Ironman Cairns 2014 - The Swim leg

The big day started with the sound of a 3:45am alarm.

I looked outside to see the rain teeming down and blustery squalls.
Great! I will be wet before I even get the wetsuit on. Getting a wetsuit on when the skin is already wet is hard enough. Unlike the dive wetties I am used to, these swimming suits are so soft and supple they are as delicate as tissue paper and prone to ripping with your finger nails as you grip the material to pull it on or off.

After a quick shave I dressed in my Shining4Sharn team tri-suit, some tracksuit pants, hoodie and devoured a massive bowl of muesli while filling four bidons with Hi 5 4:1 carb-protein-electrolyte powder.

At 4:20 I donned a plastic poncho, grabbed my track pump wetsuit and "street clothes bag" then walked along the waters edge of the Esplanade into Cairns (around 1km) to catch the shuttle service 25km north to the race start location at Palm Cove.

A wet 4:20am walk to the IM event centre
to catch the bus to Palm Cove

You could feel the tension everyone on the bus was feeling. The temperature display next to the driver showed 17 degrees. The winds had eased but the rain was still steady.

Once at the Palm Cove event centre I waded through the mud to check the bike over, especially the Di2 electronic gearing. After all the rain overnight I was worried that the Di2 battery in the seat post had got wet. It was fine. I shifted into a comfortable gear for the start of bike leg, put my bidons in their cages, filled up the frame mounted storage bag (A.K.A a bento box) with Hi 5 protein, carbohydrate bars and gels then pumped up the tires. I was regretting the tire choice - Michelin Pro 4 Service Course. Oh well... They had got me up and down Mt Baw Baw in worse conditions, admittedly the Ironman bike course was around 150km longer... I couldn't do anything about them so patted the seat bid the bike cheerio and set off to find a dry spot to stand for almost 2 hours till the race start.

I had to wait for Michelle, her parents (Lyn and Steve) and the kids (Liam and Aishlyn) close to the spot where we parked the day before when I checked the bike in to T1 (swim to bike transition).

It wasn't hard to pick out the Sharni-Army as they started to arrive with their blue or white Shining4Sharn shirts and fluorescent pink wigs.

While huddling under paperbark trees out of the main thoroughfare, getting eaten by mosquitoes and big green tropical ants I had a few friendly chats with others who were getting ready to either race or support others.

Just outside transition 1 getting eaten alive
by big green tropical ants while waiting for
 the family to arrive at Palm Cove.

The Ironman 70.3 were to start earlier than us so we all had to make our way out of the area so we could get across the T1 exit gate and on to the start.

I had to find a dry place to put on the wetsuit. As with many others I decided to start walking toward the race start and found the front foyer of a hotel. No sooner did I arrive there my family arrived. We saw Guy from Macarthur Triathlon Club also seeking refuge from the rain. This was his FOURTH Ironman race for 2014!

A quick look at the time and I needed to hurry and get the wetsuit on then head over to the race start area about 500 metres around the corner and up the beach.

The Elite athletes had there start 5 minutes before us "age groupers".

I just saw the tip of Sharn's kayak and heard the cheer from the crowd as she made here way down the beach to the waters edge. There was no way I could get through the to others in the team. Everyone started to press forward getting ready for the start as the media helicopter flew overhead.

A quick check that the Garmin was set the 'Auto Multisport' mode and the screen was showing only the distance so I could see it clearly while taking a breath and bringing that arm forward for the next stroke.

The final 1 minute and 30 second calls felt like they were only a few seconds apart then all of a sudden the start hooter sounded. It was on! Away we went!

Just like the Foster Club Champs in April I ran in and dived through one latte coloured wave a bit higher than me from waist deep water then I was out of the short surf zone and away.

For the first several metres or so every kick would hit someone behind me in the head so I decided to make smaller flutter kicks and rely more on my arms whilst Looking for someone in front to swim behind also trying to avoid getting kicked.

It is really exciting being at the start of a mass swim start. I was happy that wore two swimming caps. I had put one on, the goggles then the Ironman event category coloured cap on over the top.

There were tangled arms hands hitting me in the back of the head. I would expected there were a few goggles being ripped off. It would have been quite difficult having to do a swim like that if I had lost my goggles.

The conditions were not too bad. There was a little wind chop from the east and the swell would have been less than a metre. It was high enough to lose the buoys and get lost between the swell.

