MY ROAD TO IM AUSTRIA 2012

handangeo

Friday nights run was a heat nightmare, started off hungry and not hydrated enough, planned 10k turned into walk run hell. The heat and I certainly dont make good friends. Grinded out in the end but it wasnt pretty. The lack of anybody else out should have been an indicator of how warm it was. 10k @ 4.30k pace total 45mins.

Saturday - right off, kids, work etc

Sunday - Club training day duathlon style

Monday - 10k run 1.6k warm up, 3.2k @ 3.43 kph pace, 5.2k @ 4.2 kph pace

Tuesday am - 45 min turbo - 10 min warm up followed by 2 x 12 min 220w efforts with warm down.

All ready for Athy, some unfinished business from last year..........

handangeo

Wednesday evening was too nice for a swim - its funny how I always find excuses to drop a swim session and opted for a 30k TT instead. However I had a valid excuse, with new kit to test as I succumbed to finally purchasing an Scott aero helmet on Tuesday :eek:, ............now I have to perform.

Of course my Garmin then dies after 10mins after it beeped to inform me that my heart rate peaked @ 270 BPM!. However a combination of new road surface, snazzy helmet, no wind and a few rabbits to catch in the distance made for a good session. I felt faster [looked faster ] but there again I would think that.

I knocked 13 minutes off my bike time in Athy from 2011 to 2009 albeit on a slightly different [harder] route, this year I have a new bike, new Zipp wheels, aero helmet, better focused training so I better HTFU on the day and make it count.

We have a Club 10K TT - the hilly one, with the 2 local cycle clubs this evening which should make for a bit of rivalry.

Onwards and upwards.......

Izoard

handangeo wrote: »

Wednesday evening was too nice for a swim - its funny how I always find excuses to drop a swim session and opted for a 30k TT instead. However I had a valid excuse, with new kit to test as I succumbed to finally purchasing an Scott aero helmet on Tuesday :eek:, ............now I have to perform.

Of course my Garmin then dies after 10mins after it beeped to inform me that my heart rate peaked @ 270 BPM!. However a combination of new road surface, snazzy helmet, no wind and a few rabbits to catch in the distance made for a good session. I felt faster [looked faster ] but there again I would think that.

I knocked 13 minutes off my bike time in Athy from 2011 to 2009 albeit on a slightly different [harder] route, this year I have a new bike, new Zipp wheels, aero helmet, better focused training so I better HTFU on the day and make it count.

We have a Club 10K TT - the hilly one, with the 2 local cycle clubs this evening which should make for a bit of rivalry.

Onwards and upwards.......

Another one or the tricked out B2 from last year?

handangeo

Izoard wrote: »

Another one or the tricked out B2 from last year?

Still the B2 but new to Athy

handangeo

Thought the legs could do with a burn before Athy and to see where I am against last year. We had good numbers from the Club with 2 local cycle clubs attending aswell. Weather just perfect warm with only a slight breeze.

Set up to go off in 30 sec intervals, I was 40th off - which gave me some rabbits to catch in the distance. I would always rather be the chaser than the chased for some reason, its a good carrot to keep pushing.

The first 10k is relatively flat with a decent enough surface, caught and passed at least 4 riders here. Then the fun starts a real kick up for the last bit, lots of people struggling here and i managed to catch a few more, it was damp underneath the shade after the days rain and I could feel my back wheel slipping as i forced the power down. I couldnt see my Garmin properly but I'm sure its 8-10% gradient for most of the way, just when your at the top it kicks again .

However pleased with the result joint 1st - Aero helmets work it seems after all! They better this weekend.

handangeo

Up early to register and declined the second box of eggs for the Sprint on Sunday. I was in the last wave so I had loads of time in my hands to prepare. Racked up near the Jenson mania that was taking place. Fair dues to him, he put together some cracking times.

Swim - pretty much the ususal, fish took off and left me for dead, composed myself and got into a decent rythmn. Passed a few near the end which is unusual for me :rolleyes:

Swim 0:30:03

T1 0:01:05

Bike - Out in last wave gave me a chance to pass lots of back markers, weather was perfect, speed was good but the road surface in spots was awful. Didnt bring enough fluid on the bike and paid for it near the end. I was happy with the shift I put in, but lost my gel I intended to take at the turnaround .

Bike 1:07:43

T2 0:01:06

Run - Grabbed a water at the first stop nearly killing the volunteer who was chatting to her friends :mad:, I hate the run in Athy as i prefer to run on tarmac. Stuck with a guy from Hi-elbow tri club and we worked well together. found the first 5k tough until the turn around where my club mate who I thought was ahead of me was 100m behind. Put the foot down and negative split the run, no way was I going to be passed.

