Last week I did 7 1/2 hours of training, this back to the sort of levels I need to be at least doing.
This was virtually all the Cowman Triathlon plus 2 other runs earlier in the week. This amount of time was affected by me getting a cold at the start of the week.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Cowman Triathlon
The Cowman Triathlon could also be described as the Milton Keynes Half Ironman Distance Triathlon and was based in Emberton Country Park which is to the north of Milton Keynes.
This year their was only 2 waves for the Cowman, which I was in the last wave which started at 7.10am. They also had a sprint event their which started an hour later.
In addition to the chip timing you had stick on numbers, which the a lot fell off on the cycle due to how many I saw on the road. My front number fell off but the back one stayed on all day. They where quite good as in addition to the race number they had your first name on them, so you got some encouragement from the spectators. They also had some stickers for your supporters displaying I am supporting 123 or whatever your number was.
The lake did not seem that cold. I suppose that was helped by walking across the grass to the start area which was still cold due to the dew that was still on it.
The swim I did in 45:30 which was fairly good time for me. The main difference from last year was I did not get cramp in my legs and felt like I could have done it again, good news for less than 6 weeks time!!!
I could have done it slightly quicker if I had listened carefully to the race briefing while I was getting my wetsuit on before the race. As in the last swim lap instead of heading to the next lap buoy as on the first lap you should swim straight to the swim exit. I think this would have only added 30 seconds to my time, however typically my sighting to this buoy was the best I had done all day.
In the transition (T1) I was fairly quick for me 6:25 apart from getting to and from my bike the longest thing was getting out of the wetsuit which I seemed to struggle with.
The cycle I managed 3:16:59 which is an average of 17.4 mph (28 kmph). There were a few undulations and short climbs plus at the end of each of the 3 laps (2 long and 1 short lap) was a big hill. I was able to overtake a few people going up this hill. I could have done with one more bar to eat on the bike as there was only a water stop on each lap. Luckily I took some gels with me in addition to the 2 bars. It started to warm up on the last lap of the cycle which was then 21C (70 F).
In the transition (T2) I was fairly quick for me 2:40. T2 is always a lot quicker due to the lack of kit to change and its ease of doing so.
The run was 4 laps of a 5km (3.2 miles) circuit which was on the local village roads, off road around some fields and through the country park. This year their was plenty of food/drink on the route the main section being just near the start of each loop with a water stop 2/3 they way round.
From T2 I also took a bottle of sports drink and some gels with me. The drink was very useful as I sipped the drink occasionally in between the water stops. I only had some of the gels on the last 2 laps once I had drunk my sports drink. To ensure I got enough fuel on the run I also walked though the food stops. On some of the laps I walked up the inclines as my HR was slightly higher than I would expect possible due to the extra heat as it was now 25C (77 F). I tried to chase a person in the last 400m of the run which we had been overtaking each since the last lap of the cycle. However I started to get cramp in my calf muscles so I eased back. I managed the half marathon run in 1:52:48 which was good considering I have not done any long runs recently in training.
My time for the event was 6:04:23 which was 9 minutes quicker than last year. I also got sunburnt due to the lot better than forecasted weather.
This year their was only 2 waves for the Cowman, which I was in the last wave which started at 7.10am. They also had a sprint event their which started an hour later.
In addition to the chip timing you had stick on numbers, which the a lot fell off on the cycle due to how many I saw on the road. My front number fell off but the back one stayed on all day. They where quite good as in addition to the race number they had your first name on them, so you got some encouragement from the spectators. They also had some stickers for your supporters displaying I am supporting 123 or whatever your number was.
The lake did not seem that cold. I suppose that was helped by walking across the grass to the start area which was still cold due to the dew that was still on it.
The swim I did in 45:30 which was fairly good time for me. The main difference from last year was I did not get cramp in my legs and felt like I could have done it again, good news for less than 6 weeks time!!!
I could have done it slightly quicker if I had listened carefully to the race briefing while I was getting my wetsuit on before the race. As in the last swim lap instead of heading to the next lap buoy as on the first lap you should swim straight to the swim exit. I think this would have only added 30 seconds to my time, however typically my sighting to this buoy was the best I had done all day.
In the transition (T1) I was fairly quick for me 6:25 apart from getting to and from my bike the longest thing was getting out of the wetsuit which I seemed to struggle with.
The cycle I managed 3:16:59 which is an average of 17.4 mph (28 kmph). There were a few undulations and short climbs plus at the end of each of the 3 laps (2 long and 1 short lap) was a big hill. I was able to overtake a few people going up this hill. I could have done with one more bar to eat on the bike as there was only a water stop on each lap. Luckily I took some gels with me in addition to the 2 bars. It started to warm up on the last lap of the cycle which was then 21C (70 F).