The swim course was a rectangular shape with the "M-dot" buoys marking the course. We had to do two laps. It was an Interesting buoy colour choice considering the overcast and rainy conditions. I have to admit though it wasn't too bad as long as there were people in front to follow or if you were at an angle fortunate enough to cast the white buoys against the trees on the land.

The first lap didn't feel too long. I haven't checked the splits yet but the first lap didn't feel too long. In fact the whole swim felt quite relaxed although the stroke-breathing method I used probably had a lot to do with it. I don't remember being out of breath although all my technique training went out window. I have been doing a lot of Total Immersion stroke style swimming over the 16 weeks training prior to the race. My stroke become more efficient. The didn't get an opportunity to do any open water swims other than one at the Foster Club Champs. Not ideal however as a Sydney diver I am not daunted by swimming in open water or in limited visibility.

In the Ironman swim I found it easier breathing on one side for a maybe three breaths before swapping sides. As the wind chop and swell were coming from the seaward side I tended to favour breathing on the right where the land and markers were a majority of the time.

If I tried to breath on the left (seaward) side for any length of time to relieve the clunk developing in the my shoulder and chafing caused by the wetsuit zipper on the back of my neck, I would change course and start swimming toward New Caledonia. It was easier to stay on course if I was spotting and breathing on the right during each left hand stroke. Thank goodness I trained for this in the final weeks before the race. It is tricky to keep form in the stroke and straight body tracking while spotting. It is also quite hard on the neck which.

It wasn't obvious until I uploaded the Garmin activity that I saw there must have been a slight current heading out to sea (east to south east). At the time it felt like I was being pushed into shore. It also explains the extra effort it too to get back to the beach.

Transition 1 at Palm Cove on the Saturday

I got out of the water after 4.37km (Garmin) gave Michelle and the kids a big wet salty kiss and cuddle then another 20m to the timing grid. 1:18:14 at an average 18:07 per km pace... Awesome!
Michelle mentioned that Sharn and Craig were around 10 minutes ahead. Great!

... Off to what some were saying was a "Tough Mudder" or Cyclo-cross style transition but that and the bike leg is for the next post...

Next post... Sharn and Craig on the front page of the Ironman Asia Pacific website!

Cheers,
Pat

Ironman Cairns 2014 A Brief - Debrief...

For the last few weeks I have been working on my Ironman Cairns debrief...

I haven't had much time to dedicate to the task however when I do start typing the post I find there is so much I want to talk about so it is getting quite long...

I have now decided to write this "brief" version and then break up the War and Peace novel into a post for each leg of the race. At least that way I will get something out before the end of the year.... LOL!

Swim (3.8km):

- Actual Distance 4.37km (Garmin)

- Time: 1hr 18mins 14secs from the start to 20m up the beach to the timing grid including stopping to give my beautiful wife and kids a kiss.
I was really surprised with my swim time. I expected 1hr 20-25mins to allow for course correction and currents. Even though it was very dirty and choppy forcing me to breath and spot a majority of the time on the same side I was comfortable and relaxed.

Swim to Bike transition:

- 8mins 31secs

Ride (180km):

- 8hrs 39mins 32secs

- 20.79kph

It didn't feel like it took as long as it did. Once out of transition and on the road north to Port Douglas, I caught up with Sharn and Craig within maybe 5 minutes. Greg, one of our S4S team mates mentioned we didn't have to adhere to the drafting rule as long as we stayed out of everyone's way I was relieved. That was the thing I was worried about.
There were 3 flat tires during the bike leg which ultimately slowed the average speed down to just over 20kph. We arrived in T2 - Cairns within 8 minutes of being disqualified.
It was nail-biting stuff for friends, family, spectators, Sharni-army and fans!

Bike to Run transition:

- 9mins 50secs

Run (42.2km):

- 6hrs 8mins 19secs

- 8.43kph

Once we got to Cairns then it was a case of keeping on moving and finishing was in the bag!
At one stage, unknown to all but Luke, one of the other S4S teammates, we had to make a certain checkpoint by 8:30pm. He didn't want to worry everyone by mentioning it so merely picked up the pace to ensure we were safe from the sag-wagon. It explains where he got his little spurt of energy...

The Finishers Shoot:
Wow! What an experience!
On every lap of the run the crowds showing their support was incredible but that Finishers Shoot was just something else!

I'll talk about it more in the next few blog posts.

