) this weekend so best of luck to Reg, Sags and Jase.

The Meanderings of a Turbo Man ...

It's good ... It's bad ... It's good ... It's bad ...

What is? Training. Since Bala training has been somewhat sporadic and completing 3 races in 10 days recently meant I was either trying to recover from one race or not wanting to overtrain prior to the next race. So last weekend I tried to ease myself back into a decent training programme. I had an enjoyable Sunday morning on the bike but on Monday went to the gym to swim but the pool was closed. OK, flexibility being one of the keys of Air Power I did a 30 minute core, stretch and flex session and in the evening headed for the garage for 2 x 20 minutes on the turbo. However, halfway through I climbed off. Legs were good, breathing was OK, but my heart just wasn't in it. Was I listening to my body that needed a rest, or should I have just HTFU'd? In the past I have been in both camps but this time I didn't feel that, physically, I needed to rest, so perhaps it was just a case of HTFU. Tuesday, though, I decided to commute to work on the bike; just over 25 miles each way and really enjoyed it. And this morning I went to the pool (open now) and had a really good 40 minute session. So all seems well, although I think the crunch will come this evening when it's back on the turbo for the 6 x 6 session.

Train smart folks.

Getting back in to it

After my exertions on Wednesday and Thursday my legs just weren't up to doing anything on either Friday or Saturday, so instead of training I rested and got my Litespeed sorted into "Aberfeldy LD" spec - this included adding clip-on tribars, seat bag with puncture repair kit, one bottle cage and handlebar box (for gels and energy bars).

Today I went for a short(ish) ride just to get my legs moving again; I did 2 hours and 10 minutes and 65km. I did some repeated hill efforts (or at least the best hills that Cambridgeshire could offer) and it was nice to be out in the sunshine, although it was well windy; struggling to do 25kmh into the wind and then 48kmh+ with it. Legs were tired afterwards so I've worn my calf guards all afternoon. Legs feel good now.

Looking ahead I now have 3 weeks of training before tapering for Aberfeldy. Plan is to do some serious bike mileage and get a half marathon in at some point every week whilst keeping the swimming ticking over. There are some work and social commitments that will mess things up a bit but the key will be flexibility, and do what I can when I can. I also plan to try and get the weight down and lose one pound per week; by Aberfeldy that would see me very close to my IM race weight of 2006 and will certainly help on the hills of Scotland.

Train smart folks.

"Fat Mick"

This is the picture of me at the Inter Services that prompted Chairman Pete to make the "muffin top" comment.

Fair or foul?

Please vote now.

Now that was a really good idea ...

Wednesday I raced at the Inter Services standard distance triathlon (see below) so a day of rest would be well deserved on Thursday. Or so you would think. Instead, I had arranged to do my fitness test followed by a "friendly" game of unihoc. Unsurprisingly, I didn't record a PB on the fitness test and only managed 11.10; my legs were feeling a bit leaden and tired. I did manage 52 press ups and 53 sit ups though, which I think is OK for a 44 year old. The unihoc game was great fun, but after 40 minutes I was absolutely knackered and dripping with sweat. Am very tired now and will have a rest day tomorrow. I'm working Saturday but should have time for a long run first thing in the morning and will hopefully get a long ride out on Sunday. With Aberfeldy my next race on 16 Aug it's all on the road bike now, and I need to find some hills as well.

Train smart folks.

Inter Services Standard Distance Triathlon 2008

(OW 1500m swim, 44km bike, 10km run)

OK, lets start with the gossip. Jamie Elliott woke our whole room up (all 8 of us) at 0230 last night to try and remove a foreign object from one of his orifices. Now I wouldn't wish to speculate what it was or what he was doing, although it's fair to say that when Nurse Vicky removed said foreign object first thing in the morning it wasn't buzzing. Jamie, you certainly missed an opportunity there - I understand Vicky had her nurse uniform with her and surely when carrying out a surgical procedure she should have been encouraged to wear it? Just a thought.

On to the race itself, the weather was mild and a little blustery, but generally conditions weren't too bad. A lot of racing recently had meant I hadn't done a great deal of training but I was feeling OK.

