Last Sunday at the MOC Awards Night I was awarded the Bronze Award for my performance during the 2009 season. It has been a long season with a some good races. I am very happy with this award after my silver award last year. Triathlon Malta did very well with 2 other bronze awards to Keith and Michelle Wood, and a gold award to Danica Spiteri. Certainly for Maltese triathlon it was a great year, not only for the results achieve but also to the increasing number of athletes turning up for the local races.
Since this award is awarded for performances achieved abroad I have say a special thank you to my friends Bill & Pam, and Venom Tri Club for their support to race in the UK.
Next Event: B'kara St. Joseph 5km road race. (Sunday 13th December)
B'kara St. Joseph Triathlon Section Meeting (Wednesday 16th December)
Dermot
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
MOC Awards
I have been informed that for the second year in a row I was nominated for the MOC Awards night to be held on Sunday 6th December 2009. It is a great way how to end the 2009 season. Last year I was awarded the Silver Award. My nomination came thanks to my 3rd Place in the Marizion Half Ironman Distance race in the UK (West UK championship), my 4th place in the Small Nations Championships and my 2nd Place in the Sicily - Malta Friendship Games. I'm pleased with this nomination and even more happy with the fact that also my brother Keith, Michelle and Danica have been choosen as well. This is a great result for Malta Triathlon!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Build Up
This is the time of the year when every athlete starts his build up for the next season, and its no different for me. I have been building it up gradually, very gradually since the beginning of November. My target this year is Ironman France which is in the end of June. A long way from now, but the training I am doing at the moment will help me build my engine for the big push which will start at the beginning of April.
To keep motivated in the build up its a good idea to have minor targets which will help you gauge your form and do the required adjustments to your schedule depending on the result and feeling. At the moment I am doing some road / cross country races with rather no so good results but the feeling is good so I know that for this time of year I'm on the right track. My first major target is a half marathon at the end of February, so as you can see the first part of the season is dedicated to my running. I was told that if I don't do 1hr 15mins it wasn't worth the effort..... we shall see.
After that I have the National Duathlon Championships which will be a good test for my transition run. I would be a good idea if we had to change the distances of these championships to more official ones like 10km run / 40km bike / 5km run. After that the build up for Ironman France will start with the possibility of taking part in the Malta / Sicily Tournament depending on selection criteria.
I am still unsure whether to do a Half Ironman distance some weeks before the Ironman. In previous years I have done one 4 - 6 weeks before the big day with very good results but looking back I believe I have lost some of my freshness to the result that I have lost my edge in the longer race. Being that the course in Nice is no joke (21km mountain on the bike course is one of the obstacles) I am starting to think that I should keep the racing in the last few weeks as limited as possible to arrive on the start line as fresh as possible.
Will keep you updated on my training progress. Until then train safe.
Dermot
To keep motivated in the build up its a good idea to have minor targets which will help you gauge your form and do the required adjustments to your schedule depending on the result and feeling. At the moment I am doing some road / cross country races with rather no so good results but the feeling is good so I know that for this time of year I'm on the right track. My first major target is a half marathon at the end of February, so as you can see the first part of the season is dedicated to my running. I was told that if I don't do 1hr 15mins it wasn't worth the effort..... we shall see.
After that I have the National Duathlon Championships which will be a good test for my transition run. I would be a good idea if we had to change the distances of these championships to more official ones like 10km run / 40km bike / 5km run. After that the build up for Ironman France will start with the possibility of taking part in the Malta / Sicily Tournament depending on selection criteria.
I am still unsure whether to do a Half Ironman distance some weeks before the Ironman. In previous years I have done one 4 - 6 weeks before the big day with very good results but looking back I believe I have lost some of my freshness to the result that I have lost my edge in the longer race. Being that the course in Nice is no joke (21km mountain on the bike course is one of the obstacles) I am starting to think that I should keep the racing in the last few weeks as limited as possible to arrive on the start line as fresh as possible.
Will keep you updated on my training progress. Until then train safe.
Dermot
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Cross Country Race
Last Saturday I took part in the MAAA Running League new format Cross Country race. I have to admit that I was one of those that complained about this choice of race but it was such a great event and I really enjoyed the run, not the result though.
