Pretty happy over the finish line after a tough day
Back into proper training monday after an easy week, Bunbury olympic this weekend, should be a good little hit out!
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Photos from Port Mac
Enjoy :)
Pretty happy over the finish line after a tough day
Back into proper training monday after an easy week, Bunbury olympic this weekend, should be a good little hit out!
Pretty happy over the finish line after a tough day
Back into proper training monday after an easy week, Bunbury olympic this weekend, should be a good little hit out!
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Port Mac 70.3 - Australian Age Group Champs
Thought I'd throw up a race report while it was still fresh in my memory.
Thursday morning I woke up, thinking I was heading to Port Mac solo, driving from Syd to the race. By 10am I was heading up with the old man! It was a great surprise and certainly took some weight of my shoulders. We both headed for the red eye Thurs night and after a couple of hours sleep we were in Sydney 6am, jumped in the i30 and took the 5ish hour drive up.
We got there no problems and Friday/Saturday was spent catching up with Tim and Nic, having a look at the course and carb loading up.
Race morning:
I had a great sleep, which is rare, but certainly welcomed. I had my usual, Banana (x2) SiS bar and electrolytes for brekky while setting up transition. I also threw down my fav, a caffeinated SiS gel about 15 before the swim start.
Swim:
I made sure I was one of the first into the water so I could get a spot on the front row for the deep water start. This worked well and I was on the front line. There was the usual creeping forward with the 10 second count down and with about 3 to go everyone was pretty much off, I had a good laugh.
My position seemed to pay off and I was off to a great start within the first few 100. I then copped the absolute beating of a lifetime!! I was punched 3-4 times in the head, dunked and just generally wailed upon for about 50 meters. Not sure why but hey that's all a part of the swim, I dealt with it an swum on. I felt I had one of the best swims of my racing 'career', and although I faded slightly I came out with a massive PB 26.30.
T1:
I had a solid run into transition and as usual had a great one and was on the bike quickly. I was 2nd out of transition
Bike:
Not sure what happened here. Any one near me will know that I have been working a lot on my bike (and swim) lately and had been having some really promising signs (re progression). Unfortunately it really didn't show at Port Mac. I had a really terrible ride. I got on the bike feeling ok, and really took it easy on the first few hills (i.e. not go stupid and blow up), but I just couldn't get going and got progressively worse through out the ride.
I was really fighting some demons on that ride, but I managed to work through it. I was just so disappointed with the ride in general. There was nothing I could do but keep plugging away and try and reduce the deficit as much as possible.
T2:
I came into T2 pretty bloody disappointed, and really angry. I wanted to destroy this run and I knew it was going to hurt. I threw on the runners and set off. Dad let me know I was 5th in, so it wasn't a complete disaster.
Run:
I ran out of transition and with a quick wave to Dad I was off, on 3.45's on the flat. Then my bloody garmin froze. "you know what I don't even care", i thought too my self, I wasn't even interested in pace, I just needed to run hard.
Within 2k I pasted 5th for 4th, it was a great boost. I felt strong and was sucking down my SiS caffeine gels, they were giving me wings. About 7k in I was feeling really good running up and down the pretty reasonable hills there, and I ran into 3rd.
I knew I wasn't going to run into 1st (as Todd was schooling us all) but I thought I had a chance to make 2nd. I finished the first 10.5k and went about hunting 2nd. With 5k to go I passed 2nd. I had a bit of a laugh actually, as as I passed him I heard "awww F*CK!!", sorry mate I thought but I wasn't there for a haircut.
My On shoes were really helping me, really reducing that shock on those downhills, I loved them. I knew I was comfortably in 2nd but I didn't slow the pace at all, I really wanted to work hard. Finally I got to within a k to go and the long run down the finish shoot.
I was fricken exhausted when I crossed the line and had to have a little sit down, the commentator enjoyed it, the med people didn't haha. I was certain I was 2nd however Dad was certain I was 4th, and I was pretty bloody happy when I confirmed the 2nd.
Post Race:
For me this might not have been the hardest race but it certainly was the most emotional. From a big high in the swim, to massive lows and demons on the bike, I was really really battling out there, but I was really glad that used that emotion in the run. I was pretty emotional when I got over the line, but I think that's something pretty common with competitive endurance racers, its hard not to get emotional when you put all that work in.
From here I took a number of things. My swim is a lot better, but still needs work, especially to finish strong. My ride....well. I need to figure this out quick smart but I am looking forward to figuring this puzzle and and improving as an athlete. My run, I love running :)
Afterwards we had a few to many brewskies at pressos, but I think we all deserved it, thanks dad, tim, nic, todd and others for a great arvo/night.
Thanks also to my training mates. My family and Dad thanks so much for all the help, appreciated more than imaginable. Sean, you have a positive effect on me more than you know mate. And Paige the most understanding and supportive person in the entire world.
Also thank you to my supporters my coach Brian and Transition Wear, On Shoes and SiS nutrition, not only getting my nutrition over there for me, but shouting a drink or two sun night - thanks Matt, legend mate!!
From here, a week off. Then back into it. Can't wait, to improve my self as an athlete and person
Cheers
(P.s. pics soonsies)
Thursday morning I woke up, thinking I was heading to Port Mac solo, driving from Syd to the race. By 10am I was heading up with the old man! It was a great surprise and certainly took some weight of my shoulders. We both headed for the red eye Thurs night and after a couple of hours sleep we were in Sydney 6am, jumped in the i30 and took the 5ish hour drive up.
We got there no problems and Friday/Saturday was spent catching up with Tim and Nic, having a look at the course and carb loading up.
Race morning:
I had a great sleep, which is rare, but certainly welcomed. I had my usual, Banana (x2) SiS bar and electrolytes for brekky while setting up transition. I also threw down my fav, a caffeinated SiS gel about 15 before the swim start.
Swim:
I made sure I was one of the first into the water so I could get a spot on the front row for the deep water start. This worked well and I was on the front line. There was the usual creeping forward with the 10 second count down and with about 3 to go everyone was pretty much off, I had a good laugh.
My position seemed to pay off and I was off to a great start within the first few 100. I then copped the absolute beating of a lifetime!! I was punched 3-4 times in the head, dunked and just generally wailed upon for about 50 meters. Not sure why but hey that's all a part of the swim, I dealt with it an swum on. I felt I had one of the best swims of my racing 'career', and although I faded slightly I came out with a massive PB 26.30.
