Daz Does Tri

Pretty shite week this week. Have felt pretty knackered recently with training & work getting on top of me. Still managed to knock out a 7 day week with some highlights but overall I am fucked. Monday - managed a steady 6 at about 6.55 pace. Felt alright, nothing to write home about and set the standard for the week!

Good solid weeks training in the bag last week, almost 15 hours of it in fact. Blimey that's just 5 or 6 behind Turner! After feeling sorry for myself Tuesday with a niggly knee, things felt better on Wednesday where I stuck in an 8 mile tempo. I say stuck in, the wind battered me into submission and I couldn't be arsed to run very hard. Outcome was 8 miles @ 6:29/mm avge and then did a long warm down (mile and a half). Not a total disaster but would be nice if my pace actually came down the harder I trained rather than went in the opposite direction! Thursday was off to the club TT. The ride there was headwind all the way and cycling in aero position on a TT bike at 14mph was just plain embarrassing. Really didn't fancy it and couldn't work out where the wind was going to help and where it wasn't (felt like everywhere). Warmed up crap and felt cold. Set off 3 from last and got into a decent pace to the hill to the silos. Pace dropped massively and workin...

So last night, feeling good about an honest days training my knee starts to feel achey on the inside. Sleep it off but this morning it's there again, dull ache which means only one thing. Swim day! Hit Abbey pool with my 2nd set of goggles - the type of cheap shitty speedos that you buy when they have nothing else available and you've forgotten your good ones. These goggles are like the glasses on the bus driver in the Harry Potter films. They basically suck my eyeballs out for the session whilst simultaneously letting in more water than the actual available space.

After the Outlaw the old bones held up pretty well. I wasn't that tired from the race, just the sparrow-fart-o-clock wake up and a grumbly achillies. Wanted to hang about after the race with this fella who podiumed but I had to put some money into the emotional piggy bank as this fella says! So back to Center Parcs, bowling with the family and then packed ready to go home. Interesting issue with the bike rack that Halfords fitted almost resulted in catastrophy and did result in one shit, hardly used ladies MTB sitting lonely next to the M1 waiting for a new owner. I guess you could call it fly tipping but really someone just got a free bike. As this fella says, people will start following me round as I discard Oakley sunglasses and bikes all over the place! this fella will be using that as ammo when he reads this for my frivolous lifestyle!

Lets set the scene. Wednesday and Thursday training goes really, REALLY well. Start day-dreaming about smashing Sundays race to pieces. Think I am finally ready to make a jump. Friday, off to Center Parcs with the family. All set and ready to go and there's a strange little tickle in my throat. As the day goes on 2 of my kids start coughing (usually in my face or my food). Start to fee a little coughy. Saturday morning wake up feeling like shit. Moan all day and feel worse and worse. Take copious amounts of lemsip/neurofen/strepsills/warm tea. Basically anything to delay getting ill which seems inevitable. Travel to race expo to register and do briefing (this Ironman thing can be annoying with this all weekend shit). Venue look amazing and I try not to look ill but feel shitty. Early to bed (8.30pm) and up at 3.45am (FFS what is this all about!!!) Actually feel OK when I wake up but hate not knowing how it's going to translate on the race course. Grrrrr

Done! In the bag, my second ton. And what a ton it was. Kind happened by surprise. I had toyed with tonning it by adding a few to the club run but with Dan wanting a few more, Kye pretty much up for anything (he'd have ridden to Lands End if I asked him) and Marky super strong on the miles it fell into place with a big of Group 1 action. Met nice and early and rode a longer route to St Neots. Kye, as ever, decided to smash a few early hills and we had a good bit of banter on the way.

..or the Bedford Half Ironman as it probably can't legally be named! My debut, popped my triathlon cherry, joined the 3's up club, got down and dirty, wetter than an otters pocket etc. etc. I've only gone and bloody done a triathlon. Finally Daz does Tri, 2 years after creating a blog. So, endulge me a a little... Woke up slightly before the milkman at 4.30. Quick shower and a huge breakfast (and 2 huge dumps) before Mr Turner (yes, THE Mr Turner) picked me up and loaded an entire sports shop into his car. Fuck you need some stuff for this triathlon lark. Didn't have a box which apparently makes me a proper knob in triathlon as all triathletes have boxes for transition.