We had 6 laps round the Marsa track / Golf course area. I started at a good pace but everyone around me seemed to have 3 more gears then me. I tried to stick to a brisk pace and not to lose too much time. I felt strong but speed wise there was much to be desired.
In the end I was pleased with my overall feeling while running and certainly I have a lot more to work on to improve.
Next Race will be the B'kara St. Joseph 5km Running Race.
Dermot
We had 6 laps round the Marsa track / Golf course area. I started at a good pace but everyone around me seemed to have 3 more gears then me. I tried to stick to a brisk pace and not to lose too much time. I felt strong but speed wise there was much to be desired.
In the end I was pleased with my overall feeling while running and certainly I have a lot more to work on to improve.
Next Race will be the B'kara St. Joseph 5km Running Race.
Dermot
Monday, November 2, 2009
It all starts again....
It all started back again this morning with a swimming session at 6am. Back to business I should say. I am sitting down in my office at 7am writing this short blog to keep you updated before I start off with my work......and there's a lot to do I'm afraid.
In the last month, after the national championships I just did running to keep moving. Now I am back to business. I have been planning a lot for next season but I had to change some targets so that I arrive fresh for Ironman France. Its not an easy course but should suit my strenghts. Will be doing the Half Marathon in February. The plan was to do the Full Marathon but I'm not sure I will recover in time to put in the hard training needed to do well in the Ironman.
Certainly my target for this winter is to improve my running and swimming, then after the Half Marathon I will shift my focus on cycling. I will need to do some good hilly workouts if I was to survive that bike course and run a good marathon. On that course I'm not after a fast time, as its out of the question, but I'm after my dream, qualifying for Hawaii.
I keep asking myself why I put myself through this punishment year in, year out. Training for an Ironman is not an easy task, and certainly the time commitment is quite heavy. The answer is probably that when I train for an Ironman I feel at home, and when I race an Ironman its like a journey. No other discipline brings out your real self.
Train safe
Yours in Sport,
Dermot
In the last month, after the national championships I just did running to keep moving. Now I am back to business. I have been planning a lot for next season but I had to change some targets so that I arrive fresh for Ironman France. Its not an easy course but should suit my strenghts. Will be doing the Half Marathon in February. The plan was to do the Full Marathon but I'm not sure I will recover in time to put in the hard training needed to do well in the Ironman.
Certainly my target for this winter is to improve my running and swimming, then after the Half Marathon I will shift my focus on cycling. I will need to do some good hilly workouts if I was to survive that bike course and run a good marathon. On that course I'm not after a fast time, as its out of the question, but I'm after my dream, qualifying for Hawaii.
I keep asking myself why I put myself through this punishment year in, year out. Training for an Ironman is not an easy task, and certainly the time commitment is quite heavy. The answer is probably that when I train for an Ironman I feel at home, and when I race an Ironman its like a journey. No other discipline brings out your real self.
Train safe
Yours in Sport,
Dermot
Monday, October 19, 2009
Recovery for 2010 season
Recovery is a very important part in any training programme. At the end of every season I usually take a short period of recovery which would last between 2 to 3 weeks. This year I decided to take a longer break (4 weeks) but still keep my running going during this period. Then I will include slowing swimming and cycling in the programme. Running tends to be my weakest discipline and I would like to see a solid improvement next year. I haven't yet decided on the my 2010 targets which I shall be putting together soon but one of my main targets is surely the Malta Marathon at the end of February.
Yesterday I took part in the first leg of the MAAA Road Running League. I finished in 18th position with a somewhat slow time of 17mins 25sec. The weather was not great as it was pretty windy but I really enjoyed the competition and the atmosphere.
Soon to follow will be my 2009 Season balance.
Dermot
Yesterday I took part in the first leg of the MAAA Road Running League. I finished in 18th position with a somewhat slow time of 17mins 25sec. The weather was not great as it was pretty windy but I really enjoyed the competition and the atmosphere.
Soon to follow will be my 2009 Season balance.
Dermot
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
October man - 9th National Title
It has been a while now since my last update on my blog. I have been training very hard this year for Ironman Austria in July but I never seemed to find the time to write my race reports due to the heavy work commitments I have with my new job at the MFA Swimming Pool. Its amazing how much work there is to take care of a whole in the group of 12m x 25m!!