T1:
I had a solid run into transition and as usual had a great one and was on the bike quickly. I was 2nd out of transition
Bike:
Not sure what happened here. Any one near me will know that I have been working a lot on my bike (and swim) lately and had been having some really promising signs (re progression). Unfortunately it really didn't show at Port Mac. I had a really terrible ride. I got on the bike feeling ok, and really took it easy on the first few hills (i.e. not go stupid and blow up), but I just couldn't get going and got progressively worse through out the ride.
I was really fighting some demons on that ride, but I managed to work through it. I was just so disappointed with the ride in general. There was nothing I could do but keep plugging away and try and reduce the deficit as much as possible.
T2:
I came into T2 pretty bloody disappointed, and really angry. I wanted to destroy this run and I knew it was going to hurt. I threw on the runners and set off. Dad let me know I was 5th in, so it wasn't a complete disaster.
Run:
I ran out of transition and with a quick wave to Dad I was off, on 3.45's on the flat. Then my bloody garmin froze. "you know what I don't even care", i thought too my self, I wasn't even interested in pace, I just needed to run hard.
Within 2k I pasted 5th for 4th, it was a great boost. I felt strong and was sucking down my SiS caffeine gels, they were giving me wings. About 7k in I was feeling really good running up and down the pretty reasonable hills there, and I ran into 3rd.
I knew I wasn't going to run into 1st (as Todd was schooling us all) but I thought I had a chance to make 2nd. I finished the first 10.5k and went about hunting 2nd. With 5k to go I passed 2nd. I had a bit of a laugh actually, as as I passed him I heard "awww F*CK!!", sorry mate I thought but I wasn't there for a haircut.
My On shoes were really helping me, really reducing that shock on those downhills, I loved them. I knew I was comfortably in 2nd but I didn't slow the pace at all, I really wanted to work hard. Finally I got to within a k to go and the long run down the finish shoot.
I was fricken exhausted when I crossed the line and had to have a little sit down, the commentator enjoyed it, the med people didn't haha. I was certain I was 2nd however Dad was certain I was 4th, and I was pretty bloody happy when I confirmed the 2nd.
Post Race:
For me this might not have been the hardest race but it certainly was the most emotional. From a big high in the swim, to massive lows and demons on the bike, I was really really battling out there, but I was really glad that used that emotion in the run. I was pretty emotional when I got over the line, but I think that's something pretty common with competitive endurance racers, its hard not to get emotional when you put all that work in.
From here I took a number of things. My swim is a lot better, but still needs work, especially to finish strong. My ride....well. I need to figure this out quick smart but I am looking forward to figuring this puzzle and and improving as an athlete. My run, I love running :)
Afterwards we had a few to many brewskies at pressos, but I think we all deserved it, thanks dad, tim, nic, todd and others for a great arvo/night.
Thanks also to my training mates. My family and Dad thanks so much for all the help, appreciated more than imaginable. Sean, you have a positive effect on me more than you know mate. And Paige the most understanding and supportive person in the entire world.
Also thank you to my supporters my coach Brian and Transition Wear, On Shoes and SiS nutrition, not only getting my nutrition over there for me, but shouting a drink or two sun night - thanks Matt, legend mate!!
From here, a week off. Then back into it. Can't wait, to improve my self as an athlete and person
Cheers
(P.s. pics soonsies)
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Back on track
Another good couple of weeks in the bag and things are looking good for port mac 70.3 in 6 weeks.
I have been continuing on with my ultra mega bulk lotsies swim routine, and it finally seems to be paying off with a super fast and surprising 1k tt time in the pool last wednesday. Lets just say the coach and my self were pretty impressed. It's good to finally see some improvement on this front.
On the cycling front, last tuesday i committed to 20 minutes of pain with my main training man seano. We both committed to a ftp test on the bike. Lets just say the theme of the morning was pain sweat and tears, but damm it felt good :) we were both super psyched with our results and have already started to put in the information gained from the test with the information we gained from a chat with one of the head wais cycling coaches into our training. I think we are both really going to see some great improvements in our cycling. I can't thank sean enough for the use of his power meter lately, it has been a HUGE help
I'm also finally back doing some goodish running miles and just this morning clocked a 1.18 at freo half marathon (course was measured as 21.5k mind you). I felt super strong and finished the run with two 3.30 k's, it felt good....well not literally..
In other news I've been lucky enough to pick up some help from On shoes. http://www.on-running.com/ seriously check them out. They are a really revolutionary shoe and I am really enjoying running in them. Get on them if you are looking for something different in a shoe! Below is a quick snap in me in them after the freo half.
Apart from that it's business as usual, just training away and working hard. Exciting!! :D
Until next time ;)
I have been continuing on with my ultra mega bulk lotsies swim routine, and it finally seems to be paying off with a super fast and surprising 1k tt time in the pool last wednesday. Lets just say the coach and my self were pretty impressed. It's good to finally see some improvement on this front.
On the cycling front, last tuesday i committed to 20 minutes of pain with my main training man seano. We both committed to a ftp test on the bike. Lets just say the theme of the morning was pain sweat and tears, but damm it felt good :) we were both super psyched with our results and have already started to put in the information gained from the test with the information we gained from a chat with one of the head wais cycling coaches into our training. I think we are both really going to see some great improvements in our cycling. I can't thank sean enough for the use of his power meter lately, it has been a HUGE help
I'm also finally back doing some goodish running miles and just this morning clocked a 1.18 at freo half marathon (course was measured as 21.5k mind you). I felt super strong and finished the run with two 3.30 k's, it felt good....well not literally..
In other news I've been lucky enough to pick up some help from On shoes. http://www.on-running.com/ seriously check them out. They are a really revolutionary shoe and I am really enjoying running in them. Get on them if you are looking for something different in a shoe! Below is a quick snap in me in them after the freo half.
Apart from that it's business as usual, just training away and working hard. Exciting!! :D
Until next time ;)
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Back blogging
Well after a bit of a break, thought I should post something new, why? I'm not to sure to be honest....anywhooo, enough of this awkwardness!!
