Toiler's Constant

Kurt Godel

Fri 10k easy jog

Went out with the missus, this is the bliss couple of weeks when her school is closed, the kids school is still open, so we get to live like childless couples between the hours of 9:00-3:00. Obviously, childless couples go for 10k jogs along rain-sodden forests, complaining about what a drain Ireland's child benefit system is on our taxes. They should kill the poor while they're at it.

Nice and easy, took care of any tight muscles, all systems go for tomorrows off-road Tri.

Krusty_Clown

From zero to 5k race, 10k, 10k, + off-road race.
In mathematics/statistics, what kind of curve would that be?
Answer:

A foolish curve.

Kurt Godel

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

From zero to 5k race, 10k, 10k, + off-road race.
In mathematics/statistics, what kind of curve would that be?
Answer:

A foolish curve.

Haha:D Actually that might suggest the bell-shaped curve of a Normal distribution, which would suggest I peaked somewhere between 2 and 3 am last night! All downhill from here!

I take your point though, and I'm not going to pack in too much running just yet. Todays 10k was very much a jogging pace, I'd say over 50 minutes. The run part on Wed I didn't push that much, and tomorrow's race will be all about the swim (and good transition practice).

Kurt Godel

Sat Eireman X Race

I've always wanted to do this relatively local race- mud, forest, crossing rivers, etc; sounds like good craic to me! The registration and set-up were seamless, the weather looked perfect (overcast, with a bit of a breeze), entry fee €35, so no trinkets or baubles- just the race. That's all that you need.

Swim
About 60 or so entered the Tri (there was a concurrent Duathlon option), so we wetsuited folk parted for the ocean, which was fairly choppy. Nothing too extreme, but you knew by looking that the churn would be a factor. In to acclimatize for 10 mins, then off we go. After the race last Wed, I knew what to expect, and sure enough there is a mad sprint for position. Again, I stayed well wide of all this, and just got into my own stroke. Sighting was very difficult, the two orange bouys we were to keep right were difficult to see with the waves. I had taken a baring from the shore, and used it to guide. By a few minutes in I was still very wide of any main bunches, but trusted my instincts and plugged away.
At the half way bouy, it was obvious that several were tiring, so I started to take a few spots from here. One lad made an erratic sprint to tuck in right behind me- not sure of any drafting benefit to be gained in choppy seas? In any case I took it as a wet glove slapped across my face, and upped the pace a bit to shake him off. Turned at the last bouy, and swam back to the shore. I think I was pretty high in the swim position (it was chip timed, so we'll see what transpires when results are out), having put in a solid effort. Ran up off the beach to trans, starting the strip as I did.

T1
No complaints, got the wetsuit off easy enough, race belt on, helmet, shoes went on quick enough (Solomon Speedcross with the kelvar tie laces), run with the bike, and off. The only time to be gained here will come from more practice, so I'm happy enough with how the trans went.

Bike
Two 5k laps of a very muddy forest trail, with many hilly sections, tree roots, river crossings, etc. I took off, came to the first muddy hill, hopped off and ran up, back on the saddle down again, Bam! Faceplant in mud at the bottom:D. This wasn't to be the only time I fell, it was a very mucky route. I'd say whoever designed it had great fun! Since the duathlon was on at the same time, we were running into congestion, with the mid-tail end of their bikers, so nothing to do in places but wait for an opportunity to pass. Once I got through, the race was on again. However, a few of the "slower swimmers, faster bikers" from the Tri were starting to catch me.
We went down to the first river crossing, where you have to hold your bike above your head, and wade through chest-deep water (and I'm 6'2"). Three of us cross in a line, I see the first guy duck underwater with his bike. He's got fancy gear on, so I figure he's experienced and washing the muck off for some benefit. Next, the guy in front does the same, only he's in the Duathlon, and not got such fancy gear. When he comes back up he says "Mind the big rock!", I say "Thanks I..." the rest is lost as I collide with a big rock under the water, and fall under with my bike. We tell the marshalls when we get out, and to be fair they moved the crossing markings to avoid the rock.
The rest of this lap consists of more mud, more falling, more running with the bike, more passing slower Duathloners, and still being passed by the odd Tri guy. Lap two was better, in that I was more prepared for what lay ahead, and there was less congestion. There were a few battles, which I won most of with a bit more effort on the climbs.

T2
No hassle, rack the bike and helmet and take off. Wearing my sexy trisuit makes a huge difference as regards faffing about changing tops.

