Howdy all!
Sorry for the lack of posts and updates. I've been sunning myself in Spain and will soon be updating with some delightful photos to make even Daniel "James Bond" Craig go green with envy and ladies everywhere weak at the knees (or is that weak in the stomach?). Tapering has gone well as has my just completed race prep and I will be jetting off to lovely Shropshire in a little under 3 hours to enjoy the wonders and luxury of the Oswestery Travel Lodge.

Whilst the Shropshire Tri is much smaller than last year, and quite a bit out of the way for someone driving from London to Sheffield, it holds some significance for me as it was here that I did my first Olympic distance Tri. Thus, this is my first and only real opportunity to see how far I've come on in 12 months.

I always wonder whether I should post my goals for all to see before a race but with this one its not really about the placing but the times. Last year it took me just shy of 2h12 to finish, not bad for a first pop but along way from decent. This year I want to break 2 hours taking around 4 minutes of each leg to do it.

Tune in in about 48 hours time and hopefully they'll be plenty of fun and revelry to keep you amused for just under a minute.

A tale of two races...

It's been a tough weekend... Supersprints on Sunday and then I tried to race the club duathlon on Monday - mistakes were made. First Eton:

Given that I'm not training for sprints this season as my end goal is going long, the longer the better, I was fairly happy with 8th overall, 3rd U30 and first 20-24. I forgot the hell of a swim start and promptly missed the hooter and got swum over, kicked, punched and other assorted fun which would have been heaven for a masochist with a rubber fetish. Once I got going it was fine but, as per usual, I only really hit a rhythm by the 300m point. Out in 6:03 is pretty respectable for someone who last year couldn't really swim and it was a comfotable pace.

I never really hit top gear on the bike, partly due again to the new position and also Saturday's ride was still in my legs. 6th fastest overall was OK but I really should have dipped under 30 mins.

Strangely it was the run which was the best part of my race for once. I'm fairly sure that two week block where I systematically destroyed myself is starting to pay off! 17:21 was good enough to move me up to the podium in my division. All in all not a bad day although the real highlight was the 11 mile run I did 90 mins after the event finished. I figure I'm going to have to get used to running when my legs feel like concrete and I was really pleased to run the distance in under 70 mins with a heart rate below 150bpm. Bring on the Cow Man!

In start contrast Monday was not a happy day. With an uber strong field for the duathlon (the mighty Jez Cox no less!) it would have been a great day to put in a charge but alas it was not to be. A sensible person (which by now I'm sure you have realised I am not) would have not raced and my worst fears were confirmed when I failed to catch the pack despite burying myself for the first 2 laps.

The less said about this race the better but I can honestly say I haven't felt that cooked in years. A couple of days rest are needed and hopefully no long lasting damage has been done.

Weekly Update 4

Just raced the Eton Super Sprints - I don't know the full results yet so race report to follow.

I know you're all on the edge of you seats waiting for John's weekly rant but I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint this week, it's all been going OK.

This week was my first open water swim and I enjoyed it so much I did it again on Saturday. Thursday was a shorter session before work and Saturday was 3k. The times I was posting were very encouraging and I think sub-22.30 at Shropshire may be a possibility (assuming I was actually swimming a full loop). Compared to 12 months ago this is brilliant to see. Last year my 1500m time at Shropshire was 28.50 so a 6 minute improvement in 12 months is fantastic. It's not elite level yet but hopefully sub-20 is not a pipe dream for 2008-9.

Running has been quite light again and I've seen some good improvements. A 17 miler on Sunday took in the bets of West London's bridges. 7min/mile pace was solid and I'm starting to get my nutrition sorted. A track session on Thursday was my only other session and 16x400m @ 75s of 2.20s (I know it's gibberish!) was tough but I held on to it...just.

My bike is fixed and radically different in terms of fit. Scherrit at the Bike Whisperer has been working his dark magic to turn my bike from a 10 mile rocket to a long haul ride. Tuesday was a 10m TT and I PBd with a 23.09. Not bad but beaten by a club mate... no excuses this time, he was just faster. Bring on the next 10!
Saturday was my first long ride on the TT bike. 4 hours at 34km/hr was good for this time of the season but the new position is going to take a little more getting used to...my neck muscles started to ache after about 2 hours but fortunately I was distracted from this by the battle my saddle was fighting with my undercarriage - at last check the score reads Fizik 1 - John's crotch 0.
Role on the rematch mid-week. Hopefully I can pull a goal back.

Weekly Update 3

Another week, another rant. This time at the bolt which supposedly keeps my saddle in place. 5 miles left of a 25TT, feeling good, looking at about 58minutes on a tough course, quick out of the saddle push, back into the aero position, wait one second... that isn't a saddle... rats*... that's a seat post! Bother!*

I've spent most of the week enjoying the sunshine. Following Monday's race I did a 90min recovery spin and was quite glad of it come Tuesday when I did my first ever crit. Racing in the cat 4s at Hillingdon my only aim was to not cause bodily harm to myself or others. 45 minutes later and mission accomplished (just) and I also managed a 4th place finish earning me the princely sum of £10, my first ever cash winnings!

