winterwonderland

More 'Long Slow Distance' training or base kilometers.

I also did 3 laps on the Scheldecross track this morning...















Windburn is back again.

Ironpeople

Thoughts during the looong base kilometers.

Ironman is all about mind.

Not like short distance races where you might be negative but the body feels good so a good race can be had.

Not in the real race. You go in negative and you are dead in the water before you clear the swim.

That's why I like it.

You can't fudge ironman. It's only for ironpeople.

2010 season has begun

The season has begun.!! Exited to be back after 6 weeks of no structure.
Pretty much since Mechelen 1/4tri I've been either swim/bike/run 'ing only when I wanted and felt like it.
Today started the base kilometers. HR zones 2-3.

I'm even more exited since I have a new ride to get me through the winter time.














Fat tires will help keep the bike under my body in the wet conditions and will also help keep the race gear in better shape come the race period.

2 hrs of base running today - and more of the same tomorrow

Too little too much

Too much work to do and too little time to train properly left me ending the season right here.
Florida 70.3 Worlds - and qualifying for it - is from now on on the 2010 schedule.
Training is done for the year, so the blogging is on the down-low....... Things will get going again on November 1 for the 2010 season. Off season has officially started!!
In the meantime I'll break out the mountainbike. And even some sails maybe....

IM70.3 Antwerp

One year ago I did my first triathlon. Now was the time for a reality check: did I make any progress over the last year?
With Brasschaat - where I blew up horribly during the run - in my mind I was eager to rectify some mistakes made. Especially nutrition wise.
The day started windy, rainy and chilly. Nothing that us sailors aren't used to.




















This year start was in waves according to age group - waves being seperated by 3mins each. I was in the 5th and one but last wave. Waves make life easier in the start (140 starters instead of 1100). But only a few minutes into the race you swim up the backs of the slower swimmers from the previous wave, and still a few minutes later you might get swum over by the quick fish from the wave behind you... There's a positive to each negative and vice versa...
In the end I finished the swim in 32min - feeling fresh to push it on the bike.



















Bike course had the breeze against on the way out, and tailwind coming back towards the city. The wet roads in the harbour area - with loads of railway crossings at about 45° angles to the road direction - called for extra attention. Easy to wipe out on those.
I managed 1h23min over the 90km course without blowing up and feeling ready to go hurt on the run.




















The first few km's of the run did not really feel great, but I pushed through and got into a rythm that I thought I could keep till the end. I took 1h32min to get the 21k over with. Not super, but solid.
























Overall I finished 123rd in 4h32min (36min quicker than a year ago - that's progress I think). On top finishing 13nd in my agegroup earned me a slot for the IM70.3 World Championships in Clearwater Florida coming November 14th. So the 2009 season is not over quite yet! But the snipe nationals will have to wait another year though...

smashfest

waiting for the start


I'm the one with the yellow cap













the usual chaos at the gun..













almost finished the 2800M swim leg













I then hopped onto the bike feeling fine and ready to push it for 80km - which in al my enthousiasm I did...



















and then add a 20k run



















Do all the above in +30°C and whilst not drinking more than 1 bottle in the process, and you have the perfect recepy for some major dehydration. Carnage, it wasn't pretty. My face in the pic above says it all. Lesson learned.... (the hard way).
This was not the race that I had aspired to have, but it was just one of those days where just finishing had become enough of a challenge in itself; so in doing that a bit of my performance related disappointment diminished.
But I'm not hurt and I'm not broken either. I'll do all I can to have a good recovery this week and then start over a new training cyclus towards the following races with all the determination that I can fit into my pocket.
I've got another half ironman over the next month, and I expect to remedy some mistakes over this time!
cheers, B

Brasschaat Long Distance race coming up.

Got the bike all tuned and after the bikefit it just feels like a completely different machine. No more hurting involved - well not the kind of hurting that is holding up production. Thanks to Robyn and Henk at www.body2bike.com for that!

Now Brasschaat is a magnificent race - with a looong swim course.
I want to do it justice . So there's my approach:
My first competition there will be me against the course .
I have to make sure I dont let it beat me .
Once I have defeated that, I can go hunting

2 out of 3

3 races in 3 weekends...
Last week was Hamme 1350/35/10 (in the pouring rain)
Yesterday was Brugge 1000/45/10
Coming Sunday is Brasschaat 2700/90/21

Hope I survive the swimming - Hamme and Brugge both got me all tangled up and nearly drowned in the washing mashine start.
Have to learn to choose a side of the line. Let's just say the swimstart is a work in progress...

geez louise

Isn't that picture great? Seriously, this is exactly how I feel! Things definitely are crazy in my world today. I am so far behind on everything and trying my absolute best to catch up. Do you ever have days like that. Sheesh!
Even in the outside-work department things are hectic. 3 races in the next 3 weeks...

training weekend

4 days in the ardennes

teasing the legs

Saturday before the race:
Teasing the legs in a short ride
teasing the legs in a short run
teasing tha arms & legs in a short swim
then ly with the feet high and load them carbo's

evening run

One week to go before the first long distance race, and nearing the end of a big block of training.
This evening I set out for my usual Thursday long run. Empty the head and watch the world go by!

swimming in busy lanes

For the last few weeks I’ve been swimming…a lot! With this, I’ve learned a few tips when swimming with a handful of lane swimmers and non-lane swimmers alike!