Run
This was meant to be a 5k forest loop, we had been told at race briefing that heavy rain had curtailed one river crossing where the flow was too strong, but I don't think anyone was prepared for just how much of a curtailment. I started with jellylegs, but soon started to pick up the pace a bit, targeting anyone ahead of me. Nice route, one muddy river crossing, a small bit of a hill where I caught a couple, and the rest on trail. I was feeling pretty good, getting into the rhythm, although I had Old Mother Krusty's tut-tutting ringing in my ears a bit (joking;), sage advice in fact), so I didn't put the foot down when one highly specced Tri guy passed me about 2k in. There's still 3k to go, I figured I'd just increase the effort and go for it with 1k to go. However, turning a corner brought us back to the finish, the run was only 2.5k No huge deal, but it might have been highlighted a bit louder at the race briefing. A lad from my tri club did the Duathlon, him and another guy were first and second turning the corner, expecting another lap, but were put on the spot for a sprint finish when the marshalls started directing them into the finish chute.

Overall

I think 1:24 for the whole thing (going by finish clock), about 18 mins for the swim (again by clock). I look forward to seeing the chipped results, I must have been well up for the swim, and was told 10's/teen's finish? Anyway, that doesn't really matter, I got what I wanted out of today. My race swimming is solid, and I'm going to start working on making it solider. Trans times are getting better, and general pacing seems to be decent enough. I need to work on my weakest discipline (running), but overall I happy. Next up is Racing795's Bunclody Tri in early August, but I might try and get to some more Aquathons in the meantime.
Race today was well marshalled, good course, no-frills value for money. I know there was talk of scrapping it if the numbers don't improve (150 competing today?), but that would be a shame, everyone was happy with the course and race, loads of smiling (mucky) faces and banter around.

BeepBeep67

Sounds like savage fun

Dory Dory

How did the tri suit go from obscene to sexy in a matter of a few days?

Well done, once again. Oh....maybe be more aggressive on your swim starts - try to get out in the lead so you have fresh water, no bodies, and don't have to go wide. I know it's great fun to pick bodies off one at a time, but you'll have a faster time and if you come out of the water first all the ladies will swoon for you.

Kurt Godel

Dory Dory wrote: »

How did the tri suit go from obscene to sexy in a matter of a few days?

Well done, once again. Oh....maybe be more aggressive on your swim starts - try to get out in the lead so you have fresh water, no bodies, and don't have to go wide. I know it's great fun to pick bodies off one at a time, but you'll have a faster time and if you come out of the water first all the ladies will swoon for you.

I might have to rely on alpha-male swoon-vibes, god knows they ain't after me for my good looks. Straight out of the water, a face only a mother could love :

[IMG]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-EbaIMjoGHy4/T-YTeU_rdWI/AAAAAAAAAp8/ImPA-YSGcsM/s800/Screen%20shot%202012-06-23%20at%2020.03.32.png" height="603" width="406"[/IMG]

Facebook link to photos of the race

Dory Dory

I'm thinking we soften that smile, add a little bling, and throw on some Oakleys (works for the Clown) and you've got swoon in your back pocket.

(Great photo, by the way. I'm guessing your kids are very obedient.)

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

Kurt Godel wrote: »

I might have to rely on alpha-male swoon-vibes, god knows they ain't after me for my good looks. Straight out of the water, a face only a mother could love :

[IMG]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-EbaIMjoGHy4/T-YTeU_rdWI/AAAAAAAAAp8/ImPA-YSGcsM/s800/Screen%20shot%202012-06-23%20at%2020.03.32.png" height="603" width="406"[/IMG]

Facebook link to photos of the race

Jesus you look fair grumpy there Paul:) Hard to believe i am saying this but work on your running:pac:

Kurt Godel

Dory Dory wrote: »

(Great photo, by the way. I'm guessing your kids are very obedient.)

They're great kids, more inquisitive than obedient, despite the frown I'm a big softie.;)

Need to share this- I only had glimpse's of the swim action, but had an idea I had a hot swim on the day. Result's are out, I was third out of the water. I'm thrilled, considering I targeted the swim, and consciously didn't attack the guy ahead of me towards the end, to see how I'd fare with even pace.

Bike and run are horrific in comparison, but I'll take that. I'm going to try your advice Dory, lead out in future.

Kurt Godel

Celine Tall Molding wrote: »

Jesus you look fair grumpy there Paul:) Hard to believe i am saying this but work on your running:pac:

Yeah, it feels strange to say it, but the running is (by far) my weakest discipline at the moment.

