Winter training wonderland

We've had quite a bit of snow recently, which made bike riding conditions "challenging" to say the least.

This is how the approach to the top of Box Hill looked like this morning:



And this is the famous 20 minutes queue for the coffee atop:

The coffee and cake tasted so much better today...

Looking forward to some sunshine now.

Helly Hansen Adventure Race

It was such good fun to break up the winter training by doing an event that was "different". And it was different in every way...

It was a team event and we had 2 teams and decided to dress up for the occasion:

I was off in a team with Neil and Chris. The event was in a format of a Run, Bike, Canoe, Bike, Run. The weather was perfect and we decided to take it out hard, while still having a good time:

The Canoe portion admittedly wasn't our strongest discipline:

But we rode our bikes hard and made up time on the mountain bike section despite some "wardrobe malfunctions":

In the end we finished in 13th place out of over 100 teams. We all had great support along the course and at the finish by Alex taking pictures. The event was great fun and we laughed throughout the whole event and for hours afterwards.

Winter Training

The winter wonderland has descended upon us making training conditions "challenging"

Upon returning from Mexico I started my winter preparation for next season, concentrating mainly on cycling. In the first week after we got back I had my first "lab test". Needless to say I didn't break any records and the results were fairly disappointing.

Since then things have been getting better and my fitness is slowly improving, but it will be a long winter and it's a slow improvement process.

That's how I'm spending quite a lot of my time at the moment:




Last weekend was the end of my first 3 week block of training and on Saturday I broke my record at enduring the Chinese torture of turbo training by sitting for 3 hours and 10 minutes on the damn thing. That's my reward afterwards:


Otherwise not much to report, other than looking forward to the Christmas break now.

End of season review

It's a beginning of November and after my end of season break it's time to get back to training and also to reflect on the last season. I took me a long time to get to write this bog entry and I actually even considered if I should.

The last season was one of the most frustrating ever. It wasn't that I was unfit, but I just was never fit enough to reach my objectives, always racing just below the level I needed to be at, all the time on the back foot. But let's start from the beginning...

At the end of last season I raced the Florida Ironman in November. I finished in 9:28, missing on a Hawaii qualifying spot, but considering I was still carrying a hamstring injury it wasn't a bad result. After coming back I felt good and very fit for November, coming off an Ironman race, and decided not to take a break, but to keep going and build on the fitness I had. That was the first mistake. Throughout November and December I felt good an was going well. Alex and I went for the New Year to Lanzarote and I did some good bike riding. When we came back an opportunity came up for me at work to go to the US and I took it up and have thrown myself at work hoping that my hard work would get some recognition in the company. I spent January, February and most of March flying between Detroit and London and when not on the plane most days were 12-14 hour work days. I tried to run most days, but did no swimming and very little biking. I would go out for a club ride if I was spending a weekend in London and we would hammer it every time as if it was a race.

In March I did the Ballbuster Duathlon and came 11th Overall and 2nd Vet, despite a puncture on the last lap. I was happy with that.

Shortly after that was the Reading Half Marathon and I actually run quite well - 1:19:20 and things seemed to be on track.

Then over the Easter weekend I did 3 races in 3 days: the Milland Hill road race, the Cutmill road race and the Steyning Duathlon. I got dropped quite early on Milland Hill, Cumill was slightly better, but I still got dropped and Steying was a struggle and I finished way off the pace.

Then came the London Marathon and after 1o miles I realised that the hamstring still wasn't right. After 16 miles it pretty much locked up and I eventually finished in 2:57:36. Oh well, at least it was under 3 hours.

After a couple of weeks break I got back into training and started my triathlon season's racing:

- 2nd overall at the Eaton Human race sprint distance in 1:05:59

- 143 in 4:31:56 at 70.3 Austria St Polten

I also did some local 10M time trials and Surrey League handicap races with mixed results but still seemed to be making progress.

My big goal for the season was Ironman Germany and a Hawaii qualification. On one of the hottest weekend of the year and with a controversy of a non-wetsuit swim and which tri suits are legal I got quite battered in the swim and finished in 10:00:21 and missed a rolldown slot by 2 minutes. It was a big disappointment, but there was no time to dwell on what could have been.

