I've signed up for a triathlon

[Stephenite]

Race day.

Thanks folks for your comments and support. Sorry I didn't respond. I was going through a period of anxiety and depression caused, mostly, by work/job and my approach to it. I'm not very good at talking about that sort of thing so I just brushed things under the carpet and tried to forget about it. The getting fit and setting a goal was my way to get back on top of things again. Well I didn't do that tri I first signed up for. Time constraints, injuries and being in bad shape led to a postponement. And I can't say I'm fully prepared now two years later. I can do the individual distances. It's just a case of putting them together. Easy . A chesty cough and a bit of a cold will ensure room for improvement. On my way to the event.

 

[Tin Pot]

Race day.

Thanks folks for your comments and support. Sorry I didn't respond. I was going through a period of anxiety and depression caused, mostly, by work/job and my approach to it. I'm not very good at talking about that sort of thing so I just brushed things under the carpet and tried to forget about it. The getting fit and setting a goal was my way to get back on top of things again. Well I didn't do that tri I first signed up for. Time constraints, injuries and being in bad shape led to a postponement. And I can't say I'm fully prepared now two years later. I can do the individual distances. It's just a case of putting them together. Easy . A chesty cough and a bit of a cold will ensure room for improvement. On my way to the event.

Good luck, enjoy it. It's a lot of fun splashing about then finding your bike, then you can settle down

 

[Stephenite]

That was fun! To think i've been stressing about this for ages, and wasn't going to do it until a few days ago - I wasn't sure i could swim the distance until the other day when i went alone to the lake and made sure no-one was around before wading in.

But i didn't get to enjoy for quite as long as @Tin Pot on his first tri . 5 minutes under two hours for 750m swim, 23km bike and 5km run. The swim was a nervous warm-up, I enjoyed the bike, and after i'd shaken off the bike legs the run was good too.

A couple of things let me down. I buggered up the recording on my garmin and, twice, the chain came off my bike. And much too much time in transition. All my fault and put-rightable.

Definitely up for more of this . I'd like to do more sprints because they're great fun, and i want to train up for an olympic/standard.

The photo:
- On the home stretch about 600m to the line. My 5 year-old giving the 'pappa power' salute. I actually thought I was running here though it doesn't look like it. :-)

 

[Tin Pot]

Brilliant, well done!

I hope the family enjoyed it too - my kids get something out of it.

Soon you'll have hundred of shuffle photos!

And know you've taken the "mystery" out of it you can start to train harder and push harder in the races. My first sprint in 2013 was 2hr07, late spring this year 1hr17.

What's your winter training plan, what's your new bike going to be, are you consuming the right nutrient balance, will the next event be sprint or Olympic..?

 

[fimm]

Well done!! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

 

[Stephenite]

will the next event be sprint or Olympic..?

It'll be a sprint! And next week. Managed to get a startnumber for Soon Tryathlon - not far from here. 500m swim, 20km bike and 5km run. It's a bit shorter than the last one. I'm going to push it a bit more now I know what to expect. Hopefully, I can get to ride and run the course once, maybe twice, before next Saturday. Aiming for 1hr30 or under. Exciting!

 

[Stephenite]

1:33:00

A bit quicker than the other week. But, i left thinking i want to improve. Lots of fun though. Especially, at the end - a three way dash for the line from 500m out. There was someone on my back for about 2k and, i was also closing on a chap. The lass behind opened up the taps. I could feel her pounding the boardwalk, I started to stretch, i felt her breath on the back of my neck, i held on, the chap (Nils) was woken by our calamitous gallop, he responded but was outmanoeuvered and outgunned. I finished two seconds ahead of Randi, who was a second ahead of Nils. We had a nice chat after the line.

I seem to be quicker, relative to other competitors, towards the end of a sprint than the beginning. Maybe I ought to go longer...?

A lot of fun to be had with sprint distance yet though. I very much enjoy the the bike leg and must get out on the bike more. I'm going to have to join a club i reckon. The swim today was in the sea - and a very brown sea it was. Due to the heavy rain we've had this week. It was a little choppy, and i did get a gobful at one point. Swimming is the area that needs most work. I am, probably, ok almost probably, the worst swimmer that has ever taken to a triathlon. I can cover 100 metres very quickly but, then i'm buggered and have to take breaks frequently. This leads to an intermittent pace that frustrates the others. Again, i'm going to have to join a club, i reckon. Running after cycling is a very hard thing. At least, for the first two or three km. Doing brick sessions will improve the times but, it is always going to be hard.

A very enjoyable day.

 

[Tin Pot]

1:33:00

A bit quicker than the other week. But, i left thinking i want to improve. Lots of fun though. Especially, at the end - a three way dash for the line from 500m out. There was someone on my back for about 2k and, i was also closing on a chap. The lass behind opened up the taps. I could feel her pounding the boardwalk, I started to stretch, i felt her breath on the back of my neck, i held on, the chap (Nils) was woken by our calamitous gallop, he responded but was outmanoeuvered and outgunned. I finished two seconds ahead of Randi, who was a second ahead of Nils. We had a nice chat after the line.

I seem to be quicker, relative to other competitors, towards the end of a sprint than the beginning. Maybe I ought to go longer...?

A lot of fun to be had with sprint distance yet though. I very much enjoy the the bike leg and must get out on the bike more. I'm going to have to join a club i reckon. The swim today was in the sea - and a very brown sea it was. Due to the heavy rain we've had this week. It was a little choppy, and i did get a gobful at one point. Swimming is the area that needs most work. I am, probably, ok almost probably, the worst swimmer that has ever taken to a triathlon. I can cover 100 metres very quickly but, then i'm buggered and have to take breaks frequently. This leads to an intermittent pace that frustrates the others. Again, i'm going to have to join a club, i reckon. Running after cycling is a very hard thing. At least, for the first two or three km. Doing brick sessions will improve the times but, it is always going to be hard.

A very enjoyable day.

Nice one - what are your splits?

The vast majority of triathletes are poor swimmers, there's nothing unusual in that.

 

[Stephenite]

The splits from the first tri:

750m swim - 21:33
T1 - 6:21
24km bike - 55:01
T2 - 2:36
5km run - 30:00

The splits from the second tri:

500m swim - 13:31
T1 - 3:06
20km bike - 45:23
T2 - 1:17
5km run - 29:41

I've left myself room for improvement

 

[Ian A]

Too late for good luck so have a well done instead !

 

[steve292]

Well done!!!
I bought the swimsmooth book- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Swim-Smoot...F8&qid=1473190659&sr=1-1&keywords=swim+smooth
Its fantastic for understanding the mechanics of swimming and how to improve, I have use it a lot as reference.

 

[Stephenite]

Well done!!!
I bought the swimsmooth book- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Swim-Smoot...F8&qid=1473190659&sr=1-1&keywords=swim+smooth
Its fantastic for understanding the mechanics of swimming and how to improve, I have use it a lot as reference.

Thanks for the tip.

I'm going to start swimming training the middle of October. I can't really afford a one-to-one trainer, so that book and utube videos will be very useful. Back at the start of the year I was swimming regularly but struggled, esp. with head under water and breathing rhythm. There's a bunch of guys that go to the local pool to train. They said I could join them but a mix of shyness, and the fact they are so much better than me and I didn't want to be a 'damp squib' put me off. I ought to try and hook up with them really. At the moment I've just started a six week 10k run plan. I'd like to run 10k under an hour and as close to 50 min as I can. Then I could beat my physio in the Nøklevann Rundt next month!