Cheers,
Pat

One more sleep. This is it.

Well... it is 9:30pm on the Saturday night before Ironman Cairns 2014 starts. I think I will be getting close to finishing 24 hours from now, depending on whether I can meet up with Sharn and Craig. I am still not sure how that is going to pan out. If they are ahead, it should be pretty easy. I should be able to see them if they are still swimming when I exit the water so I can wait up for them.

The weather forecast is for 19-23° C, 20-30mm of rain and up to 25kph south easterly winds. Those weather conditions are going to add some extra challenge.

Stay tuned. I am heading to bed.

Be fast. Be safe.
Cheers,
Pat

More DIY, My Support Team, Taper Week 1!

More DIY

During the long hours of training I think about nothing other than the task. The average speed/pace, cadence, heart rate, the next corner, the next hill.
If I do think of anything other than what is happening right at that moment, it usually doesn't commit to long term memory.
Getting ready to transport the bike by aircraft to Cairns is one of those things I think of while swimming, riding or running that I have kept forgetting to address.

I have a bike box which has sections where you fix the rims to the inside cover.
Normal skewers are either too long or too short. I also realised that I need to ensure the forks and rear stays are not bent or broken in the journey so I decided to make some fixings of my own.

I headed down to the local hardware supplier and bought some bubble wrap, nuts, washers, lock-tite, two threaded rods - 3/16th and 5/16th at 24 inches long.

The race wheels are now bolted to the inside of the bike box, ready for the trip. I won't use the wheels for training before Ironman. All I have to do now is let the air out of the tires and finish bubble wrapping them for the flight.
I'll take the time trial bars off the bike too. This will allow me to put on some new bar tape. Over the next week, in between rides, I'll try and get the Cervélo in the box. That will mean rolling the handlebars forward around the top tube to reduce the width of the bike when packed.
I am now wishing I had a spare wheel for the old Giant to ride and spin on so I could pack the Cervélo early and resolve issues that I haven't yet thought of!

I have to figure out how the rest of the stuff will go in too such as the track pump, helmet, shoes, pedals and wetsuit.

My Support Team

I would like to make a very special mention to my very own support team...
My wife - Michelle. She has been so tolerant of all the time I have had to spend in the garage or away training for the Ironman. She has sacrificed her training schedule so I can concentrate on mine. She has kept the house running and helps to keep me focused.
I can't wait till the 9th of June when this is all over and I don't have the thoughts in the background of what training do I need to do that day and how is the intensity going to affect the following day's training sessions.
I really enjoy the constant planning and training a majority of the time but I just want to stop feeling like I am visiting when I have a day off. I miss my family...
My kids - Aishlyn and Liam. Aishlyn often sneaks into our bed in the middle of the night. In the morning she finds it strange that I am sometimes still there in the morning of a weekend. It is lovely seeing the kids' big smiles when I wake up and tell them I am not training that day or until later.
Mum and Dad Watson - I/we are so lucky to have such lovely supportive parents like Michelle's mum and dad. They are truly amazing people. There is no way we would have got through the journey to Ironman  Cairns without the help they have given us. I am so greatful.

Tapering...

With the race three weeks away, I have started the first week of tapering. Yay!
I have recently read articles on the subject and learnt that the whole purpose of tapering is to reduce the chances or recover from possible over training injuries (a-hemm... my knees...) while maintaining consistency by not going any more than 48 or so hours between training for each discipline.
This ensures the neurological connections required to perform each discipline are maintained from the brain to the muscles.
How appropriate this concept is when you think about it in the context of my friend Sharn who suffers from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), an aggressive form of Motor Neurone Disease (MND). By merely training for the Ironman, she is helping to fit this awful disease.
I might be blogging/talking and training like I am trying to qualify for Kona but in reality this Ironman will be all about supporting Sharn in fulfilling her dream of completing a full Ironman 140.6 race. I cannot physically help her but I will be one of many in Cairns to give her and Craig moral support. I talk a bit more about this in a previous post.
For more information on Sharn, her story, Ironman journey and how you can help please visit the  Shining4Sharn website: http://www.shining4sharn.org.au/.

Training this week:
So this is the plan for this week...
Monday: 2hrs spin - tempo
Tuesday: Rest. Knees are still tender...
Wednesday: Morning 2km swim, Evening easy half hour run
Thursday: Morning 1hr moderate run
Friday: Morning 2km Swim, Evening: moderate spin
Saturday: Brick Session - Local bunch ride 65km, 15km easy run.
Sunday: Rest day (Maybe an openwater swim during the day).

