I really enjoy reading Race reports from others so, although I'm not very fast for this forums standards, I thought I would give a short Report from the weekend. If anyone searches this report in the future and wants any more info then PM me. I only live 1.5hrs drive from Weymouth. And BTW Weymouth is a fantastic seaside town.
Training:
After 12 months of almost no training and weight gain up to almost 195lbs, I decided to start S/B/R training again in April. By the time I got to July I had got down to 163lbs and felt fit enough to be able to get round a 70.3 so I signed up for Weymouth. I tried to average about 10hrs/week whilst losing the weight. I pretty much just did 100% easy endurance training so I built up the ability to finish and not get injured in training.
For the 23 weeks from start until the race I averaged the following:
Weekly hours: 9.5hrs
Swim: 3,600m/week
Bike 69 miles/week
Run 23 miles/week
My goals for the race were 1) To finish and 2) If it was on the cards when I hit the run to try for sub 6hrs.
Pre-Race:
The forecast was for 16C water temp, Air starting at 9C up to 15C. No Rain, 10mph winds. I decided to race in just my trisuit with toe covers on my bike shoes. That turned out to be a bad mistake.
I always forget just how pre-race nerves suck. The morning of the race is spent wondering why the hell I choose to put myself through these things. I know the boost I get from finishing a race will let me quickly forget the pre race nerves but I still really hate them. Even J.Brownlee wrote that if there was a big red button in the start area of a race that took him back to his lounge in Yorkshire, he would press it every time. I'm totally with him on that one. But it's a necessary evil.
I turned up at the race venue in the morning and started to think I had made a bad mistake with my bike clothing. With no access to my Bike bag, I took off my tube socks, cut holes for my fingers, and left them on my bike to use as gloves. I thought the bike might take around 3 hours so I had 2 bottles of 400 liquid calories in each. I figured I would drink 250cal/hr with 50cal spillage/bottle residue.
No swimming warm up was allowed so I just swung my arms around, got in my wetsuit and lined up. I started to feel cold stood around in my wetsuit which really made me worried about the temperature on the bike.
Swim: 38min
I love the rolling start. I know for FOP is causes issues with racing but for me as an MOP it's perfect. I had zero contact in the swim and could race my own race. The first leg was directly into the sun which made sighting difficult and there was a fair amount of chop which was quite hard work. The rest of the swim went fine but I started to feel cold in the last 10mins. In training I did 2/3 steady 1.9km swims sub 35min so expected that for the swim. When I stood up and saw 38min I was a bit gutted. My Garmin shows 2,000m so even with an extra 100m, I can only assume I didn't swim well in the choppy conditions. I did a couple swims in 16C and never got cold, so I can only think that being cold before the start affected my core temp during the swim. I also think wearing a top under the wetsuit affects the heating effect of the suit.
T1: My feet were numb running to T1 and, once changed, there was a long run on rough asphalt which was not nice at all on numb feet. I got to my bike, put my tube socks on my hands and took off.
Bike: 2hr57min
I was cold. Freezing cold. My tube sock gloves were covering my Garmin so I had no idea what my power, time, speed was. I could have pulled it down to see, but I was so cold and miserable, I just decided to go on feel. I saw a few people come off the bike on sharp corners and a few with punctures. I was so cold that I was sure a puncture would be a DNF for me. My only weapon against the cold was to keep working the bike. Every time I stopped pedalling, I was shaking with cold. The route went through some forests and the sunlight poking through the gaps made visibility really awkward. Occasionally the sun would come out and I tried to soak up the rays as best I could. Then the route would go downhill into the shade and I was back to trying to hold the bike steady with my shivering. The last thing I wanted to do was drink cold liquid, but I forced myself as I needed the calories.
I just about kept the cold in check but my feet were numb from start to finish. I have to say, I didn't enjoy the bike route much. It seemed a lot of back roads and quite a few narrow sections with sharp downhill turns. All signposted well, but not my kind of course. However, I might have liked it more if I had worn proper clothing for the conditions. The last 6 miles, the road just opened up and I was spinning out my 53/11 gear absolutely flying. That was fun. I only drank 1litre of fluid.
I was so so glad to survive that bike ride.
T2: I kept my cycle shoes on to save my numb feet on that rough asphalt.
Run: 2hr6min
As soon as I hit the run I had a really bad side cramp. I tried to put my fist in my side, lean to the cramped side, deep breathing, nothing seemed to work. I just tried to keep running no matter how bad the pain. After about 2 miles the pain became manageable. It was still there but I could at least I could run stood up straight. The run course in Weymouth is fantastic. 3.5 loops along the sea front, through the town with lots of supporters. I was scared to start on the gels for fear it would worsen the cramp in my side but eventually I had to start eating or risk bonking. I started with a little water. Then a little coke and then a gel with water. It had no effect on my cramp so I took a gel every 30min. 5mins after each gel I had a great boost in energy and picked up the pace a bit. Then after 20min I felt crap again before it was time to take the next gel.
Despite the cramp and the reduced pace, I loved the run. The temperature was perfect for running, I never walked and the course was pan flat and full of supporters.
I finished in 5hr52min. In the end I probably got the race that my fitness and preparation deserved. I hit both my modest pre-race goals so I was very happy.
On reflection for the bike I should have worn my gabba s/s top, arm warmers, wool socks and gloves. I would have more than saved the extra time it would have taken in T1 to put the clothes on by cycling faster and not wasting energy shivering. Half way through the bike my neck and shoulders seized up from being cold which would have been prevented. On reflection I should have asked myself "what would I wear for a bike ride in 10C temps. Plus although Weymouth was 10C, some areas in land in the forrest, it was down to about 6C. Lessons leaned. Time for some RnR before starting on the road to 2018.
