The Triathlon thread - Ironman, 70.3, Olympic, Sprint
Discussion
sammyboy said:
Running is overated.
Good luck, will catch up after and see how we both got on. what are your goals for the race?
Originally I had aimed to beat last year's time and go sub 13 hours, but thanks to the injury and lack of running I'll just be happy to finish. (Should still be under 14) I may do something different, like some live vids for the Tenby Observer's Facebook page as I go around. Or something. Good luck, will catch up after and see how we both got on. what are your goals for the race?
Wife did a 70.3 today Bamburgh, Northumberland. Sea swim and fairly awful run route. She's making me look bad again as she came 3rd female in 5hrs 49 mins.
She was second from about 1/3 of the way round the bike route until about 1 mile to go on the run. I was so frustrated watching the second place female gradually catching her each lap. She did amazing though!
She was second from about 1/3 of the way round the bike route until about 1 mile to go on the run. I was so frustrated watching the second place female gradually catching her each lap. She did amazing though!
Anybody following the Swiss Ultra deca ? https://www.swissultra.ch/english-1/competitions/d...
This one's a continuous 10 x long-distance event ... so 38km swim, then 1800km bike, then 422km run. Started on Wednesday (16th) and they have until the end of August to finish. The lead fella right now is a Brit, Dave Clamp, he's done 137 run laps (with 203 to go). Some poor buggers are still on the bike, although getting towards the end of that. It's a monstrous event
This one's a continuous 10 x long-distance event ... so 38km swim, then 1800km bike, then 422km run. Started on Wednesday (16th) and they have until the end of August to finish. The lead fella right now is a Brit, Dave Clamp, he's done 137 run laps (with 203 to go). Some poor buggers are still on the bike, although getting towards the end of that. It's a monstrous event
Hi all, I used to hang around on here a while back under a different username but flounced. Back now.
I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
joshleb said:
Been chatting to a mate this weekend, and decided we both want to do out first tri's/ sprint tri's.
Anyone got any good resources for training plans, and event info websites.
Swimming is the main bit that concerns me, it always knackers me!
If you're lucky there may be a go tri near you before the end of the season. Not sure you're level of fitness but they are usually around 200m swim, 6k cycle and 2k run. Great way to get the feel for the event but if not they usually start again in April. Anyone got any good resources for training plans, and event info websites.
Swimming is the main bit that concerns me, it always knackers me!
joshleb said:
Been chatting to a mate this weekend, and decided we both want to do out first tri's/ sprint tri's.
Anyone got any good resources for training plans, and event info websites.
Swimming is the main bit that concerns me, it always knackers me!
BTF website lists all events and you can filter by various requirements. Also look at race check for reviews of races.Anyone got any good resources for training plans, and event info websites.
Swimming is the main bit that concerns me, it always knackers me!
There are a few training plans here:
http://www.220triathlon.com/training/training-plan...
I am not a massive fan of these generic tri plans but for a first tri they will be fine and will give you some structure.
Swimming at your level is all about technique. There are plenty of resources you can look at, SwimSmooth website is a good place to start. Best thing to do though is get your stroke analysed by a coach and some corrective drills. This doesn't have to be a massive investment, my coach does single 1 hour sessions for £45. He also does a remote video analysis. If you are going to do an open water swim you will need to think about a wetsuit. Plenty of places rent them out. Definitely recommend getting some training sessions done in OW first, just so you get used swimming in a wetsuit and the cold water.
Good luck, and be prepared that if you enjoy it and want to do more, eventually you will have to kiss good bye to any spare time, money and energy you have :-)
How did you get on at Wales Sammy?
Absolutely flippin' brutal race.
The swim was fine, pretty much, a slight swell on the second lap but fairly reasonable conditions given the wind. (Wind direction has a lot to do with that, North beach in Tenby is still quite sheltered if it's a westerly.)
The bike was bonkers tough. 25-30mph winds, gusting up to 40, heavy rain, soaked roads, and some spiteful piece of waste oiled the roads. Hope they get caught (and he did it twice, the second time after they'd cleaned the roads so perhaps he may be tracked down?... Unlikely I know) as I believe there were a few injured. I suffered a bit on the bike, and planned to give up when I got back to transition. The cough/cold I picked up August Bank holiday was making it's presence felt, I was suffering coughing fits and with no running this year just didn't think I had it in the legs to do the run.