26 days to go...

With the colder weather early morning training is now limited to swimming in fear of getting sick this close to the Ironman. 26 days away...

I don't mind the swimming. It is a good start to the day. Fridays are the best swim days at the moment. It must be because it is the end of the week, cold and people are trying their best to last till the weekend and the thought of swimming at 5:30am is probably the last thing on their minds.

I also found just before lunch time on a Saturday is when the pool is quieter. All the kids' learn to swim classes and squad is finished around then.

My swim time for 4km is now down to 1hr 12min. That's in a 25m pool. I don't stand up, tumble turn or push off the wall with the exception of my hand in aid to redirect my forward motion as I come past in a large swim turn to try limit contact with anything other than water.

I realise the open water will be a completely different experience but at the moment I can't see myself getting a chance to do an open water swim between now and Ironman. I see it as no big deal. I can swim the distance comforably and well aware of the problems associated with chop, swell, currents and the need for course correction.

I have two more weeks until tapering starts (26th of May) but as there have been a few things on at the moment and the training volume has been less it feels like I have already started.

I guess it is getting to that time of the training phase where motivation and commitment are challenged on a daily basis. Sometimes it is a case of saying to one's self, "JFDI"!

...(Just E-ffing Do It)...

I am so close now! 

I have been really enjoying the running lately with the increased distances at a pace that surprised me.

I am a lot more comfortable operating for extended periods at higher heart rates. I have also started to see it in some of my recent rides where usually I would be riding at around 130-137bpm with peaks of up to 150bpm, I have noticed higher speeds, cadence and peaks of up past 160bpm.

On the 30th of April I did a 25km run at 5 minutes per kilometre on a fairly hilly course. Particularly in the first 15km. I was holding back thinking I didn't want to over cook myself however I think I could have sustained 4:45min/km.

The next (last) Wednesday I wanted to try for 35km. I have been putting off the bigger distances, feeling I wasn't ready, worried about my ankle, birthdays, Easter, and illness.

This was to be my last big run before the race in June. There is no point in pushing for a marathon in training at this stage and after the previous week I was excited at the prospect getting the 35km under my belt.

I don't know what it was but I wasn't feeling as good as the previous week. I could feel a little discomfort under the knee cap at around 15km. By 20km I could start to feel the tension in the side of the knee, on the high camber side of the path I was running on. It didn't feel like it was going to become worse until I started to go up a slight rise at 21km. That is where the pain got quite bad. I backed off the pace and decided I could still do at least 30km if I just alternated the pressure by running on the side of the road, then path, then road again. My thinking was if I could just through the undulating parts of the course I was running, I would be okay on the flat sections.

No... By the time I got just over 1km past the turn around point near home, even the downward slopes were hurting the outside of both knees.

I stopped and tried to massage the Iliotibial Band (ITB) but nothing was going to stop the inflammation from causing the pain.

I had no choice but to turn around and jog/walk back home. The run distance fell short of the 35km by 12km.

So I have decided to start with a short distance again, around 10km and see how the knees go. I think part of the problem is the time trial position on the bike. I will be reviewing the bike fit over the next few days. I have already moved the TT bars back a little.

I am now alternating between riding and running of an evening with swimming in the mornings.

I really don't like my Tuesday "Tired" swimming set:

- 300m warmup. Start slow with speed increasing every 100m then 30 seconds recovery.

- 4 x 25m drills with 30 seconds recovery.

- 4 x 25m flat out with 30 seconds recovery.

- 4 x 100m flat out with 30 seconds recovery.

- 2 x 200m flat out with 30 seconds recovery.

- 1 x 400m with whatever is left, not leaving anything in reserve.

- Warm down

Give it a go and let me know what you think. It is only 1700m in total and you get to rest... ;-)

I think I'll enter the Western Sydney Ironman 70.3 in late November. With the training I have done for the full Ironman, I may as well. It will be 2 weeks after the Highland Fling mountain bike race in Budanoon. Perfect lead up to it!

Sorry... No pictures this post.

Pat signing off...

Weeks 9 to 11 - A write-off, Easter and the motivation for this craziness...

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was sick after the Tri NSW Club Champs in Forster.

