Lincolnshire Olympic Triathlon

My training and racing plans for 2017 mimicked 2016 where I would peak twice. Firstly I would peak in May for the ETU Duathlon Championships (see earlier blog), with the second at the end of July for Castle Howards mid-distance (70.3) triathlon in North Yorkshire. This resulting in me racing over the Olympic distance two-weeks prior to my 70.3. Knowing how well this worked last year I again entered The Lincolnshire Edge Triathlon, based at Cadney Reservoir, just outside Brigg.  

As in previous years the start time for this was 8 am, which meant I was getting up at 5 am for my pre-race breakfast. To help get me in the mood for racing, whist eating breakfast I caught up on the highlights of The Tour de France. After that it was time to give Sally a shout as we needed to make a move, so I would be at the race venue in good time. Typically, I like to arrive an hour before the race start so i'm not in a mad rush. Just like last year, on arrival I was please to see that it had still kept its nice low key vibe. After registering and racking my bike I still had plenty of time to chat and it was nice to see a few old faces that I hadn't seen in a while.  

With about 10 minutes to go before the race start after the briefing we were able to get into the water, get acclimatised and start warming up. We then got a 1 minute warning, so I ensured that I had got a good starting position, close to the front. The horn went and we were off!! It was a good 200 m to the first buoy, so after the initial sprint effort, I settled in to a rhythm. After rounding that buoy it was about 300 m to the next buoy, I kept concentrating on my arm pull as this was something that my swim coach pointed out needed improvement. After the second buoy I was still feeling good and was now into a nice comfortable rhythm with my pull feeling good. This was the longest stretch back to the start/finish buoy. The second lap was similar to the first although I had passed a few swimmers which really helped my confidence and ended up coming out the water in about 10th place. I quickly ran into T1, grabbed my bike and was quickly out on the bike course. 

The bike course consisted of an "out and back" with a loop in the middle to make up the 40 km distance. It was mainly flat, with a few gradual climbs but nothing of real note, which meant I was able to stay in the TT position for most of the race. The bike course had both standard and sprint competitors on so the first 10 km was pretty busy and took a bit of working out to gauge my position. However, I knew that if their race number was < 100 then they were direct competition. I felt really strong and continued to make headway into some of the quicker swimmers that beat me out of the water. The second loop wasn't as busy and I think I only passed one more athlete, so I know I must be going well. I approached T2, just after the hour, removed my feet from my tri-shoes all set to dismount before the dismount line. After a swift dismount I was quickly into transition, raced my bike, helmet off and slipped my racing trainers on. 

Out of T2 and onto the run firstly consisted of a loop around the reservoir, before two lap "out and back" section along the road to make up the full 10 km. The first part around the reservoir was on grass, so inevitably it wasn't the fastest, but I felt super strong off the bike and quickly settled into a comfortable rhythm. The beauty of a course like this is that you are able to work out your placing, by counting the athletes who have already got to the turn around point and on their way back onto the road section. Just before the turn point, along the reservoir I could see the race leader and then counted the other competitors. By the turn around point I knew that I was in 6th place and on my way back was able to gauge how close 5th I was. Once off the grass and on to the road I kicked on. I noticed that during the grass section I was slowing catching 5th, so I knew that I'd get him on the run. The run was pretty tough because it wasn't that visually stimulating which, sometimes can help take your mind off the pain. However, by the turn-a-round point I had caught 5th place, so that gave me a little boost! For the final lap I just dug in and kept running with "the fear" of being caught. At the final turn point with about 2 km to go I knew that I wouldn't be be caught nor able to to catch 4th. I just kept focused and was now racing to improve on my times from last years race. I kicked for the final time with about 300 m to the finish. Now approaching the finish I could see all the spectators and could see and hear Sally cheering me on to the finish. I crossed the line shattered by super happy with my race!! 

Motoring on the run to the finish

I finished 5th overall with a time of 2:18:47. This was a 3.5 minute PB from last year and again I finished 1st in my age-group, which I over the moon about and a massive confidence booster moving forward. Thanks to FastFWD Sports for organizing such a great, friendly event and I think its only fitting that I come back again next year to try and make it 3 in 3 age-group wins.

Super happy to get an age-group win!