Running has been kept light this week and all I did was a 5k road race on Thursday. I finished in 17.20 which was OK. I went off too fast (2k in 6.15) and paid for it in the hot conditions and with my tired, tired legs. I have to be honest I may have overdone it with the speed work in previous weeks - too much too soon - but I feel for once I've been sensible enough to know when to back off.

Swimming is plugging away slowly. Thanks to a conference on Saturday I have yet to hit the lake but I'm starting to complete consistently good swims at a good pace and I'm maintaining my form for longer. Hopefully I'll have done some open water stuff by next weekend.

Next week is still a bit up in the air. If my bike is fixed I'll be TTing and getting a bike fitting with the Bike Whisperer (who I would recommend to anyone with bike/fitting issues). I also may be doing the Eton Super Sprints next Sunday. Hardly a structured race but more a bit of fun and some good T1 practice in a wet suit. A friend dropped out leaving me with a free slot and I wasn't going to turn that down!

Until next week happy training to all, and remember, check your kit before you race because it wouldn't have taken much for me to be in Ealing Hospital having a saddle removed from my rear end instead of sat here typing.

*language my have been censored for audience.

Thames Turbo Race Report

Lets get this out of the way at the start... I hate red lights, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them I really, really, really hate them with the passion of a thousand suns! There, done.

The weather was a stark contrast to last time, instead of snowy and frosty we got warm and sunny, quick times were on the cards and the field certainly delivered. I'll level with you, I had 3 targets for today and only one of them was what I call a "controllable" i.e. the outcome (ignoring mechanical failure) was in my hands. I wanted to go under the hour and a managed that in 59:31. However, I also wanted the 20-29 bike course record (standing at 32:08 and a podium finish). These were less in my control and unfortunately today's field was a class act:

Jonathan Hotchkiss - Elite;
Dan Corner - had beaten me comprehensively at every event we'd both been in;
Richard Legge - a turbo elite who on his new bike is lightning fast;
Mark Yeoman - Sigma sponsored athlete;
Sam Hunt - 2012 prospect.

Perhaps top 3 was a little ambitious but if I was going down it wasn't without a fight. Starting about 30 places after the quickest swimmers I put in a solid effort to come out of T1 in 7:41, 30 seconds quicker than last time and about 20 places higher up the rankings, hopefully the swim work is starting to pay off as I felt strong.

The bike started well, I had underestimated the amount of recovery you got in the non-compete zone in the previous race so attacked the bike course like a 10TT. All was going well until I had to stop at the light - now, I know it's the same for everyone, I know it's luck of the draw and I know there are probably 10 athletes who were with 45 seconds of me going "I'd have beaten that Franklin bloke if it hadn't been for the lights" but that doesn't mean it didn't piss me off. I reckon I could have beaten the previous bike course record as well if it hadn't been for the light (although it would not have been recognised as Jonathan Hotchkiss had just set a new overall record in 30:42). That said, even with the light I was just under a minute quicker than last time so I am getting faster.

The run started strong but the old left calf started to niggle at half way. Probably a result of plenty of mileage over the last 14 days. There was no one around who was really in my wave or who I was competing with for places so I was running against myself and to finish in 18:53 was pretty good. A minute quicker than last time.

To finish 7th was OK, I'm not going to pretend I'm pleased with it because I'm not. I wanted top five at the very least and, yes it was a strong field, and yes some of them race elite and yes I had to stop at the light but at the end of the day if I want to achieve my goals in this sport I need to be competing with the best and today I was on the peripheries.

Overall assessment: B- Not bad but plenty of room for improvement in some areas.

Next big race is Shropshire so be sure to check back then.

John

Weekly Update 2

I sit here covered in compression kit wondering if today's ride was perhaps a tad too much considering I'm racing in 13 hours (see how I use the medium of blogging to get my excuses in early - that way I can simply refer people to the blog tomorrow!).

The aching aside its been a tough week:

Monday was another win in the Hillingdon evening series, I led from the start and posted a reasonable time. A poor T1 stopped me dipping under 38 minutes, there's always next time.

The bike has received the least attention this week, a turbo, the duathlon and a ride today, not much going on just keeping things ticking over nicely.

Swimming is getting better and better - 11k this week with some really strong wetsuit work. I'm fortunate that a wetsuit makes such a positive difference to my swim but this season the change is incredible, I'm taking several seconds off each length. Role on the open water fun in a couple of weeks - at least the weather has warmed up!

Not sure where to begin with running... the Dave Knight session from hell followed me until Wednesday. Running on Sunday and Tuesday was horrible, my calves let out a small yelp at every step. Luckily it cleared up by the end of the week and Friday's track session was good - 6 x 1200m of 4:05. Not too shabby I thought.

Race report from Thames Turbo ASAP after the finish tomorrow and well done to everyone who raced at the Hillingdon Duathlon yesterday and good luck to anyone racing tomorrow.