I did no training between the 7th and 12th of April. On the Sunday when I went for a local ride and passed on the dreaded "lurgy" to my mate Phil during a morning ride.

I felt like death but I needed to do something... I was going stir crazy.

It wasn't until the 20th where I had almost shaken off the head cold, only having to blow my nose a few times today rather than a few times every hour.

Garmin Activity List between 2nd and 16th of April

Week 8 and Easter (Week 9)

Following illness and a huge few days of quite intense training sessions my legs were suffering from prolonged delayed onset muscle soreness ("The DOMS") and no amount of carbs I ate could fuel them up from the tiredness either.

Good Friday was my first early morning cold ride for the year, 90km and 10km run. 4.5 hours of training.

In the afternoon I was meant to do a 3km swim however at the 8km mark of the run I felt the effects of having nothing to eat for breakfast which resulted in me finishing the 10km then shuffling home from my usual start/end point.

After a piece of toast and peanut butter, I was good to go again. The kids wanted to go for a ride so we went to the local BMX track for a few laps. I was amazed at how quickly I had recovered from the morning's training. Peanut butter rocks!

The afternoon swim didn't eventuate. It was replaced with more eating at a local pub for my mum in law's birthday. The celebrations kicked on into the night but I was shattered by 8:30 and dozed in the lounge room while the kids watched movies.

Easter Saturday was meant to be a 150km ride then a 30km run.

That turned into a combined 130km Strava - April Gran Fondo and MacTri club Easter group ride along the M7 motorway bike path.

I did an extra 1h:30m before they arrived at 7:30, the 80-odd kilometres then a another 5 or 6km to hit the 130km I needed for the Gran Fondo. The day was getting on and I had to get ready to go out for my nephew's birthday.

I was starting to wonder if I was ever going to get a 30km run in before the race… It has been starting to stress me out.

Easter Sunday, I woke up with the start of bronchitis... Fan-bloody-tastic!

My voice sounded like Barry White. I guess the recent cold 5:15am rollouts were catching up with me.

Thankfully a rest day. Sort of... We took the kids to The Royal Easter Show. An all day fairy floss eating, thrill ride, show bag queuing marathon after the Easter Bunny delivered his bounty of choc-treats. We were there for almost 12 hours!

Needless to say, Easter Monday was a very slow day for the whole family. The kids ate chocolate, played with the goodies from the showbags and watched TV.

Michelle and I were just able to muster enough strength to make a coffee and sit outside in the morning sun. It took a while to get moving that day...

Week 10 & 11 (This week)

Early on ANZAC Day (Friday 25th April) morning, I went out for a mountain bike ride with some friends - Phil, Nico, Cam, Griffo and another fellow.

Phil washed out on a sandy corner and landed on a steel pipe sticking upright out of the ground, breaking at least one rib. I feel so bad for suggesting we go out to this particular trail. It has stopped his training for up to 6 weeks.

That Saturday was a 200km training ride on the M7 with some other guys (Craig, Jason, Luke and Justin) who will be also doing the Cairns Ironman. I'll tell you the reason for all of us doing this crazy stuff in a minute.

Hopefully I can meet up with the guys again before the race to do some long runs and much needed ocean swims.

Why do this?

I mentioned in my last post that I would talk about the reasons for all this training. You may already know that I am attempting my first full Ironman triathlon in Cairns.

The race involves participants to complete a 3.8km swim, 180km ride and a 42.2km marathon run.

There were a couple of reasons before I started this monumental task and now that I am

just over the halfway point of my 16 week training plan and 6 weeks away from the race, I have found a few more reasons.

- The adventure!

- Because I reckon I can and have always wanted to do one.

- To show a particular eff-wit who will remain nameless and anyone else who thinks I can’t do it that I can and will! Just thinking about the the eff-wit’s comments to my face makes me so angry and determined. This person doesn't even know me well enough to even make a comment… and to my face! The fat up-himself prick!

- My dad was a 12 year national champion spear fisherman, professional photographer and exceptional artist (still is). In some ways not fulfilling my (and his) aspirations of having a career in the diving industry makes me feel like I need to seek his , acceptance or acknowledgement in something and doing something as huge as an Ironman event might do it.

- I have always liked to push my physical boundaries and be satisfied in knowing that I am physically capable of doing something. Now that I am 41, lets just call it a mid-life crisis.  LOL!

-    - Breaking my ankle in 1997 put a stop to my running. Surgery to clean the joint in my ankle a few years later allowed me to walk and run without pain again.

