Terrapin Sprint Triathlon
The second triathlon of the season soon came around after a couple of weeks from the previous race and I saw this as an opportunity to improve at the sprint distance.
The training that Dermot gave me has been going well, kept me in good shape and motivated to complete each set. It seems that time flies and the sessions are never monotonous and I find myself pushing hard in training and enjoying it.
In particular I wanted to nail the swim and execute good transitions, as I felt in the last race I could have done better.
Of course I also wanted to have a good bike time, on a well known course to me; and last but not list I wanted to see if my improving run has got any better.
The week leading in to the race was very stressful for me and it left me a bit flat and not so relaxed, but nothing is better than a race to blow the cobwebs away and put a smile on your face, so I was still keen to compete.
The race venue, Bosworth Water Trust Park, is very familiar to me having competed in two duathlons and a few aquathlons and generally I see it as my home training ground. The race organization was not one of the best, in my humble opinion, and the goody bag consisted of 1 banana. Good job I got there early as it took 3 visits to registrations to get all sorted, not a good sign, especially on the first trip where I almost have had to wrestle the volunteer for a race swim cap!
The race started a few minutes before the “official time”, and I did not ear any warning, just the hoot but I soon got stuck in it.
My ambition of a sub 13’ swim was crush by a mild panic attack in the first 200 mt. I was gutted as I was well positioned in a small group of faster swimmers and comfortably pulling ahead when the engine room alarm went off and I could hardly breathe. I was sucking air in but not able to blow it out. I had to have a talk to myself and calm down, a few breast strokes and then start again. I think I lost about one minute and eventually I could see the group I missed exiting the water some 100 mt ahead.
It is a shame not to have had the good swim I wanted, and the benefit of drafting off some good swimmers, but no time to dwell on it.
Out of the water and to a quick transition, this time with no crowd entertaining somersaults to get the wetsuit off.
For some reason the bike course starts on a grass field, parallel to a very nice tarmac road, with the odd digged out shallow trench to dodge. Then you are on the park entrance road and soon after on the bike course proper. On the first section of the bike, where last time I felt efficient I thought I was suffering a bit, but unlike my last race here I finished strong on the last up hill before the village of Market Bosworth and felt really confident.
My target was to beat the time from the duathlon and, on equal distance I was about one and half minute faster, I would say on similar weather conditions.
This does not count for the second foray in to off roading across the back of the park camp site... on finishing the bike route competitors were directed, more or less clearly, at the back of the park amongst the tents and caravans for some more gravel beds and grass adventures.
I am very pleased with the bike section result and hope that Dermot’s plan will keep helping me get faster on the bike. I have really enjoyed the sessions that he has prescribed both on the road and on the trubo as I have seen that the hard work has been paying off. It was very satisfying to do some overtaking, both of ladies in my wave and in the previous wave, and only being overtaken on this section from the male winner that started 10 minutes behind. This is a very new experience for me!
T2 also was a happy place that only took 37 seconds to visit. I am pleased that I kept concentrated and made an effort not to waist time here.
The run had the added bonus of being also a “mystery tour”, possibly to compensate for the low value of the goody bags; luckily as I am familiar with the venue it did not affect me, but I did see some lost souls looking around for signage or tape! I started the run feeling good and able to set off at pace. Had to ask for directions but got on the correct course. The route was 2 loops of “there and back” around the outskirts of the park, partially on cinder gravel and partially on very well manicured springy grass. Some more instruction sought by a very ambiguous marshal at the second turn round point (is not a good thing to indicate opposite direction with both hands when asked for the way, right?) and I was back on track.
The second lap I felt even more at ease and able to stretch out my stride on the grass sections. I think with the amount of strides that Dermot has included in my training this year we are getting somewhere! Soon I was back from the second lap and in search of the finish line... that was missing.... you just went over a mat and had to figure out that it was the finish. A bit of an anticlimax really.
The run, yet again, is the fastest paced run I have done in a triathlon! Hurray! The course was about 4.5 km so a time of 21.35 is my new run PB! This is not world record time, but to put it in prospective, after 18 months of coaching I can now run 4 minute faster on a 5 Km course, and I was already training regularly and competing before.
Also I have to thank Dermot for his patience and ability to mould the training plan around a dodgy knee lately and still be able to me faster and keep me motivated to train hard!
