Woodhall spa / OSBMidland sprint series

Race preparation started on Saturday a day before the race for me, after a week on holiday at center parcs after the dambuster triathlon id not had any time to think about the last race in the midland sprint series to be held at Woodhall spa

I had a few rides on the mountain bike while away in center parcs and had one decent swim,(and a few goes on the lazy river/various slides :)  ) .I decided not to run on my break from work as Id suffered with yet again another foot injury from the race a week before at Rutland waters, over the week the injury disappeared with time and Had 95% faded to nothing by the day of my race at Woodhall.

The Friday I returned home I had a parcel waiting for me at a friends house, I had bought myself a new Race wheels for my time trial bike, a 82 mm deep planet x carbon tub with flat bladed spokes.and a rear 101 mm planet x with a cover to make it perform like a disk wheel (and sound like an Apache helicopter)  I had herd that deep front wheels can be a handful in windy conditions so on the Saturday I took the bike out for a quick 8 mile blast along a few country roads and past a few field openings to see if i was confident enough to race with the wheel, as it happened it wasn't particularly windy so i had little trouble or evidence of what a gust of wind may feel like and how it may effect handling. I took a gamble to use the carbon wheels for Woodhall, generally i like to wait and test a product a little more before bringing it straight into a race environment however I simply could not resist.

I wrote a itinerary of everything i would need to take from the basic(bike, tri suit etc) to the obscure(stapler electrical tape) and what i would be eating up until the event(simple foods like chicken or tuna and pasta and rice) then I packed my kit on the Saturday, I did this early on so if i came across any issues I would hopefully be able to rectify them before the day was over,I usually like to do this the week before but with being away this wasn't possible as it happens all my race kit was in good nick so I was good to go, for the first time I had started thinking about the event and how I felt about my form.

On the Sunday I woke early, packed the car ready to go, my Friend Scot Hargreaves was competing in his first ever event and was over 2 hours before my start time, which is why i left so early, It also gave me time to check the entry and exit points of transition and cheer on other Louth Tri Club members. I ate my breakfast filled my water bottles up and set off with my Family to cheer him on,  When my family and I arrived the car parking was on a field quite a walk from the transition/signing on area, as trivial as it seems  its quite a effort carrying your helmet, bike and transition box with all your equipment in over a distance, maybe I need to re think how I transport my equipment about? my family are more than happy to help me but i feel guilty enough for bringing them along to stand and watch me in what would be a cold wet and windy day!. Once Scot had finished his swim and was out on his bike I had time to sign on get my race numbers and set up my Transition area,  Here I met up with Ross McGreggor, Martin Ball and Glenn Bonner who are all Members of  Louth Tri Club but also part of a Team I will be competing in a relay with in August for the Club relay National championships, Its nice to see familiar faces at these events to share any pre-race nerves with also to help calm each other down and clear any doubts any of us may have before the race, all fully confident and with time ticking away It was soon time to warm up and head down to the swim start for the start of my wave.(pool events are set off in small heats based on your 400 meter swim time, usually a swimmer per lane with 2 minute intervals before the next wave as to not clog the pool up with hundreds of swimmers of differing ability's )

A count down of 5 seconds was called for the swim start, I started my heart rate monitor and set off when the count down had reached zero, Woodhall is a 33 m pool, most pools are 25 m this means the swim actually falls just short of 400 m (396)however this also means you only do 12 lengths instead of 16, In pool events it is your responsibility to count your own lengths 12 might not seem like a lot however when I'm racing it takes a lot of concentration to make sure no lengths are missed or added, (if any lengths are missed you may end up being disqualified) I had a good Swim and was first out of my wave, My transition went smoothly and i decided to take a drink in T1, where this had worked for me in a standard distance event i believe it may have cost me some vital seconds during the shorter sprint format.

As I set out on my bike and my legs felt a little tired from the swim so i made a decision to use a high cadence for a short while to work my body more aerobically than relying on muscle to turn a big gear, this is usually a little slower for me as i prefer to push a big gear rather than have a higher pedal turn over however at around the 5 mile mark I noticed I had taken my eye off the ball and I was still spinning, I had a word with myself and started to push on, once again I believe this may of cost me some time on the bike leg however at the time in the race I didn't realize how much time I may of lost its only through analyzing the results later I realized this .The bike leg in all honesty felt good to me, the weather was atrocious while on the bike, the wind had picked up and the rain was coming down hard I was a little cautious on the sharp corners however I had no issues with my new wheels in the wind or braking with the carbon surfaced rims.