So last time I posted I was injured and sick, well that lasted for about 3 weeks, not good, but that's life. I had a good rest I guess, and now I am back into it. I've had some good progress
Back in the pool swimming way too much and making some good, millisecond, gradual improvements (it always seems to be the way with swimming for me), but I'm feeling better and better and making gains where needed.
On the riding front, I am riding more than ever and feeling better and better every day. Riding old papas every Thursday morning is doing wonders (now I am no longer getting dropped) and coupling that with road racing on saturdays is doing wonders. I've had a couple of victories at road racing and come close in a few more instances. My view is I go there to work (and not sit in the pack) and it's really improving my abilities ten fold.
Finally the running is going surprisingly well. I've actually been doing a minimal amount of running but that didn't show at last weeks city to surf half marathon where I ran a 1.19. I was super pleasantly surprised with this and it gave me a heap of confidence.
I'm also smashing out some good gym and core workouts and I can honestly feel the difference in all of my disciplines.
As for what's up next, well I have the Fremantle half in a couple of weeks, continued road racing, and it's time to start the wetty swims. Port Mac is 8 weeks (and 1 week taper) away, so things are really getting serious. Love it.
I'm really running through the SiS stuff at the moment and loving it, so thanks again guys!
Hrm this seems to be a no picture blog, that is way to boring...I'll see what I can find...
Gah nothing! Welll 'till next time, which will hopefully be sooner..
Markus
So last time I posted I was injured and sick, well that lasted for about 3 weeks, not good, but that's life. I had a good rest I guess, and now I am back into it. I've had some good progress
Back in the pool swimming way too much and making some good, millisecond, gradual improvements (it always seems to be the way with swimming for me), but I'm feeling better and better and making gains where needed.
On the riding front, I am riding more than ever and feeling better and better every day. Riding old papas every Thursday morning is doing wonders (now I am no longer getting dropped) and coupling that with road racing on saturdays is doing wonders. I've had a couple of victories at road racing and come close in a few more instances. My view is I go there to work (and not sit in the pack) and it's really improving my abilities ten fold.
Finally the running is going surprisingly well. I've actually been doing a minimal amount of running but that didn't show at last weeks city to surf half marathon where I ran a 1.19. I was super pleasantly surprised with this and it gave me a heap of confidence.
I'm also smashing out some good gym and core workouts and I can honestly feel the difference in all of my disciplines.
As for what's up next, well I have the Fremantle half in a couple of weeks, continued road racing, and it's time to start the wetty swims. Port Mac is 8 weeks (and 1 week taper) away, so things are really getting serious. Love it.
I'm really running through the SiS stuff at the moment and loving it, so thanks again guys!
Hrm this seems to be a no picture blog, that is way to boring...I'll see what I can find...
Gah nothing! Welll 'till next time, which will hopefully be sooner..
Markus
Thursday, July 21, 2011
pre-season update
Well...I had to say it didn't I..
A week after blogging about a great pre-season, I've struck a little sickness haven't I..
Not to worry though, happens to the best of us and truth be told it's probably given the body a little chance to recover from the gym work and different stuff I've been doing this pre season. Unfortunetly however, it means I had to DNS road racing and state 10k champs on the weekend, something I was really looking forward too..
However I am happy to say in the off season I've picked up some support from SIS Australia (through http://www.triathlontribe.com/), http://www.scienceinsport.com.au/ have a visit of their site! Great products which I've used before and look forward to using this season as well :) Trust me you'll love their stuff, if it's good enough for the Schlecks, Berkel etc then I think they are onto something good ;)
Apart from that I'm off for a one week holiday with the fam next week, I stressed a little until I found out the cruise ship we are boarding has a full on gym and an endless pool - WIN!
Keep training, keep warm, keep classy (see below) and keep cheering on Cadel!
Cheers
A week after blogging about a great pre-season, I've struck a little sickness haven't I..
Not to worry though, happens to the best of us and truth be told it's probably given the body a little chance to recover from the gym work and different stuff I've been doing this pre season. Unfortunetly however, it means I had to DNS road racing and state 10k champs on the weekend, something I was really looking forward too..
However I am happy to say in the off season I've picked up some support from SIS Australia (through http://www.triathlontribe.com/), http://www.scienceinsport.com.au/ have a visit of their site! Great products which I've used before and look forward to using this season as well :) Trust me you'll love their stuff, if it's good enough for the Schlecks, Berkel etc then I think they are onto something good ;)
Apart from that I'm off for a one week holiday with the fam next week, I stressed a little until I found out the cruise ship we are boarding has a full on gym and an endless pool - WIN!
Keep training, keep warm, keep classy (see below) and keep cheering on Cadel!
Cheers
Sunday, July 10, 2011
pre-season 2.0
Well finally having a good pre-season, what a nice change :) (touch wood!! touch wood!!!)
Im swimming a LOT, but funny thing is I'm starting to feel like a swimmer? Weird, but swimming is becoming more and more enjoyable, and a heated pool is helping a lot.
Gym, my god, this is embarrasing. It is seriously embarrasing going to the gym, but I have to swallow my pride haha. Although I must say I do enjoy going and watching the 'not-so-ultimate-fighters' do their work outs.. veryyyy entertaining. But I am seriously starting to feel some good strength come through, loving it, first time in my life!
Riding is getting there. Although these cold mornings are NOT helping. I am learning to love my wind trainer, over 2 hours the other day :/ almost a record for me, how do you people do it? Getting back into some good road racing as well (managed to grab a couple of wins through breaks) and hit up a 20k tt this morning at champion lakes, ouchies. Loving it though!
Running, well finally a pre-season with no injuries (touch wood again) I've done a few running racing and for a build phase I am actually pretty happy :D 10k tt in a couple of weeks and the 21k half to test the legs will be funsies. Loving the off road too.
Over all a really good few weeks getting back into it. New motivation and new goals, it's all really looking good. Now to try and post more. Stay warm, and try and get some sleep during the tour..
Cheers
Im swimming a LOT, but funny thing is I'm starting to feel like a swimmer? Weird, but swimming is becoming more and more enjoyable, and a heated pool is helping a lot.
Gym, my god, this is embarrasing. It is seriously embarrasing going to the gym, but I have to swallow my pride haha. Although I must say I do enjoy going and watching the 'not-so-ultimate-fighters' do their work outs.. veryyyy entertaining. But I am seriously starting to feel some good strength come through, loving it, first time in my life!