However, the most important thanks has to go to my darling girlfriend, Sally closely followed by my sponsors Meridian Foods and Coconoil. The final thanks has to go to my coach Ian Mayhew (Gears & Tears). 

Steelman 70.3 Triathlon

The majority of my triathlon racing has been over the over the sprint distance, however over the last few years I have performed well over the longer distances too. Therefore as a repeat of last season I opted to race the shorter distances races for the first half of the season, with the plan to race a 70.3 middle distance triathlon in the second half of the season. This season I decided to race in The Steelman organised by Cleaveland Triathlon club. This race has received good reviews by club mates; for being well organised, have strong competition and also unbelievably good value for money (less than £60 for a half distance!), so I decided to enter and see if it lives up to these reviews. 

I was going into this race full of confidence as a few weeks prior I raced really well at the Humber Half Marathon and the Lincolnshire standard distance triathlon, so knew I was in good shape. The race was based at Ellerton Water Park, near Richmond in North Yorkshire. Although it wasn't that far away and it had a nice civilized start time (10 am) Sally and I decided to book into a B&B the night before so it wasn't a mad rush the morning of the race. Driving over the night before i got a phone call from a good club mate of mine Tom Mac, who was able to give me some advice on the race, so confidence was still high as I knew the course would suit me. The only thing that was unusual about this race was there wasn't any aid stations on the bike, but that wasn't going to me an issue as Sally was going to pass me a bottle or two on the second lap of the bike. 

I woke just before 7 am to have my pre-race breakfast and start my final preparations. After watching Sally enjoy a nice home cooked breakfast (which was torture!) we drove over to Richmond to register before setting up transition and getting ready to race! After registration and sorting my bike out, equipping it with all the bottles and gels, I walked into transition and racked my bike. I then spoke with one of the race officials, who informed me that I could put a spare bottle in a box for the bike, which was great news as would save Sally a job. The race brief commenced, so whilst listening to this I started to put my new wetsuit on. With about 10 minutes to go before the race start we were able to make our way to the lake, get into the water, get acclimatised and warm-up. The lake was perfect temperature for racing, which was helped by a few weeks of really nice weather. We then got a 1 minute warning, so I ensured that I had got a good starting position, pretty much on the front line of athletes. The horn went and we were off!! The swim route was two laps, shaped like a triangle. It was a good 400m to the first main buoy, although there was a mini buoy that we had to pass on the way out (after ~150m), which made for a bit of argey bargy, but it wasn't anything too major!! After turning round the first main buoy, it was diagonally across to the second buoy before heading back to the start/finish buoy. By now I was comfortably into a good tempo and holding a my own within a small group of swimmers. The second lap was pretty much the same as the first, but this time we turn the opposite way round the start/finish buoy before exiting the water, in the first 20. After exiting the water I quickly ran into T1, unzipping my wetsuit, whilst running to my bike. I then put my helmet on, grabbed my bike and was quickly out on the bike course. 

Exiting the swim 

The bike course can best be described as rolling and consisted of 2 x 45 km laps. This type of course suits me well, so I knew I would race well. Once exiting transition, slipping my feet into my tri-shoes I assumed the aero position, which is where I would remain for the majority of the race. I had my Garmin on my bike to remind me to eat/drink at regular intervals as keeping fueled for this distance its really important and as it was a really hot day fluids was going to be key. Within the first 30 minutes of the first lap I felt really strong and was comfortably moving up the field. I then approached the only part of the course that was pretty tricky, it was a good 3 miles of newly tarmacked road. Sounds simple, but it was the easy tarmac job, where they just add gravel to the top of the bitumen, so there's plenty of loose stones on the top, making it bumpy and I also felt my back wheel slide out on a few occasions! Once off this section I got back into a more comfortable rhythm and kept pushing on. As I approached Ellerton water park for the first time I noticed that I had pretty much finished both my bottles, but I wasn't too worried as I remember that the race official told me there would be an aid station for me to get more fluid. As I got even closer I started to see and hear the cheers from the spectators lining the entrance to the venue. I then rode past Sally who gave me an encouraging cheer and thumbs up, so I knew I was doing really well. The second lap was pretty much the same as the first, although this time I kept thinking it wont belong before I can get another bottle as I was close to running out of fluids. As I passed the rough road section for the second time I couldn't help but think there wasn't going to be this aid station as first told, which was bad news as I was getting dehydrated! That didn't stop me pushing on for the final 20 km, as I know I run well off the bike. I approached the water park for the final time I took my feet out of my tri-shoes and rested them on top before dismounting and running into T2. 