Swim - I found a start place to the right of the pack and at the hooter I let the fast swimmers get going before following them. The first 3 or 400m were an absolute bunfight; I don't think I have been punched and kicked so much in my whole triathlon career as I was today. After the initial fisticuffs it settled down and I found some clear water and settled into a nice rhythm. The turns were uneventful and I was almost enjoying it. Almost. I was absolutely amazed to see Westy alongside me as I came out of the water. A quick look at my watch confirmed I had swam at roughly my expected pace so what on earth was Westy doing this far back?

T1 - Went OK, yes I'm a girl and put socks on. Get over it.

Bike - I really enjoyed the bike course and when I was going I was going well. It was unfortunate that there were roadworks with a contraflow on the A15 that we had to negotiate twice, and athletes bike splits were heavily influenced by whether they got through these unhindered or did not. I was badly held up on lap 1 but got through OK on lap 2. The last part of the bike course was absolutely great, really fast on quite good roads and I got down to some serious 11-tooth action.

T2 - No problems here, and onto the run.

Run - Out of T2 I picked up an energy drink. I have no idea what it was but within a few steps I regretted it, as it hit my stomach and seemed to expand to something like 10 times its original volume. I struggled on and suffered the ignominy of being overtaken by Reg after about 2km. Seriously, well done mate for finding your run legs today. At the end of the first lap things improved a bit and I am pretty sure I managed a negative split so am happy with that.

Race total was just under 2:30 (maybe 2:29:40) and initially I was somewhat disappointed. However, the Vet winner recorded 2:20 so it perhaps wasn't such a disaster (and yes I do know that there were Vets racing in the Senior team that went MUCH faster, Sags being one of them). The RAF Vet team came second so I have another trophy for the office cabinet. Happy with that.

The BIG news is that Lonsy once again finished behind me. Yeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssss!!!

It was nice to meet up with everyone today and well done to all those who raced well. It was great to see Dale racing again, even if he had to hobble round the run being overtaken by a number of Army guys after kicking their butts in the swim and on the bike.
And a final comment - I was advised by Chairman Pete to stop wearing a 2 piece tri suit due to suffering from a "muffin top". Apparently, there is photographic evidence to support this but I'm pretty sure it has been photoshopped. Either way I guess I need to lean out before Aberfeldy.

The Madness Has Taken Over ...

In a moment of absolute madness today I sent off an e-mail to Mark at Pacesetter Events to put my name down for one of the Services slots at the Vitruvian. Why mad? Because it's 7 days before the last leg of my UK HIM Tour in Ireland. But, there is a reason for my madness. At the beginning of this year I set myself a target of going sub 5 hours at a Middle Distance race and after blowing it at Cowman I decided to return to the location of my fastest time so far, where I did 5:01:15 in 2007. I reckon I can find 76 seconds this year.

Doing the Vit may well affect my race in Ireland but that's OK; Half Ireman was always planned to be a bit of end of season fun and to sample some proper Guiness, preferably at a pub afterwards and not at the aid stations on the bike. And 5 HIM races in one season will be worth a beer or 2 I reckon.

So Lonsy, there will be another opportunity for you to kick my butt before the end of the year.

Cranwell Sprint - 9 July

3 days after the Cowman HIM it was the RAF Sprint Distance Champs at RAF Cranwell. Unsurprisingly, my legs had been stiff and sore since Cowman and so I felt there was no pressure to perform at Cranwell; I had a ready-made excuse if it all went badly.