Today's report is more about the National Championships which were held a couple of weeks ago. This was my 12th participation at these championships with 8 wins, 2 4th places and a DNF. Certainly I was looking forward to a 9th title but things were not as easy as they might have seemed. Coming up from 2 wins at the B'kara St. Joseph Triathlon Series I was looking set to challenge for this title. My post Ironman recovery was not brillaint and this time it too me much longer to get back to my usual training routine. It was a mixture of things I think, work, the hard effort on the marathon to get a PB (by only 5sec) and also the emotional feeling of anti-climax after such an important target which result was not as I had hoped for.
Yet I managed to get things back together in the last 4 - 6 weeks. My running legs started feeling much better and my cycling was reasonably strong. Swimming seemed to be my achilles this year, with my brother training cosistently all year with the Sliema Swimming Club in the morning and producing very fast times in the UK I wasn't so confident in my abilities, but the championship is the championship and things can go either way on the day.
The day started with a fast start from Mark Zammit whose swimming abilities are far better then mine. I kept pushing the pace to limit the loss with Keith (my brother) on my legs. I came out of the water with a 2mins disadvantage on Mark so I had a long gap to close on the bike section. With a somewhat slow transition I was out just behind Keith. I immediately over took him and started working on keeping a good tempo. The gap was closing and by lap 3 we were head to head with Mark. The race had started!
Mark keep with us for the next two laps. I really pushed myself to open a gap but there was no way I could gain those seconds on Keith. On the last lap I surrendered to the fact that it was going to be a running race. My second transition was much better, I felt very in control and felt that I could do a good run. I tried to test Keith a couple of times but he still held on until 5km into the run when he just left me and opened a gap. At that particular moment I thought that the race was over and I had to settle for 2nd but after the pen-ultimate turn around I felt a second wind. I caught up with Keith and pushed the pace, and I opened a gap. I knew that this was the moment to put my head down and go for it. The rest is history........
I would like to show my gratitude to the people who support me all year round, my parents, my girlfriend Johanna, and my club B'kara St. Joseph. A special big thank-you goes to Bill and Pam for their constant support and help when we race in the UK and much more they have done for me and my brother. It's very hard to find such friends, you have to be lucky!! A big thank-you goes to Venom Tri Club for their participation together with other UK triathletes at the National Triathlon Championships!!
Sponsors: Diadora, Gensan, Starbene, Ergomo, Powercranks, Profile-Design and the MFA Swimming Pool.
Today's report is more about the National Championships which were held a couple of weeks ago. This was my 12th participation at these championships with 8 wins, 2 4th places and a DNF. Certainly I was looking forward to a 9th title but things were not as easy as they might have seemed. Coming up from 2 wins at the B'kara St. Joseph Triathlon Series I was looking set to challenge for this title. My post Ironman recovery was not brillaint and this time it too me much longer to get back to my usual training routine. It was a mixture of things I think, work, the hard effort on the marathon to get a PB (by only 5sec) and also the emotional feeling of anti-climax after such an important target which result was not as I had hoped for.
Yet I managed to get things back together in the last 4 - 6 weeks. My running legs started feeling much better and my cycling was reasonably strong. Swimming seemed to be my achilles this year, with my brother training cosistently all year with the Sliema Swimming Club in the morning and producing very fast times in the UK I wasn't so confident in my abilities, but the championship is the championship and things can go either way on the day.
The day started with a fast start from Mark Zammit whose swimming abilities are far better then mine. I kept pushing the pace to limit the loss with Keith (my brother) on my legs. I came out of the water with a 2mins disadvantage on Mark so I had a long gap to close on the bike section. With a somewhat slow transition I was out just behind Keith. I immediately over took him and started working on keeping a good tempo. The gap was closing and by lap 3 we were head to head with Mark. The race had started!
Mark keep with us for the next two laps. I really pushed myself to open a gap but there was no way I could gain those seconds on Keith. On the last lap I surrendered to the fact that it was going to be a running race. My second transition was much better, I felt very in control and felt that I could do a good run. I tried to test Keith a couple of times but he still held on until 5km into the run when he just left me and opened a gap. At that particular moment I thought that the race was over and I had to settle for 2nd but after the pen-ultimate turn around I felt a second wind. I caught up with Keith and pushed the pace, and I opened a gap. I knew that this was the moment to put my head down and go for it. The rest is history........