Riding is getting there. Although these cold mornings are NOT helping. I am learning to love my wind trainer, over 2 hours the other day :/ almost a record for me, how do you people do it? Getting back into some good road racing as well (managed to grab a couple of wins through breaks) and hit up a 20k tt this morning at champion lakes, ouchies. Loving it though!
Running, well finally a pre-season with no injuries (touch wood again) I've done a few running racing and for a build phase I am actually pretty happy :D 10k tt in a couple of weeks and the 21k half to test the legs will be funsies. Loving the off road too.
Over all a really good few weeks getting back into it. New motivation and new goals, it's all really looking good. Now to try and post more. Stay warm, and try and get some sleep during the tour..
Cheers
Thursday, June 2, 2011
a frank and 'better late than never' season review
well...better late than never i guess
It's been way to long and there is way to much to catch up on so it'll be pretty brief.
Busso was a disaster unfortunately. After an average (and i do mean that i should have been faster) swim, my day was over 45k into the bike. The most soul destroying part about this is i dont know why. Smart pacing, nutrition etc, but my body decided it wasnt to be. No power on the bike (i know, i was using a power meter) and i felt good on the run for about 4 of the long 21.1k - quite simply not to be.
Since then i have had a lot of time to soul search, and disect by below par performances for the season. In my eyes i performed well below what i was capable of this season, unfortunetly the most annoying part about that fact is that i think it can all be attributed to myself.
So i thought i'd write a blog about it, enjoy.
Gold Coast: Here i believe i was the fittest i have ever been, except for my swimming. Going into this race i had a SOLID pre season behind me of road racing (even having won a few) and some really strong running, having run a 1.18 at the city to surf half. I swam ok (just under 30 mins for the 1.9k) and got onto the bike feeling good, i was riding super strong for 70k and was well on track for a 2.20ish bike time, then boom flat tyre. I panicked and lost 15mins on the bike. I finally got off and ran a 1.20 of the bike, however the damage was done. (6th place)
This is where my season ended.
After putting in so much effort and having something like that stop me in my tracks and take away a solid result, i broke. I got depressed about training and racing and did sweet all untill January. what a loser!
New Zealand: I honestly felt a little foolish heading into this race, i really literally had bugger all prep under my belt. However it really took the pressure off and i was really enjoying my self. Race morning and i was actually looking forward to it. Another eh swim (sub 30) and i was onto the bike feeling really excellent :) for the whole 90k, it was great, and i rode about a 2.25. Onto the run and i was on track to run a sub 1.24 but fell apart in the last 5-6ish k. Seriously, you know how no matter how bad you feel in a race, the last k with the crowd there is always super fast? yea well i did mine in like 6 minutes haha! Completely expected, but this race really bought my confidence back, and i did a 4.25 :) (3rd)
After this race i went straight to the tour down under and got some solid training done in Adelaide :) it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life :)
I really found my motivation again but having so long off before NZ i was really struggling to find form again :/
Singapore: by the time Singapore came around i was starting to feel really good again, but this time i made some real shitty mistakes that made a potentially great performance just a good one. 1. i got really dehydrated the day before the race (by running from transition back to my hotel in the midday sun) and loosing the front two boys in the swim after a really really stupid error. Pretty good swim, but then i had instant and constant cramps for 90 whole k's on the bike. It was depressing and painful and f*ck it sucked. I got off that bike the angriest i have ever been and ran myself into the ground. I dont regret that decision for a second and i would do it again and again. It needed to be done, i wasnt going to catch the two infront pissing around. I ran 3.45's for 12k then found a dirty big scary dark deep hole. Seriously about 75 meters before the finish line i saw my mum on the side of the road, i ran up to her and said "i dont want to do this any more :(" she literally had to push me away haha. (3rd)
But my hunger was back, i made my self hurt and i loved it.
In between then and busso, i was really focused, i worked on my swim and let everything else take care of itself. I got a power meter and ran smarter.
Busso: Man i f*cked this one up for my self. 2 weeks before i did the relay for life, this let the fatigue really set in. 1 week out i ran for over 2 hours in one run. idiot. It actually wasnt intentional but when you get stuck out in the bush with a group of mtn bike riders and home is over half an hour away 1.30 hours in you have no choice. 1 day out from the race i rode, ran and swam and got a massage, inbetween that i was on my feet all day, idiot..again. Race day came around and all of this caught up to me, game over. (6th)
The most annoying part of this self assessment if you will is that almost all of this was preventable. The flat wasnt but the unecessary down afterwards was. As was everything else.
But ive had a couple of weeks to dwell on that and i am done :)
One things for sure, next year, next season rather, i need to lift, not give any excuses, get my sh*t together and perform.
Last weekend started a new pre season and i cant wait :) demons need to be settled and revenge served.
Also, massive props to a few friends through the season. Johan had some stunning preformances and is the real deal, good on you mate. Andy you had a great season mate and topped it off with a huge performance at busso. awesome. just remember i did beat you this season...once.. :/ haha. Seano had a killer at Busso and is a constant constant inspiration to me, thank you mate. And my GF paige ended with a 3rd in her age group for triathlete of the year and a killerrrr bike leg at busso, im so proud :)
A thanks to everyone that was there for me this season :) my parent and fam who cheered me on literally at every race including singas :) best family ever. My training buddies and others for their constant help and advice. Especially sean jermy. Finally Paige Bowman that has been there for me every second of this past season. You'll never know how much you mean to me :)
So bring on next season! Train hard and there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing :P
It's been way to long and there is way to much to catch up on so it'll be pretty brief.
Busso was a disaster unfortunately. After an average (and i do mean that i should have been faster) swim, my day was over 45k into the bike. The most soul destroying part about this is i dont know why. Smart pacing, nutrition etc, but my body decided it wasnt to be. No power on the bike (i know, i was using a power meter) and i felt good on the run for about 4 of the long 21.1k - quite simply not to be.
Since then i have had a lot of time to soul search, and disect by below par performances for the season. In my eyes i performed well below what i was capable of this season, unfortunetly the most annoying part about that fact is that i think it can all be attributed to myself.
So i thought i'd write a blog about it, enjoy.