Here's Little Boy Blue afwaid of the scawy waves, before the swim turned him into a man;)

[IMG]https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fg_FwoXPKjQ/T-YiYUP2IXI/AAAAAAAAAqQ/CoFQLTcKDwk/s800/Screen%20shot%202012-06-23%20at%2021.08.28.png" height="608" width="408"[/IMG]

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

Well look next relay opportunity you on swim, me on bike and the clown to run home the victory:)

Kurt Godel

Celine Tall Molding wrote: »

Well look next relay opportunity you on swim, me on bike and the clown to run home the victory:)

Ha ha, lets do it! We might just have a hope against MCOS!

Dory Dory

Third out of the swim is fantastic - and you were only ~30 seconds from swoon-ville first place. You are going to be a beast with some serious training in the water. A relay with you three lads would be a hoot! I say go for it!!!!

Slogger Jogger

Very well done. Sounds and looks like a great event.

Bike photo shows you pushing your bike - what was that about

Showing good determination on your running / jumping photos.

Krusty_Clown

Ignore Jackyback! Ditch the running. And the bike.. Undiscovered talent, newly awakened! Well done, super result. Looking forward to a first place swim result in the near future. Great to read another race report on your training log too. They were getting thin on the ground for a while.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

http://www.drogheda-independent.ie/news/clogherhead-round-the-head-swim-3141977.html

Good sea swim although bit of a travel for you.

Kurt Godel

Slogger Jogger wrote: »

Bike photo shows you pushing your bike - what was that about

The course was very muddy in places- far quicker at times to push the bike through the mud, rather than spin in zero traction!

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Great to read another race report on your training log too.

Fingers crossed I can add a running race report before the year is done.

Celine Tall Molding wrote: »

http://www.drogheda-independent.ie/news/clogherhead-round-the-head-swim-3141977.html

Good sea swim although bit of a travel for you.

Sweet! I am seriously tempted!

Sun 4k jog

Up in the forest, this was more about getting junior off the couch and active. Lots of complaints, lots of near stops (and shouting- picture THAT face:eek:), but he gave it everything and finished very strongly. Good lad!

Kurt Godel

Mon 10k steady run

I'm consciously trying to bring some of my swim skills over to running. Why can I swim all day, but hurt for running endurance? Why can I almost suck oxygen from the water, but gasp for air when running? Why do I have several gears to call on in the swim, but hurt so bad at running pace? Don't know the answer to any of those questions, but tonights run was fast enough to put a few theories into practice. The pace was closer tempo than steady (going on effort), and I was soon breathing audibly. I tried to slow down the gasps, to a more relaxed cadence, while maintaining the same effort. It seemed to work a bit. I was hurting by halfway, but decided that hurt would be my limiter, and just kept going to the end. There's a fair amount of running fitness thats been lost, but bread and butter stuff like tonights will help.

Dory Dory

Not sure what course you want to go with this new found swimming talent of yours, but you're at a point where you should consider incorporating some fast and lung busting work into your pool swims. You've obviously got the stroke and endurance down, but working on some speed/hypoxic training would compliment your long swims and, like interval training in running, would make you a stronger swimmer. Just my 2 cents....

Kurt Godel

Tue 2500m swim intervals: 1k fast pace, 5x100m fast, 10x50m fast, 500m w/d

I had Coach Dory's words with me today, and so in the interest of mixing things up, I did intervals, at a pretty intense level. The pool clock wasn't working, so I've no idea on time, but honest effort is a good arbiter, and these felt like the same intensity as tough run intervals. The type where you want to bail after three, but lie to yourself to get to 5, then 6, then... you end up tired and happy that all 10 are done.

First 1000m: I had planned a warm-up, but the lane had a lad who was going at a decent clip, so I went off at his pace. He took a break at 500m, I kept going, he started again, so the upshot was I got in 1000m at a pace that was close to racing speed. Decent effort, and I was happy to take a quick break.

5x100m: These were hard, I was feeling the pinch by the third length, and panting hard after each was finished. By my own reckoning, I think swim/run distances have an equal effort ratio of about 1:4, so these felt like tough 400's on the track. The finish straight for each was a matter of hanging on.

10x50m: These weren't quite as much an all-out effort, as I wanted to hold a bit better form than the 100's. Kicking from the hips, reaching and extending the underwater rotation, and imagining Coach DD shouting instructions at the side ("Faster! Let's see that arse in the air! Maintain that stroke!"), and I don't imagine speed suffered in any great way once the swim was high in the water.

500m easy warm-down. Overall, that was probably my hardest effort in the pool yet. I'm going to try one of these hard sessions a week, and combine that with as much OW distance as I can, and it all should pay dividends. I have two more Bray aquathons during the summer, where I can measure progress.