Run 0:42:17

Overall 02:22:16 101st and 17th in AG 40-44

8 minutes faster than 2011 and 3 places worse off overall, but first home from the Club.

handangeo

Weathers changed ooppps - what a difference to yesterday, In second last wave and its freezing. I couldnt stay warm no matter what. I just wanted to get started.

Swim - Felt better than yesterday and the current was stronger, just need more practise here

Swim -0:13:52

T1 - 0:01:23

Bike - Windy, wet , miserable, cold but still put the hammer down average speed was higher than saturday but thats the surface helping i suppose. tough enough on the return leg, was hoping for around the 32 min mark so can improve, think i overcooked a bit yesterday and didnt leave much for todays race.

Bike - 0:33:57

T2 - 0:01:12 cold hands cant get the helmet off or runners on. GRRRR

Run - Found easier than ever before, loved the rain and was clocking sub 7 min miles grand, as ever i should have pushed harder.

Run - 0:20:20 [wanted sub 19]

Overall - 1:10:46 93rd 15th in AG and 3rd in the club

A good training weekend for Austria, happy nobody passed me either day on the bike or the run. Another hard 2 weeks and then a taper for me.

handangeo

It took the Chicken curry after the race, 2 cups of coffee and the heat on full on the way back home before I thawed out.

Thats really great preparation for then heat in Austria :rolleyes:

Oryx

Brilliant stuff, H. It sounds like youre pretty much ready!

handangeo

Oryx wrote: »

Brilliant stuff, H. It sounds like youre pretty much ready!

Hmmmm few long bikes I still havent nailed yet, the next 2 weeks will tell alot. Getting serious grief on the homefront re: training - this is the last year of IM it seems

Oryx

handangeo wrote: »

Hmmmm few long bikes I still havent nailed yet, the next 2 weeks will tell alot. Getting serious grief on the homefront re: training - this is the last year of IM it seems

Sounds familiar.... Some days are like the worst points of the Cold War, in my house. I feel your pain!

handangeo

Monday was a right off after Athy at the weekend, spun out the legs for 20 minutes - thats about it.

Tuesday 1hr Turbo after 15 min wu, 12 mins x 3 @ 230w with 3 mins recovery, really struggled on the last one, I think the weekend was still present in the legs. Finished with a low cadence 200w for 8 mins which is tough as I normally spin @ 90-100 rpm. Sweated buckets but a quality session none the less.

For the rest of the week I have to nail a long bike 3-4 hrs, 2hr hard run and some run speed work.............I'll squeeze a swim session in somewhere just because I have too.

Tomorrow 3 weeks I fly out to Austria, its all becoming a bit real now and the nerves are starting to set in :eek:

Of course the doubts are setting in, I know I havent done hardly any long bikes but either did I last year and still managed a 5:30 in Roth, my mantra has been quality over quantity but I wonder will I be found wanting when the time comes.

BTH

Haven't noticed this log before. Good work and some impressive run PBs on the first page. Great stuff over the weekend as well. Did you get loads of strange looks when you told people you were racing both days? I know I did.

handangeo

BetterThanHoyte wrote: »

Haven't noticed this log before. Good work and some impressive run PBs on the first page. Great stuff over the weekend as well. Did you get loads of strange looks when you told people you were racing both days? I know I did.

Sure did, but I declined the second box of eggs! Next year I'm going to include the tryAthy aswell - my only chance ever of a podium

handangeo

Wednesday night called for a long run of sorts, 16k @ an average of 4.20/Km. I am still feeling Athy in the legs, but I haven't slept well since either, I think both races, flat out, at the weekend took more out of me that I imagined.

Weather is awful today so the long bike has been ditched for a swim session, so I will be getting wet one way or another.

Next race on the horizon is Hook or by Crook in Dunmore East, complete with a cycle home afterwards circa 75k, followed then by a tough 10k race the next morning...nothing like a suffer weekend.

handangeo

Thursday - Swim session of sorts 1k done, nothing special just felt a bit better than normal.

Friday AM - Silly O'Clock turbo Session 1hr with 15 min w/u, 10 min @ 220w x 2 and a new favourite 250w, my biggest gear and a low cadence about 60-70 rpm for 5 mins and grind, grind, grind pure hell and back. Finish off with 200w high cadence. I really had to concentrate this morning and nearly bailed after the warm up.