However, although 45 mins slower than last year my swim and bike times were good enough (given the conditions!) and I was able to take my time on the run after dragging myself out, finishing in about 14 and a half hours with a 5:50 marathon time.
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Absolutely flippin' brutal race.
The swim was fine, pretty much, a slight swell on the second lap but fairly reasonable conditions given the wind. (Wind direction has a lot to do with that, North beach in Tenby is still quite sheltered if it's a westerly.)
The bike was bonkers tough. 25-30mph winds, gusting up to 40, heavy rain, soaked roads, and some spiteful piece of waste oiled the roads. Hope they get caught (and he did it twice, the second time after they'd cleaned the roads so perhaps he may be tracked down?... Unlikely I know) as I believe there were a few injured. I suffered a bit on the bike, and planned to give up when I got back to transition. The cough/cold I picked up August Bank holiday was making it's presence felt, I was suffering coughing fits and with no running this year just didn't think I had it in the legs to do the run.
However, although 45 mins slower than last year my swim and bike times were good enough (given the conditions!) and I was able to take my time on the run after dragging myself out, finishing in about 14 and a half hours with a 5:50 marathon time.
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Edited by Dimski on Monday 11th September 13:36
Dimski said:
some spiteful piece of waste oiled the roads. Hope they get caught (and he did it twice, the second time after they'd cleaned the roads so perhaps he may be tracked down?... Unlikely I know) as I believe there were a few injured.
Word on the street (well, facebook) is that someone's been arrested. Oil put on road in 3 different places, at least the organiser's modified the route to minimise the accidents.. Phil Graves fell off at about 90k on one of the patches and still managed to finish second. Edited by bigandclever on Monday 11th September 14:19
Scabutz said:
Hi all, I used to hang around on here a while back under a different username but flounced. Back now.
I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
I'm hovering over the Lanz button at the moment (amongst others!) - I've had a really troublesome shoulder injury for the last 12 months which has cycled between being a moderate irritation to sometimes being incapacitatingly painful. Finally getting it sorted and I've been told it should be OK to race on from christmas time onwards. Happy days if that's the case!!!I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
Competed at Lanzarote before and in every sense it is just the most amazing race. Haven't heard about any course change, but then again I haven't tortured myself by looking into before now!!
Dimski said:
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Kudos fella 
Dimski said:
How did you get on at Wales Sammy?
Absolutely flippin' brutal race.
The swim was fine, pretty much, a slight swell on the second lap but fairly reasonable conditions given the wind. (Wind direction has a lot to do with that, North beach in Tenby is still quite sheltered if it's a westerly.)
The bike was bonkers tough. 25-30mph winds, gusting up to 40, heavy rain, soaked roads, and some spiteful piece of waste oiled the roads. Hope they get caught (and he did it twice, the second time after they'd cleaned the roads so perhaps he may be tracked down?... Unlikely I know) as I believe there were a few injured. I suffered a bit on the bike, and planned to give up when I got back to transition. The cough/cold I picked up August Bank holiday was making it's presence felt, I was suffering coughing fits and with no running this year just didn't think I had it in the legs to do the run.
However, although 45 mins slower than last year my swim and bike times were good enough (given the conditions!) and I was able to take my time on the run after dragging myself out, finishing in about 14 and a half hours with a 5:50 marathon time.
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Was just coming on here to ask how you got in fella, How did the wind affect the drag out to freshwater west and then the return with the tailwind? Much of an affect on your average speed? Absolutely flippin' brutal race.
The swim was fine, pretty much, a slight swell on the second lap but fairly reasonable conditions given the wind. (Wind direction has a lot to do with that, North beach in Tenby is still quite sheltered if it's a westerly.)
The bike was bonkers tough. 25-30mph winds, gusting up to 40, heavy rain, soaked roads, and some spiteful piece of waste oiled the roads. Hope they get caught (and he did it twice, the second time after they'd cleaned the roads so perhaps he may be tracked down?... Unlikely I know) as I believe there were a few injured. I suffered a bit on the bike, and planned to give up when I got back to transition. The cough/cold I picked up August Bank holiday was making it's presence felt, I was suffering coughing fits and with no running this year just didn't think I had it in the legs to do the run.
However, although 45 mins slower than last year my swim and bike times were good enough (given the conditions!) and I was able to take my time on the run after dragging myself out, finishing in about 14 and a half hours with a 5:50 marathon time.