I hadn't pre-entered, as I wasn't sure how I would feel after a HIM at the weekend, but I was feeling OK so decided to race. The weather forecast was grim, but fortunately the rain held off until the finish. Or at least until after I had finished! It was a bit windy but certainly not enough to cause any significant issues. I put in a somewhat conservative swim time but nevertheless found myself in Wave 11 out of 14. The swim went OK; I had some minor leakage in my goggles but not enough to cost me time and I was out of the pool a few seconds after Super Bev. T1 was OK; it's a sprint race so no socks or gloves and with the dry weather there was no need for the cycling top. Out onto the bike and it took me a few hundred metres to get into my rhythm, but across the airfield I started to pick off competitors. It was just after the dip out the back of the Station that I caught Bev and I worked hard along that seemingly endless piece of road; the effort did not seem to be translating into speed though. After the right turn the wind got behind me and I found my bike legs and really started to motor. This was fun. Not only was I catching people but I was overtaking them travelling significantly faster. The course is a bit lumpy and the road surface isn't great but I kept the cadence up and was really enjoying it. The price, of course, is that you turn round and face into the wind again, and the slight uphill drag after the turnaround seemed to suck the life out of my legs. I thought after I turned left for the long straight back to Cranwell there would be a friendly tailwind but that didn't seem to materialise, although I was travelling pretty swiftly I never touched the Secret Weapon (the 11-tooth sprocket). I caught Simon Covell (from the previous wave) through the FQ patch; this would be very useful later on. Into T2 and after asking a poor lady novice if she would mind getting out of my way (I apologise if I may have come across as a bit rude) I racked the bike, grabbed my trainers and was off. Onto the run and I had a feeling I don't think I have ever had at this stage of a triathlon before. I felt like I was actually running. I was overtaking people. Simon came back passed me across the airfield and quickly opened a gap of 60 or 70 metres but then it stabilised. We were overtaking a number of people but I was determined to not let that gap grow any further. This was hurting. A lot. I don't think I have ever run so hard in a race before; I usually get into my comfort zone and just plod round, but this was certainly much different. Back across the airfield and would you believe it, I think the gap between Simon and I is getting smaller. Along the main road and the gap has definitely shrunk; it's maybe 20 metres now. Could I catch him? Passed the gym and its now 10 metres but I am completely spent and that's how we finish. I looked at my watch and I've finished in 1:08:12, some 1 min 20 secs faster than last year. I am thoroughly delighted with this, especially just 3 days after a tough half-ironman distance race.

At the sharp end and behind Andy Fisher, the racing at the front was extremely close and we have an excellent core for the Inter Services; whether we have enough depth to challenge the Army we will have to wait and see. Expect to see a whole bunch of RAF Tri members circulating almost together on the bike and the run, just watch out for Tinman and his draft busters.

Well done to the organisers of the RAF Sprint Series and everyone who helped out. I know how much effort goes into putting on an event and it is very much appreciated. Thank you. And another BIG well done to the guy who suffered a puncture but bravely put the bike over his shoulders and ran back to T2. Top marks. Anyone know who this person was? Certainly deserves a special mention.

So there you have it; the way to Sprint Distance joy, it would appear, is to race a half-ironman just 3 days before. Go figure.

CowMan - Long Report

CowMan HIM - 6 July 2008

This was Leg 2 of the 2008 UK HIM Tour. Bala was tough due to the heat and the hills. CowMan was tough because of the extra length, the wind and the rain.

Let's get the disappointment over with first - I didn't crack 5 hours. In fact, I wasn't even close. I finished in 5:14:47, but it wasn't all bad news. But we'll come to that later.

The race is based in Emberton Park, near Olney (between Milton Keynes and Bedford); it's a proper HIM distance race with a swim of 1900m, a bike of 94km and a 21km run. The swim is in a lake and is over 2 laps; I thought the water was quite dirty and the banks rivalled Rutland Water for the quantity of duck/swan/goose poo! It was an early start too; first wave was due off at 0700 with my wave (male vets and juniors) at 0705 and the last wave (ladies and teams) at 0710. Consequently, I was up at 0420 to get there in good time. The weather forecast was grim: rain, maybe thunderstorms, and high winds. Oh deep joy!

After parking and registering you had to queue to get your cycle helmet checked, goody bag (including 2XU compression calf things, nice) and your race chip. It was raining and the queues were getting longer by the minute and there were a few grumbles as race start approached. Nevertheless, I was racked and ready in good time and made the short walk to the race start feeling good.

The race began a few minutes late and as usual I found some space towards the back of the pack and quickly got into a nice rhythm. The first buoy was only a couple of hundred metres away and the pack hadn't really had a chance to spread out so it was a bit chaotic but I got round without incident. My goggles then started to steam up which caused me to head off course a bit but they cleared after a few hundred metres of meandering and all was well after that. I exited the swim in 36.48 and was happy with that considering the additional distance I had completed.

