Tri mutterings
Jun. 29th, 2006 10:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
andygatesA few days on and I've had time to post-mortem Bude. It comes down to the swim being a right 'mare. I can't blame the conditions, which were pretty nice; I can put some blame on stress (which was high) and newbieness, but basically it's just that my crawl wasn't easy. Turns out from my diary that I hadn't had a good long solid crawl-bash for *ten* days beforehand.
St. Friel says, and the biomass and I generally agree, that newbie skills are developed through chronic exposure: in other words, lots of swim sessions. So that's what I need to do - one committed epic a week ain't enough. Time to take out a membership and get a routine.
Which segues conveniently into the idea of a large-scale training plan. Friel (Triathlete's Training Bible) lays out a truly epic scheme which is pretty much High Magick: lots and lots of sensible-sounding theory (tapering, peaking, base, blocks...) and rules which end up with a calendar of doom. Since I want Cotswold (10 September) to be my first "proper" rather than "newbie" race, I'll draw up the rolling monster and see how it goes. Goals for the race are:
1) Complete the swim all-crawl and in good freshness.
* Join Exeter Tri and swim regularly
* In August do OW practice at and over race distance
2) Have a bike split of better than halfway up the field.
* Maintain summer century fitness.
* Do speed drills as if for 10-mile TT.
* Enter a 10-mile TT?
3) A run time of 28:00 or better.
* Work on faster cadence.
* Drop some weight (!)
The nice news so far is that I feel like I've passed some interesting fitness threshold where active recovery is more appropriate than total rest and where I can train twice a day (previously, only bike-commuting fit in that description). So I'm hopeful for more improvement.
Oh, and Skean: Good luck for the weekend! How's the water? Warm yet?
St. Friel says, and the biomass and I generally agree, that newbie skills are developed through chronic exposure: in other words, lots of swim sessions. So that's what I need to do - one committed epic a week ain't enough. Time to take out a membership and get a routine.
Which segues conveniently into the idea of a large-scale training plan. Friel (Triathlete's Training Bible) lays out a truly epic scheme which is pretty much High Magick: lots and lots of sensible-sounding theory (tapering, peaking, base, blocks...) and rules which end up with a calendar of doom. Since I want Cotswold (10 September) to be my first "proper" rather than "newbie" race, I'll draw up the rolling monster and see how it goes. Goals for the race are:
1) Complete the swim all-crawl and in good freshness.
* Join Exeter Tri and swim regularly
* In August do OW practice at and over race distance
2) Have a bike split of better than halfway up the field.
* Maintain summer century fitness.
* Do speed drills as if for 10-mile TT.
* Enter a 10-mile TT?
3) A run time of 28:00 or better.
* Work on faster cadence.
* Drop some weight (!)
The nice news so far is that I feel like I've passed some interesting fitness threshold where active recovery is more appropriate than total rest and where I can train twice a day (previously, only bike-commuting fit in that description). So I'm hopeful for more improvement.
Oh, and Skean: Good luck for the weekend! How's the water? Warm yet?
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no subject
Date: 2006-06-30 12:36 pm (UTC)MY GOD THEY ALL LOOK PROFESSIONAL!!!!
There are hundreds of tanned carrot shaped people wandering around or crusing past on their bikes at 60kmh. I made the mistake of standing in line for my licence for the Ironman for a bit - that was suitably intimadating.
The transitiion zone is about half a klick from the swim start, so you have to wander through athletes village in your whatever (great! me in a gimp suit!). The water exit ramp is frighteningly steep. But its OK, the emergency one that leads to the heli evac pad is much shallower.... The finish is inside a stadium made of rows and rows of spectactor seats. Gaaa!
Feeling rather overawed (ok, thats the nice way of putting it - nervous is the honest truth) about the whole thing at the moment. I'll be getting a lot of sleep tonight I'm sure.
no subject
Date: 2006-06-30 12:58 pm (UTC)See what I mean by intimidatingly fit? Look at it this way: you won't be the token fat boy ;) As for gimp suits, you just have to turn off your vanity gene and you'll be fine.
Ah, yes. That could be a problem.
Still, instead of being intimidated, chuckle over the Ken and Barbie effect. Faces and hands in full detail, bodies vague outlines, and no external sexual characteristics. Wetsuits are the rubber clothing even a Mormon could endorse.
Personally I like a crowd at the end. Gets a sprint out of me - but I'm the kind of muppet who laps up external motivation.
Now remember: you are cool. You are the Spirit of Cool Britannia about to show Johnny Foreigner just what it means to swim in a lake. You're practically Byron. You are a tiger. Rarr!