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Edited by Dimski on Monday 11th September 13:36
Glad I didn't sign up,for this year now as I think it'd have affected me beating last years time. Definitely need some motivation though so toying with the idea of signing up early and perhaps doing a warm weather one close to Wales too.
dangerousB said:
Scabutz said:
Hi all, I used to hang around on here a while back under a different username but flounced. Back now.
I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
I'm hovering over the Lanz button at the moment (amongst others!) - I've had a really troublesome shoulder injury for the last 12 months which has cycled between being a moderate irritation to sometimes being incapacitatingly painful. Finally getting it sorted and I've been told it should be OK to race on from christmas time onwards. Happy days if that's the case!!!I am big in to triathlon, obsessed you might say. Strongly thinking about IM Lanza next year. Hearing some rumors about a bike course change. The 70.3 has had to change its course. It appears there is an old Spanish law which is now being enforced which states that any cycle event has to have roads closed to traffic in both directions.
Anyone else doing Lanza or heard about this?
Competed at Lanzarote before and in every sense it is just the most amazing race. Haven't heard about any course change, but then again I haven't tortured myself by looking into before now!!
Dimski said:
Honestly this year was just about completion. Perhaps the toughest Ironman branded course, in perhaps the worst conditions experienced, I managed to complete my 3rd IM wales! Happy, and not too sore today.
Kudos fella I also get the impression that Lanza has a reputation for being a hard one too and I have the attitude that if I'm going to do another 1 it may as well be one of the hardest.
briangriffin said:
When is ironman Lanza? I'm considering a hot one too but want to line one up close to Wales too so I'm fit for both. Could probably do with one that's not so hot that it's non wetsuit though. Lol
I also get the impression that Lanza has a reputation for being a hard one too and I have the attitude that if I'm going to do another 1 it may as well be one of the hardest.
It's May 26th next year if I remember correctly and if the island is doing it's usual thing it is very, very tough - 38°C with 25mph headwinds on the bike when I raced there. Epic bike course though and fabulous support and atmosphere. I also get the impression that Lanza has a reputation for being a hard one too and I have the attitude that if I'm going to do another 1 it may as well be one of the hardest.
Entering soon is one sure way of ensuring that you won't skimp on winter training - it's definitely not a race you'll be able to blag
Hmmmm.... tempting. Might help my IMW time I guess, I reckon on a good day I can knock the best part of an hour off my bike time (7.26) and maybe go sub 4hrs on the marathon (4.20 last year). Can't see making any great gains on the swim as it's my worst discipline.
Any of you guys who are bigger experts than me shed some light on how I'd maintain training peaks if I did Lanza in May and then aimed for IMW in September? Relax the long rides and runs for a month or 2?
Any of you guys who are bigger experts than me shed some light on how I'd maintain training peaks if I did Lanza in May and then aimed for IMW in September? Relax the long rides and runs for a month or 2?
briangriffin said:
Was just coming on here to ask how you got in fella, How did the wind affect the drag out to freshwater west and then the return with the tailwind? Much of an affect on your average speed?
Glad I didn't sign up,for this year now as I think it'd have affected me beating last years time. Definitely need some motivation though so toying with the idea of signing up early and perhaps doing a warm weather one close to Wales too.
The thing is, if there is a headwind on the Wales course it's a westerly you want, as although the leg all the way to Angle is a killer you get a tailwind back to Pembroke for the exposed bit, then funnelling winds often giving a bit of a push from Carew to Narberth, and the final part is quite well sheltered by hedgerows.Glad I didn't sign up,for this year now as I think it'd have affected me beating last years time. Definitely need some motivation though so toying with the idea of signing up early and perhaps doing a warm weather one close to Wales too.
However, that wind was too much. Ironman sent an email on Saturday recommending that people avoid disc or deep dish wheels due to the conditions, and the blowing at hedgerow gaps was pronounced.
It was difficult to maintain good pace, Wales has plenty of quite technical descents where in the dry... Happy days, but in the wet require care. It meant quite a bit of braking before the climbs, so less chance to carry speed and momentum into them.
St Brides was a crazy as ever, they put barriers in last year due to the crowds and the same again this time but it was still incredible, and the crowds formed a corridor at the end of the barriers just around the corner, and you still felt like a rider on the Tour de France going through with people cheering and patting you on the back. Still incredible support given the conditions, if a little quieter than normal in places like Pembroke. Understandable, really.