In the transition (T2) I was fairly quick for me 2:40. T2 is always a lot quicker due to the lack of kit to change and its ease of doing so.
The run was 4 laps of a 5km (3.2 miles) circuit which was on the local village roads, off road around some fields and through the country park. This year their was plenty of food/drink on the route the main section being just near the start of each loop with a water stop 2/3 they way round.
From T2 I also took a bottle of sports drink and some gels with me. The drink was very useful as I sipped the drink occasionally in between the water stops. I only had some of the gels on the last 2 laps once I had drunk my sports drink. To ensure I got enough fuel on the run I also walked though the food stops. On some of the laps I walked up the inclines as my HR was slightly higher than I would expect possible due to the extra heat as it was now 25C (77 F). I tried to chase a person in the last 400m of the run which we had been overtaking each since the last lap of the cycle. However I started to get cramp in my calf muscles so I eased back. I managed the half marathon run in 1:52:48 which was good considering I have not done any long runs recently in training.
My time for the event was 6:04:23 which was 9 minutes quicker than last year. I also got sunburnt due to the lot better than forecasted weather.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Weigh in for the last two weeks
During the last 2 weeks I have put on another 3 lbs (1.5 Kg). This was due to reduced exercise and increased unhealthy food intake.
Over the last 3 weeks I have now put on 1/2 stone (3.5 Kg), this should be corrected as my training will be increasing again.
Over the last 3 weeks I have now put on 1/2 stone (3.5 Kg), this should be corrected as my training will be increasing again.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Last Two Weeks Training
Two weeks ago my training was 5 1/2 hours, this did include an olympic distance triathlon (Fritton Lake). Nearly half this time was swimming which I felt I had made some improvements in my performance. The remaining time was fairly evenly split with running being slightly ahead of cycling.
The next week I only managed 3 hours due to the weather conditions. About half of this was time was spent at a children's activity center where I was running, climbing and lifting my 2 year old nephew then the remaining time was evenly distributed between the 3 disciplines.
So far this week I have done 30 minutes and now I have a cold which should take about a couple of more days of rest before training again.
Also Ironman UK as less than 7 weeks away!!!
The next week I only managed 3 hours due to the weather conditions. About half of this was time was spent at a children's activity center where I was running, climbing and lifting my 2 year old nephew then the remaining time was evenly distributed between the 3 disciplines.
So far this week I have done 30 minutes and now I have a cold which should take about a couple of more days of rest before training again.
Also Ironman UK as less than 7 weeks away!!!
Norwich Olympic Distance Triathlon - DNS
I had planned to do the Norwich Olympic Distance Triathlon on Sunday but instead DNS'd (Did Not Start) it.
I got up early to get to the venue and was their by an hour before the race start. The previous few days their had been some significant rainfall and the 30 minutes drive to the race was virtiually all in heavy rain. As I got to the race car park I noticed the marshals already looked like drowned rats. I parked my car and noticed I few other people sitting in the cars thinking about doing it. I waited 5 minutes to see if it would pass but it was still bouncing up of the car park, so I decided not to do this event.
I have done this race before and knew the first half of the cycle route is on small country lanes which where likely to already be flooded. I also did not fancy getting even more wet and cold after getting out of the lake and on to the bike. If my main race of the year was not Ironman UK I would have been tempted to do the race despite the conditions.
On the way back the rain did not stop until I was about 20 miles east of the race venue.
I have since seen from some race reports that the rain stopped about 5 minutes before the race start, typical. Also about 1/5 of people who entered did not do it, normally you would expect at most 10% fall out rate.
I got up early to get to the venue and was their by an hour before the race start. The previous few days their had been some significant rainfall and the 30 minutes drive to the race was virtiually all in heavy rain. As I got to the race car park I noticed the marshals already looked like drowned rats. I parked my car and noticed I few other people sitting in the cars thinking about doing it. I waited 5 minutes to see if it would pass but it was still bouncing up of the car park, so I decided not to do this event.
I have done this race before and knew the first half of the cycle route is on small country lanes which where likely to already be flooded. I also did not fancy getting even more wet and cold after getting out of the lake and on to the bike. If my main race of the year was not Ironman UK I would have been tempted to do the race despite the conditions.
On the way back the rain did not stop until I was about 20 miles east of the race venue.
I have since seen from some race reports that the rain stopped about 5 minutes before the race start, typical. Also about 1/5 of people who entered did not do it, normally you would expect at most 10% fall out rate.
Fritton Lake Olympic distance Triathlon
On Sunday 24/6 I took part in the inaugural Fritton Lake Triathlon, at Fritton Lake which on the Norfolk/Suffolk Border to the west of Lowestoft. Their was also a sprint distance triathlon at this venue.