      … It is a father - son thing…

The main reason for me choosing to enter the Cairns Ironman came when in November 2013 I attended a fundraising event in support of a friend Sharn who after nearly a year of tests was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (known as ALS), an aggressive form of Motor Neurone Disease (MND). At that stage Sharn had just completed a Half Ironman (1.9km swim, 90km ride and 21.1km run) and was setting her sights on a competing in a full Ironman event. This confirmed diagnosis obviously would put an end to her dream of doing an event of this kind.

During the fundraising event, Sharn announced that her dream of competing in an Ironman event was going to be a reality with the assistance of Craig, her husbands mate. She will be towed in the swim, assisted in the ride on a special recumbent bike and will do the marathon in a wheelchair where needed.

Sharn and Craig will have to do the race all themselves, without any help aside from words of encouragement. If they finish within the allocated cut-off time, they will be awarded the much deserved title of “Ironman”.

I will leave all the details for you to read on her website http://www.shining4sharn.org.au. Please take the time to read about this beautiful, inspiring lady and support her any way you can

...Needless to say I was so in awe of Sharn and Craig’s massive challenge that I decided there and then that I wanted to support her by sharing the experience and encouraging her along the way while helping to raise greater awareness of ALS and MND.

Macarthur Triathlon Club Duathlon Series 2014 Round 1 (27/04/2014)

April 2014 Strava Challenges... done...

Only 37 days left till the race and so much to do...

TriNSW Club Champs and Training... and not...

On Saturday the 5th of April I raced in the Triathlon NSW Club Championships at Forster on the mid-north coast of New South Wales.

It was my first open water swim under race conditions since the mid 90s.

It was also my first swim using the new wetsuit.

Wow! How floaty are these things! It was quite hard to get used to because my feet were so high it was hard keeping them low enough in the water to kick.
It wasn't until about 2/3rds of the way through the swim to figure out an effective kick style.

The Swim (1km):

I was pleasantly surprised with my actual swim time over the 1 kilometre - 18m:32s, from the beach start which was about 30m from the edge of the water to the time I stood up ready to run out of the water. Pretty good considering it was mostly arms...

Thankfully there were no big course corrections necessary. I stayed about mid-pack of the 116 other athletes in my start wave which worked well because anytime someone started to swim across my line it would prompt me to have a quick look at my heading. I mostly used the sand ripples on the bottom for the way out, in and across in the shallower water to help navigate. Something I have learnt from years of diving.

My swim looks a bit wonky but the Garmin does that in open water
I can't tell how accurate it is.

I would be interested to see what my heart rate was just before the start! I was so nervous!

Once the start was called, we were away and surviving the swim out of the surf zone was now my only focus. The surf conditions were small and perfect for the race.

The first 100m or so were okay as we swam the easy flowing rip out past the surf zone. I only had to deal with two, maybe three medium size, clean waves. They had very little power to them.

It seemed like the fast pace almost where the rip met deeper water around 150m out.

Due to the surge, it felt like I was making two strokes forward and one stroke back. That was about the time I was wondering to myself what hell I was thinking... this is only 1km and I got the impression I was the last in the field!
I was having difficulty getting a comfortable kick rhythm. The wetsuit was too floaty so I found myself just using my arms most of the time.

On the next few single stroke breaths I checked, tweaked my course and had a look around for my position. I was around the front quarter of the group with a few bubble trails ahead to follow.

The surge or slight current pushed me over a little too close to the first turn buoy at the 375m mark but the congestion wasn't too bad. I think I swam over the top of one guy and also had it happen to me once. A few breath strokes and back into the again.

There had to be a current sweeping us north because once I cleared that first turn it felt like I could finally settle in to the swim.

I found myself swimming alone most of the time without anyone in front of me which I preferred. I had a few foot tappers and side swipes from others as they or I occasionally course corrected.

We headed north, between two orange buoys, then left around the second turning buoy to head west and found the sand becoming visible again in the murk below.
I could see the sand ripples which meant I could navigate better.
I could now keep my head down and concentrate on my stroke and kicking style.

We had two more turns, one to the (left) south back toward the start and then right into the surf zone and to the beach.

Transition was a bit slow due to the small loose gravel rocks in the transition area. I decided to run to the mount point, around 70m away) in my riding shoes.
I was watching some who didn't run in shoes with great amusement as they tip-toed through the rocks like they were doing the "The Bindi Dance".