In a whole world of pain on the run! 

The run course consisted of two laps of just over 10 km on a mixture of surfaces ranging from compacted gravel (farm track stylee) to through fields, footpaths and Tarmac. The route had a similar elevation profile to the bike, mainly flat with a few small rises, normally nothing to phase me. However this time it quickly became apparent that this wasn't going to be the case! The first few km were seriously tough as my legs were pretty tired and the sheer lack of fluids was hurting me. As I continued along the track I started to run past fellow athletes who were walking back to transition, having given up (perhaps due to the lack of fluid like myself). This made things even more mentally challenging for me as the demons came out telling me that I could do the same and quit the race! I was really struggling to find a comfortable rhythm but just kept telling myself to keep going. I then exited the park and got onto the road section, which took me to the 5 km aid station, which couldn't come soon enough! I got there, grabbed a few cups of water and a gel, quickly finished the lot, which I defiantly needed. The next section was through a few fields, before a really short climb back onto the road section before looping around the lake. I was still seriously struggling to run as fast as I knew I could and those demons were still on my shoulder! As I started to round the lake I could see the finish line, which gave me a little boost as I knew there was another chance to get some more fluids. This was helped by all the supporters cheering me on! Again I quickly downed some more water and headed out along the track for the final time. By now there were more athletes on the course and I was able to find someone who was running a similar pace to me so I just let them do a bit of pace making for me, this really helped me.  As I approached the 5 km aid station for the final time I grabbed more fluids! After exiting the fields for the last time and starting the loop around the lake, I was slowly beginning to feel as if I was running similarly to what I could do. I quickly noticed that I was getting close to the finish, so tried to up the pace, it wasn't by much but that didn't matter to me anymore! I just grit my teeth and pushed on for the final 500 m, before crossing the line and just collapsing into the recovery position! 

A make shift ice bath, hoping that it would help (face says otherwise!) 

It took me about 15 minutes before I was able to start moving and get my race splits from the timing company. I finished with an overall time of just over 5h:03min. This was by far the hardest race I have ever done and I certainly payed the price of dehydration. Looking back now I am still disappointed as I could have knocked 10 minutes off my time if I was better hydrated. Having said that my swim and bike splits were PB's and I also PB'd over that distance, by just over 4 minutes, so there are plenty of positives to take out of this and I defiantly wont allow myself to get dehydrated like that again! 

Thanks to my sponsors Meridian Foods and Coconoil.

Thanks to my coach Ian Mayhew (Gears & Tears)

Castle Howard Mid-Distance Triathlon

Ever since I started racing triathlons I have predominantly focused on racing over the sprint distance. However, this season I decided to up the distance and race over the half Ironman distance (1.9km swim, 90km cycle & 21km run). This was a well educated decision that I made in consultation with my coach Ian. I have achieved success in the shorter format, qualifying to represent and representing GB in my age-group. However we decided that if I played to my strengths then the 70.3 distance would be my distance. With that in mind at the start of the season I entered Castle Howard Mid-Distance triathlon. I'd raced at Castle Howard before albeit over a shorter distance however I did win my age-group, so this place holds some fond memories for me.

I was going into this race full of confidence as a few weeks prior I raced really well at the Humber Half Marathon, so knew I was in good shape. The race started at 8am, so this meant a nice and early 5am wake up call!! As Castle Howard isn't that far from my house I opted to drive to the race in the morning. As you can imagine driving at 6am on a Sunday the roads were free from traffic so we got to Castle Howard in plenty of time. 

Castle Howard looking stunning in the morning mist. 