I would like to show my gratitude to the people who support me all year round, my parents, my girlfriend Johanna, and my club B'kara St. Joseph. A special big thank-you goes to Bill and Pam for their constant support and help when we race in the UK and much more they have done for me and my brother. It's very hard to find such friends, you have to be lucky!! A big thank-you goes to Venom Tri Club for their participation together with other UK triathletes at the National Triathlon Championships!!
Sponsors: Diadora, Gensan, Starbene, Ergomo, Powercranks, Profile-Design and the MFA Swimming Pool.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Marazion (Hayle) Middle Distance Triathlon - 3rd Overall
Sunday 31st May was the first A-Race for me for the season. The race took place in Hayle, Cornwall in the UK. The distances where a 1.9km swim, 90km bike ride and 21.1km Run. The race started with a tough sea swim in the Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunatley the course was not very well marked, and I finished losing a lot of time trying to find my way around in the middle of nowhere. I was quite disappointed but still felt strong so that was a positive sign for the day. I came out of the sea in around 33mins. 3mins off the pace on what i had planned. The rough sea water and the pool course marking were to blame but it wasn't the time to think about that so I headed on to transition.
A quick transition saw me out around 5th / 6th place. My aim on the bike was to hit a strong pace and not losing groud in the technical parts of the course. The bike course proved a tough one. I drove the bike course with Bill on Saturday evening and I realised immediately that it was going to be pretty tough, and if not careful one risked to blow up big time on the run. After 5km into the bike ride but disk wheel decided to block. That was not a very good sign. I came off the bike, sorted out the problem the best way I could and kept on. At the first turn around on of the bike course at Lands End, I could see that I was lying in around 9th place. At the time I was feeling good, so my strategy was to stick to that pace and see what happends. On the way back the wind was blowing like hell. I tried to keep an aerodynamic position to lose the least time possible. The more miles passed the better I was feeling and on the second lap of the bike course I started coming up the field. The last 20km were pretty hard with the hills and wind, but things were looking good and by the time I hit the second transition I was in 5th Place. I covered the bike ride in around 2hrs 37mins.
I did a quick transition, took my gels and I went out at a steady pace. My target was to keep a 6.30min/mile pace. I was informed that I was lying in 5th place, but a quick pit stop saw me down in 6th place with some time to make up. I tried to keep a constant pace without wasting too much energy. After the first lap of three I was starting to feel really strong, so I thought to myself that if I want a good result it was time to press the paddle down and go for it. My 6.30mile pace proved to be somewhat hard for the type of course surface but it was a very good gauge to control my efforts. By the second lap I was in 4th place. In the last lap I gave it my best and moved into 3rd place with 3km to go.
I finished the race in an official time of 4hrs 40mins, my stopwatch says 4hrs 37mins, don't ask me how they got that time but am still pleased with it. I am very pleased with the result as the field was pretty strong with some UK Age-group long distance representatives.
A big well done goes to my two athletes Andy Lines and William Livingstone who posted in solid strong times which argues well for their Ironman commitments in a few weeks time. They are perparing for Ironman Austria and Ironman Switzerland respectively.
I would like to thank Bill and Pam for their help and care while I was in the UK, without their help I wouldn't have been able to be there racing. Also Venom Tri Club for their support, my sponsors Starbene, Diadora, Valdora, Profile-Design, Ironman Active Wear, Powercranks & the MFA Ta' Qali Swimming Pool. I would like to say thank-you to my parents and Johanna for their constant support.
Results on:
http://www.tri247.com/article_5289_The+weekend+roundup.html?region_id=&category
Next A-Race: Ironman Austria.
Train Smart!
Dermot :)
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Small Nations Championships... new P.B!!
Hi Everyone,
Its been a while since my last post and a lot of things have happened. In the Tour of Malta I had finished in 4th place overall and since then my preparation for Ironman have increased by a lot of hours. Training has been going reasonably well and I am very pleased with it. Now I have the last block of training before taper starts.
We had a fantastic race this morning. Our National Team (men & women) won gold in the Small Nations Championships. I finished 4th overall with a P.B. of 1hr 58mins 38sec. First time under 2hrs in an Olympic Distance and that is a very positive sign especially since last Friday I did 200km cycling as part of my Ironman preparation. It was certainly an unexpected result.