The swim I quite enjoyed it as I had already done a practice swim in the lake a few weeks before. Apart from the bit of lake water that got into my goggles at the start I could have quite easily done the swim again. Out of the swim their was a slight incline and 100m run to the grass area where the transition area was. I picked and end closer to the swim exit although it would have been better to pick a space nearer the cycle and run exit. This area in a slight valley where the supporters could stand on the embankments on either side. This was where the pony rides used to be when I last visited here some 15+ years ago.
Including my normal siesta in transition (T1) I managed the swim in 34:09, although my brother timed my swim (start to out of water) in 27 minutes, I planned for about 40 minutes so I was impressed with that time.
The bike was a two lap course which I had practiced the last few times I was back in the area. Parts of the course I used to bike as a child to my grandparents and back. Despite being in east anglia their was one significant hill on each lap which was fairly near the start and their was some undulating parts. I did not push it to hard on the bike and did not get to use the aerobars much due to the slight wind in places which where fairly exposed places. I was trying out eating more solid food on the cycle instead of just sports drinks and water which went well. The only problem I had was with my cadence sensor not sending a value to my GPS device. My time from the cycle including T2 was 1:17:03.
The run was 10km which the first part was on grass and gravel that was for just the first 1.5km. For about the next 7.5km it was off road through the woodland area next to the lake. The previous few days their had been some heavy rain and some light rain started as I was getting in to the transition from the cycle. This section was worse than the cross country league races I do in the winter. Their was numerous places where I thought I was going to lose my shoes and socks in the mud as it went half way up to my knees. In some places it they had covered some sections with boards to help. I ended up going through the woodland in places to avoid the worst mud sections but had to dodge the various undergrowth and low hanging tree branches. The last 1.5km was across a grass field and finally a short section (0.5km) of road. From T2 I took a bottle of Lucozade Sport Lemon with Caffeine Boost out as I know their was only 1 water stop which was within the first 1km. This was quite useful as I took sips as I went round the course until I finished it with about 2km to and give it to the next marshal, I felt it helped me on the run. My run time was 54:32 which given the conditions I felt it was a good time.
I was pleased with my time of 2:45:44 as I had not pushed myself but did have good sections and learn about more about various nutrition options.
The swim I quite enjoyed it as I had already done a practice swim in the lake a few weeks before. Apart from the bit of lake water that got into my goggles at the start I could have quite easily done the swim again. Out of the swim their was a slight incline and 100m run to the grass area where the transition area was. I picked and end closer to the swim exit although it would have been better to pick a space nearer the cycle and run exit. This area in a slight valley where the supporters could stand on the embankments on either side. This was where the pony rides used to be when I last visited here some 15+ years ago.
Including my normal siesta in transition (T1) I managed the swim in 34:09, although my brother timed my swim (start to out of water) in 27 minutes, I planned for about 40 minutes so I was impressed with that time.
The bike was a two lap course which I had practiced the last few times I was back in the area. Parts of the course I used to bike as a child to my grandparents and back. Despite being in east anglia their was one significant hill on each lap which was fairly near the start and their was some undulating parts. I did not push it to hard on the bike and did not get to use the aerobars much due to the slight wind in places which where fairly exposed places. I was trying out eating more solid food on the cycle instead of just sports drinks and water which went well. The only problem I had was with my cadence sensor not sending a value to my GPS device. My time from the cycle including T2 was 1:17:03.
The run was 10km which the first part was on grass and gravel that was for just the first 1.5km. For about the next 7.5km it was off road through the woodland area next to the lake. The previous few days their had been some heavy rain and some light rain started as I was getting in to the transition from the cycle. This section was worse than the cross country league races I do in the winter. Their was numerous places where I thought I was going to lose my shoes and socks in the mud as it went half way up to my knees. In some places it they had covered some sections with boards to help. I ended up going through the woodland in places to avoid the worst mud sections but had to dodge the various undergrowth and low hanging tree branches. The last 1.5km was across a grass field and finally a short section (0.5km) of road. From T2 I took a bottle of Lucozade Sport Lemon with Caffeine Boost out as I know their was only 1 water stop which was within the first 1km. This was quite useful as I took sips as I went round the course until I finished it with about 2km to and give it to the next marshal, I felt it helped me on the run. My run time was 54:32 which given the conditions I felt it was a good time.
I was pleased with my time of 2:45:44 as I had not pushed myself but did have good sections and learn about more about various nutrition options.
Weigh In from 2 Weeks Ago
As I did not have any internet access for nearly two weeks below is my weigh in from 23/6.
This week I put on 4 lbs (1.8 Kg). This was due to doing just 6 hours of exercise but this did include an Olympic distance triathlon.
This week I put on 4 lbs (1.8 Kg). This was due to doing just 6 hours of exercise but this did include an Olympic distance triathlon.
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