Age Run Melbourne 2012

A quick update...


So it is that time of year again. 
The Age Run Melbourne is coming up on July 15.
Again I will be participating in the half marathon. 
My first lead up event to this years Melbourne Marathon.


I will also again be raising funds for the Heart Foundation of Victoria.
A great cause that will receive 100% of donations I receive.


Hopefully I will see you at the start or finish line.


ironmanintraining :)


Check out my fundraising page and cause by clicking here <----


Age Run Melbourne

A fair assessment

The days after the triathlon I was appreciating a rest from training and the opportunity to sit down and really think about the next step. 
All while proudly recalling and soaking in the events of the past 13 months in my mind. 
It was nice to remember the feelings and emotions that came with the achievements, and describing it to friends and family trying to encourage them to join in on the fun and find out for themselves.
It can be difficult to explain the feelings that come with participating in one of these events. 


Something you wish you could share, but everybody has his or her own goals and path to follow.


I knew I needed to work on several things before the next race. There were 3 races left in the series but it was beginning to look like I couldn't make them due to other commitments. A little disappointing but yet again, I had a test run and now was keen to tweak my training to improve for next time.


I had to look for the positives and took aim at structuring a program to get me prime for next season starting in November. Not wanting to stay idle and lose momentum or progression, I needed to look ahead and plan. 
This would keep me motivated and encourage me to keep putting in the hard yards and long training sessions.


For me everything is about motivation. 
I don't lack it, but I think the key is to always have something to look towards. This commitment will require you to continuously do something to get to that point.
It's a simple theory, but very effective.


People who are not motivated possibly have no reason to be motivated. 
No goals perhaps? 


Most people may come home from work and do not feel like doing anything physical. 
I like to put myself in a position where I have no choice.
First key is to go home and don't sit down. 
Don't stop moving. 
Get changed and get out for a run or ride. 
Before you know it you are finished and can enjoy the rest of the evening a little more content knowing today was a day you took a step in the right direction.
Develop a mentality of each time I do this,


I improve my life and my body. 


I get closer to my goal. 

Deciding to Tri

After spending day after day, week after week in the pool building up my confidence and experience, I decided it was time to give my progress a test. I was comfortable enough in my swimming abilities and ready to give it all a go.


Triathlon season was 2 weeks away but looking at the calendar, I was unavailable most of the days they were on. There goes the series entry for this year, though that was an ambitious thought for the first year and only really a passing thought.


I decided to cut my teeth in the Melbourne Triathlon at Sandringham. 
It was part of the Gatorade Series but I would test the waters in the Active Feet race. A shorter distance held before the main race.


It was race 4 of 7 for the series, so I entered and could possibly make the other 3 races if all went to plan.


Only a 250m swim, 8km bike and a 2.5 km run to finish. Easy stuff. I looked up split times from last year and made sure my splits were on target. They were good. All giving me much needed confidence for the race.
I wasn't overly concerned if I was last but this wasn't like runs I had completed. This was an actual race. I wanted to be a little bit competitive. 


Still having around 10 weeks until the event, I kept at the training and preparation and kept busy through the Christmas season. 


Race weekend came around and we headed down to the village on the Saturday to pick up the race gear and check out the vibe. It was a neat set up and good to have a look around the transition area. 
I learnt this would be an important part of future events as new courses presented new challenges and surprises. This one had a painful looking steep run from the beach to T1. Something I definitely wasn't expecting. I took some mental notes and we left for the day. 
We headed home for a day of relaxing, then later topped up the carbs and had an early night.


After a peaceful sleep, it was a 4am rise on race morning. A quick snack of banana and honey on English muffins and we were just about ready to head off. We packed the last of the gear into the car and set off to Sandringham. 


It was a warm morning and the sun had not yet touched the sky when we arrived. I left Natalie as I went to get numbering done, checked my bike in and set up my gear for transition. I was all set up and ready to go. 


We headed down to the beach for the start and Nat wished me luck as I set off for a dip to acclimatise to the water. It was freezing but I slowly got used to it and eventually appreciated the freshness.


The race waves began and I waited patiently for my group. We got called up and lined up along the beach. I stood at the back not wanting to get caught up in any rough play but would regret that decision. I was happy to sit back and run my own race and use it to find my weaknesses. Unfortunately I spent the first 50 metres getting splashed and kicked in the head anyway. I pulled back a bit and waited for the group to get ahead a bit. There was another group of us pushing along behind the main group and we turned the last buoy and headed for shore.


The first few steps out of the bay were very interesting. I could not quite coordinate my footing as I felt the effects of the "T1 Tango". The blood hadn't quite run to my legs yet and the first few steps resembled a funny sideways dance. A few seconds later I found my feet and made the quick dash across the sand and up the steep hill towards transition.