Gold Coast: Here i believe i was the fittest i have ever been, except for my swimming. Going into this race i had a SOLID pre season behind me of road racing (even having won a few) and some really strong running, having run a 1.18 at the city to surf half. I swam ok (just under 30 mins for the 1.9k) and got onto the bike feeling good, i was riding super strong for 70k and was well on track for a 2.20ish bike time, then boom flat tyre. I panicked and lost 15mins on the bike. I finally got off and ran a 1.20 of the bike, however the damage was done. (6th place)
This is where my season ended.
After putting in so much effort and having something like that stop me in my tracks and take away a solid result, i broke. I got depressed about training and racing and did sweet all untill January. what a loser!
New Zealand: I honestly felt a little foolish heading into this race, i really literally had bugger all prep under my belt. However it really took the pressure off and i was really enjoying my self. Race morning and i was actually looking forward to it. Another eh swim (sub 30) and i was onto the bike feeling really excellent :) for the whole 90k, it was great, and i rode about a 2.25. Onto the run and i was on track to run a sub 1.24 but fell apart in the last 5-6ish k. Seriously, you know how no matter how bad you feel in a race, the last k with the crowd there is always super fast? yea well i did mine in like 6 minutes haha! Completely expected, but this race really bought my confidence back, and i did a 4.25 :) (3rd)
After this race i went straight to the tour down under and got some solid training done in Adelaide :) it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life :)
I really found my motivation again but having so long off before NZ i was really struggling to find form again :/
Singapore: by the time Singapore came around i was starting to feel really good again, but this time i made some real shitty mistakes that made a potentially great performance just a good one. 1. i got really dehydrated the day before the race (by running from transition back to my hotel in the midday sun) and loosing the front two boys in the swim after a really really stupid error. Pretty good swim, but then i had instant and constant cramps for 90 whole k's on the bike. It was depressing and painful and f*ck it sucked. I got off that bike the angriest i have ever been and ran myself into the ground. I dont regret that decision for a second and i would do it again and again. It needed to be done, i wasnt going to catch the two infront pissing around. I ran 3.45's for 12k then found a dirty big scary dark deep hole. Seriously about 75 meters before the finish line i saw my mum on the side of the road, i ran up to her and said "i dont want to do this any more :(" she literally had to push me away haha. (3rd)
But my hunger was back, i made my self hurt and i loved it.
In between then and busso, i was really focused, i worked on my swim and let everything else take care of itself. I got a power meter and ran smarter.
Busso: Man i f*cked this one up for my self. 2 weeks before i did the relay for life, this let the fatigue really set in. 1 week out i ran for over 2 hours in one run. idiot. It actually wasnt intentional but when you get stuck out in the bush with a group of mtn bike riders and home is over half an hour away 1.30 hours in you have no choice. 1 day out from the race i rode, ran and swam and got a massage, inbetween that i was on my feet all day, idiot..again. Race day came around and all of this caught up to me, game over. (6th)
The most annoying part of this self assessment if you will is that almost all of this was preventable. The flat wasnt but the unecessary down afterwards was. As was everything else.
But ive had a couple of weeks to dwell on that and i am done :)
One things for sure, next year, next season rather, i need to lift, not give any excuses, get my sh*t together and perform.
Last weekend started a new pre season and i cant wait :) demons need to be settled and revenge served.
Also, massive props to a few friends through the season. Johan had some stunning preformances and is the real deal, good on you mate. Andy you had a great season mate and topped it off with a huge performance at busso. awesome. just remember i did beat you this season...once.. :/ haha. Seano had a killer at Busso and is a constant constant inspiration to me, thank you mate. And my GF paige ended with a 3rd in her age group for triathlete of the year and a killerrrr bike leg at busso, im so proud :)
A thanks to everyone that was there for me this season :) my parent and fam who cheered me on literally at every race including singas :) best family ever. My training buddies and others for their constant help and advice. Especially sean jermy. Finally Paige Bowman that has been there for me every second of this past season. You'll never know how much you mean to me :)
So bring on next season! Train hard and there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing :P
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Singapore
Well time for a quick race update, a general trip update will follow later.
I woke up race morning after a good sleep, which was quite unusual for me. We were at transition 10 minutes after it opened (which made me very happy) and i was set up in no time. Down to the swim start and after giving and receiving well wishes to all i was into my warm up and on the start line.
I started on the front row and after a quick introduction from the commentator we were given the 30 seconds....Boom and the horn went off. As i hit the water, Andrew and i were side by side, schweet! i thought to my self as i would have been quite happy to sit on his feet for the remaining 1850 metres. (i tried mate ;)) So i went about swimming in out small group of 4 (one team swimmer, matty burton, andy and i).
As soon as we turned the first can we had dropped everyone else, and were also the first to feel the horrible current flowing against us along the long back straight. I was feeling good but as soon as we made the second turn for the short trip towards shore, i lost focus and within 5 strokes, the current had pushed me to the left away from our little group - group lost - dammit! I was pretty annoyed at my self but there was nothing i could do so i swam on.
I neared the end of the first lap of the swim, stood up and got instant cramping in both my legs, i knew instantly from here it was going to be a long day. I swam the remainder of the swim by my self and got out of the water and onto the lonnngggg run into transition about a minute or so down on andy and matt. Not a bad swim :)
Onto the bike and i was struck with the same problem. Every time i tried to push, instant cramping. It quickly became quite demoralising as i worked hard on getting my pre and during race nutrition right, but there was nothing i could do but work with what i had, apart from the cramps i was feeling good.
I rode the first lap pretty conservatively with the aim of building. I was feeling good. Unfortunately the course led to some really bad drafting going on behind - but hey, those people were only cheating themselves. Good on you guys. In saying that the course didn't really lead to a clean race, 1600 people on 30k of road?! Hrmm.
My second lap was pretty uneventful as i rode well and watched the gap grow between me and uber bikers Matty and Andy. I kept downing nutrition and staying positive.
Onto the start of my third lap and i was joined by Scotty and a group of drafters behind. As soon as i saw them, i let Scotty know i was going hard to get rid of all the leeches, he obliged and we set about (legally) getting rid of them. It worked in some part, however my cramps were stopping me from doing any real damage.
Before i knew it we were 5k out of transition and i was preparing myself to run. To be honest here i was considering pulling out or walking the 21k. If i couldn't push on the bike i sure as hell wasn't going to be able to run, however not wanting to give it quite yet i decided to push on.