I think its the depressing weather, how in Gods name are we expected to a climatise for Austria, its just not on. Yesterday I finally got around to booking the hire care to travel from Vienna airport to Klagenfurt, it takes circa 3 1/2 hours according to google maps, hmmm we'll see. As long as I manage to squeeze in the bike box, we're all good.

handangeo

Fri Night - School BBQ so any idea of training was quashed :mad:

Saturday PM - 80k bike Kilkenny, Inistioge, New Ross and back, with some really nice long drags which I love. Of course the Garmin died half way through so had to wing it with RPE most of the way home. Normally I have target to keep trying to increase avg. speed. However in this case it was pedal to the metal and keep it turning.

Sunday AM - Swim with the kids managed to get about 400m done before I had to help with the underwater hunt for goggles!

Sunday PM - As it was warm and humid, I threw the kids on the bikes whilst I donned full winter gear including wolly hat to try and replicate some sort of heat training for Austria. I cant talk when I run, and despite a million questions every minute, we managed 10k @ 7.17 min pace [thats miles not km and I cant be ars*d converting it!]

It was really hot and sweaty and I got some funny looks dripping in sweat at the shop afterwards where we all had recovery wine gums and coke :eek:

Week ended up as follows:

Swim 1k (embarrassing I Know)
Bike 150k
Run 26k

Total 8 hrs ish

Not long to go now......

handangeo

Monday - Swim Session about 1k, was on the clock so it was in out kinda stuff and get it done asap

Tuesday - 1hr Turbo after meetings in Dublin with work all day. Legs felt heavy and sweated buckets even though I didnt think it was that warm.

This is meant to be my big training week and I'm struggling to motivate myself into doing anything . I have got to get a long run in tonight, the Club 15k TT tomorrow night, swim and run Friday, race Saturday. One thing stand out I'm still not doing enough long stuff, but its too late now.

handangeo

Wed PM - What was planned was a LSR but what happened was not!
I was late starting, and Germany Vs Netherlands about to kick off, no food on board, which was really great planning. I nearly binned the session for the soccer, but put on the gear, downed a gel and headed out the door.
Normally I'd have to have the session planned in my head , what I wanted to achieve, time, goals etc. If I find I dont do this it always ends up a half hearted affair, so its 100% or nothing these days.

Anyway did the first 3.2k as a warm up @ 4.39/k pace then 6.5k @ tempo pace which for me is 3.55 - 3.59, followed by 3.2k cool down @ 4.25/k pace. It was lashing down just as I finished, what is it with the weather lately?

Total 12k in 54:39 minutes - Not as long as I hoped or wanted, but a quality session none the less.

Tonight is the Club TT 13.5k, its flat but prone to wind, so the plan will be get the job done and home for the match later :rolleyes:

handangeo

Thurs PM - What was meant to be the Club TT was cancelled at the last minute and only muggins here turned up not knowing. I decided as I was wet through at this stage to give it a go anyway.
I got about 3k into it when I nearly got blown under a bus for the second time and thought it was wiser to turnaround and call it a day. It was just too dangerous really, so home it was and sat on the turbo for 30 mins @ Z1 and 110 RPM.

Plus the weather will be garbage for the weekend, so I can see misery for Hook or by Crook in the morning and the cycle home afterwards. Looks like a crate of HTFU for breakfast.

Oryx

Good luck with HobC, I wish you a miracle on the weather front. Bloody awful, isnt it?

handangeo

SAT AM Looked out the window, hmmm stormy not what I wanted as I headed to Dunmore East, however windy it was in Kilkenny it was going to be a hell of a lot worse on the coast. Registered in good time and took my time to rack up, warm up and get things in shape.

Just before the briefing a torrential downpour, once that passed it brighted up and turned into a pleasant day.

Swim 750k - Out in Wave 1 as with most of the Club, so it was real head to head stuff and lots of pride at stake. Swam better than ususal and happy.

SWIM 00:16:00 144th/378

T1 00:01:26 65th/378

Bike 20k - Being a slow swimmer I always get to pass people on the bike, on the first climb took at least 8 and put the hammer down. Past my club swim nemesis like I told him i would before the turnaround, and had to then make sure to put enough time on him before the run. It was windy and never at my back so it was difficult to stay upright at times, past a good few on the return leg and into T2, once again nobody passed me on the bike.

BIKE 00:35:10 40th/378 HAPPY DAYS

T2 00:01:22 219th/478 Bloody cramps lost time stretching my calves

RUN 7k - Real beast of a run with the first 1-2k uphill, which really sorts things out, caught only a few runners and was passed by 1 reall runner who left us all for dead. Managed to stay with a small group and surged near the end which is an uphill finish just when you dont need it!