I was 7hrs 10 for the bike leg this year compared to 6:35 last year, however I was pretty much on a par with last year up to the end of the first lap, it was the second where I felt rough and slowed down, I think I'd have only been 15 mins or so slower had I not been feeling a bit quitty.
A bit of a lesson for me about racing with a cough/cold, a reminder to plan nutrition a little more carefully, and that attempting a Marathon with only 5 miles running this year was always going to involve pain!
briangriffin said:
When is ironman Lanza? I'm considering a hot one too but want to line one up close to Wales too so I'm fit for both. Could probably do with one that's not so hot that it's non wetsuit though. Lol
I also get the impression that Lanza has a reputation for being a hard one too and I have the attitude that if I'm going to do another 1 it may as well be one of the hardest.
Last year I did three hard long distance races, which for only my second year doing long distance quite an attempt. I had one early July one at the end and then Wales in September.I also get the impression that Lanza has a reputation for being a hard one too and I have the attitude that if I'm going to do another 1 it may as well be one of the hardest.
What I found is that it became all about the recovery. Particularly the two in July, I did the first (Isoman), it took a week to get the legs feeling normal again, then only a week to train before a 2 week taper for the next one (Alpe D'Huez)... Then a week... But which point I only had 2/3 weeks left before Ironman Wales taper.
Basically it was two and a half months where I managed to stay injury free and complete them all, but my pace did not improve. They say you lose a tiny bit of fitness during the taper period but it is made up for by being well rested, so perhaps the endurance helped make up for any fitness lost.
I'll still do it again, I'm eyeing up Alpe D'Huez again for next year. If I can drop about 2 stone!
I'm local too mate so know all about Wales course as do all my practice rides on it, can Defo spot the non-locals on the descents as there's loads not knowing where to carry the speed from the downhill into a big climb, Narberth being a prime exacmple.
Lanza the plan would be to have a holiday afterwards so a week or 2 recovering following that and then back into middle distance runs and I'm guessing 2-3 hour bikes on the training plan.
Losing weight will make a big difference too I think mate, reckon I can get 2 stone off to be perfect for race day. Il be around 10% body fat again for that
Lanza the plan would be to have a holiday afterwards so a week or 2 recovering following that and then back into middle distance runs and I'm guessing 2-3 hour bikes on the training plan.
Losing weight will make a big difference too I think mate, reckon I can get 2 stone off to be perfect for race day. Il be around 10% body fat again for that
briangriffin said:
I'm local too mate so know all about Wales course as do all my practice rides on it, can Defo spot the non-locals on the descents as there's loads not knowing where to carry the speed from the downhill into a big climb, Narberth being a prime exacmple.
Lanza the plan would be to have a holiday afterwards so a week or 2 recovering following that and then back into middle distance runs and I'm guessing 2-3 hour bikes on the training plan.
Losing weight will make a big difference too I think mate, reckon I can get 2 stone off to be perfect for race day. Il be around 10% body fat again for that
I'd forgotten you were local, I remember that now.Lanza the plan would be to have a holiday afterwards so a week or 2 recovering following that and then back into middle distance runs and I'm guessing 2-3 hour bikes on the training plan.
Losing weight will make a big difference too I think mate, reckon I can get 2 stone off to be perfect for race day. Il be around 10% body fat again for that
I live in Narberth and know what you mean about Narberth bridge; in the dry that corner flat out is one of my guilty pleasures, just be sure to miss the manhole cover! In the wet though... Arrrrgh! No momentum for the hill.
I found the key to recovery was getting back on the bandwagon, but gently. After Isoman (which was a Sunday) I was really stiff, but managed to get myself out for a very gentle run on Tuesday, getting the blood flowing again really seemed to help. If I remember correctly after about 30 mins I had to remind myself to take it easy, and a few days after seemed to be fine.
I think I just didn't think the times & recovery through before entering them all! For each event I roughly did 2/3 weeks for tapering & event, then 1 week recovery, total was a month. If the next event is only a month after you've only got another week or two before tapering again. I loved last year, I really did, but it did feel different to working toward a single long distance tri.
Anyway, I was still rather on the large side and suffered a few problems along the way but still completed all three, so I'm sure it will be fine.
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