Swim was average, had a slow start and took me a while to get into a good pace. I covered the 1500m in around 21mins which is not that brilliant for me but I wasn't looking at a top result at that point in the race. On the bike I stayed with Tom Carrier (Luxemburg), who took 3rd spot in the end. We formed a group of about 6 cyclists. My brother and team mate Luke formed part of this group. With each lap I was starting to feel very strong. On to the run and my legs felt good. I kept a strong pace and tried to keep as close as possible to Tom Carrier. After 5km I was 18mins, towards the end i realised that a sub 2hr race was on the cards so I gave it all I had. In the end it was 1:58'39..... GREATTTT!!!
I finished in 4th overall and second Maltese. Keith (my brother) was 5th and Luke was 6th. We got the Gold Medal as team. The girls did a great race as well, getting Gold in the Team event, and posting good times. My girlfriend Johanna made it 5th overall and was a few seconds away from a PB... Fantastic solid race after six weeks sick in the beginning of the year.
Well done to all... and well done jojo! :)
Dermot
Its been a while since my last post and a lot of things have happened. In the Tour of Malta I had finished in 4th place overall and since then my preparation for Ironman have increased by a lot of hours. Training has been going reasonably well and I am very pleased with it. Now I have the last block of training before taper starts.
We had a fantastic race this morning. Our National Team (men & women) won gold in the Small Nations Championships. I finished 4th overall with a P.B. of 1hr 58mins 38sec. First time under 2hrs in an Olympic Distance and that is a very positive sign especially since last Friday I did 200km cycling as part of my Ironman preparation. It was certainly an unexpected result.
Swim was average, had a slow start and took me a while to get into a good pace. I covered the 1500m in around 21mins which is not that brilliant for me but I wasn't looking at a top result at that point in the race. On the bike I stayed with Tom Carrier (Luxemburg), who took 3rd spot in the end. We formed a group of about 6 cyclists. My brother and team mate Luke formed part of this group. With each lap I was starting to feel very strong. On to the run and my legs felt good. I kept a strong pace and tried to keep as close as possible to Tom Carrier. After 5km I was 18mins, towards the end i realised that a sub 2hr race was on the cards so I gave it all I had. In the end it was 1:58'39..... GREATTTT!!!
I finished in 4th overall and second Maltese. Keith (my brother) was 5th and Luke was 6th. We got the Gold Medal as team. The girls did a great race as well, getting Gold in the Team event, and posting good times. My girlfriend Johanna made it 5th overall and was a few seconds away from a PB... Fantastic solid race after six weeks sick in the beginning of the year.
Well done to all... and well done jojo! :)
Dermot
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Tour of Malta - 33km Time Trial
Today I started for the 3rd time the Tour of Malta. I am taking part in this Tour for the simple reason to improve and take my cycling to another level. I took a couple of easier days since my coach told me there was not point going into such a hard tour tired. I was really looking forward to this Time Trial to see where exactly my cycling power is. I knew that I could not get a super result since the distance is not the same I am training for. There is a big difference between training for a 180km Time Trial and a 33km Time Trial. The first one is more on aerobic endurance where as the latter is mainly Anaerobic, a system which I'm not really training that much at the moment. Anyhow, my motivation was sky high this morning and when I realised that my legs were not that tired, I thought I should have a go and see what I can produce on the day.
I started with a good 45mins warm up on the turbo trainer. As I am doing a lot of long distance training at the moment it is taking me a while to get moving so I thought it would be better for me to do a deep warm up. The wind today was really really strong, Force 7. I still risked it and put on the Corima Disk wheel and 3-Spoke front wheel. I went out on the first lap and although I wasnt feeling particularly fast, I knew it was going to be a good day. Today it was more a Time Trial for strong cyclists and not for fast ones and I do fall in that category. I started lapping at a good solid pace and realised that apart from a couple of local cyclists I was doing quite well.
I powered my way through the strong winds and posted my fastest Lap in the 4th one. Going into the 5th Lap I aimed to better that time since it was the last one. Unfortunately my back wheel went 'BANG'.... puncture. I was in tears. All that effort went down the drain. I tried to call a couple of people with spare wheels since I had gone past my parents, but they didnt want to help me............'AS I'M NOT PART OF THEIR TEAM' ......... and these were Maltese. So you think during an international Tour, where you are racing against foreign cyclists you would get help from your nationals?!?!?! Well not in this country... I'm sorry. Eventually a kind man of Green's Cycling Club gave me a wheel and I could finish the race safely.
