… a day of strong wind and disastrous swims
The day (28/08) started early, 5am to be exacted, to allow me time to have breakfast before setting off to Hartlepool at 6am for a 7am registration. On arrival the day was grey and cold with the water looking greyer and colder and with a strong steady wind blowing … not the best signs for a good race. It was only going to be a sprint race of 750m / 20km / 5k (swim / Bike / Run) so it wouldn’t be too bad.
I racked my bike, laid out my kit and climbed into my wetsuit before attending the race briefing, at which I found that the swim course had been changed and we were now starting and ending the swim at the slipway at the opposite end of the marina from transition which would mean a long transition.
SWIM
The slip way lived up to its name and was very slippy, with me sliding down to the end, off the end and falling into the deep called water (along with a lot of other Triathletes), after a couple of minutes of getting used to the water the starting horn sounded and we were off, I decided to try and go for it and get into the lead group … BIG MISTAKE … I was un-ceremonially kicked in the face which knocked me of my stride, then for the whole of the first leg I tried to find my rhythm and could not … IT WAS A DISASTER … I even thought about abandoning … but no, I kept on going and as I rounded the first marker buoy I fond some sort of rhythm and started making up a couple of places but all thoughts of a good swim were long gone with the lead athletes. I exited the water in 12:22 instead of what should have been a sub 10:00.
T1
A long run from the swim exit to the transition area allowed me the opportunity to refocus my mind to the job at hand but also saw me step on a chunk of glass that got embedded in my big toe … although it was much later before a realised this. It was off with my wetsuit and on with by cycling shoes and helmet, also being a cold morning a also pulled on a set of armlets and a pair of full fingered gloves, picked up my bike and I was out of T1 in 4:03
BIKE
The wind was blowing strong and a headwind at that on the outward segment of the bike ride and as I tried to settle into my ride I noticed that my cycle computer was not working properly and the only reading I could get was my cadence so this is how I raced … I aimed to keep my cycling cadence at about 90-95rpm changing to an easier gear if it went below 80 and to a harder gear when it raised ab0ve 100. my next task was to focus on the riders in front of me and catch them one at a time and pass them without infringing on the ‘No Drafting’ rules. The whole of the outward segment of the race saw me confined to the middle ring (I ride a triple) of my bike with me trying to stay as aero as possible to cheat the wind, but the good news was I was passing other riders. As we rounded the roundabout that marked the turnaround point I was able to up the gearing and make use of the big gears, which set up a good battle between myself and a member of Durham Triathlon club, with me passing him, then him me a number of times until he pulled away from me on a small climb and I had to settle for just keeping him in my sights, but during this battle I had managed to pass a few more competitors and was into T2 in 43:09 and to give an idea of how much effect the wind had on my ride the outward section took 25mins an the return only 18mins
T2
T2 was a munch faster affair with the racking of my bike, removal of my helmet and gloves and the swapping of my cycling shoes for a pair of running shoes, I grabbed my energy drink and was out of transition in 1:00, closely behind the Durham Tri athlete with whom I had raced on the Bike.
RUN
The run section of the race was out and back along the promenade and again into the wind for the outward section. Again I had already decided the strategy for the run, I was feeling strong and still quite fresh so I quickly got to a pace where my heart rate was at about 92% of my Maximum Heart Rate and focused at one runner at a time, the first competition I caught and passed was the Guy from Durham Tri (that made me smile) and I continued picking off runners right up to the finish line. Run completed in 22:37
The whole race took me 1:23:13 which I was quite please with, but feel if I hadn’t fluffed the swim and had not been distracted by a broken cycle computer I may have gone sub 1:20:00 … but there is always next year … on finishing the race I pulled of my shoes which were now full of blood from the glass stuck in my toe (funny how adrenalin masks pain) got cleaned up and changed, and was in McDonalds for breakfast before most people get out of bed on a Sunday Morning
The day (28/08) started early, 5am to be exacted, to allow me time to have breakfast before setting off to Hartlepool at 6am for a 7am registration. On arrival the day was grey and cold with the water looking greyer and colder and with a strong steady wind blowing … not the best signs for a good race. It was only going to be a sprint race of 750m / 20km / 5k (swim / Bike / Run) so it wouldn’t be too bad.