T1 was a long drawn out affair (as in 3.46 long drawn out!) as I dressed for the elements. My RAF Triathlon cycling top got its first race outing and I also put on neoprene overboots and winter gloves with full fingers - there was no way I was running a half marathon still wearing my helmet! Onto the bike and I overtook about 10 people down the narrow track to the road - what were these people doing? Out onto the road and it was hammer time. The course is undulating with a couple of hills but I stayed in the big ring and honked up these. I felt good and was drinking and eating - maybe the colder weather was suiting me? I got round the first 36km lap in just over an hour, but payback wasn't far away. The hills that I had bullied my way up on lap 1 were now biting back and I found myself spending more time in the little ring. Indeed, there is a fairly tough hill at the end of the lap and I was certainly struggling second time around. The 3rd lap is shorter, at about 22km long, and by this point I seemed to have lost all power, and I was mighty relieved to get to T2. 2.48.39 for the 94km so a tad over 33.6kmh - I was a bit disappointed with this but considering the windy conditions I guess it was OK.

I had a pretty good T2 (1.31) and I was feeling OK, not great, but OK. My legs were certainly feeling the effects of the bike but they were carrying me along at a reasonable pace (note this is measured against my own pathetic run standards and not against the likes of Daz Sharpe!). The run is a 4-lap affair, taking you through the village of Emberton onto a lumpy cross country route before returning to the Park and running round the lake. Lap 1 was completed in 27 minutes with over a minute spent by a tree whilst I answered a call of nature. Lap 2 was completed in 25 minutes although I was beginning to struggle. On lap 3 I had a little walk before I had a word with myself although I still managed the lap in 27 minutes. At the beginning of lap 4 I was passed by Wayne O'Brien from the Army whilst I was refuelling at the feed station, I quickly caught him up again but my legs let me down up the hill and he got away again. On the downhill stretch I really pushed myself and caught him up and then made a real effort as I went passed him - there was no way he was going to beat me. That last lap was the fastest one I did, at just under 25 minutes, making a total run time of 1.44.01, just 3 minutes off my HIM run PB. I was really chuffed with that.

So I finished in 5:14:47; I had hoped that this would be the race I went sub 5 hours for the first time, but the extra length on the bike course and the weather conditions put paid to that. I'm not disappointed, I reckon I did the best I could on the day, and that's what counts. OK, maybe I pushed too hard on lap 1 of the bike but unless you do this you will never know what is too hard.

Splits:

Swim T1 Bike T2 Run Total
36.48 3.46 2.48.39 1.31 1.44.01 5.14.47

Position Overall AG
77 out of 324 26

I'm happy, I'm tired, and it's the RAF Sprint Distance Champs on Wednesday. Will my legs recover in time to give some of the quick bys something to think about on the bike? We shall see.

Thanks to everyone who sent me texts both before and after the race, the support from RAF Tri members is very much appreciated.

Next stop on the UK HIM Tour is Aberfeldy in the Highlands of Scotland on 16 August. This is another tough race with a beast of a bike course; I've only gone under 3 hours on the bike once in 3 attempts and my course PB is 5 hours 24 minutes. Reg will be with me on this one and no doubt seeking revenge for his defeat at Bala.

CowMan - Quick Report.

It was windy. It was raining. I raced. I finished. I didn't break 5 hours. I finished in 5:14 something. I'm very tired.

Full report to follow. Sometime. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Can My Preparation Be Any Worse?

I've already documented that my training since Bala hasn't been great, but that I was addressing that this week, albeit with a sense of panic. But it's been worse this week.

On Tuesday I took the dog out for his evening run (note his, not mine). As usual, he chased the rabbits and the squirrels and then we headed to a small lake for him to lay down in and cool off. I walked out onto the wooden pontoon and then Bandit (my dog) decided to jump up onto the pontoon. No problem, other than he got his leg trapped between 2 of the planks of wood that made up the pontoon. The more he pulled, the further his leg became trapped. He was squealing like a stuck pig and was clearly very distressed and in some pain. There was nothing I could do apart from get stuck in and try and pull him free. I managed it but in doing so Bandit decided to try and take a chunk out of my back - OUCH!

So my back was bloodied and sore but I was determined to keep training. Wednesday I did an abridged version of what is becoming the famous 6 x 6 session, in that it was 4 x 6 (well it is taper week!) at 330 watts. No problem with the session, other than it was hard and I was suffering from some discomfort in the saddle region. On closer inspection I had some sort of [censored to protect the children]. Anyway, the upshot of all that is that I was at The Doc's this morning and am now on a double dose of penicillin and have some cream to apply to the affected area. Hopefully, it will clear up before Sunday; I have an easy spin with some short race pace efforts planned for Saturday morning so I'm hoping I will be able to sit on the bike by then.