My disappointment today didnt come from not being able to perform at my best and get a good placing (I was fighting it out for 3rd maltese), it is more from the lack of sportsmenship there was on the road. Such is life I'm afraid but it was hard to swallow. I am deeply hurt!!
Tomorrow's stage is an 85km Road Race. Will see how the legs feel and do my best.
Off for a swim now to relax....
And today's Sportsmanship Award goes to ...................................... (not ethical to tell you)
Dermot
I started with a good 45mins warm up on the turbo trainer. As I am doing a lot of long distance training at the moment it is taking me a while to get moving so I thought it would be better for me to do a deep warm up. The wind today was really really strong, Force 7. I still risked it and put on the Corima Disk wheel and 3-Spoke front wheel. I went out on the first lap and although I wasnt feeling particularly fast, I knew it was going to be a good day. Today it was more a Time Trial for strong cyclists and not for fast ones and I do fall in that category. I started lapping at a good solid pace and realised that apart from a couple of local cyclists I was doing quite well.
I powered my way through the strong winds and posted my fastest Lap in the 4th one. Going into the 5th Lap I aimed to better that time since it was the last one. Unfortunately my back wheel went 'BANG'.... puncture. I was in tears. All that effort went down the drain. I tried to call a couple of people with spare wheels since I had gone past my parents, but they didnt want to help me............'AS I'M NOT PART OF THEIR TEAM' ......... and these were Maltese. So you think during an international Tour, where you are racing against foreign cyclists you would get help from your nationals?!?!?! Well not in this country... I'm sorry. Eventually a kind man of Green's Cycling Club gave me a wheel and I could finish the race safely.
My disappointment today didnt come from not being able to perform at my best and get a good placing (I was fighting it out for 3rd maltese), it is more from the lack of sportsmenship there was on the road. Such is life I'm afraid but it was hard to swallow. I am deeply hurt!!
Tomorrow's stage is an 85km Road Race. Will see how the legs feel and do my best.
Off for a swim now to relax....
And today's Sportsmanship Award goes to ...................................... (not ethical to tell you)
Dermot
Monday, March 16, 2009
Two cycling races in the last two weekends
In the last two weekends I was quite busy racing in two local cycling races which are part of the Malta Cycling Federation Programme. The first cycling race was on the Zebbug By-Pass circuit, 22 laps for a total of 100km. The second race was on the St. Paul's by pass Circuit for a total of 80km. The first race was a fast race whereas the second race was very hill.
I have used these races as part of my preparation for Ironman Austria so I didn't taper at all. I am feeling quite tired coming in these race, and deep down I am not very pleased since I cannot race at my 100%. Having said that in both races though I managed to finish with the group so at least I was strong enough to hang in there. The only problem is that I was always dead last in the sprint in both races.
On the Zebbug Circuit I finished the race in 10th overall. Yesterday I finished the race 8th overall. I am pleased with my cycling strenght at the moment, not with my power, but that does not make much difference when you are racing Ironman, the important thing is that my legs are feeling strong and coping with the load of training. One thing I have realised though is that my sprinting ability went down the drain in the last year or so, probably due to all the long distance training I am doing.
After both races I kept on cycling to keep up my weekly milage, and after that I went for a long run. Legs of course are feeling as heavy as lead, but this is expected and on the Marathon they are not going to feel any better.... so this is good simulation training.
Next race is on the 22nd March - National Duathlon Championships
I have used these races as part of my preparation for Ironman Austria so I didn't taper at all. I am feeling quite tired coming in these race, and deep down I am not very pleased since I cannot race at my 100%. Having said that in both races though I managed to finish with the group so at least I was strong enough to hang in there. The only problem is that I was always dead last in the sprint in both races.
On the Zebbug Circuit I finished the race in 10th overall. Yesterday I finished the race 8th overall. I am pleased with my cycling strenght at the moment, not with my power, but that does not make much difference when you are racing Ironman, the important thing is that my legs are feeling strong and coping with the load of training. One thing I have realised though is that my sprinting ability went down the drain in the last year or so, probably due to all the long distance training I am doing.