I had a good dismount and after chucking the socks and shoes on i was off....and feeling OK!! :D For the next 11k i actually felt really, good. I was running target pace taking in all the nutrition i could handle, and felt i was running within my self to finish strong.
However
It was not to be.. At around 12k i heard a BOOMMM. Oh yea it was me..blowing up, big time.
I'm still not really sure what happened but boy did it hurt. For the next 9k, well, i was a mess. I went to some deep, deep dark places, that i would re-healllyyy prefer never to go back to again, but hey i guess that's racing.
Some time later i crossed the finish line, a few minutes behind Andy who had a great one. It was a tough tough day and it honestly took me 3 days before i could walk properly again. That also may have had something to do with the copious amounts of alcohol consumed that night by a number of the races participants.
In hindsight (a beautiful thing), the race was interesting for me. My swim is ever improving which means all the extra time in the pool is paying off. But to loose a set of feet through loosing focus is frustrating and is something that must be addressed. My ride was good, but needs more work, however the cramps didn't help. My run showed some good signs too, but falling apart the way i did, wasn't exactly on the cards.
All things i need to work on, but hey for a race with a few problems i still put down a good finish.
I'll post some race photos in the post above and the follow up with a general update, later this week.
Cheers folks, Markus.
I woke up race morning after a good sleep, which was quite unusual for me. We were at transition 10 minutes after it opened (which made me very happy) and i was set up in no time. Down to the swim start and after giving and receiving well wishes to all i was into my warm up and on the start line.
I started on the front row and after a quick introduction from the commentator we were given the 30 seconds....Boom and the horn went off. As i hit the water, Andrew and i were side by side, schweet! i thought to my self as i would have been quite happy to sit on his feet for the remaining 1850 metres. (i tried mate ;)) So i went about swimming in out small group of 4 (one team swimmer, matty burton, andy and i).
As soon as we turned the first can we had dropped everyone else, and were also the first to feel the horrible current flowing against us along the long back straight. I was feeling good but as soon as we made the second turn for the short trip towards shore, i lost focus and within 5 strokes, the current had pushed me to the left away from our little group - group lost - dammit! I was pretty annoyed at my self but there was nothing i could do so i swam on.
I neared the end of the first lap of the swim, stood up and got instant cramping in both my legs, i knew instantly from here it was going to be a long day. I swam the remainder of the swim by my self and got out of the water and onto the lonnngggg run into transition about a minute or so down on andy and matt. Not a bad swim :)
Onto the bike and i was struck with the same problem. Every time i tried to push, instant cramping. It quickly became quite demoralising as i worked hard on getting my pre and during race nutrition right, but there was nothing i could do but work with what i had, apart from the cramps i was feeling good.
I rode the first lap pretty conservatively with the aim of building. I was feeling good. Unfortunately the course led to some really bad drafting going on behind - but hey, those people were only cheating themselves. Good on you guys. In saying that the course didn't really lead to a clean race, 1600 people on 30k of road?! Hrmm.
My second lap was pretty uneventful as i rode well and watched the gap grow between me and uber bikers Matty and Andy. I kept downing nutrition and staying positive.
Onto the start of my third lap and i was joined by Scotty and a group of drafters behind. As soon as i saw them, i let Scotty know i was going hard to get rid of all the leeches, he obliged and we set about (legally) getting rid of them. It worked in some part, however my cramps were stopping me from doing any real damage.
Before i knew it we were 5k out of transition and i was preparing myself to run. To be honest here i was considering pulling out or walking the 21k. If i couldn't push on the bike i sure as hell wasn't going to be able to run, however not wanting to give it quite yet i decided to push on.
I had a good dismount and after chucking the socks and shoes on i was off....and feeling OK!! :D For the next 11k i actually felt really, good. I was running target pace taking in all the nutrition i could handle, and felt i was running within my self to finish strong.
However
It was not to be.. At around 12k i heard a BOOMMM. Oh yea it was me..blowing up, big time.
I'm still not really sure what happened but boy did it hurt. For the next 9k, well, i was a mess. I went to some deep, deep dark places, that i would re-healllyyy prefer never to go back to again, but hey i guess that's racing.
Some time later i crossed the finish line, a few minutes behind Andy who had a great one. It was a tough tough day and it honestly took me 3 days before i could walk properly again. That also may have had something to do with the copious amounts of alcohol consumed that night by a number of the races participants.
In hindsight (a beautiful thing), the race was interesting for me. My swim is ever improving which means all the extra time in the pool is paying off. But to loose a set of feet through loosing focus is frustrating and is something that must be addressed. My ride was good, but needs more work, however the cramps didn't help. My run showed some good signs too, but falling apart the way i did, wasn't exactly on the cards.
All things i need to work on, but hey for a race with a few problems i still put down a good finish.
I'll post some race photos in the post above and the follow up with a general update, later this week.
Cheers folks, Markus.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Counting down
Well Singapore is now less than three weeks away and I am in my last little block of training.
I've been hitting the (various forms off) track really hard and am quite happy with the results, it's all looking on track. Some highlights have included our regular Tuesday track sets, which have been turned up a notch over the last few weeks, swimming 10k in one day last Wednesday (possibly more of a low-light at the time), receiving a nice kick in the arse when I was forced to walk through Jarrahdale forrest for what seemed like an eternity after going out a littleeee to hard on a trail run and and absolute smashfest with Guy last Thursday.
I also had a pretty reasonable race at Hillarys finishing in the top 10 in the Open category and just outside the top 10 overall. Some good signs there.
Next up is the Albany Olympic distance this coming weekend and then one more hard week of training before taper. I'm bloody excited ;)
It is also great to see a lot of local elite athletes putting up new blogs and keeping us all posted. Most of these guys are much better than me so it's great to see the keeping us updated so we can follow their progression.
Also a quick shout out to Todd one of my biggest fans, who I just learnt yesterday reads my blog and loves it - thanks mate! Keep training hard ;)
Hopefully everyone in Perth is putting up with this heat ok, stay hydrated guys :)
Cheers, Markus.
I've been hitting the (various forms off) track really hard and am quite happy with the results, it's all looking on track. Some highlights have included our regular Tuesday track sets, which have been turned up a notch over the last few weeks, swimming 10k in one day last Wednesday (possibly more of a low-light at the time), receiving a nice kick in the arse when I was forced to walk through Jarrahdale forrest for what seemed like an eternity after going out a littleeee to hard on a trail run and and absolute smashfest with Guy last Thursday.