Simona
The second triathlon of the season soon came around after a couple of weeks from the previous race and I saw this as an opportunity to improve at the sprint distance.
The training that Dermot gave me has been going well, kept me in good shape and motivated to complete each set. It seems that time flies and the sessions are never monotonous and I find myself pushing hard in training and enjoying it.
In particular I wanted to nail the swim and execute good transitions, as I felt in the last race I could have done better.
Of course I also wanted to have a good bike time, on a well known course to me; and last but not list I wanted to see if my improving run has got any better.
The week leading in to the race was very stressful for me and it left me a bit flat and not so relaxed, but nothing is better than a race to blow the cobwebs away and put a smile on your face, so I was still keen to compete.
The race venue, Bosworth Water Trust Park, is very familiar to me having competed in two duathlons and a few aquathlons and generally I see it as my home training ground. The race organization was not one of the best, in my humble opinion, and the goody bag consisted of 1 banana. Good job I got there early as it took 3 visits to registrations to get all sorted, not a good sign, especially on the first trip where I almost have had to wrestle the volunteer for a race swim cap!
The race started a few minutes before the “official time”, and I did not ear any warning, just the hoot but I soon got stuck in it.
My ambition of a sub 13’ swim was crush by a mild panic attack in the first 200 mt. I was gutted as I was well positioned in a small group of faster swimmers and comfortably pulling ahead when the engine room alarm went off and I could hardly breathe. I was sucking air in but not able to blow it out. I had to have a talk to myself and calm down, a few breast strokes and then start again. I think I lost about one minute and eventually I could see the group I missed exiting the water some 100 mt ahead.
It is a shame not to have had the good swim I wanted, and the benefit of drafting off some good swimmers, but no time to dwell on it.
Out of the water and to a quick transition, this time with no crowd entertaining somersaults to get the wetsuit off.
For some reason the bike course starts on a grass field, parallel to a very nice tarmac road, with the odd digged out shallow trench to dodge. Then you are on the park entrance road and soon after on the bike course proper. On the first section of the bike, where last time I felt efficient I thought I was suffering a bit, but unlike my last race here I finished strong on the last up hill before the village of Market Bosworth and felt really confident.
My target was to beat the time from the duathlon and, on equal distance I was about one and half minute faster, I would say on similar weather conditions.
This does not count for the second foray in to off roading across the back of the park camp site... on finishing the bike route competitors were directed, more or less clearly, at the back of the park amongst the tents and caravans for some more gravel beds and grass adventures.
I am very pleased with the bike section result and hope that Dermot’s plan will keep helping me get faster on the bike. I have really enjoyed the sessions that he has prescribed both on the road and on the trubo as I have seen that the hard work has been paying off. It was very satisfying to do some overtaking, both of ladies in my wave and in the previous wave, and only being overtaken on this section from the male winner that started 10 minutes behind. This is a very new experience for me!
T2 also was a happy place that only took 37 seconds to visit. I am pleased that I kept concentrated and made an effort not to waist time here.
The run had the added bonus of being also a “mystery tour”, possibly to compensate for the low value of the goody bags; luckily as I am familiar with the venue it did not affect me, but I did see some lost souls looking around for signage or tape! I started the run feeling good and able to set off at pace. Had to ask for directions but got on the correct course. The route was 2 loops of “there and back” around the outskirts of the park, partially on cinder gravel and partially on very well manicured springy grass. Some more instruction sought by a very ambiguous marshal at the second turn round point (is not a good thing to indicate opposite direction with both hands when asked for the way, right?) and I was back on track.
The second lap I felt even more at ease and able to stretch out my stride on the grass sections. I think with the amount of strides that Dermot has included in my training this year we are getting somewhere! Soon I was back from the second lap and in search of the finish line... that was missing.... you just went over a mat and had to figure out that it was the finish. A bit of an anticlimax really.
The run, yet again, is the fastest paced run I have done in a triathlon! Hurray! The course was about 4.5 km so a time of 21.35 is my new run PB! This is not world record time, but to put it in prospective, after 18 months of coaching I can now run 4 minute faster on a 5 Km course, and I was already training regularly and competing before.
Also I have to thank Dermot for his patience and ability to mould the training plan around a dodgy knee lately and still be able to me faster and keep me motivated to train hard!
Simona