After some recovery I got back into training and did some handicap road races and I was even going quite well, just missing a little bit of a top end at the finish. In one of the races I was in a group that stayed away and was sitting 6th wheel with 600m to the finish when I heard the dreaded bang noise. I managed to stay upright but on a flat tire there was not much I could do other than walk to the finish.

In preparation for my next big goal - the World ITU Long Distance Championships I did another Eaton spring race and finished in 1:04:45 second overall again and 1st Vet.

The World Championships didn't go as planned. I strained my back before the race, swam and biked as hard as I could on a very hilly course and had nothing left for the run and finished well off the pace in 7:58:45, 98th overall and 20th in my age group. I was very dehydrated and my legs were shot, but at least I knew that I gave it absolutely all I had and there was nothing else I could have done.

It took me a very long time to recover from the World Championships, both mentally and physically.

I finished the season with a 3rd place overall and age group win at the Brighton Olympic distance triathlon (2:11:03), 4th place overall and age group win at the Long Course London Duathlon and a 3rd place overall and 2nd place age group at another Eaton Olympic distance event (2:11:05). I was relieved that the season was over.

It was a season of near misses, second places and generally lacking little bit extra. It was also a season if some classic mistakes - where do I start?

- not taking a break after the season's end

- getting into hard training/racing lacking base training

- over-racing at certain times

- changing priorities

It's clear that in order to achieve the progress I'm expecting and believe I'm capable of I need to change quite a few things for next year. More about this soon...

London Duathlon

Last weekend was my penultimate race of the season the Long Course London Duathlon at Richmond Park.

The race was run over an unusual "long" distance of 20km run 77km bike and 10km run in a beautiful setting of the Richmond Park over roads closed to traffic.

Give the lack of training over the last couple of weeks before the race due to work commitments and our trip to New York it was always going to be a tough race but on the race morning I felt especially tired. I'm not sure if it was jetlag catching up with me or lack of training but I was very apprehensive. It looked like a great day, though, and I decided to give it a go and just try to do my best.

I started the run at a fairly conservative and comfortable pace clicking at about 4min/km pace. On the second 10km lap my lack of training was starting to show but I managed to keep the pace despite arriving into transition with big blisters in 11th place overall in 1:22.

After a quick transition I was glad to be on the bike and to give my feet a little bit of rest. The course was quite congested, but I was passing a lot of people, particularly on the fast downhill section where with no traffic we were going at almost 60km/h. I tried to keep each of the 7 laps consistently between 19:45 and 19:15. A couple of people passed me on the climbs but I was always able to drop them on the downhill. I finished the bike in 3:16, now in 6th position overall.


The last run was always going to be tough and a case of survival more than anything else. I was hoping that everybody was going to be feeling tired and running slow. The first couple of km were really slow and my hamstrings and lower back were really tight. As run progressed I started to feel better and picked up the pace. Soon enough I passed the 5th and then the 4th
man. Unfortunately 3rd was still way in front so the last couple of km were just about getting to the finish as by then my legs were cramping up pretty badly. Run time 44:30.

I finished in 4:26 in 4th place overall and 1st in my age group. I was very tired but happy with the result considering my condition and lack of training. It was one of the toughest duathlon races I've done, but I really enjoyed it and would like to do it again at some point.

One more race left for this season - the Vo2 Olympic Distance race at Dorney lake and then onto some well deserved rest.

ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Championships

On Sunday I raced at the ITU World Championships in Immenstadt, Germany as part of the British age group team. As I didn't qualify for the Ironman World Championships this was going to be my ocassion to measure myself against some of the best triathletes in the world in my age group, so I wanted to do well in this race.

Immenstadt is located in a beautiful area of Germany called Algau, in the mountains, approximately 100 mile from Munich.

My preparation going into the race wasn't ideal as we've been quite busy recently. My last couple of training races went quite well though and I did a good ride at the Richmond Park 10M TT and a week ago came second overall in the Eaton sprint triathlon, improving on my time from May.