Tip #1: If you want to feel like you’re going fast, swim in the recreational lane and weave in/out of the bobbers (aka breast-stroke swimmers with a belt on)!

Tip #2: If your lane is right beside the ‘play’ area for kids and you find kids swimming/playing with your lane rope, grab one of those dangling legs as you swim past. You’ll go much faster, even for just an instant! And your next lap will be free of obstacles!

Tip #3: Don’t pull on your swim cap too much…it splits in two!

Tip #4: If you’re swimming with 6-8 swimmers in one lane and you’re all swimming at different speeds, pick your time to start your intervals. Give yourself a whole lane length between the next swimmer. If this isn’t possible, try Tip #2.

Tip #5: Swimming HURTS. Remember this for every stroke.

Fail

Kampenhout, on the way between Antwerp and Leuven!

long ride

the plan: the knooppunt route sticking on the top tube


underway 1: monument for the victims of the 1953 inundation


underway2: all of a sudden the road 'ends' into the water


done - another bail of hay in the barn!

Antwerp 10 miles

How I love this race, but truthfully run-races scare me. It's like running with gazelles. They're just a different breed. The thing I love is that the competition drives you to be your fastest on that course.
But yesterday leaves me with some homework to do. Got to fix the pacing problem that I have.
Plan was to start out mellow and build into the race and finish off with a negative split. I started out slowly allright, but apparently my legs love the longer distance pace, and want to stay there. So there was no picking up the pace or no negative split at all. I was ready to run, eager to go hurt, but the legs just said 'we love this pace you train us at and we stay here'. And that was that. Trying to find another gear was no use. The legs just wanted to hang out in the 4min/km zone. I guess I have them well trained for that. Firing up the pace was causing leg carnage big time - especially on the long uphill in waaslandtunnel!
When all was said and done I was stoked to pb by over 15 minutes!! 335th place in 1.05.17 for the tunnels in tunnels out race isn't bad after all! Must be my start was not as mellow as I had planned it...

Summary

A week in hilly and windy Lanzarote:

Swim 12km in either the lagoon or the delirious 50m heated saltwater pool....


Bike 435km up against the hills, up against the wind and through hot and black lava fields


Run 52km both on- and offroad and finish off with intervals on the track.
Everywhere you looked, there were always some rochstars around. Bella Comerford is on the pic above.

Over one week there has been some of everything: from light 'n easy to legs burning, heart nearly out of your chest max effort crazy hill repeat workouts.
To say that this camp was a challenge would be a gross understatement.
Recipe for getting some fresh air, emptiyng the head and hopefully becoming a better athlete.

Lanza calling

Yeahyeah...
Today I rode alone - did the exact same 80K ride as over the weekend, but in reverse way.
Time and avg was exactly the same as when doing the group ride...
Only difference: today there was a fierce wind blowing and it was rainy (again)... Luckily I was in a good enough mood to just go out and do the ride... Some'd say I had made peace with it.





BUT: time has come to pack again and leave for another training camp in a sunny venue.
Saturday afternoon I'll be in Lanzarote: home of big winds, hills, lava fields and above all sun!!! Club La Santa, in the middle of nowhere but with it's 50m outdoor pool, and it's track and field pitch



From windburn to sunburn!

left handers

atriac saturday morning group ride was on the list for today. As most of the group were out for the Ronde van Vlaanderen, there was just four of us.
Just over halfway Amber got a flat. Being a girl of course she had no spare. Luckily she could count on us men to help out a lady in distress! I had a spare, Sebastian had a pump.
Just as we were about to finish the fix, we break the valve and with a long and loud whistle the tire goes flat again. No worries, Tommy had another spare. Sure enough Sebastian's freaky pump bends the second valve as well. As that's the last spare we had, there was no other option for Amber to ride home with a semi inflated front tire....
What a secure feeling for her being able to go out with three handymen... maybe we should enter flat fixing class after all...

spring!

Springtime has arrived!
Short sleeves and shorts for the first time. Makes you bike just a bit quicker all of a sudden...

The OK sailors are coming out of hibernation as well. Ronny in front of his 'old' boat B-90

sprint race

Sprint races in the early spring: swimming is in the morning and in a pool, and then in the afternoon you get to start the bike&run leg according to your swim time.



the face says it all!! Sprint triathlons on hilly courses are hard!! You dig deep till snot comes out, and then you try to dig a bit deeper still.


But it's nice to see where your fitness is at right at the beginning of the season. It gives you such satisfaction, and it's such a relief to see that finish line...