I headed into T2 feeling Great the rain had stopped and I was feeling confident about the run, once again a smooth transition and the cheering from the crowds only helped motivate me more, I took another swig of my drink (possibly costing me a few seconds more), negotiated the sharp corners leaving the transition area and ran HARD when i reached the drinks station I asked if they knew what distance they were stationed at, the return answer was a mile and a half so i knew I was half way and still feeling great, I carried on at the same pace I had left transition at an continued to the finish only picking the pace up in the last 500 m I finished the 5 km run in 17;06 which i was very pleased with as it was a pb for me, the entire event I had completed in 1 hour 02 minutes and  36 .seconds

I felt at the time I had given the race my all only to find out I had been beaten by Jonathan Frary who was second place in the Midland sprint series 30-34 yr age group (I was currently series leader), I had beaten him twice already in the year however he had managed to beat me by a full minute!!, This obviously put a bit of a smear on my how I felt about my result but I can only congratulate him for the professionalism he showed by being a true contender for me right until the end of the series, he also happens to be a nice guy too which made the news easier to except it also taught me a valuable lesson to not loose concentration in a race again and will hopefully make me a stronger athlete for it.

I packed my kit away as the rain started up again, it was cold and wet but the weather didn't bother me as I was anxious to find out if I had lost the series with the days result(I needed to stay 9 points clear to win the series) we waited for around a hour only for the rain to play havoc with the computer system which harbored the results and a even longer wait for the series results to be published.

After the event the Louth Tri Club met up in a local pub to talk about everyone's day and how we all did, during the meet Ross's Fiancee had managed to find the series results on line,
I'd done it!, I had manged to hold on to enough points and Win the series, This was excellent news and a fitting end to a few races in close succession that had all gone well. The team spirit of Louth Tri is usually quite high and the series age group wins from both myself and Ross McGreggor helped lift the spirits even more

Race report

Well what a day, two days really; so I had best start at the beginning. All my kit had been packed the week before; checked, double checked and checked again. I didn't want to forget a thing, everything had to be perfect leading up to this race. 

I set off for Rutland Waters a little later than I had hoped on the Friday due to not being able to pick up the van I was borrowing (to prevent my girlfriend from not having the car), but it didn't panic me and arrived at around 12.30 pm. 

The journey down wasn't too eventful although the sat nav had decided not to work so I had to rely on old fashioned road signs to find my way there! 

When I arrived I had already seen clearly marked signs out on the bike route on the main road; this was good as I had planned to have a steady reckie of the 42 km course that day. While signing up to the camping and driving round the site I kept my eyes open trying to spot the usual areas that I'd need to find the following day/later that day. These included transition area, competitor sign in tent and where the swim would be. All were close together so were all spotted early on. The 1500m swim looked calm and was sheltered by the harbour. 

Unfortunately, there was no swimming permitted before the race but the water temperature was at a reported 17 degrees which was quite warm for a UK race, but still allows a wet suit to be used (the added buoyancy of a swimming wet suit makes the swim much faster than a non wet suit swim). 

The marked course for the swim had a really long drag on the back straight and I was looking for how far apart the buoys were, trying to break down how many meters apart they had been set out; this may help for pacing and judging distance in the race. I set up camp, cooked a big bowl of tuna pasta in sauce an set off on the course.

When out on the ride there were a lot of vehicles with bikes on racks driving around the course. As much as this gives a general idea and is better than nothing it really gives little information as to how safe certain junctions are and how smooth or rough road surfaces can be where pot holes are and sneaky little inclines, drags etc which can't be seen/felt when in vehicle. There were a couple of riders about and I did find myself racing past a few of them and having to tell myself to calm down. The course felt fast, and although there were a few short steady climbs (including the Rutland ripple), these allowed me time to sit up from my Pursuit bars an catch my breath for sending it on down the long fast steady declines.

Once back at camp, I decided to have a walk around the run course. The weather was getting hot by this point and although I had been drinking fluids throughout the day, I hadn't taken one with me on the walk and ended up feeling dry half way around. 

I had heard rumours that the run course had been just short of 10k in the past; however according to the GPS I have on my phone, it was a full 10k; which I was relieved about, as it's important to get an accurate run time. The course looked fairly flat with 3 drinks stations and marker boards at every kilometer. These things are great for pacing! I learnt another valuable lesson that day, 6.4 miles isn't a good idea to walk in your skate trainers and I could feel the early signs of a blister coming on by the end of the walk! (I'll know that for next time).

By the time I got back from the walk, early registration had opened up so I got signed on. Meanwhile, I  had spotted a few of the other Louth Tri club members. Everything had started to feel a bit real by now and I think they could tell that early signs of nerves were kicking in for me! We went our separate ways and headed back to camp. I cooked/burnt chicken an rice for tea and began to lay my kit out, talc my shoes and set my bike shoes onto my pedals with elastic bands for a fast transition;  time had gone by pretty quickly and before I knew it, it was 10.30 pm and had wanted to be asleep a good hour before this.

Race day
My wave was set to start at 7.00 am. I find I have to eat my main meal 3 hours before a race to ensure that nature has time to take it's course, and so at 3.30 am the alarm sounds and I begin to cook my porridge and boil the kettle. If I'm totally honest, it was a little keen and I ended up shutting my eyes for another half hour once I had eaten. 

I began to get my kit on/together and by the time transition opened my body was showing its first signs of nerves ....I would visit the toilet 3 times that morning! I got to transition 2 hours before my race!! I think I was a bit keen here as I was only one of 3 bikes in the area. I found my numbered area in the racking and began to set up. The next few hours went by quickly and was all a bit of a blur but remember a few people had wished me luck. I paced back and forth to the van/tent a few times and met my family when they arrived. A quick hello and good luck from the family and it was time for me to get back to transition to get my wet suit on and listen to the race briefing.