As I reached by bike I took a quick sip of Gatorade and strapped on the bike shoes. I grabbed my bike and headed down the chute to the mounting line. It was chaos with people standing everywhere trying to get on their bikes. I ran a bit further up and jumped on. I clipped in the pedals and started pumping the legs. Natalie caught my eye on the side of the road and I blew her a kiss before pushing on to find my rhythm. 


It was a good feeling as I cruised along the flat flowing course towards the turnaround point. It was nice to be able to ride a good stretch with minimal hills, like the ones I have become accustomed to training on. 
I reached the turnaround and started heading back. The course was on a little more of an ascent and required some pushing and grit. The dismount line was coming into view and I unclipped. I crossed the line and slid off the bike, grabbing the bike I jogged back to transition. 


Another quick sip of Gatorade and a change of shoes and I was out onto the run course. Again a nice flat out and back course. I could feel a little fatigue in my legs but found some heels to follow and concentrated on my breathing. It was the longest 2.5 km of my life as I trotted along. I just kept my head on the heels in front and kept moving towards the end. 


Usually with the previous runs, I have always had a little something to spend at the end, and usually sprint home the last 200 metres. Though as I reached the chute towards the line I was exhausted and happily cruised passed Nat cheering me on and over the finish. 
It was a great feeling and I put my hands on my knees to take it in. However in my head I was already thinking about what I needed to improve on before the next event.
I went and got some post race refreshments and we sat down enjoying the atmosphere and watching the elite event. 


Then it was home for a steamy shower and a nice big feed. 
Maybe even a nap. I think I had deserved one.




ironmanintraining :)

Getting my feet wet

So here I was running and cycling away and only missing one discipline, the swim.

I think it was not long after watching Craig "Crowie" Alexander win his third Championship at Kona that I thought, well I can do two out of three comfortably, why don't I give triathlon a try. It definitely ignited something inside of me. A new goal!

I remember walking into a room and saying to Natalie, "I'm going swimming in the morning". She was surprised. I was surprised. I had to be at work by 730am, which usually meant getting up at 6am to get ready. That was a task in itself though I was adamant I was going swimming so off we went to pick up some essentials.

The first morning was great and I sprang out of bed and hit the local pool at 5am.

It was so refreshing and felt good to see how my fitness from the other two disciplines would transfer to the pool. A nice hot shower afterwards and the long journey to work followed though it was different. It even made the peak hour traffic more tolerable and seemed to do wonders for patience. It was such a great way to start the morning.

It was so great that after work that day I went back to the pool and joined up.

Since then I have spent 3-4 mornings a week in the pool honing my skills. Recently moving to the outdoor pool for the nice icy wake up every morning. Don't knock it until you have tried it!

Also recently becoming a member at Brighton sea baths, I visit to test my new wetsuits and strengthen my ocean water swimming. A Great way to spend a Sunday morning, followed by a strong coffee and a bite in the restaurant and cafe overlooking the baths. Highly recommended!

Aquarena

Brighton Sea Baths

ironmanintraining :)

ITU Sydney 2012

So fast forward to the present for a moment and on the weekend we found ourselves in Sydney.

My fiancée Natalie and I journeyed up there for the weekend to see how it's done, ITU style.

Turned out the perfect day for the men and women's elite events. A forecasted 25 degrees.

The woman’s race launched at 7:36am and the result did not disappoint local fans. Erin Densham rode her solid form to a win ahead of Helen Jenkins and Andrea Hewitt in third.

Much to my disappointment I did not get to see Paula Findlay, but there was plenty of excitement and the series is certain to be a tight contest. 



Apart from an early push on the swim leg by Mariko Adachi, the group was hard to split until the run leg. Slowly the competitors fell away to leave a lead group of 6. Densham paced the group and slowly dropped Adachi, Laura Bennett, Ainhoa Murua and eventually Andrea Hewitt. 

Hewitt hung on for third as Densham made her move and dropped Jenkins to win on home soil and stake her claim for an Olympic spot.

The men’s race was up for grabs with the Brownlees and Javier Gomez missing from the line up. 

The Russian athletes started strong and were out to make a statement. Not only were series points up for grabs, most athletes were competing for spots on their nations Olympic team. Having only until May 31st to prove themselves, competition was fierce.




Ivan Vasiliev broke away with James Elvery hot on his heels as they built a one-minute lead. 

They were slowly pulled back in by the chase group, but maintained a good buffer on the chase until the second last lap of the run. 

Richard Murray and Laurent Vidal passed and were left to work towards the finish and looked to have timed their races well, though starting his run at the 6km mark was Steffen Justus, who came home too strong and took the series opener. 

First of the Australians home was Chris McCormack in 34th, as he pushes for Olympic selection in a return to Olympic distance triathlons.

Overall a great event and will be a permanent fixture on the calendar. May also have to join in the fun and compete in the age group race in future years.


For more detailed race reports visit ITU


ironmanintraining :)