Dory Dory

Excellent work! If you swim in a 25 meter pool, you might want to try some 50s where the up is no breath and the back is easy. I've been doing these recently and it's sort of happy-drug-like once you get the hang of it. I take two deep breaths in and out, then on the third breath in I push off hard from the wall and start kicking like a mad woman....then the stroke starts. The trick is to get your body as high out of the water as possible to create the least amount of resistence, thus making you faster. Kick is hard....stroke is quick and solid (no cheating).....water level should be at your eye brows with eyes and face looking forward.....and your shoulders should be practically out of the water. Not only will the tempo of your freestyle help to lift your body, but you can actively lift your body out of the water too just by paying attention to body position. Once 25 meters of no breaths becomes no trouble, then try to turn at the wall without breathing and see how far down the second 25 you can go.

Kurt Godel

Dory Dory wrote: »

Once 25 meters of no breaths becomes no trouble, then try to turn at the wall without breathing and see how far down the second 25 you can go.

Game on:)

Kurt Godel

Tue pm 5k run

Just a couple from the club out tonight, including one gal who will be doing the sprint in Sneem at the weekend. Just a quick 5k, to get the legs motoring and the engine ticked over. She's a good runner, I really noticed the effort levels.

Kurt Godel

Wed 45k bike

Tinahely-Crossbridge-Clonmore-Ballyconnell-Coolkenno-Kilquiggan-Stranakelly-Tomnafinnogue-home.

(My spellchecker has angry red lines under each of those place names:))

I was motoring for the first hour, then it started to get a little tougher (rolling hills and bad road surface). Average pace was about 27kph for the first 40k, in about an hour and a half. I was bonking at the end, dismounted to catch my breath, and did an easy 5k home, grabbed a beer and lay out in the back garden to recouperate.

griffin100

Kurt Godel wrote: »

Wed 45k bike

Tinahely-Crossbridge-Clonmore-Ballyconnell-Coolkenno-Kilquiggan-Stranakelly-Tomnafinnogue-home.

Jaysus, that's Deliverance country , see any banjo players

Been tempted by these roads before, much climbing involved / crap road surfaces?

Kurt Godel

griffin100 wrote: »

Jaysus, that's Deliverance country , see any banjo players

Been tempted by these roads before, much climbing involved / crap road surfaces?

Ha! Preferred method of transport seems to be ride-on lawn mowers:D

There's not too many hills, just rolling inclines. Road surfaces are excellant in places, broken tarmac in others. Having said that, I'd consider myself unlucky to get a puncture, its not too bad.

Kurt Godel

Sat 5k OW swim

I was beat after my last bike ride, took no water with me, and I think I overdid it. That night I was sweating, and couldn't come down from the "exertion" feeling. So just a couple of easy jogs the last two days.

Today I had many false starts, but eventually got out in early evening to Wicklow Harbour, for about 4k of good old fashioned long swimming. A loop of the harbour, Cue one lady on the pier shouting frantically to me "There's a boat coming! There's a boat coming!" I was across the mouth and 100m further before the boat entered the harbour, but this gave me the opportunity to swim down along the Murrough, and practice a bit of sighting. Seemed to go quite well.

Down as far as the beach, and then turn back for the harbour. I noticed a largish wave which seemed to be following me, and wondered if I had seal company? Back in by the pier, and a bigger loop of the harbour again, down along a place new to me, where the jolly hockey stick set moor their yacht's, past a guy picking periwinkles, past pier fishermen, past kids in new wetsuits, and back to the slip. Felt like a good workout.

I got talking to an Orca-clad guy back at my car, he had spotted a seal following me when I reentered the harbour, so I did indeed have a curious training partner. Talking further, this guy is in Wicklow Tri club, and he invited me to join them for training at the harbour, Monday's at 7pm, sounds like a plan.

Dory Dory

I would pay to swim with a seal! Nice job....and way cool to have an OW swim session once a week.

Kurt Godel

Sun 44k bike

An unexpected visitor this morning, in the form of PN with his shiny new bike and bike gear, "Can Kurt come out to play?". As soon as my gear was thrown on, we were off up and over Hillbrook, flying down the other side (60kph exceeded), along meandering backroads to Gorey. This was a good way to spend a Sunday morning, you don't notice the bike at all with company.

Onto the old N11 from Gorey to Inch, which has little traffic, and a great surface- in contrast to the usual broken roads we bike on. This is a lovely stretch of road, we were motoring for a few k at a pace between 35-40kph, and it didn't seem any effort at all. Sadly, it had to end, we turned onto the pockmarked backroads, and hilly climbs, for home. Really enjoyed this workout, will try and make the Sunday spin a regular in the routine.