I also had a pretty reasonable race at Hillarys finishing in the top 10 in the Open category and just outside the top 10 overall. Some good signs there.
Next up is the Albany Olympic distance this coming weekend and then one more hard week of training before taper. I'm bloody excited ;)
It is also great to see a lot of local elite athletes putting up new blogs and keeping us all posted. Most of these guys are much better than me so it's great to see the keeping us updated so we can follow their progression.
Also a quick shout out to Todd one of my biggest fans, who I just learnt yesterday reads my blog and loves it - thanks mate! Keep training hard ;)
Hopefully everyone in Perth is putting up with this heat ok, stay hydrated guys :)
Cheers, Markus.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
On track
Well, there has been a little down time between my last post and this one, but it's for good reason i promise!
It's due to some serious time, in the pool, on the bike, on the track and fighting the invasion of jellyfish off the coast of WA.
That's right I am head down into some serious training for Singapore at the moment and am loving it. I am swimming 6 times a week, to really get my times up. Not that they are shocking but you know what they say, you can't win it from the swim but you can certainly loose it. My biking has picked up quite a lot thanks to my tour down under trip and some really good sets with Seano and Paige.
As for the running it is certainly on the way back with the highlight so far, my 16 x 400's along riverside drive on 1.20's. Into the head wind was just hurtbox galore. :/
But the great thing is my head is right and I am really positive with my training, I can't wait to get out the door every morning. (i think this is a good sign).
Apart from that not much else really...woah what mark?! Not another 100 page blog? No unfortunately not, in fact I am not even sure i have a picture for this one...
Just a side note, massive props to everyone who competed in the City of Perth Olympic Distance a couple of weeks back. The conditions were absolutely the harshest of the harsh and well done to everyone who gutted it through. :)
Short and sweet is the theme and I am really looking forward to a continuation of the roll i have (touch wood) and the couple of races i have before Singas, Hillarys and Albany.
Continue training hard friends, and enjoy.
Markus
It's due to some serious time, in the pool, on the bike, on the track and fighting the invasion of jellyfish off the coast of WA.
That's right I am head down into some serious training for Singapore at the moment and am loving it. I am swimming 6 times a week, to really get my times up. Not that they are shocking but you know what they say, you can't win it from the swim but you can certainly loose it. My biking has picked up quite a lot thanks to my tour down under trip and some really good sets with Seano and Paige.
As for the running it is certainly on the way back with the highlight so far, my 16 x 400's along riverside drive on 1.20's. Into the head wind was just hurtbox galore. :/
But the great thing is my head is right and I am really positive with my training, I can't wait to get out the door every morning. (i think this is a good sign).
Apart from that not much else really...woah what mark?! Not another 100 page blog? No unfortunately not, in fact I am not even sure i have a picture for this one...
Just a side note, massive props to everyone who competed in the City of Perth Olympic Distance a couple of weeks back. The conditions were absolutely the harshest of the harsh and well done to everyone who gutted it through. :)
Short and sweet is the theme and I am really looking forward to a continuation of the roll i have (touch wood) and the couple of races i have before Singas, Hillarys and Albany.
Continue training hard friends, and enjoy.
Markus
Thursday, January 27, 2011
A whirlwind month
Well as the title suggests, it has certainly been a whirlwind month for me. Starting from the 2nd of Jan and my trip to NZ to race with Andy (please see previous blog post).
I was back on the 10th of Jan and after one day at work, i was on the road again, literally. This time, off to RAD-elaide :) A few months ago i was extremellyyyy lucky enough to be offered an opportunity to go with my girlfriend and her family to see the Tour Down Under in Adelaide. Although it was not the best timing straight after NZ, it was an opportunity that i could not let slip and before i knew it i found myself in the car on an early Thursday morning making the drive to the race.
With 4 of us in the large 4wd it was a relatively comfortable 3 and a bit days drive over. Highlights being; playing the worlds longest golf course across the Nullabor with Di and Paige at all the stops, doing a fair bit of driving, the three nights camping in the wilderness (especially the first stop) and the various sugar highs Paige and i experienced when we weren't driving.
With 4 of us in the large 4wd it was a relatively comfortable 3 and a bit days drive over. Highlights being; playing the worlds longest golf course across the Nullabor with Di and Paige at all the stops, doing a fair bit of driving, the three nights camping in the wilderness (especially the first stop) and the various sugar highs Paige and i experienced when we weren't driving.
We finally got there on Sunday, checked into our sweet place and made it down to watch the first Crit. It was so great to be able to watch the worlds best mix it up and gave us a taste of what was to come. Oh and i got to see Lance!! :D
Monday to Friday was just a blur of excitement and the best, best, best times. We managed to get ride every day except the last stage. Each day being different. Tuesday i rode the first stage from start to finish and met up with Bruce and Paige at the end to watch the stage. Wednesday was my favourite day by far with us three, heading out to find the second stage. We had no idea where to go but somehow managed to meet an Adelaide local, who took us on the most amazing ride to get there. This was by far one of my most favourite rides of all time, with the greatest climbs and decents, we all had a blast.
The other high light was Fridays 137k ride through the hills. This was the charity ride, which everyone entered and wore the same jerseys. I rode this with Paige and can honestly say it was the greatest, most enjoyable and one of the hardest rides i have ever done. The best part being the extremely fast and majorly scary 12k decent towards the end. Paige and I got onto the back of some major descenders and held on for dear life, what a rush :) Major props to Paige as well who held her own big time and destroying many of the male riders egos, haha nice work :)
We decided to have Saturday off and got in our own support vehicle with Di and Jane. I was driving and we visited some great towns before heading up to the KOM to see the boys roll through twice. After we hit up a sweet little boutique brewery and some awesome wineries. It was a really really awesome day with the highlight being Paige holding this sign up to all the riders we were passing on the various Adelaide roads, we got so many laughs it was great.
Watching the final stage was great and to see a WA boy Cameron Meyer get up and win was awesome! The next day we were off early in the morning for our three day drive back, not as exciting as the drive over, but still a lot of fun with great people :) A special thanks goes out to Di and Bruce for providing me with the greatest opportunity to go over and for looking after me so well, thank you both so much i appreciate it more than you can imagine. And thank you Paige for being the best person to possibly travel with, i have never laughed so hard in my life, you absolutely made the trip.