To make the situation worse on thursday on my way back from work my chain on the bike broke, which meant that I didn't get back home till 11pm and on Friday my flight to Munich was delayed by almost 2.5 hours and when I eventually arrived in Immenstadt at 2am I was very tired.

The team GB was staying in the comfortable Algau Stern Hotel, 12km from Immenstadt and it was interesting to stay with the rest of the team and see their preparations.

The race was very well organised and it was great to be able to rack the bikes on race morning and not having to worry about doing it a day before.

On the race day I woke up feeling relaxed and ready to go having had an unusually good night's sleep. We arrived at the start with plenty of time and I even had time to take some pictures. Just before the start as I was warming up I felt sharp pain in my back and it immediately went into a spasm and I could hardly breathe. There was no time to do anything about it with 10 minutes to the start and I was worried that I might get into trouble in the water, so I wasn't sure if I should even be starting the race. Eventually I decided to get in the water try to relax and give it a go. Somehow when I got in the water it felt a little bit better and was able to breathe and swim.

The swim was fairly uneventful, I had a conservative start as I wasn't sure how hard I was going to be able to push with a locked up back, but I had clear water and managed to stay out of trouble. On the return leg of the 4km loop I pushed a little bit harder and came out of the water in 1:12:20. Not bad, considering the circumstances and I was happy with that. Quick transition and I was on the bike, but my legs didn't feel great, so I decided to keep it steady hoping that it may improve. The bike course was simply brutal - up, down, left, right on some narrow roads. Luckily it was dry and the road surface was good, so descending wasn't a problem. The 2200m of climbing recorded by my watch doesn't really do the course justice - some of the climbs were so steep that I had to be out of the saddle for the entire climb pushing 300W just to keep the bike moving. There was 8 climbs recorded on the official course profile and about 10 other unclassified "bonus climbs". Of course such a tough bike course had one advantage - the drafting was non-existing so it was a fair race. Somehow I was really enjoying this bike course and I was even descending well, overtaking loads of people. Whenever passing a GB athlete I also tried to shout some encouragement. I went though a bit of a bad patch after about 40 miles, but recovered fairly well and was even able to push a bit harder on the second, shorter lap. Unfortunately the back was still very tight, which made climbing and riding hard on aerobars quite uncomfortable. After another exhilarating descent into Immenstadt I was finally happy to be back in transition in 4:17, which I though was a reasonable time given the nature of the course.

Onto the run and unsurprisingly legs felt quite tired after all the climbing and suddenly it was very hot. Nevertheless I locked into a solid 4:25/km pace and tried to take in some gels an as much coke and water as I could get from the aid stations. My plan was again to try to take it steady for the first of the 10 laps and try to push it for the second and third lap. Solid strategy but this time it wasn't going to work as almost immediately after I started the second lap I started to feel very weak and was getting cramps in both legs. Quads first, calves and then hamstrings. Whenever I tried to pick up the pace I would get a cramp and was reduced to a gently shuffle. I walked through a couple of aid stations trying to get as much fluid as possible but it wasn't helping, so I had to resign to running a 5min/km pace. As I started the last lap I calculated that if I kept that pace I still has 2 minutes to spare to get in under 8 hours and this become my next target. Over the next 8km I've even managed to make up another 2 minutes which was just as well because as I entered the stadium it turned out that the finish was not at 3okm, but another 500m further. Eventually I finished in 7:58:45 with a 2:26 run split. This gave me 98th position overall and 20th place in my age group. Not what I had imagined and hoped for, being already 8th in the world twice, but a respectable result nevertheless.

Am I happy with my race? Mixed feelings again. It was a truly epic race with a fair, tough course, very well organised and possibly one of the most beautiful bike courses I've ever done. The whole town was clearly behind the race with posters everywhere and the course lined with spectators, particularly on the climbs. Being 20th in the world in my age group, on a course that theoretically did not suit me is a respectable result and I've beaten some good athletes and as a 4th GB athlete home. Many athletes would be very happy with that. On the other hand the result also shows how the sport has moved on in the last few years, how much more competitive the age groups are and how the gap I have to the top age-grouper has grown. I haven't really improved my swim in the last few years, my bike is similar to what it was 5 years ago and my run results have not been consistent. It was great to be a part of the GB team and the beers (perhaps a few too many) and banter after the race was great, but is that all I really want? It's pretty clear that I'm not going to acheive my goal of winning a World Championship medal.