Training:
After 12 months of almost no training and weight gain up to almost 195lbs, I decided to start S/B/R training again in April. By the time I got to July I had got down to 163lbs and felt fit enough to be able to get round a 70.3 so I signed up for Weymouth. I tried to average about 10hrs/week whilst losing the weight. I pretty much just did 100% easy endurance training so I built up the ability to finish and not get injured in training.
For the 23 weeks from start until the race I averaged the following:
Weekly hours: 9.5hrs
Swim: 3,600m/week
Bike 69 miles/week
Run 23 miles/week
My goals for the race were 1) To finish and 2) If it was on the cards when I hit the run to try for sub 6hrs.
Pre-Race:
The forecast was for 16C water temp, Air starting at 9C up to 15C. No Rain, 10mph winds. I decided to race in just my trisuit with toe covers on my bike shoes. That turned out to be a bad mistake.
I always forget just how pre-race nerves suck. The morning of the race is spent wondering why the hell I choose to put myself through these things. I know the boost I get from finishing a race will let me quickly forget the pre race nerves but I still really hate them. Even J.Brownlee wrote that if there was a big red button in the start area of a race that took him back to his lounge in Yorkshire, he would press it every time. I'm totally with him on that one. But it's a necessary evil.
I turned up at the race venue in the morning and started to think I had made a bad mistake with my bike clothing. With no access to my Bike bag, I took off my tube socks, cut holes for my fingers, and left them on my bike to use as gloves. I thought the bike might take around 3 hours so I had 2 bottles of 400 liquid calories in each. I figured I would drink 250cal/hr with 50cal spillage/bottle residue.
No swimming warm up was allowed so I just swung my arms around, got in my wetsuit and lined up. I started to feel cold stood around in my wetsuit which really made me worried about the temperature on the bike.
Swim: 38min
I love the rolling start. I know for FOP is causes issues with racing but for me as an MOP it's perfect. I had zero contact in the swim and could race my own race. The first leg was directly into the sun which made sighting difficult and there was a fair amount of chop which was quite hard work. The rest of the swim went fine but I started to feel cold in the last 10mins. In training I did 2/3 steady 1.9km swims sub 35min so expected that for the swim. When I stood up and saw 38min I was a bit gutted. My Garmin shows 2,000m so even with an extra 100m, I can only assume I didn't swim well in the choppy conditions. I did a couple swims in 16C and never got cold, so I can only think that being cold before the start affected my core temp during the swim. I also think wearing a top under the wetsuit affects the heating effect of the suit.
T1: My feet were numb running to T1 and, once changed, there was a long run on rough asphalt which was not nice at all on numb feet. I got to my bike, put my tube socks on my hands and took off.
Bike: 2hr57min
I was cold. Freezing cold. My tube sock gloves were covering my Garmin so I had no idea what my power, time, speed was. I could have pulled it down to see, but I was so cold and miserable, I just decided to go on feel. I saw a few people come off the bike on sharp corners and a few with punctures. I was so cold that I was sure a puncture would be a DNF for me. My only weapon against the cold was to keep working the bike. Every time I stopped pedalling, I was shaking with cold. The route went through some forests and the sunlight poking through the gaps made visibility really awkward. Occasionally the sun would come out and I tried to soak up the rays as best I could. Then the route would go downhill into the shade and I was back to trying to hold the bike steady with my shivering. The last thing I wanted to do was drink cold liquid, but I forced myself as I needed the calories.
I just about kept the cold in check but my feet were numb from start to finish. I have to say, I didn't enjoy the bike route much. It seemed a lot of back roads and quite a few narrow sections with sharp downhill turns. All signposted well, but not my kind of course. However, I might have liked it more if I had worn proper clothing for the conditions. The last 6 miles, the road just opened up and I was spinning out my 53/11 gear absolutely flying. That was fun. I only drank 1litre of fluid.
I was so so glad to survive that bike ride.
T2: I kept my cycle shoes on to save my numb feet on that rough asphalt.
Run: 2hr6min
As soon as I hit the run I had a really bad side cramp. I tried to put my fist in my side, lean to the cramped side, deep breathing, nothing seemed to work. I just tried to keep running no matter how bad the pain. After about 2 miles the pain became manageable. It was still there but I could at least I could run stood up straight. The run course in Weymouth is fantastic. 3.5 loops along the sea front, through the town with lots of supporters. I was scared to start on the gels for fear it would worsen the cramp in my side but eventually I had to start eating or risk bonking. I started with a little water. Then a little coke and then a gel with water. It had no effect on my cramp so I took a gel every 30min. 5mins after each gel I had a great boost in energy and picked up the pace a bit. Then after 20min I felt crap again before it was time to take the next gel.
Despite the cramp and the reduced pace, I loved the run. The temperature was perfect for running, I never walked and the course was pan flat and full of supporters.
I finished in 5hr52min. In the end I probably got the race that my fitness and preparation deserved. I hit both my modest pre-race goals so I was very happy.
On reflection for the bike I should have worn my gabba s/s top, arm warmers, wool socks and gloves. I would have more than saved the extra time it would have taken in T1 to put the clothes on by cycling faster and not wasting energy shivering. Half way through the bike my neck and shoulders seized up from being cold which would have been prevented. On reflection I should have asked myself "what would I wear for a bike ride in 10C temps. Plus although Weymouth was 10C, some areas in land in the forrest, it was down to about 6C. Lessons leaned. Time for some RnR before starting on the road to 2018.