Can it get any worse for me?

Panic Cycling

It's my A race of the year on Sunday and I'm having a little panic about my poor preparation since Bala. I just haven't managed the volume of training that I wanted to, although what I have managed has been good quality. I have been doing a lot of running (by my low standards) and have managed to lose a kilo so it's not all bad, I've even been doing some swimming. But I've just not been getting out on the bike, which has been bothering me.

So it's now taper week so what do I do? Turn the screw on the bike. Yep, entirely sensible thing to do that. No running at all, swimming every morning and cycling every evening. Monday was a 2 x 20 min Level 3 session, Tuesday was out on the road on my TT bike doing seated sprint efforts, and this evening was 4 x 6 min Level 4 session. All good quality stuff and the sessions were kept fairly short so not to wear me out. Legs feel really good at the moment, having lost the heavy, lead weight feeling they had when I ran 5 days in one week.

Tomorrow I have another swim and an easy recovery spin on the bike. Friday will be a complete day of rest. Saturday will be another easy ride with some short bursts at race pace and then Sunday is race day - the CowMan half ironman distance race at Emberton Park near Bedford, leg 2 in my UK HIM Tour.

Fingers crossed for a dry day with no wind; what are the chances of that?

To Clip In or Not to Clip In? That is the Question.

The original article was somewhat longer than this but in the interests of not boring you to death I have edited it down. Hopefully the point hasn't been lost in doing this.

As mentioned in a previous post (or 3!), I spent 20 or so minutes at the exit of T1 at the Dambuster, and what I saw was absolutely amazing. So many athletes had their shoes pre-clipped on their pedals but only a handful made proper use of this potential time saver. In fact, I reckon many actually lost time. So why do they do it?

I watched one athlete do it properly and he was really slick. He ran out of T1 and managed a smooth running mount, landing very gracefully on the saddle (take note Jamie), his feet went straight on the shoes that were held in the horizontal position with sensible use of elastic bands and he pedalled away. He was out of sight before he even attempted to get his feet into his shoes but having got up some decent momentum I doubt he had a problem. And that's how to do it.

So why on earth did I see athlete after athlete running out of T1, stopping, getting on their bike and then trying to their feet into their shoes with barely half a turn of the pedals on an incline? Many did not have elastic bands holding their shoes so the shoe opening was facing the ground. What on earth was going through these people's minds? Not a great deal I would imagine! I lost count of the number of people that went into the barriers and one character even managed to go through the tape in the centre of the road and only just missed the barrier on the far side. One guy put so much pressure on the pedal trying to get his foot in that the shoe flew off the pedal and landed a metre or so behind him. There was almost total carnage as he stood astride his bike, trying to walk slowly backwards and bending over trying to pick his shoe up whilst other athletes attempted their own version of "The Running Mount". Even The Mighty Sags made a bit of a pigs ear of it - 4/10 could do better buddy!

I reckon people see the elites doing it and think that is what they have to do, but completely ignore the fact that the elites practice this over and over again to get slick at it. I'll be honest I don't do it. I tried and was rubbish at it so now put my shoes on in T1 and then run to the mount line wearing my shoes, get on my bike in the usual way and then pedal off. Yes, I'm slower than the super slick athlete I mentioned at the beginning, but I am quicker than many of those I saw (if we ignore my traditional "can't get the wetsuit off faff" and "I'm a girl and need to put my socks on") and I usually overtake a fair few in the first 4 or 500m of the bike leg who are still faffing about trying to get their feet in.

Coming back into T2 is a different matter. You have momentum and it is relatively easy to get your feet out of your shoes, place your feet on top of the shoes and pedal towards the dismount line. As you approach the line you lift one leg over the saddle and then execute a perfect running dismount. It is smooth and slick and takes very little practice to become reasonably good at (but a lot more to become very good) and save a bunch of time. You need to make sure you don't knock one leg onto the other or let the pedal whack the back of your calf, as this will guarantee a face full of tarmac - not pleasant! Not to mention embarrassing!

So there you have it. The benefits of pre-clipping your shoes on in T1 are potentially many seconds saved, but unless you are prepared to practice, practice, practice then consider very carefully whether it actually saves you or costs you time. From what I saw at Dambuster, I suspect for many people it was the latter.