Where to from now? Was this my last international race? I'm not sure - I'll give it a few weeks before making a decision. It may not be a bad time to refocus on other things and say I'm happy with what I've achieved. No regrets.

Ironman European Championships

So close yet so far away... This pretty much sums up my performance at the European Ironman Championships in Frankfurt on the 4th July.

This is one of my favorite races on the Ironman circuit and the race where I qualified for Hawaii in 2005 so I was going into the race with a clear objective: qualify for the World Championships in Hawaii in the 40-44 age group. My preparation has gone well, despite having only 6 weeks of hard training, but I was feeling strong, rested and confident.

We arrived in Frankfurt on Friday, before the German World Cup game against Argentina. It was a hot couple of nights, both weather-wise and with the electric atmosphere after the German win.

The day before race the organizers announced that the water temperature in the lake reached over 24C and it will be a non-wetsuit swim. They've also announced a new rule that any race suits that contain silicone will not be allowed. This caused a great deal of consternation to both all the retailers and athletes as nobody knew what will actually be allowed on the race day as this contradicted previous rules. I decided to go with my old and tried 2XU suit.

The night before the race day was hot and sleepless as usual, this time mainly due to all the Germans celebrating the World Cup win, but on race morning I woke up rested and ready to go nevertheless and the weather was cooler than in the days preceding the race.

I got to race start in plenty of time for a change, pumped my tires, took care of "nature call" and even had plenty of time to relax. I wanted to get into the water in plenty of time so I proceeded to the start early but got stopped by a referee saying that my tri suit is illegal and I will not be allowed to start. There was a growing group of athletes who have also been stopped. After much discussions, stomping and cursing in German, English and Spanish we were eventually allowed to go to the swim, but by then it was too late for any warmup or start place selection. I knew that with 2300 athletes starting it was going to be a rough swim but had not much choice but to position myself in the middle and try to move as forward as possible.

The gun soon went off and it immediately felt like I was in a washing machine. I've never been in such a rough swim. I went under water several times, drank plenty of water, got hit and kicked and goggles knocked off twice. I was hoping that it would get better after a couple of hundred meters, but then the swimmers from the right and left side decided to converge in the middle it after a while I was loosing all hope. I got out after the first lap and was shocked looking the the watch showing 45 min for the first lap. Fortunately the second lap was a bit better I had a bit more space and picked up the paces slightly coming out in 1:24. Still by far my slowest swim ever, even slower than the Hawii non-wetsuit swim.

Onto the bike and I felt immediately better and much happier having survived the swim. The bike was fairly uneventful. I rode strongly but within myself on the three climbs and picked up a lot of places on the descents. 5:14 bike split for 185 km as the course was extended by 5km because of roadworks. Happy with that as the extra 5km was worth at least 7 min, which would make it close to my best time on this course.

The run is 4 laps, flat and fast and I knew it was going to be hot. I started conservatively and after the first lap Alex told me I was in 90 place in my age group and passed 30 on the first lap. I try to keep the pace going throwing down as much coke as I could and an occasional gel. I went through a bit of a bad patch at half way but after some extra coke and some red bull I got a bit better and was able to push through to the finish. 3:17 run split - not my best, but respectable.

Unfortunately I didn't manage to pass enough runners to get into the qualifying places (24) and ended up in 35th place in my age group with a time 2 seconds outside 10 hours.

In the end I missed the automatic qualifying spot by 10 minutes and a roll-down slot by just over 3 minutes. Disappointing not to achieve the big goal of the season of qualifying for Hawaii, but that's racing and that's how it goes sometimes. No excuses, though, I had a reasonable race, except for the swim, but just wasn't good enough to contend. Next race - ITU LD World Championships in Immenstadt.

my travel blog: http://alexmike-travel.blogspot.com/