The Ride (30km):

After my Google Street View analysis of the bike course mentioned in my previous post I felt well acquainted with what was to come however the course lap seemed shorter than I expected.
The best thing about it was Street View has a fairly wide angle lense and makes the gradient look a lot steeper than it really is.

This was my first ride with the new Garneau Vorttice aero helmet.

For the first five kilometres my neck was feeling the strain while I lifting my head back in a aero position under the extra weight of the larger helmet than I am used to. I was fine after a while. But was occasionally buffered around by a head wind coming from the south east.

It was very hard to adhere to the non-drafting rule which is 7.5 metres between bikes. There were so many people out on the course that it was pretty much impossible.

I just made sure I was making forward progress on the rider(s) in front of me. There were two riders that passed me in the bike leg. I caught and passed both.

One of them was a guy from another club that sat on my wheel for more than 6km. He made a couple passes then died on the pinch climbs which meant I had to surge to pass him again.
Every time I passed him, he just jumped back on my wheel. The officials on the motor bikes even saw what he was doing a couple of times but didn't penalise him. That really pi$$ed me off so I made for a break away close to the end of the last lap where there were plenty of slower riders and a few sketchy corners.
It looked like he wasn't very comfortable cornering at speed so I also used that to my advantage. He looked like a good runner so I wanted to get some distance between us before we got to the run.

My average speed was 36.12kph. Pretty good considering the headwind and course terrain.

The Run (8km):

The run was a fairly flat with two laps of a 4km out and back course. There were only a few rises in the bridge between Forster and Tuncurry.

It was hard to get passed people as the footpath over the bridge was so narrow. My pace started out as 3:55/km but dropped as I hit traffic.

I was hoping to keep a 4:10/km pace, the Garmin says I did 4:18/km but the official results reckon it did 4:01/km. I'm not going to argue.

;-)

My overall time for the race was 1h:46m:12s

Training... and not...

During the week before the race my six year old daughter had been coughing all over everyone in the family. I managed to avoid getting sick until the Sunday night we got back. It was about 8:30pm and my throat felt like I had swallowed razor blades.
It is now Friday and I think I am just starting to feel a bit better. This morning I was able to climb the stairs at the train station without wheezing... Awesome...

I have been stressed out about not being able to train. I was actually looking forward to my planned 2/3rd IM distance on Saturday which included a 2.6km swim, a Strava - 130km - April Gran Fondo and a 28km run.

I was going to back it up with the final MacTri club triathlon race followed by a 2-3hr ride on Sunday.
... Not gonna happen...

With this chest & head cold and achilles soreness I have no chance of doing any of this...

If I am feeling okay I might head out to Appin or Glenbrook for a mountain bike ride.

Next time... My motivation for taking on the challenge of an Ironman triathlon...

Bye for now.
:Pat

MacTri Club Champs and the NSW Club Champs

I have just received the pre-race briefing for this Saturday's NSW Club Championships (1k/30k/8k).
This will be my first open water swim under race conditions in years. It will also be my first race in the wetty.

... Just doing some research on the ride leg for this Saturday... Thank goodness for Google - Street View ;-)

I have had to modify the training plan again this week to cater for this weekend. I was due to do a 32km interval run today (Wednesday) but I don't want to smash my self too much before the weekend.
Last night's strength training at the gym concentrated on the smaller muscles in the shoulder and back. My core was still fairly tired from the weekend.

The following weekend (13th of April) there is another club race (I think). I'll have to get back into the big training after this weekend rather than saving myself for the smaller races. I'll start treating them like mini "brick" sessions as part of a larger day of suffering. This means my club race times may drop a little bit.

Macarthur Triathlon Club Championships (Tri Series Round 7)

The official results from the MacTri Club Championships haven't been posted yet however going by the Garmin, my time was sub one hour for the 500/20/4 on the MacTri club course which is great!

I wore the new MacTri tri-suit for the first time in a swim. I really felt the drag of the suit in the water and forgot to hit the button as soon as I got out of the water but it looks like my swim time was about the same or a fraction faster than last time when I was using togs. That would suggest I am getting faster over that distance. I was out in front out of the 4 guys in my lane until I got a toe cramp at around 150m. I wasn't very comfortable.
I had the Garmin on my right hand to stop it getting bashed against the lane rope during the swim-stampede. I guess I am just used to having a watch on the left.
As I mentioned earlier, I could feel the drag added by wearing the tri-suit in lieu of togs. Aside from this the suit performed well during the ride and run. I just have to get used to it in the water.

