Long-time no speak!
The season is well and truly in full swing.
After Rother Valley, having qualified for the Great Britain
age group team for the forthcoming ITU World Triathlon Championships in
Edmonton, the next task was to turn my focus back to training; push aside
Worlds; and continue to work hard in preparation for my next few races.
I had left July free from races with the intention of racing
once or twice locally. I had a few reasons for this. One it’s generally cheaper
to race locally. Minimal travel with no overnight stay and Two, with a busy
May/June, it allowed me to recover slightly and prepare for a hectic August.
Ponteland Triathlon
The first race I set my sights on was Ponteland Triathlon. A
small town, approximately 8 miles North of Newcastle. It would be a test to see
how training was going, as well as more race and transition practice, and
experience.
What a miserable day. I had woken early as transition was to
be closed at 8am. This meant I had to get there, set up for my race and wait
for my wave. Local races are good because they tend to bring new competitors to
the sport, with a more light-hearted feel. With the ability to be taken as
seriously as you want too. Whether it is
your first race, with the target just to finish. Or to it being a fierce race
and wanting to win. Either is great and adds to make an enthralling race.
I had been training all the way up until the race, and with
a busy August, had decided against easing off for the few days before the race
(called a taper to all the Triathlon folk). The decision was to train right
through and treat the race as practice/heavy training session. Even though this
was the case, I still had intentions of doing well and in the back of my mind
had hoped I could place well.
There was a lot of waiting. Unlike bigger Triathlon’s, the
transition was closed. Most national races use a live system, allowing racking
of bikes up to a time approximately 20 minutes before the individuals start.
I’d given an approximate time for my swim (400m) which was close to the fastest
I had done before. I wanted to try and approach each part of the race as though
they were individual. I had been seeded in the second to last wave.
Swim
I was called to the start and placed in a lane. Honestly, I
didn’t know how this one would go. As the race started, I settled in to a
rhythm. Unlike most sprint races consisting of a 750m open water swim, this was
only a 400m pool swim. Before I knew it I had completed the swim and was out
into the damp North East weather.
Bike
As I got on to the bike leg the heaven’s opened further and
the rain became heavier. The rolling bike course and wet conditions meant white
lines were the enemy and focus was of utmost importance. It became apparent
that I had exited the swim in first place or close to it. There was very little
traffic in front and with the wave beforehand starting just two minutes in
front, I had competitors to chase down. I rode as strong as possible, and was
over taken by two people on TT bikes during the latter half of the course.
Luckily I kept them in sight, using the hills and road bike to my advantage and
working hard up them.
Run
I knew the run would be a testing course, with a big section
being completed on a cross country style track. With the hard training coming
into the race, topped off with a tough bike split, I knew if I could run well I
would be happy. Running out of transition, I overtook the two who had passed me
on the bike. My pre-race plan, to this point, had gone fairly well. I tried to
maintain the effort and began catching more from the earlier waves. Coming back
into the finishing field, I had a short loop to complete before the race was
done. I crossed the line feeling happy. The race was great; well organised;
fantastic atmosphere and all held under a great charity. I loved it.
I checked my time, knowing I had crossed the line in the top
two or three from my wave. In fact I had crossed in first, and waited to see if
my time could be beaten by the following wave.
As the results were being confirmed, I had hoped I’d done
enough. Thankfully I had. Finishing 1st in 56:50.
 |
| Ponteland Triathlon 2014 - 1st Place Senior |
I was delighted. Huge congratulations to the Organisers,
Competitors and the Charity benefitting; the Simon Bates Foundation. What a
great cause to be racing in aid off. What a fantastic day.
 |
| Ponteland Triathlon 2014 - Overall Winner |
North East 5km Championships
The second race I set my sights on was the North East 5km
Championships. Coming off the back of a good race at Ponteland just three days
before, I didn’t have much chance to recover fully and was aiming to race as
best I could.
It was a fantastic evening, very warm. Unfortunately the
wind had decided to increase slightly. Even so, it was reasonable conditions
with a good field. I didn’t know where to place myself at the start, this was
partly due to fatigue from the weekend and furthermore because I didn’t know
how I would fare within the field.
Long story short, I put myself near the front. On the second
row of a really tight path to be precise. One thing that stood out was no chip
timing. Strange for a local championship event. Nonetheless, under starters
orders; and away.
The course consisted of a short lap followed by partly
retracing steps and onto a final bigger loop. I had gone out comfortably but
could feel the stiffness in my legs from the previous race. I sat in, trying
not to fade. After completing the smaller loop, with groups established, I
managed to stick with another runner and slowly move up through some small
groups.
As the final 1km approached I increased my pace. Picked off
a few more people and maintained this increase until the end. Watch stopped.
Backtrack 5km. I had a current PB of 16:28. With a target to
go sub 16:00 before the year is out. My plan however doesn’t involve many 5km
races. If you had told me after racing the Ponteland Triathlon and running this
race I would have hit sub 16:15 I would have been elated.
Fast forward 5km. I looked at my watch. 15:59:87. I was over
the moon to say the least. Although I knew, without the accuracy of electronic
timing, it would probably to rounded up. The next day came; results issued; and
to no surprise it had been. 16:01! I was still over the moon, a great jump down
from my previous best. 27 seconds in all. Furthermore, I had finished 13th
in the championships. Fantastic.
Full results here
 |
| North East 5km Championships 2014 - 13th Place (My time was eventually rounded up to 16:01) |
Once again, thank you for the support. I appreciate this was
a long one.
I hope you enjoyed it. If you like it, please do share it
with someone you might think will like it.
Thank you,
Until next time.
Sam
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