Getting Closer

It's been an interesting couple of weeks. Tapering has been the goal and Coach Dave promised that this meant it would get easier. As always, I have learnt not to take his comments literally...

The volume did come down. No more 4, 5, 6 hour bike rides. No more long runs or long swims. However if something is taken out you can be sure it will be replaced by something else. In my case the volume was replaced by intensity.

So I've had a couple of weeks of sprint sessions. Things like 200m sprints ... x10.  Then there's been bricks (bike/run combinations), for instance bike 10 minutes then run 10 minutes ... x3.

For someone who doesn't do fast (this is why I'm doing Ironman and not sprint triathlons), I have at least been able to show a turn of speed on foot, albeit for short bursts. To put it in perspective, though, my standard run pace is around 6min 30sec per kilometre. I managed to pick this up to a pace of 4min 30sec for a 200m sprint. Over a marathon distance that 4:30 pace would translate to 3 hours 10 minutes.

But get this, the 2010 Ironman World Champion, Mirinda Carfrae, ran her marathon in Kona in 2 hours 53 minutes...! So even if I sprinted as fast as I could I still wouldn't be able to keep up with her - and I was stuffed after 200m.

Anyway, enough of my abundance of slow twitch muscles.

Tomorrow the bike goes in for its pre race service and compulsory ironman check. Race wheels are on and looking fab!

The lounge is looking like a triathlon shop as spare gear to take to Taupo is slowly finding its way downstairs - spare tubes, CO2 canisters, swim goggles, drink bottle, helmet, bike lock, bento box etc etc etc.

My remedial swimming lesson also wasn't so bad. A very minor change to my stroke had Coach Dave happy as a clam however I did have to reaffirm last night that 13 days out is too late for him to think I can change my running form. He had seen me running for the first time yesterday and realized that I run like a boxer (tight upper body, arms held high rather than low and relaxed). It's something I've been aware of my entire running career but have never managed to fix - one of my unique quirks!

Yesterday was also my last significant open water swim. And even at this late stage it provided a new experience in my ironman journey. The experience of a 1m swell. There was dragon boat racing on at Lake Pegasus and so we headed out to Corsair Bay for my 45min swim. Corsair Bay is usually sheltered and calm and for this reason the favoured Saturday morning swim venue of the Canterbury Tri Club. Yesterday, however there was a southerly coming right into the shore and so calm made way for 2-3 foot high waves, making it a real challenge to swim in. I was getting tossed around and several gobsful of salt water were swallowed.

I'd have to say it was good to have the Canterbury Tri Club in the water as well - they were reporting that the juniors were feeling a bit jittery out there and I don't blame them. I don't think I would have been particularly happy about being out there on my own. I probably didn't do much more than about 1200m in the 45min but I did it and can be sure that no matter what Lake Taupo throws at me I can handle it!

Finally, last night my riding buddies got together last night for a BBQ to wish Curly and I good luck for Ironman. I hadn't seen some of them for a few months, as my recent training has been all about solo rides, so it was great to catch up and their support has been amazing. Curly has also been under Coach Dave's guidance and put the whole event into perspective when I asked him how he was feeling as our training winds down.

"Ironman?", he said, "it's just a long training day".

So true.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

A Day of Distractions

On my ironman journey, Saturdays have now become simulation days.

They are the days when my training session consists of a swim, followed by a bike, followed by a run.  (Just like the real thing, but shorter!) And now that summer is officially here the swim is happening in the open water, either in the lake at Pegasus or in Corsair Bay, over the hill in Lyttelton.

Last Saturday's session was no different.  I was tasked with a 40 minute swim, 2 1/2 hour bike and a 30 minute run.  Andi, training for the Lake Wanaka Half,  had a similar program although a shorter bike and so we decided to do the swim and bike together.  The plan was to drive out to Corsair Bay with the bikes, do the swim and then bike from there home where I could then do my run around Hagley Park.

Pegasus would have been great but thanks to the power of Facebook I had found out that there would be waka sprints out there that morning and, while they weren't starting their races until 9.00am, likely preparatory work in the lake (i.e. setting up lanes etc) could have made swimming a bit of a pain.  So Corsair Bay it was.

It was an early start.  While Pegasus was out, there was also the distraction at Corsair Bay with the annual Harbour Ride, one of Christchurch's premier road cycling events.  The route for the ride would go past Corsair Bay and up over Evans Pass to Lyttelton, exactly the route we were planning to follow after our swim.  We therefore wanted to be well out of the way before we got mown down by elite riders such as Hayden Roulston!

We therefore pulled up at Andi's place just after 7.00am, loaded her and her bike, and by 7.30 we were pulling wetsuits on at the water's edge at Corsair Bay.  It was a gorgeous day and there were already a few swimmers out in the bay doing laps around the boats.  Coach Dave was already there and had done his first lap by the time we got in.  He decided to do another one with us and so off we went.

Google Earth view of Corsair Bay with a typical swim circuit marked in yellow - approx 1km

Swimming conditions were great, although it did get a little lumpy once we were out by the yachts and out of the shelter of the bay.  We got our first lap done, though, and Dave headed off to his next fitness session of the day leaving us to do another lap.  I had a much better time with sighting and we set up a good routine - figuring out our next landmark (or yacht), swimming to it then stopping and refocusing on the next point.

We got out after about 55 minutes and had done about 2 km of swimming, so a good effort.  It was then out of the wetsuits and up to the car to get the bikes ready for a ride.  Drinks and food loaded, I started walking the bike onto the tarseal to start riding and suddenly realised I was still wearing my Nothinz.  They are so comfy I'd forgotten I was wearing them but it's a bit like walking out the door of your house in your snuggly pyjamas.  ...and tricky to clip into the bike pedals!

My orange Nothinz - ugly as, but SOOO comfy!

Senior moment sorted, we headed away.  It was a slight downhill into Lyttelton but once we passed the main centre of town we started a steady climb up to Evans Pass.  It's not a steep climb so I quite enjoyed taking it slowly and (almost!) having time to enjoy the scenery.  Andi went off ahead (because virtually everyone is still faster than me on an upward slope!) but waited at the top of the pass and it was at this point I stopped as well.

We were conscious of the elite riders coming through in the race and there was a decent group of spectators and photographers stopped at the top of Evans Pass waiting to see them come through.  We waited for a few minutes trying to work out if we had enough time to carry on, and not get run over, and eventually decided we may as well have a shot at getting down the hill first.

So we headed down and got through Sumner and Redcliffs and to the end of the causeway.  At the end of the causeway the race would make a hard left turn for the final kilometre to the finish line.  Being enthusiastic cyclists it was only right that we allow ourselves this little distraction and see the leading riders come around.  So we stopped there and a couple of minutes later the leading riders started coming through.  It was great to watch and we ended up waiting until the first of the elite women came in as well - fantastic stuff.

It wasn't to be our only distraction, though.

We carried on around to Brighton and rode along Marine Parade, only to find the road closed up ahead.  The suburban Santa Parade was on and so the road was blocked with sugar-enriched children and their frazzled parents.  Thankfully Santa had just gone past by the time we got there and so we were able to slowly make our way through the crowds as they dispersed back to their cars.

Just goes to show that a bike ride never has to be an ordinary thing.