This trip and my time away has given me a lot of time to think about where i am now and where i am going with my racing. I am now entering this block of training with a renewed amount of confidence and motivation to head in the direction i want to go - to the top ;)
I cant wait to race Singapore, and i think I'll have a few surprises up my sleeve :). Now back to training and admiring my great new riding tan. Until next time
Markus
Sunday, January 16, 2011
NZ Race Report
Well the third day into our road trip across the Nullabor and I figure I wont get a better time to catch up on my blog, first up New Zealand race report.
After about 15 hours of transit Andy and I finally reached Auckland airport at about 1am in the morning, and actual Auckland at about 2am. It was there we were greeted by Mike and shown to where we were staying. What an apartment! 11th story in the heart of Auckland, what a sweet place! Thanks again Mike J After dumping our bags we decided to get some brekky from Dennys at 3am, then finally hit the hay. Damm jet lag!
The next day was spent cruising around Auckland and the surrounding areas, with a sweet lunch and dinner and an attempt at an early night. Tuesday and we were up at stupid-o’clock to get to the bus and head to Tauranga. After a 4 hour trip we arrived, were greeted by Nana and Grandad and headed to the place we would call home for the next few days.
We spent the proceeding days, chilling in the town, sleeping, napping eating, watching movies and hitting up a couple of small out of town trips. EXCITEMENT PLUS! Before we knew it Friday was here and we were off to check in the bikes. Transition and check in was its usual self and race briefing was surprisingly short.
Thanks to some unusually hot and muggy weather we both struggled to sleep the night before the big day, but hey, what else is new. Up at 4am and I downed my usual pre-race brekky. A powerbar, a banana or two, powerade and water. We got to transition just the way I like it, nice and early and were set up with no worries. After a quick call to my girlfriend Paige for some extra luck I was in my wetty, had downed my powerbar shot and was doing my warm up with the one and only big Andy T.
Before the start I said to him something along the lines of, lets show them how us Aussies race aye?! We were both pretty pumped to come across the tasman and try and show them how its done. The swim start was very technical with as well as it being deep water, there was a yacht right in the middle of the line. I was on the front row and made the decision to go right, which was the correct call. There was the usual creeping forward from everyone and then boom, the horn went.
For about 3 seconds I was leading the race! Waahoo haha. I then got taken by the strongest swimmers, I small pack came past and there was no way I could keep with them, I wondered if Andy was in that group. Ahh well. I settled into what seemed like a long stretched out second group, that were almost keeping in touch with the first. The swim was 2k, a smaller 750 meter first loop followed by a longer 1250 meter second. I got out of the water after the first 750, and seemed to be in an reasonably good position. I jumped back into the water for the second lap and my swim started to fall apart. This has happened twice now, and needs to be addressed. I ran out of the water just under 30 mins, just into 30 by the time I got into transition. After a usual smooth one, and a cheers from Nana and Grandad I was off onto the bike.
My first 10k’s were a bit intense and speedy, but they are always are in a race like that until blood starts flowing to everyones heads and they start thinking more sensibly. I settled into a nice little group of 5, and we were all working legally together. I reached the turn around pretty quick and this is where I got the first glance of the others, actually not a bad deficit. I was happy and comfortable. I was really concentrating on my nutrition and my technique and I had broken away from my original 5 and had caught another group. We were the second or third group.
It was a tough headwind on the way back, so I rode smart and found as much shelter as I could. I came through town and over the 10 speedbumps (wow they were annoying) and was really surprised to see my defecit was quite small. The wind had changed almost instantly and we were now facing a headwind going out. Here the group was joined by 2 pro women (we picked them up) which added an interesting dynamic.
The 4 guys infront didn’t seem to want to set any kind of pace into the headwind so I set it upon myself to. I was feeling really comfortable and rode hard, but still slightly within myself. We got to the turn around again and the deficit was still not to bad, a few minutes. As we turned the 4 guys that were behind me set off. I was pretty annoyed as it seemed they were trying to break after I had done the work. I was left at the back of the back but I wasn’t going to let them go. As I came around I said to the two pro girls, “come on girls if you want to come with me lets go”. They obliged. I worked hard and caught them up again. Very satisfying and as things settled down the two girls thanked me.
About 15k from the finish, a massive pack of 4 wide and probably 12 deep rode past. CHEATERS. I sat back and had nothing to do with it no matter how annoyed I was. However the tri gods were smiling, as about 15 seconds later a TO rode past and pinged all of them!! It was so satisfying and hilarious to see them try and argue their way out of it. Bike time 2.26.
I rolled into transition and saw the first runners. They had a few minutes. I Had a great dismount and had the runners on in no time. Here we go I thought :/ I ran the first 3 and a bit k to the turn around solidly and was taking numbers. I saw Andy and high fived him (a subtle and uneffective attempt to try and break his arm and put him out of the race....). He was looking good.
From here it was on the way back to run around the mount. This was tough. 3k of undulating tough terrain, it really worked my legs over. However i was pretty happy as i was running my way through the field. I ran the forst 11k in 42 and a half minutes and was feeling good. I saw Andy again but was unable to get a split. Onto the second lap and i was slowing a little. I made it to the turn around again but i was in a lot of pain. As i was running back to the mount i latched onto a team runner and held on as long as i could, about 2k.
I reached the mount and it was pretty much game over as the legs had had quite enough. I managed to gut out the last 3 and a bit k's and finished a bit over a minute behind andy, with a PB 4.26. I was really happy but bloody exhausted.
Andy and I manged to pick up 2nd and 3rd respectively in out age group and we were psyched! Both with PB's and podiums. We managed to party untill about 12 that night, extremelllyyyy late for partying after a half haha, and managed about 7 beers and a shot of vodka or two. Crazyyy.
From here it was back to Auckland and Monday, back home. What a great trip, with special thanks going to my cousin Mike for helping us out big time in Auckland, and Nana and Grandad for their hospitality in Tauranga, cheers guys couldnt have done it with out you. :) Also well done to Andy for his great result and thank you to my family and Paige for your everlasting support and faith in me.
Cheers, Markus
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