The bike leg was a lot faster than last time (Round 6 on the 9th of March) too. The average speed was up from 35.3kph to 38.5kph.

The run leg was better too. 4:05 per kilometre pace. In Round 6 the run pace was 4:12 per km. Going to have to try and crack the 4 minute per km mark on that 4km course as a goal!

:Pat

Road bike to Time Trial/Triathlon bike transformation

10 weeks and 3 days to the big day...

Ok... So I have a Cervélo S3. It is a road bike but with a few modifications can be a pretty good Time Trial (TT) bike.

Whack some on TT bars, drop the stem 10mm, slide the saddle forward, bolt on a dual bottle cage rack under the seat and tah-dah...
My poor Cervélo...
It isn't going to be the most comfortable thing to sit on for 180 kilometres... I dare not try buying a $200 TT seat after the recent wetsuit and helmet purchases, not that it would help comfort-wise too much anyway. TT bikes are not made for comfort. they are made for speed.

The question is should I bring out the TT helmet for the MacTri club champs race this weekend? It is only 20km. I think the NSW Club Champs in Forster the following weekend will be a better opportunity to use the TT helmet but I am thinking of removing the dual bottle cage rack and one cage in the frame for both races. It will be unnecessary weight and drag. I certainly do not need four bottles of electrolytes for these 20 and 30 kilometre races...

The weather is not looking very good at the moment. I hope it clears for the weekend. I didn't do a run last night because it was bucketing-down however I did another 4 kilometre swim.

Looks like I'll have to head to the gym for some strength training while this wet weather is around.

Here is a quick look at this week's training as of Thursday the 27th of March.

On Wednesday next week I am meant to do what would be my longest run ever - 32km as an interval structure - 5k easy, 5k at 4:30min/km, 12k easy, 5k at 4:30min/km & 5k easy. With the NSW Club Championships coming up that weekend I am a bit hesitant to do the 32kms and sap my energy systems before needing to call on them at the NSW Club Champs next weekend.

What I have done for this Saturday is backed off the intensity of the "brick" - ride and run session in the morning. In the afternoon, I'll take the wetsuit for it's first swim. With all this rain making the water dirty with run-off it might be best to swim in the salt water pool...

:Pat

My longest ride and swim ever...

Last Sunday I completed the Strava Gran Fondo for March. At 185 kilometers. I am fairly certain it was my longest ride ever.
My fellow 7 Peaks finisher - Phil and I started at 5:30am in Camden (south-west of Sydney) and rode 45km north to Penrith before turning west and climbed The Great Western Highway toward Springwood in the Blue Mountains.
From Springwood we headed north through Winmalee to stop for coffee at Richmond around 8:30.
We then rode through to Windsor and on to join the M7 orbital motorway (cycleway) for the trip home.
I felt good and was happy with the pace, around 29.4kph for the whole trip.

I also did my longest swim ever - 4km. I wasn't pushing it because I wanted to test out how I would go with toe, calf and full leg cramps. I only got a few at around the 3.5km mark, with one calf cramp that forced me to stop for around 30 seconds. So I am happy with the 1 hour 18 minute time it took. There were a few higher paced surges that probably contributed to the cramps but I think I could have done it a bit quicker.

I have just bought an Orca 3.8 wetsuit so I am ready for a bit of cold water swimming now that it is early autumn.

The Garneau Vorttice helmet just arrived. I'll get that on the weekend from the bro in-law bro. Bloody legend!

Things are starting to fall into place. All I need now is to concentrate on the big kays, in and out of the water.

I'll have to plan some regular open water swims in the ocean and at the Penrith Regatta Centre. Saturdays are the big days.

[Monday 24th of May]

The Melbourne Ironman race was on yesterday. While I was hanging out at home doing the lawns having brunch and doing normal weekend family get together things, two fellow MacTri members were smashing it out down south.

They did really well! Just over 9 and 13 hours. All through the day I was checking on their progress and as the hours passed it really started to psych me out as the realisation set in that in only 76 days from today I will be in the hurt locker for just as long as these guys. If it takes me longer, hopefully it won't be much more than that...

Now... Where's that training plan... I'd better review my training week.

Bye for now.