I racked my bike, laid out my kit and climbed into my wetsuit before attending the race briefing, at which I found that the swim course had been changed and we were now starting and ending the swim at the slipway at the opposite end of the marina from transition which would mean a long transition.
SWIM
The slip way lived up to its name and was very slippy, with me sliding down to the end, off the end and falling into the deep called water (along with a lot of other Triathletes), after a couple of minutes of getting used to the water the starting horn sounded and we were off, I decided to try and go for it and get into the lead group … BIG MISTAKE … I was un-ceremonially kicked in the face which knocked me of my stride, then for the whole of the first leg I tried to find my rhythm and could not … IT WAS A DISASTER … I even thought about abandoning … but no, I kept on going and as I rounded the first marker buoy I fond some sort of rhythm and started making up a couple of places but all thoughts of a good swim were long gone with the lead athletes. I exited the water in 12:22 instead of what should have been a sub 10:00.
T1
A long run from the swim exit to the transition area allowed me the opportunity to refocus my mind to the job at hand but also saw me step on a chunk of glass that got embedded in my big toe … although it was much later before a realised this. It was off with my wetsuit and on with by cycling shoes and helmet, also being a cold morning a also pulled on a set of armlets and a pair of full fingered gloves, picked up my bike and I was out of T1 in 4:03
BIKE
The wind was blowing strong and a headwind at that on the outward segment of the bike ride and as I tried to settle into my ride I noticed that my cycle computer was not working properly and the only reading I could get was my cadence so this is how I raced … I aimed to keep my cycling cadence at about 90-95rpm changing to an easier gear if it went below 80 and to a harder gear when it raised ab0ve 100. my next task was to focus on the riders in front of me and catch them one at a time and pass them without infringing on the ‘No Drafting’ rules. The whole of the outward segment of the race saw me confined to the middle ring (I ride a triple) of my bike with me trying to stay as aero as possible to cheat the wind, but the good news was I was passing other riders. As we rounded the roundabout that marked the turnaround point I was able to up the gearing and make use of the big gears, which set up a good battle between myself and a member of Durham Triathlon club, with me passing him, then him me a number of times until he pulled away from me on a small climb and I had to settle for just keeping him in my sights, but during this battle I had managed to pass a few more competitors and was into T2 in 43:09 and to give an idea of how much effect the wind had on my ride the outward section took 25mins an the return only 18mins
T2
T2 was a munch faster affair with the racking of my bike, removal of my helmet and gloves and the swapping of my cycling shoes for a pair of running shoes, I grabbed my energy drink and was out of transition in 1:00, closely behind the Durham Tri athlete with whom I had raced on the Bike.
RUN
The run section of the race was out and back along the promenade and again into the wind for the outward section. Again I had already decided the strategy for the run, I was feeling strong and still quite fresh so I quickly got to a pace where my heart rate was at about 92% of my Maximum Heart Rate and focused at one runner at a time, the first competition I caught and passed was the Guy from Durham Tri (that made me smile) and I continued picking off runners right up to the finish line. Run completed in 22:37
The whole race took me 1:23:13 which I was quite please with, but feel if I hadn’t fluffed the swim and had not been distracted by a broken cycle computer I may have gone sub 1:20:00 … but there is always next year … on finishing the race I pulled of my shoes which were now full of blood from the glass stuck in my toe (funny how adrenalin masks pain) got cleaned up and changed, and was in McDonalds for breakfast before most people get out of bed on a Sunday Morning
IRONMAN GERMANY ... 327 DAYS AND COUNTING