After both races I kept on cycling to keep up my weekly milage, and after that I went for a long run. Legs of course are feeling as heavy as lead, but this is expected and on the Marathon they are not going to feel any better.... so this is good simulation training.
Next race is on the 22nd March - National Duathlon Championships
Monday, March 2, 2009
Malta Half Marathon - P.B.
First official race of the season, and a good result. Its been a rough approach to this race with ups and downs due to health reasons and work. I had a big target for this race to try and go down to 1.16 but unfortunately a few weeks of sickness and no running made me and my coach opt for a different approach.
I could not afford any taper for this race, so I kept training hard till the end. Some might think its a good excuse, but well, for me its a big releave doing a good time on a hard block of training. I managed a P.B. by almost a full minute which is very encouraging.
Race started fast with the top runners going in front. I started at a conservative pace as I was tired from training and the last thing I needed was to blow up my race in the first few miles. I paced it bang on, 6min / mile or just under. I stayed with my brother Keith most of the race. After the 10th Mile I knew that I was keeping a good pace and that a P.B. was within reach bearing any catastrophic problems in the last mile. I managed to up the pace trying to close the gap I had on the runners in front of me. By the end a was only a few seconds away and happy with my performance. Final Time: 1hr 18mins 36sec.
Well done to the organisers for such a well organised race. Well done to my athletes Keith, Luke, and Gordon for posting very good times in their first Half Marathon. A big well done goes to my friends Pam and Margaret who came over to Malta to do this event and went back with P.B.'s by over 7mins. .... and a big thank-you goes to my girlfriend Johanna for her support and help during this weekend!! :)
Next Race 8th March 100km Cycling Road Race...
Dermot
I could not afford any taper for this race, so I kept training hard till the end. Some might think its a good excuse, but well, for me its a big releave doing a good time on a hard block of training. I managed a P.B. by almost a full minute which is very encouraging.
Race started fast with the top runners going in front. I started at a conservative pace as I was tired from training and the last thing I needed was to blow up my race in the first few miles. I paced it bang on, 6min / mile or just under. I stayed with my brother Keith most of the race. After the 10th Mile I knew that I was keeping a good pace and that a P.B. was within reach bearing any catastrophic problems in the last mile. I managed to up the pace trying to close the gap I had on the runners in front of me. By the end a was only a few seconds away and happy with my performance. Final Time: 1hr 18mins 36sec.
Well done to the organisers for such a well organised race. Well done to my athletes Keith, Luke, and Gordon for posting very good times in their first Half Marathon. A big well done goes to my friends Pam and Margaret who came over to Malta to do this event and went back with P.B.'s by over 7mins. .... and a big thank-you goes to my girlfriend Johanna for her support and help during this weekend!! :)
Next Race 8th March 100km Cycling Road Race...
Dermot
Thursday, January 8, 2009
The meaning of Training....and its results
“Come to the edge.”
“We can't. We're afraid.”
“Come to the edge.”
“We can't. We will fall!”
“Come to the edge.”
And they came.
And he pushed them.
And they flew.
Guillaume Apollinaire, 1880-1918
I was sent this poem by my girlfriend this morning from an article on www.ironman.com I immediately thought about training when you push your athletes or yourself to achieve better results. We are scared at times to push ourselves beyond our comfortable zone. To achieve better results and reach our potential I'm afraid we have to get out of the comfortable zone and take risks. "and they came. and he pushed them. and they flew.'....... The result is success, the result is winning, the result is reaching your potential.
Keep Training Hard........ Season is round the corner.
Dermot
“We can't. We're afraid.”
“Come to the edge.”
“We can't. We will fall!”
“Come to the edge.”
And they came.
And he pushed them.
And they flew.
Guillaume Apollinaire, 1880-1918
I was sent this poem by my girlfriend this morning from an article on www.ironman.com I immediately thought about training when you push your athletes or yourself to achieve better results. We are scared at times to push ourselves beyond our comfortable zone. To achieve better results and reach our potential I'm afraid we have to get out of the comfortable zone and take risks. "and they came. and he pushed them. and they flew.'....... The result is success, the result is winning, the result is reaching your potential.
Keep Training Hard........ Season is round the corner.
Dermot
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