The race
The start of the race was carnage; athletes lined up on the beach, the hooter sounds and GO! 250 swimmers all run into the water fighting for their position and swimming space heading for a single orange buoy. It must be a health and safety nightmare but for me after the first two or three strokes all the noise and carnage disappeared and everything became calm as you concentrate on the swim. I managed to get in with the main break away group which eventually split into two. I tried to bridge the gap from my group to the first group but ended up in a no mans land, so decided to stick to where I was rather than flogging myself for the sake of 30 seconds.
When I exited the water I was in 14th position in my wave. Transition went smoothly and I headed out on the bike. I struggled a little with getting my feet into my shoes but I knew to keep calm rather than panicking about it and took the time to catch my breath. I managed to overtake another two triathletes on T1. The first 3 or 4 miles of the bike ride I rode with a high cadence(rpm) this helps me ease into the ride while maintaining speed rather than turning a big gear and wasting energy early on. At mile 6, came the Rutland ripple; 3 hills in a row. I took my time on the ups here and hammered on down the other side with my speedo registering a maximum speed of 49mph. Here, I dropped off another two athletes who seemed to be wasting too much energy standing up and grinding up the hills. By mile 13 I knew I was half way, and took an energy gel, had a glance at my heart rate on my hrm. It was reasonably low and I felt good at this stage in the race. I felt relaxed so decided for the next few miles that were flat and smooth to really wind up a big gear averaging over 30mph. Another couple of hills at around mile 21 and 23, I took another energy gel and over took another 3 athletes before heading into Transition 2, in T2 I ended up running straight past where my running shoes were by a couple of meters; I realised quite quickly though and rectified the situation,  helmet off running shoes on elastic laces pulled tight and a big swig of my drink left beside my racking area and I was off on the out and back 10k run. 

I don't remember a lot of the run within the first km I was over taken and never managed to catch him up. Between 2.5km and 4km there was a big straight which was also repeated on the return leg; I took the time to have a good look around to see if anyone was behind me. There wasn't and I was able to relax slightly and considered easing off on the run but decided against it and pressed on. By 8km I was starting to feel a little fatigued but with only 2km I knew the crowds were nearing; it was time to compose myself, deep breaths and finish strong. The atmosphere was great and I had lots of support, it really does help as you give everything you've got over the finish line.
9th in my wave!!  14th overall out of 1000 athletes with a time of 2 hours, 8 minutes and 50 seconds.
Best of all, I had managed to finish 3rd in my age group and being a British triathlon member entitled me to 2nd and a silver medal in the British Triathlon standard distance triathlon championship. 

Earlier in the year I had registered my intent to qualify for the European Triathlon Championships to be held in Geneva in 2015. My race performance at the Dambuster has given me a top qualifying spot for the event where I will get to compete with Europe's best amateur triathletes!!!

It is with big thanks to my family for putting up with all my training, strange eating habits and early mornings!
It's also a huge thanks to all the support from Louth triathlon club for their belief in me and the cheering driving me over the finish line!

Age group honours

Dambuster

So only 3 days to go before the start of the biggest race on my calender, the Dambuster!!! Held at Rutland Waters it's a 1500m open water swim, a 42km undulating bike followed by a flat (and flat out)10k run; all manageable distances in there own right but become a little more flurried when done together as fast as possible! Why is this race so big for me? Well, it's my first standard distance triathlon and secondly it's my chance to qualify for a place in my age group (30-34) for team GB at the ETU standard distance triathlon in Geneva 2015 (European Triathlon Union). The event is also a qualifying event for The ITUs (International Triathlon Union) however this would be held later this year and also in Canada. As an age group triathlete there isn't a lot of financial help from outside so it's a real struggle to afford to compete at such events and  unfortunately it's one step too far for me this year.

How do I feel? Well surprisingly calm and ready for it. I've recently become incredibly well organised leading up to a race; first I write out lists of everything I'll need to take with me on race day starting with the bare essentials (tri suit, bike shoes, run shoes, helmet, BTF licence, goggles etc) I then pack a separate 'emergency' bag with spare tri suit, goggles and helmet. I do this for piece of mind; say I start putting my tri suit on and a zip breaks?!?! No need to panic I've got my spare, it really helps keep me calm.

More lists! on top of that I plan an itinerary for every minute from waking up to race start. When to have breakfast, when to have a pre-race drink, when to warm up, when do I need to set up my transition. Basically, where I need to be, when and what I need to be doing and having everything pre-planned like this allows me to concentrate on the task in hand.

Whats going through my mind? I try and completely block out any negative thoughts leading up to the race; this sounds difficult but it really isn't when over the last year every meal I've ate, all the training hours I've put in, all the sacrifices I've made all come down to this! Have I done everything I can to ensure that I can perform to my very best ? Right now I feel that the answer is 100% yes.

first post

Just a test to see how this all works and I try to figure it all out watch this space