Once I sorted and positioned my bike and trainers just how I like it in transition I then climbed waist high into my wetsuit before walking down the hill (which we have to run up for T1) to the lake for the pre-race briefing and swim start. Once the pre-race brief was over we were then given time to get into the lake and warm up. We were then given a 2 minute warning so I positioned myself close to the front giving be a good chance to draft some slightly faster swimmers than me a hopefully get into some clear water pretty early on. The horn went and we were off!! I was able to quickly settle into a nice swim rhythm which makes a nice change for me as during a sprint triathlon in carnage! The swim route was 2-laps of an out and back format with a dog leg at the end of the lap and exit of the swim. This made the most direct line rather congested for the first 400m but after that the field soon spread out. I felt like I paced the swim well went I came out of the water. After exiting the water, I ran as quickly as possible the 500m into T1, however this was easier said than done as approximately 400m of this was up hill so that got you grasping for oxygen! I then quickly removed my wetsuit and grabbed my bike, before making inroads into the 90km bike and picking off fellow athletes. 

The bike course can best be described as tough and I would go as far as to say the hardest bike course I have ridden!! The course consisted of 2-laps of 45km of Castle Howard and the surrounding Howardian hills. I've been regularly in my local tri club (Barracuda) duathlon series' where the bike course has a similar profile, however significantly shorter. In the build up to this I also trained over similar terrain so I was feeling confident that providing I kept to my nutrition plan I would be able to put in a solid and competitive bike leg. My T1 was quick and soon I was out of the castle grounds and onto the open roads. I had two things I had to keep in the back of my head; 1) maintain a sustainable effort and not to race full gas like I'd do in the shorter races and 2) try as best as possible to stick to my nutrition plan, which I hoped would keep fueled for the bike course and onto the run. I felt really strong on the bike and was able to stick to my plans for the first lap. The second lap things got a bit trickier as athletes racing in the Olympic distance race were now also on the bike course. I just kept saying to myself don't get too carried away chasing these athletes down as I still had a half marathon to go. There was only one bottle/feed station per lap and once I got onto the second lap this feed station couldn't come quick enough as I was getting significantly low on fluid. As I approached this section, I discarded one of my empty bottles, sat up and stuck my hand out to grab a new bottle, only to drop it, SHIT!! Fortunately, there was another opportunity to get another bottle and this time I held on to it. From then on it was time for me to resume the aero position on the tri-bars and continue to maintain that threshold effort back to the castle grounds. I completed the bike course in just over 2:45 hrs and as I approached T2 I took my feet out of my tri-shoes and rested them on top before dismounting and running into T2. 

The run course was a toughie and consisted two laps of just over 10km on a mixture of surfaces ranging from compacted gravel (farm track stylee) to through fields, footpaths and Tarmac. The route had a similar elevation profile to the bike with a few long drags and short steep climbs. Getting on the run after racing over 90km was a completely new experience for me so I aired on the side of caution for the first 5km or so, not that my legs could go that much faster to start with! Once I settled into the run I felt surprising good and was able to maintain a sustainable pace only slowing down to get some nutrition from the aid stations and when the route went uphill. Again the course was full of athletes racing in the shorted distance event, but this time I was without changing my speed and effort, overtaking these runners. Just before the loop to start the second lap there was a nasty climb and decent, which really took me into the red! My confidence was now beginning to grow as I recovered pretty quickly after this effort and felt rather strong so decided to kick on for the final lap. Throughout this lap the km markers were coming thick and fast and was soon approaching the final climb before the finish, so I upped the ante for the final km. This time the hill really sent me in the red but I knew I just had to hang on as it was all downhill from then to the finish. As I descended I could see the finish line fast approaching so kicked again to the finish. I completed the 21km in just over 1:37 hrs, which I was ecstatic about as it was only 10 mins slower that the 1/2 marathon time I did a few weeks earlier. 

Heading to the finish after the final decent (hill in background) 

I finished with an overall time of 5:09:41, which resulted in me coming 16th overall and 12th senior male. I'm still over the moon and buzzing with this result even now as I write this. It has certainly cemented in my mind that I'm definitely suited to the 70.3 distance. Moreover I can't wait for next season, when hopefully I will get my Saturdays back thus dedicating more time to train, hopefully resulting in some top 10's and higher. 

Being the social butterfly that Sally and I are with weddings and our holiday to Mexico coming up, late August, this meant that this was my last triathlon of the season. Fortunately being involved in my local cycling clubs TT series I'll still be able to get my racing fix until the end of September.

Thanks to my sponsors Meridian Foods and Coconoil.

Thanks to my coach Ian Mayhew (Gears & Tears)