RUN 00:27:20 26th/378 HAPPY DAYS AGAIN

Overall 43rd/478 and 4th in AG 40-44 and 2nd home of the Club- Pleased with my day thought I lacked a bit of power on the bike, talking afterwards I got some good advice - "If your not hurting in these sprint races your not pushing half hard enough"

Sunday 10k Road Race - 6th/121 00:39:12 Brute of a hilly course and that was my weekend. Done and dusted

handangeo

As a prelude that I forgot to mention to the 10k I ran on Sunday, I had my bike in the car and had planned to do a spin with a mate after the race, alas he never turned up as it happened. However I decided I'd do a quick warm up on the bike before the race just to wake the legs.

Off I set with some bemused onlookers who thought I was nuts, and proceeded up a narrow road, it was a lovely sunny morning and everything in the world was good! Next I know I'm being forced into the ditch by some nutter in a jeep, fail to clip out and topple into a massive heap of nettles :mad:, I got stung head to toe and legs balloned up within minutes GRRRRRrrrrrrrr.

After the 10k unknown to myself I pulled something at the top of my left calf, whether it was when I fell off the bike earlier I don't know. So Monday was a training non event, but still did 20mins in the pool easy working on my stroke - most usual for me.

The countdown is on now for Austria and its becoming a reality a bit sooner than I hoped, I still want to get another decent long run in, a good swim session and I have the postponed club TT on Thursday night to do. I think when I have that done I'll have a little more peace of mind.

I'm also raising some money for Down Syndrome Ireland this year if anyone has a spare fiver or so it would be appreciated

http://www.mycharity.ie/event/george_sherwoods_event/

Izoard

handangeo wrote: »

I'm also raising some money for Down Syndrome Ireland this year if anyone has a spare fiver or so it would be appreciated

http://www.mycharity.ie/event/george_sherwoods_event/

Fiver???
How do I get the rest of my cash back?:)

Nettles - always a classic...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtSRZZctauk

handangeo

Izoard wrote: »

Fiver???
How do I get the rest of my cash back?:)

Nettles - always a classic...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtSRZZctauk

And no, not a dock leaf in sight :rolleyes:

handangeo

Calf still acting up, no running since Sunday, managed a swim session last night, nothing special just happy to be swimming smoothly an easy 1k with a few "fast" 100's -[fast for me that is]

Tonight, I have a turbo planned all going well 20 min wu, 2 x 15m @ 220w with 3 min recovery and 20 min @ 200w to end the session, will try a brick 5k run off the bike depending on the legs. I'm minding that calf so close to race day.

Tomorrow week I fly to Austria, 6 months has disappeared and doubts as ususal set in. The long bikes with runs off them that I promised myself i would do, never actually happened again this year. This just means I'll have to sign up for another IM next year to do it justice. Nothing like getting the excuses in early I suppose.

pgibbo

Do you think there is much to be gained by running off long bikes? I know last year the max I ran off a long bike was 15 or 20 minutes. There's a huge risk of injury. I recall and interesting article regarding running off the bike on EN and it pretty much condemned them for AG athletes.

Man those 6 months flew by. :eek:

handangeo

pgibbo wrote: »

Do you think there is much to be gained by running off long bikes? I know last year the max I ran off a long bike was 15 or 20 minutes. There's a huge risk of injury. I recall and interesting article regarding running off the bike on EN and it pretty much condemned them for AG athletes.

Man those 6 months flew by. :eek:

I think its a mental thing more than anything, I just remember getting off the bike in Roth last year, dead heat and my legs not reacting. They were so heavy, the fact Chrissie sprinted past me in the other direction didn't help either.

I like the fact of being able to run hard off the bike in training, I think you need to be able to suffer, suck in the pain and blank it out of your mind. Only when you are able to do this are you reaching anywhere near your potential. For me IM is mainly a mental thing [yea everyone thinks I'm mental] if you visualise it, anyone can do it. But this year its a race against time rather than getting to the finish line and I'm prepared to do the suffering along the way.

handangeo

Turbo session - 10 min warm up, 3 x 10 minutes @ 220w with 3 min recovery, followed by 10 min @ 180w warm down. Whether it was lack of food or mojo I didnt have that satisfaction I normally get when I finished the session.

Despite there being a pool of sweat on the tiles, the power was not what I had hoped. There were moments where I had to fight to stay on track and not throw in the towel, the demons were in my ear shouting stop, but eased off for a few mins and fought back.

shotgunmcos

handangeo wrote: »

Despite there being a pool of sweat on the tiles, the power was not what I had hoped. There were moments where I had to fight to stay on track and not throw in the towel, the demons were in my ear shouting stop, but eased off for a few mins and fought back.

Kinda how I felt on the bike this morning too for a very similar session. Did you hop on it straight out of bed? Maybe it down to not feulling the session. A big no no according to a Matt Dixon article I was reading this morning while gobbling toast